The Complete Series

Painkiller Jane is a short-lived science fiction television that aired on the Sci-Fi channel. The show started its twenty-two episode run in 2007 and was cancelled months later. It is about a secret government agency that hunts and tracks people with unexplainable powers. The concept is based on the comic book series of the same name. As for the show's entertainment factor, it has the feel of a low-grade sci-fi flick. From acting performances to plotlines, there really isn't a whole lot to grab your attention. On that note, if you haven't had the chance to see Painkiller Jane, it probably isn't worth the time.

The premise, as previously mentioned, is about a secret government agency that hunts "special people". These special people are known as Neuros. Neuros have special mental powers that give them the ability to things such as control the dead/living, start fires with the mind, influence and change memories, and more. The government has hand selected a special team of individuals to hunt and stop Neuros from wreaking havoc by elimination or implanting a microchip that stops them from being able to use their powers.

In the opening of Painkiller Jane, DEA agent Jane Vasco (Kristanna Loken, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines is working an undercover case with her partner Maureen Bowers (Alaina Huffman). While chasing after a bad guy, Jane crosses paths with Andre McBride (Rob Stewart) - the team leader of the government Neuro-hunters -- who is in pursuit of a deadly Neuro. Jane impresses Andre by overcoming the Neuros psychological powers and assists him in subduing the Neuro. Unfortunately, Jane is killed. However, she recovers from her injuries -- an unexplainable power that plays a key role in her future endeavors. In the aftermath, Jane and Maureen are recruited to work on Andre's team.

The rest of Andre's team consists of Connor King (Noah Danby), an ex-cop turned convict with brash attitude, Riley Jensen (Sean Owen Roberts), a techie guru who can do just about anything with computers and gadgets, Dr. Seth Carpenter (Stephen Lobo), a brilliant medical doctor who is trying to understand what causes Neuros to be, and Joe Waterman (Nathaniel Deveaux), the facility caretaker. Together, Andre's team hunts Neuros and either eliminates them or injects a drug that subdues their special abilities.

While watching Painkiller Jane, it is apparent why the show was cancelled. The fact of the matter is that it has very little appeal. This problem comes from several facets. First, the premise is far too broad. There is little direction to explain or bound the abilities of Neuros. They can do just about anything from controlling the dead/living to moving objects with their minds to causing hallucinations. This setup gives each episode a different villain for the team to face. In one respect the broad nature of the show's science fiction is positive. Because of each episode can have very different villains, there is a high flexibility with the storylines. On the other hand, some of it is just too hard to stomach.

The third problem, which ties into the second problem, is the plotlines. The general approach from episode to episode is similar and there is little interest. I finished the complete series feeling if you have seen one episode, you have seen them all. On the note of plotlines, there was very little focus on an overarching story arc. While there was some key character development (for example Jane's special ability to recover from any injury), there was little else to draw you into the series as a whole.

The fourth major issue I had was the characters. While there was a relatively diverse cast, I did not feel any were very strong. Rob Stewart felt good as the team leader, but the character development and their subsequent relationships were less than appealing. For instance, in one episode Riley is kidnapped. I really could have cared less if was saved or killed off. In short, the characters were uninteresting. On a related note, acting from certain performers was less than convincing.

Overall, Painkiller Jane is a lackluster science-fiction television series that tries to be exciting, thrilling, and entertaining. All of which, it is not. Instead, the series comes off as a low quality B movie with a couple of industry names and not much else. In the end, unless you were a fan of the show while it aired, skip this one.

Episode Guide

1. Pilot: Jane Vasco and a new covert government unit must track down and contain the spread of 'Neuros' - genetically altered humans who possess extraordinary, and often deadly, neurological powers.
2. Toy Soldiers: A String of thefts involving military equipment puts Jane and the team on high alert for an assassination attempt just days leading up to a presidential visit. But when corpses begin to disappear from nearby cemeteries - seemingly all on their own - and the thefts expand to include sporting goods, Jane breaks rank and pieces together the clues that lead to an unlikely Neuro.
3. Piece Of Mind: Reports start coming in of people experiencing sudden, selective amnesia, losing huge parts of their memory and knowledge. When Riley falls victim to this strange phenomenon, the security of the entire operation is jeopardized.
4. Catch Me If You Can: A Neuro with an ability to see into the future sends an eerie message to Jane warning her of an arrest that will go wrong, costing the lives of three people on her team. A series of accidents convinces Jane that the Neuro is for real and she tries desperately to avoid events leading up to the incident - but can she avoid fate?
5. Nothing To Fear But Fear Itself: An FBI safe house is the scene of a number of mysterious incidents where witnesses report terrifying visions and vivid nightmares depicting each person's greatest fear.
6. Breakdown: Jane and Maureen interview a number of patients who have been admitted to a psychiatric facility for the same unusual and terrifying nightmare.
7. Higher Court: A series of bizarre suicides committed by ex-criminals in a Witness Relocation Program, leads Jane and the team to a Neuro with the ability to create elaborate hallucinations. But Maureen begins to question whether the Neuro might be doing more good than harm when the victims' secret lives come to light.
8. Friendly Fire: Jane wakes up to find herself restrained in a hospital with no recollection of how or why she got here. She is soon given the shocking news that she ha s been charged with the murder of her teammate and good friend, Riley Jensen.
9. Trial By Fire: While on the trail of a Neuro responsible for a string of house fires, Connor is apprehended at the scene and unfairly charged with arson and murder. The team races to find the real arsonist before Connor's criminal and secretive past leads the jury to convict him.
10. Lauren Gray: Jane and Maureen go undercover at a high fashion show to discover what - or who - is turning young, attractive women into elderly seniors overnight with deadly results.
11. Ghost In The Machine: When Connor narrowly escapes a number of near-miss accidents, Jane starts to believe there's more to his bad luck - and his past - than just clumsiness or coincidence.
12. Something Nasty In the Neighborhood: After a Federal Agent and several others mysteriously disappear from an idyllic suburban community, Jane and Connor go undercover as a happily married couple to investigate the disappearances.
13. The League: Five friends form a rather extraordinary club in high school. But what seemed harmless as teens, leads to dangerous consequences years later for Jane and the team.
14. The Amazing Howie: Riley takes the lead in investigating a friend's uncanny ability for impossible magic tricks. But in doing so, h sets in motion a string of events that can't be reversed with the wave of a wand.
15. Healer: In an attempt "heal" herself of her own abnormal abilities, Jane secretly visits a faith healer who has some inexplicable powers of his own.
16. Thanks For The Memories: Jane is left confused and on the run for her life when she learns the unit has been shut down and all evidence of the team, and their work, is being erased.
17. Playback: The team gets trapped in the same day over and over again as a time-morphing Neuro attempts to complete an assassination plot.
18. Jane 113: Bothered by images implanted by the Neuro, Jane decides it is time to spend some time at Vonotek, the place where she first crossed paths with a Neuro. However, her discovery of Brian not being out of town and somehow involved with Vonotek leads her to more hair-raising questions.
19. What Lies Beneath: There is a problem at NICO, the Neuros' internment camp, in Hungary. The team is sent to aid the staff in the apprehension of six escaped Neuros.
20. The Beast of Bolnar: Still in Hungary, Connor decides to hang out at a local pub where he is regaled by tales of the beast of Bolnar, a creature that kill anything in its path from 8:00 to 9:00 every night. Never one to believe in things that go bump in the night, Connor decides to brave the outside in the doomed time frame.
21. Reflections: The team is stumped how a chipped, sedated and monitored Neuro can commit murder. Can they stop her before anyone else is killed or is it even her they need to stop?
22. Endgame: It is a race against time to get the team back to the "safe room" without getting killed. A race they think they can win; until it is discovered one of their own is playing for the other team.

The DVD

Video:
The video format is anamorphic 1.78:1 ratio widescreen color. The picture quality is quite good. It suffers from a slight grain, but detail remains to be sharp and clear. However, there are some occasional moments when the picture suffers compression artifacts. This is a rare occurrence, but it does happen.

Audio:
The audio is given in English 2.0 Dolby digital surround sound. The track is dialogue driven and audible throughout the presentation. Sound effects and music are fairly rich and make good usage of stereo sound capabilities. The release is close caption enabled.

Extras:
This box set includes a featurette and two audio commentaries. The featurette is entitled "Behind Budapest: The Making of PAINKILLER JANE" (5:33) and highlights a short behind the scenes look at the making of the show. The commentaries cover episodes "Nothing To Fear But Fear Itself" and "Something Nasty In The Neighborhood". Both commentaries star Kristanna Loken and Noah Danby.

Final Thoughts:
Painkiller Jane was a short-lived science-fiction television series based on a comic book series of the same name. The show is about a secret government unit tasked with subduing Neuros (people with unexplainable, neurological powers) from doing bad stuff. The show's appeal is limited and will more than likely be uninteresting for the masses. From the premise to characters, there is very little to appreciate about Painkiller Jane. Unless you were a fan of the show while it aired on television, skip it.