I Love Time Travel - Part 16 - Continuum

Rachel Nichols and the magic orange wedges.

Continuum is a current show on Syfy that will enter its third season in April.  I don’t aim to spoil that much about a show that is still running, and to be completely honest I think I missed a few episodes of the second season. In the interest of this nerdy blog, I feel I have to at least include something about a time travel show that is pretty interesting. The time travel is interesting and the premise of a sci-fi drama where the protagonist just wants to get home is very old school. 

Keira is a cop from 2077 that is projected back to 2012 against her will.  Along with her came a bunch of terrorist/freedom fighter types called Liber8 (blech) that planned the time travel event at their execution for terrorist activity.  Keira not only wants to get back home to her son, she tries to round up Liber8 in 2012 with the Vancouver PD and keep them from altering the future.

The tech is cool.  There are a few shows out there with some cool ideas for future tech (Almost Human) and this one is among the slickest.  Keira’s cop gear includes a type of switchblade/transformer laser blaster and a slick cop cat-suit that does practically everything, including invisibility.  The thrust of the show is the time travel itself, which, for the most part, all happened in the first episode.  Episodes switch back and forth between the future and modern day, and the nature of the time jump is a mystery.  Was it an accident?  Who is behind it?  That type of crap.  There are some nice action scenes and it is refreshing to see one of the many show that are filmed in Vancouver actually take place in Vancouver.

It is a deep cable show, so some concessions have to be made.  There are some stale melodramatic moments for sure, and the dialogue I a little laborious at times.  But the weekly crime-solving and Kiera’s quest to keep her secret are enough to keep you coming back.  There is one wrinkle I find quite compelling, and I hope they explore it more in the future.  (The show’s future, dude.)  Kiera represented the technological police state of the future and the escapees represent a type of domestic terrorist freedom fighter group. It is not entirely clear to route for.  She’s the obvious hero and a good cop, but the people she fights for are shady.  The terrorists are guilty and the established baddies, but they seem to be fighting on the side of justice even though they are murderous assholes.  Two or more savvy writers added to the staff and it would be golden.

Time travel is the center of the show, but what type is in use remains a mystery to the characters in play.  Liber8 (still…blech) attempts to alter the rise of the technocratic regime that owns the world in 2077 (single-string), but there are signs they were the ones who were the catalyst in the first place (loop).  Kiera tries to stop the bad guys from changing her future and possibly herself and her son’s existence (single-string), but some episodes suggest her trip to 2012 helped the future Bill Gates of 2077 create the tech that ruined the world (loop).  The writers insist there is a bible and a set of established rules, but the characters are still unaware.  A little frustrating for a time travel nerd but cool for the story.

I’ll keep an eye on this one.  If you like a little low-budget sci-fi you could do a lot worse.  If you like time travel TV, it’s your best bet.

*I just watched the season premiere last night.  It does not suck.