Danger Will Robinson! Early this morning Netflix released the first season of a new reboot of the sci-fi series Lost in Space, which updates and modifies some things from the classic 1965 series. The Robinson family—Marine John Robinson (Toby Stephens, Black Sails), his wife aerospace engineer Maureen (Molly Parker, House of Cards, Deadwood), and their three children, Judy (Taylor Russell, Falling Skies), Penny (Mina Sundwall, Freeheld), and Will (Maxwell Jenkins, Sense8)—is part of the 24th colonist group, which has left Earth in search of a better life on a new planet. They are aboard the Resolute space station, when they are forced to evacuate. Their Jupiter 2 escape ship crash lands on a mysterious planet. Everyone in the family has gone through rigorous training for this mission, and each brings some sort of skill to the table, but are they really prepared for what lies ahead?
Immediately upon their arrival, the Robinsons face one danger after the next, until Will befriends a strange robot with special abilities. Meanwhile, another Jupiter ship also crash lands on the planet. This one containing a roughneck/smuggler named Don West (Ignacio Serricchino, Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce, Bones), and a mysterious woman secretly assuming the stolen identity of Dr. Smith (Parker Posey, Search Party). It is only a matter of time until this ragtag group will eventually come together and must work together in order to survive their new environment. But who can really be trusted? Everyone seems to have secrets they are hiding from one another, including the robot!
As the series opens, viewers are immediately thrust into the thick of the action as the Robinsons struggle to survive their harsh new environment. Through flashbacks, the series slowly reveals the characters’ backstories and pieces together the events that ultimately led up to the Robinsons ‘ crash onto this unknown planet. Where are they? How did they end up here? Who is “Dr. Smith”? Where did the robot come from? And what happened on the Resolute that caused the crash? The first two episodes of the series have some really tense moments and unexpected twists. I look forward to seeing what other turns of events, mysteries, and adventures await in the rest of the 10-episode first season!
Also premiering tonight, on Cinemax, is the new 6-part British crime drama, Rellik. A serial killer is shooting his victims and then burning their faces with hydrochloric acid until they are beyond recognition. He has been terrorizing the city for the past three months, murdering 7 people. Detective Chief Inspector Gabriel Markham (Richard Dormer, Game of Thrones) is not only the lead investigator on the case, but has had his own face burned by the killer. As the series opens, he and partner DI Elaine Shepard (Jodi Balfour, Bomb Girls) manage to track down their lead suspect, a man named Steven Mills (Michael Shaeffer, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story). Mills gets shot during as the cops are trying to apprehend him, and the case looks to be closed. However, DCI Markham isn’t so sure they got the the right person. The series also stars Paterson Joseph (Timeless), Lærke Winther (Dicte: Crime Reporter), Shannon Tarbet (Genius), Paul Rhys (Victoria), Rosalind Eleazar (Howards End), Georgina Rich (Cuffs), and Ray Stevenson (Black Sails).
This show takes a very unique storytelling approach. The series is told backwards, starting with the end, and working its way back to the beginning. Each episode is broken into scenes that play back in reverse order. As each scene ends, it rewinds back, and then the previous scene plays out, along with a note of how many hours and minutes earlier it takes place. I found this approach to be quite interesting, as the suspects, victims and evidence are presented from most recent to oldest. What you think you know in one scene turns out to be something completely different once you learn what happened prior to the current context. In other scenes you see characters behaving oddly, but know that eventually the story will work its way backwards far enough to learn the cause of that behavior or animosity. And characters that seem to have been cleared start to look more like suspects. I look forward (or is it backward?) to seeing how the rest of this drama plays out.
In tonight’s premiere, obsessed with his hunt for a serial killer, DCI Gabriel Markham’s life becomes intrinsically bound to that of his suspect.
Tonight I’ll also be watching/recording Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., MsasterChef, and The Graham Norton Show.
For additional suggestions on what to check out tonight, including Bosch, MacGyver and Hawaii Five-0, check out the If We Controlled Your Remote… 4/13/18 post at TVisMyPacifier.com.
