Surface

Love it or hate it, Lost was responsible for inspiring a whole host of science fiction laced network television dramas throughout most of the 2000's. The fall of 2005 saw a surge of similarly themed programs such as Threshold, Invasion, and of course Surface being reviewed here.

Unlike Lost, Surface lasted only one season (15-episodes), all of which are contained within the Universal Studios 4-disc DVD boxset.

The show seems to liberally apply the term "Spielbergian suspense" in describing its themes and tones; a comparison that is fairly accurate early on but steadily degenerates as the show progresses to include some far reaching conspiracy theories and science that is often questionable at best.

This primetime drama actually uses several characters (of different age groups and parts of the world), all sharing similar encounters with an odd aquatic creature, to weave its prose. In a nutshell it works pretty well from the get-go. In fact the pilot is, in my opinion, the strongest offering of the entire series; which grows steadily more unbelievable with each episode subsequent. Add some government conspiracies, a few hundred twists and turns and a plot that walks the line from ambitious to preposterous with annoying regularity and have a pretty clear idea of what Surface brings to the proverbial table.

Created by twin brother writer-producer-directors Josh and Jonas Pate, the show stars lanky Lake Bell (could a more perfect name for a show about water monsters have been chosen? I think not) as protagonist oceanographer Laura Daughtery who discovers some odd formations on the ocean floor. Meanwhile, a Louisiana-based insurance salesman, Rich (Jay R. Ferguson), witnesses the death of his brother by a massive marine creature, and finally 14-year-old Miles (Carter Jenkins), in addition to perpetually needing a haircut, raises one of the mysterious specimens after hatching it from an egg in his parents' aquarium.

Throughout all this, scientists, national security agents and high school high-jinx abound. In fact I'm a subscriber to the theory that some of the show's most genuine (and humorous) moments stem from the school-kids' antics rather than the heavy-handedness that surrounds many of the adult story threads.

About my biggest complaint comes in the form of the oft-unrealistic science/ physics. I realize this is only supposed to be entertainment and all but certain threads are so unrealistic that the corresponding realism throughout the entire series suffers (the whole descending to 5000 feet in an oil drum then ascending in a mater of minutes without getting the bends is just one of dozens of moments that could make a viewer with even only a moderate IQ cringe).

Additionally, by the final episode of the show, you get the distinct feeling that the writers simply lost their way as to what made the show so enjoyable initially. As the tale got bigger, richer and more-revealed, it naturally lost its personable moments and while it never made it to a second season (making such concerns moot), it seems to me that the show would have followed a very different path from the first season; one dealing with apocalyptic themes and humans with near-superhero abilities.

In the end the viewer comes away from the Surface experience with mixed emotions. It certainly showed promise, especially in the beginning, the likes of which I would consider vastly superior to the drudgery of Lost in fact. However, things do deteriorate as the show progresses and by the time all is said and done, the initial feeling that it was a travesty not to renew the series after its first season pretty much dissipates and is replaced with a truly odd sort of twisted logic: Is it possible for once the network execs got it right?