Continuum: Season One Blu-ray delivers great video and decent audio in this enjoyable Blu-ray release
It's the year 2077, when a radical group of criminals evade the death-penalty through time-travel back to 2012 they inadvertently bring back police-officer Kiera Cameron with them. The Protector finds she has an ally in the unlikeliest form, a young computer expert that may have links to her past and his future.
With a rash of pretenders to the genre throne rushing to fill the sci-fi power vacuum on American TV -- Revolution, Falling Skies, Touch and plenty more on the way -- how is it that an obscure little Canadian time-stream series with a shoestring budget puts most others to shame? (The ever-reliable Doctor Who being one of the few exceptions.) More to the point, is Continuum really one of the next great genre hits? Or are the pickings so slim at the moment that any science fiction startup with a pulse and a premise can whip up a respectable fanbase all too willing to support it for half-a-dozen seasons and a movie? A bit of this, a bit of that, truth be told. Had Continuum arrived just five years ago on a broadcast or cable network in the States, with Lost, Fringe, Battlestar Galactica and the like duking it out for sci-fi dominance, it's hard to imagine the series lasting more than a season. It isn't that mind-blowing. That action-packed. That different. It is surprisingly good, though, and good goes a long way these days.
Time Cop 2.0
Dystopian Vancouver, 2077. The government has collapsed. Law and order is stretched and strained. The middle class is no more. A Big Brother-esque surveillance network limits the freedom and opportunity of the citizenry. Its in this corporate-managed chaos that we meet highly trained Protector Kiera Cameron (Rachel Nichols, G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra, Conan the Barbarian), a specialized, cybernetically enhanced Central Protection Service field agent (sporting a near-invulnerable biosuit, a cloaking device and other fantastic future toys) working to thwart the plans of a dangerous band of rebels dubbed Liber8.
But when a group of convicted Liber8 leaders escape execution by triggering a time travel device smuggled into the prison, Kiera inadvertently finds herself stuck in 2012 right along with her greatest enemies. First order of business: prevent the terrorists from altering the past and controlling the future. Joining forces with local VPD detectives Carlos Fonnegra (Victor Webster, Surrogates, Mutant X) and Betty Robertson (Jennifer Spence, Stargate Universe, The Core), teaming up with a young tech whiz named Alec Sadler (Erik Knudsen, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Youth in Revolt) and desperately searching for a way home, Kiera quickly discovers that -- brace for series tagline -- the future is in her hands.
I had no idea I'd actually end up enjoying Continuum. I hadn't read reviews, heard an ounce of buzz or talked with anyway who had even heard of the show, much less watched it. So it's appearance on my doorstep was accompanied by a fair amount of dread. Who knew? By the end of the first episode I was intrigued. By the end of the second I was locked in. By the end of the third? You might say I was hooked based on the speed at which I tore through the remaining episodes. Oh, I had complaints. Formula reigns, even when everyone involved goes to great lengths to cap its power. The supporting cast is touch and go for the first half of the season. The Vancouver police are really, really bad with background checks. Future weapons have yet to eliminate the inevitability of Mexican standoffs. 2077 and its social and political dystopia is barely mapped out before we're hurtled back to 2012. Minor plot holes aren't entirely uncommon and... I could go on, and fans of solid shows on networks like The CW and SyFy would nod their heads and offer a sympathetic mm-hmm.
To rattle off the series' problems risks minimizing everything it gets right, though, which is quite a lot. Nichols' character. Her action-figure ready supersuit and its endless exposition accelerators... ahem, gadgetry. Future tech unleashed on criminals and investigations in the past. The show's blend of action and more cerebral pursuits. The fun the showrunners have with time travel, time streams and time loops. The questions that arise, the answers offered, the further questions raised. It all comes together nicely, early season growing pains or no. Creator Simon Barry and co-executive producer/director Pat Williams have a vision, the ideas to back it up, and a sharp sense of exactly what sets Continuum apart. It's a creative trifecta, and one that pays out time and time again. At the very least, the show is worth a try. Chances are you'll be pleasantly surprised yourself.
Continuum: Season One Episode Guide. Warning - mild spoilers ahead:
A Stitch in Time: Kiera Cameron loses everything she has and finds herself on a new mission when she and eight dangerous terrorists are transported from the future to 2012. She takes on a new identity and joins the VPD in order to stop the terrorists' reign of violence. Along the way, she befriends Alec Sadler, the 17-year old who will one day grow up to create the technology her world is built upon.
Fast Times: Kiera tries to find the members of Liber8 before they do more damage. Her attempts are hindered when her cover is blown and her partner on the VPD, Carlos Fonnegra, arrests her. But when she discovers Liber8's plan to attempt to get back to 2077, she has to escape and possibly ally herself with her enemies to get home.
Wasting Time: Kiera and Carlos investigate a series of mysterious murders in which victims have been drained of endocrine fluid only to discover that the crimes were committed by Liber8 in an effort to save Travis (Roger R. Cross), their leader. Liber8 member Matthew Kellog (Stephen Lobo) tries to make a truce with Kiera by delivering her a gift, one that could cost her and Carlos their lives and lead to Kellog's expulsion.
Matter of Time: A scientist that is working on developing a source of clean energy is found murdered. The list of suspects leads Kiera on a journey that leads her to a precarious place: deciding between the right thing to do and the preservation of the future.
A Test of Time: Liber8 leader Edouard Kagame's (Tony Amendola) return begins with a reset of Liber8's agenda, away from violence and towards blending into the community and fostering their revolution through co-opting existing structures. But they have a vulnerability: the possibility that if their ancestors are murdered, they might cease to exist. A test is devised and Kiera and her grandmother (Katie Findlay) are the guinea pigs.
Time's Up: Kagame pursues step one of his new agenda: win the intellectuals and the grass roots dissenters. When the CEO of a major corporation is kidnapped by Liber8, Kiera and Carlos have to race a literal ticking clock in order to save the CEO from having the public extract their pound of flesh.
The Politics of Time: A high-stakes Union Election gives Kiera her first taste of contemporary political intrigue. But issues of trust and loyalty come up for Kiera as evidence points to Carlos in the death of an investigative reporter. Kiera will learn firsthand the lengths a person will go to get elected.
Playtime: When two murder-suicides happen in the same day, Kiera and Carlos investigate the only tie between the two: a video game company that is doing more than just developing games.
Family Time: Alerted to a bulk purchase of ammonium nitrate, a fertilizer used in explosives and agriculture, Kiera and Carlos visit the farm of Alec's stepfather (Michael Rogers), only to have events spiral into an armed standoff.
Endtime: Kiera fights a ticking clock to stop a terrorist attack. Meanwhile, Alec and his stepbrother Julian's (Richard Harmon) place in history will become defined by the horrific event.
Continuum's digital video source fares well in its 1080p/VC-1 encoded Blu-ray debut, even if it comes saddled with a certain unwelcome sheen and some unsightly intermittent noise. Colors are strong (despite the presence of the requisite dystopian dreariness), skintones are naturally saturated, black levels are decently deep (minus slight muting during nighttime scenes), and contrast is consistent. Detail doesn't disappoint either. Edges are crisp and clean, textures are nicely resolved and delineation is revealing. A handful of VFX shots appear to have been rendered at a lower resolution, as they're quite soft, but such inherent eyesores are few and far between. Ultimately, all is as it should be. Fans will be most pleased.
Unfortunately, Universal's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track is all over the place. Flat and front-heavy, the soundfield isn't immersive or engaging. One minute the rear speakers are suspiciously quiet, the next they're more on point. And it's tough to predict when -- or rather if -- ambient and directional effects will show up to play. LFE output is more notable, but not always as aggressive or weighty as it could have been (or perhaps deserves to be). Otherwise, it's serviceable. Dialogue is clear, intelligible and smartly prioritized, dynamics are capable and the soundscape is proficiently realized. If anything, the series' sound design could use some work before Season Two makes its way to Blu-ray.
Continuum: Season One only includes a single extra: "Meet the Makers, Protectors and Terrorists" (SD, 19 minutes), a by-the-numbers overview of the series and its production with creator Simon Barry and actors Rachel Nichols, Erik Knudsen, Tony Amendola and Victor Webster. Decent but far from filling.
Don't be so quick to dismiss The Little Canadian Series That Could. Continuum is more than competent sci-fi, it has serious potential, and might just develop into a must-see show in coming years. For now, it amounts to a nice surprise that will leave most skeptics with only a few addressable issues. Season Two premieres on Showcase in April, so time will tell whether Continuum remains one to watch or one that quickly fades from memory. Sadly, Continuum's Blu-ray release is more unwieldy. While its video presentation is spot on, its front-heavy DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track is underwhelming and its supplemental package leaves a lot to be desired.
Universal Studios Home Entertainment has announced and detailed the Blu-ray release of Continuum: Season One, which collects the first ten episodes of the Canadian series, broadcast in the U.S. by SyFy. The 2-disc Blu-ray release of the time-travel saga's first ...
