Slowly, steadily and without me really noticing, Syfy’s Eureka is heading into its fifth and final as one of my favorite shows on TV. I remember watching it when it first began and finding it mildly amusing. I continued to watch every time it was on, but I didn’t really fall in love until season 4 when the show introduced a brilliant time travel plotline that rewrote the entire history of the series. Now, as Eureka begins its final season starting Monday at 9pm, the show continues to earn my respect for daring to change the game once again.
Giving away any details about the season 5 premiere would spoil the shock and awe of what Eureka has in store. The fourth season ended with the crew of the Astraeus, a manned-mission to the Saturnine moon Titan, disappearing. The new season begins with them returning to the town, only things are a lot different. That’s about all I’ll say, but you can expect plenty of surprising twists and turns.
The genius of Eureka‘s final season is in the way it dares to be bold while telling its stories. The first three episodes of season 5 are essentially a trilogy telling one extraordinary story. The executive producers are great at taking a complicated premise of a fascinating story and telling it in a wonderfully logical manner. The creator of NBC’s Awake should watch and take notes.
The star of the season 5 premiere has to be Kavan Smith as Deputy Andy. The robotic law enforcement officer has always been a delightfully silly character, but he takes on new responsibilities and a darker personality in the season 5 premiere. He’s been such a fun member of the cast and its nice to see him get more of a leading role for one episode.
The show can also do a lot. The final season works not only as a comedy, but also as a gripping sci-fi story, a tense drama and a character-based series. It succeeds on every level without cheapening the others. These first three episodes had me crying with laughter, tragedy and the awe-inspiring sci-fi twists (the season 5 premiere alone has three huge, game-changing moments).
If the first three episodes are any indication, Eureka‘s final season will be its best yet. Eureka airs Mondays at 9pm on Syfy.
(Image courtesy of Syfy)
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
John watches nearly every show on TV, but he specializes in sci-fi/fantasy like The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural and True Blood. However, he can also be found writing about everything from Survivor and Glee to One Tree Hill and Smallville.
