Harsh Realm

Harsh Realm

DVD cover
Created by Chris Carter
Starring Scott Bairstow
D. B. Sweeney
Max Martini
Rachel Hayward
Sarah-Jane Redmond
Samantha Mathis
Terry O'Quinn
Composer(s) Mark Snow
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 1
No. of episodes 9 (list of episodes)
Production
Running time 44 minutes
Production company(s) Ten Thirteen Productions
20th Century Fox Television
Release
Original network Fox
FX
Original release October 8, 1999 – May 19, 2000

Harsh Realm is an American science fiction television series about humans trapped inside a virtual reality simulation. It was developed by Chris Carter, creator of The X-Files and Millennium, and began airing on the Fox Network on October 8, 1999. The series fared poorly in the ratings and was removed from the schedule after three of its nine episodes had aired. The remaining six episodes premiered on the FX Network. Repeats of the series began airing Fall 2007 on CBC Country Canada.

The term "harsh realm" originates from the "grunge speak" hoax of 1992, in which it meant 'bummer'.

The show was loosely based on a comic book by James D. Hudnall and Andrew Paquette. When the creators noticed the credits read "Created by Chris Carter", they sued Fox to get properly credited. The credits were changed to read "Inspired by the Harsh Realm comic book series, Created by James D. Hudnall and Andrew Paquette, Published by Harris Publications, Inc."

The series was filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Setting

Harsh Realm is a virtual reality game created by the U.S. Army, programmed to minutely replicate the real world for training simulations. In the world of Harsh Realm, a small nuclear bomb is detonated in the program's version of New York City, killing four million people and thrusting its participants into a post-apocalyptic disaster scenario.

Lieutenant Tom Hobbes is unknowingly thrust into this world by his superiors with one mission: to kill "General" Omar Santiago. Along the way, he meets fellow soldiers sent into the game and alternate versions of people he knows in the real world. Tom Hobbes quickly finds companions such as Mike Pinocchio (a cynical long-time resident of Harsh Realm), Florence (a mute with mysterious powers) and Dexter (an alternate version of his real world dog).

Hobbes' target is Santiago, the highest scorer in Harsh Realm. Santiago, a US Army Sergeant Major in the "real world", is now a self-proclaimed "General" in the simulation who controls five U.S. states as a brutal dictator.

From his new companions, Hobbes learns that Santiago has commandeered Harsh Realm; Hobbes is merely the latest soldier in a long line of men sent on unsuccessful missions to kill the would-be dictator. Hobbes also learns from a mysterious "ally", Inga Fossa, that Santiago is planning the ultimate act of terrorism in the real world so that Harsh Realm is all that remains.

It is in this world that Hobbes must survive, defeat Santiago, save the real world, and somehow return to his real life and his fiancée, Sophie Green.

Episodes

A box set with the nine completed episodes, including those unaired on network television in the USA, was released on region 1 DVD on August 24, 2004. The box features two commentary tracks on the pilot episode by the show's creator and director as well as other minor special features. Also released on region 2 DVD

Season Episodes Originally aired DVD release date
Season premiere Season finale Network Region 1 Region 2 Region 4
1 9 October 8, 1999 May 19, 2000 FOX (3 episodes)
FX (6 episodes)		 August 24, 2004[1] July 26, 2004[2] August 10, 2005[3]
No. Title Directed by Written by Original air date Production
code
1"Pilot"Daniel SackheimChris CarterOctober 8, 1999 (1999-10-08) (FOX)1ADC79

Decorated war hero Lieutenant Thomas Hobbes is about to retire from the military and start a new life with his beloved fiancé Sophie, when the government orders him for one last mission: play the virtual reality situational war game known as "Harsh Realm." But Hobbes finds himself stuck inside this computer game and all he wants is to get back to the real world and to get back to Sophie.

The episode included uncredited cameos by Gillian Anderson of The X-Files as the narrator of the Harsh Realm training video and Lance Henriksen of Millennium as the general who recruits Hobbes for the game.

This episode was shown March 24, 2000 on FX.
2"Leviathan"Daniel SackheimChris CarterOctober 15, 1999 (1999-10-15) (FOX)1ADC01

The underworld outside of Santiago City has its share of renegades, and one particular is a bounty hunter who traps Pinocchio and Hobbes for his own reward. The bounty hunter cuts a deal with Santiago to barter his prisoners in return for passage back to the real world, but hides the true nature of his trade from girlfriend May In the real world: The military notifies Sophie that her fiancé Hobbes was killed in action. A grief-stricken Sophie is confused when a mysterious stranger leads her to believe that she doesn't know the whole story.

This episode was shown March 31, 2000 on FX.
3"Inga Fossa"Bryan SpicerChris CarterOctober 22, 1999 (1999-10-22) (FOX)1ADC02

Hobbes, Pinocchio and Florence search for Freddie, the chip forger who will help them access Santiago City and gain entry to the secret portal back taking them back to the real world. More is learned about the true nature of Inga Fossa, and her relationships with other characters in the Realm.

This episode was shown April 7, 2000 on FX.
4"Kein Ausgang"Cliff BoleSteve MaedaApril 14, 2000 (2000-04-14) (FX)1ADC03
While looking for a soldier who once nearly penetrated Santiago's forces, Hobbes and Pinocchio get stuck in a combat simulation game of a World War II battle. They must find the jump-portal to escape the game, or else be destined to watch the battle scenario repeat over and over with the same outcome.
5"Reunion"Kim MannersGreg WalkerApril 21, 2000 (2000-04-21) (FX)1ADC06
Hobbes and Pinocchio are taken to a forced labor camp where Hobbes finds his mother, who is dying of cancer. Meanwhile, Sophie visits Hobbes' mother in the real world as she also struggles against cancer.
6"Three Percenters"Daniel SackheimFrank SpotnitzApril 28, 2000 (2000-04-28) (FX)1ADC05
Hobbes, Pinocchio, and Florence find themselves in a camp where the people preach nonviolence and use the promise of food to lure people to a strange lake that is capable of scanning people's images and creating copies of them.
7"Manus Domini"Tony ToJohn ShibanMay 5, 2000 (2000-05-05) (FX)1ADC04
Florence is captured while trying to save her Sisterhood from Santiago's forces. Hobbes and Pinocchio are caught in a mine blast while pursuing her; Pinocchio is badly injured and is taken into the Sister's care while Hobbes faces a deadly situation with a Republic Guard soldier.
8"Cincinnati"Larry ShawChris CarterMay 12, 2000 (2000-05-12) (FX)1ADC07
Santiago wages a personal war against a Native American rebellion in Cincinnati, Ohio. Hobbes and Pinocchio attempt to use the opportunity to kill Santiago.
9"Camera Obscura"Jefery LevySteve MaedaMay 19, 2000 (2000-05-19) (FX)1ADC08
When they take a job as bodyguards, Hobbes and Pinocchio find themselves in the middle of a family feud mitigated by a priest who can see the future.
10"Circe"Mark RosnerMark Rosnerunproduced1ADC09
Searching for an army to recruit, Hobbes meets up with a woman claiming to be his old lover. Pinocchio senses danger, and Florence finds both a prophecy and a traitor in the Resistance against Santiago.

Characters

Tom Hobbes (Scott Bairstow)

Mike Pinocchio (D. B. Sweeney)

Florence (Rachel Hayward)

Omar Santiago (Terry O'Quinn)

Mel Waters (Max Martini)

Inga Fossa (Sarah-Jane Redmond)

Sophie Green (Samantha Mathis)

Production

The pilot was written by Chris Carter.

The pilot was written by Chris Carter, best known as the creator of the science-fiction series The X-Files.[4] Carter wrote the pilot as a "high-tech version" of his favorite films—Paths of Glory, Platoon and Blade Runner. He said of the pilot: "I think this has a tremendous romantic story and a great mythology potential, as well. I think it's a great chance to tell allegorical stories … to take a godless world, where there is no morality, where there is no standard or code of behavior, and see what the world would be like if it were like that."[5] The Fox executives worried that pilot episode included too much violence for the 8:00 p.m. timeslot, and they tried to get the producers of the show to tone the violence down in upcoming episodes.[6] American writer Judd Apatow said he doubted Carter would tone down the violence: "He's going to do what he wants to do, and he should. I don't think it's his place to tone it down for people. It's parents' place to say, 'You know what? You're not allowed to watch Harsh Realm'. But it's much easier to say, 'Take off the shows' than to tell parents to be aware of what their kids are doing."[7] Terry O'Quinn stars in the episode as Omar Santiago. He was concerned that the viewers would find the show confusing, "There might be some things if you miss the first one you won't know what is going on. The writers are going to have to find a good one- or two-minute intro that explains things."[8] When O'Quinn first read the script of the pilot, he "pretty much understood the concept of the show when I read it, but I had a hard time visualizing it. I'm kind of computer illiterate. So I had a tough time seeing it. But the fact that Carter is doing it is a good starting point."[8]

Harsh Realm lawsuit

A lawsuit filed by the creators of the Harsh Realm comic book series that was licensed by Fox and Carter as the basis for the TV series became a precedent-setting case. In it, Fox attorneys argued that Carter's sole "written by" credit was not only warranted, but required under the rules of the Writer's Guild of America (WGA). Fox argued – with the support of the WGA – that it could not give Hudnall and Paquette the credit they demanded, because of the WGA agreement. “The problem with this argument,” Judge Martin responded, “is that [Hudnall and Paquette] are not members of the WGA and are not bound by its contract. If the listing of the credits violates [their] right under the Lanham Act, the fact that the violation is pursuant to a contract with a third party is no defense.”[9] In response to the comic book authors’ request for a preliminary injunction, Judge Martin found that “While there are substantial differences between the comic books and the television series, a trier of fact could find that it is misleading to represent Chris Carter as the creator of ‘Harsh Realm’ without giving adequate recognition to the role [Hudnall and Paquette] played in its creation.”

Reception

The episode was watched by 7.5 million viewers during its original airing in the United States.[10] Ken Parish Perkins of the Philadelphia Inquirer called the pilot "dark, moody and confusing".[11] Ed Bark of The Dallas Morning News said "Fans of heavy automatic weapons fire, bloodletting and unrelenting bleakness won't be disappointed. A supporting character named Mike Pinochio supplies the gutter-level language, none of which can be printed here."[12] David Kronke of the Daily News of Los Angeles said: "Fortunately, Carter makes the show's pilot episode exciting, smart and edgy enough that, for the time being, viewers will be intrigued enough to see how this ordeal will play out."[13] Rob Owen of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote: "If most of these Harsh Realm characters are virtual, why should we care? And if the show is playing out inside Hobbes' brain, why do any of the events depicted matter? Presumably future episodes will answer those questions, but the pilot exudes lots of flash and little heart. The characters lack any spark of life and depth. Harsh Realm could improve, but at this point dark conspiracies and paranoia have become tiresome. How many viewers will stick with Harsh Realm to a point it starts to make sense?"[14] Mark McGuire of the Times Union commented that "Carter's script and the direction of Daniel Sackheim are riddled with hoary, snory contemporary clichés."[8]

Music

The theme music contains samples of speeches given by Benito Mussolini.

DVD release

DVD Title Release Date Number
Of Discs		 Number Of
Episodes
Harsh Realm Complete Series August 24, 2004 3 9

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Harsh Realm : The Ultimate Mind Game - The Complete Series (Three-Disc Collector's Edition) (1999)". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved September 14, 2013.
  2. ↑ "Harsh Realm: The Complete Series (DVD)". Amazon.com. Retrieved September 14, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Harsh Realm - Complete Series TV Series DVD". dvdorchard.com.au. Retrieved September 14, 2013.
  4. ↑ McDaniel, Mike (May 25, 1999). "WB reacts to violence and pulls `Buffy' finale". Houston Chronicle. p. 4.
  5. ↑ Hodges, Ann (October 8, 1999). "Grim future awaits 'Harsh Realm'". Houston Chronicle. p. 1.
  6. ↑ "TV networks reveal cancellations, new shows for fall". Mobile Register. May 22, 1999. p. 05.
  7. ↑ Mendoza, Manuel (May 30, 1999). "Muting the Mayhem - Real-life drama sends TV scrambling to tone down the violence". The Dallas Morning News. pp. 1C.
  8. 1 2 3 McGuire, Mark (October 8, 1999). "'HARSH REALM' TRIES TO KEEP VIEWERS GUESSING". Times Union. pp. D1.
  9. ↑ "Credit to Authors". Newsstand. Association of Talent Agents. February 1, 2001.
  10. ↑ Rutenberg, Jim (March 22, 2000). "TV NOTES; 'Realm' Reincarnated". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-06-18.
  11. ↑ Parish Perkins, Ken (July 31, 1999). "IS DUCHOVNY EXITING 'THE X-FILES'?". Philadelphia Inquirer. pp. D11.
  12. ↑ Bark, Ed (June 28, 1999). "Fox gives edginess a bad name". The Dallas Morning News. pp. 1C.
  13. ↑ Kronke, David (October 8, 1999). "LIKE NINTENDO FOR THE REST OF US - VIRTUAL REALITY FLESHED OUT IN 'HARSH REALM'". Daily News of Los Angeles. pp. L40.
  14. ↑ Owen, Rob (October 8, 1999). "'X-FILES' CREATOR DIGS INTO ANOTHER DARK TALE OF DUBIOUS REALITY IN 'HARSH REALM'". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 40.
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