Otherworld (TV series)

Overview

The Sterling family—Hal, June, Trace, Gina, and Smith—are inside the Great Pyramid of Giza on a tour when a planetary alignment, which happens only once every ten thousand years, triggers their mysterious transport to a planet called Thel. This world might also exist in a parallel universe. Thel is home to humans and some androids, split into separate provinces, each with its own government and customs. Travel between these provinces is tightly controlled by Zone Troopers, and the inhabitants of one province have no knowledge of the others. The province of Imar, governed by a Praetor, seems to serve as the planet’s central authority. The first episode hints at territories, android creators, and past wars of unification. The official religion of Thel is the Church of Artificial Intelligence, and no other beliefs are allowed. After a fight with Commander Kroll, a high-ranking Zone Trooper portrayed by Jonathan Banks, the Sterlings accidentally obtain an access crystal that lets them enter any zone. Kroll chases them to get the crystal back. Stone markers shaped like Egyptian obelisks, each carved with a single eye, are said to point the way to Imar. The city shown in the opening credits, intended to be Imar, is actually a photographic negative of New York City. In every episode, the family must cope with the strange customs of a new zone, then flee to another at the episode’s end, with Kroll pursuing them for both the crystal and revenge.