Almost a year ago, before season three was officially green-lit, creator Brad Wright said that the theme going forward would be Artificial Intelligence, along with exploring how much free will his characters actually have. Having seen the first three episodes, I have to admit to being impressed with how those ideas have been brought to the screen. The arguments between free choice and morals have in particular been set up in a provocative manner, inviting the audience to see the other side of the travelers mission, and indeed the Grand Plan itself. Season three is compelling and entertaining, whilst losing none of the charm and cohesive storytelling which made me a fan in the first place.
The move to releasing the show only on Netflix this time round removes the weekly digest format that viewers were afforded if they tuned into Showcase before. This has distinct advantages and drawbacks; the series has serious binge ability due to the clearly defined developing character arcs which connect to the stories being told in each instalment, yet for some there may be a tinge of regret at not being able to discuss the individual episodes and speculate on what may be coming up next. I am split between these two sides myself as I have a few theories on some of what may happen due to this compulsory break I am having to take myself. I can’t share them here as of course as it would probably be a tad too spoilerific (even though they most likely won’t come to be true), but I can properly get away with teasing that they may go towards explaining an oddity on this year’s poster and a certain gun toting scene in the preview without giving too much away.
The opening episode naturally deals with the fall out of last year’s finale, tying up the various threads and threats of exposure Traveler 001 constructed. The second sees the team having to chase down a conspiracy rumour which has evolved into fake news territory, where new addition to the cast FBI Agent Joanne Yates (Kimberley Sustad) gets to see first-hand exactly how Mac's time traveler team operates. Then it’s a cleverly crafted episode reminiscent of last season’s 17 Minutes which scrutinizes the team’s management of Protocols. Through each of these is their lives outside of the missions of course, where some are finding it easier than others to maintain the cover stories from the Ingram exposure. Philip and Trevor being the obvious standouts here considering the choice of friend which was kidnapped on their behalf, though one of them discovers an unexpected twist arising from the experience which I hope plays out further than is amusingly teased in the episodes provided for preview.
Mac, Carly and Marcy’s partners are another matter altogether, for varying reasons. You have no doubt seen the sneak peeks which show Kat and David’s reactions, though there is more to this than meets the eye. It’s safe to say that the three travelers have their own unique problems when it comes to following Protocol 5 once the initial cover up is in place, and we all know how reluctant the team are at following Protocols if they feel they are better placed to see the whole picture or that their integrity can be called into play. It’s not all doom and gloom though, the romance and relationship side of the show hasn’t been forgotten. There’s still plenty of occasions for our characters to bond and have quiet moments with their important other. Darcy fans in particular should take heart at MacKenzie Porter who has described her and David as “soulmates” during a
recent interview.
Travelers returns on Friday 14th December on Netflix. Below are some teasers to see you through until then. As usual, if you want to have a guess at who said what to who with the dialogue teasers then I will fill in any correct answers before the episodes air.
“You were following orders”
“In what way did I give you the impression I was about to shoot you? What’s going on?”
“We had a moment. It wasn’t allowed, and that made it exciting. But then we got here, and everything was so new”
“It’s probably residual damage from the plane crash. A bone fragment was pressing your trigeminal nerve, which required surgery” Marcy to ?
Ivan Teslia (Benjamin Ratner) is a fun character with a very cool friend
“We’re definitely too close to it, that’s the point. Take care of Philip, I’ll call you when it’s over”
“Come on, pretend with me. Otherwise this won’t end well for you”
“Well, can I see out of it? Yes. Can I feel my pulse in it? Also, yes”
“So what, everyone in the future is a vegan cos there’s no animal protein?”
“I’m important to you in a way that neither one of us foresaw, and the sooner we both accept that...”
We get a glimpse at people living in the future, or do we?
“Judging by the condition of your face, she doesn’t like you much either”
“So sorry I’m late. It was a longer walk than I expected, but I got my steps in” David to ?
“I tried to make things better and I just ended up making everything worse”
“I’d read reports of their advance technology. It keeps me awake at night”
Philip’s grasp on the alternative time lines is explored, sometimes with disturbing results
