This show throws a lot at you at once but I think it manages to pull it off. Being the first episode. the characters have to be introduced – who they are, what they do, what their problems are. With eight main characters to introduce in an hour, it goes without saying that their personalities and the drama they go through, are “enhanced” for dramatic effect. For example, in a few minutes, we learn that Capheus (Aml Ameen) lives in Nairobi with his sick mother and runs a business driving a bus with a picture of Jean-Claude Van Damme on it – it’s a thing in Kenya; they’re called matatus.
Sense8, all one word, is a Netflix original science-fiction web series created by The Wachowskis (The Matrix and more recently Jupiter Ascending) and J. Michael Straczynski, wWho wrote nine episodes of He-Man and The Masters of the Universe). From what I’ve seen so far, it seems to be about eight people who have some sort of psychic link with each other and it seems that a woman named Angel (Daryl Hannah) is responsible. As for why? I do not yet know. It’s in the same vein as the series Lost in that sense; it even has Naveen Andrews in it (he plays the character called Jonas by the way).
As one tired of the “straight white male hero” being the main character in the vast majority of things, it’s nice to see a diverse cast. In fact I don’t think you could have a more diverse cast if you tried. We shall wait and see though if these characters aren’t solely defined by one trait. For a character that can be described with one word isn’t much of a character. I mentioned the show Lost before to describe this show and I meant it as a compliment. I was engrossed from start to finish and I actually cared about the characters; something that’s hard to pull off with so many of them.
Sense8 is now available on Netflix.
#Peace.Love.Sense8
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