Not since the era of Fringe have I felt compelled to think carefully about the value of another TV show. That changes with Syfy’s Continuum. The Canadian production appears, on the surface, to be the typical sci-fi drama, with expected ingredients: time travel, brain implants, and hi tech weaponry, among others. It combines these common sci-fi elements with a standard police procedural and focuses on the search for “terrorists” from the future who are intent on changing history and the rise of the almighty corporation. But Continuum is, at its core, a bold declaration of the state of our society today in 2013. It cleverly uses its story arc to highlight what is the real definition of a “terrorist”: is the Liber8 group out to destroy innocent lives or to stop the enslavement of the masses, who live in financial ruin, without hope for freedom? Is it acceptable to persecute those who have the courage to stand up to the powerful corporations, while at the same time ignoring the damage caused by greedy CEO’s? Continuum may not have the delicate sensitivities of Fringe, or its heart breaking love theme, but it more than makes up for it by waking up its audiences and forcing them to confront the true meaning of right and wrong, justice vs. injustice, freedom vs. slavery.
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