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Plot: DMZ leaps off the pages of the acclaimed graphic novel as one woman navigates a dangerous and distorted demilitarized zone in a harrowing quest to find her lost son.
Review: The concept of a Second Civil War has become a terrifying concept in recent years. With a war raging in Europe, a pandemic slowly waning down globally, and political tensions high in the United States, the idea of divisions leading to America being split has never been more tangible. Based on the DC comic book series of the same name, DMZ presents what one such future could look like with the island of Manhattan serving as the no man’s land between two warring factions. Led by Rosario Dawson and Benjamin Bratt, DMZ is a rare limited series that is actually limited. The four-part drama comes to HBO Max and delivers a very interesting concept but fails to explore it satisfactorily.
The comic book series on which DMZ is based lasted for seven years and seventy-two issues. The sprawling story of the factions in the titular zone served as a launching point for lots of cautionary tales about the hazards of war. It also took a realistic look at the future without resorting to the tropes and cliches we have seen in countless dystopian stories over the years. With director Ava DuVernay aboard helming the pilot and veteran Ernest Dickerson on the three subsequent episodes, I was hoping this series would upend expectations. Instead, DMZ falls prey to the same formulaic elements we have seen in everything from The Walking Dead to Snowpiercer to See to Sweet Tooth to Y The Last Man and more. Factions rise from the ashes of political upheaval before succumbing to the same pressures of the governments they seek to replace. Chaos ensues.
Within the first thirty minutes of DMZ‘s first episode, you are able to tell that the island of Manhattan is split between two major factions. One is led by the despotic Parco Delgado (Benjamin Bratt) and the other by Wilson (Hoon Lee). Both vie for the title of Governor in the demilitarized region. Alma Ortego (Rosario Dawson) shares connections with both Parco and Wilson as she tries to find her son whom she was separated from. That quest, which is billed as a central element of this story, quickly snowballs into something else entirely. Fans of the comic may be wondering who the heck Alma is as Dawson’s character does not share a name with anyone in the source material. A lot of what happens in this series has changed from the book with some characters amalgams of others while major protagonists are excised completely.
For four hour-long episodes, DMZ plods along as Alma tries to save her son while navigating a brewing war between the factions in Manhattan. At first, seeing how people have transformed New York City after the Second Civil War has some novelty before it just turns into something we have seen countless times before. I continued to hold out hope that this series would do something unlike other dystopian stories, but it just replicates them and countless other stories. There are elements here of Romeo and Juliet, Escape from New York, and even Children of Men, but all of those titles did a far better job without the unnecessary melodrama that bogs down this series. As good of an actress as Rosario Dawson is, she spends her time here either crying and feeling guilty or being a badass and rousing those around her. It is so inconsistent that you will tire of it pretty quickly.
Showrunner Roberto Patino has experience working on shows like Sons of Anarchy, The Bastard Executioner, and Westworld but doesn’t use any of the strengths of those series to his advantage. The most he leverages for DMZ is the gang hierarchies and cultural allegiances seen on Sons of Anarchy. In many ways, DMZ is like a post-apocalyptic Sons of Anarchy but without the characters worth caring about. While I can see the draw of the source material for Ava DuVernay, it never amounts to the level of quality that everyone involved is capable of. The cast here is all good, from Dawson, Bratt, Lee, and Freddy Miyares as Skel along with several recognizable character actors, as well as the oddly cast Nora Dunn in a dramatic role. Throughout my watch of DMZ, I could not tell if this series was trying to adapt the comic book or use it as a jumping-off point, but it doesn’t work either way.
DMZ tries to condense far too much story into a four-hour limited series and yet still feels like it is moving too slowly for its own good. This story depends on building alliances and caring about characters over a long haul, something that just doesn’t work in four episodes. If you are able to orient yourself with the various groups vying for control, you will then realize the series is almost over before you have had the chance to really be comfortable with this fictional universe. DMZ is the rare instance where a story was condensed too far and should have been created as a multi-year narrative. As it stands, DMZ quickly turns from an intriguing premise to a cliche-ridden one. Despite Rosario Dawson’s best efforts, DMZ never builds enough energy or momentum to support the premise and thus will leave many underwhelmed.
DMZ premieres on HBO Max on March 17th.
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