Forgotten Television: Alcatraz

“On March 21, 1963, Alcatraz officially closed. All the prisoners were transferred off the island. Only, that’s not what happened. Not at all.”

The opening narration above sets up the intriguing plot for the Fox television series Alcatraz. The public has been told that in 1963, the Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary closed its doors due to unsafe conditions for both the inmates and the guards, but in reality, everyone disappeared. In the present day (2012), those that vanished, who are known as “The 63s”, begin reappearing and committing crimes.  They have not aged, have no memory of their missing time, and appear to have compulsions to find certain objects. Detective Rebecca Madsen (Sarah Jones) begins investigating one of the crimes committed by a 63 and enlists the help of Alcatraz expert, Dr. Diego Soto (Jorge Garcia Lost). They join forces with a special FBI task force lead by Emerson Hauser (Sam Neil) and Dr. Lucy Banerjee (Parminder Nagra) both of who have ties back to 1963 Alcatraz. The goal of the task force and the plot of the series is to track down the returning 63s and find out where they were and what their final goal is.

I found the pilot of this series to be very interesting and intriguing and right up my alley. I love police procedurals with a sci-fi backdrop and that is basically what this show is.  Each episode’s main plot revolved around the “murderer of the week” but would also add little bits to the overall show’s mythology. There is action, adventure, and intrigue.  The flashback scenes are interesting with the depiction of life in the prison being honestly represented and Warden James (Jonny Coyne) and Deputy Warden Tiller (Jason Butler Harner) make compelling villains. These scenes are important as they give us clues and tie together much of the mythology of the show. Filmed mainly in Vancouver with some scenes filmed in the show’s actual location of San Francisco.  The season 1 finale recreated the famous chase scene from the movie Bullitt.

The shows cast was well chosen with leading actress Sarah Jones doing a good job as Rebecca Madsen, although her straight forward “cop” character is probably the least interesting of the bunch.  I love seeing Jorge Garcia, who adds his classic comic touch and “everyman” aura to the overly intelligent Dr “Doc” Soto. Sam Neil just has the look of the devil which is great considering his character has a good and bad side to him.  The supporting cast along with all the guest stars who play returning guards and prisoners do a great job at moving the story forward.

The show renewed so much interest in the actual prison off the coast of San Francisco, that the National Park Service had to install warning signs for the public tours.  Fans of the series tried to find the fictional secret rooms depicted in the series, specifically the “nerve center” that signs needed to be installed saying, “The TV show Alcatraz is fictional. Many areas it depicts are not real. Closed areas protect you, historic structures, and nesting birds.”.  Although the show did have a strong fan base, it wasn’t enough for Fox to keep the show alive and the network cancelled the series on a cliffhanger after its initial thirteen episode run.