‘Sanctuary” is groundbreaking in that it is the first direct-to-web show to land a major cable TV slot and the first TV show to rely almost exclusively on greenscreen for background settings. It also mines new territory by placing front and center a mature and sexy female lead in a genre littered with fembots. There’s an especially entertaining scene in season one where Tapping’s character Dr. Helen Magnus somehow manages to place her stiletto-clad foot onto a villain’s neck to keep him pinned to the ground. Moments like that one, combined with the family bickering, the reframing of victorian and modern history to embellish the scifi-fantasy plot, and the unique special effects make “Sanctuary” thoroughly engaging.
As SyFy describes the show, “Sanctuary features the beautiful, enigmatic and always surprising Dr. Helen Magnus (Amanda Tapping), a brilliant scientist who holds the secrets of a clandestine population a group of strange and sometimes terrifying beings that hide among humans. Along with her new recruit, forensic psychiatrist Dr. Will Zimmerman (Robin Dunne), her quirky tech wiz Henry (Ryan Robbins) and her fearless daughter Ashley (Emilie Ullerup), Magnus seeks to protect this threatened phenomena as well as unlock the mysteries behind their existence. The series also stars Christopher Heyerdahl as the sinister John Druitt.”
“Sanctuary” averaged a viewership of 1.8HH in its first season, providing a healthy run for a first-year original scripted series on SCI FI. In it’s first season finale, “Sanctuary” finished with a viewership of 1.6 HH. It returns to SyFy this fall, and to gear fans up for the show’s return, Script Coordinator Jaclyn MacRae has posted the following on the Official Sanctuary Blog: “We have a pretty cool surprise lined up for all of you in episode 209. We think you’re going to like it!!” Damian Kindler also hinted about what’s to come this fall on his twitter account. “For all you #sanctuary fans: if you’re a Sci Fi fan, the guest star in ep [2] will make you very happy. VERY,” he said.
For more information about Sanctuary or to see MacRae’s posts, visit http://www.sanctuaryforall.com/ . You may find Damian Kindler on twitter at @damiankindler.