The Journey Into Virtuality

The Journey into Virtuality is one of lush, green fields, breaking away to two Yankee soldiers from the Civil War peering over a hillside into a Confederate campsite. The dialogue is hushed as the two softly move toward their small band of soldiers, who are ready to advance against their Southern enemies. Before they climb aboard their steeds and proceed against their foes, the commander is surprised to see an unfamiliar face within the ranks. There is no time to account for this unknown presence, as their attack on their foes is eminent. They ride toward the impending battle, but quickly realize it is nothing more than a trap set to ensnare them. As the commander watches one after another of his men shot down, he speaks to “Jean” – an unseen entity – to stop the playback and the action – save for him – is frozen in time, except for the unfamiliar face within his “regiment”. That ‘man’ advances toward the commander and shoots him at close range. As you see the commander gasps his finally breaths, you are transported back to his actual body abroad what appears to be a spaceship. The commander removes a set of virtual reality module glasses and speaks to Jean, the ship’s onboard computer. This is when you realize you aren’t in Kansas anymore, Toto, and this 2-hour movie (as touted by FOX) isn’t going to be your grandfather’s kind of science fiction story.

Virtuality, the latest sci-fi vehicle by FOX, is the creation of Battlestar Galactica impresario Ronald D. Moore and writer/producer Michael Taylor set aboard the Phaeton, Earth’s first starship, which is on a ten-year journey to explore a distant planetary system. The team on the Phaeton is comprised of Commander Frank Pike (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau – New Amsterdam), Jimmy Johnson (Ritchie Coster – The Dark Knight), Rika Goddard (Sienna Guillory – Eragon and Inkheart), Sue Parsons (Clea DuVall – Carnivale and Heroes), Dr. Roger Fallon (James D’Arcy – An American Haunting), Dr. Adin Meyer (Omar Metwally – Munich), Manny Rodriguez (Jose Pablo Cantillo – Standoff), Valentin “Val” Orlovsky (newcomer Gene Farber), Kenji Yamamoto (Nelson Lee – Blade: The Series), Alice Thibadeau (Joy Bryant – Welcome Home, Roscoe Jenkins), Dr. Julius “Jules” Braun (Erik Jensen – CSI and The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2) and Billie Kashmiri (newcomer Kerry Bishé).

VIRTUALITY: L-R: Rika (Sienna Guillory), Manny (Jose Pablo Cantillo) and Val (Gene Farber) race against time to help Commander Pike in the breakthrough science-fiction thriller VIRTUALITY airing Friday, June 26 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. ©2009 Fox Broadcasting Co. Cr: David Gray/FOX

Each member of this 12 astronaut team has a unique specialty that is the key to their very survival. Commander Pike has the astronomical task of being in charge of the starship, overseeing the entire crew and making sure they complete their years-long mission for the Consortium, the earthbound business which is offsetting the cost of the expedition. His second-in-command, Engineer Jimmy Johnson, who is a quadriplegic, and Pilot Sue Parsons (a former Marine) are in charge of making sure they get to their destination Epsilon Endiari.

Botanist and Microbial Exobiologist Rika Goddard oversees the elaborate greenhouse aboard the starship and her husband Dr. Roger Fallon is the Psych Officer (Psychiatrist) and Reality Show Producer (more on this aspect of the show is to follow). Also on hand are Computer Scientist and Reality Show Host Billie Kashmiri, Astrophysicists (and married couple) Kenji Yamamoto and Alice Thibadeau, who have decided to forego having children while on the mission (this decision plays out within the 2-hours); Medical Doctor Dr. Adin Meyer, who has, what could be a devastating ailment, that will greatly affect not only himself but the entire crew and Dr. Julius “Jules” Braun, the mastermind behind every last inch of the Phaeton starship. Rounding out the remainder of the crew are married couple Manny Rodriguez, a mathematician, and Valentin “Val” Orlovsky, a geologist.

Their work, as you can imagine, is very intense and vital, as Earth – as it is known in their time period – is on the brink of disaster with storms and plagues wrecking havoc. Their mission will essentially end up being one of finding a new home for all of mankind. The twist to their tale are the ever-present cameras scattered throughout the ship, as the

VIRTUALITY: Commander Pike (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, R) visits the kitchen while The Phaeton's chefs Manny (Jose Pablo Cantillo, C) and Val (Gene Farber, L) prepare a crew meal in the science-fiction thriller VIRTUALITY airing Friday, June 26 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. ©2009 Fox Broadcasting Co. Cr: David Gray/FOX

Consortium has turned their exploration in space into a reality series that is viewed by an average of 5 billion viewers every week on the future version of the FOX network (irony is not a lost art where the network is concerned). To find a reprieve from all the cameras, the crew often escapes into their “virtual reality” headsets (or virt mods as they are called), which allows them to interact – sometimes in surprising ways – in fantastical settings. But there seems to be a problem within the computer software (a virus in the form of “the green-eyed man – played by Jimmi Simpson – It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia) that supports the virt mods. Neither Computer Scientist Billie nor the onboard computer Jean are able to subdue or correct this anomaly, and in lays one of the major obstacles to the crew.

Deftly directed by Peter Berg, this 2-hour movie is a unique combination of Star Trek, Doctor Who and Firefly. Virtuality will air on FOX tonight (June 26) from 9 to 11 p.m. (8 to 10/CT). Watch and judge for yourself.