Almost Human (TV series)

Did You Know?

• The series received an Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Special and Visual Effects.
• Kevin McFarland of The A.V. Club gave the pilot a C+ grade, criticizing the information-heavy introduction but noting 'flashes of excitement'.

Premise

In 2048, crime rates have risen 400% due to unrestrained technological evolution. The overwhelmed police force now pairs every human officer with a lifelike combat-model android. Set in New Pittsburg, detective John Kennex (Karl Urban) harbors resentment toward these robot partners. Nearly two years earlier, Kennex and his squad were ambushed while raiding a hideout of the violent inSyndicate gang. A logic-based android abandoned Kennex and his badly injured partner because the wounded man's survival chances were low, deeming rescue illogical. An explosion cost Kennex his leg and killed his partner. After a 17-month coma, Kennex awakens with a cybernetic prosthetic leg and memory gaps, which he attempts to fill by visiting a black-market memory-recovery doctor called a Recollectionist in the city slums. He also copes with abandonment by his ex-girlfriend Anna. Recalled to duty by Captain Sandra Maldonado (Lili Taylor), Kennex is paired with a standard MX-43 android, which he throws from a moving vehicle when it threatens to report his behavior. He receives a replacement: an older DRN model, originally decommissioned for police work and slated for transfer to a Space Station. These DRN androids were designed to be nearly human but struggled with emotional responses, leading to their replacement by logic-based MX units. Kennex's unit, named Dorian (Michael Ealy), dislikes being called a "synthetic" and displays a dry, sarcastic wit. The series arc focuses on the developing relationship between Kennex and Dorian.

Cast and characters

Karl Urban plays John Kennex, a detective who lost a leg after a Synthetic abandoned him and his partner due to low survival odds; he awakens from a 17-month coma with a synthetic prosthetic and returns to duty. Michael Ealy portrays DRN-0167, called Dorian, a retired DRN model Police Synthetic who resents the term "Synthetic." Minka Kelly is Valerie Stahl, a detective and Kennex's love interest, who is a Chrome—a human genetically engineered for beauty and success. Mackenzie Crook plays technician Rudy Lom, Michael Irby plays detective Richard Paul, and Lili Taylor plays Captain Sandra Maldonado.

Development and production

The series appeared on Fox's development slate in September 2012, and a pilot was green-lit in January 2013. Fox added the series to its 2013–14 schedule on May 8, 2013. On September 9, 2013, executive producer and co-showrunner Naren Shankar departed due to creative differences, leaving creator J. H. Wyman as sole showrunner. Originally scheduled to premiere Monday, November 4, 2013, Fox delayed the series by two weeks, airing a special preview on Sunday, November 17 before moving to its regular Monday time slot on November 18. The aired episode order differed from the production order intended by Wyman, but due to largely self-contained episodes, this caused no significant discontinuity, though the growing trust between Kennex and Dorian appears uneven in the televised sequence. Fox cancelled the series on April 29, 2014, after one season, reportedly due to low ratings, high production costs, and a full fall schedule. Ealy noted the show required "CSI numbers" to continue.