While not electrifying, Continuum is entertaining. At the moment of their execution, a group of terrorists (Liber8) orchestrate a time warp that transports them from 2077 to 2012. Seemingly by accident, they transport policewoman Kiera Cameron along with them. Kiera quickly joins the Vancouver Police in an effort to fight Liber8—who are fomenting dissent in the present—and to find a way back to 2077. As the show progresses, it gradually reveals that something more than an execution escape was the cause of all these events.
Continuum is successful largely because of Rachel Nichols, who plays Kiera Cameron. She is beautiful and quite feminine, although not in a girlishly cute way. Rather, her femininity can be found in her shy but quiet strength; her resolute love for her son who remains in 2077; and her sense of duty in fighting Liber8. Rachel Nichols expresses all these qualities and thereby creates a likeable character. Carlos Fonnegra is her partner in the Vancouver Police Department. While not particularly interesting himself, his casual affability and occasional quirks play nicely with Kiera's character. Perhaps a fault in this show is that there are not many well-developed characters beyond these two. Alec Sadler is the genius teenager who will become the corporate giant of the future, but who in the meantime provides tech support and information for Kiera.
Rachel Nichols as Kiera Cameron animates a plot that would otherwise be merely interesting. The show could have closely examined the philosophy of time-travel. Instead, the show uses time-travel as a simple plot-device, and at times in a particularly heavy-handed manner—such as when Liber8 attempts to kill Kiera's grandmother in the hopes that this will erase her out of existence (the tactic doesn't work, though the show doesn't explain why). More troubling, the show occasionally descends to the level of police procedural, as Kiera and Carlos investigate various murders that seem only tangentially related to the plot involving Liber8. Double murder-suicides? Check. Journalist killed in political intrigue? Check. Ransom of a corporate CEO? Check. Nor are the members of Liber8 fleshed out into full characters. They veer from being political dissidents, to anarchic terrorists, to pawns in a corporate chess game.
Despite these faults, Continuum is an enjoyable show. The plots are snappy and the scenes from the future are particularly engaging. And the overarching theme of a plot from the future being hatched in the present is tantalizing enough to keep a viewer engaged.
Continuum is successful largely because of Rachel Nichols, who plays Kiera Cameron. She is beautiful and quite feminine, although not in a girlishly cute way. Rather, her femininity can be found in her shy but quiet strength; her resolute love for her son who remains in 2077; and her sense of duty in fighting Liber8. Rachel Nichols expresses all these qualities and thereby creates a likeable character. Carlos Fonnegra is her partner in the Vancouver Police Department. While not particularly interesting himself, his casual affability and occasional quirks play nicely with Kiera's character. Perhaps a fault in this show is that there are not many well-developed characters beyond these two. Alec Sadler is the genius teenager who will become the corporate giant of the future, but who in the meantime provides tech support and information for Kiera.
Rachel Nichols as Kiera Cameron animates a plot that would otherwise be merely interesting. The show could have closely examined the philosophy of time-travel. Instead, the show uses time-travel as a simple plot-device, and at times in a particularly heavy-handed manner—such as when Liber8 attempts to kill Kiera's grandmother in the hopes that this will erase her out of existence (the tactic doesn't work, though the show doesn't explain why). More troubling, the show occasionally descends to the level of police procedural, as Kiera and Carlos investigate various murders that seem only tangentially related to the plot involving Liber8. Double murder-suicides? Check. Journalist killed in political intrigue? Check. Ransom of a corporate CEO? Check. Nor are the members of Liber8 fleshed out into full characters. They veer from being political dissidents, to anarchic terrorists, to pawns in a corporate chess game.
Despite these faults, Continuum is an enjoyable show. The plots are snappy and the scenes from the future are particularly engaging. And the overarching theme of a plot from the future being hatched in the present is tantalizing enough to keep a viewer engaged.
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