Tag Archives: quantum leap

Review of Quantum Leap Ep 16 “Ben, Interrupted”

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QUANTUM LEAP — “Ben Interrupted” Episode 116 — Pictured: Raymond Lee as Dr. Ben Song — (Photo by: Ron Batzdorff/NBC)

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Every single time the Quantum Leap people say “this is the episode that’s the best” and so forth, why, oh why do I find that they aren’t quite right?

The Quantum Leap season 1, episode 16 show Ben, Interrupted aired on Monday, March 20th.

Of course, the title is no mystery, it recalls Girl, Interrupted (1999)

Based on writer Susanna Kaysen’s account of her 18-month stay at a mental hospital in the late 1960s.

It also recalls the original series episode Shock Theater. Ben leaps into private detective Liam O’Connell who deliberately has himself committed into a 1954 mental hospital to free a woman named Judith who was committed by her husband for “hysteria,” possibly because she kept miscarrying when they tried to have children (I’d love to have seen that cretin come to justice).

The obvious source I certainly hope everyone who wrote this episode read was Ken Kesey’s 1962 novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Next. I probably read the book before any of them were ever born.

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Review of Quantum Leap Ep 15 “Ben Song for the Defense”

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QUANTUM LEAP — “Ben Song for the Defense” Episode 115 — Pictured: (l-r) Isaac Arellanes as Leo Diaz, Raymond Lee as Dr. Ben Song — (Photo by: Ron Batzdorff/NBC)

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Last night, episode 15 of Quantum Leap called Ben Song for the Defense aired. The synopsis goes:

Ben Leaps into a harried public defender trying to prove one client innocent when everyone else believes he’s guilty, as well as juggle dozens of other case as well as a romantic relationship inadvertently threatened by a corrupt ADA. Jenn is called in as Observer because of her knowledge of the legal system.

Oh, “ADA” just means Assistant District Attorney.

Although the leap centers on a single client of Ben’s (public defender Elena Ramirez), we see Ben trying to juggle several cases feeling as overwhelmed as the real Elena probably did. In the original timeline, 18-year-old Camilo Diaz (Michael Garza) is on trial for the murder of a gang member who was trying to recruit Camilo’s younger brother Leo (Isaac Arellanes). Camilo threatened the gang member and later was seen fleeing the crime scene. No other suspects present.

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Review of Quantum Leap Ep 14 “S.O.S.”

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Scene from the Quantum Leap episode “S.O.S.”

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I just finished watching episode 14 of Quantum Leap: S.O.S.. Ben leaps into Rossi, the operations officer of the U.S. Navy vessel “Montana” during a wargames exercise in the South China Sea on May 2, 1989. The date is important because it is when a generally unknown Naval disaster occurred and when Addison’s Dad, the ship’s executive officer Alexander Augustine (Brandon Routh) ends his career.

Addison discovers her Dad by recognizing the voice of Captain Bill Drake (Alex Carter), her Dad’s mentor in the Navy. The issue in the original timeline is that the Montana receives a fragment of a distress call from the U.S. submarine the Tampa but Augustine chooses to ignore it.

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Quantum Leap: Addison Doesn’t Walk Through Walls

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Caitlin Bassett as Addison on Quantum Leap.

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I’ll keep this short. Addison doesn’t walk through walls. In the original Quantum Leap Al (Dean Stockwell) as Sam’s (Scott Bakula) companion and hologram, walked through walls all the time.

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Review of Quantum Leap Ep 13 “Family Style”

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Scene from the Quantum Leap episode “Family Style”

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This week’s episode (number 13) of Quantum Leap is called Family Style. Here’s the IMDb summary:

When Ben leaps into an Indian family to try and prevent their beloved family restaurant from burning down, he finds an emotional connection with their matriarch through memories of his own. Magic and Jenn share a surprising revelation with Ian.

Ben leaps into the eldest daughter of an Indian family who owns a restaurant in Portland, Oregon in 2009 (Given that the same basic technology and lifestyles existed then as now, this is less time travel and more “I mysteriously injected myself into someone’s family”). He (again) has absolutely no issues being in a woman’s body (no awkwardness with breasts, no periods, no nothing). In fact the only difference is that he has a nose piercing. He also has mad cutting skills and apparently always wanted to be a chef. I think this is an effect of the writers of the show rather than how a guy would really react (see Sam Beckett/Scott Bakula in the original show).

I’m sorry, but if I woke up one morning with breasts and no penis, I’d lose it.

My wife worked in a professional kitchen for over twenty years and listening to all of her stories, I can confidently say, that Ben suddenly performing well in such a kitchen is bullshit. Being a good “Betty Crocker” in a kitchen at home is light years from working in a restaurant.

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Review of Quantum Leap Ep 12 “Let Them Play”

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QUANTUM LEAP — “Let Them Play” Episode 112 — Pictured: (l-r) Josielyn Aguilera as Gia, Raymond Lee as Dr. Ben Song — (Photo by: Ron Batzdorff/NBC)

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To be honest, I was dreading watching and reviewing the most recent Quantum Leap episode Let Them Play. In fact I avoided watching the episode for at least a day so I wouldn’t have to deal with it. I’m not one to take things at face value just because someone tells me something, so I didn’t know how I was going to receive the content of the episode, especially given the expectation that it be seen as overwhelmingly positive.

I knew it would be highly pro-trans. In fact, there was a significant marketing uptick for this episode, probably more so than any of the other previous 11 episodes of the show. There was a specific target of presenting trans kids in a highly positive light, and as far as I could tell, everyone involved in the show from the directors, to the writers, to the actors was dedicated to make that happen.

Okay, first the brief synopsis from IMDb:

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Review of Quantum Leap Ep 11 “Leap. Die. Repeat.”

Scene from the Quantum Leap episode “Leap. Die. Repeat.”

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When Ben leaps into one of five people in an elevator at a 1962 nuclear reactor, he must figure which one triggers a bomb that kills them all. Each time the bomb goes off, he leaps into another one of them and the scene resets on a fine loop. If the loop runs out, Ben dies for good.—NBC

That’s the summary of Leap. Die Repeat

It’s fun to see Robert Picardo again (this time in the role of Dr. Edwin Woolsey). Sometimes the show draws an ace.

There are five people in an elevator going down to the control level for what is supposed to be a nuclear reactor that is part of a sustainable energy project. In the order that Ben leaps into them:

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Review of Quantum Leap Ep 10 “Paging Dr. Song”

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QUANTUM LEAP — “Paging Dr. Song” Episode 110 — Pictured: (l-r) Tiffany Smith as Dr. Sandra, Raymond Lee as Dr. Ben Song — (Photo by: Ron Batzdorff/NBC)

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I realized today that I’d forgotten to watch the latest episode of Quantum Leap Paging Dr Song. Why?

Maybe because the show is becoming less important to me. I don’t know.

Ben leaps into a first year resident Alexandra Thompkinson in Seattle 1994 on the cusp of a train accident that’s going to flood the hospital with wounded patients. Ben is also a black woman but the only reason we know this is we see her photo on the hospital badge and Ben makes some off hand comment about bras.

When Scott Bakula played Sam Beckett and he “leapt” into a woman, it was a big, big deal. But Ben’s clothing, this being the second time he’s leapt into a woman, looks perfectly suited to a man. You’d think at least once he’d leap into a woman on her period, or who had really large breasts he was not used to living with, or some guy would slap his/her ass.

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Review of Quantum Leap Ep 9, “Fellow Travelers”

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Scene from the Quantum Leap episode “Fellow Travelers”

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So, Quantum Leap is back with the January 2nd episode Fellow Travelers. I was wondering how “controversial” the return episode would be but as it turns out, not that much (although some). I guess that part is yet to come.

Ben leaps into Jack Armstrong (you’re kidding, right?) a bodyguard for famous pop singer Carly Farmer (Deborah Ann Woll) or is that Carly Simon (one of the hats she wears reminded me of her)? Carly’s going to be killed, supposedly by her drug addict sister Jamie (Karissa Lee Staples) and Ben has to stop it.

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The Future of Quantum Leap and Other Stories

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Promotional image for the television show “Quantum Leap.”

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If you’ve been reading this blog regularly, you know I’ve been watching and reviewing the 2022 continuation series Quantum Leap starring Raymond Lee, Caitlin Bassett, and Ernie Hudson. As far as I can tell, the series was originally green lit for eight episodes but was recently given an extension for a full 18. We know the description for the already shown episodes of course, but episodes 9-18 remain undefined at IMDb.

This is probably good since the show has introduced a collection of mysteries such as why Ben (Raymond Lee) leapt in the first place, what his relationship is to the mysterious Janice (or Janis) Calavicci (Georgina Reilly), and the secret around the leaper from the future Richard Martinez (Walter Perez). All that and, in the episode O Ye of Little Faith, Janice shows up as a hologram to warn Ben about something, but he leaps before she can tell him what…or who to be worried about. Eight episodes is just barely enough to get all that started.

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