Television Show Review: Awake

Awake created by Kyle Killen (Letter Eleven, Teakwood Lane Productions, 20th Century Fox Television. Airs Thursday night on NBC.)

Starring Jason Isaacs, Laura Allen, and Dylan Minnette.

Cogito Ergo Sum 

René Descartes seemingly graces the annals of history exclusively for the quote, “I think; therefore I am.” The sentence is an answer on a high school history quiz; it is chiseled in the foundations of university philosophy departments. Unhooked from its preceding line of reasoning on the pursuit of epistemological truth, the sentence sounds painfully obvious.

By positing that thinking is his conclusive proof of his existence, Descartes asserts that all other sensory experience might be false. As such, the all-too-familiar notion of a realistic dream offers questions.

If a dream feels real, how can we ever be conclusively certain if we are not dreaming? Resoundingly, Descartes asserts that we will never know and therefore we can’t hold sensory experience on epistemological grounds.

To Sleep Perchance to Dream 

In this notion, we find the intriguing premise for Awake, NBC’s latest attempt at earning market share. After a car accident ends the life of a family member, Michael Britten (Jason Isaacs) finds himself caught in two realities. In one, Michael and his wife mourn the loss of their teenage son; in the other, Michael and his son cope with the death of a wife and mother. As Michael tumbles into sleep each night, he immediately awakes in an alternate reality.

A police detective, Michael effectively lives twice each day, solving different cases, seeking council with different psychiatrists and dealing with the emotional instability attached to burying a wife and/or son.

Beauty in the Green and Red 

In addition to this intriguing premise, the pilot episode of Awake offers beautiful visuals and exceptional acting. First, the alternate realities hold different aesthetics. The Michael/son reality carries a dark palette with grays and greens; conversely, the Michael/wife reality is bright with a kaleidoscope of yellows and reds.



Second, Jason Isaacs remains in control of his character acting with a subtlety open to the deep emotion of grief and loss but not oblivious to the unbelievable dichotomy of reality. The story exclusively follows Michael Britten. Therefore, the viewer can never tell what’s true. As each psychiatrist tries to prove their reality conclusively, a cat-and-mouse game ensues with Michael acting as the messenger. In all, Awake offers much to intrigue.

Too Good to Be True? 

I, however, am concerned.

First, Awake acts as a case-of-the-week procedural at its core. Of course, the otherworldly premise will keep this show from suffering the verdict of a CSI knock-off. While the case-of-the-week shtick provides the show with long-running possibilities, I find such quick action deleterious to character and setting development. If you have one hour to catch a killer, you have less time to marinate on the intricacies of Michael Britten and his dual reality.

Even more worrisome, the preview for this season hints at a third-party conspiracy. Part of the brilliance in the pilot surrounds the sole focus on Michael Britten. A third-party view would be exceedingly detrimental to the plot. We see Michael in sorrow and confusion as he carefully attempts to piece life back together. Awake is a powerful show if the dual reality is a product of Michael Britten’s fragile psyche. If this carefully executed premise is a staged third-party operation, Awake is another mindless network drone.

I hope and pray Awake makes the right moves. With the continuous pressure facing NBC to make a hit television show, I worry that network executives will seek lowest common denominator entertainment over excellent art. Chances are Awake will be cancelled before it ruins itself. No matter the outcome, nobody can take away this powerful pilot. At the very worst, it functions well as a well-executed short film. Awake is worth watching, for now.

Pilot Verdict: 5 out of 5 stars

Series Verdict: TBD

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Posted by: Donovan Richards

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Television Show Review: The Killing

The Killing: Season 1 developed by Veena Sud (Fox Television Studios, KMF Films, and Fuse Entertainment)

Starring Mireille Enos, Joel Kinnaman, Billy Campbell, Michelle Forbes, and Brent Sexton.

To Speak Frankly

Veena Sud, developer of The Killing, a U.S.-based version of the Danish series Forbrydelsen, needs to go away. In an article penned by Tim Appelo for the Hollywood Reporter, Sud responded to the significant critical and popular backlash to her show with the notion that the public does not understand her greatness.

Relating her show to The Sopranos, Sud proclaimed, “The fact that people love us or hate us is a beautiful thing. I don’t want to be kinda liked.” What is this backlash? Well, for most viewers, it began when an exceptional pilot devolved into a meandering mess of a first season. The only thing keeping the audience tuning in on Sunday nights was the understanding communicated from Sud herself that, at the end of the season, we would know who killed Rosie Larsen.

The House of Cards

Sadly and with a spoiler alert in full effect, the cliffhanger at the end of the season ensured that the one promise the viewers thought they had came crashing down like a house of cards.

The season depicts the murder investigation of Rosie Larsen. With each episode portraying one day’s time, The Killing resides in the procedural drama genre. Where CSI focuses on one investigation per episode, The Killing engages in one investigation over the entire season. Both in its season-long narrative framework and its setting in the Pacific Northwest, The Killing draws easy comparisons with Twin Peaks.

Writers: Killing Potential

Photo by Frank Ockenfels

Despite the near unanimous backlash against the show, it contained promise. First, the pilot episode really drew me to the series. With a dark sense of foreboding, dreary shots of the Seattle skyline, and space for character development, I thought The Killing showed the promise of a modern classic.

Yet, as the show unveiled, it became clear that the writers spent ages perfecting the pilot and had little sense of direction and character development for the rest of the season.

With continual red herrings and a refusal to dive into the back stories of central characters, the season plodded with no clear purpose and no characters worth following.

Where True Emotion Dies

Second, the show provided space to clearly depict a family suffering through the loss of the child. Too often in procedurals, the victim’s family plays a vindictive counterbalance. The murderer did something awful and the family depicts the rage of eye-for-an-eye justice.

The Killing, however, portrays the Larsen family on the cusp of comprehensive breakdown. For the mother, simple day-to-day tasks become unbearable; the father, a stoic external façade silences the inner despair of losing a child.

Yet, I can’t help but think that the Twin Peaks parallels provide a sense of guilt for the Larsen family. Despite the depiction of suffering, we know very little about the family. Given the cliffhanger at the end of the season, it is not out of the question to hear that Season 2 will exhibit the family as the mastermind behind the murder.

Two Thumbs Down

In the end, The Killing was incredibly disappointing. Part of me hopes that Veena Sud is the genius she thinks she is because the show still has the potential to weave a Lost-like story of character connection around a murdered teenager.

But the on-screen evidence suggests that Sud is self-deceived. Her writing staff is horrid and the deception around the season finale left her viewers somewhere between annoyed and angry. For these reasons, I probably won’t watch Season 2. If I hear some positive, critical reviews, I’ll contemplate watching. But for now, consider me burned by The Killing.