General Concept: It's from the Wachowskis and J. Michael Straczynski (who've written all 12 episodes) and the basic idea surrounding this ambition show involves eight strangers from different parts of the world who suddenly become mentally and emotionally linked to each other. Called Sensates or Sense8, the linked group are certainly an eclectic bunch of people as leaders Jonas Maliki (Naveen Andrews) and Angel Turing (Darryl Hannah) - the latter who kills herself at the start of the first episode are tasked to unite the eight strangers against a group led by someone named Whispers. As for the strangers themselves.
Nomi Marks (Jamie Clayton): Starting with my favourite character first, Nomi is a transgendered woman and hacktivist living in Chicago with her free spirited girlfriend Amanita (Freema Ageyman). In the first two episodes we're given a great exploration into their relationship, Nomi's coming to terms with her own identity as a trans woman and having to deal with both her mother and a rather overzealous doctor holding her in hospital against her will. On the plus side, at least both Amanita and Jonas are somewhat working to get her out of there. If you haven't fallen in love with Nomi in the first five minutes of this episode, then I have no words. She is without a doubt the best character so far.
Lito Rodriguez (Miguel Ángel Silvestre): A closeted Mexican actor/action star with a live in boyfriend - Hernando (Alfonso Herrera) and a rather clingy co-star in Daniela Velasquez (Eréndira Ibarra). I'll admit that Lito didn't make a big impression in the first episode but in the second one where we learned about his secret life, that certainly helped. I also found it rather amusing how readily Daniela seemed to want to take on the mantle of being a beard for Lito as well. I get the impression that won't end well in later episodes though.
Will Gorski (Brian J. Smith): A cop in Chicago who is haunted by an unsolved murder from his childhood and like Nomi and Riley, one of the few characters where the connection is being played more overtly (though all eight characters have either seen Angel or Jonas in some way). Like Lito, it took the second episode for him to really click with him but following his brief encounters with Riley and Jonas, I definitely think he's shaping up a little better as a character. I also like getting some insight into his relationship with his father (who is just as horrible as Nomi's mother) and the snarky dynamic with his partner as well has been good fun.
Riley Blue (Tuppence Middleton): An Icelandic DJ living in London, the first two episodes have been as eventful for her as they have been for Nomi and Will. In these episodes alone, it seemed like she was making a connection with a charismatic stranger (which went violently wrong at the end of the first episode) when she wasn't seeing Will in various sequences or dealing with an awful boyfriend as well. Thankfully the annoying boyfriend seems to be out of the picture and I imagine it won't be long before she ends up meeting one of her fellow Sensates.
Kala Dandekar (Tina Desei): A pharmacist and devout Hindi living in Mumbai, Kala seems to be in a bit of an expected story involving an arranged marriage with a nice guy that she's not really all that into. I do like the guy in question - Rajan Rasa (Purab Kohli) and the dancing was actually rather nice but I am hoping that more will emerge with the character. Kala comes across as an ambitious and driven character with a great relationship with her family as well.
Wolfgang Bogdanow (Max Riemelt): A safe cracker from Germany with some serious daddy issues (episode 1 had him attending his father funeral, then later pissing on his grave) and a fun partner in crime - Felix Bernner (Max Mauff). The first episode saw both Wolfgang and Felix robbing a place before a rival gang got there (when the latter wasn't musing over why a contestant wasn't going to win a music contest) as well as the former hooking up with a woman when his own sensate abilities weren't showing themselves.
Sun Bak (Doona Bae): A businesswoman in Seoul having to deal with both her father and brother undermining her abilities within the company the three of them work in. Out of the eight sensates in the first two episodes, I'll admit that Sun hasn't gripped me yet. It's not the actress's fault but it's more to do with the fact that she's had the least amount of screen time so far compared to the others. However with ten more episodes to watch, I'm pretty sure we'll get to know more about her.
Capheus (Aml Ameen): A van driver from Nairobi and like Sun, not as much focus has been on him so far but I found that he stood out due to his compassionate nature (helping his sick mother), cheeriness and the fact that he named his van Van Damn as well, which you'd have to have a sense of humour bypass not to have smiled at that. Right now he seems the more lighter of the main sensates and that is a good thing too.
Next week, I'll recap/talk about the episodes Smart Money Is On The Skinny Bitch and What's Going On?
I wasn't sure if this show was a catastrophe or brilliant after watching the first ep, nevertheless it grabbed my attention from the get go and I had to watch the rest. I'm glad you gave me the link, because I like reading your reviews. I frankly tend to watch TV in a very superficial way (while doing other things) so sometimes the details escape me. That said, I am finished with the series. Several of the sense8's have very meaningful and touching stories. You see Lito, Nomi, Van Damn,and Riley in very gripping and touching stories. There is a scene between Lito and Nomi that had me near tears. For me, while eye candy, Wolfgang and Will have the minor story lines and a tad less interesting for me. Same goes for Kala. I love Sun, and so will you. She's very unemotional but she is physically a contender (martial arts) and lends her abilities to several sense8's in need, which was freakin awesome. (could have done without all the baby episodes. You'll know when you see it. Otherwise it was pretty good. I hope its renewed for another season) I'll look forward to your review of 'Whats going on?' That's were it really starts to get good. (for me)
ReplyDeleteIll definitely keep with the series. I really like the concept and the characters are certainly engaging enough to watch as well.
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