I had this one on the mental back burner for a couple years, finally took the plunge. As an entry in the mysterious puzzle box sort of genre it's a solid effort. I'm not a big fan of Jessica Biel, performances I've seen weren't particularly notable (and her mouth kinda bugs me but that's hardly a valid point) but she fit very well in this.
First, if you stick thru to the end you will get answers. Always an important factor in shoes with mysteries. Yes, there is only one season but it's all wrapped up well and I don't think it was necessarily written with more in mind. They do leave a possible dangling thread during the finale credits but I don't think that was to set up a season 2, rather shows you what direction the story will go on its own. Stanley Tucci is predictably good; who wouldn't want him as their uncle? Some BSG alums for what they're worth. You've got a mysterious group disappearance, shady experiments, an apparent massive coverup, some great supporting (Walter and Max particularly).
But there's some downers. Jessica Biel went all in on driven woman mode. We've all seen fictional reporters do crazy unrealistic stuff to get the scoop but this chick is hardcore. Lying, death, infidelity, more lying, this girl wants answers and she just don't give a funk if anything gets in her way. In movies we usually assume they're doing all the normal life functions off screen but this character surely transcended eating and bathrooms long ago in her quest for the truth.
The sidekick she's saddled with was jarring for me. He seemed alright, sort of a milquetoasty putz kinda dude, but he sorta oscillates between ally and overly cautious parent figure too much. Maybe they were trying to generate some suspicion that he was "in on" the conspiracy? If so it didn't really work. There was one episode, I think #7, that is totally skippable. I get the need to fill out the characters somewhat but it's done oddly. Aside from the main Limetown mystery we get these other aspects that never go anywhere: Lia has a girlfriend she sorta sees but there's a bit more to it...though it doesn't really matter. Her mom calls a lot and there's eventually some interaction there but that's never resolved. Maybe more conspiracy hints but by leaving them open it ends up diluting the story. There's no way all these people are somehow tangentially related to Limetown. So no idea what mom's purpose was. Her dad isn't around anymore but she calls him a lot. There's some timing issues with all that but avoiding spoilers. Basically a bunch of extra stuff that only ends up telling you: she has a cold mostly-nonexistent relationship with mom and really liked dad and his apparently massive phone inbox. Marlee Matlin's in there but she doesn't get any speaking lines (get it? Okay, not exactly comedy gold). Seriously though, I only ever see her briefly anymore. Guess she really values having days off.
Anyway it's worth watching. After you finish the whole thing becomes a little underwhelming but I do think it was smart to incrementally tell us what was going on. Avoids the inevitable let down whenever we invest like 10-15hrs in a mystery then finally get a disappointing answer (e.g. Main character was schizophrenic all along, or invisible nano machines destroyed everything, or.::dinosaurs or whatever).
There's a mystery. It's explained for the most part. Solving the mystery has quite predictable repercussions. Annnnd if you're someone so completely focused on getting answers to one thing then getting them should be totally satisfying.
Be warned though, there's not one lime in this whole thing. No citrus fruit whatsoever. So there is that.
