Syfy ’s hot new show in 2014 is the mysterious Arctic thriller Helix . And now we ’ve see the first episode , and we can candidly say this serial publication could very well be the next Lost ( before it give way downhill ) . Here ’s our spoiler - free review of the original .
localize in a mysterious private research center in the Arctic , the series follows a squad of CDC scientist sent to handle a viral outbreak that has touch on three scientists in an isolated incident . Of course , nothing is as it seems .
Full disclosure , we viewed the pilot light as a screener with bare FX , so we can not gloss on the FX . However we can comment that FX are n’t really a vast part of this series so it did n’t change too much of our viewing . But we ’re extremely jazzed to see what it look like when it premiere on January 10th .
The Good:
Slick , mellisonant horror . Goodness gracious this is sick little piece of science fable . Helix has the futurist scientific discipline research laboratory green camera filter , brand everything , glass rooms , shiny clean cause and tons and stacks of tech . It ’s all effervescent and glamorous .
Then an septic person shows up and bleeds ignominious goo all over everything . It ’s a good look . And that feel permeates the pilot . Infected Doctors , with prissy faces and very acrobatic physical structure , collapse hold tight their oscillate computer virus - smite throats . Globs of bleak rakehell making water out of their eyes and mouth . stinker become hairless spotted disease - hoarding beasts , as do the monkeys . This gorgeous football game arena of scientific victory is about to go tits - up in black gall , and we can not hold back to watch .
Plus dump a bag of tooth and opprobrious bloodline ( the remnants of a virus victim ) onto a pristine floor really help highlight the torso horror .
The Characters . Billy Campbell ( The Rocketeer ) is head CDC scientist and hero as Dr. Alan Farragut . Earnest , and educated he ’s a lead-in who breaks down irruption scenarios with engaging history talking to . He ’s straight off likeable , and seems as though he could be block around heaps and rafts of emotional baggage — but remain the level headed leader of this gang of scientist . Even when he ’s place to the Arctic to save his infected buddy along with his ex wife and all - too - spicy assistant . Dr. Farragut is the star . hired hand down .
The rest of the players ( thus far ) are just try out to leaven their merit as they break down secrets and lies inside this massive skill social organisation . Just petite bits of personality are unwrap with the residual of the crew , but thankfully , the people who process for the Hollywood vision of the CDC are intelligent . The hot assistant vomits the first time she see a bloody sack of virus body goo , and expend the next minutes assuring Dr. Farragut that this reaction will NEVER find again . And because Dr. Farragut is the nice - guy wire dreamboat maitre d’hotel , he secure her it ’s all right . All in a very clinical , but still dreamy way .
Basically , I like this crew . A lot . They seem educated and react to situations I suspect other civilize ( but still human ) scientists would .
On the flipside , you have Hiroyuki Sanada who is playing the apparently vicious Dr. Hiroshi Hitaki . Sanada is astonishing and scoring this actor was a victory . He has n’t done much yet in the pilot , but we lie with there ’s a whole portion more to this mortal , or they probably would n’t have cast Sanada in the role to begin with . The expectancy is high with this character .
The Near Future . There ’s no body - scan tanks , glowing - spine - sex cyborgs or wildly ludicrous applied science to interfere with the horror . This whole series is set up in the near future tense , and it feels grounded and believable .
Sure the Arctic research structure itself is pretty magnificent , but the most sophisticated bit of Trek engineering science is a few swooshing doors and locks trigger off by implanted radio set chips ( injected into the crew penis ’s palm ) . Keeping the engineering science in the current hereafter gives the actual horror a piece of reality . Nothing can be fixed by the swipe of a medical baton , actual scientific discipline had to be done to get to the root of the trouble . In fact it looks like a LOT of critical thinking and hilltop furrowing microscope peering is go to have to happen , and we could n’t be more pleased . It give the main case , the unworthy black mucus creating virus , the center stage .
Even When It ’s Bad , It ’s Good . Speaking of those radio chipped hand , the second we descry the CDC gang getting injected with this trope , we could n’t help oneself but snark “ how long until someone gets his or her deal chopped off as a Francis Scott Key . ” It ’s the Chekhov ’s Gun of the scifi humans . And sure enough , that hap . HOWEVER , by the time this goes down , you ’re already invest and recreate for the character reference stuck in an impossible post . You know it ’s coming , and you ’re actually rooting for the figure of speech to encounter . Which is really surprising . We assume it ’s because of the way the whole reveal was executed , slowly and with a great soundtrack .
The Devil ’s in the Details . We may have pretermit some scientific discipline mistakes in this first instalment — an inaccuracy or a poorly - intellection - out “ Do n’t take your helmet off ” conniption — but it feel as though great care was claim ( in the beginning ) for the CDC to be accurate and naturalistic . There ’s a particular scene where two scientists are strapping into their clean lawsuit , and wiretap the other up , thus revealing a real , physical motive for each other in this situation . However , the characters themselves have dead no understanding to believe one another . The juxtaposition was great .
The Bad:
Who is really in commission ? Even though Dr. Hitaki is purportedly the authority figure on this inquiry base , he ’s really not . This is external district , so it ’s a lawless nation . Plus by the death of the pilot people are hint that they ’re working for someone else , etc . etc . it ’s all exceedingly vague . This could go dreadfully wrong . gobs of “ guy behind the cat behind the guy cable ” stuff . However , this also allows the heroes to assure Hitaki to have intercourse right off when he use restrictions on their inquiry , which they somewhat much do the 2d they get there . And that ’s kind of fun — plus no emphatic military comportment means no Outbreak - esque speak the armed forces down from blow up a town scenes .
Dr. Hiroshi Hitaki ’s issue 2 . I could not mousse with this cast member . I ’m not sure what was getting in the way but I assume it was the fact that he was given all the “ you ’re on a need to know ” pedigree in the archetype and that ’s not a play load to extend . Dr. Hitaki ’s head of security system was an adoptive son he find in an orphanhood ? Did n’t wish this quality — however it ’s a pilot , so he ’s get down a pass for three more episode .
Lost Rips . There ’s a specific moment where the repulsion of what is pass is being back by the song “ Do you know the agency to San Jose ” and while Lost does n’t own the image of using classic songs in wack - a - doo scifi mise en scene , they kind of corner the market on it with the “ Make Your Own Kind of Music ” reveal . We could see how a lot of masses might point and shout “ LOST DID IT FIRST ” — but we conceive it works . Brilliantly . So there .
The Verdict:
sell . We were completely sold on Helix the min the “ before the championship ” prospect dropped . We are entirely hooked , and just so DAMN happy that existent horror is on Syfy again . All we want from this serial publication is terrifying body repugnance with a dollop of conspiracy theories . And that is exactly what Helix is serving up .
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