Eureka (2006 TV series)
| Eureka | |
|---|---|
NBC Universal Television Studio (2006–2007) | |
| Original release | |
| Network | Sci-Fi Channel |
| Release | July 18, 2006 – July 16, 2012 |
| Related | |
| Warehouse 13 | |
Eureka (stylized as EUReKA) is an American
The series was created by
Synopsis
Deputy United States Marshal Jack Carter stumbles upon Eureka while transporting a fugitive prisoner (his own rebellious teenage daughter Zoe) back to her mother's home in Los Angeles. When a faulty experiment cripples the sheriff of Eureka, Carter finds himself quickly chosen to fill the vacancy. Despite not being a genius like most members of the town, Jack Carter demonstrates a remarkable ability to connect to others, keen and practical insights, and a dedication to preserving the safety of Eureka.
Eureka takes place in a high tech fictional community of the same name, located in the U.S. state of Oregon and inhabited by brilliant scientists. Camouflaged by an electromagnetic shield, the town is operated by a corporation called Global Dynamics (GD), which is overseen by the United States Department of Defense. The town's existence and location are closely guarded secrets.
Cast and characters
Main characters
- Sheriff Jack Carter, portrayed by Colin Ferguson, is a U.S. Marshal who reluctantly ends up as the sheriff of Eureka. Jack is consistently dumbfounded by the wonders Eureka produces, as well as its propensity to produce things that often threaten the entire town (or world). Despite being a man of average intelligence in a town full of geniuses, Jack's admittedly simple ideas and his intuition often save the day.
- street smarts, something lacking for most of the town's residents. She hopes to attend Harvard Medical Schooland become a physician and later does due to the alternate timeline.
- neurotypical.
- Dr. Henry Deacon, portrayed by Joe Morton, is the town jack of all tradesand a brilliant scientist. Henry has ethical objections to the kind of research conducted at Global Dynamics, so he prefers to be employed as the town's mechanic. Henry's assistance is often invaluable in defusing the bad situations that are created by experiments at Global Dynamics. In seasons 4 and 5, he is far more directly involved in the operations of Global Dynamics and in two occasions he becomes its head, the first time replacing Stark in season 1, and in the end, Fargo.
- Tony Stark, a Marvel Comics character.[4]
- Dr. Beverly Barlowe, portrayed by Debrah Farentino(seasons 1–2, recurring in seasons 4-5), is the town psychiatrist. She secretly works for a mysterious organization known as the Consortium, which has expressed a desire to exploit Eureka's innovations by whatever means necessary.
- U.S. Army Rangerwith a love of firearms. In seasons four and five, she is the head of Global Dynamics security due to the effect of their journey to the 1940s.
- Dr. Douglas Fargo, portrayed by Neil Grayston (recurring in seasons 1–2, regular in seasons 3–5), is a junior scientist, treated somewhat dismissively by his peers. Accident-prone, he often ends up a victim of the disasters befalling the town, and has caused a fair share of the problems. Grayston also provides the voice of S.A.R.A.H. (Self Actuated Residential Automated Habitat), the bunkerhome Jack and Zoe Carter live in. In seasons four and five he is the head of Global Dynamics due to the effect of their journey to the 1940s, with a personality much more assertive than his original.
- Zane Donovan, portrayed by Niall Matter(recurring in season 2, regular in seasons 3–5), is a rebellious genius who is recruited to Global Dynamics. He allegedly caused a stock market crash, and agreed to work for GD as an alternative to imprisonment.
- Dr. Grace Monroe, portrayed by Tembi Locke, (seasons 4–5) a scientist, mechanic, and wife of Henry Deacon in an alternate timeline created after the Eureka Five time-traveled to 1947.
Episodes
| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First aired | Last aired | |||
| 1 | 12 | July 18, 2006 | October 3, 2006 | |
| 2 | 13 | July 10, 2007 | October 2, 2007 | |
| 3 | 18 | 8 | July 29, 2008 | September 23, 2008 |
| 10 | July 10, 2009 | September 18, 2009 | ||
| 4 | 21 | 10 | July 9, 2010 | December 7, 2010 |
| 11 | July 11, 2011 | December 6, 2011 | ||
| 5 | 13 | April 16, 2012 | July 16, 2012 | |
Production
The series was created by
Characters from Eureka have
On August 17, 2010, the channel, now known as Syfy, announced that the show had been picked up for a fifth season of 13 episodes.[9][10] Fan sites and a show writers' Twitter feed said on August 4, 2011, that the show had been picked up for a sixth and possibly final season of six episodes.[10][11] It was then announced on August 8, 2011, that Eureka would not get a sixth season, but it would instead be canceled after season five.[12] However, one additional episode of the fifth season was approved in order to give the series a proper finale.[13] On February 16, 2012, Syfy announced that the show's fifth and final season would premiere on April 16, 2012.[14]
Filming locations
- Chilliwack, British Columbia – Downtown Wellington Avenue Cafe Diem set all five seasons.[15]
- Ladysmith, British Columbia – Downtown First Avenue, Roberts Street.[16]
- Burnaby, British Columbia – Vancouver Film Studios for the majority of the Global Dynamics building interiors, cafe interiors as well as the home of Sheriff Carter.[17]
Crossovers
Eureka was part of Sci-Fi's developing shared fictional universe, with several characters crossing over between series:
Global Dynamics researcher
Reception
Ratings and viewership
The series premiere was watched by 4.1 million people, making it the top-rated cable program for that night; it was the highest-rated series launch in
For calendar-year 2008 as a first-run, the series delivered 1.42 million viewers in the 18–49 demographic.[20]
The third season premiere was viewed by 2.8 million viewers, and the season 3.5 premiere of Eureka earned 2.68 million viewers in its new time slot.
Critical reception
Critical reaction was mixed, with general praise for the premise, but overall middling reaction to the writing of the pilot.
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer:[26]
It's all very quirky. Too quirky, maybe, for an audience that is used to spaceships, robots, and explosions. Though every episode promises an "aha!" moment based in quantum physics and obscure scientific laws, this world is relatively flat, conceptually speaking, in comparison to the complexity woven into series such as
Fergusonis believable and pleasant, the script is solidly constructed, and the visuals are slickly produced. All in all, it's a sweet series and probably not long for this world.
With its playful new series Eureka, set in the Pacific Northwest and telling the story of an outsider who comes to explore, and settle in, a remote town full of eccentrics, Sci-Fi Channel isn't just inviting comparisons to Twin Peaks and Northern Exposure. It's demanding them. But co-creators Andrew Cosby and Jaime Paglia hold up to them pretty well. Eureka has a premise, a cast and a plot that make it one of the TV treats of the summer. The folks at Sci-Fi Channel clearly intended to reinvent the summer TV series here, and come up with something breezy and fun. And Eureka – they've done it!
Awards and nominations
- Eureka was nominated for a 2007 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Visual Effects for a Series. The other nominees were Grey's Anatomy, Heroes, Rome, and Battlestar Galactica (the winner).[28]
- On August 21, 2010, Eureka was honoured with an award for its scientific, and Independent Investigations Group during its 10th Anniversary Gala. The award was accepted by head writer Ed Fowler.[29]
Cancellation
On August 8, 2011, it was announced that Eureka would be cancelled after five seasons.[30] Syfy decided not to order a season six of Eureka: "But Eureka is not over yet. There is a new holiday episode this December and 12 stellar episodes set to debut next year, marking its fifth season and six memorable years on Syfy. The 2012 episodes are some of the best we've seen, and will bring this great series to a satisfying end. We are very grateful to Bruce Miller and Jaime Paglia, their team of incredible writers, and an amazing cast and crew who have consistently delivered a series we continue to be very proud of. We thank the fans for their support of this show and know they will enjoy its final season in 2012."[31]
With the announcement of the show's cancellation, a fan campaign on social media emerged. Thousands of fans protested what they thought was the network's decision.[32][unreliable source?] Executive producer Amy Berg clarified that the decision to cancel the show was made by Comcast, the controlling partner at NBCUniversal, which owns Syfy.
Everyone is asking why. It's simple, really. We are the network's golden child in every way, except profit margins. Fact is, #Eureka is an expensive show to make. And we could not maintain the quality of our show with the cuts it would take to make us profitable for Syfy's new parent company. Our creative execs at Syfy fought hard to keep us. Trust me, they LOVE us. We just couldn't make the numbers work.
— Twitter (via tvseriesfinale.com)[33], Amy Berg
In other media
Home media releases
 |
All five seasons of Eureka have been released to Region 1 and region 2 on DVD. Seasons 1–4 have been released in region 4. Season 3 and 4 were released in two separate sets for each season in region 1 and 2.
In 2014, Universal released the complete series to the German market as an 18-disc Blu-Ray box set (aka Eureka: Die Komplette Serie or Eureka Gesamtbox). This set is region-free and will play on Region A (North America) players. It is available to U.S. buyers via online retailers. This set retains the original English-language audio. Titles and on-screen instructions can be switched to English in the disc menus.
In 2020, Mill Creek Entertainment released the complete series to the U.S. market as a 12-disc Blu-Ray box set. Extras mostly mirror those in the 2014 box set, though two extended episodes from the 2014 set are not included. Critical and buyer reviews report this set has significant issues with video quality.
Soundtrack
| Eureka: Original Soundtrack From the Sci-Fi Channel Television Series | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | August 26, 2008 | |||
| Genre | Instrumental | |||
| Length | 76:39 | |||
| Label | La La Land Records | |||
| Bear McCreary chronology | ||||
| ||||
A soundtrack was released on August 26, 2008 on La La Land Records.[34] The album consists of 28 tracks from the show's second season. It also includes two variations of the Mark Mothersbaugh and John Enroth composed main theme.
All music is composed by Bear McCreary, except noted
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Episode | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Eureka On My Mind" | Mark Mothersbaugh and John Enroth | All | 0:32 |
| 2. | "Sheriff Carter's Theme" | Maneater | 3:29 | |
| 3. | "Prehistoric Love Spores" | Maneater | 2:40 | |
| 4. | "Allison's Theme" | Games People Play | 2:54 | |
| 5. | "Through the Vortex" | Games People Play | 5:04 | |
| 6. | "Fargo's Theme" | Noche de Sueños | 2:51 | |
| 7. | "The Mask of Fargo" | Noche de Sueños | 2:29 | |
| 8. | "The S.A.R.A.H. Mobile" | Duck, Duck, Goose | 1:18 | |
| 9. | "Let's Get Hitched" | Brendan McCreary | Sight Unseen | 3:56 |
| 10. | "When You Wish Upon Falling Debris" | Duck, Duck, Goose | 3:12 | |
| 11. | "Little Big Bang" | E=MC...? | 2:35 | |
| 12. | "Henry's Theme" | A Night at Global Dynamics | 5:23 | |
| 13. | "Taggart's Theme" | A Night at Global Dynamics | 2:04 | |
| 14. | "The Laser Canon" | A Night at Global Dynamics | 1:56 | |
| 15. | "Noche de Suenos" | Noche de Suenos | 3:25 | |
| 16. | "A Nuke for Fargo" | Try, Try Again | 5:43 | |
| 17. | "EurekAerobic" | Captain Ahab | Duck, Duck, Goose | 2:33 |
| 18. | "Victor's Getaway" | Try, Try Again | 0:36 | |
| 19. | "Henry and Beverly" | All That Glitters | 4:26 | |
| 20. | "Jack and Callie" | Sight Unseen", "Maneater | 2:33 | |
| 21. | "Everyone's Dumb" | E=MC...? | 1:50 | |
| 22. | "The Heathers" | Duck, Duck, Goose | 0:39 | |
| 23. | "Zane on the Lam" | E=MC...? | 2:44 | |
| 24. | "Erotomania!" | Maneater | 2:28 | |
| 25. | "A Night at Global Dynamics" | A Night at Global Dynamics | 3:54 | |
| 26. | "Threat of Nuclear Cleaning" | A Night at Global Dynamics | 2:21 | |
| 27. | "A Town Called Eureka" | 2:13 | ||
| 28. | "Eureka on My Mind (Reprise)" | Mark Mothersbaugh and John Enroth | 0:51 |
Internet streaming services
All five seasons of Eureka are now available for viewing on-demand on
- NBCUniversal's PeacockTV streaming service, which launched in July 2020.
- Amazon Prime Video (for US Prime members)
- The Roku Channel for all Roku owners.
Comics
In early 2009, Boom! Studios produced a comic book series based on storylines provided by Andrew Cosby (who is also the co-founder of the comic publisher), written by Brendan Hay, with art by Diego Barreto.[35] This was followed by a second 4-issue series called Eureka: Dormant Gene written by Andrew Cosby, Jaime Paglia and Jonathan L. Davis, with art by Mark Dos Santos.[36]
Novels
- Eureka: Substitution Method. ISBN 9780441018857
- Eureka: Brain Box Blues. Cris Ramsay, New York: Ace, November 2010. ISBN 9780441019830
- Eureka: Road Less Traveled. Cris Ramsay, New York: Ace, March 2011. ISBN 9780441019021
Podcast appearances
In 2011, Colin Ferguson appeared on Disasterpiece Theatre, discussing what Eureka might look like if directed by Michael Bay.[37] In 2012, Niall Matter also made an appearance on the podcast, discussing how Eureka would function as a "romcom".[38]
In May 2012, Ferguson appeared on
References
- ^ a b "Syfy's Eureka delivers best season ever season finale averages 2.3 million". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on October 5, 2009. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
- ^ a b "Eureka (2006) Awards". IMDB. Retrieved January 20, 2010.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "Bt Vision search results "Eureka"". Archived from the original on 2011-07-08. Retrieved 2010-07-21.
- ^ Melissa Hank (April 25, 2007). "Sci-fi made sexy on 'Eureka' (interview with Ed Quinn)". Archived from the original on July 18, 2011.
- ^ eurekacz (21 August 2009). "Warehouse 13 - BtS with Erica Cerra & Niall Matter from Eureka". Archived from the original on 2021-12-21 – via YouTube.
- ^ eurekacz (6 June 2011). "Eureka, Warehouse 13 & Alphas - Syfy Promo". Archived from the original on 2021-12-21 – via YouTube.
- ^ eurekacz (3 August 2010). "Eureka/Warehouse 13 Crossover - Allison & Neil Like Peas & Carrots". Archived from the original on 2021-12-21 – via YouTube.
- ^ SYFYde (4 January 2012). "EUReKA - Neil Grayston über die Verbindung zu "Warehouse 13"". Archived from the original on 2021-12-21 – via YouTube.
- ^ "Syfy renews Eureka for a fifth season". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on August 19, 2010. Retrieved August 17, 2010.
- ^ a b Eureka Unscripted [@EurekaWriters] (April 11, 2011). "@da_deman For this season, 13 episodes, we're shooting now through August" (Tweet). Retrieved February 12, 2016 – via Twitter.
- ^ Andreeva, Nellie (August 4, 2011). "SyFy's 'Eureka' Poised To End Its Run With Final 6-Episode Order". Deadline. Archived from the original on September 29, 2011. Retrieved August 5, 2011.
- ^ "'Eureka' canceled, sixth season plans dropped -- EXCLUSIVE". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on August 16, 2011. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
- ^ Hibberd, James (August 10, 2011). "Eureka! Syfy orders one final episode". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on October 8, 2011. Retrieved August 13, 2011.
- ^ Munn, Patrick (February 16, 2012). "Syfy Unveils Spring Schedule, Sets Premiere Date For Eureka Season 5". TVWise. Archived from the original on February 19, 2012. Retrieved February 16, 2012.
- ^ "Chilliwack Film Commission: Who's Filmed in Chilliwack". Chilliwack Film Commission. Archived from the original on October 20, 2004. Retrieved March 13, 2008.
- ^ "Ladysmith, British Columbia Film". Town of Ladysmith. Archived from the original on March 28, 2008. Retrieved March 13, 2008.
- ^ "Vancouver Film Studios — Who's Been Here". Vancouver Film Studios. Archived from the original on March 12, 2008. Retrieved March 13, 2008.
- ^ "Eureka Scores High". The Futon Critic. Retrieved November 28, 2008.
- ^ Adalian, Josef (July 11, 2007). "Audiences discover 'Eureka'". Variety. Retrieved August 3, 2007.
- ^ "Breaking News — FINAL DVR DATA REVS UP RATINGS FOR FX FROSH DRAMA SONS OF ANARCHY". The Futon Critic. December 18, 2008. Archived from the original on December 20, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2009.
- ^ "Syfy renews Eureka for a fourth season". TV by the Numbers. July 24, 2009. Archived from the original on February 10, 2010. Retrieved September 24, 2010.
- ^ Seidman, Robert (August 17, 2010). "'Eureka' Renewed by Syfy for a 5th Season". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on February 27, 2011. Retrieved June 30, 2011.
- ^ "Axiom's Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy " Cancellation Watch: Game of Thrones Still Strong, Eureka Season 5 has Modest Debut". Axiomsedge-scifi.com. April 18, 2012. Archived from the original on October 3, 2012. Retrieved April 24, 2012.
- ^ "Updated Monday Cable Ratings: 'Pawn Stars,' Jets-Texans, 'WWE RAW' Top Night + 'Closer,' 'Rizzoli,' 'Warehouse 13' & Much More". TV by the Numbers. September 20, 2011. Archived from the original on September 24, 2011. Retrieved April 24, 2012.
- ^ "Ratings - Monday's Cable Ratings: "Pawn Stars," "WWE Raw" Stay on Top". The Futon Critic. July 2, 2012. Archived from the original on December 20, 2023. Retrieved October 31, 2012.
- ^ Mcfarland, Melanie (July 18, 2006). "Not a whole lot to discover on Eureka'". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved July 20, 2006.
- ^ Hinckley, David. "Eureka - Review". NY Daily News.[dead link]
- ^ "SCI FI CHANNEL SCORES 7 EMMY NOMS INCLUDING WRITING & DIRECTING NODS FOR 'BATTLESTAR GALACTICA'". The Futon Critic. Archived from the original on December 20, 2023. Retrieved August 3, 2007.
- ^ "IIG | About the IIG Awards". Iigwest.com. Archived from the original on January 12, 2020. Retrieved December 10, 2011.
- ^ "Cast, crew react to 'Eureka' cancellation – The Marquee Blog - CNN.com Blogs". Marquee.blogs.cnn.com. Archived from the original on July 1, 2012. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
- ^ Ross, Dalton (August 8, 2011). "Syfy cancels 'Eureka' without a sixth season". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on August 14, 2012. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
- ^ Hinman, Michael (August 10, 2011). "Fans Take To Twitter To Protest 'Eureka' Ax". Airlock Alpha. Archived from the original on March 22, 2013. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
- ^ "Eureka: Series Finale Ordered; Why Was the Show Cancelled?". TV Series Finale. August 11, 2011. Archived from the original on December 20, 2023. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
- ^ McCreary, Bear (August 25, 2008). "My "Eureka" Soundtrack Is Finally Out!". Bear's Blog. Archived from the original on February 21, 2012. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
- ^ Manning, Shaun (February 2, 2009). "Brendan Hay Talks "Eureka" Comics". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on October 7, 2012. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
- ^ "Eureka Vol. 2 : Dormant Gene TPB". Boom! Studios. Archived from the original on December 3, 2012. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
- ^ "Episode 06: Colin Ferguson". Disasterpiece Theatre. September 5, 2011. Archived from the original on 2013-01-13. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
- ^ "Episode 42: Niall Matter LIVE from Dragon Con!". Disasterpiece Theatre. October 11, 2012. Archived from the original on November 8, 2017. Retrieved November 8, 2017.
- ^ "Colin Ferguson plays Ticket to Ride with Wil Wheaton, Anne Wheaton, and Amy Dallen!". Tabletop. May 8, 2012. Archived from the original on June 14, 2013. Retrieved June 30, 2013.
External links
- Official website
- Eureka at IMDb
