Alcatraz is a term deeply ingrained in our cultural consciousness as a source of mystery and curiosity, so it seems fitting that J.J. Abrams and Elizabeth Sarnoff, two of the genius minds behind the equally enigmatic "Lost," would choose to tackle the iconic island for another high-concept TV series. "Alcatraz" (premiering Mon., Jan. 16, 8 p.m. EST on Fox) might be lacking smoke monsters and polar bears, but there are still plenty of questions to be answered, as HuffPost TV discovered when we visited the Vancouver-based set in October.
The show's story begins in March 1963, when history tells us the prison was closed due to unmanageable operating costs and the erosion of buildings from years of salt water exposure. But in the world of "Alcatraz," the true reason for the closure is far more compelling: 302 prisoners and guards mysteriously vanish without a trace, only to reappear in our time without having aged. An unlikely team -- Alcatraz historian and comic book writer Doctor Diego Soto (Jorge Garcia), police detective Rebecca Madsen (Sarah Jones) and government agent Emerson Hauser (Sam Neill) -- must work together to capture the returned inmates and discover the truth behind their disappearance.
The series was conceived by Steven Lilien and Bryan Wynbrandt, former "Kyle XY" writers, who sold the concept to Abrams' Bad Robot production company. But Sarnoff, who has now stepped down as showrunner, took another stab at the story before shopping around to the networks.
Another "Lost" alum, Jack Bender, serves as executive producer, and he was on hand to answer reporters' questions during the group set visit. On the surface, the two island-based shows share similar DNA -- and not just because of Abrams and Garcia. But Bender insisted that "Alcatraz" is designed to be more accessible than its predecessor.
"I think the networks are certainly afraid of the mythology of the show overpowering an audience's potential to come aboard the train if they've missed a few [episodes]," he said. "I think that our show is going to walk that fine line, hopefully, because each week there is going to be a story unfolding that begins and ends. And there's still this overreaching, 'What happened? How the hell did this happen? What's going on?' vibe to the show that will be, season by season, revealed in a slow fashion so that the mystery stays alive and well."
Read the rest of the article on HuffPostTV
I liked the rate of mytharc reveal on Kyle XY so if the writers can do the same thing on Alcatraz it will be enough serialized element to keep me happy.
ReplyDeleteKyle XY and Veronica Mars were two examples of perfect "procedural hybrid" shows to me. Both had a core weekly story and yet managed to keep me interested in the seasonal arc. I found both much more interesting than the typical procedural drivel....
This is going to be fascinating. Looking forward to it.
ReplyDeleteHurley <3
ReplyDeleteI thought season two of Fringe was a good example of a hybrid but that balance went completely out the window in season three. (not that I'm complaining)
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to seeing it,it certainly sounds interesting....
ReplyDeleteDarque, as almost always, I concur... I was surprised that Sarnoff stepped down but glad good ole Jack B. is around... I am intrigued but I have set the bar low, it worked for POI and I love it (along with a few million others), so here's to keeping fingers crossed.
ReplyDeleteSeason Two of Fringe had a good mix of serial and MOTW, but if I recall right (I have not watched Season 2 in a year or so now), there were not a lot of episodes that really were both in the way that KYle XY or Veronica mars mixed it together.
ReplyDeleteFringe to me is usually either a serial episode tied to the myth arc or it's a MOTW with only indirect thematic ties to the myth arc and sometimes the MOTW have very little if anything to do with the myth arc.
In Kyle XY and Veronica mars almost every episode was about both the myth arc and and episode story. Usually like 60/ 40 to 75/ 25 case of the week, but each week some thing happened directly in the myth arc. Other episodes would lean heavier on the seasonal story but they would still have an episode story as well.I like you was not complaining when Fringe when myth heavy in the second half of Season 3. To me that is by far the best Fringe has ever been and what it needs to get back to the second half of this season if it has even the slightest hope of renewal... I'm crossing my fingers that it hits the ground running since it will have presumably 2 awesome myth heavy serialized episodes in a row since the planned Fall finale was pushed back a week. Maybe that will be a boon in the end and build momentum better?
PLEEEEASE?!?!?!
White Tulip and Northwest Passage were good season 2 blends of serial and MOTW.
ReplyDeleteYep and both were great... well, White Tulip was brilliant!
ReplyDeleteI just meant I don't think the majority of Fringe episodes are true hybrids like that. They certainly have had more than a few over the years though.