Odyssey 5

Odyssey 5 is simply the smartest show on cable! In one commercial, the announcer says that it is the obvious heir to the X-Files. Well, in my opinion as a longtime X-Fan, Odyssey 5 is much better. Five times better, in fact! If I were not already a Showtime subscriber, I would be after catching a glimpse of this show. I can not stress enough what an awesome, entertaining, thought-provoking show this is. The setup: a shuttle crew of five orbiting the earth watch on as the planet is destroyed. They are then met by an alien who sends their minds back in time 5 years so that they can hopefully stop what is about to happen. During their research and efforts, they uncover a new life-form and somehow, somewhere, they have accidentally sped up the earth-destroying process! Catch the crew of Odyssey 5 as they struggle to save the earth and battle their own personal problems.

I had missed this when it first came out, but luckily they just re-ran the first 17 episodes on-demand. Sucked em all down in a week and I still want more. Some of the best acting I've seen in a series (not just sci-fi either) in a long time. Especially Weller. Is this "Buckaroo Banzai Grows Up" ?? They should have won an Emmy for episode 6....this is the one where they all start re-experiencing the worst thing that ever happened...so well done (I don't cry at much...) The mystery surrounding the adversaries is so well developed, I find myself guessing something different after each episode. Anyway, it looks like Showtime is extending the run!! New episodes on Sunday nite (10-18-04)Don't miss it!!!

A few weeks ago in the wee hours, I caught my first episode of Odyssey 5 (on the SPACE channel,Canada), and

WAS HOOKED! I didn't quite follow the storyline, but the

actors made the ep, and it has a great atmosphere. Watched another one, and have been telling folks how good

it is, only to find it's already been CANCELLED by Showtime! This afternoon, I saw the pilot episode, and

it's about the ONLY tv sci-fi that has given me goosebumps!

Is it my imagination, or when I was a kid (I'm 40+ now)

was there just MORE good science fiction available, recognized as a thinking man's (er, person's) media or

literature entertainment? You just can't seem to find any these days (Outer Limits manages it fairly often), and

when it does appear, the powers that be nix it. I just

don't get it.

Great premise, interesting characters and outstanding actors....seems like a perfect recipe to me!

Linda Vancouver, Canada

Showtime really hit a homerun with this show. It's smart, sexy and does insightful, thought provoking sci-fi that favorably compares with the first couple of X-Files season. There are supposed to be 20 episodes but only 14 have seen air time (to 1/03) and is appears that a second season won't be done. A real pity because this one is a gem. With this one going away, and Farscape no longer around, there is a shortage of intelligent science fiction on television. Watch what you can of this and just dream about what it could have been.

I enjoyed Odyssey 5 a lot. It's not great sci-fi, but it's good. And while the premise isn't absolutely original, it has a lot of original aspects. The acting is pretty good and the stories were generally pretty well thought out (though there are a few that aren't excellent).

Showtime really needs to replace whoever keeps getting rid of their good sci-fi shows. They had Stargate and they dumped it. What were they thinking? In its 10th season, it will be the second longest running sci-fi series in history (after Dr. Who, which ran for 26 straight seasons).

I suspect that Odyssey 5 would have found it's groove by the second season, maybe the 3rd. The first season of Star Trek: The Next Generation wasn't so good because the actors hadn't really found their groove yet. The Odyssey 5 actors had a much better head start in that aspect.

I'm really disappointed with Showtime for killing this and now that it's been 4 years, I suspect it won't come back at all, which is a shame. It would have been nice if the Sci-Fi Channel had picked it up and taken it over. They clearly know how to make good sci-fi and I think they could have done a lot with this one.