BrainDead explained

Composer:David Buckley
Country:United States
Language:English
Num Seasons:1
Num Episodes:13
List Episodes:
  1. Episodes
Runtime:43–44 minutes
Network:CBS

BrainDead is an American political satire science fiction[1] [2] [3] comedy-drama television series created by Robert and Michelle King.[4] The series stars Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Laurel Healy, a documentary film-maker who takes a job working for her brother Luke (Danny Pino), a U.S. Senator, when the funding for her latest film falls through. Assigned as his new constituency caseworker, she discovers that Washington, D.C. has been invaded by extraterrestrial insects which are eating the brains and taking control of people, including members of Congress and their staffers. Much of the internal comedy of the series was that, in the altered reality of Washington, D.C. politics, only a few people noticed.

CBS announced a 13-episode straight-to-series order on July 22, 2015. The show premiered on June 13, 2016. After four episodes, the show moved from its Monday timeslot to Sundays to make room for the network's coverage of the Republican and Democratic National Conventions.[5] The show had a planned four-season arc, which would have seen the bugs then invade Wall Street, Silicon Valley and Hollywood,[6] but on October 17, 2016, CBS canceled the series after one season.[7]

Premise

The series centers on the Capitol in Washington, D.C., where alien bugs infect members of Congress.[8] [9] [10]

Documentary filmmaker Laurel Healy agrees to take a job working for her brother, Democratic Senator Luke Healy, in order to secure funding for her next film. However, she comes across a conspiracy in which alien bugs have partially replaced the brains of several people, including members of Congress. Sometimes, the bugs cause their victims' heads to explode. The song "You Might Think" by The Cars is used frequently in the series as a leitmotif for characters who are infected by the aliens.

Cast

Main

Recurring

Guest

Production

Singer-songwriter Jonathan Coulton wrote and performed musical recap segments of previous episodes, shown during the cold opening of each episode. There were exceptions to this, however: one episode instead opened with a parody commercial for "Space Bugs" in the style of prescription drug commercials in the musical style of the other recaps, while in another recap the singer, after admitting that the previous episode was too overwhelming to recap, recapped an episode of the western Gunsmoke instead.[27] [28] [29] [30]

Broadcast

The series premiered in Australia on Monday June 20, 2016,[31] on Eleven,[32] part of the Ten network.

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds a 65% approval rating based on 49 critics. The site's critical consensus reads: "While admittedly uneven, BrainDead remains a charmingly idealistic sign of the political times". On Metacritic, the show holds a 61 out of 100 score based on 37 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

On its cancellation, Robert King, the show's creator said, "It was a show that was trying to be as weird and anti-network as could be, and it was probably a mistake to do that on a network. But I loved that show."[33]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Promising sci-fi satire BrainDead suggests there are worse things than gridlock . The A.V. Club. June 14, 2016. September 7, 2016. Perkins. Dennis.
  2. Web site: BrainDead: the absurd new thriller that will make your head explode. The Guardian. August 26, 2016. September 7, 2016. Heritage. Stuart.
  3. Web site: BrainDead Series Premiere Review: Sci-Fi Thriller Meets Political Satire. Freeman. Molly. June 14, 2016. September 7, 2016. Screen Rant.
  4. Web site: About. CBS.
  5. Web site: Prudom . Laura . CBS Shifts 'BrainDead' to Sundays to Make Room for Political Conventions . . July 15, 2016 . July 16, 2016.
  6. Web site: BrainDead, American Gothic Not Returning for Season 2. TVLine. Michael Ausiello. October 17, 2016. December 4, 2016. December 4, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161204043837/http://tvline.com/2016/10/17/braindead-cancelled-cbs-season-2/. dead.
  7. Web site: Summer Series 'BrainDead' & 'American Gothic' Canceled By CBS After One Season. Andreev. Nellie. Deadline Hollywood. October 17, 2016. October 17, 2016.
  8. Web site: de Moraes . Lisa . CBS' BrainDead: 13 Episodes Explaining Aliens Eating Brains of Congress to Debut in Summer 2016 . . August 16, 2015 . July 22, 2015.
  9. Web site: Birnbaum . Debra . CBS Orders Comic Thriller from Good Wife Producers . . August 16, 2015 . July 22, 2015.
  10. Hibberd . James . Congress Is BrainDead in New CBS Dramedy Mocking Capitol Hill . . August 16, 2015. July 22, 2015.
  11. Web site: Andreeva . Nellie . Lauren Cohan to Topline CBS' Comic-Thriller Series 'BrainDead' . . September 13, 2015 . September 10, 2015.
  12. Web site: Andreeva . Nellie . Danny Pino to Star in CBS Summer Series 'BrainDead' from 'Good Wife' Creators . Deadline Hollywood. November 30, 2015 . January 10, 2016.
  13. . February 4, 2016 . Tony Shalhoub Joins the Cast of 'BrainDead' . . February 5, 2016.
  14. Web site: Aaron Tveit to Star in CBS Sci-Fi Drama 'BrainDead' . The Hollywood Reporter. October 20, 2015. October 15, 2015. Stanhope. Kate.
  15. Web site: Obenson . Tambay A. . Johnny Ray Gill Joins Nikki M. James in New CBS Comic-Thriller, 'BrainDead' . . October 26, 2015 . January 10, 2016.
  16. Web site: Biography Charlie Semine. CBS. September 5, 2016.
  17. Web site: First Look: Things Seem Headed In The Wrong Direction . CBS. September 6, 2016.
  18. Web site: Odds & Ends: Megan Hilty Tapped for BrainDead Opposite Aaron Tveit, Groundhog Day Cast Set & More. Lloyd Webber. Imogen. May 9, 2016. September 5, 2016. Broadway.com.
  19. Web site: Beth Malone Joins 'BrainDead' On CBS. Denise. Petski. Deadline Hollywood. March 21, 2016. September 5, 2016.
  20. David Wiegand, "‘Good Wife’ creators’ follow-up is ‘BrainDead’ on arrival", San Francisco Chronicle, Retrieved September 5, 2016
  21. IVYV, "BrainDead Season 2 Hangs In The Balance; Episode 8 Introduces Senator Diane Vaynerchuk", movienewsguide.com, Retrieved September 5, 2016
  22. http://www.tv.com/shows/braindead/cast/ "BRAINDEAD CAST"
  23. http://cartermatt.com/211888/braindead-spoilers-margo-martindale-good-wife-justified-appear/ "‘BrainDead’ spoilers: Margo Martindale of ‘The Good Wife,’ ‘Justified’ to appear"
  24. Chris. E. Hayner, "3 reasons you need to watch ‘BrainDead,’ including a Michael Moore sex scene", zap2it, Retrieved September 3, 2016
  25. Colin Mcguire, "Season 1, Episode 7 - "The Power of Euphemism ..."", popmatters.com, Retrieved September 8, 2016
  26. Michael Knox-Smith, "BrainDead: Season One, Ep 9 – Murder Times Two (Recap and Review)", Retrieved September 16, 2016
  27. Web site: BrainDead Recap: Our Bugs, Ourselves. Vulture. August 15, 2016 . 2019-05-09.
  28. Web site: How The Good Fight Makes Its Catchy, Bizarre Animated Shorts. April 11, 2019. Vulture. 2019-05-09.
  29. Web site: 'BrainDead' Recap: The Bug-Busting Team Gains A Member. EW.com. en. 2019-05-09.
  30. Web site: I'm obsessed with the musical recaps of a TV show I've never watched. Gartenberg. Chaim. 2016-09-06. The Verge. 2019-05-09.
  31. Web site: BrainDead comes to Eleven . Ryno's TV . June 15, 2016 . August 9, 2016.
  32. Web site: BrainDead . TENplay . . August 9, 2016.
  33. Web site: BrainDead Was 'Probably a Mistake to Do' on a Broadcast Network, Says EP . Ausiello . Michael . January 9, 2017 . March 16, 2017 . TVLine.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "BrainDead".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.