Utopia Season 1 Review: Created Pre Covid- 19 But The Similarities Are Thought Provoking

"Utopia" is an eight episode Amazon TV series adapted by Gillian Flynn ("Gone Girl", "Sharp Objects'). It's based on a British show written by Denis Kelly that ran from 2013- 2014. It quickly became a cult classic. Kelly also serves as executive producer on the American version.

A couple finds a comic book ("Utopia") amongst the woman's recently deceased grandfather's horde. They take it to FringeCon in hopes of selling it. Many, many people line up to take a look. It seems this comic is a sequel to "Dystopia" (which accurately predicted many diseases such as Ebola, SARS, etc that afflicted society during the past few decades). Little do the potential buyers know that "Utopia" will cost them their lives..

Five people manage to evade the assassins. They band together to: 1. Find the comic; and 2. Save the world. This unlikely group includes:

Ian (Dan Byrd)
Wilson (Desmin Borges)
Samantha (Jessica Rothe)
Becky (Ashleigh LaTrop)
Grant (Javon Wilson)

They are later joined by the IRL Jessica Hyde (Sasha Lane)--the heroine of the comics. She is searching for her father.

Dr Kevin Christie (John Cusack) is somehow involved. He runs a big biopharm company, has a gaggle of kids and asks everyone "What have you done today to earn your place is this crowded world?". School children around the country are dying from some mysterious virus. Virologist Dr Michael Stearns (Rainn Wilson) thinks he can help. He previously discovered a similar bat strain of flu in Peru. Can he cure the outbreak before it's too late?

The conspiracies get deeper and deeper. Clues from the comics put the group in search of Artemis, Mr Rabbit, Home, the Harvest, etc. We're not sure who can be trusted (if anyone).

Grade: 4 Monsters (out of 5). Shockingly violent, the death toll mounts in episode 1 and beyond. No one is safe in this world. Think of it as "Game Of Thrones" for comic book nerds. Visually, the series is very appealing. There's always something cool to look at. Having said all that, the pace of the show is a bit slow. "Utopia" only has eight episodes but could have benefited from some more trimming. It seems like a lot of time passes without much going on.

You'll notice there is a disclaimer at the beginning of each episode. It says that the show is a work of fiction and 'not based on actual, related or current events". Despite being in the works for years, this series happened to arrive during the pandemic. I'm not sure if that's really good timing or the worst timing ever. It is impossible not to draw parallels between "Utopia" and current events. Let's just hope the QAnon and anti-vaxxer folks dont use this show to bolster their agenda. Lord knows they already believe stuff far crazier than this.

The door is left wide open for a season 2. Are you game or have you seen enough of "Utopia"? I personally think I'm good stopping here. There are plenty enough dreadful things happening now in the real world. Watching a shows about them too is a bit much. Maybe I'll feel different at a later date.