Continuum Episode 1 "A Stitch In Time" Review By @Rivergate31

There is a new show sweeping the science fiction world. Canadian born Continuum is a time travel drama created by Simon Barry and filmed in Vancouver, B.C.  Debuting in May 2012 on Showcase, Continuum has since caught fire spreading across the globe gathering a strong and dedicated fan following.

Simon Barry’s new hit is set in the years 2077 and 2012. A law enforcement officer, Kiera Cameron (Rachel Nichols) finds herself sent back in time with a group of terrorists called Libera8, to the year 2012, leaving behind a husband and young son. Although desperate to find her way home, she joins forces with the Vancouver Police Department to stop Liber8 as they wreak havoc in the city.

Episode 1

A Stitch in Time by Simon Barry

Reviewed By Lara Luke

 

Padding barefoot across his carpeted office, Edouard Kagame (Tony Amendola) sits at his desks and proceeds to watch a recorded message of himself under the banner, Liber8.  The year is 2077 and through his message we learn 20 years prior, corporations bailed out a failed and bankrupt government. The group, Liber8, feels society has become slaves to a Corporate Congress, who are the “undoing of human rights and dignities”. They feel they are “fighting for the survival and success of liberty”. 

Suddenly a small explosion precedes the influx of the law enforcement of the time: the Protectors. As Kiera Cameron and fellow officers arrest Kagame, the implosion of a neighboring skyscraper rocks the group.

Fast forward six months to a dinner party at the Camerons’ where the discussion is politics. Liber8 is in custody for the deaths of 30,000, including members of the government, killed in the implosion. Kagame and seven other members of the terrorist group are scheduled for execution the next day. As a protector, Kiera is to attend. 

Kiera’s husband, Greg (John Reardon) is in the employ of SadTech, one of the leading corporations in the Congress. As such, he also attends the execution with his employer, an elderly gentleman (William B. Davis). 

As the eight convicts are marched into the execution chamber, Kiera is reassigned. She is to be in the chamber itself along with other Protectors. Greg notices this through the observation window. Leaping out of his seat, he confronts the bailiff. His words aren’t audible, but he can be seen gesticulating angrily. The bailiff glances up at the boss who gives a slight shake of the head.  At that moment Kiera senses something is not right and she rushes into the group and at the same time there is a blast. What’s left is a blackened and charred room with the bodies of the Protectors. The boss smiles ever so slightly.

Kiera comes to in a blast zone in the strange land of 2012. She notices members of Liber8 taking off and instinct drives her after them. And thus begins Kiera’s strange new life.

Finding herself walking down the street of a Vancouver she does not recognize, Kiera sticks out like a sore thumb in her Protector suit. The Protectors wear a form fitting gold colored suit of highly advanced technology, capable of making the wearer invisible, or for use as a weapon among other assets.  Fitted with a chip implant, she is almost like a walking computer. She tries calling to her central headquarters, for back up and the only answer she gets is a young Alec Sadler, technology geek boy genius, who has set up the frequency as an experiment. He is as shocked as she is to have an answer when it has not gone public.

The episode follows Kiera coming to terms with the fact that she is decades away from her home and family. Her only connection, a toy soldier her son gave her the night before. Even though Kagame didn’t make the jump, Kiera realizes Liber8 poses a threat to both the new present and her own time. Keeping the truth to herself, she joins forces with the Vancouver Police Department, partnering with Detective Carlos Fonnegra (Victor Webster) to bring them into custody. 

Alec Sadler is along for the ride through the combined technology of his own work and Kiera’s implant. He helps her to cope with her displacement.  He provides intel she can’t access and advises her on norms of the day. Alec begins to suspect he’s a major player in 2077. His suspicions are confirmed for us, at the end of the episode in a flashback, where Kiera’s husband introduces her to his boss, Alec Sadler. 

This episode hooked me on the series from the get go. The characters are well written. I’m a big character person and if they don’t work for me, it doesn’t matter how good the storyline is. These actors brought chemistry to the show in just one episode. The writers leave me wondering who the good and bad guys really ARE.

The story line is intriguing and thought provoking; governments run by corporations. The United States experienced the government bailing out major companies recently. With the economy an issue today, it’s interesting to think of these same companies bailing out the government and taking over. What would life really be like under Citi group or Shell? 

Finally, the tech is fun. The suit mentioned can change appearance. Kiera realizes she’s out of place with her gold suit and makes the bottom half black, looking like pants and a gold blouse. The suit can make her invisible as well as stop bullets. Her sleeves act as a touch screen computer. With her implant, Kiera can read biorhythms. She can download her memories for use in court. The implants allow Alec to see and hear what Kiera does. 

With a strong start, the series keeps delivering. In my opinion, science fiction fans are doing themselves a disservice if they don’t give Continuum a chance.