“Countdown” at the Halfway Mark
(Spoilers through Episode 1.07)
I’ve been enjoying Countdown, both for the tense plot and for the chance to see Jensen Ackles back in action. The main premise—stopping terrorists from setting off a nuclear explosive inside the US—has urgency and immediate buy-in. Countdown’s ensemble cast has a good mix of personalities and specialties as members of a task force operating outside normal law enforcement channels to keep the bad guys from setting off the bomb. They can’t completely trust anyone outside their group, and the task force’s secrecy and special privileges clearly annoy powerful people, like the District Attorney.
I grew up watching detective and crime dramas with my mom and grandma, but I’d be lying if I said I was only in it for the story. There are a bunch of other excellent shows I could be watching about hunting bad guys and bringing them to justice. I’m in it for Jensen.
Jensen plays Mark Meachum, a former Army Ranger, now LAPD Robbery/Homicide detective with undercover skills . He also has an inoperable brain tumor which is killing him. At the beginning of the show, Meachum hasn’t disclosed this to anyone and tells his doctor that he doesn’t want to retire or be stuck at a desk job. When he finally confides in his work partner, he says that he wants to go out doing what he does best. If that gave any one else memories of Dean Winchester saying, “So, what do you say we kill some evil sons of bitches and we raise a little hell?” I’m not surprised. This is a brain tumor instead of a demon deal, but the feels are the same.
Mark Meachum isn’t Dean Winchester, but they are cut from the same cloth. Mark has more official training and can follow orders well enough to rise through the ranks in the Army and the LAPD, but as his personal countdown ticks down, he becomes more reckless. He has no future—only now. He’s loyal to his teammates and completely committed to saving people (hunting terrorists).
We already know that Jensen has range. Over Supernatural’s long run, as well as in his other roles, we’ve seen him play comedy, horror, and romance as well as tap dance. He can go to extremes in The Boys as Soldier Boy, and be a Texas sheriff in Big Sky with equal believability. He can even be a kilt-wearing, pierced and tattooed sandwich shop employee with a purple mohawk who stands up to bullies, like in Ten Inch Hero.
As different as his characters are, they have common traits. They adhere to their own moral code, willing to go to the mat for what they believe. They’re clever, fiercely protective, and exceptionally good fighters. They’re also independent, able to think on their feet and defy expectations, and have no problem standing up to those in power.
I don’t think being an action hero is typecasting, or at least, detrimentally so. Jensen has leading man good looks, rakish charm, a penchant for doing stunt work, and he’s believable as a badass man with a mission. He also brings a deep vulnerability when the role demands it, as we’ve seen with both Dean and Mark Meachum, that makes us ache for him. He can make us believe in the character and his commitment to the mission, and he’s exactly the kind of guy you want on your side when you’re facing an apocalypse—whether that is nuclear or demonic.
Jensen has found a niche that works for him and he delivers the goods. His scene jumping from a tractor-trailer into the bed of a pick-up truck was pure Indiana Jones. He kicks ass in fight scenes, but he also makes us believe his pain when the tumor brings him to his knees.
It’s clear that Kripke and the writing team are well aware of the Supernatural fandom’s support, and we get little nods throughout the episodes, too many to be purely accidental although viewers who aren’t obsessed fans won’t notice. Jensen and Kripke definitely appreciate the fandom, and in turn, we appreciate the many shirtless scenes as well as the excellent writing, tight plotting, and tense drama.
Unless Chuck or Gabriel intervenes, it’s going to be tough to get Meachum out of his appointment with death believably. “We switched the x-rays” or “we read them wrong” isn’t going to cut it without leaving viewers feeling cheated. Which makes me wonder if Countdown—or at least Jensen’s role as Meachum—isn’t intended to have a time limit and end with Season One.
Mark Meachum is the type to die on his feet, boots on, taking as many of the bad guys with him as possible with a ‘see you in hell’ grin, sacrificing himself to save both his teammates and the world.
Which is exactly what I’d expect of both Dean Winchester and Mark Meachum, fighting the good fight.
I can’t wait to see what’s coming next!
Please share your thoughts below in Comments.
Illustrated by Nightsky. Screencaps by Raloria on LJ. Images courtesy of Amazon MGM Studios.
Bestselling author Gail Z. Martin writes epic fantasy, urban fantasy, and near-future post-apocalyptic adventure for Solaris Books, Orbit Books, Falstaff Press and SOL Publishing, with more than 40 books published. As Morgan Brice, she writes urban fantasy MM paranormal romance for Darkwind Press, with five current series in print. All of her modern-day series as Gail and Morgan are full of ghosts, monsters and things that go bump in the night – settings where Sam and Dean could show up and feel right at home!
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