Paradox

TV, Paradox (5 episodes)

The central concept of this BBC drama is solid, and really it's what kept me watching. As a series it was disappointing. Actually it wasn't even that, because I didn't have high expectations in the first place, but it was greatly lacking in cohesion. First, the characters. They weren't bad, and they were another reason to stick with the programme. You had the police detective, her gruff, graceless male sidekick, a black Christian with two young children to support, and the most intriguing of all, the man at the centre of it all: Dr. Christian King (was the name supposed to give something away there?).

They all had something to make them interesting, whether it was Ben's blunt, belligerent approach to any problem, causing trouble and smirks in equal measure. Callum, with his strong faith, was a rarity, although it seemed to push the storyline towards supernatural intervention, and sending a few grainy photos didn't seem like much help. It was obvious they were trying to go for a science versus faith argument going, but the intellectual side of the writing was almost non-existent so the promise of all these ingredients never came to fruition. Main character DI Rebecca Flint came across quite badly - either she was acting with no regard for the law, or she was complaining that the others were doing just that. Or she was moaning that they weren't doing what she told them. Or... well, she seemed to moan a lot. I also didn't quite believe in her as a real person because of Tamzin Outhwaite's over-acting, and her rough voice grated on my ear a bit, especially when contrasted with the rich Scottish or northern tones of the others, and Callum's soft, but expressive voice.

So the main characters were up and down, but that was mostly the fault of the writers, and it's also their fault that there wasn't much progression. We meet a couple of recurring characters who don't serve much purpose except to increase the mystery, which unsatisfyingly was never explained by the end. The woman from the government: do they trust her? The balding man who's in charge of King's facility: does he know more than he lets on? They are only ever mysterious background characters that are chucked into the mix. The series is a classic case of being less than the sum of its parts. Some good ideas, especially the central paradox lose some of their power. To see how a series with the remit to use information from the future to stop catastrophes in the present, actually works, watch the American series 'Seven Days'. That came out ten years ago, but was full of the pumping action and impossible situations that 'Paradox' would love to feature.

I understand that there's less money to go round, and TV drama is affected like everything else, as evidenced by this series only having five episodes. No wonder we didn't fully get to know the characters, or for a coherent ongoing storyline to develop - there just wasn't time! Unfortunately a lot of each episode seems to be spent wandering the streets or grousing with each other. Admittedly the last ten minutes tend to be more exciting, but it always feels like the events are on a small scale, not really played to their full potential. Even the big climax to the first episode took place on a little country bridge, and the catastrophe was smaller each time.

So much was unresolved - the woman in the nail salon that Callum wants to protect, dies and that's it. It does influence his next move, but there's a lack of substance to events as if they struggled to fit things together and keep the audience guessing. It probably worked best in the first episode because we don't know the format, and the disparate pieces seem completely unrelated. The final episode seemed to promise to tie the first four episodes together, but only succeeded in giving us no ending at all. It's not even a cliffhanger where we're left with an idea of what might happen, but the episode just stops, leaving the characters in bizarre limbo.

It's obvious they hoped to make more of this series and wanted plenty of details to tie up later, but when we've taken time to follow it, we're not being given much to work with, or reward for sticking with it. Callum ends up murdering someone. I guess 'Thou shalt not kill' doesn't apply to rapists, then... Oh, and let's kill the central character, the most interesting one. Dr. King lies dying on the floor. I'm guessing if they continue he won't die or that would remove the central pillar of stability and a unique window on the intrigue (unless his death was all part of the plan, and he's sending photos from beyond the grave!).

I suppose they've succeeded in some ways - I did watch all the episodes, because there was something there, and I'd like more of this escalating danger stuff (done best in 90s series 'BUGS'), but I'm not holding out hopes for it to suddenly become the British 'Seven Days'!

**