TV Shows #27

Night Sky (2022)
Developed By: Holden Miller & Daniel C. Connolly
Starring: Sissy Spacek, J. K. Simmons, Chai Hansen, Adam Bartley, Julieta Zylberberg, Sonya Walger, Rocío Hernández, Kiah McKirnan, Angus O'Brien

Certificate: 15 Running Time: 55 Minutes per Episode (approx), 8 Episodes

New sci-fi shows always get my attention, but one starring J.K. Simmons and Sissy Spacek? Yes please! The former is always great, or in every role I've seen him in at least, and the latter has recently impressed me greatly in Castle Rock, so the prospect of the two of them leading the cast of a mysterious new sci-fi show was a splendid one. They are Franklin and Irene, an old married couple still masking grief over the sudden death of their son some years before, but who also share an amazing secret known, as far as they know, not to another soul. Namely, that lying hidden beneath their shed is a spooky device that allows them to visit... an alien planet - crikey! The planet in question is just a barren, rocky world with no discernable settlements and the atmosphere is assumed to be unbreathable for humans, but there is a nice viewing chamber that allows them to sit, relax and marvel at the sights beyond, including a spectacular spacey sky.

There is also a door within the chamber leading to the surface but neither Franklin nor Irene have been brave enough to use it yet, remaining content to sit, stare in wonder, and contemplate stuff, particularly Irene who is mesmerised by the chamber and feels compelled to use it regularly along with her more reluctant husband who just seems grateful that there is still something that makes Irene happy, at least for a time.

Irene is mesmerised by the dazzling vista before her...

Aside from this remarkable secret, they spend their time as many retired couples probably do. They do have a new neighbour in Byron (Bartley), however, who has grown interested in their frequent, lengthy and often late-night visits to their small, inconspicuous-looking shed, and before long they find their pottering around disrupted by the arrival of two unexpected guests too. The second of them is their granddaughter, Denise (McKirnan), who has grown disillusioned with her university studies and comes to town while she tries to figure her future out. The first of their guests is the more unusual of the two though. During an uncharacteristic solo visit to the wonders lying beneath their shed, Irene finds a young man unconscious on the floor of their viewing chamber. Who could this pesky interloper be?

The man, known as Jude (Hansen), claims to not know who he is or how he got there, and Irene is instinctively sympathetic, even offering him their son's old bedroom while he recuperates and tries to remember stuff, but Franklin is sceptical and suspicious. He seems like a nice enough guy though, and does work around their house and yard, but what kind of secrets or marvellous mysteries could he be holding onto?

Byron being a nosy parker as usual...

In addition to Jude's spooky arrival and the resultant mysteries, there are also a few flashbacks. I assume they're flashbacks anyway, as they show the circumstances leading up to the death of Michael (O'Brien), Franklin and Irene's son, but the old codgers both look the same so it's difficult to be sure (chortle!). While all this is going on, however, there are also some spooky events taking shape in Argentina and the narrative switches between the two locations. In the southern hemisphere, the story focuses on Stella (Zylberberg) and Toni (Hernández), single mother and teenage daughter respectively, the former of whom is hiding a floopy secret in the little chapel thing on her property which may or may not lead them on a journey far from home, on the run, potentially ending up in Franklin and Irene's neck of the woods.

It's the kind of show that's hard to describe in much detail without giving away too much, but it is a very intriguing premise, at least initially. The first few episodes are very slow though, and despite some strong performances, particularly from Simmons and Spacek, unsurprisingly, some may find themselves struggling to remain invested in the story. Stick with it though, as it does get better!

Toni and Stella prepare for... something spooky...

As well as having mysterious stuff to contend with, a few antagonists surface for both sets of characters to deal with as well, particularly the South American ones in the form of Cornelius (Adamczyk), and things do pick up after a while. In fact, I was just getting into it, it looked as though we might get at least some answers aaaand... then the season ended, obviously! But that's okay, cliffhanger endings are par for the course with shows these days. I could wait a year to see what happened, now that I was into the show and actually wanted to know. As it turned out, I would be waiting considerably more than a year as Amazon, for it is (or was) indeed a 'Prime Original', had cancelled it. Supposedly it cost a lot to produce but I'm not really sure why.

Obviously there are some special effects but a majority of the show's runtime is just normal humans in normal human locales doing... okay, not only doing normal human things but you get my point. Unless Simmons and/or Spacek command huge salaries, I don't know why the show cost so much. Apparently it did though, and the viewing figures did not justify the cost of a second season, and that's a bummer (man). It may take a while to get going but it's a show with an interesting premise and a good cast, and I was keen to see where things went. But alas, these things happen I guess. I suppose the big question is whether it's worth watching now that it's just one season without an ending? The answer to that is probably a no unless you're a fan of anyone involved, you'll probably just end up frustrated. Some nice ideas though...

RKS Score: 6/10