Orphan Black

With my attention deficit medicated to manageable levels, I've been enjoying some TV again. The show that's been absorbing my thoughts is Orphan Black from BBC America.



The main reason I know about it is that I'm such a fan of Ginger Snaps, and John Fawcett, the auteur behind that great film is none other than the co-creator. The screenwriter of GS, Karen Walton, is also a Co-Producer.

It's about a street hustler, Sarah Manning, (Tatiana Maslani) who seems to have no redeeming qualities to begin the show. She's a drug dealer, a thief, and she abandoned her child. The show begins with her witnessing a suicide of a woman who looks exactly like her. Sarah picks up the woman's purse from the subway platform and steals her identity. She does this to fake her death to get away from an abusive boyfriend, Vic. 

Then, she discovers she's impersonating a cop, who's in trouble for shooting an innocent bystander. If that's not in the hottest seat in the hot house and worthy of a show in its own right, she then discovers that there are other women identical to her. She's a clone among at least several others. Worse, somebody is killing them all off.

Tatiana Maslani as Sarah (right) meets her long lost sister (left). Hint: this doesn't end well.

I admit I may be behind the times, but I've never seen a series that accelerates to three times the speed limit, hitting on all cylinders in the first episode. Even the best shows take a while for writers and actors to get the characters right. Even great show make the majority of their bad episodes in the first season. We're up to episode nine, and this show hasn't flagged at all. 

Which is remarkable, because Maslani not only plays Sarah, but she plays all the clones who show up. They all have distinct personalities, mannerisms and accents, and Maslani depicts them seamlessly.  I'm awed by her performance(s). So much so, I could actually be frightened meeting her. It even pays attention to nuance, Sarah speaks with a British-like accent and she impersonates a woman who doesn't. So, you have Sarah beginning to fall back into her accent at first, and then having to somehow cover it.

As I said, it started fast, and its speed continued. Maslani receives great plotting and scripting and great help from the supporting cast. My favorite character besides hers is her gay adoptive brother Felix (Jordan Gavaris), who not only tolerates his wayward sibling, but helps her, and her new "sisters" at every turn. He never  totally freaks out as anybody else would if a sibling came to their doorstep with Sarah's problems, and he's convincing and funny at not doing it.

The season ends Saturday. I guess I'll have to spend a long summer doing what I haven't done in decades: enjoying reruns.

It's available on Amazon for streaming, which is where I get it. I'm sure there are other outlets.

UPDATE: 6/5/2013/8:25 p.m. And the final was better than I could have ever expected. This is a great show.