Caprica 1x02

Probably unintentionally the sci-fi show Caprica picks up some of where Dollhouse left off... Last week I told you about Zoe, a young girl who died in a monotheist-fundamentalist act of terrorism, but whose “avatar” (a virtual representation) continues to live. Her father uploads her avatar onto a robot to create the first cybernetic lifeform node, that he calls a Cylon. “Boring,” I hear you say... maybe... but let’s see where this show may take us, okay, I mean, I’m willing to give it a shot. Zoe’s parents are each in their own way trying to deal with the death of their daughter. Her mother wonders if Zoe was running away from her family, and who this Ben was, who detonated the explosion and turns out to be Zoe’s boyfriend. Her father is doing his best avoiding thinking about his daughter by working on the military applications for his Cylon prototype.

Joseph Adama is similarly trying to deal with the loss of his daughter Tamara, while his son Will is struggling with family life and being from Tauron. Then we have Lacy, who was Zoe’s friend. She’s now approached by her dope-smoking head mistress, who happens to be a Soldier of the One, and a practicing polygamist (married to multiple husbands and wives). So, now this girl Zoe (or her “avatar”) is trapped inside the body of a robot... Slowly she’s learning how to use her body’s mechanical strength. She’s still dealing with an identity crisis: being Zoe, the avatar and the robot, all at once. She’s a trinity, Lacy explains – throwing in another religious reference for good measure: three faces of the same entity. Alas, the CGI’s are rather bad ... I still can’t appreciate that awkward mix of futuristic features and elements straight out of the here and now ... still that annoying dangling hand-held camera work ... oh, yeah, and the cheesiest opening sequence (like the main titles from some kiddie fantasy show)...