A riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma. Winston Churchill wasn’t complaining about the glut of primetime serial dramas – he was famously describing Russia – but he might as well have been.
Some of this fall’s hour-long dramas are cloaking themselves in enigmatic riddles as they trot out elaborate plot lines beginning this week.
Fox is up first with “Vanished,” premiering at 8 p.m. Monday on KDVR-Channel 31.
“I don’t think anything about ‘Vanished’ is straight ahead,” said Josh Berman, the series creator and a veteran of “CSI.”
On the surface, at least, “Vanished” sounds an awful lot like “Kidnapped,” coming to NBC next month, another serial thumbsucker with more riddles, secrets and red herrings than answers.
Everyone’s a suspect, flashbacks hint at deeper coverups and nothing is predictable
except the likelihood of a
week-to-week cliffhanger. Trust no one.
Both “Vanished” and “Kidnapped” find socially prominent, politically connected families fighting an invisible enemy.
Both shows begin with the mysterious disappearance of family members, leading to complex back stories full of secrets and lies, packed densely enough to be untangled over the course of an entire season or maybe even to dangle for years, should ratings allow.
“Vanished” features Ming-Na (“ER”) and Gale Harold (“Queer as Folk”) as FBI partners, searching for the missing socialite wife of a powerful Georgia senator. In the pilot we see her vanish in the midst of an elaborate public function; in succeeding episodes, producers promise we will see flashbacks to flesh out the wife’s story, and later we will be drawn into her husband’s political world. According to Berman, at the heart of the story is a “century-old conspiracy.” Clearly, the series is aiming for viewers with both brains and time to expend on these riddles.
Fox has given “Vanished” a time slot that could be either blessing or curse: The Monday-night hour follows “Prison Break,” another serial that demands loyal audience attention. Fans may stick around for a double-header, or they may decide one serialized drama with a large cast is enough mental exercise for the top of the week.
“Kidnapped,” a Wednesday- night serial thriller premiering Sept. 20, has Dana Delany and Timothy Hutton in pivotal roles as the wealthy parents of an abducted boy. We see the son abducted in the pilot episode; in succeeding episodes we learn more about the conflicting styles of the investigators, a straight arrow from the FBI vs. a rogue former agent, both called upon to track and retrieve him. The cast also includes Mykelti Williamson (“Boomtown”), Delroy Lindo (“The Cider House Rules”),
Jeremy Sisto (“Six Feet
Under”) and Linus Roache
(“Batman Begins”).
Creator Jason Smilovic (“Karen Sisco”) essentially has set up a triangle with room for multiple power plays and internal mysteries as the kidnappers, the investigators and the family interact. This triangle is laced with numerous tangents. Judging from the producers’ explanations at press conferences in L.A. last month, the geometry of “Kidnapped” is more compelling.
Both series play with the currently popular theme of psychological mystery, rather than science fiction mystery, that dominated TV’s serial formulas last season. No monsters in the jungle, no aliens in the water: Instead, there are extended questions about motive, relationships and personal histories. Even those with connections in Washington are vulnerable. These whodunits steam toward what they hope will be shocking resolutions at season’s end, should they make it that far.
The psychological torment depicted in both “Kidnapped” and “Vanished,” and particularly the profound sense of vulnerability, is something modern audiences can relate to, post-9/11.
It will be tempting, as the season unfolds, to find in television’s fictional portrayals of helplessness, paranoia and suspense parallels to the country’s current state of high anxiety in a time of asymmetrical warfare and terrorism.
But how many serial dramas do average viewers need to nudge them, subtly, unconsciously, toward that uncomfortable reflection?
TV critic Joanne Ostrow can be reached at 303-820-1830 or jostrow@denverpost.com.
