You All Need To Be Watching "Almost Human"

Fox has aired the first 2 episodes of Almost Human in a back-to-back 2 night premiere, and sci-fi fans, let us rejoice in this fantastically constructed show.

Almost Human takes place in the year 2048, and is set around the premise that police officers are given android partners as the next step in tackling crime. The show stars Karl Urban as John Kennex, a detective for the Los Angeles police department. In the pilot, we see Kennex awaken after spending almost two years in a coma, following a devastating accident during an ambush in which he lost his leg. It is replaced with a synthetic one, and he is partnered with an android named Dorian, portrayed by Michael Ealy. Dorian is an older model of android that is more human-like, exhibiting emotions and more easily able to connect with human beings.

Kennex is a slightly cantankerous fellow, clearly hardened by a life of fighting crime. At the end of the pilot, he learns that his (now ex-)girlfriend was partially responsible for the ambush that lost him his leg.  At first glance, some may judge him as being rather brute-like, given his demeanour and subpar people-skills. But truly, he is a man who is tremendously devoted to his job, with a strong sense of justice, and deep down, I'd wager he has a heart of gold. Another strong part of the show is the partnership between him and Dorian, which is already growing more cohesive. There will be bumps in the road, especially given Kennex's history of disliking androids, but the most interesting partnerships are ones in which both parties can learn and grow from knowing one another.

Episode 2, "Skin," presented a plot intertwined with one of most people's favourite topics: sex. That's right; in this version of the future, there are sex robots. But the sexual overtones of the episode were used to address a deeper issue. In the show, it is illegal for these sex robots to be developed using human DNA, but the department soon learns that womyn are being kidnapped and their skin harvested to create more appealing sex robots. This is highly analogous to both the countless womyn kidnapped and sold into sexual slavery, as well as the many people whose organs are harvested for the black market in today's society.

Almost Human has the sleek, high-budget feel of an exciting, action blockbuster, without relying on cliched action gimmicks to sell its story. Thus far, we have the mystery surrounding Kennex's accident and his ex-girlfriend's involvement that will undoubtedly be unravelled as the season(s) progresses. Only time will tell if we will have a "Big Bad" or some other insidious presence to act as foe to Kennex and Dorian. This viewer is holding out hope for more screen time for Mackenzie Crook's Rudy Lom, who has already proven to be a hilarious scene-stealer. Additionally, I do not wish for Minka Kelly's Valerie Stahl to be little more than a doe-eyed love interest for Kennex. Let's see this woman out in the field, kicking some bad-guy-tail!

I implore as many of you as possible to tune in to Almost Human. Views are essential, given Fox's over-eager trigger finger when it comes to cancelling shows. (No, Fox, you shall never be forgiven for "Firefly".)

Almost Human airs on Mondays at 8/7 c on Fox (right before Sleepy Hollow; perfect line-up right there!)