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One of Netflix’s newest original shows, The OA, is somewhat of a mystery. The initial promotion was surprisingly sparse, consisting of some grainy phone footage of a woman frantically jumping off a bridge, followed by the show’s name and nothing more. What’s more, once you start watching The OA, you wind up having far more questions than answers.
The OA stars Brit Marling as Prairie Johnson, the show’s erratic and seemingly unhinged heroine. Prairie, believed to have been kidnapped and killed as a young teenager, resurfaces when footage of her dramatic suicide attempt goes viral online. She is brought home to her parents and refuses to say where she has been for the past seven years, why she was trying to kill herself, or why she is referring to herself as ‘The OA’. However, the biggest mystery is Prairie’s newfound eyesight, as she was blind when she disappeared, but can now see perfectly.
With her life being restricted and monitored by her understandably anxious parents, Prairie enlists the help of her troubled teenage neighbour Steve (Irish actor Patrick Gibson) to enlist a small group of courageous people, whom she will agree to share her story with. This rag-tag group includes grade-A student French (Brandon Perea), drug abuser Jesse (Brendan Meyer), misunderstood trans teen Buck (Ian Alexander) and high school teacher Betty (Phyllis Smith). From this point, the show splits into two separate narratives: Prairie’s difficulty reintegrating into society, and her account of what happened during her absence.
The OA progresses at a painfully slow rate in the beginning, enough to make you question whether this show will ever pick up the pace. Thankfully, The OA takes on a new lease of life when Prairie begins to reveal her tumultuous past. To say too much about this would defeat the purpose of unravelling this puzzle of a show, but suffice to say that it involves resurrection, metaphysics, and a cruel scientist with a unique group of captives – one of whom was Prairie. In captivity, Prairie met the love of her life Homer (Emory Cohen), who she is painfully eager to reunite with when brought home to her parents.
The acting from the main cast in The OA is phenomenal. Brit Marling is entrancing as Prairie, expressing her nonsensical ideas and arguments with the utmost seriousness. Most importantly, she is also utterly convincing in portraying a blind character. Her character is central to the entire show, and it is her sublime scenes which keep the show afloat during some of the lapses in plot. Patrick Gibson’s depiction of anger-prone Steve is equally impressive, managing to be aggressive and bullying, yet securing sympathy from the viewer for his pressing family issues. Emory Cohen is simply magnetic as Homer, with his somewhat weird personality becoming more and more endearing with each episode. I can’t help but draw a comparison between Cohen and American Horror Story star Evan Peters, as both actors seem to have that unavoidable charisma and charm, as well as sharing the same boyish good looks.
Unfortunately, pretty much every character in The OA apart from Prairie, Steve and Homer is woefully underdeveloped. While it is wonderful to see Netflix including a transgender actor and promoting diversity, it would have been more wonderful if that character had been given more than five lines an episode. It’s also glaringly obvious that Prairie’s troupe of friends are nothing more than a plot device, as their presence gives her a reason to share her story and push the show forwards. Another problem is that some aspects of the show are incredibly easy to predict. For instance, I worked out the meaning of the name ‘The OA’ by episode three, which isn’t actually revealed until far later. Similarly, I anticipated the explosive finale within minutes of the final episode. For the most part, this isn’t an issue, just something to be aware of.
The OA is by no means a perfect show. The plot can be too zany, and the season finale is somewhat of an ambiguous let-down, leaving the viewer with far too many questions. If Netflix decides to film a second season (which is looking increasingly likely, based on the online chatter and the show’s success), then they could have the perfect opportunity to address the limitations of season one. That said, if you enjoyed other sci-fi Netflix originals like Stranger Things or Sense8, then watching The OA is worth eight hours of your time.
Update 9/2/17: Netflix have confirmed The OA for a second season.
