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Tag: Emily Wiseman

As The Wormhole Turns – La Brea The Road Home Part Two Ends An Era?
Welcome Back La Brea and Wormhole Science Fiction Lovers!

Image courtesy NBC

As our article title and the third season La Brea poster header indicated all season long, is this an end of an era in scripted science fiction series on major network television channels like NBC?

Do such science fiction series, subsequent to lower ratings as compared to police, fire, and hospital scripted programs (which are flourishing), spell the end of the science fiction genre on major network channels in the United States?

Unfortunately, this would appear to be the case for new science fiction series that could be broadcast on the United States television networks ABC, CBS or NBC.

There is good news however. Beloved science fiction television genre series is well underway via movement to streaming platforms such as Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Crackle TV, Disney Plus, Hulu, MGM Plus, Netflix, Paramount Plus, and Peacock TV.

Image courtesy NBC

What this means is that although science fiction on major United States based network channels may be at the End Of Life (EOL) for now, the science fiction television genre will live on to be loved by tens of millions of viewers as evidenced by recent science fiction series successes such as Fallout, Foundation, For All Mankind, Outer Range, Halo, The Mandalorian and other new content being created for and by streaming television services!

The Forty Year Back Story:

Image courtesy ABC

ABC Network (now part of Disney) was a player in the modern science fiction broadcast world subsequent to their highly successful Lost series from 2004 to 2010 with 121 episodes. After a notable original V mini-series success on NBC in 1983, V The Final Battle in 1984 and a shortened nineteen episode weekly series on NBC that left science fiction fans with huge cliffhanger, ABC picked up the franchise. ABC subsequently left the science fiction genre after a two season run of a reboot of V Series from 2009 to 2011 that also disappointed fans who had hoped the story arc would be completed in a third season.

City On The Edge Of Forever. Image courtesy Paramount Plus

CBS Network had never been a significant science fiction content producer until it picked up the Star Trek franchise now broadcast on the Paramount Plus streaming service.

Likewise, the CW Network (originally UPN – The United Paramount Network until 2006), like SYFY, is actually a cable channel that produced significant science fiction related content including The Secret Circle (2011), The Vampire Diaries (2009), Arrow (2012), iZombie (2015), Legends of Tomorrow (2016), Riverdale (2017) and the popular Superman & Lois (2021) entering its fourth and final season soon.

Image courtesy SYFY

With very few exceptions, notably the SYFY Channel in the United States (a cable channel that is owned by NBC), there are few relatively new science fiction scripted series on network television remaining.

These include as The Ark headed for a second season and comedic science fiction series Resident Alien (hopefully pending renewal for a fourth season).

Now in 2024, virtually all of the other recent science fiction series are now exclusively only on streaming platforms.

Streaming Roots and How We Arrived Here:

Image courtesy SYFY

The roots of successful streaming programs can be said to have arguably begun in earnest in May 2007 with the Sanctuary web series first broadcast on the Internet. The Sanctuary web based series was so successful it actually crashed the Internet servers on launch day. I was peripherally involved in a support role for fans to interact with the series star Amanda Tapping while running a popular website dedicated to supporting the Stargate franchise prior to the launch of WormholeRiders News Agency in 2008. Sanctuary, produced in conjunction with Space Channel of Canada (now known as CTV SciFi), was such a success that the web series was picked up by SYFY (then the SciFi channel) that ran four seasons from 2009 to 2001.

The Invaders Image courtesy ABC

SciFi began broadcasting in September 1992 with the hit movie Star Wars Episode IV (The New Hope) as its first broadcast.

SciFi had much early success over their early years which can be attributed to broadcasting re-runs of iconic science fiction programs such as the early episodes of Dr. Who, The Prisoner, The Invaders, Star Trek the Original Series (TOS) and many various fan favorite science fiction movies.

Image courtesy SYFY

SYFY’s first original hit series was the short lived one season dystopian space opera Mission Genesis in 1997. Then came First Wave co-produced with the Space Channel broadcast from 1998 to 2001.

This was followed by the now classic Farscape series that was broadcast from 1999 to 2003. Farscape was co-produced with Nine Network.

Image courtesy Amazon MGM Studios

SciFi then invested heavily in additional science fiction scripted series beginning when it acquired the rights in 2001 to broadcast Stargate SG-1 owned by MGM Studios (Now known as Amazon MGM Studios).

Stargate SG-1 was originally on Showtime from 1997 to 2001, then continued to be broadcast on SYFY until 2007 for a combined total of ten episode years totaling 214 episodes. SYFY then added the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica in 2004, and Stargate Atlantis in 2005. MGM released two follow on direct to DVD Stargate SG-1 movies in 2008 that SYFY also broadcast. Stargate Universe began in 2009 and in 2010 SYFY created Caprica, a popular Battlestar prequel series that sadly only lasted one season.

Image courtesy SYFY Sharknado

SYFY also became well known for their weekly wild and often wacky science fiction movies for which it became famous in their own right.

The wildly successful weekly movie series generated huge followings of millions of viewers every week that culminated in the success of the Sharknado movies (1 to 6) series that concluded in 2018.

Image courtesy TNT

Close competitors in the with superb science fiction content in the twenty-first century were the Turner Network Television (TNT) Network and its fabulous Falling Skies series with five seasons broadcast from 2011 to 2015.

TNT’s also broadcast their subsequently successful program called The Last Ship, a dystopian action science fiction drama series that ran for five seasons from 2014 to 2018.

Image courtesy Warner Brothers TV

The Fox Network was a strong contributor with their original The X-Files series from 1993 to 2002, Sliders in 1998, Firefly in 2002, and the iconic fabled Fringe series produced at Warner Brothers Television that ran for five years and 100 episodes from 2008 to 2013. Fox and the fascinating time travel mystery series Alcatraz was not renewed after one season in 2011 despite strong ratings when the network decided to renew Fringe for a fifth season instead. Fox left the genre after NexT rogue AI series in 2020 which ran for only one season. Fox Network television was subsequently acquired by Disney which has its hands full with Marvel and Star Wars streaming series.

The Beginning of The End:

Image courtesy NBC

The decline of science fiction series like La Brea on network television channels can be traced back to its roots on December 03, 2009 when telecommunications giant Comcast announced its intent to acquire mass media company NBC Universal from General Electric corporation amid concerns at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of potential negative effects within the vertical entertainment industry since Comcast was also heavily involved in cable television and internet services in many United States media markets.

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

On March 19, 2013 General Electric divested itself from NBC giving Comcast sole ownership and a free hand to reduce employees located within duplicate internal divisions. Through this acquisition, Comcast gained ownership of the National Broadcasting Company (NBC), the film studio Universal Pictures, cable channels such as SYFY, Universal Parks & Resorts. Among other assets owned by NBC Universal was the USA Network and the E! Channel who often ran large entertainment convention events at San Diego Comic-Con, WonderCon in San Francisco and Anaheim as well as at New York ComicCon at the Javits Center.

Image by Greg Gayne courtesy NBC

SYFY reigned supreme for many years via their continued strong interest in scripted science fiction series (many were acquired and developed with Canadian UK network partners) subsequent to beginnings of the merger mania in 2009.

These fabulous programs included Sanctuary, Warehouse 13, Eureka, Helix, Haven, Alphas, Lost Girl, Merlin, Defiance, Continuum, 12 Monkeys, Dark Matter, Killjoys and The Expanse. Their last major five year successes concluded with the supernatural science fiction thrillers Van Helsing, Wynonna Earp, and The Magicians.

The cracks in the formula became apparent when SYFY, out of nowhere, stunned viewers when it dumped The Expanse despite rave reviews and being the highest rated science fiction program in 2018.

Fortunately The Expanse was picked up by Amazon Studios, running on Amazon Prime for three more seasons on the streaming service with success and high praise.

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

In 2018, the pressure on broadcast networks became evident when a fabulous science fiction series on the NBC’s USA Network named Colony became a casualty. The NBC and Comcast merger “Reductions In Force” (RIF) became known as “the night of the long knives” which impacted the majority of staffers, employees and publicists whose careers ended abruptly with what many believe were unanticipated layoffs. Another great NBC series, Manifest, was not renewed but was saved by streaming service Netflix.

Image by Greg Gayne courtesy NBC

Great SYFY series such as Primeval New World, Ghost Wars, Incorporated, and Day of The Dead were subsequently not renewed after single seasons, likely a result of terminating publicist marketing employee teams in “the night of the long knives” that were needed for continued series success. Krypton, based on the DC Comics Superman franchise, made it to two years to 2019 but effectively ended cable channel SYFY’s dominance as undisputed king of science fiction series as an NBC network affiliate. SYFY original programming suffered as a result. Alien Nation and horror based Chucky remain as the only multi-season survivors.

Image courtesy Amazon MGM Studios

However, all these events actually jump started the streaming services movement which can be traced in large part to huge success in 2015 with a The Man In the High Castle broadcast on Amazon Prime Video for four seasons concluding in 2019.

This factor was repeated with the Warner Brothers Discovery merger last year that cancelled a completed season four production of Snowpiercer ready to be broadcast on TNT (the fourth season now will broadcast by AMC in 2025), and Westworld which had been renewed for a fifth season on HBO but will not be produced after the merger that produced the Warner Discovery conglomerate. With talk of further consolidation in the entertainment industry looming in the future, all this could mean the end of ABC, CBS, or NBC network channel science fiction series in the United States.

Image courtesy NBC

Since that time a few months ago, new science fiction series broadcast on major network television channels ABC, CBS and NBC are few and far between. After NBC chose not to renew a superb series named Debris with good ratings created by J.H. Wyman of Fringe after broadcasting only thirteen episodes in season one ending in late May 2021, the beloved La Brea time travel science fiction series on NBC may be the last major network television effort in that regard, at least for the time being.

The Future of Science Fiction Television is Streaming:

The Mandalorian Image courtesy Disney Plus

Streaming services accelerated during the transition subsequent to the entire Star Wars and Star Trek franchises moving to streaming platforms when Disney purchased Lucas Film.

CBS, broadcast owner of Star Trek franchise launched Paramount Plus, the renamed CBS All Access streaming service.

Star Wars series such as The Mandalorian, Obi Wan Kenobi, The Book of Bobba Fett, and Andor have been a success on Disney Plus. Star Trek series including Discovery, Picard, and Strange New Worlds have been huge successes on the Paramount Plus streaming service.

All of this begs the question:

Will ever be another science fiction series to be launched on a major network channel in the United States?

Or is the science fiction genre to only find life only on streaming services in the future? We shall see.

In the meantime, enjoy the wildest moments of La Brea courtesy of NBC included below.
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The Road Home Part 2:

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

We here at Team WHR believed that there is much more to this superb La Brea story remaining to be told. Unfortunately, “The Road Home, Part 2” is the finale for this terrific time travel science fiction adventure series. Although we had been hoping for at least five full seasons of the La Brea series, as the old adage often applied to television programming saying goes; “Don’t Cry and Be Sorry it’s Over, Be Happy Because It Happened”, and we are because the series ended without cliffhangers!

On that note, we waited to post this analysis hoping that series creator David Appelbaum would be able to place La Brea with one of the major streaming services. As of this post, that does not seem to be happening at this time, but will remain hopeful that may occur in the future after we publish this feature article.

“The Road Home, Part 2” finale aired subsequent “The Road Home, Part 1” after a remaining character named Helena (Emily Wiseman) surfaced in the episode “Fire Storm” where we learned that Helena is Gavin Harris’s (Eoin Macken) half sister. We also learned that Time Travel was invented by their father who finished setting up the technology in 1965 using modern 2020’s computer technology to create jet aircraft that in the end help save our heroes.

Image by Greg Gayne courtesy NBC

The good news of La Brea is that the series producers and creator ensured the series would conclude on a happy note creating an enjoyable ending for their fans. Eve (Natalie Zea) and her family of Gavin, Josh (Jack Martin), and Izzy (Zyra Gorecki), in fact all the main characters including Sam Velez (Jon Seda) and his daughter Riley (Veronica St. Clair), Scott Israni (Rohan Mirchananey), Veronica Castillo (Lily Santiago), Lucas Hayes (Josh McKenzie), Judah (Damien Fotiou), and even Petra (Asmara Feik) daughter of deceased villain Maya Schmidt (Claudia Ware), all safely make it back safely to 2021 either using the prototype Time Travel jet aircraft or utilized a wormhole portal to return home to their own time, most likely closing once and for all after everyone returned to 2021.

Image courtesy NBC

In the end, Ty Coleman (Chiké Okonkwo) decided to stay in 10,000 BC with his wife Paara (Tonantzin Carmelo) to live out their lives. Levi Delgado (Nicholas Gonzales) sadly passed away sacrificing himself to save the others.

We never learned the fate of Silas (Mark Lee) and other characters in 10,000 BC. Likewise, Leyla (Edyll Ismail) daughter of Ruth (Chantelle Jamieson) never consummated her relationship with Izzy due to the shortened third season.

Image courtesy Amazon MGM Studios

Lastly, the La Brea series finale reminded me of the famous two part Stargate SG-1 episode “Moebius part 2” where the main characters went back in time to fix the future. The end result was that Stargate SG-1 main characters lived as themselves in ancient Egypt as a method to ensure that the future characters never had to go back in time in the first place so they could fish at Jack’s pond that had no fish before Moebius but did have fish when the future characters ended the eighth season knowing they had changed the future.

Image courtesy NBC

Therefore, speaking of endings, there are a La Brea few items that were not addressed in the finale: Did Gavin destroy the trouble making Time Travel computer chip in the jet aircraft?
Did everyone get back to the correct time at the end (pun intended)? Did the original wormhole ever occur in the pilot episode if Gavin destroyed the time chip technology after returning to 2021? Did the finale cleanly avoid all time paradoxes of having two of several main characters that existed at the same time (again pun intended)?

Image courtesy NBC

In closing our analysis of La Brea, one of our favorite science fiction series by the way, we wonder If Gavin did not destroy the time chip after they all returned after the wormhole occurred in 2021, since the items above were never really addressed, what could happen in the future?

Although unlikely, It remains a long shot possibility that a La Brea series could return in the future, perhaps on a streaming service, so everyone can learn more about Gavin’s father in 1965, and the fate of humankind in the future.

We certainly hope that to be the case!

We will be back in the near future with more of your favorite television series and movie analysis. In the meantime, please feel free to share this article with your friends, co-workers and or family and leave your comments!

We look forward to you visiting our dedicated review and analysis web site here in the future! Or as many of our readers and visitors often do, visit TeamWHR on Twitter, or visit me on Twitter by clicking the text links or images avatars in this news story. I and TeamWHR look forward to Seeing You on The Other Side!“

Thank you.

Best Regards,

Kenn of #TeamWHR
April 25, 2024
La Brea Review The Road Home Part One Sadness But Lots of Mind Blowing Fun!
Welcome Back La Brea and Wormhole Time Travel Science Fiction Lovers!

Image courtesy NBC

“The Road Home, Part 1” sets up the series finale “The Road Home, Part 2” airing next week on NBC after the awesome excitement of “Fire Storm”, we move to the fabulous fifth episode of La Brea, the first of a two part series finale named “The Road Home, Part 1” after the final remaining unrevealed character named Helena (Emily Wiseman) who surfaced in the previous episode “Fire Storm”. We learned that Helena is Gavin’s (Eoin Macken) half sister in 2021 after she took him to a bank safety deposit box to retrieve the prototype Time Travel Computer Chip. We also learned that Time Travel was invented by their father who finished setting up the technology in 1965.

One of the most enjoyable aspects of La Brea are the plot twists that the writers develop on who the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ characters are. As an example, Gavin and Helena knew each other for decades before they stole the Time Travel Computer Chip technology from Maya Schmidt (Claudia Ware) in 2021 to put an end to her abuse of time travel that originally resulted in a wormhole sinkhole opening in late September 2021 and the creation of dual colored aurora time travel wormhole portals that have resulted in our heroes and their acquaintances being sent to 10,000 BC. The outcome was that Maya erased Gavin’s memories of the work that he did to create time travel jet aircraft that have caused ripples in the Space Time Continuum actions.

Image courtesy NBC

Helena, against her wishes, is forced to let Ty (Chiké Okonkwo) return to 10,000 BC with the prototype Time Travel Computer Chip in an effort to save Eve (Natalie Zea) who we have learned was taken to 1965 by Maya. In “Fire Storm”, Maya also took Scott (Rohan Mirchananey) prisoner for her nefarious purposes of taking control of the Time Travel Facilities created by Gavin and Helena’s father.

Before beginning our review and analysis of “The Road Home, Part 1” we will share that one major character will sadly perish in this episode. Additionally, what we suspected last episode is that since Helena apparently knew where the wormhole portals would manifest themselves, she would follow Ty back to 10,000 BC to stop Maya and help Gavin’s family and friends determine a way to restore them to their timeline, find Eve, Levi (Nicholas Gonzales), Riley (Veronica St. Clair), and Josh (Jack Martin). Based on this episodes story arc, other supporting characters including Paara (Tonantzin Carmelo), Silas (Mark Lee) and Maya’s daughter Petra (Asmara Feik) may be written out of the series entirely. We shall see.
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The Road Home – Part 1:

Image courtesy NBC

The fifth episode of season three, written by Jerome Schwartz and directed by Nick Gomez, opens in 10,000 BC with Gavin walking in the forest while he thinks about saving Eve. This is the morning after Gavin Sam (Jon Seda) met with Ty has returned from 2021 with the Time Travel Computer Chip.

Subsequent to chatting with Izzy (Zyra Gorecki), Ty joins Gavin to discuss their viable options to create a plan to not only rescue Eve, Paara, Riley, Josh and Levi, but perhaps use the aurora wormholes to return home to their own time in 2021.

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

Both agree that they cannot trust whoever has been sending the messages via the potato powered computer they obtained at the Time Travel Facility before it was destroyed last season. Gavin and Ty ascertain that whoever is communicating with them is part of the Time Travel conspiracy that created this fiasco in the first place.

Ty shares that Paara and Silas are missing and “should have returned days ago” reinforcing that we may not see these characters again before the series completes it run next week as mentioned above. However, both express hope they will get their families back.

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

Meanwhile in the safety of the village fort in 10,000 BC we are with Izzy, Ruth (Chantelle Jamieson), Veronica (Lily Santiago), Leyla (Edyll Ismail) and Lucas (Josh McKenzie). Izzy confides to Veronica that she likes Leyla who has asked Veronica to go on an overnight “stargazing” camp out. Veronica shares that she and Lucas “figure it out one day at a time”, encouraging Izzy to do the same. With the series ending next week, it is a shame that these two romantic relationships will not be explored further in a fourth season.

Image courtesy NBC

With Maya watching their every move, there is now no doubt that she is an evil influence with an agenda that cannot be trusted. This is once again proven accurate when Maya once again shows up immediately after a message appears on the potato powered computer asking “Did you find the microchip?” referring to the Time Travel Computer Chip prototype she needs to complete her corrupt conspiracy to control history utilizing time travel.

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

Sam is with Lucas who is visiting his mother’s grave when they discuss the kidnapping of Scott during the “Fire Storm” episode wondering how anyone could have figured it out during the emergency. Lucas is certain “someone is feeding them information” providing viewers with further proof that Maya is the likely culprit. Gavin is ordered via the computer to take the chip to “Cahuega Peak before sunset and you will get Eve”. Gavin suspects that it is a trap setup by Maya. Leading her into a sense of overconfidence when he says he needs to think about it. Maya follows Gavin who threatens him at gunpoint. Sam and Ty show up to save Gavin.

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

Back at the village fort Veronica is setting the table for a scheduled council meeting when she discovers a military grade waterproof box containing radio equipment stamped with “Ladera Air Base”.

Veronica immediately seeks out Lucas to inform him of her discovery of the suspicious equipment found under a rug in the council chambers.

Veronica determines that Maya was never allowed in the council chambers sharing this detail with Lucas. This confirmation proves that this clue leading Veronica and Lucas to suspect that someone on the village council must be in league with Maya.

Image courtesy NBC

We move to the enigmatic Ladera Air Base where we find Scott and Levi being held captive. Scott reveals to Levi that Maya lied to everyone and was responsible for kidnapping him as well to obtain archeological knowledge documented in a white paper Scott wrote called “Universal Flora – A Study of What We Leave Behind” that is somehow linked to whatever Maya is up to.

Image courtesy NBC

Speaking of Maya, we segue to Ty, Sam and Gavin who have tied her up demanding that she reveal where Eve is. Unfortunately, Maya is wearing a tracking device that looks like a wristwatch which spells trouble for Gavin, Sam and Ty.

Our heroes are captured by Maya’s soldiers from the Ladera Air Base. Maya quickly takes possession of the Time Travel Computer Chip prototype.

Image courtesy NBC

We then learn that Helena did indeed follow Ty back from 2021 when she ambushes the soldiers holding Sam Gavin and Ty at gunpoint killing several of them. Maya is not hit by weapons fire, escaping in a military jeep to leverage her knowledge about the Time Travel Computer Chip and complete her nefarious plan to control time. At this juncture, we can only hope that our heroes will still manage to help save Eve? We shall see.

Image courtesy NBC

Helena shares with the group “you have no idea what that woman (Maya) is capable of” revealing that Maya is the head of a private corporate contracting group that built the time travel aircraft Gavin flew before his memory was erased by Maya. Once Maya stumbled on the time travel technology as a contractor, she kept it secret, hijacking it to solidify their corporate dominance not only in 2021, but across all time forever! Gavin, Ty, Sam and Helena head to the Ladera Air Base to take back the Time Travel Computer Chip before Maya can execute her plan to sell the technology to the highest bidder. At this point the viewers should consider this to be a plot hole since selling the technology could lead others to be able to change history in their favor over Maya’s wishes.

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

At the council meeting Veronica reveals the military radio she discovered to Ruth and her henchman telling the group they must take a break to consider Veronica’s serious accusation.

Instead Ruth flees the village indicating that she is a prime suspect cooperating with Maya’s plans.

The question viewers asked is why? Ruth always appeared dedicated to the people in the village fort. Veronica and Lucas follow Ruth to get to the answer of what the heck is going on.

Image courtesy NBC

In a series of stunning story arc reveals, Levi had been taken from his cell for more what viewers believed was more interrogation. Levi actually meets up with Maya claiming he is in process of extracting information from Scott for her plan. In fact, Levi is a spy against Maya.

Disabling the security camera in Scott’s cell, Levi tells Scott they must work together to stop Maya from completing her plan and help save his one time lover Eve. Levi details that he was sent on his spy mission to investigate “Maya who has operations throughout time, including 10,000 BC”. Levi turns the security camera back on, punching Scott in the gut twice to fool Maya. Levi tells Maya he must move Scott to the “long term detention center” which she agrees to. Scott and Levi then make good their escape from Ladera Air Base in 10,000 BC.

Image courtesy NBC

As the episode winds down to the end viewers enjoy another fun scene when a prehistoric alligator attacks Ty, Sam, Helena and Gavin who are traveling to Ladera Air base on a raft to rescue Eve.

Naturally they dispatch the giant beast using automatic weapons fire and proceed on foot to the base. However, they are all being monitored by another security camera mounted in a tree!

Image courtesy NBC

When confronted by Izzy, Veronica and Lucas, Ruth finally admits her guilt regarding the radio equipment that Veronica discovered in the council chambers.

In fact, Ruth was covering up for her daughter Leyla and Maya so that her daughter could escape with Izzy Back To The Future. Of course, Maya was lying to all of them.

Image courtesy NBC

Sadly Levi is killed when he moves to save Helena, Gavin, Ty and Sam. Izzy, following Levi, almost saves him by shooting an arrow at the last soldier tracking them down. Unfortunately, the soldier gets off a round shooting Levi is the gut. Gavin, Izzy, Sam and Levi share a last few moments together. Levi and Gavin share “they are brothers to the end”.

Gavin, Izzy and Sam learn from Levi that Eve is in “long term detention” before he passes away in 10,000 BC. This was perhaps one of the saddest scenes in the series because everyone liked Levi who acted like a father during the time that Gavin was suffering from alcoholism during his periods of memory loss induced hallucinations.

Image courtesy NBC

The final sequence finds us at the coordinates of where Eve, Josh and Riley are supposed to be held in detention. Instead we see a double aurora wormhole portal open in the clearing. Checking the coordinates on a handheld device that Levi had, we learn via a notation pointing to the red side of the aurora, confirmed by Helena, that the long term detention facilities are in 1965. Gavin, Izzy, Sam and Helena enter the wormhole portal to not only save their family members, but to destroy Maya’s insidious infrastructure once and for all time!

Join us on the next week on X (Twitter) to enjoy a fun live tweet for the final episode of La Brea when we will find out the remaining secrets of season three and hopefully find “The Road Home” for all the survivors. See you next week for the series finale!

We will be back in the near future with our last analysis of the La Brea season three finale as well as your favorite television series and movie analysis. In the meantime, please feel free to share this article with your friends, co-workers and or family and leave your comments!

We look forward to you visiting our dedicated review and analysis web site here in the future! Or as many of our readers and visitors often do, visit TeamWHR on Twitter, or visit me on Twitter by clicking the text links or images avatars in this news story. I and TeamWHR look forward to Seeing You on The Other Side!“

Thank you.

Best Regards,

Kenn of #TeamWHR
February 6, 2024
La Brea Review Fire Storm is Certainly Not the Norm!
Welcome Back La Brea and Wormhole Time Travel Science Fiction Lovers!

Image courtesy NBC

The episodic excitement builds to a crescendo in the fabulous fourth episode of La Brea after the remaining unrevealed character, named Helena (Emily Wiseman) surfaced packing a pistol at the end of the third episode “Maya” while she was tracking Gavin (Eoin Macken) with plans to kidnap him!

Seemingly a threat to Gavin, we will learn in “Fire Storm” that Helena is none other than Gavin’s sister who had been working with him to stop the nefarious forces who have been in control of the secret Time Travel Facilities for over five decades. Although Gavin’s memory was erased by an evil entity, we will learn the how and the why Gavin and Helena knew each other for over half a century dating back to 1965 where Helena was in possession of the Time Travel Computer Chip that they both stole. Subsequent to the theft the result was that Gavin’s memory was erased by Maya Schmidt (Claudia Ware) who claims she had misgivings about her orders to do so. We we mention in our analysis of the previous episode, Maya is our suspect for the root cause of all the problems our heroes have encountered.

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

In fact Maya, code named “Sierra“, unknown to the others, will expose herself as the principal villain when she attacks Scott (Rohan Mirchananey) and takes him prisoner because of an archeological secret she needs for her own evil purposes.

With all of these various story arc factors now in place, La Brea is superbly setup for the two part series finale “The Road Home” beginning next week on NBC!
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Fire Storm:

Image courtesy NBC

The fourth episode of season three, written by Onalee Hunter Hughes and directed by Cherie Nowlan, opens in 2021 with the 10,000 BC version of Ty (Chiké Okonkwo) and Sam (Jon Seda) waiting in a vehicle.

They are waiting for Gavin to link up with a contact in a restaurant to gain access to a place near La Brea called the “Ladera Air Force Base” where the Time Travel Computer Chip is suspected to be located. We will soon learn that Gavin and Helena stashed it somewhere else safe.

Image courtesy NBC

Instead Helena shows up ordering Gavin to follow her out the backdoor of the restaurant at gunpoint.

Ty and Sam become suspicious upon entering the restaurant. With no sign of Helena or Gavin, they head out the back door of the eatery.

Unfortunately for Gavin, he is being kidnapped by Helena. Both escape but almost run over Ty and Sam in the process!

Image courtesy NBC

Back in 10,000 BC Gavin and Sam are communicating with whomever has Eve (Natalie Zea) using the computer salvaged from the Time Travel Facility before it was destroyed last season.

Whoever the person on the other end of the computer chat discussion orders Gavin to find the Time Travel Computer Chip stating that Eve’s life depends on it.

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

Suddenly, Maya appears outside asking Gavin if he remembers more about his erased memories, to which he replies “yes”. This is the first inkling viewers receive that Maya is the one behind everything that has been happening because she is obviously obsessed with the Time Travel Computer Chip. Gavin learns from Maya that it is the only existing functional prototype. Gavin goes on to share that he has remembered that the Chip is not in 10,000 BC and must be in 2021 but they have no way to retrieve it. This revelation appears to upset Maya.

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

However, Sam says they can get a message to Gavin, Sam and 10,000 BC Ty in the future using the tar pits where Scott works in 2021. This perks up Maya’s interest. The group uses the entertainment industry ‘message in a bottle’ trope, sending Scott the details of the help they need.

The other aspect of the episode is the title “Fire Storm” when Izzy (Zyra Gorecki), interrupting their discussion, points out the huge wild fire which forces a mandatory evacuation of the village fort. Scott, Izzy, Gavin and Maya head to the famous La Brea tar pit number nine which is where Scott is working in 2021. They drop the message in a bottle despite Scott’s concern that his future self may not be be willing to help. Viewers know that Scott was a ‘pot head’ who kicked the habit only after he arrived in 10,000 BC

Image courtesy NBC

In 2021, Sam of the future and Ty of the past are left at the restaurant parking lot trying to figure out a way to find Gavin. After nearly being run over, they are with no prospects or luck whatsoever.

Thinking that all hope may be lost, Gavin’s cell phone suddenly goes off with a signal fort them. Low and behold, it’s Scott who is trying to reach Gavin by cell phone with the ‘message in a bottle’ all the way from 10,000 BC!

Image courtesy NBC

They proceed to Scott’s apartment where Ty and Sam explain to him what has been happening and that Gavin has been kidnapped. Scott believes them wanting to know if it’s time travel according to “The Terminator” or “Back To The Future” rules? This is an interesting aspect of the episode that only time travel story lovers will understand and appreciate.

Scott says he will only give the message to Gavin because he’s “seen every time travel movie ever made” and without Gavin, only his cell phone as proof, Ty seems like the villain to have stolen it because Scott comments on his British accent, referring the classic 1960 film “The Time Machine“. One of my favorite films with English characters based on the work of H.G. Wells.
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Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

Segue to 10,000 BC where the smoke from the wild fire is thickening during the evacuation from the village fort. Even constant complainer Judah (Damien Fotiou) is being cooperative! With the winds shifting, it appears the village fort will be burnt to the ground unless a group led by Ruth (Chantelle Jamieson), Veronica (Lily Santiago), Leyla (Edyll Ismail) and Lucas (Josh McKenzie) who can act on their plan to release the water from their dam on the river to create a fire break and save their village fort home!

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

Gavin, Izzy, Scott and Maya out together to locate a dual colored wormhole portal aurora. Gavin, still suffering from the memory elixir made from Psilocybin mushrooms Maya gave him in the last episode, stops with Izzy and has a flashback of memories that include Maya and her interest in Scott’s archeological knowledge documented in a white paper in the hands of the government contractors called “Universal Flora – A Study of What We Leave Behind”, the Time Travel Computer Chip, a person’s arm with three scars on it, and a dual colored wormhole portal aurora. Scott shares with Gavin and Izzy that his archeological paper was never published wondering why the government would be interested in it?

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

Scott tells Izzy and Gavin to head back while he continues on to get Maya who is near the river. During the ensuing separation from Gavin and Izzy, Maya makes her move and kidnaps Scott taking him to the military base.

Showing her true self to the viewers, we are now certain that Maya is only trying to obtain the Time Travel Computer Chip from Gavin in the future and Scott’s research knowledge for her own evil purposes.

We then learn in some detail that Scott archeological knowledge is somehow critical to Maya’s plan which he discovered when he observed three scars on her arm precisely as Gavin had described. Maya returns to Izzy and Gavin without Scott stating he was captured but she escaped after trying to fight them off. A bloody wound on Maya’s forehead convinces Gavin and Izzy.

Image courtesy NBC

In 2021, Helena explains to Gavin that he was a willing participant in the terrible things that happened, including production of military fighter jets as time machines that Gavin flew into other time periods.

As things unraveled for the military with Gavin changing his mind about participating, Maya erased Gavin’s memory and ultimately came to Helena, his sister for help. Together Gavin and Helena stole the prototype Time Travel Computer Chip from Maya. Helena proves this by taking Gavin to a bank safety deposit box that requires both their thumbprints. Once opened, inside they find the prototype Time Travel Computer Chip! Driving to a lake near Los Angeles, Helena shares the rest of the story with Gavin; that it was their father who invented time travel, what was required to do so, including the only prototype which they stole to stop the misuse of their fathers time travel technology in 1965, the main Time Travel Facility.

Image courtesy NBC

Now desperately sought by Maya, who not only hijacked the program but the process of setting up Time Travel Facilities in multiple eras as well that became the root cause of the original Wormhole Sinkhole, everything that has transpired and the deaths of untold numbers of innocent people.

Instead, in 2021 Sam and Ty show up and convince Gavin the Time Travel Chip must be taken to 10,000 BC in order to save Eve per the ‘message in the bottle’. Helena says this is a mistake, however, Ty also wants to return to his wife Paara and volunteers to take the Chip back to 10,000 BC. Little do they all know that this is exactly what Maya wants then to do.

As the episode winds down to the end Veronica has saved day by exploding a hand made bomb and firing at it with a pistol all of which was her idea. Veronica damages the dam, releasing it’s water to extinguish the fire!

Lucas, who is mighty proud of Veronica because Veronica saved their home in 10,000 BC. The cinematography of the shot with the water escaping from the dam is another great image in the series that I enjoyed!

Image courtesy NBC

We then find ourselves with Sam and Lucas as Ty arrives back at the village fort with the Time Travel Computer Chip. The final sequence features Maya looking at them knowing that Ty has the Chip!

Therefore, exploring the secret Time Travel Facility base in 10,000 BC and learning the fate of our heroes , viewers will have to wait until next weeks episode called “The Road Home Part 1” to find out. See you next week!!

Image courtesy NBC

Lastly, viewers are eager for details as we approach the series finale since they have not seen main characters Eve, Levi (Nicholas Gonzales), Riley (Veronica St. Clair), Josh (Jack Martin) or supporting characters Paara (Tonantzin Carmelo), Silas (Mark Lee) or Maya’s daughter Petra (Asmara Feik) for some time. A question to consider is if viewers will we see them again, or will the series ‘write around’ their characters since it is known from several David Appelbaum interviews that some actors were unavailable due to scheduling change delays after the pandemic.

Join us the next two weeks on X (Twitter) to enjoy a fun live tweet for the final season of La Brea when we will find out the secrets of season three in 10,000 BC in order to finally find “The Road Home” Back To The Future for our heroes trapped in time!

We will be back in the near future with more of La Brea season three as well as your favorite television series and movie analysis. In the meantime, please feel free to share this article with your friends, co-workers and or family and leave your comments!

We look forward to you visiting our dedicated review and analysis web site here in the future! Or as many of our readers and visitors often do, visit TeamWHR on Twitter, or visit me on Twitter by clicking the text links or images avatars in this news story. I and TeamWHR look forward to Seeing You on The Other Side!“

Thank you.

Best Regards,

Kenn of #TeamWHR
January 30, 2024
La Brea Review Maya Mysterious Maven Means Map Manifestations!
Welcome Back La Brea and Wormhole Time Travel Science Fiction Lovers!

Image courtesy NBC

Maya is the third episode of season three of La Brea. The episode makes an important pivot in the story arc for viewers to learn more about an individual named Maya Schmidt (Claudia Ware) and how this development impacts the series final episodes. Maya is the person responsible for Gavin’s (Eoin Macken) memory loss because he became aware of a time travel military operation to 10,000 BC during the time he and Levi (Nicholas Gonzales) were in the Air Force together in their past lives in the future of the twenty first century.

As we will discover, Maya, military code named “Sierra“, apparently has misgivings about the orders she received to erase portions of Gavin’s memory that caused him to suffer visions and hallucinations that led to his bouts with alcohol abuse and estrangement from his friends and family.

A real question viewers should contemplate is whether Gavin should trust Maya at all?

Image courtesy NBC

In this episode Maya apparently seeks out Gavin in 10,000 BC to correct the wrongdoings she imposed on his life as well as planning to infiltrate the military base where it is suspected that Levi, Petra (Asmara Feik) and perhaps Eve (Natalie Zea) are being held hostage in an unknown time period.

On a parallel time track in 2021, viewers will recall that Ty (Chiké Okonkwo) was sucked into a wormhole portal aurora that sent him to early September 2021 where he links up with Sam (Jon Seda) and Gavin prior to the wormhole sinkhole as originally depicted in the pilot episode. Their mission is to locate and infiltrate the secret military Time Travel Facility base in 2021 that may be at the center of all the time disturbances.

Image courtesy NBC Universal

Major outstanding questions exist in the time periods encompassing the third season. First is whether Eve, Levi and Petra are prisoner in 10,000 BC or has the military used a wormhole portal at their Time Travel Facility to take them, and perhaps others Back To The Future? Second is will Ty, Gavin and Sam in 2021 be able to rescue their family and friends without adversely affecting realities across time?

Much like the famous Back To The Future film trilogy where changes made in the past changed the future, an important consideration is will our heroes make changes in the past that will cause irrevocable changes rippling through time affecting the future forever?

Or is it that whatever happens is what was supposed to occur, therefore not disrupting the future timelines. Could it be that changes made in the future of 2021 (prior to the events in the pilot episode) result in the wormhole time portal sinkholes never happening in the first place? Whatever direction creator David Appelbaum will ultimately choose will be revealed over the course of the remaining episodes of La Brea!
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Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

The third episode of season three was written by Rob Wright and directed by Cherie Nowlan opening with 2021 pre wormhole Sam and Gavin at a coffee shop restaurant with Ty from 10,000 BC where the three are discussing how to infiltrate the secret time travel military base to obtain answers on how they can save their family and friends trapped in 10,000 BC.

2021 Gavin, still suffering from gaps in his memory, says he doesn’t remember any secret program he was involved with about quantum physics (time travel) or anything else for that matter, although Gavin says he has been on the base “1,000 times”.

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

Ty assures Gavin that his 10,000 BC self was recalling details about the base and they must proceed there to find the connection to the wormhole portal auroras that have caused this disaster stating “the lives of the people you love depend on this”.

Gavin says he needs use the restroom and excuses himself. Actually Gavin is suffering from alcohol withdrawals and escapes to go find some booze. Ty and Sam end up having to track Gavin down. Naturally, they find Gavin in a local bar drinking.

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

Back in 10,000 BC, Gavin is drawing a map from the village fort to the military air base for Sam and Scott (Rohan Mirchananey). Telling them it’s the only action open to them if they hope to find Maya, Eve, Levi, Petra, as well as Riley (Veronica St. Clair) and Josh (Jack Martin) who jumped into the dual colored, dual time travel destination aurora wormhole portal in an attempt to get to a hospital somewhere in time to save Riley who had been wounded by a Velociraptor in the season opening episode “Sierra“.

Image courtesy NBC

It must be mentioned in our analysis that the cinematography of all the 10,000 BC episodes have been and still are superb. Each is replete with beautiful scenes of the wilderness of Australia where much of the series was filmed.

These scenes, in conjunction with realistic dinosaurs and the time travel portals make the series a wonder to behold each week that many viewers, including this editor, will certainly miss.

Gavin and Sam assure Scott that their mission is only reconnaissance at this point heading out from the safety of the village fort to perform their task of locating the mysterious time travel military base which appears to have been the root cause of all the troubles our hero survivors have experienced.

Image courtesy NBC

Speaking of dinosaurs, on the route to the time travel military base that Gavin has pieced together from returning memory fragments, he and Sam encounter a huge prehistoric rhinoceros that is intent on stomping them to smithereens!

Running for their lives, the only thing that saves them is that they unknowingly enter a minefield, one of which explodes, killing the rhino thereby saving their lives. The good news is that they are on the right track because only a military base would require minefields as a defensive perimeter.

Image courtesy NBC

Fortunately, Gavin and Sam find a safe path through the minefield thanks to someone who left stacked stones marking a pathway out.

The bad news is the minefield explosion apparently alerts members of the secret time travel program from the military base. Unfortunately this is precisely what happens when military helicopters are soon observed overhead followed by ground troops who easily capture Sam and Gavin holding them at gunpoint and tying them to a tree.

Image courtesy NBC

Back To The Future in 2021 Ty seeks out his estranged wife Sophie (Annabelle Stephenson) who wants nothing to do with him. The encounter reinforces Ty’s resolve to do the right thing to correct his past mistakes of criticizing her, blaming her for their marriage problems.

Viewers cannot help but wonder if Ty of the past will be able to repair his own challenges with his wife of the future? We shall learn more about Ty and Sophie later in the episode.

Image courtesy NBC

Meanwhile Ty and 2021 Sam locate Gavin who plans on boozing it up in a local bar rather than face the difficult choice of infiltration of the time travel base.

Ty shares a story from his past that caused a disaster for his wife in the future but is unable to get her to listen to him any longer.

Gavin agrees to attend an alcoholic anonymous meeting where Ty’s wife will be to share a story in the AA meeting that will change her life for the better.

Image courtesy NBC

Segue to 10,000 BC where we are with soon to be parents Veronica (Lily Santiago) and Lucas (Josh McKenzie) who are chatting about Lucas’s desire to join Ruth (Chantelle Jamieson) in the village fort leadership council.

Viewers will recall that Veronica and Lucas are planning on staying in the past since neither had much of a future in 2021. Interestingly, Ruth believes Veronica is a leader and suggests she join the village fort council which at first does not sit well with Lucas. Later Lucas realizes his selfishness and embraces the idea.

Image courtesy NBC

Back to Gavin and Sam tied to a tree, Maya also heard the landmine explosion and has been watching them the entire time when they were captured in 10,000 BC by armed soldiers from the time travel military base located nearby.

Cutting Gavin and Sam loose, Maya is as surprised to see Gavin as he is seeing her. For some reason not delineated at this time Maya decides to share details of the military weaponizing the use of time travel to be able to control events in history to their liking.

Image courtesy NBC

Gavin, having learned too much about the military use of time travel was subjected to biological memory erasure by Maya to keep the dark secret from being revealed to anyone. Maya, disgusted with the corruption of the powerful time travel secret military program, says that she planned on becoming a whistleblower but was captured with her daughter Petra and sent to 10,000 BC for imprisonment to keep their military secrets safe.

Gavin shares with Maya that he has had fragments of his memory return about why the military are tampering with past history timelines. Maya then shares that she may be able to restore Gavin’s memory before they enter the time travel base in 10,000 BC.

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

Maya further reveals that she is an expert in psychology operations. She makes Gavin an elixir of potentially poisonous Psilocybin mushrooms to expand his mind thereby unlocking his memories.

Gavin drinks the mixture causing a flood of memories related to his classified time travel military operations that includes the dual colored wormhole portal and a digital safe combination where an advanced computer chip that controls time travel is located. Gavin passes out and is taken to the village fort to recover.

Image by Mark Taylor courtesy NBC

In a side story, we are with Leyla (Edyll Ismail) and Izzy (Zyra Gorecki) who have bonded as result of survivor the pterodactyls together in the previous episode “Don’t Look Up“. This teamwork is a factor that will become important when a prehistoric boar attacks them and Leyla becomes trapped in a tar pit which the series namesake is famous for.

Fortunately, both escaped, further strengthening their bond of friendship that serves them well later when the boar returns and they work together to kill the beast. In the end it becomes apparent that Leyla and Izzy are becoming more than friends.

Image courtesy NBC

At the bar in 2021, Ty and Sam convince Gavin to help infiltrate the secret time travel military base with Ty using psychological techniques of Ty’s mistakes with his wife to encourage him. Gavin overcomes his fears and addiction when Ty shares that it was his own failures that forced his wife to drink excessively and drive, ultimately putting an innocent victim into a coma when she had an drunken auto accident.

The story stuns Gavin back to reality. Sam, Ty and Gavin head out to infiltrate the secret time travel military base but first stop by an alcoholics anonymous meeting helping Ty’s wife avoid the drunken auto accident.

Image courtesy NBC

As the episode approaches the end, we are in 10,000 BC with Sam, Izzy and Maya as Gavin regains consciousness from his mind expanding experience that helped him regain more of his erased memories.

Sam, Gavin and Maya come to the conclusion that whoever is behind all this wants the information that has been locked up in Gavin’s mind. All of them vow to find out who it is and why in the future while they are in 10,000 BC.

Image courtesy NBC

The final sequence finds us Ty in 2021 after he helps his ex-wife Sophie decide to seek therapy saving her from the horrible automobile accident in the original timeline.

They hug and Ty wishes her good luck in the future, now that she has a future to live again.

Viewers feel good about this development knowing that Ty has corrected one of the nightmares from his life that has plagued him for a long time. More importantly, Ty has changed the future. What are the ramifications of Ty altering the future? We simply do not know yet.

Image courtesy NBC

Gavin, Sam and Ty head towards the secret time travel military base. Unknown to them, they are being followed by an enigmatic woman named Helena played by famous Australian actress Emily Wiseman in a guest starring role.

All of this leaves the task of infiltration of the secret bases in 10,000 BC and 2021 until next weeks episode called “Fire Storm”. See you then!

Join us on each of the next three weeks on X (Twitter) to enjoy a fun live tweet for the final season of La Brea when we will find out the secrets of season three in 10,000 BC in order to hopefully find “The Road Home” Back To The Future for our heroes trapped in time!

We will be back in the near future with more of La Brea season three as well as your favorite television series and movie analysis. In the meantime, please feel free to share this article with your friends, co-workers and or family and leave your comments!

We look forward to you visiting our dedicated review and analysis web site here in the future! Or as many of our readers and visitors often do, visit TeamWHR on Twitter, or visit me on Twitter by clicking the text links or images avatars in this news story. I and TeamWHR look forward to Seeing You on The Other Side!“

Thank you.

Best Regards,

Kenn of #TeamWHR
January 23, 2024

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