Aml Ameen
Bae Doona
Jamie Clayton
Tina Desai
Tuppence Middleton
Max Riemelt
Miguel Ángel Silvestre
Brian J. Smith
Freema Agyeman
Anupam Kher
Terrence Mann
Naveen Andrews
Daryl Hannah

Created by:
The Wachowskis
J. Michael Straczynski

Drama, Sci-Fi
2015-
Netflix

TV-MA

If you want full-on crazy for the summer, then Netflix’s “Sense8” just might be what the doctor ordered. …

The Wachowskis, co-creators of this series with J. Michael Straczynski (comic book writer extraordinaire, creator of “Babylon 5,” and screenwriter of Clint Eastwood’s “Changeling”), are no strangers to this kind of thing; but they don’t always deliver. At their best, they make pop philosophy palatable by delivering it in a cool package. They make you want to believe. Unfortunately, this show’s pilot doesn’t accomplish that. Actually, it’s woefully underdeveloped. Something about it just feels cheap.

The Sense8 (“Sensates,” get it?) are eight people who discover that they have some sort of mysterious psychic connection, which is activated by Daryl Hannah’s character – she gives “birth” to them. They’re strangers from different backgrounds and locales. The pilot introduces each of them, skipping from one area of the globe to another. (Yes, the Wachowskis and Straczynski deliberately include some topics that will make some viewers uncomfortable. Just know that this is for adults and that you don’t have to watch it. It’s their show, and they can push whatever agenda they want.) But the visuals aren’t compelling, and the rhythms and dialogue are disjointed. There’s no hook. Look, I get it: We, as humans, are all connected. But that’s certainly not new (yawn), and the Wachowskis don’t present that message in a nuanced way. (They never do.) It falls flat.

As I watched this, I couldn’t help but long for the sensation of watching “The Matrix” for the first time. There was something to discover in that film. The only thing to discover here is the result of a seeming acid trip gone wrong. I hope that things improve, and fast. After all, the Wachowskis and collaborator Tom Tykwer, who directed two of this series’ subsequent episodes, found a way to entertain through the crazy in their flawed yet fun adaptation of “Cloud Atlas.” (You can sense Tykwer’s influence during the opening credits sequence. He co-composed that sequence’s music, after all. It reminds me of his exhilarating film, “Run Lola Run.”)

If things don’t improve, then too bad for Straczynski: The Wachowskis must have slipped the red pill into his drink when he wasn’t looking. Looks like he needed the blue pill instead. I have mine ready to go. …

Well, after two more episodes, I have to say that things have settled a bit. The improvement is slight and gradual, but it’s there. It’s still not good enough, though. In particular, the show is at its best, which means that it’s mildly interesting, when it focuses on the titular phenomenon. (If you see Naveen Andrews or anything connected to the powers that he’s trying to teach the Sensates to use, then you might get something watchable.) The other parts of the show don’t really click; it’s hard to care about them. But I will say that each episode raises the stakes – a good sign. So, maybe everything will click into place at some point. I’ll keep watching … for now. …

After finishing the first season, I must report that “Sense8” doesn’t improve enough to be considered good. It has a few interesting moments interspersed with not-so interesting ones. Toward the end of the season, things go really crazy, though, even crazier than before. At that point in the season, the tone seems to shift away from unnecessary seriousness. Some of the events on display (the births of each Sensate, for instance, you’ve been warned) will make you gasp, laugh, or both. I think that’s what they want; at least, I hope they do. There’s enough here for me to check out the next season (if they have one). But they need to figure out a way to turn this into a more consistently entertaining show. The flaws can be forgiven if the entertainment level is high. We’ll see.

Verdict: Somewhat Bad Pilot, OK (With Some Good Moments) Overall

About: (Source: sense8)

One gunshot, one death, one moment out of time that irrevocably links eight minds in disparate parts of the world, putting them in each other’s lives, each other’s secrets, and in terrible danger. Ordinary people suddenly reborn as “Sensates.”