You ever notice how almost every depiction of the future is of a bleak and militaristic state where even the most intimate familial decision like whether or not to have a child is controlled by the government?
Terra Nova, the big budget new Fox series executive produced by Steven Spielberg, is no exception.
Jim Shannon, a cop, and his family live in a time (22nd century) where families are restricted to four members only. They’re hiding their youngest girl, an illegal third child, from the government. When the police force come upon them living in their humble abode, it is really odd to watch as they shuttle her into an air vent in a very Anne Frank way.
After the raid, Jim is thrown in jail and, while there, finds out his family has been chosen for the tenth voyage to Terra Nova. It’s an ongoing program in which families travel 85 million years into the past to start a new civilization and escape the unbreathable atmosphere and horrific conditions of their time. An awesome Darkman/Total Recall action sequence ensues and Jim joins his family back in time.
‘Genesis’ is a fantastic premiere for Terra Nova. It sets the bar incredibly high for the rest of the season, planting the seeds for storylines to come and the much-needed nowadays season ending cliffhanger.
Jim (Jason O’Mara) is a strong lead character and his interplay with his son Josh (Landon Liboiron) runs a whole gamut of emotions. When ‘Genesis’ starts, you see this strong bond between them, and between all of the members of the family. After Jim is arrested, escapes, and the family enters the past to begin a new life together, tensions built on resentment start to appear.
Take away the sci-fi elements and CGI dinosaurs from Terra Nova and you have a really solid family drama mixed in with a fantastic conspiracy subplot involving the de facto civilization leader, Nathaniel (Stephen Lang). It seems that conflict has erupted amongst the Terra Nova pilgrims and factions have split off. A lot of questions are raised at the end of the episode in regards to why the factions split, and what exactly is going on with the Terra Nova project.
‘Genesis,’ unlike any series premiere that will inevitably be forced to tackle growing pains, is not without its “duh” moments. They tend to slam you over the head at times with the obvious, like the mathematical intelligence of one of the Shannon children. It was almost a “Hey, pay attention because this might come in handy in later episodes” thing.
These moments are rare, though, and Terra Nova ranks up there with The Walking Dead for most impressive premieres I’ve seen in a long time. The show is incredibly ambitious with a high production value and really solid writing, backed up by a superb cast.
– James Zappie
