“Day Break” (TV Show)

[Delighted Romeo]

I don't know how many of you got the chance to catch the TV show “Day Break” on ABC, as it was canceled in December after only a few weeks. The show was actually only designed to run for 13 one-hour episodes while “Lost” was on hiatus, but the ratings for “Day Break” dropped each week so it was canceled, which pissed me off. It's basically a cop show using the same plot device as the movie “Groundhog Day.” Of course, that means it couldn't really happen but that doesn't impact your enjoyment of the show. The show has a complex plot and it's practically impossible to figure it out where it's going while you're watching an episode.

Anyway, here is a brief synopsis from ABC.com about the show at http://abc.go.com/primetime/daybreak/about.html

Taye Diggs (Kevin Hill) stars in this action-packed thriller that takes a bad day and multiplies it by infinity. Detective Brett Hopper (Diggs) is having a hellacious day; the kind of day where nothing goes his way and he just can't wait to put it behind him... only he can't, because he's living the same day over and over again.

On this particular day, Hopper is accused of killing Assistant District Attorney Alberto Garza. He offers a solid alibi which no one believes. He realizes he's been framed. And he runs, discovering en route that not only he, but also his loved ones are in danger. He then wakes up and relives the same day over and over again. In order to break the cycle and move on, he has to figure out who framed him and solve the complex mystery surrounding Garza's death. He is also forced to heal the fractured relationships with those he loves. Either Hopper can break this day, or this day will break Hopper.

Caught in the vicious cycle of his horrific day is girlfriend Rita Shelten (Moon Bloodgood, Eight Below), who is the first to be sacrificed by the mysterious individuals out to frame Hopper; Rita's ex-husband and Hopper's ex-partner, Chad Shelten (Adam Baldwin, Independence Day, Serenity, Full Metal Jacket) - now with Internal Affairs - is jealous of the relationship and knows much more about what's going on than he's willing to admit; Hopper's sister, Jennifer Mathis (Meta Golding), not only has to deal with the abuses of her husband but is in danger as she and her children are used as pawns to get to her brother; Hopper's partner, Andrea Battle (Victoria Pratt, Mutant X, Cleopatra 2525), is under scrutiny by the department and Internal Affairs - can she be trusted?; and reputed gang leader Damien Ortiz (Ramon Rodriguez) discovers that his police-protected cover has been inexplicably blown and that he is somehow connected to Hopper's dilemma and now a target in the conspiracy.

Only when Hopper figures out why his life is broken and how to fix it will he awaken to a brand new day. He will not only try to save himself but those close to him who are now in danger. But he must carefully weigh each decision he makes, as all will have consequences -- advantageous or disastrous.

Day Break stars Taye Diggs as Detective Brett Hopper, Moon Bloodgood as Rita Shelten, Meta Golding as Jennifer Mathis, Victoria Pratt as Andrea Battle, Ramon Rodriguez as Damien Ortiz and Adam Baldwin as Chad Shelten.

The series, which was created by Paul Zbyszewski (After the Sunset), is executive produced by Matthew Gross, Jeffrey Bell (Alias, Angel, The X-Files) and Rob Bowman (The X-Files, Elektra). Zbyszewski also serves as co-executive producer. Day Break is from Touchstone Television.

I think what ultimately caused the ratings to drop for this show was that you couldn't miss a single episode otherwise you were out of the loop on the plot. Plus, the show started in mid-November 2006, right around the holidays, with one episode running the night before Thanksgiving. Perhaps if ABC had run the show a different night or run the same episode twice each week it could've survived the axe.

I'm not much of a TV watcher, as I probably watch 2-3 TV shows religiously (e.g., “The Shield,” “Rescue Me”), but this show has really been great and entertaining. You can watch all of the episodes in order on the ABC.com Web site at http://abc.go.com/primetime/daybreak/index.html.

If anyone gets a chance, give it a try. The first episode is a two-hour episode. I'd like to know what people think of this show if there are any other viewers here on the Links. If it comes out on DVD, I'm certainly going to scoop it up.

[kevaxe2k1]

I LOVED the show and was curious to see how they were gonna wrap it up. I hate it when they bring out shows like that and you never get closure. Did they film a whole season? I would like to see the rest of the shows if they ever see the light of day.

[FORD]

I wouldn't be surprised if they brought it back for the summer, after "Lost" is done for the year. Of course they would have to start over at the beginning.

The show had potential, but the predictability factor of it can go bad if they don't handle it right. Groundhog Day was a 2 hour movie, this was a 13 week series, so that's a little more repetition. Although Taye Diggs DID find out he was able to change events. Just not always for the better.....

Looks like there's a new Sandra Bullock movie out using the same plot. Nothing worth seeing in the theater probably, but I'll probably check it out when it's on DVD in about 3 months.

[Delighted Romeo]

I LOVED the show and was curious to see how they were gonna wrap it up. I hate it when they bring out shows like that and you never get closure. Did they film a whole season? I would like to see the rest of the shows if they ever see the light of day.

Yes, they filmed the whole season. You can watch the entire season (minus the series finale, which won't be available until later this week) online on ABC.com. Just go to http://dynamic.abc.go.com/streaming/landing and click on the "Launch Now" button. Then in the new window that opens up, scroll over and click on the picture of Taye Diggs. All of the episodes will be listed and you can click on them to watch them in order. I'm still hoping they put all of them out on DVD eventually. Then again, my enthusiasm for DVDs is based on my assumption that the series finale won't disappoint me, as I'd hate to have a lame ending ruin the whole season. But I guess I'll find out in the next couple of days.

[Delighted Romeo]

I wouldn't be surprised if they brought it back for the summer, after "Lost" is done for the year. Of course they would have to start over at the beginning.

The show had potential, but the predictability factor of it can go bad if they don't handle it right. Groundhog Day was a 2 hour movie, this was a 13 week series, so that's a little more repetition. Although Taye Diggs DID find out he was able to change events. Just not always for the better.....

The ability to change events is a key part of the "Decision...Consequence" theme of the show. I like how this was both used this for serious plots and less serious aspects of the show (e.g., on one version of the day, Hopper was able to convince his girlfriend that he was reliving the same day in part by predicting to the precise second when a surfboarder would do a face plant on the beach while he ran into the water). It is kind of reminiscent of "Groundhog Day" when Bill Murray did that same exact thing with Andie MacDowell during one version of that day.

You are right about the increased difficulties of keeping a show like this fresh and unpredictable over 13 weeks vs. a two-hour movie, but I thought they handled it very well, as you didn't have to watch the same scenes over and over each episode. The editors should certainly win some awards for this show.

Looks like there's a new Sandra Bullock movie out using the same plot. Nothing worth seeing in the theater probably, but I'll probably check it out when it's on DVD in about 3 months.

I saw that and watched the trailer online. It's called "Premonition." It looks pretty good but the trailer seemed to give away a main plot point, which I won't repeat here. Nonetheless, I'll probably also catch it on DVD, too.

[Delighted Romeo]

Yes, they filmed the whole season. You can watch the entire season (minus the series finale, which won't be available until later this week) online on ABC.com. Just go to http://dynamic.abc.go.com/streaming/landing and click on the "Launch Now" button. Then in the new window that opens up, scroll over and click on the picture of Taye Diggs. All of the episodes will be listed and you can click on them to watch them in order. I'm still hoping they put all of them out on DVD eventually. Then again, my enthusiasm for DVDs is based on my assumption that the series finale won't disappoint me, as I'd hate to have a lame ending ruin the whole season. But I guess I'll find out in the next couple of days.

I just watched the series finale episode, which was posted online late this afternoon, and it definitely didn't disappoint me. Great ending to a great show.

If you have the time, I encourage you to watch the entire season online. As I wrote above, go to http://dynamic.abc.go.com/streaming/landing and click on the "Launch Now" button. Then in the new window that opens up, scroll over and click on the picture of Taye Diggs. All of the episodes will be listed and you can click on them to watch them in order. I hope you enjoy it.