A/N: I will not critique "Heroes", nor try to compare that show with this one!
That said, "The 4400." is one of those rare sci-fi shows that not only grabs you with it's cool mythology, but also keeps you interested by investing in the charaters and how they are adapting to the near impossible experience of 4400 people being abducted over the eriod of 60 years and all of the sudden reappearing on a beach one fateful night.
In a brief overvew, the shows focuses on two government agents (Tom and Diana) and how they must handle the above mentioned event, from "freak of the week" events to harboring 4400's themselves. The show, like many other reviewers have noted, flew too low under the radar and never got the audience it deserved.
With that sid, here's an oveview of the seasons:
Season 1: a little short b/c the show was supposed to be a mini-series. It sets up the basic mythology of the show, and gets the audience ready for the task of living with these 4400 abductees/returnees. 4/5 (becuase its short)
Season 2: The show really takes off with this season. The storyline is et up nicely, with some significant plot development (ripple effects, government conspiracies, and future predictions, too wet your curiosity). The cast is amazing, and you really get to see each main character's lives fleshed out. 5/5
Season 3: This season falls a little short from the awesome dynamics of S2. The main stroyline is drawn on, and the progression of the overall story is slowed. The big issue: promicin! But, still the season is worth a watch. 3/5
Season 4: This season goes back to the characterization and plot development of S2, and really begins to discuss the effects of promicin and how it will affect the lives of 4400's and on-4400s. The cast is exceptional this season, and all the development we've seen from some characters for the last 3 seasons really reaches it peak. 5/5
The show was unfortunately cancelled, and for those who watch the show i couldn't have come at a worse time, as the S4 cliffhanger will leave you wondering "what next?"
The show is definately worth your while if you ahve not seen the show previously, or wrote it off as another "sci-fi show"
p.s.--no comment on the extras, as they are the same from the individual dvd seasons, except for the "ghost" season disc, which is a nice present to loyal fans! The 4400: The Complete Series
The 4400 was, in my opinion, one of the best shows ever on television. It had a fantastic cast and wonderful plot lines and plot twists. If you don't know anything about the series, it's basically about 4400 who went missing and returned (all at once) with new and interesting abilities. From there, the story changes SO much. Each season always ends with a huge reveal and a big game changer for the next season and overall scope of the series.
In my opinion, the second and fourth seasons were the strongest, followed by the first season (which was only a mini-series) and then the third season, which was my least favorite. With this set, every season is included and I suggest you watch them all in order because each episode builds on the last.
Although some of the plot lines in the third season were not my favorite, it was still much stronger than many other shows out there. The 4400 may be rooted in science-fiction, but it's so much deeper and more character oriented.
If you haven't seen this series, or are just hearing about it, please give it a try and buy this set. I promise you it will not disappoint. Some of the reviews say that the finale is a let down because it ends with a cliff-hanger. While that may be true in part, the series finale was actually one of the most exciting and interesting episodes of the whole series and really summed things up nicely, while still leaving questions open to the imagination.
If you already have the seasons on DVD and are wondering about getting this for the extras, it's really up to you. The only disappointment is that the discs are exactly the same as the ones from the previous sets. There is nothing altered about them- the menus, and even disc graphics have not changed at all. It's in a nice box and the bonus disc has some nice extras, but it comes down to if the extras are worth the price of the whole series. While different disc graphics and menus would have been nice, I cannot take off a 1/2 a star because the series itself is far too good. Give it a try!
Being one of those (unfortunately) rare viewers of "The 4400", I was struck with a sense of deja vu when watching this series - I had seen something very similar before. But the odd thing was, as I had caught the series on DVD, that I had seen it before on something that had come after - "Heroes". While that show was a huge hit, "The 4400" lingered in somewhat obscurity. Both dealt with ordinary humans with extraordinary abilities. But where genetics came into play with "Heroes", it was abduction that gave "The 4400" their powers. This was a great series with fun ideas - some, unfortunately never truly realized - whether the "ripples" of season one, or the series cliffhanger where the powers go further than ever before. This is one of those shows that, if you're a fan, it's kind of like you're in on a secret, because it never got the attention it deserved.
Unfortnately, season three was the killer. While it had its decent spots, it was seriously lacking as far as advancing the plot and was an obvious attempt at a season 4. They got the season 4 and started out just like season 3, but then I guess they found out they were being canceled and got back on track. I wish they had just been a bit smarter, because this was honestly one of my all time favorite television shows. A season five with an actual story wrap-up would have been awesome, or even make a full feature film (or mini-series) to close it up.
When season four ends, you might shed a tear because you will never know what happens. It's "ending" was not satisfactory to me because I had so many things I wanted to see a resolution to. But all complaints aside, this is worth watching.
On a side note, if you like this, you might want to check out "Taken" which is an alien abduction show (mini series) that was just fantastic (Also stars Joel Gretsch)! - Sci Fi Tv Series - Wrongly Canceled Shows - Science Fiction - The 4400'
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