2 posts tagged “the 4400”

I may have to take back some of what I said in my last 4400 review.  The new series is opening things up quite nicely.  There's Richard, Lily and baby Isabelle on the run, endlessly propelled on their as yet, unknown quest.  Also, we're starting to see Shawn detaching with his past and moving forward with Jordan Collier, of all people; a move that would have been hard to pick from the events of the last season.  

Elsewhere, parental issues dominate.  Baldwin and Kyle's relationship is healing -- or is it?  Are they falling back into the old patterns of their father-son dynamic, and what is happening to Kyle?  All interesting questions, begging answers.  Maia and Skouris reveal the complexity of the parent-child relationship and things aren't always as black and white as they seem.  Would you read your child's diary?  

It was a nice touch in the extended first episode, to see the ripple effect device being used so well, with the restoration of the sanity of the neuroscientist who is destined to be the 'father' of the work on special abilities -- through his research on dormant areas of the brain.  Hopefully, this is something we'll see more of as the series develops.

Last but not least, some nice twists and further dramatics with the rise of Shawn and demise of Collier -- as the interwoven destinies of Isabelle and Kyle with the 4400 grow ever more mysterious and sinister.  

My favourite lines so far came from episode 3 - The Weight of the World:
Shawn:    "You can be a manipulative little pr*ck you know that?"
Collier:    "It helps to use your entire skillset when you're trying to change the world."

I've just finished watching season one of The 4400 and it's not bad at all.  The series focuses on a bunch of people abducted by a mysterious force and returned en masse at a point in their future (our present day) in order to save humanity.  There are 4400 of these abductees, hence The 4400, as they are popularly labelled in the media.  The returnees all have been modified in some way so to have a unique ability to aid them in their task.  These abilities range from precognitive to life giving/taking.  Given the time the show first aired, and the political situation the world is in a few years on, the premise is oddly prescient. 

Structurally, the series revolves around the stories and movements of two key agents from Homeland Security heading up the drive to investigate and rehabilitate these 4400.  Baldwin and Skouris are a Mulder-Scully-esque pair and a lot of their chemistry feels very familiar from the days of the X-Files, though its maybe a slightly funked up version.  The series doesn't overwhelm you with characters either, concentrating on a group of 4400's and then slowly introducing and eliminating characters every so often. 

Series one was pretty short.  A total of six episodes, counting in the two-part pilot.  But it was well written, probably skimpy on the budget, but the characters were genuinely likeable and well detailed.  There is a huge emotional investment that is made into the characters and their lives, and it pays off.  These story arcs are the dynamic bringing in tension and leaving each episode on a cliffhanger.  I've got to admit, I got through this first series in virtually a day.  The ending, though is where I have the most quibbles.  I think, without giving too much away, that a lot could have been done with the ending, making it more dramatic and closing the series earlier on a certain dramatic moment, then the over-used Six Months Later... which is what we essentially got.

And here's where the rumbles of discontent really begin, because the second series opens up with a further 'Six Months Later...' ploy, which after the first one, is really wearing the whole thing, rather thin.  I'm still interested enough to continue watching and see what happens -- I've invested too much into the characters not to, but whatever happens, it better be good!

The 4400 was one of the first victims to fall foul of the writers strike with the 5th series being cancelled and the show being put on metaphorical ice.  While there is an active movement by fans to save the show, it seems unlikely, and I'm left wondering whether I want to continue watching a show that I know has no resolution...