Utopia – Life Begins

By starrymag | October 1, 2020

By: Gladys Luna

 

 

The series opens with a young couple formed by Olivia (Maya Kazan) and Ethan (Calum Worthy) arriving to what seems to be their new apartment. As they enter they realize a mess that it is inside, so they decide to clean it up. Ethan enters a room ready to throw everything away, but he decides to turn on the fan and as he does pages of what seems to be a comic book start to fall all over the place. He calls Olivia and the woman suggests to throw it all that away, but then Ethan reads the back of one of the pages that says: “Utopia, the conclusion to Dystopia.” He realizes that they might have something of value in their hands and decide to throw a bid at an event called FringeCon to sell the comic book.

 

On the other side of town a girl named Samantha (Jessica Rothe) receives a notification that “Utopia” will be for sale at FringeCon and sends a message to a fan group of the comic to let them know the good news. Said group is formed by five members that have never seen each other, but that have been brought together thanks to “Dystopia.” The members are Wilson, Grant, Becky, Ian and, of course, Samantha herself.  They begin to text each other and agree to meet at the event to give their best bet. One by one we are introduced to each member like Wilson (Desmin Borges), who is found explaining the story behind “Dystopia” to a young girl named Monika (England Karam). He lets her know that in the comic book a lot of pandemics are revealed and also says that they need “Utopia” to know what else is there to come. However, the young girl doesn’t seem to understand a bit of it. He seems disappointed that the kid does not follow along with his theories and decides to go with his father (Richard Cotovsky) and ask him for some money to attend the FringeCon.

 

The other member is Becky (Ashleigh LaThrop) who we can see is getting ready to leave her house when she begins to shake and stumble onto things. She tries to take some pills, but fails so she prepares herself before having a seizure. She moves her head and a circle-shaped mark is revealed to be behind her right ear.

 

On the other hand, we see Samantha’s Dad (Brian Boland) as he is driving her to Chicago while they are discussing about the comic. The girl explains the reasons why she believes in that story so much. She just wants to go ahead of time somehow and prevent a catastrophe from happening.

 

Ian (Dan Byrd) is revealed to be working as a medical seller of a disease called Lyme. We also meet Grant who is clearly concerned as he watches all the disasters happening all around the globe.

 

FringeCon has finally arrived so one by one the members of the group enter the room where Ethan and Olivia have prepared to meet all those interested in buying the comic. They ask them to get in and take a look at only one of the pages, ask for their contact number and their bid then they let them go.

 

Ian sees that Olivia and Ethan are distracted and takes the opportunity to take a picture of the page he was shown and then makes his bid. Later, he meets with Becky and they begin to chat about their lives and whatnots.

 

Later on, it’s Samantha’s turn to see the comic book. She makes the biggest bid and asks them not to sell it to anyone else. When she finishes, she decides to go and enjoy the event. Then, she meets with a group of guys discussing about the “Dystopia” and the story, but she gets passionate about it and begins to explain her theories about the possible pandemics described in it. Wilson, who is standing a few meters away from her, is surprised to see someone who thinks the same way he does and he decides to approach to her and share his thoughts as well.

 

We then see a man identified as Arby (Christopher Denham) is waiting by the edge of the road. Another man named Rod (Michael B. Woods) shows up in a car to pick him up. Arby is upset since Rod has arrived late, but he gets into the car and leaves with him anyways.

 

At FringeCon Becky and Ian decide to take a look around the place; they seem to be very comfortable with each other while having a good time together. They talk about the time they have been waiting to meet each other and then they share a kiss. Right after they decide to go and meet the others as they had agreed. They see someone that seems to be Wilson so they approach to him. They stand before him while they look awkwardly at each other in silence. Then, Samantha shows up holding a couple of beers for her and Wilson. The man realizes that the two in front of them are actually Becky and Ian. They greet each other happily and sit together wondering where Grant might be – the only member of the group that hasn’t arrived yet.

 

We watch a man who identifies himself as Philip Carson (Josh Bywater) shows up offering Olivia and Ethan a big amount of money in cash in exchange for “Utopia.” As it is expected, the couple sell the comic book and decide to celebrate. A few minutes later Grant (Javon ‘Wanna’ Walton) shows up at their door asking to see the manuscript of “Utopia,” but Olivia tells him that they have sold it already. Grant looks disappointed and claims that he went all the way from Kansas City just to see it. Olivia feels pity for him and tells him that she sold the comic book to Philip Carson who is staying at the penthouse and that maybe if he goes to see him, he might let him take a look at it. The kid manages to get an ID for himself and then goes to the front desk. He tells them that he cannot find his father and has no keys to his room. He pretends to be Philip’s son and says that the only ID he has is one he got at a previous stand at the event. The hotel’s clerk (Wendi Weber) feels bad for him and gives him the key to the penthouse. Grant goes straight to it and, after enjoying the amenities of the room, he takes the “Utopia” manuscript.

 

Meanwhile, Arby and Rod show up at Olivia and Ethan’s room and demand them to give them the manuscript while pointing a gun at them. The couple lets them know that it has been sold, so Arby gets mad and asks them to give them the name of the buyer as well as the list of everyone who were in touch with it. They provide the list they had and then Rod tells them that he will have to pinch them with the shots he has. He gives the shot one by one and one by one and they begin to faint.

 

Back at the penthouse Grant is celebrating that he finally has the manuscript when Philip arrives with a girl (Kerri Rose) ready to have fun and the kid has to hide. The pair begins to drink and suddenly they hear a knock at the door. Philip opens it and finds Rod and Arby there. The two enter the room and demand him to give them the manuscript. Rod slaps the girl in the face and she passes out. Philip tries to make a call, but Arby stabs his hand. Meanwhile, Grant tries to hide from them. Philip tells him that the manuscript it’s in his bedroom, but they don’t find it there. Grant manages to escape from the penthouse and is followed in vain by Arby and Rod since they weren’t able to catch him. The pair returns to the penthouse only to kill Philip and his companion. Then, they go pay a visit to each one of the members of the list that Olivia gave them and kill them all. However, they know there are still five people missing including the kid.

 

Back to the gang who seems to be enjoying themselves. They manage to convince Wilson to let them stay at their house while Grant escapes from the place to an unknown destination.  A woman shows up at Olivia’s room and sees the mess that has been made. Olivia is still alive and begs her for assistance. The other woman takes the money she finds, steals a ring from Olivia’s hand, takes her cellphone and Philip’s card. She asks Olivia about “Utopia” and the woman only manages to ask her “Why?” The lady replies that it’s all because she is Jessica Hyde (Sasha Lane), the comic book hero.