I was wrong. (Spoilers)

I’d like to go back to the chatter I wrote about Quantum Leap Season 1 back in October 2022:

I originally thought the big twist would be that Dr. Song discovered Sam Beckett’s location and made this leap to pull him out of the timeline. But now I’m pretty sure that the big twist is going to be that he figures out somehow that Addison dies or died and goes in to the leap to save her, but obviously he can’t tell the team because they’d be too emotionally invested.

Did I call it or what? After watching the rest of season 1 of Quantum Leap and going back and reading my chatter about the show I’d like to say…I wasn’t wrong. But also I was wrong. I wasn’t wrong in my assessment of the first two episodes, but I was wrong in assuming that the rest of the season would be just like that. I will also admit that I was a little hostile to the show when it came up, and why not? Peacock is the home of cynical reboots like the Punky Brewster show.

One thing I’m happy to report on is that following the first two episodes the show pivots greatly to show more of Raymond Lee, aka Ben Song, aka the actual star of the show. The present day parts of the plot start actually producing interesting content, and become less of an interference. But the writers also stop sidelining Ben Song in his own show, and thanks to plot convenience (Ziggy always not working when convenient) Ben Song actually has to rely on his own wits and talents in a lot of spots.

I will also admit that there are a few things the show does better than the original series, and specifically I’m talking about the Evil Leapers. The original show had The Evil Leaper project, where leapers showed up from time to time that were evil. Evil leapers. They would try to kill a person Sam Beckett was saving, put sand in the potato salad, hide the remote. Real sick shit. But even the more hardline fans will admit the evil leapers were kind of a stupid idea that never got fleshed out despite interesting characters and vague implications of Heaven vs Hell as driving both sides.

Also they had some really neat ideas for leaps, like the one where Ben thinks he’s in a time loop playing the same couple of hours over and over but from the perspective of different people in the room. There’s a few nods to the original series, like when Ben calls his mom to talk to her which happened at the end of the second episode of Quantum Leap where Sam calls his dad. Or the lawyer episode where Ben has to get his client found not guilty of murder. And let’s be honest, the reason they can put Ben into the body of a black lesbian without drawing public ire is because he’s not white.

Have I mentioned that Ian is my main crush on the show?

Bigtime fans of the original series will be unhappy to know that this one retcons a good few things that the original series established and not for the better. In the original series when Sam leaped into a body he would actually trade places with the person, sending them to a cosmic waiting room in the future. He is still in his own body, but others perceive him as the other person. He is also assisted on more than one occasion by the leapee who is conscious and aware of what is happening.

Ben Song meanwhile has his existence stuffed into the person’s body and simply inhabits them, which I guess also shakes things up. They did completely retcon the effects of the Quantum Leap as Magic’s experience is tied to the new show’s explanation of how it works. Overall the show is very much what you’d expect from an NBC drama. Very schlocky, very cheesy, very formulaic. But the leaps are interesting.

So what’s my final verdict on season 1? I’m excited for season 2. I can’t believe the kind of success this show had given they were originally going to shoot twelve episodes and then immediately on the premiere they ordered another six for the first season. And with season 2, we all kinda know how season 1 ends.

Verdict: B