Eureka (American TV series)

Eureka is an American science fiction television series that premiered on Sci-Fi Channel on July 18, 2006. The fifth and final season ended on July 16, 2012. The show was set in the fictional town of Eureka, Oregon (although in the pilot episode Eureka was located in Washington – and the origin of a diamond in the episode "Best In Faux" was shown as Eureka, California). Most residents of Eureka are scientific geniuses who work for Global Dynamics – an advanced research facility responsible for the development of nearly all major technological breakthroughs since its inception. Each episode featured a mysterious accidental or intentional misuse of technology, which the town sheriff, Jack Carter, solved with the help of town scientists. Each season also featured a larger story arc that concerned a particular major event or item.

Eureka
Also known asA Town Called Eureka
Genre
Created by
Starring
Opening theme"Eureka on My Mind"
Ending theme"Eureka on My Mind"
(seasons 1–2)
"Carter's Theme"
(seasons 3–5)
Composer(s)
Country of originUnited States
Original language(s)English
No. of seasons5
No. of episodes77 (TV episodes)
+ 8 (webisodes) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)
Production location(s)Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Chilliwack
Camera setupSingle-camera
Running time44 minutes
Production company(s)
(2006-2007)
DistributorNBCUniversal Television Distribution
Release
Original networkSci-Fi Channel
Original releaseJuly 18, 2006 (2006-07-18) –
July 16, 2012 (2012-07-16)
Chronology
Related showsWarehouse 13
External links
Website

The series was created by Andrew Cosby and Jaime Paglia and was produced by Universal Media Studios. While initially lacking in critical acclaim, Eureka was a ratings success for the network, averaging 3.2 million viewers during the second half of season three.[1] In 2007, Eureka was nominated for the Emmy Award for Outstanding Visual Effects for a Series, and won the Leo Award for Best Visual Effects in a Dramatic Series.[2] In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, the show airs on Syfy and is known as A Town Called Eureka, although it is also shown under its original title on the BT Vision platform.[3]

Synopsis
Jaime Paglia, co-creator of Eureka, at the 2011 Phoenix Comicon.

Deputy United States Marshal Jack Carter stumbles upon Eureka while transporting a fugitive prisoner (his own rebellious teenage daughter Zoe) back to her mother's home in Los Angeles. When a faulty experiment cripples the sheriff of Eureka, Carter finds himself quickly chosen to fill the vacancy. Despite not being a genius like most members of the town, Jack Carter demonstrates a remarkable ability to connect to others, keen and practical insights, and a dedication to preserving the safety of Eureka.

Eureka took place in a high tech fictional community of the same name, located in the U.S. state of Oregon (Washington in the pilot), and inhabited by brilliant scientists. Camouflaged by an electromagnetic shield, the town is operated by a corporation called Global Dynamics (GD), which is overseen by the United States Department of Defense. The town's existence and location are closely guarded secrets. In episode 1.8 ("Right as Raynes"), Carter and Eureka scientist Nathan Stark are able to drive to Summerville, Oregon within an hour, give or take a few minutes. Then, in episode 2.03 ("Unpredictable"), the meteorologist's map shows Eureka as being on the Santiam River by the Green Peter Reservoir in Oregon. But in episode 5.06 ("Worst Case Scenario"), Jack is directed to place an electromagnetic field generator device at the center of Eureka's shield. The GPS coordinates given are 42°38′12.33″N 121°40′55.33″W, located in the Winema National Forest, 43 miles (69 km) north of the border between California and Oregon.

Cast and characters
Main article: List of Eureka characters

Main characters
  • Sheriff Jack Carter, portrayed by Colin Ferguson, is a U.S. Marshal who reluctantly ends up as the sheriff of Eureka. Jack is consistently dumbfounded by the wonders Eureka produces, as well as its propensity to produce things that often threaten the entire town (or world). Despite being a man of average intelligence in a town full of geniuses, Jack's admittedly simple ideas and his intuition often save the day.
  • Zoe Carter, portrayed by Jordan Hinson (seasons 1–3, recurring in seasons 4–5), is Jack's rebellious teenage daughter. Unlike her father, she is intelligent enough to keep up with the town's residents. Yet, like her father, she possesses street smarts, something lacking for most of the town's residents. She hopes to attend Harvard Medical School and become a physician.
  • Dr. Allison Blake, portrayed by Salli Richardson-Whitfield, is a Department of Defense agent who acts as the liaison between Global Dynamics and the federal government in season one. Later, she becomes the head of Global Dynamics. In seasons four and five she is the head doctor due to the effect of their journey to the 1940s. Allison, unmarried, is also mother of Kevin, who has autism until time travel in season four creates a new timeline where Kevin is neurotypical.
  • Dr. Henry Deacon, portrayed by Joe Morton, is the town jack of all trades and a brilliant scientist. Henry has ethical objections to the kind of research conducted at Global Dynamics, so he prefers to be employed as the town's mechanic. Henry's assistance is often invaluable in defusing the bad situations that are created by experiments at Global Dynamics.
  • Dr. Nathan Stark, portrayed by Ed Quinn (seasons 1–3), is one of Eureka's top scientists. He and Jack are frequently at odds, although both respect each other. On and off, he is romantically involved with Allison. He is modeled after Tony Stark, a Marvel Comics character.[4]
  • Dr. Beverly Barlowe, portrayed by Debrah Farentino (seasons 1-2, recurring in seasons 4-5), is the town psychiatrist. She secretly works for a mysterious organization known as the Consortium, which has expressed a desire to exploit Eureka's innovations by whatever means necessary.
  • Josephina "Jo" Lupo, portrayed by Erica Cerra (recurring in seasons 1–2, regular in seasons 3–5), is Eureka's deputy sheriff. She is a former U.S. Army Ranger with a love of firearms. In seasons four and five, she is the head of Global Dynamics security due to the effect of their journey to the 1940s.
  • Dr. Douglas Fargo, portrayed by Neil Grayston (recurring in seasons 1–2, regular in seasons 3–5), is a junior scientist, treated somewhat dismissively by his peers. Accident-prone, he often ends up a victim of the disasters befalling the town, and has caused a fair share of the problems. Grayston also provides the voice of S.A.R.A.H. (Self Actuated Residential Automated Habitat), the bunker home Jack and Zoe Carter live in. In seasons four and five he is the head of Global Dynamics due to the effect of their journey to the 1940s.
  • Zane Donovan, portrayed by Niall Matter (recurring in season 2, regular in seasons 3–5), is a rebellious genius who is recruited to Global Dynamics. He allegedly caused a stock market crash, and agreed to work for GD as an alternative to imprisonment.
  • Dr. Grace Monroe, portrayed by Tembi Locke, (seasons 4–5) a scientist, mechanic, and wife of Henry Deacon in an alternate timeline created after the Eureka Five time traveled to 1947.

Episodes
Main article: List of Eureka episodes
SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
112July 18, 2006 (2006-07-18)October 3, 2006 (2006-10-03)
213July 10, 2007 (2007-07-10)October 2, 2007 (2007-10-02)
3188July 29, 2008 (2008-07-29)September 23, 2008 (2008-09-23)
10July 10, 2009 (2009-07-10)September 18, 2009 (2009-09-18)
42110July 9, 2010 (2010-07-09)December 7, 2010 (2010-12-07)
11July 11, 2011 (2011-07-11)December 6, 2011 (2011-12-06)
513April 16, 2012 (2012-04-16)July 16, 2012 (2012-07-16)

Production

The series was created by Andrew Cosby and Jaime Paglia and was produced by Universal Media Studios. The season one original music was composed by Mutato Muzika; season two and beyond were composed by Bear McCreary. The executive producers were Paglia, Charles Grant Craig, and Thania St. John. While initially lacking in strong critical acclaim, Eureka had been a popular success, averaging 3.2 million viewers during the second half of season three.[1] In 2007 Eureka was nominated for the Emmy Award for Outstanding Visual Effects for a Series and won the Leo Award for Best Visual Effects in a Dramatic Series.[2] In the United Kingdom on Sky1 the show is known as A Town Called Eureka although it is also shown under its original name on the BT Vision platform.[3]

Characters from Eureka have crossed over to Warehouse 13 and vice versa, and characters from Warehouse 13 have crossed over to Alphas, making the triplet sister shows.[5][6][7][8]

On August 17, 2010, the channel, now known as Syfy, announced that the show had been picked up for a fifth season of 13 episodes.[9][10] Fan sites and a show writers' Twitter feed said on August 4, 2011, that the show had been picked up for a sixth and possibly final season of six episodes.[10][11] It was then announced on August 8, 2011, that Eureka would not get a sixth season, but it would instead be canceled after season five.[12] However, one additional episode of the fifth season was approved in order to give the series a proper finale.[13] On February 16, 2012, Syfy announced that the show's fifth and final season would premiere on April 16, 2012.[14]

Filming locations
  • Chilliwack, British Columbia – Downtown Wellington Avenue Cafe Diem set all 5 seasons.[15]
  • Ladysmith, British Columbia – Downtown First Avenue, Roberts Street.[16]
  • Burnaby, British Columbia – Vancouver Film Studios for the majority of the Global Dynamics building interiors, cafe interiors as well as the home of Sheriff Carter.[17]

Crossovers

Eureka was part of Sci-Fi's developing shared fictional universe, with several characters crossing over between series:

Global Dynamics researcher Douglas Fargo (played by Neil Grayston) from Eureka traveled to South Dakota to update Warehouse 13's computer system in the Warehouse 13 episode "13.1". Warehouse 13 computer wizard Claudia Donovan (played by Allison Scagliotti) subsequently traveled to the town of Eureka, Oregon to check out the technological marvels at Global Dynamics in the Eureka episode "Crossing Over". Fargo again appeared in the Warehouse 13 episode "Don't Hate the Player" when Claudia, Lattimer, and Bering traveled to Palo Alto, California to find Douglas beta testing a virtual reality simulator with the aid of a dangerous artifact. Additionally, Hugo Miller spent some time in the town of Eureka, departing with Douglas Fargo at the end of episode "13.1"; he returns in "Love Sick", commenting that, "every week [there] something seems to go 'boom'!" His presence there is off screen.

Reception

Ratings and viewership

The series premiere was watched by 4.1 million people, making it the top-rated cable program for that night; it was the highest-rated series launch in Sci-Fi's fourteen-year history.[18] The season two premiere drew 2.5 million viewers, making it the top-rated cable program of the day.[19]

For calendar-year 2008 as a first-run, the series delivered 1.42 million viewers in the 18–49 demographic.[20]

The 3rd season premiere was viewed by 2.8 million viewers, and the season 3.5 premiere of Eureka earned 2.68 million viewers in its new time slot.[21] The 4th season premiere was viewed by 2.5 million viewers.[22] The 5th season premiere was viewed by 1.8 million viewers,[23] on par with seasons 4's closing episode "One Giant Leap".[24] The 5th season closer "Just Another Day" generated 1.58 million viewers.[25]

Critical reception

Critical reaction was mixed, with general praise for the premise, but overall middling reaction to the writing of the pilot.

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer:[26]

It's all very quirky. Too quirky, maybe, for an audience that is used to spaceships, robots, and explosions. Though every episode promises an "aha!" moment based in quantum physics and obscure scientific laws, this world is relatively flat, conceptually speaking, in comparison to the complexity woven into series such as Stargate SG-1 and Battlestar Galactica. This does not mean Eureka is a complete waste of time. Not at all. The characters are fun, Ferguson is believable and pleasant, the script is solidly constructed, and the visuals are slickly produced. All in all, it's a sweet series and probably not long for this world.

The New York Daily News:[27]

With its playful new series Eureka, set in the Pacific Northwest and telling the story of an outsider who comes to explore, and settle in, a remote town full of eccentrics, Sci-Fi Channel isn't just inviting comparisons to Twin Peaks and Northern Exposure. It's demanding them. But co-creators Andrew Cosby and Jaime Paglia hold up to them pretty well. Eureka has a premise, a cast and a plot that make it one of the TV treats of the summer. The folks at Sci-Fi Channel clearly intended to reinvent the summer TV series here, and come up with something breezy and fun. And Eureka – they've done it!

Awards and nominations
Director of Center for Inquiry & IIG, James Underdown presents writer Ed Fowler with an award on August 21, 2010.
  • Eureka was nominated for a 2007 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Visual Effects for a Series. The other nominees were Grey's Anatomy, Heroes, Rome, and Battlestar Galactica (the winner).[28]
  • On August 21, 2010, Eureka was honored with an award for its scientific, and critical thinking content, from The Independent Investigations Group during its 10th Anniversary Gala. The award was accepted by head writer Ed Fowler.[29]

Cancellation

On August 8, 2011, it was announced that Eureka would be cancelled after five seasons.[30] Syfy decided not to order a season six of Eureka: "But Eureka is not over yet. There is a new holiday episode this December and 12 stellar episodes set to debut next year, marking its fifth season and six memorable years on Syfy. The 2012 episodes are some of the best we've seen, and will bring this great series to a satisfying end. We are very grateful to Bruce Miller and Jaime Paglia, their team of incredible writers, and an amazing cast and crew who have consistently delivered a series we continue to be very proud of. We thank the fans for their support of this show and know they will enjoy its final season in 2012."[31]

With the announcement of the show's cancellation, a fan campaign on social media emerged. Thousands of fans protested what they thought was the network's decision.[32] Executive producer Amy Berg clarified that the decision to cancel the show was made by Comcast, the controlling partner at NBCUniversal, which owns Syfy.

Everyone is asking why. It's simple, really. We are the network's golden child in every way, except profit margins. Fact is, #Eureka is an expensive show to make. And we could not maintain the quality of our show with the cuts it would take to make us profitable for Syfy's new parent company. Our creative execs at Syfy fought hard to keep us. Trust me, they LOVE us. We just couldn't make the numbers work.

— Twitter (via tvseriesfinale.com)[33], Amy Berg

Home media releases
Main article: List of Eureka home video releases

All five seasons of Eureka have been released in Region 1, seasons 1–4.5 have been released in region 2 and seasons 1–4 have been released in region 4, season 3 and 4 were released in two separate sets for each season in region 1 and 2.

Mill Creek Entertainment released the complete series on Blu-ray, August 11, 2020.[34]

In other media

Original soundtrack
Main article: Eureka (soundtrack)

On August 26, 2008, La La Land Records released Eureka: Original Soundtrack From the Sci-Fi Channel Television Series.[35] Composed predominantly by Bear McCreary, the album consists of 28 tracks from the show's second season. It also includes two variations of the Mark Mothersbaugh and John Enroth composed main theme, as well as two songs, "Let's Get Hitched" and "EurekAerobics", written by Brendan McCreary and Captain Ahab, respectively.[36]

Internet Streaming Services

All five seasons of Eureka are now available for viewing on demand from NBCUniversal's PeacockTV streaming service, which launched in July 2020.

Comics

In early 2009, Boom! Studios produced a comic book based on storylines provided by Andrew Cosby (who is also the co-founder of the comic publisher), written by Brendan Hay, with art by Diego Barreto.[37] This was followed by a second issue called Eureka: Dormant Gene written by Andrew Cosby, Jaime Paglia and Jonathan L. Davis, with art by Mark Dos Santos.[38]

Novels
  • Eureka: Substitution Method. Cris Ramsay, New York: Ace, August 2010. ISBN 9780441018857
  • Eureka: Brain Box Blues. Cris Ramsay, New York: Ace, November 2010. ISBN 9780441019830
  • Eureka: Road Less Traveled. Cris Ramsay, New York: Ace, March 2011. ISBN 9780441019021

Podcast appearances

In 2011, Colin Ferguson appeared on Disasterpiece Theatre, discussing what Eureka might look like if directed by Michael Bay.[39] In 2012, Niall Matter also made an appearance on the podcast, discussing how Eureka would function as a "romcom".[40]

In May 2012, Ferguson appeared on Tabletop, a show on Geek and Sundry, where during the course of the episode he discusses his experiences and character in Eureka. The Geek And Sundry network is co-hosted, among others, by Felicia Day and Wil Wheaton, who made various appearances on Eureka.[41]

gollark: What is this actually *4*?
gollark: I would need to change firewall settings and not just reverse proxy it.
gollark: Troubling.
gollark: TCP would require me to do a not insignificant amount of work. I would have to update three (3) bits of configuration.
gollark: What is this ”””license checker”””?

References
  1. "Syfy's Eureka delivers best season ever season finale averages 2.3 million". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
  2. "Eureka (2006) Awards". IMDB. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
  3. "Bt Vision search results "Eureka"". Archived from the original on 2011-07-08. Retrieved 2010-07-21.
  4. Melissa Hank (April 25, 2007). "Sci-fi made sexy on 'Eureka' (interview with Ed Quinn)". Archived from the original on September 17, 2010.
  5. eurekacz (21 August 2009). "Warehouse 13 - BtS with Erica Cerra & Niall Matter from Eureka" – via YouTube.
  6. eurekacz (6 June 2011). "Eureka, Warehouse 13 & Alphas - Syfy Promo" – via YouTube.
  7. eurekacz (3 August 2010). "Eureka/Warehouse 13 Crossover - Allison & Neil Like Peas & Carrots" – via YouTube.
  8. SYFYde (4 January 2012). "EUReKA - Neil Grayston über die Verbindung zu "Warehouse 13"" – via YouTube.
  9. "Syfy renews Eureka for a fifth season". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved August 17, 2010.
  10. Eureka Unscripted [@EurekaWriters] (April 11, 2011). "@da_deman For this season, 13 episodes, we're shooting now through August" (Tweet). Retrieved February 12, 2016 – via Twitter.
  11. Andreeva, Nellie (August 4, 2011). "SyFy's 'Eureka' Poised To End Its Run With Final 6-Episode Order". Deadline. Retrieved August 5, 2011.
  12. "'Eureka' canceled, sixth season plans dropped -- EXCLUSIVE". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
  13. Hibberd, James (August 10, 2011). "Eureka! Syfy orders one final episode". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 13, 2011.
  14. Munn, Patrick (February 16, 2012). "Syfy Unveils Spring Schedule, Sets Premiere Date For Eureka Season 5". TVWise. Retrieved February 16, 2012.
  15. "Chilliwack Film Commission: Who's Filmed in Chilliwack". Chilliwack Film Commission. Archived from the original on October 20, 2004. Retrieved March 13, 2008.
  16. "Ladysmith, British Columbia Film". Town of Ladysmith. Retrieved March 13, 2008.
  17. "Vancouver Film Studios — Who's Been Here". Vancouver Film Studios. Archived from the original on March 12, 2008. Retrieved March 13, 2008.
  18. "Eureka Scores High". The Futon Critic. Retrieved November 28, 2008.
  19. Adalian, Josef (July 11, 2007). "Audiences discover 'Eureka'". Variety. Retrieved August 3, 2007.
  20. "Breaking News — FINAL DVR DATA REVS UP RATINGS FOR FX FROSH DRAMA SONS OF ANARCHY". The Futon Critic. December 18, 2008. Retrieved July 27, 2009.
  21. "Syfy renews Eureka for a fourth season". TV by the Numbers. July 24, 2009. Retrieved September 24, 2010.
  22. Seidman, Robert (August 17, 2010). "'Eureka' Renewed by Syfy for a 5th Season". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved June 30, 2011.
  23. "Axiom's Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy " Cancellation Watch: Game of Thrones Still Strong, Eureka Season 5 has Modest Debut". Axiomsedge-scifi.com. April 18, 2012. Archived from the original on October 3, 2012. Retrieved April 24, 2012.
  24. "Updated Monday Cable Ratings: 'Pawn Stars,' Jets-Texans, 'WWE RAW' Top Night + 'Closer,' 'Rizzoli,' 'Warehouse 13' & Much More". TV by the Numbers. September 20, 2011. Retrieved April 24, 2012.
  25. "Ratings - Monday's Cable Ratings: "Pawn Stars," "WWE Raw" Stay on Top". The Futon Critic. July 2, 2012. Retrieved October 31, 2012.
  26. Mcfarland, Melanie (July 18, 2006). "Not a whole lot to discover on Eureka'". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved July 20, 2006.
  27. Hinckley, David. "Eureka - Review". NY Daily News.
  28. "SCI FI CHANNEL SCORES 7 EMMY NOMS INCLUDING WRITING & DIRECTING NODS FOR 'BATTLESTAR GALACTICA'". The Futon Critic. Retrieved August 3, 2007.
  29. "IIG | About the IIG Awards". Iigwest.com. Retrieved December 10, 2011.
  30. "Cast, crew react to 'Eureka' cancellation – The Marquee Blog - CNN.com Blogs". Marquee.blogs.cnn.com. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
  31. Ross, Dalton (August 8, 2011). "Syfy cancels 'Eureka' without a sixth season". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
  32. Hinman, Michael (August 10, 2011). "Fans Take To Twitter To Protest 'Eureka' Ax". Airlock Alpha. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  33. "Eureka: Series Finale Ordered; Why Was the Show Cancelled?". TV Series Finale. August 11, 2011. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  34. David Lambert (May 8, 2020). "***** TV SHOWS ON DVD ROUNDUP *****". Facebook.
  35. McCreary, Bear (August 25, 2008). "My "Eureka" Soundtrack Is Finally Out!". Bear's Blog. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  36. "EUREKA". La-La Land Records. Archived from the original on May 1, 2013. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  37. Manning, Shaun (February 2, 2009). "Brendan Hay Talks "Eureka" Comics". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  38. "Eureka Vol. 2 : Dormant Gene TPB". Boom! Studios. Archived from the original on December 3, 2012. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  39. "Episode 06: Colin Ferguson". Disasterpiece Theatre. September 5, 2011. Archived from the original on 2013-01-13. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  40. "Episode 42: Niall Matter LIVE from Dragon Con!". Disasterpiece Theatre. October 11, 2012. Archived from the original on November 8, 2017. Retrieved November 8, 2017.
  41. "Colin Ferguson plays Ticket to Ride with Wil Wheaton, Anne Wheaton, and Amy Dallen!". Tabletop. May 8, 2012. Archived from the original on June 14, 2013. Retrieved June 30, 2013.
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