Continuum

A lot of reviews here have argued that Continuum show advances a pro- corporate, anti-democracy viewpoint. It doesn't, but you could be forgiven for thinking that. Most American shows have a clear good guy (the protagonist) and a clear bad guy (the antagonists).

This show, however, follows the Canadian tendency to operate in shades of grey. Continuum presents two opposing factions, and asks the viewer to make up their own mind whether they agree with the protagonist or the antagonists.

I'm not speaking from my own interpretation, but the official stance of the people behind the show. The "choose your side" mentality has been presented repeatedly in an explicit manner, most recently on the Continuum Facebook page, where a post recently asked, "Which side are you on? Team Kiera or Team Liber8?"

The show doesn't choose a side, but instead presents an interesting challenge to viewers which some won't be ready to meet:

The Freedom Fighters (antagonists) use brutal methods to accomplish their goals, but their cause is just.

The protagonist character Kiera operates within the law, uses non- lethal force, does what she thinks is right, and tries to protect people... And yet she champions the cause of despots.

Do you believe in the righteous champion of despotism, or the brutal champions of freedom? ...Or do you side with neither?

The acting was solid throughout the series. Season 1 was good, season 2 started only okay and became really great, season 3 was somewhat diffuse and muddled, and season 4 was too action-oriented for my taste. I was really excited to see where the story would go after season 2 and it never really went anywhere, certainly not in the many awesome directions it could have which has left me feeling disappointed. Instead of continuing to develop the solid plotlines they started, they spent time on new elements that did not enhance the established plot and actually distracted from it. Worth watching, but could have been much better. Had it been completed as well as it should have I would've rated it 8.5/10.

Continuum is very well acted thanks to a host of established actors from other series. The leading lady Rachel Nichols is thoroughly convincing in character and has the on-screen ability to keep viewers wondering and watching what she is going to do next. The overall plot has lots of room for development which is significant if the series is to continue. Best of all viewers will want to watch episode after episode because the storyline is that good. Special Effects are very good too as should be expected today but the show obviously has been awarded a fair sized investment because there is a sophisticated gloss to the entire production other shows don't have. The first series is very good and I am currently looking forward to the second. If the second is as good as the first this could develop into a long-term show. I sincerely hope so.

What make Continuum different and interesting, isn't the central plot to the show, it's the characters and their motives. It's a bit more nuanced than your typical good cops vs. bad guys.

The show starts off in a distant but possible future where governments begin to fail to repay their debts and Corporations bail out the governments, to what extent we don't know. You do learn that the government very close with these corporations, and that not everyone enjoys how the corporations are running things.

A group of terrorists are constantly trying to disrupt the corporations and bring them down with any-means necessary, or so we are lead to believe, and this is where the show get's interesting. The terrorist are really just terrorists, but rather they are revolutionaries that are trying to build an honest society without the corruption of the corporations.

As the series unfolds. I like knowing that the core 'good' characters want the world to be a better place and are fighting for what is right, while the other characters each have their motives and their means. They each make their own decisions and don't have simple 'bad guy' motives. In fact several times I found my self rooting for the revolutionaries because heck I don't want a corrupt government in place, and some of the characters when given the option of fighting without violence opt for it.

If you give this show a chance I think it's one of the most compelling scifi shows out there. If you liked Caprica, or Battlestar Galactica you will like this show. The characters are very strong and compelling.

The premise - A cop (Rachel Nichols) is accidentally sent to 2012 from the year 2077 along with a very very potent terrorist group, a group that the present league of police/crime fighters are just not equipped to handle.

By 2077 governments have been replaced by corporate rule and the terrorists are trying to bring back democracy by a revolution, so they have decided to go back to the past. Unfortunately though they wanted to go back just 6 years they are accidentally taken back 60.

I have just seen the pilot episode, and this was just brilliant. It was almost like a big budget movie and the quality is about 90% that of Fringe. Plus the novelty and the tech part exceeds Fringe! The main girl in the show is the pretty girl they introduced in the last season of Alias, and she was sort of the only disappointment. Its just like from Alias, she looks good but her acting is too artificial. Jennifer Garner would have just rocked this role. :-).

The Sci-fi is super good, and 'that' is the main attraction of this show. I am not sure if they would be able to keep this up, but I really hope they do, as right now there are very few good shows.

Is it recommended? Yes, definitely worth our 45mins. :-).............

-------

Addendum:

After reading a lot of the negative review of this show, yes, I too agree to many of that. The quality is not 90, but about 75% that of Fringe. But this show left me really excited and surprised right after seeing it. A majority of the TV shows are just mediocre/silly and this one definitely is 'not' mediocre.

----------------------

Review after seeing the 2nd and 3rd episodes:

The 2nd episode was pretty awful compared to the pilot and was disappointed. I decided to give it one final shot and see the 3rd episode, and it was good (relatively). I think I should give this show some time before making a final judgement. Some character development started happening in the 3rd episode and they have removed some of the cheeziness from the 2nd. It seems as if they are learning from their mistakes, but they didn't go back to edit out their mistakes from the previous episodes (aren't these shows shot continuously over a period of time and then aired months later, or maybe even a few weeks later, so doesn't it give them ample time?).

The sci-fi aspect is making me stick on. :-).

Check it out if you have some extra time and make your own decision.

-----------------

Review after 2 full seasons:

The show became significantly better after a few hiccups. I had thought that this show would loose steam, but no, they have greatly widened the story line, more characters and good character development.

Thank You for reading. Cheers!