Resistance isn’t futile in ‘X Company’
WWII-set drama tracks group of Canadian spies
“XCompany” is not anyone's “Mission: Impossible.” Inspired by an actual spy training camp in Canada during World War II, the Canadian series follows a group of young, talented agents who seek to break Hitler's tyrannical grasp on Europe.
The premiere — the only episode Ovation made available for review — opens with a ghastly image — a man hanging from a tree in a small town in France in 1942 — and ratchets the tension.
The dead man is a Resistance fighter — and now the members of X Company are in grave danger. The SS has vowed to root them out and, to teach France a lesson, has decided to annihilate every resident of the town later that day.
Our ragtag band of freedom fighters — including Canadian journalist Rene (Francois Arnaud, “Midnight, Texas”), London Blitz bombing survivor Neil (Warren Brown, currently mowing down terrorists on “Strike Back”), Aurora (Evelyne Brochu, “Orphan Black”), a French Canadian fluent in German, and teen tech whiz kid Harry (Connor Price, “Being Human”) — try to reach their superiors in Canada via telegraph to explain their situation.
The team's quest to save the French village takes several swerves and ultimately leaves them all shaken.
Meanwhile, in Ontario, a different sort of battle is being waged — to get a new recruit on the team.
Alfred (Jack Laskey) isn't anyone's idea of an ideal soldier, including his own. According to one military report, he is prone to trembling, hyperventilating and apparent delusions. It takes him almost all morning to work up the courage to go to the grocery store.
Alfred suffers from synesthesia, a rare condition in which a person's senses are all tied together, leaving, at least here, Alfred sensitive to stimuli and with the ability to both detect and connect information in ways others can't.
The camp leader is confident Alfred will be useful.
“No one's born knowing what they can “X COMPANY” Series premiere tomorrow at 10 p.m. on Ovation. GRADE: B do,” he says.
The acting sometimes comes off as rushed, as if the cast didn't have enough time to prepare. Not all the plot twists make sense, and the series dials back the gore to almost magical levels, a bit too much for a show about the brutality of war.
Yet “X Company” shows unexpected depth. So much of World War II-set fiction is created through the prism of today, and this premiere, at least, suggests the drama will explore the emotional costs and ethical quandaries the team must face.
At one point, for example, team members bicker about the loss of life expected for a successful mission, even though they know the deaths serve a greater good.
“X Company” wrapped its three-season run on Canadian television last year with a finale that resolved its stories. Going off the pilot, one can only hope we Yanks will be equally fortunate to view the full battle tale.