When pieces of an alien craft fall to earth they cause phenomena beyond the understanding of human science. It’s up to the CIA and MI5 to investigate…

When I say “phenomena” I’m not talking about things just being a bit weird, I mean physics defying. I mean people falling through solid floors to their death. Technically dead but somehow still sort of alive people floating a foot above the ground. A young boy who’s really…well, spoilers. I have to say it takes a certain amount of self-belief to try to sell this level of strangeness in what otherwise presents as an Agency Procedural, and it did take me a while to come to terms with the implication that physics works differently elsewhere in the universe. Not an expert but I’m pretty sure it doesn’t.

Said agents are Bryn Beneventi (Westworld’s Jonathan Tucker), a CIA operative used to working as a lone wolf. He’s been partnered up with MI5’s Finola Jones (Riann Steele, possibly best known to genre fans as Nefertiti in Doctor Who’s Dinosaurs on a Spaceship). She’s possibly the more interesting character of the two; her now-late father was one of the first people to identify the phenomena, and as such has a personal stake in the proceedings. Oddly she believes the debris may hold the key to ending world hunger and disease; odd because nothing good seems to have come of it so far, so it’s a bit of a stretch.

As with procedurals most of the dialogue is terse and to the point, although we inevitably have conversations where one tells the other something they’d quite clearly already know just for our benefit. As their relationship develops and events trigger past memories we have the also inevitable opening up/crying a bit scenes, but it’s not too over the top. It has to be said neither of our leads seems to have the slightest sense of humour, there’s nothing here to make you crack a smile.

What is rather odd is that the debris events have been going on for six months, presumably worldwide (there are some shadowy foreign agent types in play as well, all big beards and tattooed fingers, so you know they’re bad). Yet there’s no sense of if or how this is affecting the population at large, everyone not directly involved in the investigation seems to be going about their lives as per usual. I also feel that the nature of the debris and what it’s capable of might be a bit too “big” for a show revolving around a couple of agents. It reminds me a little of Torchwood: Miracle Day, where the phenomena (no one can die) was interesting as an SF/fantasy concept but seemed out of proportion to the show itself and the fairly small number of protagonists. It’s early days though, and obviously remains to be seen if this works.

I must say for about the first two-thirds I found this all too preposterous to take seriously, and really not particularly entertaining. However, by the final act I seem to have adjusted to this strange new world and I am rather intrigued to see how this progresses. I’m not totally on board yet but one probably shouldn’t judge a series on its pilot, so it stands a chance of grabbing me in week two.

Verdict: A bold SF concept married to what seems to be a standard agency investigation series, with hints of a conspiracy at large. It may struggle to convince, but might be worth keeping an eye on. 6/10

Andy Smith