Big Worlds On Small Screens: Rebecca Fisher Discusses “Humans”
~ by Rebecca Fisher
Introduction:
Currently airing on New Zealand television, Humans has been widely advertised as a thought-provoking and innovative science-fiction drama, one which asks the question that always lies at the core of any story involving AI technology: what makes us human?
Set in the not too distant future, android helpmeets (or “synths”) are the latest must-have devices spreading throughout homes across the world. They’re programmed to do menial chores around the house, and are designed to be completely harmless, utterly efficient and unfailingly pleasant.
Naturally, there are consequences. The show explores the “ripple effect” the presence of synths have on everyday life – naturally there are fight clubs were humans can beat up docile synths, brothels where customers can act out whatever kinky fetish they please with women tailored to their specifications, and pro-human rallies where communities protest against the insinuation of synths into every facet of human existence. But for the purposes of the drama, Humans focuses mainly on a single family…
Premise:
Husband and father Joe Hawkins wants a synth to help free up time that could be better spent with his family, though he conveniently waits until his wife is away on a business trip before making his purchase and bringing “Anita” back home.
Among his three children, teenage Mattie is resentful, prepubescent Toby is horny, and youngest Sophie is delighted at the live-in babysitter and housekeeper. But wife Laura Hawkins is disturbed at the presence of a synth in her house, and it’s not hard to see why. Not only has her husband just introduced a young and attractive woman into the household, but there’s something a little bit “off” about Anita that gives her the creeps.
It’s no secret to the audience that there’s something special about the Hawkins’s synth. Elsewhere in the city, other synths are desperately trying to track her down, even as Laura begins probing Anita with questions in the attempt to catch her out. It follows the familiar but suspenseful sci-fi trajectory about whether or not the advanced technology in a person’s household can be fully trusted, though in this case there’s a bit of a twist…
Story:
The show is at its best when it focuses on the domestic scenario of a normal nuclear family struggling with the advantages and difficulties of having a synth around the house, burrowing right down into the details of what long-term effects it would have. Laura is afraid her children will grow lazy since they no longer have any chores to do, and teenage Mattie carries this apprehension to its logical extreme when she asks why she should bother with schoolwork when in a few years there’ll be a synth to do everything from menial labour to brain surgery.
There are also plenty of subplots revolving around other characters: William Hurt plays an elderly man who is the victim of a subtle but harrowing home invasion when the health department assigns him a medical synth (one bearing a certain resemblance to Nurse Ratched), while police inspector Pete Drummond finds his place in the home unexpectedly usurped when his wife ends up preferring the (buff, helpful, unconditionally attentive) synth to her own husband.
Characters:
It’s Katherine Parkinson as Laura Hawkins who unexpectedly emerges as this show’s protagonist, going from a woman who is staunchly against the idea of a synth in her house to someone who is far more sympathetic. Opposite her is Gemma Chan as Anita, who eerily captures the mannerisms (or lack thereof) of a high-tech machine; keeping her voice modulated, her movements smooth but stiff, and her expression pleasantly neutral – aside from a few moments when the façade drops and expressions are revealed.
Conclusion:
Along with lofty questions such as “what separates a human people from a self-aware robot?”, the show poses more personal queries to its audience. How far should respect be extended to machines that only look human? Is it adultery if a married person sleeps with a synth? Do we lose more than we gain from having androids do all the work for us? And how cruelly could you treat something that looked, sounded and occasionally acted like a real human being if you knew there would be no consequences? Would it even matter if you did?
It’s an intriguing and involving drama, and one that’s already been commissioned for a second series.
.
About The Reviewer:
Rebecca Fisher is a graduate of the University of Canterbury with a Masters degree in English Literature, mainly, she claims, because she was able to get away with writing her thesis on C.S. Lewis and Philip Pullman. She is a reviewer for FantasyLiterature.com, a large website that specializes in fantasy and science-fiction novels, as well as posting reviews to Amazon.com and her They’re All Fictional blog.
To read Rebecca’s detailed introduction of both herself and the series, as well as preceding reviews, click on:
Big Worlds On Small Screens
Rebecca won this year’s Sir Julius Vogel Award for Best Fan Writer, for writing including Big Worlds On Small Screens.
.
A Big Worlds On Small Screens Recess
Rebecca will be taking a short recess for the rest of the month, returning in October with the next installment of Big Worlds On Small Screens.