Continuum - Series Finale

Kiera: "In the fairy tales I've read, the hero enters the cave to slay the dragon. Not to join him."

Yet on more occasions than one she entered the cave to join the dragon and more than few times the dragon deserved it. Don’t you love it when characters you are supposed to hate and those you are supposed to like switch places or join each other? Read on to hear my thoughts about this time-travel loopy loop in general and the finale specifically.

Who is the bigger hero in this saga? Is it Travis who sacrificed himself to save Carlos and other cops? Is it Lucas who sacrificed his life to save the Protector he was fighting against all this time? Is it Alec who managed to build that better future they all hoped for? Or is it Kiera who influenced Alec enough for him to want to be better?

That is what I loved about this series the most. It gave me hope that we all can build a better future or when given the warning we all could change it for better.  

I read somewhere that Simon Barry had a specific 7-year plan for Continuum. Alas he didn’t get the chance to tell the whole story he wanted, and I think that is partly why this last season felt rushed. Despite that, it had some of my favorite scenes. Unfortunately some of the things they did I didn’t love. Like at all. Like that wig!

Kellog – unredeemable until the very end. At one point when he learned that the two timelines are synched, and everything that happens here would affect things there, I thought he would sacrifice himself and therefore remove himself from the equation. How silly of me! Instead, he killed his own daughter. Sending him several hundreds years back was a fitting and deserving end for him. Although knowing Kellog he could easily convince that poor tribe that he is a God of sorts and they might even believe him, considering his suit and almighty time travel device and the fact that he appeared out of nowhere. Still, his life will be miserable for sure. No wine, no fine dining, no yacht. When the series started Kellog was less criminal and least ruthless of them all. Yet every other character from Liber8 has evolved and grown, and some even sacrificed their lives to save others. And Kellog turned out to be the most evil and selfish of them all.

I did not like how they handled Kiera and Brad as a couple. One second they are in love and together and happy in their newly found happiness that actually worked, and then instantly they are on the opposite sides. It probably would’ve made sense had we gotten ourselves at least a full season where things would progress more naturally.

Kiera’s out of nowhere desire to go back to 2077 was understandable, considering the cruel and vivid dream she had. But she must have known the future she wanted to go back to, might not exist anymore. Which bring us to the final and beautiful moments of the series.

She came back to 2077 and saw Alec. How wonderful it was! For her it was a split of a second, for him 65 years. Hats off to William Bruce Davis for his portrayal of Alec. You could see right away that it was our Alec, his eyes completely changed. What a difference from doom and gloom and full of regret Alec from Kiera’s original timeline.

If she came back to the future and reunited with her son, it would have been a disappointing cop-out. I'm so glad they didn't go for that. I'm one of those whose head starts to hurt when I think about time travel, but even I knew that she is now sort of out of time. Her timeline was destroyed when Alec jumped back to save Emily, so she had to have known that even if Sam was alive there would be another Kiera from that better future.

Even though it was logical and the right thing to do that respected the overall time travel headache, it was heartbreaking to see Kiera realizing she is no longer has a son in this new better future.

This last episode of Continuum although somewhat heartbreaking was rather satisfactory. 

Some observations 

about the series

When Kiera followed Alec and they both jumped a week back it felt as if I was watching a different show. Even though Kiera was still Kiera, she felt different, and I could totally understand Carlos in his grief for his partner – the other Kiera. What a difference a week can make!

Maybe it’s a time-travel glitch but more times than one I was wondering if I missed an episode. Like when Kiera told Carlos she has a husband and a son, he was shot and almost unconscious, yet he seemed to have heard her well, since in the next episode he asked her about her son. How could he? He was bleeding and out of it!

Or like when Carlos arrested Kellog for Escher’s murder Alec wasn’t surprised at all that Emily was the one who killed him. I thought he didn’t know. So, when did this conversation happen?

about the finale

I loved that we got a glimpse of what happened to Carlos, who has been a Police Commissioner for like 30 years (if I caught the dates right).

Alec and Emily got married and were together until the very end. I wouldn’t have it any other way.  

I wish we saw what Jason had to say to his father in his note from the past. Oh well….

Memorable Quotes:

Alec: “I'll build you a better future. I'll do it for you, Kiera Cameron.”

I first tried Continuum back when it first aired, I think. It didn’t grab my attention enough to even finish the pilot, I tuned out after 17 minutes or so. Some of the other reviewers whose opinion I respect kept praising the series, and I decided to give it another try. Continuum was cancelled after 4 seasons and I had an opportunity to binge-watch it. Looking back, I’d probably dropped it eventually if I had to watch 13 episodes and then wait for almost a year. Watching it uninterrupted helped keep the momentum of the series.

Continuum is not amongst my most favorite TV series. I will not be rewatching it any time soon or ever for that matter. So naturally, imagine my surprise when I found myself wanting to write a few words about it. There is something to it, I’m not sure I can explain. Though I didn’t love some of it, not once did I ever want to rewind or push stop. It is a unique universe and I don’t regret spending a certain amount of my hours to be a part of it. So if and when you have an opening in your TV watch list or just find yourself on a couch ready for some time travel, may I suggest you try Continuum?