I was that little kid who LOVED everything "horror." Every Saturday night I would watch Monsters, Tales from the Dark Side, and (my favorite) Friday the 13th The Series. Looking back at those, now, I appreciate them for the nostalgic value but they are mostly pretty corny. However, this episode scared me so bad and made such an impression on me that I used the storyline for a Halloween play in highschool and STILL remember how scary it truly was. If you're checking out some episodes of this super cool series, make sure you hit this one!
3 Reviews
Tails The Audience Wins
Gislef12 December 2020
Warning: Spoilers
"Bad Penny" neatly combines three pieces of continuity: Micki coming back from the dead after last season's "Tails You Lose', and the death of Johnny's father Vince in "The Prisoner". Combine those two loose ends with what we've seen of Johnny and his somewhat cavalier attitude toward the cursed antiques--remember him wanting to use them against the demon hunters in "Demon Hunter"?--and you have a decent episode.
Unlike first season's "Badge of Honor", the cop and crime antics come across as a little more realistic. Maybe because of the continuity, maybe because the production staff doesn't ape 'Miami Vice" quite so much.
We also get a little more on Micki being dead and what she went through. Which was kind of glossed over when the production staff wrapped up the story in "Tails". We find out that the trauma went a lot deeper than was shown in that episode. We also get Micki writing a letter to the de-aged Ryan, and hoping he'll understand. And his post-"Prophecy" life got short shrift, too.
So basically "Tails" neatly wraps up a number of loose ends. And it also looks at the ethics of using an antique for "good", when Johnny uses the Coin to resurrect Vince. I've been a bit unfair to Johnny's character in my previous reviews, but that's more down to the production staff's back-and-forth writing of the character or a bad story (like "The Prisoner") than any flaw in Monarque's performance. In this episode he's pretty good as someone desperate to resurrect a loved one, and willing to use an "evil" antique to do it. And I can't blame Johnny: the ethics of using a curse to help someone have always been rather iffy. The show has dabbled with that, in last year's "The Shaman's Apprentice", and now with "Tails".
In the last part of the episode, when Johnny has to kill his father, Monarque is particularly effective. He's better at doing grief than anger.
The scenes between Johnny and Vince (Sean McCann) are good, even with Vince as essentially a zombie. They get the father-and-son scenes that they were denied in "The Prisoner", and McCann is good as the zombiefied Vince giving fatherly advice even though... well, he's a zombie. I wish we had seen more of McCann in "The Prisoner": he does a great job of portraying Vince as a loving father even if he is essentially a zombie.
It doesn't help that writer Marilyn Anderson (who wrote "Tails") doesn't seem to know much about how Johnny fits in, either. I like Micki's bit where she's concerned that she and Jack might die, and doesn't say anything about Johnny. I thought she had warmed to him! At the end Micki does assures Johnny that she and Jack will always be there for him, so I guess that's something.
It helps that John Bourgeis, who plays Briggs, is pretty zombie-like even before he dies. So he makes an effective zombie when Goreman uses the Coin to bring him back.
Overall, I'd say that "Bad Penny" is a keeper. Kudos to writer Anderson, who hits another home run like she did with "Tails". Her "Mephisto Ring" story in season 2 wasn't bad, either..
But that's just my opinion, I could be wrong. What do you think?
Unlike first season's "Badge of Honor", the cop and crime antics come across as a little more realistic. Maybe because of the continuity, maybe because the production staff doesn't ape 'Miami Vice" quite so much.
We also get a little more on Micki being dead and what she went through. Which was kind of glossed over when the production staff wrapped up the story in "Tails". We find out that the trauma went a lot deeper than was shown in that episode. We also get Micki writing a letter to the de-aged Ryan, and hoping he'll understand. And his post-"Prophecy" life got short shrift, too.
So basically "Tails" neatly wraps up a number of loose ends. And it also looks at the ethics of using an antique for "good", when Johnny uses the Coin to resurrect Vince. I've been a bit unfair to Johnny's character in my previous reviews, but that's more down to the production staff's back-and-forth writing of the character or a bad story (like "The Prisoner") than any flaw in Monarque's performance. In this episode he's pretty good as someone desperate to resurrect a loved one, and willing to use an "evil" antique to do it. And I can't blame Johnny: the ethics of using a curse to help someone have always been rather iffy. The show has dabbled with that, in last year's "The Shaman's Apprentice", and now with "Tails".
In the last part of the episode, when Johnny has to kill his father, Monarque is particularly effective. He's better at doing grief than anger.
The scenes between Johnny and Vince (Sean McCann) are good, even with Vince as essentially a zombie. They get the father-and-son scenes that they were denied in "The Prisoner", and McCann is good as the zombiefied Vince giving fatherly advice even though... well, he's a zombie. I wish we had seen more of McCann in "The Prisoner": he does a great job of portraying Vince as a loving father even if he is essentially a zombie.
It doesn't help that writer Marilyn Anderson (who wrote "Tails") doesn't seem to know much about how Johnny fits in, either. I like Micki's bit where she's concerned that she and Jack might die, and doesn't say anything about Johnny. I thought she had warmed to him! At the end Micki does assures Johnny that she and Jack will always be there for him, so I guess that's something.
It helps that John Bourgeis, who plays Briggs, is pretty zombie-like even before he dies. So he makes an effective zombie when Goreman uses the Coin to bring him back.
Overall, I'd say that "Bad Penny" is a keeper. Kudos to writer Anderson, who hits another home run like she did with "Tails". Her "Mephisto Ring" story in season 2 wasn't bad, either..
But that's just my opinion, I could be wrong. What do you think?
Poignant with regards to Johnny's father
johnk733 June 2019
Warning: Spoilers
Most of this episode was the usual for the series. But some writer put in the sub-arc about Johnny terribly missing his father. I empathized with him. I think everyone who has lost someone dear (death or romantic) even a pet has wished they could be with them again, even if for a limited time. Grief is awful. But bringing the person back may not really be enough to end the grief.
This episode deals with how it would really be. Where do you fit them into your life now that you have moved on? Would you really be able to do justice to them without ending parts of your life that are just as deserving?
This does actually play out in the real world as children sometimes have to quit their jobs or make other serious accommodations (moving into their home, conflict with spouse) in order to take care of an aging parent. Not to say that isn't the right thing to do! Just saying it can be difficult.
There was a Constantine episode sort of like this. A woman gets her husband back but he is draining her life energy. She is willing to endure the sickness (coughing, hurting, moving toward death) because she loved him so much.
This episode deals with how it would really be. Where do you fit them into your life now that you have moved on? Would you really be able to do justice to them without ending parts of your life that are just as deserving?
This does actually play out in the real world as children sometimes have to quit their jobs or make other serious accommodations (moving into their home, conflict with spouse) in order to take care of an aging parent. Not to say that isn't the right thing to do! Just saying it can be difficult.
There was a Constantine episode sort of like this. A woman gets her husband back but he is draining her life energy. She is willing to endure the sickness (coughing, hurting, moving toward death) because she loved him so much.
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