DVD Review: The 4400 - The Complete Series

Written by Hombre Divertido

What if 4400 people who had vanished over the past sixty years were suddenly returned in a ball of light from space to Seattle?

Perhaps a better question would be: What if the USA network launched a serialized science fiction series with an ensemble cast two months before ABC launched Lost?

The 4400 actually began as a five-week miniseries on the USA Network in July of 2004. After strong ratings, it was renewed for a full season and would run until September 0f 2007. On October 28th, 2008, all forty-two episodes were released on DVD in well packaged box set.

More like a cross between The X Files and X-Men than Lost, The 4400 started strong with a simple premise ripe with possibilities. Creator Scott Peters (who too often brings in music from his Outer Limits series) presents us with 4400 people who have returned from absences ranging from months to years, who have not aged, and, except for one exception, seem to have no idea where they have been. So, where have they been? More importantly, what is to be done with them? How will they fit back into society? Agents Tom Baldwin (Joel Gretsch), whose nephew was one of the returnees, and Diana Skouris (Jacqueline McKenzie), who takes in one of the youngest returnees, from NTAC (National Threat Assessment Command) are assigned to keep tabs on the 4400 and hopefully answer the many questions.

In what would prove to be an excellent choice in character development, Baldwin, who seems to be channeling Marc Singer from his days on the early eighties science-fiction series V, which 4400 creator Scott Peters happens to be working on bringing back to television, but I digress; Baldwin is more sympathetic to the plight of the 4400 than his by-the-book partner Skouris. Even though she adopts one of the young returnees.

Baldwin and Skouris are sent out each week to follow up on interesting circumstances involving the 4400. Said interesting circumstances are often the result of the unique powers that the 4400 would slowly begin to display. Within each episode we are also updated on the continuing stories of certain returnees. Had the writers stuck to that premise, there was a minimum of 4400 stories to tell. Unfortunately, things got a bit off track.

The 4400 had a big hurdle to leap when it was picked up as a series. Since it was originally written as a mini-series, huge plot points were given away in the finale. Most of which, as confirmed by some of the wonderful bonus material in this new release, the writers would have preferred to save for later revelations.

As season two begins (The five episode mini-series is considered season one); a year has passed (which is often annoying to viewers) since the 4400 appeared, most have begun to develop powers, while other non-returnees are being impacted by what is termed the “ripple effect.” The ripple effect indicates how the 4400 are changing things, and is extremely thought-provoking to the viewers. Unfortunately, the ripple effect is one of many attractive aspects of the series that would slowly get lost over the course of season two and three, as the writers take the series in a direction that would eventually lead to the demise of the show.

Article Author: Cinema Sentries

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