Still fond of the novel but these things really took the shine off it for me. if you take out the plot twist at the end it’s a book about two people who fancy each other for years before they finally get it on. And that’s just a bit silly.

I’ll get my critical thoughts out of the way first. It shouldn’t take four episodes to see characters give a shit about their profession. Mad Men won us over immediately by making advertising irresistibly interesting in the pilot. Intelligence and analysis can be just as intriguing, but this is a hard sell when the players on screen are bored with their jobs week after week. Fortunately that didn’t last long.

Worse still, Will Travers’ repetitive behavior was one of the most infuriating things for me–the roof, the tail scenes, the motorcycle, the bugs, the conspiracy investigation. I also didn’t really buy his character. Something about a tightly wound, obsessed genius who drinks beer and takes everything in stride seems a little off. Katherine Rhumor’s storyline was also very dull and repetitive. Now that I’m further along, it seems likely that the writers needed to stretch out her personal investigation to match Will’s. Fair enough.

I think we were completely clear of the clunky start somewhere around episode six. Since then, every character has emerged into someone distinct, watchable, and sympathetic. The intelligence/conspiracy side finally, thankfully, began touching on current events. (The privatization of intelligence is, as you said, a highly worthy topic of exploration.) It seems likely that the two will converge, which should be fun.

I’m not sure about you, but I feel like I might have to eat at least some of my words. After episode eleven, this might just be a show worthy of AMC.

I think there’s something about setting appropriate expectations for viewership as well. Modern Family would have succeeded anywhere. It’s well-written and mainstream. Chuck struggles on Network TV because it’s quirky and aimed at a niche audience of geeks. Burn Notice does well because it’s broadcast on a channel that doesn’t expect the highest ratings. It’s entertaining and it plays to its audience.