Thinking about trying this series out...

[Dave2]

I thought of Mission Impossible because of a TEAM with a leader organized to defeat some skilled or important opponent.........
About the history of the alphas are you suggesting that somehow people with Alpha abilities suddenly discovered such abilities only "now"??

"Mission Impossible", how so? This is a very interesting comparison. It's normally compared to the X-Men.

It is a show which can grow on you. I found I did like some of the characters more than others at the start of the series, but found that there has been a significant amount of character development which has been done such that some of these lesser lights have become very interesting. Or, perhaps they have just become less irksome....

As to alpha abilities, most of them are very low-key in how they are manifested. Many could be used right beside a person and they would not even know of it.

I believe the show's creators want us to accept that alpha abilities are a fairly recent phenomenon

Spoiler:

at least at the start. This part of the story evolves.

. Further, of the more overt abilities, witness accounts would most likely be explained away by the authorities as mass-hypnosis, panic, drugs, alcohol, insanity, or even witchcraft or UFO's. Probably most witnesses to such abilities being used just kept their mouths shut because they didn't want others to think that they were crazy, or drunk. Heck, if you saw someone do what a character on the show was capable of doing, would you believe your eyes?

regards,
G.

[Gollumpus]

I thought of Mission Impossible because of a TEAM with a leader organized to defeat some skilled or important opponent.........
About the history of the alphas are you suggesting that somehow people with Alpha abilities suddenly discovered such abilities only "now"??

If you recall from the first episode, Rosen pretty much had to convince Hicks that he has the abilities which he does possess. Prior to this, Hicks (and anyone else) just put his sports successes down to him having "a very good arm".

I believe that the creators of the show are mostly going with the idea that people gain their alpha ability sometime around puberty. This being said,

Spoiler:

Rosen's daughter seems to have acquired her ability some years before puberty, so maybe it happens sooner.

regards,
G.

[Dave2]

What about people like Marcus, Matthew and the Ghost with those things on his hand that brainwash people??

If you recall from the first episode, Rosen pretty much had to convince Hicks that he has the abilities which he does possess. Prior to this, Hicks (and anyone else) just put his sports successes down to him having "a very good arm".

I believe that the creators of the show are mostly going with the idea that people gain their alpha ability sometime around puberty. This being said,

Spoiler:

Rosen's daughter seems to have acquired her ability some years before puberty, so maybe it happens sooner.

regards,
G.

[Dave2]

At the risk of exposing spoilers, can anyone tell me whether Alphas episodes ever explain why the Alphas are all young single people? Are there any older alphas, such as doctors, scientists, professors, senators, etc.?

Can we ever get an understanding of where alphas were until now in general, and whether there were alphas previously in history? And if they had really dangerous powers how did they go unnoticed until the first decade of the 21st century?

Could alphas be considered "artifacts" and could artifacts in Warehouse 13 be considered non-living "alphas"??!

[Gen. Chris]

No (spoilers sake)

No (spoilers sake)

and no (because, why?)

[Gollumpus]

At the risk of exposing spoilers, can anyone tell me whether Alphas episodes ever explain why the Alphas are all young single people? Are there any older alphas, such as doctors, scientists, professors, senators, etc.?

Good thinking. Is the alpha phenomenon a recent event and related to a particular time and place, or has it been going on for more than a few decades?

Spoiler:

Episode 9, "Blind Spot" gives some insight. Also, Episode 11, "Original Sin" starts to provide some answers.

Can we ever get an understanding of where alphas were until now in general, and whether there were alphas previously in history? And if they had really dangerous powers how did they go unnoticed until the first decade of the 21st century?

Spoiler:

Alphas in history = Stanton Parish. You'll see him in Episode 11, "Original Sin".

If the alpha abilities go back much further than Parish, perhaps there's more than meets the eye to historical figures like Leif Ericson, known as "the Lucky" or mythological characters like Hercules.

How have they gone unnoticed? Perhaps they followed Parish's example of how he dealt with someone who was going to expose him. Otherwise, I suspect that a lot of abilities just went unnoticed (and maybe undeveloped). How useful would an ability similar to Gary's have been 200 years ago? If they were noticed, maybe the person with the ability was called a witch and burned alive or placed in a mental institution.

Maybe don't read this until after viewing Episode 2 of season 2, "The Quick and the Dead".

Spoiler:

This is something which I am now suggesting for the first time: perhaps Parish is the "father" of all alphas. It's likely not the case, but we do see he has had children over the years.

Could alphas be considered "artifacts" and could artifacts in Warehouse 13 be considered non-living "alphas"??!

I don't believe so, but this being said, I don't watch a lot of "Warehouse 13". I have read that there is at least a minor connection between the two shows.

regards,
G.

[Dave2]

My last comment was sort of tongue in cheek.........but I do see a connection between mysterious artifacts and mysterious people who are alphas.......
However, the point is well taken that many of the alphas could only operate within a technological society. But that would not include our team except I guess for Gary Bell. Nina and Rachel, Bill and Cameron would all have been able to use their skills hundreds of years ago.
The mother of Chris also could have been an alpha in another century. And so far she is the oldest alpha. She said that her skill of killing people by withdrawing affection only emerged after her son died..........
In any case, I would have liked to see cases of a politician who was an alpha, an elderly person, a professor, etc. etc.
And are there any foreign countries where alphas also exist and have a "movement" (as described by Dr. Rosen)??

[ZeroPoint]

Sigh.....

The show is allegedly called "Alphas" because this is the first generation of abilities. It was said that a child of the current alphas is the first of a second generation (that would be "Betas"). This would imply a trigger event happening that caused abilities. This is the same line of plot as the show Heroes where the trigger event was an eclipse.

Recent events may change that.

Spoiler:

But now that theme is generally forgotten. Parish is much older with abilities, but on 2012-08-27 the village leader seems to be the same age as the fathers of the main cast.

[Dave2]

Having seen several more episodes, I see that there are definitely middle-aged Alphas, i.e. people born in the 1940s or 1950s. So the powers that such people exhibit either only emerged recently or they had them all their lives, in which case they should have been outed or arrested long ago, even before there was a "Binghamton." Same for the younger folks too. And Dr. Rosen says "it's a movement." So where have all these Alphas been until now?!

In such a situation the powers they are all born with must have been noticed years ago.
Then again, we'd want to know who an Alpha could contact if they needed help from a Dr. Rosen or the DOD on their own.
Why are there so many bad Alphas around compared to good ones? I have watched so many bad guys, shouldn't there be more than one team of good guys around? Like Alpha-1 (Rosen), then Alpha-2 etc. etc. ?? Are there Alphas in other countries besides the US? In Canada? Europe? China? Africa?

Sigh.....

The show is allegedly called "Alphas" because this is the first generation of abilities. It was said that a child of the current alphas is the first of a second generation (that would be "Betas"). This would imply a trigger event happening that caused abilities. This is the same line of plot as the show Heroes where the trigger event was an eclipse.

Recent events may change that.

Spoiler:

But now that theme is generally forgotten. Parish is much older with abilities, but on 2012-08-27 the village leader seems to be the same age as the fathers of the main cast.

[ZeroPoint]

That's why I started with a sigh on my last post. I find so many shows that start a new season by starting new plot likes that the previous season shown couldn't happen.

First season started with 4 states of Alphas, either in the group, confined in Binghamton, or not a threat and released to general population. The final state are those free and confused/angry that that the group deals with and decides which of first 3 groups they go into.
Also, I think the first older Alpha from season 1 was in "Blind Spot", who could have easily been the age of any of the groups fathers.

Now its a second season and there's a relative spitload of Alphas out there, which I'm saying is a statement of "Here's the storyline for the season, but it voids much of the plot of the first season, but what the heck."

[Dave2]

How is a powerful Alpha allowed to live among the general population, since one can never know what triggers something that will lead to problems with his/her powers??
I see that the Alpha who made himself like Rosen had an English accent. That does suggest Alphas in places other than the USA.

Anyway, although Gary's skills and personality are a definite comic relief for the show, he does get to be annoying quite often, and makes one want him to go on vacation for a few episodes.......

That's why I started with a sigh on my last post. I find so many shows that start a new season by starting new plot likes that the previous season shown couldn't happen.

First season started with 4 states of Alphas, either in the group, confined in Binghamton, or not a threat and released to general population. The final state are those free and confused/angry that that the group deals with and decides which of first 3 groups they go into.
Also, I think the first older Alpha from season 1 was in "Blind Spot", who could have easily been the age of any of the groups fathers.

Now its a second season and there's a relative spitload of Alphas out there, which I'm saying is a statement of "Here's the storyline for the season, but it voids much of the plot of the first season, but what the heck."

[ZeroPoint]

How is a powerful Alpha allowed to live among the general population, since one can never know what triggers something that will lead to problems with his/her powers??
I see that the Alpha who made himself like Rosen had an English accent. That does suggest Alphas in places other than the USA.

Anyway, although Gary's skills and personality are a definite comic relief for the show, he does get to be annoying quite often, and makes one want him to go on vacation for a few episodes.......

You added "powerful" into the description, when I didn't. Powerful Alphas would either go to Binghamton, to a group like Rosen's. How about an Alpha who has gills, or who can talk to bees? How much of a threat or powerful are they? Even as such, a not-that-powerful Alpha with an attitude issue or can't control their powers would need control/counseling.

The main characters of the show are close enough to general population to not be much different, considering Harken is married, and Rachel visits her family often.

[Gen. Chris]

...Why is my thread being taken over...? Lol

[Gollumpus]

...Why is my thread being taken over...? Lol

Not out fault. Think of it like a nice big bowl of potato chips. If you just leave them unattended they're going to get eaten.

regards,
G.

PS - so, what do you think of the show, anything more to add?

regards,
G.

[Gen. Chris]

It's good.

Not as good as some other superhuman shows I have watched (The 4400 and the FIRST season of Heroes) but it's getting better.

[Asgard Flu]

This show sounds like a bad rip-off of Heroes.

[Gen. Chris]

And Heroes was a ripoff of The 4400.

[jelgate]

Everything has been done before

[Don Pantaloons]

It's good. Not as good as some other superhuman shows ... but it's getting better.

When does it start getting better? Because four episodes in there is nothing that makes me want to continue watching. I don't like any of the characters (or the actors who play them), the abilities are either boring (everyone but Nina) or totally under-utilized (Nina), and there is zero drama. If you can tell me it gets a whole lot better real soon, I'll give it another chance; otherwise, this show is definitely not for me.