Helix

I was hoping for something like "Burning Zone" - intense show about a team of brave scientists containing deadly diseases. A show with tense and creepy atmosphere and genuinely frightening moments.

Instead, I got this.

The yellow-blue filter only accentuates the show's low-budget look. Characters spout out generic lines, and every scene unfolds right on cue of a predictable beat. There are no surprises, no scares, no suspense, no sense of involvement with the cardboard characters.

SyFy channel has succeeded at accomplishing the most difficult task of taking a show about infectious diseases and people in Hazmat suits and making it into a banal snore-fest.

Of course, if anyone could do it, it's SyFy.

This show is quite good. It has nice twists and plot cliffhangers.

However, the person who chose the soundtrack should never be allowed to do that ever again!!! It's excruciating!!!!

To start off with the good, I will say that the show "sounds" very appealing (deadly virus outbreak on a massive secluded base in the arctic). The general setting/premise is solid.

The show fails however in many facets. The acting ranges from mediocre to sub-standard, though I don't blame the actors. While I can't say I enjoyed any of the performances, The writing is where the show falls apart.

If you tasked someone to find a team of writers to do a project, but instead of doing any work finding the right writers, they just hired a football team (no offence to football teams here), you would have the quality of writing in this show.

The characters typically do not act rationally (rationally referring to how a person might normally act under the same circumstances). Conflict feels like it is created on the spot, and often leads to very unrealistic sequences of events.

The show has poor dialog, and very undefined characters (their personalities seem to change radically without a proper basis as to why).

I could go on, but I would like to end on a positive note.

Despite having it's serious flaws, you may find yourself still willing to endure this series. It has mystery, it has action, it has zombie-ish themes, and from time-to-time has a few moments.

I watched the first season until the end. I'm definitely not fascinated, it's never going to be my favorite show. Some events are unrealistic, some characters react in a way "real humans" wouldn't (but then again, it is still unclear how much of that is just bad writing and acting and how much will be explained later on). Still, every episode was interesting and fun to watch.

Sure, there are moments when they watch a virus under a microscope or create miracle drugs in days by mixing few flasks of colored liquids, but if you can let go of the expectations of realism for the sake of fun, I recommend this show.

I really enjoyed it. Maybe not a great show, but definitely worth watching. It has its own distinct style.