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What's the big surprise behind the return of Eureka's 'Taggart'?
The rumors are not true—Matt Frewer did NOT agree to reprise his role as Jim Taggart on Syfy's Eureka just so people would finally stop saying, "Hey Matt, when are you going to be back as Taggart on Eureka?"
"That wasn't my M.O., but if it's achieved that, it's worked," Frewer said during a conference call with reporters earlier this week. "Well, that's it, it's a double-edge sword, isn't it? You can kind of leave 'em wanting more, but if you leave 'em for too long then they just forget."
Fan favorite Frewer—whose credits include everything from Max Headroom, PSI Factor and Watchmen to the Syfy miniseries Taken—returns as Taggart in "Have an Ice Day," which will premiere tonight on Syfy at 9 p.m. ET/PT. In the episode, an ice core threatens to bring with it a new ice age. The manager of the ice core project is none other than Taggart.
But wait a second—we thought Taggart was Eureka's erstwhile veterinarian and biological containment specialist?
"Yeah, so did I," Frewer said, laughing. "I guess in the overall storyline the notion for this was that he was going to complete his walkabout back to Australia. And the whole deal with Taggart is that he always gets waylaid somewhere interesting. And this was his next port of call, to take ice core samples in the Arctic. So there you have it."
Frewer took direction during his time back on the Eureka set from series regular Joe Morton. The actor gives his temporary boss a thumbs-up. "Actually, it was great," Frewer said. "He's an extremely bright and gifted fellow anyway, and it was a pleasant surprise to see how savvy he was directing. Obviously, being an actor, you have somewhat of an immediate rapport with him anyway, and there was kind of a shorthand, but on top of that he was just great fun. We both agreed that for Taggart's return that was the key to the thing, to have fun with it. And he definitely facilitated that."
The episode airing tonight is a one-off. Frewer won't be back as Taggart this season. But Syfy has renewed Eureka for a fourth season, and Frewer said he'd like to return again at some point. "We're pretty much right back into the flow of the character interaction," he said. "There's definitely possibilities there for more stuff, and hopefully they take up the challenge."
By Bunny at 2:26 PM ON 09/11/09
I really like the character but always thought his accent was so phony. I didn't miss him at all and am really glad that the thing with him and Jo was a one shot deal.
By evenevan at 2:27 PM ON 09/11/09
So what ever happened to that super intelligent dog that Taggart was always chasing? I apprecaited the fact that the dog was Taggart's foil and always seemed to get the best of him.
By gndn at 4:53 PM ON 09/11/09
Whatever happened to Allison's son?
By joesocwork at 5:02 PM ON 09/11/09
I'll have to admit I never get Matt Frewer's roles either, except for maybe Doctor Doctor. And the relationship with Jo?? But he does have an earnestness to his goofiness that still makes me laugh.
By Doctor WHAT? at 6:25 PM ON 09/11/09
That scene with Jo and Tag making out in H.O.U.S.E Rules was hilarious, I had always wondered why Tag vanished after season two.
By JasonInMelbourne at 11:57 PM ON 09/11/09
After all these years I still can't get past seeing him as Max Headroom!
By urson at 10:04 AM ON 09/12/09
I watched the ep. last night... WTF? Was it a fungus that generates ice and cold temps? Was it ice that somehow grows like a fungus? Honestly, I think the series has made the fatal jump. I won't miss it when it's done for the season.
By Omen at 3:49 PM ON 09/12/09
The fungus spreads the ice which in turn causes the cold temps.
Of course,that doesn't explain why outside a
building the heat of the Sun woudn't stop the ice. That said I hope Matt returns next season as I find Jo's beau dull.
By Bren36 at 1:17 PM ON 09/13/09
Great Episode and Great to have Taggert back. SCI-FI Channel should keep him full-time for next season and loss Zane. Tag and Jo better couple.
Just someone explain why a super-secret goverenment town and lab just lets a Russian official now about it and walk around. Stupid idea ever! Whoever came up with that and let is killing the quality of the show. I can except people from Area 51 walking around and had troubles believing Lexi boyfriend thinks the town is normal and also gets access to GD. BUT the Russian version of Carter come on. How secret is Eureka if everyone and anyone can stop by!
By raindog469 at 3:22 PM ON 09/13/09
One of the things I loved about Eureka when it started was how quirky it was, with elements of other "isolated Northwestern town" shows like Northern Exposure and Men in Trees in addition to the crisis of the week. Taggart, and his obsession with the dog, and his curiously homoerotic crush on Jo were all emblematic of that. I think the show has gotten less quirky and taken fewer and fewer chances (I half-expect Vincent's long-lost, never-before-mentioned girlfriend to show up any day now) as the network has come to rely on it more and more. That's a shame. Hope Warehouse 13 doesn't go that route, not that it's as quirky as Eureka once was.
I assumed Taggart had to go because Matt Frewer was just too busy to be a TV regular anymore, but I really, really miss him and think the character could do a lot more for the show as a regular than as a once-every-couple-years guest star.
By farscape29 at 2:34 PM ON 09/14/09
@gndn - YEAH! What did happen to Alison's son? I thought I was going nuts when he wasn't around any more. What's the dealy?
By nilus at 4:29 PM ON 09/14/09
I thought last season there was a mention of him. I thought they said he was at a prep school somewhere. .
My bet is hes hanging out with Walt from LOST, bitching about how TV takes to long to make and puts child actors out of work because they grow up to quick.
By lumina at 9:48 PM ON 10/01/09
The character of Taggert is very watchable, but as an Aussie myself, please some one coach him on what an Aussie accent sounds like. It is beyond bad.
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lumina:
The character of Taggert is very watchable, but as an Aussie myself, please some one coach him on what an Aussie ac...More »