Sci Fi TV Obscurities: A look at sci fi and fantasy TV shows that made it to the air only briefly before getting cast to the television wasteland.
What Is It? This series takes place in a distant future after the human race has been wiped out by an alien invasion. A mysterious obelisk and its drones revive a group of humans using their “brain states” that were captured before they died in the invasion. Now these humans must build a new world in a hostile environment with unexpected enemies.
Aired: BYUtv, 2017, One Season Totaling 10 Episodes
Starring: Chad Michael Collins, Victoria Atkin, Yorke Fryer, Matthew Bellows.
Created By: Orson Scott Card, Aaron Johnston
Is It Must Watch Sci Fi TV? No. This mostly overlooked series has a throw-back feel to it and leans towards family-friendly fare. It delivers a decent sci fi tale, but it does not count as essential.
The Skinny: Extinct appeared with little fanfare in the Fall of 2017 on the BYUtv channel and proved to be an interesting show and somewhat of a pleasant surprise. It has a limited budget and sometimes the acting can be rather stilted (and it appears they raided a Renaissance Fare overstock shop for the wardrobe). It reminds me a bit of the 70’s post-apocalyptic shows like Genesis II/Planet Earth, Logan’s Run (TV Series), and Ark II, though without the society of the week format. The show also has the Lost-style mysteries-upon-mysteries we have come to expect from sci fi entries these days. But these seem to be pretty well thought out (instead of made up on the fly) and we get bits of answers with each episode. And unlike shows that throw in sci fi elements just as an excuse to do whatever the writers feel like, this one establishes a set of rules based in some semblance of science and sticks to them. It also avoids too much in the way of copy-and-paste dialogue, though the scripts do slide in that direction occasionally or at times just feel trite.
Some may be scared away by the fact that it aired on BYUtv, but that is due to the Orson Scott Card Mormon connection. It does deal with themes relating to free will and family that could be given a religious spin, but the show never goes fully in that direction, and some of that may have been there by request of the network to give it a family-friendly feel. Ultimately, it manages to deliver a decent science fiction television entry with broad appeal, though on the cheap. This one did not receive the lavish budget we have seen from many television productions over the past decade, especially on the streaming services, but it makes the most of the money it has. The show ended after its first season, but it did wrap up its major arc (though it left plenty more storylines to explore). It doesn’t count as essential sci fi, but it is enjoyable enough for those who like post-apocalyptic entries.
Cancelled Too Soon? Yes. This show never attracted much of an audience during its initial run, in a large part because of where it aired and because it received very little promotion. Co-creator Aaron Johnston encouraged viewers to contact BYUtv and ask for a second season of the show, but that did not generate enough support to keep it going. Orson Scott Card blamed new management at the station saying that they did not want it because it was not produced by them. In a post addressing the cancellation, the network claimed that the show was not cancelled due to the ratings (though they did not share the viewing numbers), but apparently because they believed it did not register well with their audience compared to their other programming (more on that at this link).
Should It Be Rebooted? This one ended recently enough that it could go the revival route, and it sure seems like the show would generate some interest if it was shopped around. I don’t know if BYUtv still holds the rights to it since they financed the show, but it seems like it would not be too costly to purchase the property and continue it into additional seasons. A complete reboot is a possibility as well if there are rights issues, but it seems like it makes more sense to build on the season that has already been completed. Aaron Johnston had claimed that they would continue the story in novels, but nothing has been released so far.
Interesting Fact: Aaron Johnston previously worked with Orson Scott Card co-writing the First Formic War trilogy as well as two more books in the Ender’s Game series. He also scripted several comics from that series.
Where Can You Watch It? The entire series is still available for streaming (ad-free) on the BYUtv website. It has not been released on physical media, nor is it available to purchase VOD.
Read More About the Show: Wikipedia | IMDb.com
More Sci Fi TV Obscurities at This Link
Be sure to follow the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site for breaking news and updates. And for the latest news and discussions on sci fi and fantasy television, follow r/SciFiTV
Follow our Sci Fi TV Schedule for all the currently airing and upcoming sci fi and fantasy television shows, and you can see the premieres for all the upcoming genre entries at this link.
Orson Scott Card is extremely homophobic, transphobic, *and* racist:
https://bookstr.com/article/enders-game-author-orson-scott-card-labeled-bigot/
https://www.wired.com/2013/10/enders-game/
https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/02/the-real-problem-with-supermans-new-writer-isnt-bigotry-its-fascism/273262/
I did watch a few episodes of “Extinct” and found the characterizations very stereotypical. I thought it a lousy series and can easily understand why it lasted *only* one season. Personally I’m glad it did.
**
Well aware of that. None of his bigotry comes through in the series, but I understand those who refuse to supports his works because of it.
It was a decent show obviously hampered by a very small budget. I like Orson Scott Card.
OSC is one of the great human contradictions. He has written some great books that provide some insightful commentary on the human condition, yet he has also revealed some of his own extreme biases in his non-literary work. I consider books like Ender’s Game and Speaker of the Dead to be classics, but I do find it difficult to reconcile with his personal beliefs.
I would hesitate to label most his positions as ‘extreme bias’. I think his views on sexuality and marriage are closer to the larger mainstream society than most people really care to admit in public. What I’ve read of the accusations of his alleged racism also don’t seem compelling to me either. This is a man who wrote Speaker for the Dead that literally in the book says the main characters other than Ender were ‘mostly black Brazilians’ one of whom he has a relationship with. A genuine racist wouldn’t write that for his most well known character – in 1986 no less!
Never heard of this show or BYUtv but it looks pretty good. I’m going to have to watch it. Thanks for the heads-up!