SERIES PREMIERE REVIEW: ‘Alphas’ humanizes super-humans

Review of Pilot (01:01)

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Click here for our review of Alphas: Season One, Episode Two.

Alphas, the new Syfy original series, is a superb example of what can happen when everything goes right on a television show. The cast, led by Oscar nominee David Strathairn, is uniformly excellent, with not a weak one in the bunch. The series premiere is a well-scripted episode that sets up the characters and over-arching plot line with much finesse.

Alphas, quite simply, brings the goods.

The concept behind the show has been done before. Think Heroes meets Criminal Minds, kind of like a super-human police procedural. But the new Syfy series tries to distinguish itself with compelling characters.

Strathairn plays Dr. Lee Rosen, the leader of a group of government workers who fall under the aegis of the Department of Defense and have special abilities.

Ryan Cartwright plays Gary Bell, an autistic young man with the capability of reading any and all frequencies. He is a human computer, processing information like he were hooked up to the Internet.

Malik Yoba plays Bill Harken, a man who can gather an unbelievable amount of strength (moving car and such). Laura Mennell plays Nina Theroux, a woman who can make anyone do and say just about anything, including making police officers eat her speeding tickets.

Azita Ghanizada plays Rachel Pirzad, a woman who can fine tune one of her senses to an unbelievable enhancement. Her one trade-off is that her other senses shut down when she’s focusing so hard.

These team members use their individual powers to help the government with various tasks, many of them involving criminals. We are first introduced to them after Dr. Rosen receives word from Don Wilson (Callum Keith Rennie from Battlestar Galactica), his contact in the Department of Defense. The news is bleak: A man held by the NYPD in a secure interrogation room was shot in the head almost magically. Something must be up; so the Alphas are called in.

Using their unique skills, the team realizes that the bullet came from an impossibly precise marksman on the rooftop of a nearby building. The bullet actually made its way through the air and then down a ventilation shaft before landing in the brain of the suspect. Someone obviously wanted that man dead — really dead.

The person who pulled the impossible trigger? None other than Cameron Hicks (Warren Christie), an ex-sharpshooter who now stocks shelves at a local grocery store. We find out that Cameron was, in fact, brainwashed into taking the shot. And the Alphas realize that this sniper is just like them: A person with an unbelievable capability. Perhaps this murderous villain is a new recruit?

The acting is believable, and Strathairn chisels out another fine character. There is much growth potential in this show. But co-creators Zak Penn and Michael Karnow need to keep the characters as real as possible (even with their superhero powers), and also distinguish the series from other similar programs. Another nice touch would be a series-long dramatic arch. From the looks of the premiere, it appears that Alphas may play with single-episode stories, but something more concrete would be appreciated (maybe an archenemy group known as the Omegas?).

Having the superheroes show weakness from the get-go was a clever move. It instantly humanizes these so-called “different” people, reminding me somewhat of X-Men.

Syfy, which has a spotless streak of bringing quality series to life, has a real goldmine with Alphas. But it’s going to take a lot of work to keep everything on the right track.

Fingers crossed, because this one could be a real winner.

• Alphas

• Syfy, Mondays at 9 p.m.

• Created by Zak Penn and Michael Karnow

• Starring David Strathairn, Ryan Cartwright, Warren Christie, Azita Ghanizada, Laura Mennell, Malik Yoba and Callum Keith Rennie

• Bubble score: 4 out of 4

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