DEBRIEF: Episode 403, "All the Rage"

SPOILERS BELOW!

I love zombies. In videogames, books, movies, comics, what have you. So I felt very lucky indeed to get to write "All the Rage," Eureka's love letter to the likes of Dawn of the Dead and 28 Days Later.

It was a really fun challenge for us to do a "scary" episode of Eureka that's still Eureka, with our mix of humor, emotion, and sci fi action. Director Mike Rohl and the production and post teams did an amazing job turning cheery, bright Global Dynamics into a creeptastic, claustrophobic zombie haven. How eerie was that trashed infirmary? As our fantastic DP Rick Maguire and his ace crew will tell you, lighting for darkness is much harder than lighting for…well, light.

You can hardly make a zombie show without zombies, can you? This episode had a huge number of extras. Here they are in the Rotunda, taking a break between shots. Even zombies need coffee.

This episode was largely about Fargo learning first hand the stresses and challenges of leadership, but I don't think Fargo imagined that getting attacked by NOLWEPs and enraged employees would be part of the job description. Here's Neil behind the scenes, getting the I-mine webbing applied. ("I almost suffocated! And these were my favorite pants.")

This episode also was about Jo finding her feet with her new position at GD, and succeeding despite being affected by the anger ray-- and snarky Zane. Doesn't Erica look great in her suit?

We were so fortunate to have Wil Wheaton as our guest star, who fit seamlessly into the cast and was a blast to work with. As you may've heard, he's joining us for multiple episodes in the back half of the season, so Dr. Parrish will be back! Buckle up...

The NOLWEPs, or non-lethal weapons (also called less-lethal weapons), are a real branch of weapons development, as you may know, although the Eureka version of a NOLWEP lab involves more things like sticky foam and slippery anti-traction gel than pepper spray or the Active Denial System. It was fascinating to research the technology. Stink bombs? Really?

The episode was also about relationships beginning and ending. Henry's starting to fall for charming, smart Grace, who still doesn't know he's not "her" Henry. And we bid a bittersweet farewell to Tess, a moment that was heartbreaking but that had to be. Carter did the right thing by her, even though it hurt both of them. Breakups aren't easy, even (or especially) in Eureka.

Giving voice to what's under the surface -- GD's resentment of "Other" Fargo, Grant's loss of the life he might have had, Carter ending things with Tess because he knows they won't work out as a couple -- can be painful, but sometimes is necessary to effect change. Better to let it all out before you end up with, say, a zombie mob of mad scientists...

Thanks for watching!

From Kira Snyder, writer of "All the Rage"

Comments

[Michael J]

With all due respect Kira, Tess' exit was a crappy ending for a great character that was badly handled from the beginning of the season right to the end of of Episode 3. I know that it was inevitable that the direction of the show was going back to Carter and Allison's on-again-off again flirt, but for those of us who appreciate Tess' contribution to the show, wouldn't it have been better to give her a more noble and permanent exit through death such as was given to Nathan Stark instead of creating an ill-contrived break-up that exiled her heart-broken to Australia?

I know, this is a show and I can separate fiction from reality (I am a lawyer after all), but the life-blood of this show is its fan-base and part of fandom requires investment in a character, and that is what happened with a significant portion of the fans with regards to Tess.

Jamia Paglia extols the fans to spread the word about Eureka, and while I've personally introduced several friends to the show, I am less inclined to do so now. I'll probably continue watching, but do know that as a writer myself, this episode left a bad taste in my mouth.

Furthermore, for the first time I can say I have no sympathy for the Sheriff, and for the first time I can tell you I'm disappointed with Eureka.

With highest regards,

Michael

[Mister_terrific]

Kira, congratulations on a fabulous episode. The director couldn't have done his stellar job without your rock-solid script. There was so much underlying emotional complexity throughout, and it was all very true to the characters, especially Jo.

And I absolutely loved the Grace subplot. That is a woman to be reckoned with!

[MaryM]

Kira - thanks for a great, energy-filled episode that was a wonderful tribute to the genre. It had me on the edge of my seat! The music, acting, camera work, and direction all came together perfectly. I'm more excited for the rest of the season than ever before and I can't wait to see what else is in story. Your hard work is appreciated from this fan!

[Teri J. Dluznieski]

I have to agree with the comment regarding the story line around Tess. I don't know if any of the Eureka staff have been following the discussions on the site forum.. but there has been a lot of back and forth on this subject. The overall consensus is that is was shabbily done.. it felt contrived, unrealistic and tacky.

after Spending the entire second half of season 3 with the characters and the actors working together phenomenally- a few poorly written lines that retcon a plot the writers seemed determined to follow despite where the characters had gone one their own ( those pesky characters)..

I do over- made it abundantly clear that Allison and jack were friends, and that is how she was always going to see him.. stark was her soul-mate... and while yes, people can move on after that.. the guy watching from the sidelines is not going to step up to be the schlub who knows he will never be " the one"... -- for starters..

2- those were the ground rules that the writing set up... aside from the time line shift.. some things remain the same in all time lines, period.. and even if they didn't-- carter and allison weren't ones who had changed.. so that argument goes poof about as quickly as the higgs boson/graviton into some other dimension..

btw- do love the jo storyline.. and it might have been fun to watch how she and zane resolve or rewrite their storyline.. but- I for one have taken eureka off my must-watch list and will not be making a point of tuning in on fridays for it.. I suspect many other viewers feel the same, based on the forums-- which I suggest eureka staff read..

[SciFiLvr]

I loved this episode and season 4 so far. I glad Tess is gone. It had to be done for Allison and Jack to really have a relationship. But with that said the writing and acting in this episode from all the actors and guest actors was great.

[Mike]

It was a great episode and I'm glad Tess is gone. She never should've been brought back in the first place. Enough with the love triangles.

[lingin]

Alison is a woman; Tess is a girl. Jaime Newman was about as convincing a scientist as Denise Richards in "The World is Not Enough." She's not untalented but she couldn't pull that off.

[CE_Stragos]

I must say Kira, you guys did an excellent job with the zombie plot. The sets, action and homages to zombie movies were all done to perfection.

On the issue of Tess' departure and the breakup, it was handled poorly. The entire 'decline' of the Jack/Tess relationship, was established by a poorly edited breakup scene in the premiere and a one liner by Jack. It felt very forced. Not only that, but the breakup talk between Jack and Tess in this episode had me walk away with the distinct feeling that Jack came off as a supreme jerk. I understand that you want to put Jack and Allison back on the path of romance (even after you pretty much killed that aspect in season 3). To me however, bringing back a great character like Tess only to do this to her before the season has fully taken off, leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

[M]

Well, for every fan Eureka *seems* to be losing, you're gaining one (or more) back. New fan here, and loving it. Plus I've got 2 more friends hooked through word-of-mouth. :D

One thing I would like to suggest: With all of this heated discussion about Jack and Tess, would it be possible for the deleted Jack/Tess scene from episode one to be shown on the Eureka website as an "extra?" It might offer the fans some much needed background about Jack/Tess' relationship in their time apart, and maybe some insight into the breakup. To have to wait for the DVD extras seems a little unfair right now, don't you think? :)

[Brittany]

I really enjoyed this episode and I'm glad to hear Wil Wheaton will be back for more episodes! He fit in so well I had to double check that his character hadn't been on the show before. I personally didn't have a problem with Tess' exit as she had already gotten one last season. If people have a problem with anything, it should be that she came back at all for one episode. I really did hate that character, but I was kind of proud of Carter for actually ending it and not dragging her along for the sake of playing nice. I personally think it's much more mature to let someone go if you don't love them or think you aren't a good couple. There's no right or nice way to breakup with someone, but considering everything, it was done as well as could be expected. Carter didn't move and change his phone number, he told Tess the truth - they didn't work as a couple and she would be happy in Australia.

[Janet]

It was a great episode. The "zombies" were great. Everything was great until the ending. I must agree with those that say Tess' exit should have handled more properly. It felt as if it was forced. For me, I love Tess. Jaime Ray Newman is a great actress and I hope you have her back on the show again. I must agree with Michael J.'s comment.

[Steue]

Great episode, but I have to ask:
How did Dr Grant look himself, from the other timeline, up on the Eureka servers?
He knew stuff he would have done if he hadn't time travelled...

[Kent H]

Thanks for dropping Tess, but you've officially killed my interest in Eureka. Her introduction brought me back to the show in Season 3.5. It sounds like the push is being forced to bring Allison and Jack Carter together, which I have no interest in seeing their relationship progress. So... it sounds like I'll be dropping Eureka. Well done, Writers!

[Kent H]

Yikes... I should take a writing revising class...

Just to add to my previous comment, I'd much rather see Jack and Tess together, but I know by asking this I'm asking for all hair on my bald head to grow back. Again, well done Writers. On a positive note, I enjoyed the return of Sheriff Andy this season, but it won't make up for the absence of Tess Fontana.

Until we talk again.

[Kent H]

I'd say Tess Fontana's science IQ succeeds that of Allison Blake's. It's Dr. Fontana's smartness and quirkyness that makes "most" of us love her.

[Mike]

Fans of Jaime can check her out on Drop Dead Diva, another great show. She has an equally annoying character on there.

[SurferGuy]

It's getting so tired to see all the kewl talk here turn into Tess this, Tess that. EVERYONE, she's gone, let go! This is taking over all the space here and creating bad vibes. I'm expecting someone to post in the Maury Chakin thread about Tess cause that's what evwerything else has turned into. GAWD!

[Chris]

To be honest, there really isn't anything else that matters, at least for now.

What else are we gonna talk about? If you have something to bring up, please do so.

The main point of all the 'Tess this, Tess that' stuff here is to let the writers know what we think of what they did. I personally wanted Jack and Tess together, but understood that the chances of that happening were about as likely as me getting in a threesome (mad hawtz). That said, the way they did the breakup was awful. There was no clear evidence that the relationship was bad (as the debrief seems to assume). They fabricated that out of a deleted scene and some crud dialogue from Jack. That was pure BS.

I don't like Jack/Allison at all. I've never made a secret of that. However, it'd be more acceptable if the writers didn't just sweep all the obstacles those two have to their relationship (too much to go into) into a corner without providing anything resembling backup.

Seriously, why ever bring Tess back for Season 4 if all you were going to do with her was this? It's a terrible goodbye for one of my favorite characters. Besides, not bringing her back would have made Tess-haters happy anyway.

[pickles247]

I understand where the Tess fans are comming from with their anger about how her character went. It saddens me to know that the show is losing some people over her character. Me personaly i was never a fan of her, but i still continued to watch. I love Eureka and have really grown to love the other characters that have been on the show since its start. People come and go on tv shows all the time...that doesnt mean you (I)should to stop watching . To me if your a true fan you should still be able to watch the show with or with out that person/character

[Pam_cee]

I've seen enough tv shows to suspect that, although Tess is a terrific character, Jack/Allison was always the end game. However, that's not all Eureka is about and I adore the show the way it is. I sit back and enjoy the ride. Just wish I had a ‘time machine’ which enabled me to see all the episodes right away.

Why is it not Friday, yet?

[Nimbus74]

@surferguy -- I would hope fans of Eureka, including those who are unhappy about the treatment of Tess, are not tasteless enough to be posting in Sheriff Cobb's memorial thread.

[S W]

Let me try that again and caps denote what I accidentally edited out.

I would hope fans of Eureka, including those who are unhappy about the treatment of Tess, are not tasteless enough to be posting COMPLAINTS ABOUT HOW TESS WAS TREATED in Sheriff Cobb's memorial thread.

There, that's a bit clearer. sorry about that. :-/

[Dove]

This season of Eureka has been so very good. I love that the show started with a huge episode and has just gotten better from there! I love that the humor is a big as it was in Season 1 and 2. I hope we will get to see more Vincent and Zoe soon too.

So many funny lines in this ep that it was hard to count, but one of the neatest was Grace pranking Henry and even the audience; I was worried that Henry would accidentally cause Grace or Grant. Well done!

[EUREKA UNSCRIPTED]

Kira is one of ten writers who work together to craft every episode of this series. If you have a problem with the way a guest star's exit was handled, so be it. But let's try to avoid getting personal.

We are pleased that many of you enjoyed the presence of Tess on the show. When the character was brought on in season three, she landed with some of you and infuriated others. As expected, her departure has done the same. Such is the nature of guest stars.

We are incredibly proud of what we've accomplished this season and appreciate all your support. Thanks for watching, everyone!!

[Michael J]

I get the feeling after that "frak you" comment to the General that Fargo's days as the head of GD are close to being over.