Utopia

Utopia will ravage your senses.

The visuals are stunning, with camera work that bleeds from every scene with dynamics reminiscent of a graphic novel. The soundtrack is less a soundtrack, and more of a medium for an aural injection of dopamine and adrenaline.

Combining the two in lustfully artistic confluence, Utopia induces a sensory overload that deceptively functions as an aesthetic sleight of hand to the real act; Utopia's plot.

Narrative tropes aside, the story line encapsulates contemporary paranoia in a microcosmic collage of espionage and epidemics, resonating tremors of real world concerns. As a snapshot of current society, Utopia dexterously mitigates the mediagenic compulsion to sensationalize, by employing a sublime cast and writing crew. From apathy and sociopathic detachment, to metaphysical dread and even humor, the show is a vivid mosaic of psychological dissonance and societal decay.

Utopia is tailor-made for the cynical. Strangely enough, as a misanthropic cynic, I found myself entertaining delusionary hope for the human race. By the end, I had painted myself into a corner of morbid optimism, which is an absolute testament to strength of Utopia's narrative. The lack of a third season is veritably tragic, but follows in the pattern of sublime shows that meet an untimely demise. (Carnivale anyone ?)

The introspect induced by Utopia is shattering. The implications suggested by Utopia are devastating. The future painted by Utopia is bleak.

Utopia will ravage your being.

Right until the next day. And then you'll go on with your life and perpetuate our predicament with continued ignorance; because hey, it's just entertainment right ?

What to say about this show? I read some good reviews without spoilers and so I was looking forward to find it out for myself if it was that good. And yes it certainly was. It's actually one of my favorite British series. The story is one of the better stories I watched in a long time. It's futuristic but inevitable if you think about it. I won't say anything about it because I don't like spoilers. Just find out for yourself. There is a reasonable amount of gory parts but it's never really graphic. It's more that you have to imagine about it. The actors are all really good, especially the killer in his flamboyant suit. It also contains my favorite scene ever shown on TV, that's how much I loved it. It's the opening scene in the last episode of the last season. It's just brilliant, can't get enough of that scene. What I also like about British series is that they are short, only a couple seasons. That's how it's supposed to be, you tell a good story and then you end it. Not like some American series where they try to milk the story as much as possible, and so ruin a perfect little story sometimes.

UTOPIA.

Thrilling. Suspenseful. Unsettling. Tense.

Probably the best show ever made (and I've watched lots of great tv shows such as Sopranos, Breaking Bad, The Wire etc.) Not only is it stunning visually, but thought provoking too. It's extremely dark, violent, but has some comedic moments as well. The sountrack is so weird yet amazing and fits perfectly with the show. It's been over a year since I've watched Utopia but there's not a day that goes by when I don't think about it. It hurts me knowing that people have not experienced this masterpiece.

The show lasted only 2 seasons after being cancelled and although it ended on a cliffhanger, most of the show's story and character arcs were wrapped up which is fine. With only 6 episodes in each season, there's no filler and the plot always keeps moving forward.

If I could recommend one show, it would be UTOPIA.

TV at its finest. Everything from the characters, the locations, the plot, the photography, the soundtrack, every bit of it is bloody brilliant.

This show deserves wide recognition.

I got interested in 'Utopia' when I read that David Fincher was going to direct an American version of this British show for HBO. While that apparently didn't come together, I actually doubt even a master like Fincher could have improved upon the original: it's absolutely perfect.

The visual style of the show, the amazing, crazy soundtrack (which fits the crazy conspiracy story so well), the fantastic characters and the wonderful cast and the pitch-black humor - I could go on and on. It all comes together to create one of the most unique and most original TV shows I've seen in a long time.

The only thing I know that would be kind of comparable among the current shows is 'Orphan Black' - but 'Utopia' is even crazier (and a LOT more violent), has much weirder characters and makes for a more cinematic experience due to its stylish, Technicolor drenched photography.

The only downside to this show is that the finale of the second season sets the stage for a third season, which, sadly never happened (for reasons I do not comprehend, the show got cancelled). But nearly all the loose ends are tied up, and the two existing seasons of 'Utopia' make for a fantastic watch. Highly recommended: 9 stars out of 10.