Under the Dome 1.8: The Monarch

Not much science fiction in Under the Dome 1.8 last night, but it was good to see Dean Norris get so much time as Big Jim after his performance as Hank on Breaking Bad the night before.   Norris has become one of the most effective character actors on television.

There was a pretty good soft-scientific mystery under the dome last night, however, as Julia and Joe investigate the nucleus egg first introduced last week, when an apparition of Norrie's mother appeared to Joe and Norrie.   This time, it's a second version of Joe, who says "The monarch will be crowned."

A bit earlier in the show, we get a hint of what this monarch is, as we see a graceful monarch butterfly fluttering by.   I raised monarchs with my kids when they were in nursery school - harvested milkweed the caterpillars feed upon, and even planted a purplish butterfly bush - so I was especially pleased to see this turn of events on the show.

Not only that, but we learn that Angie has a monarch butterfly tattoo on her shoulder, which means she is somehow centrally involved in the apparition-Joe's statement.  It's sort of reminiscent of the "save the cheerleader" mantra in Heroes (first time I've mentioned the content of that show in years), and it will be fun to see how this develops.  At very least, it will give Angie a better part than just being locked up, which will be good to see.

Meanwhile, with the death of another character who posed a danger to Big Jim, and Big Jim and Barbie ending the episode at odds, it looks like we will be in for a good showdown between these two central characters.

See also Under the Dome: Superior Summer Science Fiction ... Under the Dome 1.2: Adrenaline and Seepage ... Under the Dome 1.3: Way Under ...Under the Dome 1.4: Good Night for Junior, Until ... Under the Dome 1.5: vs the Bomb ... Under the Dome 1.6: Sentient Biosphere ... Under the Dome 1.7: The Nucleus

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Under the Dome: Superior Summer Science Fiction

I caught the premiere of  CBS's Under the Dome on demand last night.  Having just returned from a month's vacation in a small New England town, I was especially receptive.  I liked everything about the show - fast moving, daring main plot, good subplots, altogether superior science fiction which is not over the top, which is to say, Under the Dome has that perfect mix of plausibility and out-of-this-world event which is the hallmark of all fine science fiction.  It should be - it's from the Stephen King novel, which I haven't read.  And that's probably good, because otherwise I'd be unhappy about every divergence of the television series from the novel.

The main plot is a force field which descends around the town with no warning.  It's tall enough that a plane flying above crashes right into it.   In one of the most effective scenes, though, we see a single cow sheared in half by the force field descending like a slick swift invisible razor.   The setup - so far - is that people outside the dome can't communicate with people inside the dome, except by holding up signs and the like.   But since they can't see inside the dome, they have no idea where the heads and eyes that might see the signs are located.

In addition to what caused this - aliens, people from the future, a secret government project, take your pick - we have an ample number of percolating subplots inside the sheer teapot dome.   Local councilman Big Jim Rennie - played welcomely by Dean Norris of Breaking Bad fame - is up to some kind of hanky panky involving propane gas, which may or may not in some way have triggered the dome.  Plus, his son is a love-sick psycho, who accidentally knocks out then locks up in his family's fallout shelter the girl who jilted him just before the dome came down.  There's a smart-taking, hard-ass reporter with long curly hair played by Rachel Lefevre - from the Twilight Saga and White House Down - who may have a heart of gold, and lots of other game and appealing characters.

At this point, Under the Dome bears some resemblances to Flashforward, which also debuted with a stunning storyline and a fine set of characters.   To succeed, Under the Dome will need to keep its breathtaking pace and focus.





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