Our ongoing series covering web-based productions in the Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror genres. If you have a recommendation for a web original that we should look at, contact us at mail@axiomsedge-scifi.com.
By John J. Joex
Rating: 4 ½ out of 5 Stars
Pioneer One is a web series developed by Josh Bernhard and Bracy Smith and thus far funded completely by donations. The first episode was made available free via BitTorrent last year after which the producers asked fans to donate if they liked what they saw. This generated a huge influx of support bringing in enough funds to complete three additional episodes another of which is currently available for viewing and I am assuming that the next two will be made available shortly.
In the first episode (which I reviewed last year), an unidentified satellite comes down and soars over a remote part of Montana before crashing in Canada. In its descent, it spreads radiation through the area sending several people to the hospital with radiation sickness. At first there is speculation that this may be an attempted terrorist attack, but one of the two government agents dispatched to investigate (Tom Taylor played by James Rich) does not feel that explanation fits the facts. They find a survivor in a section of the spaceship that has crashed down who appears to be a Soviet era Russian and whose body is riddled with cancer. As they continue to investigate, evidence suggests that this man may have just completed a trip from Mars. The second episode picks up from here as space exploration expert, and Mars colonization advocate, Dr. Zachary Walzer (played by Matthew Foster in the first episode then replaced with Jack Haley in the second) is called in to consult and offer his opinion on whether this person could have travelled from the Red Planet. Meanwhile, the U.S. Government, which still believes this incident has terror links, wants the astronaut moved within our border, even though the trip could kill him in his frail condition. Also, additional information about the incident, originally officially dismissed as a satellite burning up in the atmosphere, leaks to the press. Taylor and his crew do manage to buy some time to continue their investigation and uncover move information, and during this time, the Cosmonaut regains consciousness.
The first episode of Pioneer One delivered a well-scripted, decently acted installment that was actually pretty impressive by web standards especially considering that most involved work for free and that they put this all together for around six thousand dollars. And the second episode actually shows an improvement from the first. The acting (already descent in the first episode) has stepped up a notch, the directing is more confident, and pacing becomes just a bit more intense. And just like before, we get a tight, well-structured script to carry the story. Now understand that Pioneer One still does not quite meet the production standards of a typical Prime Time production (even one on the lower rent cable channels), but then it’s not that far off either. So consider what they have accomplished with the budget they have to work from. And really, if I had not have known that the second episode was a low budget web production, I could have easily mistaken it for a full-fledged, moderate-dollar professional endeavor. With that said, just imagine what these guys could do with a decent budget (or maybe I should strike that thought because often sparse resources energizes ingenuity and creativity).
You should take note that Pioneer One is definitely a slow-moving story, but then Science Fiction lends itself well to that type of story-telling. Some of the best examples of the genre were definitely very slow in their pacing (2001: A Space Odyssey, Andromeda Strain, Silent Running, Primer, Man from Earth, to name just a few) yet ultimately delivered an engaging, involving tale. Not that I am quite ready to put Pioneer One in the same category as those films, but at this point, I believe it has the potential to achieve that status. And I can say that I would much rather watch more episode of this one than ABC’s hack-sci fi V reboot or Syfy’s tepid scripted shows like Warehouse 13 and Haven. It may not have the production values of those shows, but neither is it as cheesy nor does it stumble into camp that shows like V do on a regular basis. Pioneer One is a story driven production and it has a strong Science Fiction themes at its core, making it definitely worth a look for genre fans. The producers are still asking for donations in order to complete the final episodes of Season 1, and I will definitely be sending mine shortly. And after finishing this season, they have several more planned if they can continue to get funding for their production. You can download the episodes via their website and you can also watch them on YouTube at the links below. And I would definitely recommend that all fans of intelligent Science Fiction give this web series a look because it’s definitely worth your time.
Read Our Exclusive Interview with Josh Bernhard, the Creator of Pioneer One
