Timeless - NBC's "Hard SF" & "Historical" TT Series



Supernatural creator Eric Kripke brings a new high concept science fiction drama called Timeless to NBC this fall. Timeless pairs up a scientist, a soldier, and a historian to stop a time-traveling criminal named Garcia Flynn from using a time machine to destroy the United States via its past. But between the unpredictable nature of tampering with the past and a possible hidden connection between Flynn and the team meant to stop them, there's looks to be a lot more to Timeless than period costumes and new looks at famous moments in time.

Goran Visnjic stars as Flynn, while Abigail Spencer plays the historian leading the team sent to stop him. Malcolm Barrett (Lem from Better Off Ted) also stars as a black scientist who is hesitant about traveling through time due to America's uncomfortable past with racism.

Timeless premieres on October 3rd at 10 PM/9 PM central.
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I am taking a leap of faith here, and claim this series is going to base itself on the "hard" science fiction even though the whole concept still lies quit firmly in realms of speculation. Thing is that over the years we have seen so many TT series that have scratched the surface on hard, actual science, without claiming it to be "it." But, this series is basing itself on the actual history and to the fact that paradoxes happen in the universe.

And for that we have actual mathematics and tests, which have proven that by using quantum technology, we actually break the boundaries of one universe and apply multiverse theorem in practice. At the moment, you can see it happening in the heart of D-Wave's machine, where the stateless qubits go into parallel "worlds" to get the result.

So by just looking at the idea and watching the trailers I feel this is going to be as good as just finished Continuum. What do you think?
 
ctg said:




I am taking a leap of faith here, and claim this series is going to base itself on the "hard" science fiction even though the whole concept still lies quit firmly in realms of speculation. Thing is that over the years we have seen so many TT series that have scratched the surface on hard, actual science, without claiming it to be "it." But, this series is basing itself on the actual history and to the fact that paradoxes happen in the universe.

And for that we have actual mathematics and tests, which have proven that by using quantum technology, we actually break the boundaries of one universe and apply multiverse theorem in practice. At the moment, you can see it happening in the heart of D-Wave's machine, where the stateless qubits go into parallel "worlds" to get the result.

So by just looking at the idea and watching the trailers I feel this is going to be as good as just finished Continuum. What do you think?
Click to expand...

I'm going to watch this to see what they do about the paradoxes. I tried to watch Legends of Tomorrow, but I just couldn't get into it. The bad guy was just way too over the top evil, it was a bit unbelievable that they needed time travel to stop him just because he had time travel. He was also way to uninteresting to devote a whole season to tracking him down around time. Though part of that may be my bias against anything DC Comics does. So I hope they do something different in that regard. The plots seems dangerously similar sans superheros.

Timeless can be great, but I am not expecting much from a generic time machine story line. However, not expecting much is usually a good thing for me going into pilot season.
 
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1.01 Pilot
I liked the premiere. Seems like the only rule, so far, is banning travel to anywhen travelers could meet themselves, including points they have previously traveled. That takes care of some of the possible paradoxes.
The opening episode seemed to steer a course somewhere in between an unalterable timeline and the Butterfly Effect. Changing a historical event had consequences, but not the immense consequences normally theorized.
So far, so good.
 
I liked this one! And, incidentally, while searching IMDB to see if that guy really was Max Headroom (he was), I found another actor in the show who went to school with my husband.
 
REBerg said:
1.01 Pilot
I liked the premiere. Seems like the only rule, so far, is banning travel to anywhen travelers could meet themselves, including points they have previously traveled. That takes care of some of the possible paradoxes.
The opening episode seemed to steer a course somewhere in between an unalterable timeline and the Butterfly Effect. Changing a historical event had consequences, but not the immense consequences normally theorized.
So far, so good.
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My sentiments exactly :)
 
The second episode is coming over this weekend. So I'll reserve my judgement to there, but so far it has looked good. Very good in fact, I might rewatch the pilot with headphones on and just enjoy the paradoxes. But as a note, writing your characters in the same existence at the same time is a nightmare for a writer. Especially, if they're holding the world, on their own, in their minds.

As in science, theoretically same matter cannot exist in the same continuum without resulting in chaotic consequences. But if their quantum states aren't the same then it would be easier, but it would also mean that the second entity would be different to the original.

How that is done? I don't know. But I do know that going far back in time and you have chances of erasing yourself from the history. It might seem a little at the first hand, but eventually just aimlessly killing people, or letting them live, you also meddle with your own timeline.

Time-travel is very serious business to anyone other than an observer. Do you think JJA knew that when he wrote them in the Fringe?
 
REBerg said:
1.01 Pilot
I liked the premiere. Seems like the only rule, so far, is banning travel to anywhen travelers could meet themselves, including points they have previously traveled. That takes care of some of the possible paradoxes.
The opening episode seemed to steer a course somewhere in between an unalterable timeline and the Butterfly Effect. Changing a historical event had consequences, but not the immense consequences normally theorized.
So far, so good.
Click to expand...

I also liked the first episode quite a bit. I wasn't quite sure about how the "came back in pieces" should be understood. ---- Also their time machines would seem to be big interest grabbers, and not being able to land in a "where" would seem to be a major hangup. But..... I'm going to take #2 and give it a look.

ctg said:
Oh man, Monday. Why it couldn't be on Sunday night or Saturday evening?
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No DVR or VCR? I love my DVR... All show, no commercials.
 
After two episodes, I still like the show.
So far, neither the good nor the bad guys have able to change major historical events to initiate massive changes in the future. I'm wondering why the less significant changes made have altered Lucy's life but have had no effects on the lives of fellow travelers Wyatt and Rufus -- at least none that have shown.
I probably should just sit back and enjoy the show. :D
 
REBerg said:
I'm wondering why the less significant changes made have altered Lucy's life but have had no effects on the lives of fellow travelers Wyatt and Rufus -- at least none that have shown.
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Spoilers hidden

I thought that was pretty well explained in that one of the Hindenburg survivors descendants marries her mother instead of the person she thought was her father. Viola, no sister.
 
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well just finshed E1 - and I have to say I really like it. Some nice touches and also some sad reminders that 'bygone times' were not always for the better.

Sign me up for the season (if it continues like this!)
 
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