User Reviews

I've watched the first 3. I, unlike others, like the characters and it's nice to see Anthony Edwards in role again--since his days with Northern Exposure (I never watched ER). The young cast, most notably, Scott Michael Foster and Addison Timlin I find to be refreshing, both of which had a stint on Californication among other projects not leaving out that Scott worked on The River. Michael Nyqvist has chops...here in Canada he's been on Millennium but back home he's well known. His character is well acted and I feel that he brings the best out of Jacinda Barrett, she's no slouch herself.

Carmen Ejogo; she's been around and can act. Here's where I have to complain; the writing she has to deliver is poor and her role could be a bit more stereotypical--but not much.

Is the show going to win awards? Not yet for sure. But reading the other reviews made me want to say this: "Let's wait and see where this is going...". I truly believe that there is a lot more in store.

Reading my own review I got thinking that I look like I work for a studio or some such--I don't. I simply don't find the show all that bad and it's staying on my record list for now.

Thank God, a mystery with a bald, middle-aged hero. I'm so tired of the sneering, posturing superhero that has the depth of a tissue. I'm also enjoying the mystery. It's an interesting story and one I look forward to watching. I tune into television to relax and be entertained. Just like National Treasure, a movie I thoroughly enjoyed, it's not meant to give us the meaning of life, it's designed so we can have fun and possibly learn some interesting facts along the way.

What I liked about last night's episode was how it left me wanting to do some more reading about Einstein. His personal life was far more interesting than most people believe. If a program can do that, I say we need more of them. And the lines about love? Love can never be corny or irrelevant.

I was outside the USA and have seen the show all the way through from foreign broadcasts. This gives me a lot better perspective on it. So I have to speak in defense of the show against some attacks I see as based on lack of knowledge.

First, they do fully resolve the plot. This isn't a show that is canceled in mid-stream like Threshold where there is never a satisfactory answer as to what is happening and why. The show apparently was intended to only go thirteen weeks so the resolution was much clearer and more complete than say Lost's was.

Second, not every cliché was used the way that we expect. Against the Evil Nazi Mad Scientist, they had the Good and Human Nazis.

So was it great art? No. Was it over the top and crazy? Yes. Would I say the ending was politically correct? I'd say yes, but it was feel good. Did it foreshadow many of the events ALL the way through? Yes. Some were painfully telegraphed, and a couple of them you KNEW they would do without motivation by the characters.

As a religious person, I also liked that there was an almost semi-favorable representation of a name brand religion by a TV show in this day where constant attacks on religion seem to be fashionable in Hollyweird. So I'll give it a seven. One extra point above average for mentioning God as a good idea and one for actually finishing out the story.

I think some shows are just to intelligent for most people. Maybe People like easy, action and not very smart shows. If you look at what happened to "touch",first season was great and original, then in order to adapt to an audience that wanted action, the script was changed and became completely vulgar and predictable. I loved Zero Hour! It reminded me of a lot of god books i read and it had everything: a smart story, action, original script, and a way of telling the story that surprises you with the unpredictable. It is more and more difficult to find original story's that surprise us. Everything seems so "haven't i seen this before". And maybe story tellers can not do better because the audience demands more of the same.

It's a really good show, well worth your time but very very stupid people who should never be allowed to make such decisions canceled it after airing only three episodes. I am very angry at these idiots.

Most similar historical fiction history mystery thrillers are poorly written movies and history, science and logic are abused to remove anything that can be taken seriously by an intelligent person. You have Nickolas Cage or some one interchangeable for him dodging rock slides and getting through booby trapped labyrinths in those crappy movies. This was something like that but unlike those movies well thought out and executed. But some short sited sound bite morons canceled it so they can put on something that American attention spans can handle like Honey Boo Boo.

"Zero Hour" is a fast paced, twist-a-minute, intriguing, historical thrill ride that doesn't quite measure up. With its codes, symbols, maps, hidden objects and messages, and "ultimate secret", it's no wonder "Zero Hour" draws inevitable comparison to "The Da Vinci Code". This hour-long action drama centers on unraveling a mysterious secret hidden by twelve "new apostles" appointed by the church in 1938 to transport and safeguard some apocalypse-inducing secret from away from clawing Nazi hands. The mystery kicks off when the antique clock shop proprietress wife of Hank, played by "ER" (and "Top Gun"!) vet Anthony Edwards, is kidnapped after purchasing an unusual clock at a flea market. Hank runs a magazine called Modern Skeptic, focusing on conspiracy theories and historical mysteries (how convenient), and after being disillusioned with the abilities of the authorities, he enlists two of his young staff members, "Greek"'s Scott Michael Foster and his fellow "Californication" alum Addison Timlin, to follow the clues and track down his wife himself. This leads him to discover the rather convoluted conspiracy already outlined, and the necessity to investigate and travel the world to unfold the clues and match pace with the kidnapper, who is doing the same thing.

So many things happen in the first episode alone, it's tricky to keep track of it all. The conspiracy is interesting, especially its echoes of the supernatural, with genetic experimentation and a Nazi doppelganger of Hank, that make it a global "National Treasure" with the spirit of "Lost". While there are some very convenient discoveries and knowledge, there is at least an attempt to make the method of deduction somewhat plausible. The characters are under-developed but likable. Hank is so far a rather generic smart, good guy who just wants to get his wife back. His employees Arron and Rachel are also pretty stock characters (though it would be hard to fill in too many characteristic details for them and still have time for the plethora of details involving the plot set-up), their distinguishing characteristics being youth, loyalty, tenacity, and the extreme likelihood that they'll end up together at some point (if the show isn't canceled before they get around to it). More interesting are baddie Victor, who, though also thus far a non-specifically broad antagonist, is brought to life with grit and a somewhat psychopathic nonchalance by the Swedish "Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" actor Mikael Nyqvist, and unconventional FBI agent Beck, played with a mostly successful American accent by Brit Carmen Ejogo. The dialog is nothing to write home about, and I'm not sure they can (or should!) maintain the breakneck pace of the first two episodes, but despite its shortcomings, the fun and infinitely expandable premise, the obviously decent production budget, my hope for future improvement, and a soft spot for Nyqvist, Foster and Edwards will definitely keep me coming back every Thursday at Zero Hour (8 o'clock…), for the time being.

Zero hour is one of the best programs in years and those who say different after only watching episode one, have really no idea just what they have missed as the program progressed towards the end. don't be put off by amateur reviewers on here that have not watched the whole series.

Zero hour only states as being cancelled in various places because knowbody was given proper info about its release dates or other info. The viewing dates are all messed up on various sites that list TV programs. I don't know exactly where they have been aired but I have watched every episode up to the last episode 13. This will be the end of it then as there is only going to be the one season.

Go to Google and type in RELEASE BB and the link to watch for in the results will have "rlsbb" in it with a ".com" on the end. Now go to that site and type in ZERO HOUR and you will find all episodes as you go deeper through the pages. Sorry I cannot help you obtain them as it would not meet with IMDb regulations, but maybe you know somebody who can. It is well worth the effort.

I thought this was going to be a good show, but it's turned out pretty bad already. I won't even waste my time on picking out certain things but want to mention one scenario.

When the bad guy saw Hank outside the Submarine in the second episode. They both went into the sub and found Hank's "double" dead there holding a watch. And the pretty FBI agent makes the bad guy put down his gun. Now there goes Hank, taking a million pictures of this watch but he NEVER takes one picture of his double dead self???? Are you serious. Even the FBI agent is snapping pictures and she doesn't even take a picture of double dead Hank. I don't get that. Then Hank goes back to the city and explains he saw himself and his young team doesn't really understand what he means when he saw himself. He showed his young team a ton of pictures of the watch he saw but not one of his double dead self.

Things like that just get to me. Sorry.

I loved this show and would highly recommend it. It may take a couple of episodes for someone to really get into it but it's definitely worth it. It has a lot of conspiracy theories, paranormal indications, religious undertones, and Nazi/world war II connotations. It's smart and creative; like nothing else out there. Very mysterious and lots of twists! I wish there was more.

My husband and I seem to have a foolproof method of picking winners in new TV series.....if the half hour or full hour passes by very fast....the show is always a hit!!! This has been true for every one of our favorite shows. Guess what.....ZERO HOUR went by in zero time !!! We both think it's an entertaining, interesting, and well acted show. The concept has been done before, but not exactly in this manner. We liked the fact that past history was included, not just total fiction. Some things portrayed in the show really did exist or actually happen. It was fast paced, no long, drawn out scenes. I think this show will appeal to those of us that enjoy a good mystery, with lots of clues, and plot twists. There was good chemistry between the cast members, another element needed for a long running series. We think and hope it will run a long while !!! Following Day: Wow, some of you guys are really tearing this show apart!! Are you all unaware it is suppose to be a TV show, for entertainment purposes?? Most of you sound like its a doctoral thesis gone wrong !! Lighten up...it's unique and exciting to watch, OK a little work on the Arctic costuming, and the missing breath vapor was a good call. I hope the show's production team will take notes from some of the reviewers ! And the Fed got to go along on the plane because she is allowed to carry her gun on a plane...and she's sexy !

I watched this series because I really missed the late Swedish actor Michael Nyqvist, and he absolutely excelled and shined as brightly as he ever did.

And I really liked Anthony Edwards and Jacinda Barrett, and Carmen Ejogo was a stunner. She was perfect.

May Michael rest in peace.

At the start it appeared predictable, and at the point that ABC suspended the series it seemed that a formula had been established that left he viewers adrift. The great thing was that when the series rebooted in July, we suddenly found out that that Da Vinci take off was no more. The pedantic finding of he clocks, presaged by the hours counted in the title sequence, were short circuited and the whole story moved from pure religious fantasy to science fantasy. The final story kept a good balance of resolution and mystery. For a one season show, in this genre, this is as good as it gets. Enjoy the combination of Science Fiction, Fantasy, rewritten Nazi history, and the ultimate human story set in a religious context. The great thing about this series is that it does have an ending, and yet it is unlikely that you will work it out in the first ten or so episodes.

This is akin to murder she wrote, except, that was probably better acted at least. The plot is an interesting one however the delivery is just so corny that its cringe-worthy in many many places. I am guessing this show will be known for its corny one liners rather than the acting or script writing ability. Shame really, as the premise seemed a good one. I did have high hopes for it but unfortunately it is not going to last very long, if it does it will be a new murder she wrote corny show for old actors to get some work in. Don't waste your time if you have a reasonable amount of brainpower, if your a bit of a thicket (sorry) then this show will probably seem really good... But for those of you who liked warehouse 13 for fun, or eureka for fun, you will be sadly disappointed that this shows corny side takes away any fun it could have generated - disappointing 2 out of 10 for me...

I watched the pilot online before the official broadcast because friends recommended that it would come across as just plain bad in its broadcast time slot (8/7pm).

--- Emotional reaction ---

The overall tone is hilariously overwrought. The scenes are hacked together. There isn't even an attempt at a pretense of internal logic. Even in the context of a portion of an individual scene, the characters' actions often are absurdly nonsensical. The silliness, stupidity and illogic come flying at you at such a pace it is impossible not to laugh -- I was laughing well past the end of the credits.

Watch it with friends and wine/beer/... and debate questions such as: Is this good enough to be a bad parody of "The Da Vinci Code" and the like? Is Anthony Edwards starring because Nicholas Cage said that there wasn't enough money ...?

--- Analytic reaction ---

Quick cuts between short scenes are typical of this genre, but to be successful, it requires audience involvement, either with the characters or the cause (idea, threat, ...). There is none here.

Nazis as villains is so overdone and outmoded in this and related genres that it hurts audience buy-in. Even if this isn't the case, it is just so badly done -- so over-the-top and comic. This is an enormous red flag that the show's creator has no creativity or imagination.

The genre appears to be race-to-the-treasure. This requires the lead characters to buy into the high-energy craziness, such as Nicholas Cage in the National Treasure series and the gaggle of comics in "It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World" (1963). Anthony Edwards is badly suited to play this role, both from the type of actor he is and audience expectations from prior role. And worse the script saddles him with two conflicting roles. The other one is that of the skeptic/voice-of-sanity (comic relief, exposition, whatever). Although the actor is much better suited to this role, the writers give him no support (I remember only one line, and it was a throw-away). The Anthony Edwards character could have been the "reluctant hero", but actor and the setup in the pilot preclude this.

There are multiple statements by characters to tell the audience that things are not what they seem, but rather than ambiguous hints to draw you in, they are ham-handed signals that the writers don't have the finesse to handle this genre.

This show tried to make something, but it failed in every way. I would like to describe this show as a mixture of National Treasure, Indiana Jones and Da Vinci Code. Why every TV show tries to show us apocalypse? Dumb references to Ainstein, Catholicism, and religion. Please producers, make something original, fresh and entertaining. This is just boring and will surely be canceled in the next 2-3 months. Shows like "River" that has been canceled showed some freshness in this genre. Characters are not developed well. Emotions between them are not even shown realistically. Why in every show, there has to be some intelligence agency. We all got bored of mentioning FBI or CIA. Make something new and fresh.

Fantasy like shows are difficult to pull of because a lot of it has been done before. In this instance the writers have come up with a refreshing original tale that is engaging, twisty and intriguing. The cast is a great departure from the all perfect caricatures that grace our screens with little regard to what we really look like. We don't all have perfect hair or perfect eyes and bodies and this show reflects that by choosing talent over superficial looks. Im catching up on missed episodes and thoroughly enjoying each one. I hope this goes past the first season and enjoys a long run. It would be interesting to see how they would spin it.

A good story premise, but uninspired casting, juvenile script, amateur direction. The dialog uses every cliché in the book. Casting a geeky main character with two student sidekicks? They obviously spent money on this show, but they didn't spend it on the cast or writing. It deserved to die. The main character makes me cringe. Always makes wrong decisions. Comes off as a naive dunderhead that makes you want to slap him around. The characters in this show make you want to root for the bad guys. There are shows on TV that have excellent writers - like The Good Wife. They're smart and have depth, and are able to bring out the actors talents. I think Zero Hour has a major identity problem. I'd be curious to know who they feel their target viewers are. Judging by the writing and direction I'm guessing it's 12 year olds - or adults with a recent lobotomy.