- Network: NBC
- Series Premiere Date: Sep 19, 2005
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Critic Reviews
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It's a bland Spielberg wannabe that doesn't succeed in evoking much creepiness or wonder
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The most confusing ensemble drama of the new season.
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Though relentlessly ominous, "Surface" is, so far, only good for surface scares.
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Lame storytelling and dialogue.
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This by-the-numbers entry is pretty damn toothless. [23 Sep 2005, p.81]
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There's nothing particularly appealing about any of the folks having the close encounters.
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Whoever wrote the first episode of “Lost” didn’t crowd the screen with dimwits forced to recite grade-B TV drama drivel. By that standard, “Surface” doesn’t get a pass.
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"Surface" is steeped in Spielberg, and is better Spielberg than Spielberg has managed in quite some time.
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Surface has no complex or cynical subtexts; it's straight-ahead sci fi.
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Desperately trying to be mysterious like "Lost," this show, by any other name, turns out to be an ironically diluted version.
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The pilot serves up flashy ooh-ah instead of anything tangible to wrap our arms around.
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The most enjoyable moments go to the North Carolina boy (Carter Jenkins). It's too bad Surface didn't narrow its focus and become "A Boy and His Blob."
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One of the lead characters is an evolutionary biologist, which makes sense, since there's not a lot of intelligent design here.
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At first glance... it comes off as silly sci-fi, a not-so-intriguing series that wades into all-too-similar waters as two other fall shows. The difference in this one is that the water is noticeably more shallow.
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It helps that Bell is able to suggest complexity, emotional and moral, even when the dialogue fails her.
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You won't really want to spend another hour with these people.
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Interesting, but the sprawling pilot doesn't do "Surface" any favors.
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Offers a ho-hum monster and the kind of stock characters that we've seen too many times before.
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The series hopscotches to so many locations (the Carolinas, the Antarctic, the ocean trenches) that you briefly forget that it gives you no reason to feel afraid or intrigued or anything else.
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There isn't a moment of wonder or suspense in Surface, or a single performance or character that is even remotely involving.
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The best thing about "Surface" thus far is NBC's promo campaign, which, sliced into bite-sized bits, actually makes the program look considerably better than it is.
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Surface can be creepy fun, but the obvious debt it owes to the oeuvre of Steven Spielberg--from the hidden beasts and government stonewalling to the suburban angst and working-mom pluckiness--makes the rest of the show feel blandly familiar.
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So far the stern-faced Lake Bell’s independent-minded oceanographer is too conventional a protagonist, while the series’ government cover-up thread... feels globally warmed over.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 279 out of 312
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Mixed: 5 out of 312
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Negative: 28 out of 312
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Mar 8, 2018I really wanted to see where this went... but canceled. A good gem for the intrepid to unearth when they tire of the current crop of trash.
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Apr 13, 2015
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Feb 2, 2015This review contains spoilers, click full review link to view.