Why ‘Almost Human’ Deserves to Be Renewed by FOX

Almost Human, FOX‘s on-the-bubble sci-fi drama starring Karl Urban (Star Trek reboot film franchise) and Michael Ealy really deserves a second season. The series, set in a near-future world of 2048, explores a society gone bonkers on biotechnology. Genetic engineering has infiltrated everything from prostitution to the police force, and cyber-savvy criminals have unbridled access to technology they can exploit freely with little enforceable regulation. The police are aided by cyber-cops, Ken Doll-like computers with guns and other forms of deadly force. Problem is, they have no instincts, no heart, and their judgment is fueled solely by logic, orders and specific rules of engagement. Except for Dorian (Ealy). Dorian is a special breed: a cyber-cop with infused with emotions. All of his kind, created by a genetic engineering genius (played by John Larroquette), had been mothballed as unstable. But when John Kennex (Urban) comes back from near death with a synthetic leg and a broken soul, he is paired with Dorian, who is, in many respects, more human than Kennex. Hence the series title, Almost Human. Neither of the partners is wholly human, but together… So, why does the series deserve renewal? Let me the count the ways:

• After only 13 episodes, Almost Human seems to be just getting started. The final episode finds Dorian finally being acknowledged as a capable partner, and not put back on the shelf. There is much to explore with his character, now that he has that validation.
• We know little about events surrounding the series initial premise: Kennex is set up by his girlfriend–or so we are to believe. (Of course he doesn’t believe it.) This story alone deserves some resolution.
• I want to know more about the delightfully geeky Dr. Rudy Lom (the perfect Mackenzie Crook of BBC’s The Office). This is a scientist with a hacker past who lives in his man-cave of a laboratory (which he shares with Dorian). There is obviously some history between Rudy and Kennex, and I’d love to know more about it–and about Rudy himself.
• John Larroquette. Full stop. Dorian’s creator disappeared behind “the wall” (and I don’t mean the one in Westros). Larroquette had been cast in a recurring role, and I’d like to know more about him, and his disappearance.
• The aforementioned wall. Introduced in the later episodes, it suggest a dark, Blade Runner-esque world beyond the ultra-modern setting of the main story. Beyond the wall live the dregs of 2048 society. How did this separation come to be and what’s the story in that world beyond?

Although FOX has been known to swiftly cancel series, not giving a chance to gain an audience, the network has also been known to kindly allow series to find their audiences (The X-Files comes immediately to mind). Thirteen episodes is hardly a fair chance (especially for a science fiction series). And although the ratings were not spectacular, they were not in the basement either. And with finding a home in the UK on UKTV, come May, when FOX announces its fall schedule, it makes sense that it includes Almost Human. What do you think? Should Almost Human be renewed by FOX? Let me know on Twitter, and in the comments below. And feel free to Tweet this out to @AlmostHumanFOX and all save the series outlets!

[amazon template=iframe image&chan=default&asin=B00GQ0TPLI,0571295584,B00009ZY9E,B00AZMFK3K,B00E5Q1LTY]