Orphan Black

Sarahⁿ

A (mostly) spoiler-free review

Orphan Black had been in my binge-watching bucket list almost since it started airing. I was finally able to check it well after the second season had ended, and right on time before the third starts sometime in 2015.

The first season sets the scene, the topics and the mood from episode 1, where we learn that the main character, Sarah, well, has at least one look alike.  It doesn’t take long for the list of identical twins to increase, and as you might have guessed by the acting award buzz that surrounded the amazing Tatiana Maslany, a world of clones opens up:  the cop, the scientist (inspired on the actual geneticist that works as consultant for the show), the nutcase, the soccer mom... Tatiana is so good, that you forget that it is always her acting as very different characters, at least as personalities and accents go. Sarah, our main clone and guide in this brave new world will have to deal with the police, her daughter’s custody, the corporation that overlooks ethics in the name of science, and the cult that overlooks ethics in the name of religion, all while trying to figure out what’s going on and who’s who.

But fear not! She’s not alone in her endeavour, her brother Felix (her foster- care brother, that is) looks after her, runs her errands and supports her crazy plans. As for the rest of the cast, well, you’re never sure who’s good or who’s evil, or who’s good but does the wrong thing with good intentions.  Everybody seems to have a hidden agenda, clones included.  Does Sarah’s foster mother Mrs S. (a great Maria Doyle Kennedy, remember The Commitments?) really care about her and her daughter? What is she hiding? Is Paul just Beth’s, the cop clone, husband? How about Dr. Leeky (Max Headroom is back!)?

Season 1 ends with an anguishing cliffhanger, season 2 introduces some new characters and changes our perceptions of others by presenting new information. You are never sure what you are going to get with this show, and that alone makes it worth watching.  If you add very good acting, an unusual tone that sets it apart from its typical American counterparts (this is Canadian production of BBC America), and an original sci-fi script, well, my advice is: Watch it! And bring your nerd friends along.