Primeval – Volume One (2007 - 8/Series 1 & 2/BBC
DVD)
Picture: B- Sound: B- Extras:
C+ Episodes: A
When the folks behind
the Walking With Dinosaurs programs
combine with the BBC to create a sci-fi drama, you know the potential for great
television exists. Adrian Hodges and Tim
Haines realize that potential in Primeval.
Primeval
– Volume One combines Series One and
Two that were released in 2007 and 2008 respectively. Warning, a few minor spoilers lay ahead in
this review.
The basic premise of
the show rests on the existence of holes in time and space called anomalies. These anomalies act as gateways to the distant
past and even the far future. Creatures
from these times pass through them into our world and cause all sorts of havoc.
The British Home Office assembles a
crack team of scientists and adventurers to deal with these incredible
incursions, and to study the nature of the anomalies themselves. Douglas Henshall plays Nick Cutter, an
evolutionary zoologist whose wife, Helen (Juliet Aubrey) disappeared eight
years ago into one of these anomalies. Cutter is asked to lead the team tasked
to discover the nature of the anomalies and deal with the creatures that travel
through them into our world.
The rest of the primary
cast forms Cutter's crack team, with Stephen Hart (James Murray) as Cutter's
right-hand man, Connor Temple (Andrew-Lee Potts) in the role of the group's
technology wizard, Abby Maitland (Hannah Spearritt) as the effervescent
zoologist, Claudia Brown/Jennifer Lewis (Lucy Brown) as a Home Office liaison
and Cutter's romantic interest, and Sir James Lester (Ben Miller) as the
nagging government wonk who runs the whole operation. The BBC just seems to possess a knack for
bringing together good talent for its ensemble shows, and this one is no
exception.
An abrupt change in
tone and direction occurs between Episode 6 and Episode 7 (the dividing line
between Series 1 and 2). When Cutter re-emerges from an anomaly he
finds the world has changed. Claudia Brown (his recent love interest) has
become Jennifer Lewis, and does not know him, and the Home Office operation to
investigate the anomalies has grown considerably and now has an incredible base
of operations, the ARC. The romantic
interplay between Stephen and Abby has also dissipated, replaced by an
unrequited love triangle between Abby, Connor, and a new character, Caroline
(Naomi Bentley). It's unclear whether
these changes were planned from the beginning, or whether they were made in
reaction to audience response, or just a natural maturation of the show's
concept. They all work and move the
characters toward further development.
As good as these actors
are in their roles, the incredible special effects in Primeval give them a run
for their money in stealing the show. The
creatures, strange landscapes, and amazing action offer an engrossing mix
that's sure to please most any sci-fi fan.
Extras in this box are
a bit thin, with just one commentary and a pair of mini-documentaries that take
the viewer behind the scenes of the show's production. The final episode features one of the great
plot twists in recent sci-fi television history, and promises that Series 3 (scheduled for release in
early 2010) will feature even more twists and turns.
- Scott R. Pyle
