Discover LIMETOWN

Article first published as LIMETOWN: TV REVIEW on Seat42F.

I discovered the scripted podcast LIMETOWN shortly after it premiered. I devoured both seasons (despite the long break in between) of the creepy drama about a town of more than 300 people that went missing without a trace, and the investigator with a personal connection seeking to expose the truth. I wasn’t alone, with the feed rising to number one on the charts about two months after its premiere. Now, that podcast is a live action television show, available exclusively on Facebook.

I get it, a show on Facebook, it sounds like a joke. Or some cheap web series of the kind that were popular about ten years ago. LIMETOWN isn’t that. It’s a well-crafted, slow-burn suspense tale with a decent budget and professional presentation. The episodes are half an hour long, and it’s very easy to believe you’re watching it on a cable or streaming service, rather than on social media.

While the actors in the original audio drama were mostly unknowns, the show has recognizable faces. Jessica Biel (The Sinner) stars as Lia Haddock, the journalist from American Public Radio, an NPR-like radio network, that digs into the case. If you haven’t seen Biel’s recent work and still dismiss her as ‘that girl from Seventh Heaven,’ I recommend you check out some of her credits. She’s really fantastic, and this role is no exception, playing a woman on the very edge of insanity and obsession.

Lia has haunting memories of her younger self (Vera Frederickson) interacting with ‘Uncle Emile’ (Stanley Tucci, Spotlight). Emile worked on the Limetown project alongside Dr. Oskar Totem (Alessandro Juliani, the newer Battlestar Galactica) and dozens of other scientists. The town included spouses, children, support staff, even pigs. But they all disappeared during a three-day period, with emergency personnel blocked from entering by private security, and then only Totem’s body found. Where did they go? Are they still alive?

LIMETOWN only really has one lead in Lia, although we sometimes see her boss, Gina (Sherri Saum, The Fosters), and assigned co-worker, Mark (Omar Elba, Berlin, I Love You), as she tracks down Lenore (Janet Kidder, Arrow) and other people hiding in the shadows. I get why the television series felt the need to expand the cast, but I’m glad it didn’t build up those roles too much to distract from the main plot. Although giving Lia a girlfriend (Kandyse McClure, also Battlestar Galactica) does help round out who the protagonist used to be before completely disappearing in her work, which she’s on the verge of when we meet her.

I won’t spoil how season one of the podcast concludes, which I assume will be similar for the show, despite being early in its run, given how faithful the story seems to play out so far. Though, there were only six episodes of that, while there are more for the visual medium, so I expect some more expansion, at the very least. All I will say is Lia’s story is tragic, and I’m really looking forward to seeing if the show follows the second season of the podcast into a somewhat new direction, or doubles down on the journey already being followed.

Without knowing how it ends, though, I am very satisfied with what’s been done so far. The first few episodes are gripping and intense, with a rich tapestry that is more (necessarily) complex than the original while maintaining its spirit. It’s graphic, but not too gory, and scary without relying on the jumps. On its own, it’s fantastic. As an adaptation, it succeeds. This is a show I would want to watch even if I wasn’t already totally engrossed in the story.

Watch LIMETOWN on Facebook, with two new episodes dropping every week, with six already out and another four to come.

Hard to Take In THE FOSTERS

Article first published as THE FOSTERS Review on Seat42F.

Grade: 81%

ABC Family’s newest foray into hour-long drama is THE FOSTERS, premiering tonight at 9 p.m. ET. It’s about two moms raising a bunch of children, most starting as foster children, in their blended household. In the first episode, “Pilot,” the household is shaken up when a new girl joins the clan.

The network definitely checks all its boxes when casting this series. The homosexual parents at the center are also in an interracial relationship. Besides one biological son, they have taken in a pair of Latino twins. This is a true twenty-first century family, of the type that has not existed historically before this current age.

The positives of a series like this are that it fosters, excuse the pun, acceptance of diversity and teaches the young people that watch it not to judge or hate. This is an admirable concept to push forward, and despite some religious groups’ protestations, this is a good thing that will help make our society more inclusive. Everyone is equal and deserves to be treated the same.

The problem is, THE FOSTERS gets a little preachy in that message. One character even says in the “Pilot” to another that they are not disposable. It’s the right message, but delivered a bit too heavy-handed. Yes, the characters depicted should be held up as role models, but their actions tell the story well enough without beating us over the head with it.

The real issue I have with THE FOSTERS, though, is that lack of chemistry in the cast. Teri Polo (Meet the Parents, The West Wing) plays Stef, a cop who is married to Vice Principal Lena (Sherri Saum, Gossip Girl, In Treatment). There is no love to be felt between the two, especially coming from Polo’s side. As much as I have enjoyed Polo in other programs, I wonder if she can’t play convincing lesbian, or if she is having trouble connecting with the material. Either way, it makes it hard for viewers to get into it, too.

Similarly, the twins that Stef and Lena take in, Jesus (Jake T. Austin, Wizards of Waverly Place) and Mariana (Cierra Ramirez, The Secret Life of the American Teenager), don’t even see like friends, let alone brother and sister. And there is no affection present between Stef’s biological son, Brandon (David Lambert, Aaron Stone), and his girlfriend, Talya (Madisen Beaty, Benjamin Button), who is very clearly just a placeholder until Callie (Maia Mitchell, Castaway, Trapped) comes along.

Which brings up another problem with the series: forced drama in unbelievable scenarios. How can Stef and Lena possibly give Callie a home with them if she’s just going to hook up with their son? Not to mention, Stef’s new partner on the force is Brandon’s father, Mike (Danny Nucci, The Boot at the End), who requests to work with her in a really out-of-sync scene, despite the complications this brings to Stef’s marriage. Mariana is secretly selling drugs so she can give her bio-mom money, someone Stef and Lena are happy to help Mariana connect with, but Mariana is going behind their backs to see. And all the teens attend the school Lena works at, a very progressive charter school where teachers are addressed by their first name and the students can go behind the building and surf, since it is built on a beach.

All of this adds up to a big old mess. While I like the idea of THE FOSTERS and some of the cast, especially the adults, nothing really adds up to the sum of its parts. The acting is weak, the dynamics are off, and the setting is far less than realistic. It doesn’t flow right, and I didn’t find myself caring about any of the characters, including Callie, who is sort of the main protagonist, and has a very serious problem that must be addressed in the first hour. If she can’t be sympathetic, no one in this series can.

If ABC Family’s goal is to appeal to the same viewers that eat up their currently popular shows, THE FOSTERS should suffice, as it is on par in terms of quality. But with other cable networks doing projects that are so much better, this one pales in comparison, and will get lost to the discerning viewer.

The advantage ABC Family has is that they have no direct competition to the niche that they serve. If anyone else decides to get into the game, it won’t be too hard to beat THE FOSTERS and their ilk.