Sleeper Cell

Far more than anything I've watched on TV in a long time, this entire series made me uncomfortable and uneasy. It wasn't just the reality of it, though that was unsettling, especially for someone who lives in the LA area and knows a lot of those locations.

But it was the way I was relating to the characters, especially the members of the cell besides Farik. I would find myself agreeing with some of the things they said, or empathizing with them in some other way -- really, just seeing them as human. The show would start taking me down that path, and then utterly ruthlessly snap me back when those same characters did something to remind me of what they are and what they've become. Each time -- as much as I should have expected it -- it came as a shock.

This is a great series, but overall, watching it was a pretty unsettling experience. It forced me to ask a lot of questions I simply don't have the answers for. And I don't think anyone else does, either. The best comparisons to other material would be to the films Traffic and Syriana, but because of the length (10 hours as compared to 2.5) and the focus on just a few characters, the emotional investment in this story was a lot greater.

In terms of what to expect, this is not an easy to digest, fast-paced show -- I think the analogies to 24 are off-base in that respect. Yeah, it has to do with terrorism -- so do Victory at Entebbe and Executive Decision -- but really, it doesn't have much in common with movies and TV shows in that genre. The spiritual roots of this series are in material like Wiseguy (to which there's a nice tip of the hat in episode 5), or Donnie Brasco, about the experience of an undercover agent. If you are expecting lots of things going boom -- well, this might not be what you're looking for.

The performances are top-notch, especially Michael Ealy and Oded Fehr. The entire series has a sense of realism throughout that keeps the tension strong throughout. Just excellent work all around, and Showtime deserves serious kudos for upping the quality of its original offerings with a series like this.

The conversation of extremist attacks and ideologies hasn't left our society since this show was made and tragically canceled. The exploration of what compels even ordinary men and women to pursue something so violent in the name of religious ideology is fascinating to watch.

Sleeper Cell did a fine job of showing a balanced viewpoint with balanced characters. The series follows a secret agent who infiltrates a sleeper cell group of unlikely militants planning a big attack. The tense situations our protagonist gets himself into is gripping but also endearing as you see what a more moderate believer is like. Definitely worth watching!

I love the show. The acting is great and I think Alex Nesic will be one of our sexiest men in the future. Now I must note that the first show had an error that was quite blatant to me. The penitentiary in Lompoc, California is where I used to live. It is not pronounced "Lompak", but is pronounced "Lompoke". I was surprised that was not noticed and corrected. Also I wonder how Darwin gets by with carrying and using his cell phone w/o question? That I find confusing. I would think the leader would get that phone and check the calls just to keep a good check on the members. Other than that, I look forward to the episodes. Can someone tell me what nights this will be on and what channel? thanks.

I happened to catch the first episode of the drama Sleeper Cell, while flipping through the channels and got hooked in 15 minutes. Its the story of an American Muslim working for the FBI going undercover and joining a Muslim terrorist organization that is hell bent on bringing chaos and terror to America.

What makes a drama tick is making the viewers involved with the characters. One must feel for the people in the story or else it just becomes a bunch of people on TV. The show gives adequate information about the main character, Darwyn Al-Hakim and his reason for going undercover. Oded, who plays the leader of the cell, gives a very chilling ice-down-the-spine performance. the rest of the team members are all non-Arabs and they have a reason to be here, or at least one of them have. They make you feel for these people at the same time make you feel bad that you are actually feeling sorry for the bad guys. THats what is called drama.

I'll have to now soon get this on DVD for my collection because i feel that this is going to be one of those really good TV series that are too short but worth it, like Band of Brothers.

The only thing worse than the suspense of this program was the arrival of the closing credits.

The title tells the setting. Saying more would detract and it would be nearly impossible not to be a spoiler as well.

If suspense, plots twists, good acting and believable plots are your cup of tea then you are in for one fine treat.

The casting was perfect, as was, on the whole, the character development. Every performer was very believable in their roles and thus I did not have to be annoyed by the usual weak performer that pulls down the entire performance.

If all television was this good I would become a full time couch potato............pass the sour cream please.