Epix Original ‘From’ is a Mind-Bending Sci-Fi Series that Unravels a Dark Mystery

We are only in the first quarter of this year, but various shows and films have already made their impression. We are talking about shows from the Sci-Fi category. First, It was the Netflix series Archive 81, which is unfortunately canceled, then Raised By Wolves S2, Station 11, and now it is Epix original "From," whose Season One finale premiered last week on April 10th.

"From" is primarily a Horror series, but its mystery deepens with a touch of Sci-Fi. As the series progresses further, It leaves the horror element a bit behind as the characters begin to question the fabric of this reality while also trying to find a way out.

"From" is a mind-bending series just like Archive 81. However, I would like to go a few steps further and compare it to the German Netflix original "Dark." If this show becomes popular and gets more seasons, it will certainly become a top contender to be on par with "Dark." It currently has the potential to do so. If we remove the Horror and Mind-bending part, "From" can also be compared with the canceled Netflix original sci-fi drama, The Society, where a big group of teenagers gets trapped in a pocket dimension, which is similar to their town.

"From" is about a mysterious town, which is situated somewhere in the US (kind of nowhere). This town traps everyone who enters it, forever. The town has no location of its existence, so people residing in it arrive while driving in different parts of the country, without realizing when and how they entered it. But this is just the beginning of their horrible nightmare as once the night takes over, the mysterious town surrounded by forest gets attacked by hundreds of flesh-eating monsters, who look just like normal humans except they can't be killed. These monsters manipulate people's minds and rip them apart, then they eat their flesh leaving the upper part of the skull.

This is certainly an intriguing concept for a series, but the above synopsis is only a fraction of it, and the story is just getting started. It's a slow burn from the second episode onwards, but it manages to keep the audience guessing about what's going to happen. The story progresses and begins to unravel the mystery of the town's people. The main characters, who strive to maintain a sense of normalcy at first while accepting their fate, begin to consider a way out of this nightmare.

There are no fairy tales in this story. The town is cruel, and so are the creatures hunting it. Many people have been trapped there for many years. One of the characters Victor is the oldest resident and arrived when he was just a kid, and now he is getting old. He is not mentally mature, but he is the one who has the most knowledge of this pocket dimension. In the series, he observes various changes that the town goes through, while also unlocking new mysteries, especially tree portals, which can transport to any random location.

The show fits the theory of a Pocket dimension, spaces that are too small to be truly considered a separate dimension. The show doesn't deal with this directly, but it does reveal it in pieces in the final 3-4 episodes. The characters in the show mainly get into asking smaller and more significant questions like how the electricity works in this town, where the rain comes from, and how they get radio signals sometime?

The scenes in this series are gruesome and bloody, and the actors are terrific in their roles. It is very intriguing to watch, and if you binge it, you might end up watching all the ten episodes in one go. Created and written by John Griffin, the first season is led by series regulars - Harold Perrineau, David Alpay, Scott McCord, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Eion Bailey, Simon Webster, Elizabeth Saunders, Ricky He, Hannah Cheramy, Corteon Moore, Pegah Ghafoori, Chloe Van Landschoot Shaun Majumder, and Avery Konrad.

However, the first season ends with a big cliffhanger, setting it for a more intriguing and mysterious second season. "From" Season 2 is currently in active development, but Epix is yet to give the official renewal, which we can expect to come soon. The series is also set to premiere on Netflix, and while writing this article, Netflix hasn't confirmed the premiere date on their streaming platform. MGM confirmed Netflix as their streaming partner while announcing the show.