Odyssey 5
Encyclopedia
Odyssey 5 is a Canadian
science fiction
series that first ran in 2002 on Showtime in the United States
and on Space in Canada.
In the United States, the initial run of the series ran for 14 of the 20 episodes, leaving the six remaining episodes unaired for a period of roughly two years. (They aired in 2004 on Showtime as "missing" episodes, which ostensibly included the open-ended series finale.) The series made a full run of all 20 episodes in the United Kingdom
on Sky One
and on Sci Fi Channel
and in Canada
. In 2004, the series aired in Finland
on Nelonen
and thus could also be seen in Estonia
, and in June 2004 it premiered in Germany
on Sat.1
. In 2005, it aired in the Netherlands
on NET 5
after midnight. In addition, Odyssey 5 is being or has been aired on RTL Klub
in Hungary
, and premiered in Australia
on the Sci Fi Channel
in December 2006 and on channel TV6
in Lithuania
in 2008.
Currently the series airs on Cadena 3 (channel 28) in Mexico, the Sci Fi Channel
in the United States, SIC Radical
in Portugal
, Mega Channel
in Greece
, tv 3 in Estonia
, extreme tv in Spain
and AXN Sci Fi
in Romania
, Poland
and Bulgaria
.
Odyssey 5 is the brainchild of Manny Coto
, who served as a script-writer and executive producer during the series run. Through his website and in interviews, Coto has expressed his interest in returning to the series at some point, either continuing it or giving it a conclusion.
The series was produced in Toronto
, Ontario
, Canada
.
five years (and therefore to present day, at the time of the series), so that they can prevent the disaster. In a twist, their consciousnesses are sent back and not their physical bodies, as physical time travel is impossible. The mission commander knows only a codeword associated with the disastrous event: Leviathan.
The villains seem to be a race of artificial intelligence. These AIs are trying to learn about humanity through human-mimicking surrogates, called "Synthetics
". In the course of their learning they apparently destroy the Earth. However, during the series, another group of Synthetics are discovered to be from Mars
and that in the original timeline, all the Synthetics created by humanity are destroyed by a satellite designed for that purpose by a cabal within the US government. Whether this act of destruction is seen as a declaration of war by humanity's AIs or the Martian
Synthetics are to blame for the Earth's destruction is never resolved.
While they deal with the search for the truth, the team must also deal with being back in the past, with memories of what is to come. A running plot through the series is reporter Sarah Forbes trying to save her five-year old son, who died of cancer
. However, her efforts to get him experimental help end up with her husband leaving her, taking the boy with him. Astronaut Angela Perry must deal with her Senator father's corruption that would ultimately destroy her family. Commander Chuck Taggart must try to keep his family together, while his son Neil, a computer whiz who was also assigned to the Odyssey, deals with being back in his seventeen-year-old body, when he was known as a screwup. The last member, pessimistic scientist Kurt Mendel, doubts they can change history at all and wants to live his life as much as he can before the end.
The series is very different from most science fiction because it is set in the present day – in a fashion similar to Stargate SG-1
and Sliders
– and also because the team of five is not a group of friends who always get along; the humanity of the team is shown through arguments, jokes, and their attempts to maintain social lives and help the world with their limited knowledge of the future.
Many of the show's plotlines revolve around technologies like AI
, nanotechnology
and neuroimaging
.
A recurring theme is that the actions of the group may hasten the timetable to Earth's destruction. A character who was supposed to live until 2007 ends up dead in the first episode after helping the group out. They learn that defeating history isn't as easy as it sounds; the interweaving threads adapt. In one episode, Sarah and Angela, knowing a girl will be kidnapped, keep an eye on her to make sure it doesn't happen. However, the kidnapper simply takes another child in her place. History in the show is malleable in smaller ways too, as Kurt makes a rather large bet on a football game to which he knows the outcome, but the knowledge and pressure of knowing has an adverse effect on the kicker who would have won the game, causing him to fail.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
series that first ran in 2002 on Showtime in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and on Space in Canada.
In the United States, the initial run of the series ran for 14 of the 20 episodes, leaving the six remaining episodes unaired for a period of roughly two years. (They aired in 2004 on Showtime as "missing" episodes, which ostensibly included the open-ended series finale.) The series made a full run of all 20 episodes in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on Sky One
Sky One
Sky1 is the flagship BSkyB entertainment channel available in the United Kingdom and Ireland.The channel first launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, and is the fourth-oldest TV channel in the United Kingdom, behind BBC One , ITV and BBC Two...
and on Sci Fi Channel
Sci Fi channel (United Kingdom)
Syfy is a television channel service specialising in science fiction, fantasy and horror shows and movies. It is available via digital cable, IPTV, satellite television and Top Up TV platforms. The channel launched in 1995 in the UK a sister channel to the US Sci Fi Channel , with a similar...
and in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. In 2004, the series aired in Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
on Nelonen
Nelonen
Nelonen is a Finnish commercial TV channel. It started out as Helsinki's local television channel PTV in 1989 on the HTV cable network, which name was changed first to PTV4 and then to Nelonen. It started on June 1, 1997. Nelonen, in Finnish, means the glyph of the number four. The channel is...
and thus could also be seen in Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
, and in June 2004 it premiered in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
on Sat.1
Sat.1
Sat.1 is a privately owned German television broadcasting station. Sat.1 was the first privately owned television broadcasting station in Germany, having started one day before RTL Television....
. In 2005, it aired in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
on NET 5
NET 5
NET 5 is a commercial TV channel in the Netherlands owned by Sanoma and Talpa Holding . Other channels of the group in the Netherlands are SBS6 and Veronica.- History :...
after midnight. In addition, Odyssey 5 is being or has been aired on RTL Klub
RTL Klub
RTL Klub is a television station owned by RTL Group and broadcast in Hungary. It was one of Hungary's first commercial TV channels and was only two days after the main rival TV2 to begin broadcasting.-About RTL Klub:...
in Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, and premiered in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
on the Sci Fi Channel
Sci Fi Channel (Australia)
Sci Fi Channel is an Australian subscription channel that airs science fiction, fantasy and related programs. It is available on Foxtel, Austar and Optus Television's subscription platforms. It is currently the only Sci Fi channel worldwide to keep the Saturn logo.-Shows:Sci Fi currently airs...
in December 2006 and on channel TV6
TV6
TV6 may refer to:*TV-6 , defunct Russian television channel, closed by Russian authorities in 2002*TV6 , defunct French television channel broadcasting in 1986 and 1987, predecessor to M6...
in Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
in 2008.
Currently the series airs on Cadena 3 (channel 28) in Mexico, the Sci Fi Channel
Sci Fi Channel (United States)
Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
in the United States, SIC Radical
SIC Radical
SIC Radical is a cable television channel in Portugal owned by Sociedade Independente de Comunicação.SIC Radical is an entertainment channel targeted at teens and young adults. Programs are mostly imported, mainly from the United States and the United Kingdom...
in Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, Mega Channel
Mega Channel
Mega Channel, also known as Mega TV or just Mega, is a major television network in Greece. Teletypos S.A. was founded in 1989 under the name Teletypos Television Programmes S.A...
in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, tv 3 in Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
, extreme tv in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and AXN Sci Fi
AXN Sci Fi
AXN Sci-Fi is a European movie channel owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment. It is available in Italy, Poland, Hungary, Ukraine, Russia, Romania, Kazakhstan and Bulgaria on Sky Italia, Boom TV, Bulsatcom, Cyfra Plus, Cyfrowy Polsat, Digi TV, Dolce, iNES, Max TV and N...
in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
and Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
.
Odyssey 5 is the brainchild of Manny Coto
Manny Coto
Manny Coto is an American writer, director and producer of films and television programs.Coto was the executive producer and showrunner of Star Trek: Enterprise in its final season, and executive producer of four seasons of 24...
, who served as a script-writer and executive producer during the series run. Through his website and in interviews, Coto has expressed his interest in returning to the series at some point, either continuing it or giving it a conclusion.
The series was produced in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Plot
The story revolves around a set of people on a routine spaceflight of the space shuttle Odyssey, on August 7, 2007: four astronauts, a scientist, and a television news reporter. However, during the course of the flight, the Earth rapidly dissolves into a fiery ball and suddenly implodes. Before regaining control of the Odyssey, one astronaut is killed. The remaining five crew members resign themselves to death, but a non-organic being called the Seeker rescues them. Fifty other worlds have been destroyed in the same way as Earth, but the Seeker has always arrived too late to observe it or find survivors. However, this is the first time he has met survivors of such a tragedy. He offers to send them back in timeTime travel
Time travel is the concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space. Time travel could hypothetically involve moving backward in time to a moment earlier than the starting point, or forward to the future of that point without the...
five years (and therefore to present day, at the time of the series), so that they can prevent the disaster. In a twist, their consciousnesses are sent back and not their physical bodies, as physical time travel is impossible. The mission commander knows only a codeword associated with the disastrous event: Leviathan.
The villains seem to be a race of artificial intelligence. These AIs are trying to learn about humanity through human-mimicking surrogates, called "Synthetics
Synthetics (Odyssey 5)
-Sentients:The Sentients are an inorganic artificial form of life that feed on information and exist almost entirely in the Internet. They are unable to interact with the physical universe and must produce human appearing avatars known as Synthetics...
". In the course of their learning they apparently destroy the Earth. However, during the series, another group of Synthetics are discovered to be from Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
and that in the original timeline, all the Synthetics created by humanity are destroyed by a satellite designed for that purpose by a cabal within the US government. Whether this act of destruction is seen as a declaration of war by humanity's AIs or the Martian
Martian
As an adjective, the term martian is used to describe anything pertaining to the planet Mars.However, a Martian is more usually a hypothetical or fictional native inhabitant of the planet Mars. Historically, life on Mars has often been hypothesized, although there is currently no solid evidence of...
Synthetics are to blame for the Earth's destruction is never resolved.
While they deal with the search for the truth, the team must also deal with being back in the past, with memories of what is to come. A running plot through the series is reporter Sarah Forbes trying to save her five-year old son, who died of cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
. However, her efforts to get him experimental help end up with her husband leaving her, taking the boy with him. Astronaut Angela Perry must deal with her Senator father's corruption that would ultimately destroy her family. Commander Chuck Taggart must try to keep his family together, while his son Neil, a computer whiz who was also assigned to the Odyssey, deals with being back in his seventeen-year-old body, when he was known as a screwup. The last member, pessimistic scientist Kurt Mendel, doubts they can change history at all and wants to live his life as much as he can before the end.
The series is very different from most science fiction because it is set in the present day – in a fashion similar to Stargate SG-1
Stargate SG-1
Stargate SG-1 is a Canadian-American adventure and military science fiction television series and part of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Stargate franchise. The show, created by Brad Wright and Jonathan Glassner, is based on the 1994 feature film Stargate by Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich...
and Sliders
Sliders
Sliders is an American science fiction television series. It was broadcast for five seasons, beginning in 1995 and ending in 2000. The series follows a group of travelers as they use a wormhole to "slide" between different parallel universes. The show was created by Robert K. Weiss and Tracy Tormé...
– and also because the team of five is not a group of friends who always get along; the humanity of the team is shown through arguments, jokes, and their attempts to maintain social lives and help the world with their limited knowledge of the future.
Many of the show's plotlines revolve around technologies like AI
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
, nanotechnology
Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally, nanotechnology deals with developing materials, devices, or other structures possessing at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometres...
and neuroimaging
Neuroimaging
Neuroimaging includes the use of various techniques to either directly or indirectly image the structure, function/pharmacology of the brain...
.
A recurring theme is that the actions of the group may hasten the timetable to Earth's destruction. A character who was supposed to live until 2007 ends up dead in the first episode after helping the group out. They learn that defeating history isn't as easy as it sounds; the interweaving threads adapt. In one episode, Sarah and Angela, knowing a girl will be kidnapped, keep an eye on her to make sure it doesn't happen. However, the kidnapper simply takes another child in her place. History in the show is malleable in smaller ways too, as Kurt makes a rather large bet on a football game to which he knows the outcome, but the knowledge and pressure of knowing has an adverse effect on the kicker who would have won the game, causing him to fail.
Cast
- Peter WellerPeter WellerPeter Frederick Weller is an American film and stage actor, director and lecturer.He is best known for his roles as the title character in the first two RoboCop films and Buckaroo Banzai in the cult classic The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension...
— Chuck Taggart - Sebastian RochéSebastian Roché- Early life :Roché was born in Paris, France, on August 4, 1964; he is of Scottish and French ancestry. He is also fluent in four languages: English, French, Spanish and Italian. On General Hospital, he spoke in Russian, Spanish and French, and on the pilot episode of Odyssey 5, he spoke in French...
— Kurt Mendel - Christopher GorhamChristopher GorhamChristopher David Gorham is an American actor.- Early life :Gorham was born in Fresno, California to David Gorham, a certified public accountant and Cathryn Gorham, a school nurse. He attended high school at Roosevelt School of the Arts and graduated from UCLA with a BA in Film & Theater Arts...
— Neil Taggart - Leslie SilvaLeslie SilvaLeslie Silva is an American actress who is best known for her role in Odyssey 5 as Sarah Forbes. She was also a regular on the Providence as Dr. Helen Reynolds....
— Sarah Forbes - Tamara Craig Thomas — Angela Perry
- Catherine BlackCatherine Black (actress)Catherine Black is a Canadian film, TV and stage actress. Black is best known for starring opposite Peter Weller in one episode of the science fiction Showtime series, Odyssey 5, playing Vanden, opposite Christian Bale, in the 2000 cult thriller classic, American Psycho directed by Mary Harron,...
— Young Paige
Episode list
(numbered as on the DVD)- Pilot (1.5hrs, usually broadcast in two parts)
- Shatterer
- Astronaut Dreams
- Time Out of Mind
- Symbiosis
- The Choices We Make
- Rapture
- L.D.U. 7
- Flux
- Kitten
- Dark at the End of the Tunnel
- Trouble with Harry
- Skin
- Begotten
- Vanishing Point
- Follow the Leader
- Half-Life
- Rage
- Fossil