Orphan Black is BACK on BBC America, and the Canadian production is coming out of the gate swinging—literally, as Sarah (Tatiana Maslany) spent a fair chunk of the episode punching and/or pistol whipping people. Meanwhile, Allison (Tatiana Maslany) was doing her fair share of fighting the man, complete with pepperspray, rape whistle, and windmilling legs. Fight choreography aside, there was a lot to digest in the most excellent second season premiere of this sleeper hit show, which is catching on with US audiences in a big way.
First, there’s Tatiana Maslany, who in her role as a series of clones slips effortlessly between different characters, lived experiences, and identities. She’s nothing short of flawlessly amazing whether she’s rough-and-tumble Sarah, prim Allison, slightly naïve but committed scientist Cosima, terrifying Helena, or hard-hearted ‘proclone’ Rachel. Maslany is utterly compelling and convincing in these highly variable and demanding roles, so much so that it’s hard to believe she’s playing all of them at times, especially when she’s playing scenes with herself. Orphan Black clearly brings out the best in her, and she gives it back to the show with her incredible acting artistry.
Maslany is the kind of actress whom we should hopefully be seeing a lot more of in the future. Canadian film and television incubates some amazing actresses (like Sandra Oh, currently being wasted on Grey’s Anatomy). Perhaps it’s something about the industry, and perhaps it’s something about Canada, but the nation just can’t seem to stop itself from breeding great women of stage and screen—and they’re not too hard on the eyes, either. (Though Cosima’s white girl dreds and Berkeley hippie look isn’t quite to my tastes.)
Secondly, there’s the totally ridiculous and fantastical primary conceit of the show, in which a series of women have been cloned and are the legal property of the scientists who created them, complete with patents written into their genes. While the show could be viewed as a complex commentary and exploration of the potential implications of cloning not just from a legal perspective, but also a personal one, it’s also just so over the top absurd that it’s kind of delightful. As the women pursue the truth about who they are and where they came from, they in turn are chased by warring forces, and at times it’s almost farcical as well as wildly unscientific, but that’s part of the fun.
Bioethics is a fascinating and important subject to be exploring at the moment, what with the huge leaps and bounds being made in science as law and social understanding of science lag behind. While human cloning has been banned in many regions on a variety of grounds including legal, ethical, and moral concerns, it’s been the stuff of science fiction and thought experiments for decades. The women of Orphan Black raise some great questions about nature versus nurture, the ethics of raising clones, and the dynamics of a world in which your origins may differ from the ‘conventional.’ We’re already using assistive fertility technologies to help parents who have trouble conceiving; where exactly do the ethical gaps and pitfalls lie?
Thirdly, there’s Felix (Jordan Gavaris). Gavaris himself is a talented young actor and another name to watch, but Felix is an intriguing character as a support to the women of Orphan Black, in a stark reversal of conventional gendered roles in television. In fact, Orphan Black as a whole is heavily female, which is one reason why characters like Felix stand out. But it’s not just that he’s a man. He’s also a sex worker, and an artist, and a character with his own complexities and life. He’s been swept up in a conspiracy that utterly confuses and terrifies him, but he’s still willing to go to the ends of the Earth to protect his foster sister, Sarah.
There’s something about seeing Felix in his living room surrounded by clones in the season premiere that brings home the surreal nature of the show. It’s one in which women star and are the focus, and in which the narrative is about their journeys, not those of the men around them. With male supporting characters like Felix, they’re putting pieces of a puzzle together, but there’s still a distinct divide in shared experiences. This time it’s not about a binaristic and simple male versus female version of the world, as it so often is in pop culture, but about your genetics, your origins, and your very sense of self.
While Orphan Black isn’t always on point with regards to social issues, it explores female-centred television in a way that’s utterly compelling in a field of male-dominated stories. This is a world for and about women, and that might be why Orphan Black is capturing such a huge female demographic as fans find something to appreciate in it. The gay and lesbian themes on the show, while not central elements, could also be playing a role in drawing viewers who are tired of heteronormative narratives and are ready for something new.
Now, if only US television could be as dynamic, creative, and insightful as Canadian television, so we could get the same thing in homegrown form.