Channel Surfing: The 4400

TV and summer. Two things that don't always go together. However, some smart networks have saved some of their very best shows for summer viewing and USA leads the pack with season three of this remarkably well crafted, and fairly family friendly sci-fi drama. The story is that over the last 60 years 4400 people have vanished, and all at once they were returned. Not one of them had aged a day, or had any clear memory of what had happened to them. As they explore the world they've come home to, they begin to realize that they've been sent back changed. Some, like teenager Shawn Farrell, came back with the power to harm or heal with just a touch. Young Maia Skouris, who has been gone the longest and is one of the youngest of the returned, has the power to see the future whether she wants to or not. The problem is that while they haven't changed, their world has. People have died, or moved on and the returned are left feeling more than a little scared, and with no idea where to go from here.

This is a show that's crafted like The X-Files and The Twilight Zone but with its own twists and turns that make it truly original. What makes it a show I'd recommend is that while there are some intense moments, there's not a lot of graphic moments. Characters do die, but the death isn't overly gory. People are hurt, but again it's nothing stronger than a PG movie. You care about the central characters through truly inspired writing, and talented actors like Joel Gretsch, and Jacqueline McKenzie leading what may be one of the more ethnically diverse ensembles on TV. Give this show a try, whether it be through seasons 1 and 2 out on DVD now, or by tuning in to season 3. It's intelligent television that'll make you glad you found your remote.

The 4400 can be seen on USA Network. (Picture courtesy USA.)

-Jenn Untch
Liberty, Missouri
jennuntch@yahoo.com
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