he rock group The Problem has problems of their own. They are on the
verge of making it as a rock band, but they can't seem to stop arguing, and
it's threatening to rip them apart at the expense of their friendship and
possibly a record deal.
The band's guitarist, Vaughn (Turton), feels that it's time to start
protecting his own interests. Bass player Jane (Downing) and drummer Scotty
(Labine) believe that Vaughn is starting to let his ego get the better of him.
It's all their manager, Dennis (Péré), can do to keep things together.
While getting ready for a gig, Scotty has a shocking experience that leads to
his discovery of an old amulet. Driving back from the gig, Vaughn reads the
Latin wording on the back of the amulet, and a powerful force seems to be
unleashed. Suddenly, they start seeing strange things. They drive by soldiers
from the Civil War and a large group of people led by an airplane captain and
stewardesses. Then they run over a pilgrim. However, when the pilgrim suddenly
appears unharmed, talking about the amulet they found, Vaughn throws it in the
trees, and they rush to escape the strange man.
While trying to figure out what happened to them, it begins to dawn on them
that they must be seeing ghosts. Then Vaughn finds that the amulet has
returned to his pocket. It soon becomes apparent that no matter what they do,
they can't get rid of it. Also apparent is that the ghosts want something from
them.
Jane finally realizes the reappearing pilgrim doesn't want to "eat her
brains," he just wants to take care of some unfinished business—just like
all the other ghosts. Now whether they want the job or not, it looks like The
Problem has a new gig, one that may last the rest of their lives.
Rock 'n roll, ghosts and the summer blues
It's not a surprise that The WB's answer to The Sixth Sense would take
a young cast and put them in a fantastic premise. After all, they seem to be
making a habit of creating shows along those lines. Dead Last has an
appealing cast that drives the show and enough humor to make it entertaining.
However, while the rock 'n' roll material would seem timely and fresh, somehow
it manages to offer few surprises.
The creator's big problem had to be to figure out a way for all three members
of the band to see ghosts. The premise involving a magic amulet is silly, and
the characters seem to accept a little too
easily the fact they are seeing ghosts. Since each episode will feature the band dealing with their music and
a variety of ghostly problems, hopes are that future episodes will have more
time for humor and characterization. That's where Dead Last holds the
most promise.
Overall, the production values are fine. However, the rough cut that was
available for preview didn't do enough with the music, considering the series
is based on the experiences of a rock band. That may change by the time this
series hits the air.
What really shine in this ghostly series are the performances of the young
cast. The real standout is Labine as Scotty, who offers most of the humor in
Dead Last. He lightens up every scene he's in. The rest of the cast
hold their own, and the cast makes an engaging quartet for the ghosts to play
off of. However, the real stars of this series will be the ghosts. Their
stories, their problems and their special effects will undoubtedly overshadow
the living.
