Now seems like a good time to take a look at some more shows that premiered this summer. I think it is pretty clear that summer is no longer TV dead space, one only has to look (primarily on cable) to find something, and there is a little bit of everything out there too–sci-fi and fantasy, teen shows, procedurals, comedies, just to name a few. So which ones should you be watching?
The Lottery-
In just over ten years from now, the world faces a slow extinction as every human being is suddenly and inexplicably infertile. When an American lab manages to fertilize 100 embryos, the president, in a desperate attempt to retain his position, decides to hold a lottery to determine which women will be the surrogates and mothers to these children. The situation is more complicated, as the world is not content to let America alone have children and a hope of a future. This series follows Lifetime’s more recent moves into genre TV (Drop Dead Diva, Witches of East End) and while it is certainly nothing groundbreaking, it is interesting to see a possible direction that the world and government might take in this sort of extreme situation. Like most dystopian-type futures, it doesn’t look too good for anyone. There is also a cute little boy named Elvis who is perhaps the youngest boy alive at age 6, and his father’s struggles to keep him are compelling.
Verdict: Not a must see, but I will keep checking in.
Extant-
This is a weird one. It sort of felt like the writers could not decide what show they wanted to make. Alien sci-fi or robot sci-fi or corporate conspiracy sci-fi. All are good individually, but together they are perhaps overkill. One storyline is about a woman who was in space on a solo mission for over a year and came back pregnant anyway. There seems to be some sort of conspiracy here, and the woman is being kept in the dark by the company she works for. The other is about the development of artificial intelligence (in the same vein as the movie A.I., but the intent of development and not simply a robotic stand in). Personally, I find the story of the artificial intelligence being raised as a real boy with the intent of him developing like a human child, so that he becomes good or evil with no safeguards, to be a significantly more interesting story line.
Verdict: If we could cut out half the show, it would be worth watching.
The Divide-
Part of why I like this show might be entirely due to a good friend of mine who was involved in the Innocence Project in college. She talked about it a lot and made the project seem worthy, despite the fact that she wasn’t even interested in becoming a lawyer. The series revolves around a woman whose father is on death row for a crime she is positive he did not commit, because she was with him that night. But no one believes her because she was a child at the time and either is lying to cover for her dad, fell asleep, or simply misremembered. Since she cannot save him yet, she instead works for the Innocence Initiative to help prove others innocent, typically through new, genetic testing. Her passion for helping people gets her embroiled in a controversial case with big implications for many of the city’s biggest names.
Verdict: While I would not say this is the most amazing of all police/law shows, I find myself enjoying it.
The Strain-
A plane lands at the airport with no sign of life inside. The CDC is called in to investigate and finds that all but 4 passengers on the plane are dead from mysterious circumstances. Those circumstances: vampires. Sort of. These are a combination of vampires and parasitic worms. There is a vampire hunter. There is some sort of monster thing. There is a conspiracy of some sort (maybe governmental). There is a creepy little girl. It has all the hallmarks of a horror series, but for me, it was missing the heart of the matter. What makes The Walking Dead so fantastic is not the horror aspect (though that is done quite well) but the more emotional and human (or barbaric) moments. It is the betrayals and the extremes and the challenges to humanity. It is the heartbreak of finding little Sophia as a zombie after months of searching for her, the despair of losing a sister after only just reconnecting with her, the horror of having to shoot your own mother in the head after she dies giving birth to your baby sister. These human touches are what make the show worth watching. The Strain seems to be missing this crucial element.
Verdict: There are better vampire/virus shows out there.
Manhattan-
This is the story of the Manhattan Project and the making of the atom bomb. For something so deadly, this was a surprisingly dull pilot. There was a lot of talking and looking at numbers, but significantly less in the human element. I found it hard to remember who anyone was, what their story was, and why I should care about a lot of men (and a woman) sitting around their desks a lot. It was just slow. I may be biased in that I am not generally a big fan of period pieces, but this one in particular was very unengaging for me. Coming away from it, I could not tell you a single person’s name or much of anything else about them. There was a spy of sorts, but even that amounted to a rather slow, unexciting plot line that was quickly resolved. Perhaps one of the most interesting things about this project are the morals issues with it, but these are mostly glossed over (though the man in charge has nightmares caused by his creation, so that’s something). Like I said with The Strain, the key to a show’s success is the humanity, not the gimmick.
Verdict: If you’re looking to be put to sleep, this might be for you.
Matador-
An undercover cop named Tony Bravo (perhaps trying too hard on the name there) is recruited by the CIA to infiltrate a soccer team run by a wealthy businessman who uses his riches to fund illegal activities. The show chronicles the agent’s rise to fame in the public eye while undercover. The problem in this show is that the covert operative is pretty terrible at his job. Becoming famous means having a face that is instantly recognizable wherever he goes. That severely limits anything he can do and anywhere he can go. It would also make significantly more sense for the CIA to have infiltrated the company via a regular position, rather than a pro-athlete one. This would allow more free movement, less time needed on “team stuff”, which seems to constantly distract him from the task at hand and getting him in trouble at work and home alike.
Verdict: I’m just not sure it makes any sense.
This list may not represent the best of the summer bunch, but there are still many more to try–The Partner, The Knick, Outlander, Rush, Satisfaction, Power, Halt and Catch Fire, Crossbones, etc. Hopefully, some of those shows will prove more promising. If not, I still have Doctor Who to look forward to, and I can never complain for that. Until then, what new shows have you been watching?
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