Whenever a show does a bank/hostage plot I have to call bullshit on that! HA! It keeps happening! Last month or so it was Leverage. There's been others... It's an overused plot line usually reserved for shows that run out of ideas in the 8th season. I first noticed it on "The Commish."
Leverage did it within its first 6 episodes.
Now there's Burn Notice. It's their second year. Too early to run out of plots.
This Dog Day afternoon has been used on such shows as "Comish," "Third Watch," and recently on the Sci Fi cop drama " Dead Zone," homeland security show "Threat Matrix," mafia show, "Thin Line" and others.
Recipe for bank hostage plot:
1) character from the show, put them in regular clothes and have them run to the bank on a quick errand. (With ATM's and online backing, this is becoming harder to justify.)
2)Have the character talk to everyone and make small talk. This is where we learn to care about the other people in the bank, in case someone is shot or hyper ventilates, the viewers will care. A pregnant woman who's about to blow would be great.
3)Then add the irritated about to blow, sweaty bank robber who finally pulls out the gun.
The cop (or main character) pretends to be a normal victim until his/her cover is blown. The cop will negotiate from the inside while the rest of the regular characters try to save the day from the outside.
Sometimes the hostage plot works, fits with the show, with like...FlashPoint a show about hostage negotiators. But when a "Sopranos" rip off has a bank robbery, you have to wonder.
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