Geek TV Review: Eureka Season 5 Premier

The town of Eureka isn’t like any other on the face of the planet. The average IQ in Eureka is double that of the average Ivy League College student. The fantastical happens at an elementary level. Time travel, parallel dimensions, levitation, portals, ray guns, robots, and everything a science fiction show can dream up is everyday life in this small Oregon town. Tonight it kicked off it’s 5th and final season.

At the end of season 4, the Astreaus ship, the faster-than-light (FTL) ship set to take a crew to Titan, unexpectedly launched. Ali, who had only a few hours before agreed to move-in with Sheriff Carter, accidentally launched with the crew.

Season 5 opens with the Astreaus launch. Ali dives into a seat and the FTL drives kick on, ZAP, seconds later the crew is light-years from earth on Titan. Or so it would seem. Fargo rushes out the bay doors, flag in hand, eager to be the first human to set foot on another planet. Then more ships whirl in overhead like an alien invasion, quickly followed by a squad of police enforcers lead by former Deputy Andy, a robotic artificial intelligence who has always been lovable and friendly (and dates Sheriff Carter’s Smart House). Clearly things are not right.

It has been four years since Astreaus launched from earth and things in Eureka are not the same. What was only moments for the crew has been years for the rest of the world. Ali’s son Kevin is off in college and her daughter is estranged and elementary aged. Andy is head of security and exists as multiple bodies, and he’s kind of a dick now. Andy still dates Sheriff Carter’s Smart House, SARAH. Only SARAH is no longer Sheriff Carter’s house but the head of GD and runs things like  fine tuned/sinister machine.

Those left behind have moved on, adapted and adjusted to new life in Eureka where you “obey”. Quickly after Astreaus returns, Deacon and a small resistance, made up primarily of the Astreaus crew, form up and move to over throw SARAH and the Andys. It was a great episode. Eureka has had its ups and downs over the six years its been on air but tonight they showed what they can be at their best. It might just be the hype, knowing its the final season (On August 8th 2011 SYFY announced that season 5 would be the final season). I may be paying more attention and finding the quirky quirkier. Like when Andy says, “Hey there handsome…” to another Andy who responds in the like. Oh that Andy, he’s a character. OH! Jo and Carter are together in this future, leaving Zane and Ali who have only been gone for a day left hurting. And it was crazy. That’s what I loved about the show. They were so zany and fantastical but so willing to throw curve balls. They killed Stark for cryin’ out loud! They traveled to an alternate timeline and are still there! With tonight’s episode, and the Christmas special, I totally remember in a nostalgic way what made this show great.

I lost a little interest in the show toward the end of season 4, but when I heard they were wrapping things up this year a part of me died inside. There was a Christmas special between seasons, featuring voice acting by Jim Parsons and Edward James Olmos. It was animated in several different styles and referencing famous scenes from cartoons and anime all through out it. I remember thinking, this is the kind of brilliance the show has been missing.

Tonight it brought back the brilliance. Last season, villain Beverly Barlow made a return for a few episodes and it was a tease to a bigger plot, like the artifact from seasons 1 & 2 and the hinting that autistic Kevin was the key to something or other (not sure they even wrapped that story up… I know there was time travel and then an alternate dimension, and all of a sudden Kevin wasn’t autistic. It’s confusing). Miss Barlow shows up again after they clear things up in Eureka near the end of this episode. It hinted even further at a bigger plot and possibly ties season 4 into a broader picture. I believe Syfy is pulling out all the stops to give what has been a fun show a great send off after six years. I look forward to finishing its final days with them.

About Eric bookout

Writer/Artist for X amount of years. Recently worked with people from IGN on a comic and studied writing under Victor Gischler of Marvel Comics at RSU in Oklahoma more X amount of years ago. Follow me @WerewolfOrigin on twitter
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