Earth 2

Earth 2
Earth 2 opening title.
Format	Science fiction
Created by	Michael Duggan Carol Flint Mark Levin Billy Ray
Starring	see below
Composer(s)	David Bergeaud
Country of origin	United States
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	22 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Michael Duggan Mark Levin Carol Flint
Running time	45 min. approx.
Broadcast
Original channel	NBC
Original run	November 6, 1994 – June 4, 1995

Earth 2 is a short-lived science fiction television series which aired on NBC from November 6, 1994 to June 4, 1995.^[1] The show was canceled after one season of 22 episodes.^[2] It followed the journey and settlement of a small expeditionary group called the Eden Project, with the intent to journey to an Earth-like planet called G889 in an attempt to find a cure to an illness called the Syndrome. The series was created by Michael Duggan, Carol Flint, Mark Levin, and Billy Ray, produced by Amblin Entertainment and NBC Universal Television Studio,^[3] and filmed primarily in northern New Mexico around the Santa Fe area.^[4][5] The series' music was composed by David Bergeaud, and the executive producers were Michael Duggan, Mark Levin, and Carol Flint.

Initially, the show's audience was reasonably good, reaching eighth place;^[6] however, by April 23 of the next year, viewership had dropped to 9%.^[7] During its run, it had been nominated for a Primetime Emmy,^[8] Saturn,^[9] and other awards. The overarching plot of the show and various individual elements within the show helped explore the Gaia hypothesis. In 2005, the entire series was released on DVD in a 4-disc set.^[10]

Plot

A Grendler

In 2192,^[11] most of the human population had fled Earth to live on large orbiting space stations. Only a small number of humans remain on the Earth’s surface as the Earth had become mostly uninhabitable.^[12]

Billionaire Devon Adair's eight-year-old son, Ulysses Adair, had contracted a rare but fatal disease called the Syndrome,^[13] a condition whose existence is not acknowledged by the government and medical community. It is theorized that this disease, which affects only children, is somehow caused by the lack of an Earth-like environment.^[14] Most children who are born with the disease do not live past the age of nine.

Desperate to save her son, Devon puts together a group who will pioneer the effort to settle a planet 22 light-years away from Earth, on which other families with members thus afflicted can settle. The eventual colonization of the planet, however, is opposed by the government. Secret monitoring and agent infiltration threaten the creation of the colony of New Pacifica. Hours before Adair's group intends to leave, a bomb is discovered, set to explode the hour the ship would leave. The Eden Project leaves immediately, jettisoning the bomb before detonation. In the seventh episode of the series, "A Memory Play," it is revealed this bomb was planted by the Council to stop the ship from leaving.^[15]

Twenty-two years later, the ship arrives at G889, but it crash lands^[16] shortly after arrival on the side of the planet opposite of the original plan. With her group scattered on the planet and supplies missing, Devon begins heading west to the planned site of New Pacifica.

During their travels, Adair and her companions learn that the Council—a government group that seems to wield most of the power on the space stations—wants to gain control of G889 for resettlement. But through their various experiments, they have learned that they cannot remove the Terrians without killing the planet itself. This means that Devon's son, who has been healed by the Terrians and who had begun to exhibit some of their unique characteristics, has become the key to the Council's plan for the planet.

Life on G889

The landscape and climate of the new planet where the ship crashed seems very much like that of harsher climates on Earth, such as the southwestern United States. Water is scarce and scrub grows out of rock formations. In this area, three different species of life are discovered by Devon Adair and her group.

Terrians

Grendlers
Soon after arrival the colonists come into contact with a semi-intelligent race named Grendlers, traders and scavengers. It is revealed in episode five, "A Memory Play," that a grendler's saliva is a cure-all for virtually any disease.^[17]

Terrians
Exploring further, the group encounters an intelligent subterranean alien species named the Terrians, who seem to have a symbiotic relationship with the planet and can only communicate with the colonists through a dreamscape that few of them understand.

Humans
During the series the colonists learn they are not the only humans on the planet; it had previously been used as a penal colony so the government could learn more about how to colonize the planet.

Characters

The interactions among the original crew, the convicts, the government and the local aliens and their planet forms the basis of many of the story's plot lines, as the colonists learn more about their new home while trying to avoid detection by the Council.

Devon Adair
A billionaire who leads the expedition and whose own son is afflicted with the Syndrome.^[18] As the leader, she attempts to balance directing the group as obstacles are encountered while confronting the possibility that her son may not survive his sickness.

John Danziger
Previously an indentured worker aboard the space station from which the group leaves. His daughter is most important to him, but he also assumes the role of protector of the group.^[19]

Yale
A former convict and part cyborg whose memory has been erased and behavior altered under a government program for the purpose of becoming a tutor for the children of wealthy families.

Dr. Julia Heller
A genetically modified junior physician the colonists later learn is an agent for the Council.^[20]

Morgan Martin
A government official supervising the Eden Project, husband to Bess Martin.

Bess Martin
Wife of Morgan Martin, who grew up in the mines of Earth.

Ulysses Adair
Nicknamed "Uly," he is the eight-year-old son of the expedition's leader, Devon Adair. He was born with the Syndrome, an illness which convinced his mother that he could be cured if raised on a planet with access to fresh air, clean water and sunshine. His arrival on G889 and eventual connection to the Terrians is one of the keys to the colonization of the world and is a recurring plot theme.

True Danziger
The ten-year-old daughter of John Danziger, and also previously an indentured worker on the space station from which the expedition departed. She forms a bond with Uly, initially one of jealousy and dislike, but eventually a close friendship.

Alonzo Solace
A cold sleep pilot far older than he looks, and eventually a love interest of Dr. Heller.

Reilly
Julia Heller's contact on the council, who eventually is revealed to be a computer program.^{[citation needed]} In the "All About Eve" episode, the creator of the EVE program reveals that Reilly is part of the same program.

Episodes

The series premiered on November 6, 1994 with a one-hour, thirty minute pilot episode that ran from 7:00 – 9:00 P.M. EST (including advertisements – it was later split into two episodes for syndication). The following week it moved to a regular timeslot. On April 23, 1995 two individual episodes were aired back-to-back from 7:00 – 9:00 P.M. EST. It was also aired in Australia, Austria, New Zealand, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Italy and Spain, later in 1995 and Greece in the fall of 1997.

Notable aspects of the series

Earth 2 broke new ground by placing Devon Adair as the first female commander in a science fiction television show.^[21]

The Gaia Hypothesis was explored through the Syndrome, its effects on many children, and the subsequent healing of the illness after the Eden Project arrives on G889.^[22][23][24]

During the show, various political and social themes were addressed as well. In the tenth episode, "The Enemy Within", Julia is left behind by the group because of her treachery,^[25] addressing briefly what punishments are moral or even inhumane. Another aspect of this issue is addressed in episode two, "The Man Who Fell to Earth." The group meets a man named Gaal (played by Tim Curry), who claims to be an astronaut but is revealed as a criminal;^{[citation needed]} when it is revealed that G889 had been used for many years as a penal colony, however, questions arise as to the motivations of the Council and their right to do so. In addition, episode eleven, "Redemption," has the group encounter a genetically enhanced killer called Z.E.D., that has been left on the planet.^[26] His presence is used to dispose of humans he finds (the assumption being they are criminals).

Cast

Starring Roles

• Debrah Farentino - Devon Adair
• Joey Zimmerman - Ulysses Adair
• Clancy Brown - John Danziger
• J. Madison Wright - True Danziger
• Sullivan Walker - Yale
• Jessica Steen - Dr. Julia Heller
• Rebecca Gayheart - Bess Martin
• John Gegenhuber - Morgan Martin
• Antonio Sabàto, Jr. - Alonzo Solace

Recurring Roles and Notable Guest Stars

• Walter Norman - Walman
• Marcia Magus - Magus
• Tierre Turner - Zero
• Kirk Trutner - Cameron
• Richard Bradford - Commander Broderick O'Neill
• Terry O'Quinn - Reilly
• Tim Curry - Gaal
• Jeff Kober - Z.E.D.
• Rockmond Dunbar - Baines
• Roy Dotrice - The Elder
• Virginia Madsen - Alonzo Solace's Dance Partner
• Kelli Williams - Mary

Location

Exterior shots filmed in New Mexico locations such as White Mesa,^[27] Kasha Katuwe Tent Rocks,^[28] and Diablo Canyon^[29] provided an alien-like setting for the series.

Merchandise

DVD release

The complete series (comprising only 1 season of 21 episodes including the 2-hour pilot) was released on DVD July 19, 2005 in the United States in Region 1 format, on 4 dual-sided discs.^[30][31]

Novels

Three Earth 2 novels were published between December 1994 and May 1995. The first was a novelization of the two-part premiere. The remaining two were original stories.

• Earth 2: A Novel (Melissa Crandall, December 1994) ISBN 0441001467
• Puzzle (Sean Dalton, February 1995) ISBN 0441001483
• Leather Wings (John Vornholt, May 1995) ISBN 044100198X

Miscellany

Other products, such as T-shirts and sweaters with the Earth 2 logo, can still be purchased online. It is also possible to watch streaming episodes through certain services.

References

External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Earth 2

• Earth 2 at Allmovie
• Earth 2 at the Internet Movie Database
• Earth 2 at TV.com