Mike Wilkerson unholsters his electrified pencil and takes aim at this week’s FlashForward Podcast review! Week 5, “Gimme’ Some Truth” begins with a strange FlashForward of it’s own. A courtroom conclusion, arguments from previously cool headed waters, and a black van with asian guns ready to put a variety of holes into familiar foreheads! All this, an explosion with no discernible series of conclusions and more starts off this week’s 2GuysTalking FlashForward podcast!

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— Perspective Tales: One of the most important traits of entertainment that I’ve come to revel in over my many years of television and feature film review is that success is often based (for good or for bad) on the pacing of a project. To date, FlashForward has nailed pacing into some great final showcases in regard to the previous four episodes. This episode takes a different tack and ends up showing us something much nearer to the conclusion FIRST, and then vaults into “how did we get here” mode of pacing. I’m not sure it’s going to work here. Even though this show is essentially a “time travel” piece that provides contents that we will eventually connect like dots to make a clearer and defined picture later on, I think moving to this kind of pacing for this show is a bad move and almost lends the feel of having a gimmick. Cold Case is able to pull of something in the same vein each episode, but that show is based on a significant period of time passing between the initial “murder” and the solving of the Cold Case. I’m hoping this is a test of the FlashForward audience waters and I’d recommend that we all respond with a clear cut “not so much.” Be sure to let us know what YOU think about this via The 2GuysTalking: FlashForward Podcast now by accessing the website at FlashForwardPodcast.Com, click on the contact button on the top right of the page, fill out the quick webform and let us know what YOU think of this episodes pacing style!

– The man testing is from 24, Over There and a number of other things: Something I’ve continued to love about good, episodic television, is the desire and continued use of previous characters in other shows. In this case, the man manning the polygraph, is Omid Abtahi, whom I remember most from “Over There”, an outstanding SPIKE vehicle from 2005 who’s made a number of appearances in other shows on other networks over the last few years including our favorite, “24″. When you consider their appearances in short-lived programs (like Over There) and that very often their characters DIE on other series, it’s great to see more extension of great and YOUNG character actors. I hope to see more of Omid Abtahi in future programs. His role as an interpreter for “Over There” was an outstanding one and one that I think really had potential. As our days in the wars become more pronounced and heard about, who knows - inside of an interpreter-based series? I know I’d be watching.

— Halloween Wrap Through: I’m not sure why shows don’t do this more, but I love it when they wrap the appropriate “time of the year” inside of programs like this one. It makes the puzzle pieces seem more appropriate and allows us another level with which to engage the program. It also can be a great focus of plot devices that - while they aren’t used in this episode, they could be used in others.

— Noh is using a Pal Pre: Note to all that care. Agent Noh is using a Palm Pre to - do whatever. 2GuysTalking: FlashForward Podcast host Mike Wilkerson - ME, is also currently using a Palm Pre and for the most part, I’m satisfied with it. Product placement is something that we’ve always been omni-aware of inside of our television and feature film reviews, and we’ll be paying that off in the near future, with an unbiased, unpaid review of The Palm Pre as the holidays arrive here in December. Are you using a Palm Pre? Have you tried it and it wasn’t for you? Either way, let us know and we’ll include your details in our review of the product. Don’t forget to tell us what tips, tricks and details we’re missing out on a reasonably positive experience with the detailed, web-surfing, Email-engaged, unlimited minute plan on the Palm Pre via our website, at FlashForwardPodcast.Com.

— Bull ‘Wild Bill’ Gonorrhea Guarnere: Fresh from the halls of “24″ appears Frank John Hughes, the man that portrayed the ever-to-be-a-band-of-brothers-character, William ‘Wild Bill’ Gonorrhea Guarnere. I have always liked him and it looks like he’s going to get another smaller, supportive role here in this series. I am eager to see the man provided something of his own. He’s surely got the character to do it and there are a number of comic book movie roles that could role his way and have him excel with them.

— Presidential weight: For those of you that remember the entirely appropriately-timed “E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial”, Peter Coyote enters the hardwood in this episode playing basketball with project manager Wedek - who, as we find out later in the episode, is the President of the United States. I recently finished a series of “Halloween Fun Feature Films” for ScreenRant.Com - that you can link to via our reviews at FlashForwardPodcast.Com by the way, and E.T. was one of the many great movies included on my listing and Peter Coyote is one of the reasons it was so great. He’s featured here and will be with us for at least the next 6 months and I can’t wait to see what surprises he has for us. He’s been a great actor with so many shows and movies to his credit. I applaud FlashForward for going to get an actor of his caliber in such a vital role.

— The Reselection of a Vice President: I know that my co-host for The 24Podcast.Com effort, Tony Lovasco would be ecstatic knowing that there’s not only the DEATH of a Vice President in this show, but that there’s actually a process to detail and find a replacement! Something that’s really boggled us for years, is that in the realm of “24″ there are so many dead Presidents, that it’s literally impossible to keep a tally or know what’s happened with them. Between a downed Air Force One, to attempted and later successful assassination attempts, it’s simply extraordinary to think that there’s actually a record of what has happened to the Presidents of the United States inside the 24 realm - but TONY HAS IT! Contact us via our 24 Podcast.Com website today and we’ll send you a copy of the detailed and humorous record that Tony’s kept over the years that continues to astound those of you that contact our 24Podcast.Com effort which will again be starting in just 2 short months! For more on our 24Podcast.Com effort, check out The 2GuysTalking 24 Podcast at 24Podcast.Com.

— World Leaders Hold on to their FlashForwards: This is an outstanding and detailed spinoff series waiting to happen. Wouldn’t it be extraordinary if there was a “team” that does nothing but investigate and secure the FlashForwards of current world leaders? Now that’s something I call COOL. I’m certain that at this point they wouldn’t look into it, but for common good, a team of people finding out this information would surely be a good benefit and potential series of plot points to push a very cool show.

— Pondering fulfillment of a FlashForward: We’ve talked about this in previous FlashForward Podcasts, but I continue to find the potential research and data collection for this something extraordinary. That, by the end of the show, they’ve actually green-lit the project and “get the funding” to continue the Mosaic project isn’t just a great thing, it means that we can hope to see some of the unlimited number of stories, what-ifs and we-can-hope-fors in the future as the team continue sto uncover and connect pieces of the global puzzle.

— Gays with Guns? Female 3-Way? I’m not sure if it was the cold-medicine-induced stupor, or that I just haven’t had enough sleep over the last several days, but it seems to me that the insertion of there being a lesbian cast member here, is- sadly - simply for inserting that there is a lesbian cast member’s sake. I call that LAZY writing, and a gimmick to get uneducated, weren’t sure what we were previously watching audience members. I could be wrong, but it’s a strange way to go, 4 episodes into a run of a show, to jerk the wheel so radically, especially when they don’t make it really anything that effects, interferes or potentially changes the overally arc of the story. More on that later.

— Annnd the kiss…: I’ve worked with gays and lesbians previously, and I’ll be asking their opinion of what they see on tonite’s episode. For me, this just felt so “inserted” for inserted sake, rather than it actually meaning something. Was that the point? To just “have it” rather than to hope to make some kind of a statement? Let’s hear from those of you in the Gay and Lesbian population: Was this “appropriate”? Did we see, of course forgetting that the FlashForwards happened and were talked about, a traditional, reasonably worthless relationship showcased or did we see something inserted for insertion’s take? Let us know what YOU think by accessing our website at FlashForwardPodcast.Com, click on the contact button on the top right of the page, fill out the quick webform and let us know what YOU think.

— Clemente Vs. Wedeck and 6 Months a President Rises: I’m not sure everyone really understands how hard but vital it is to be able to showcase the amount of dislike/hate that is shown here between these two characters:. In addition to older bad blood between Clemente, and Wedeck, we also learn that her FlashForward showed her as THE PRESIDENT in just 6 short months! Wow! What do you think will happen to Peter Coyote? Will it be something natural or more in the realm of assassination?

–  Tack Vs. Tact: For those that aren’t’ yet familiar with The 2GuysTalking Podcast series, we’re fans of the closed captions featured inside of programs and their commercials and have been compiling a Deaf and Hard of Hearing Buyers Guide for all-things captioned. This week, we noticed that the closed captions showcased the word “tack” used by Clemente to refer to how someone is planning to do something. The meaning of this word via our favorite online word search, VisualThesaurus.Com, tell us that it means “the heading or position of a vessel relative to the trim of the sails.” The word that should have been used was “tact”, meaning “consideration in dealing with others and avoiding giving offense.” Be sure to tell us when YOU see something strange inside the open or closed captions you see and many thanks to the sponsors of The 2GuysTalking Caption Hunt Project, Sprint’s RelayMissouri, Acoustica’s Mixcraft 4 recording Software, Ability Interpreting and The Sacks Group. Find out more about The Caption Hunt Project at CaptionHunt.Com, and be sure to thank our sponsors!

– Second and Third Kiss and an Alarm Clock: Is it just me or are the kissing being provided rather “machine-like?” If you’re going to offer up a kiss, and in this case, between two women, make it a good solid kiss for pete’s sake. Of the many on record, we liked the kiss between Jadzia Dax and Lenara from Deep Space Nine many moons ago and folks - it’s not because two WOMEN are kissing. It’s because there are two talented actors on-screen showcasing true emotion between individuals. I dont know how much more clear to be on that.

— Asking Questions about an “on-going investigation”: Looks to me like there are a LOT of civilians inside the courtroom during this episode. Doesn’t the detail of potential future events, no matter how benign they may seem need to have some semblance of secrecy? That we were just talking about how world leaders “don’t discuss their FlashForwards” I would suppose that we don’t share ongoing investigations in regard to FlashForwards with the general public - ever. The damage and potential wrong that could be done would be extraordinary in the case of federal-level investigations.

— Talking down to an active, fruitful cultivating agent: While I’d like to call the “tact” of Clemente something completely imaginary, we had something very much like this done to an active multi-starred general recently by another active woman in government. They succeeded in making me angry that I had to watch this, though. Mission: Accomplished, right?

— Investigating pictures on a laptop in the middle of a conference room? I was curious here that the smaller part of a team would be standing around a small laptop “investigating larger scale pictures of satellite photos.” Even my 9-5 workplace has a conference room where a projector can be tasked to showcase larger scale pictures of things like this and I was supremely amazed that they didn’t take the opportunity to dazzle us a bit with this shot of the very functional “plant” showcased here. Did you think that there should have been more punch in the research being done to minute photos here?

— Please define a qualitative difference in FlashForwards: I haven’t disliked anything in FlashForward - until this episode. This point where Clemente is somehow able to discern that Benford’s visions are clouded and unclear and that others are crystal clear - please. As the bullet point showcases, please define for me a “qualitative difference in FlashForwards.” There’s no way to assign a “resolution” value here and I hated that this scene drug on, placing Benford into very uncomfortable water that would never be tread in a venue like this. What do YOU think?

— Raise your hands if you ask awkward questions in a public place: I’m generally a pretty open person. I tend to let people know what I think, I give a good solid “why” to my arguments and hope that people will do the same. That being said, how many of you would ever offer up this kind of “awkward question” standing in the middle of an art gallery, with tens of people standing around you within earshot/eyeshot? This, along with the previous point made me the most disgusted with the show more so than many things included in season 6 of “24″. What is going on?

— I Mosaic’d you: This lightened the skies around me immediately. This truly is what would happen when/if something like this were to happen. It would become the “next Google” of information sharing and investigation and as happens here, people would base assumptions and feelings and what they’ll now dos on it.

— Wedeck Plays the blackmail card: I’ve always said that some of the best characters created are the ones that have a series of bad facets. Here’s Wedek’s first. To get what he needs he plays the blackmail card on a friend who - just happens to be the President of the United States. Love it!

— Giving up on a relationship so quick: We don’t need to investigate the lesbian dynamic of tonite’s episode. What we need to ask questions about however is the lack of support between Janice and her apparent one-night-stand lover. Imagine how neat it would have been to have had the same scene of doubt and “I Mosaic’d you” and then (insert musical hit.wav) SHE STAYS WITH JANICE to play out the hand of fate in late April next year!?!? Can we at LEAST have some hope provided on a plate that there is someone in the current that will RIDE IT OUT TOGETHER? Bring in some solid relationships, regardless of the mechanics involved and show us some HOPE. Just about every single FlashForward encountered so far has been laced with doubt, hate, or destruction and I’m eager to see something more definitive and POSITIVE, aren’t you?

— Wedek rides Benford? “You were impaired when you had it?” No, he was impaired IN the FlashForward according to the accounts that we see there. I hate that we’ve made alcoholism the fulcrum of the lead characters FlashForward because if all we’re going to do is doubt him because “in his FlashForward, he was drunk” for 6 months, this is going to be a long drag to April 2010. We need to know more/something else that’s going to engage us about Benford way before April of next year - clearly - or we’re going to head into the same realm of invented crap that dooms so many shows.

— A car explodes - again! And I call BS: Alright, we already know that the world has “experienced a global blackout of 2 minutes and 17 seconds” which already exceeds the general realm of possibility, yes. Now, we’re supposed to believe that all of our stars/supporting character were in/in proximity to the explosion recently and that all lived, and are completely unharmed? Huh? Seems to me that this piece of this episode was created so that characters could be easily “uncontracted” should the story go in a different direction or if they knew that the series would never see 13 episodes. I was very disappointed with this scene, in particular with the music laid over the top of the gunfight. It didn’t match, it wasn’t needed and I think only added levity to a scene that was anything but funny. Get back in step, FlashForward! Eeek!

— Janice kicks ass and bleeds: This scene helped to make up for the previous one where we see Janice kick some ass but then is shot (wow, looks like mortally as well - you don’t usually bleed that much and have a good day) by the second of 2 Asian henchmen. This too felt like another “will they kill her if we get canceled” scene, but I am at least engaged and eager to see what happens next week!

In 5 offerings now for ABC’s FlashForward, we’ve seen solid scores but this one falls to a 5 of 10 for us here. what did YOU think of this 5th week of ABC’s FlashForward? Contact us today via The FlashForward Podcast and let us know what YOU think, at FlashForwardPodcast.Com!