The James Cameron created, Jessica Alba starring TV series, Dark Angel premiered in 2000 on FOX. The series ran for just two seasons before being cancelled and becoming a footnote in a Family Guy joke. So why am I revisiting this show now? Well, as it turns out, Dark Angel was set in the year 2019. So I unburied the DVDs (the series isn’t streaming anywhere, at least not legally) and popped them in the DVD player to see how their 2019 compares to our present day.
About As Well As You’d Imagine
This may come as a surprise to no one, but a show that debuted in the year 2000 doesn’t exactly age well. Even though Dark Angel was set nineteen years in the future, the fashion, the music, the dialogue, and even the special effects all place it squarely in the beginning of the aughts. Not to mention the fact that the show seemed to be overly fascinated with action sports, from BMX to motocross, which made sense during the height of the X Games, but not so much now.
But It Wasn’t All Bad
To be honest, barely halfway through the pilot episode I had already gleaned everything I needed to know to write the above paragraph. I was ready to write off Dark Angel as a fun time capsule of the early 2000s, but as it turns out, not all of it was reminiscent of a Delia’s catalog or a TRL-era music video.
Dark Angel is set in a post-apocalyptic, economically-depressed America, more specifically Seattle. In the pilot episode Jessica Alba’s titular character Max explains that terrorists detonated an electromagnetic pulse (EMP), years prior, which explains away the lack of snazzy gadgets and continued use of landlines, pagers, and outdated PCs. Also, why cars look old and why Max works as a full-time bike messenger in the year 2019.
That post-“Pulse” setting also allowed the show to explore more timeless themes such as institutional power, corruption, and the difference between the haves and the have nots. Not in any sort of deep or revolutionary way, the show is what it is. But Dark Angel explicitly stated that their world is one where life-saving prescription drug prices are jacked up for profit, where veterans are unable to receive the help they need, and where journalists are being silenced. Sound familiar?
Now I’m not trying to say that Dark Angel was able to predict the future the way The Simpsons have, but I was surprised, or should I say disappointed, by how our present reality so eerily parallels a sci-fi TV series that was purposely set in a screwed up future society.
And The Future is Female
Thankfully, it wasn’t all doom and gloom in relation to 2019 though. At a time where we’re presently trying to tell more inclusive stories and focusing on more diverse representation in movies and TV, Dark Angel’s casting and characterizations actually feel more inline with today’s offerings than that of the early 2000s. (The human beings that is, not their wardrobe.)
First of all, the show featured a Mexican-American lead in Jessica Alba who played a character that was anything but a damsel in distress.
In addition, Max’s best friend and roommate Original Cindy, played by Valarie Rae Miller, was a gay woman of color. From the pilot on, the show was matter of fact and upfront about her sexuality. And while that might not seem like a big deal today, it was at the time. For context, Ellen’s coming out storyline only happened three years prior and the onscreen kiss between Willow and Tara on Buffy the Vampire Slayer that made waves didn’t occur until February 2001. The L Word wouldn’t debut for four more years.
And according to Wikipedia, Dark Angel was actually the first American TV series to feature an openly transgender actress, Jessica Crockett, playing a transgender character. She made a guest appearance in the first season episode, “Out.”
Sure, there was a handful of generic white guys throughout the two seasons. They played mostly villainous roles or love interests, plus Michael Weatherly, which is certainly present-day problematic, but the rest of their world was fleshed out with a diverse cast that makes sense for a TV show set in a major American city. This wasn’t a Sex and the City or Girls situation.
The way Dark Angel embraced diversity, especially in regards to its female characters, is perhaps the show’s most successful attempt at looking forward, and perhaps its best legacy too.
Comments
I will always be a stan of this show. Sure Alba was super objectivied but that was only because that’s how the world see women. Nevertheless, Max used it for the greater good and if she ever felt uncomfortable she would kick a lot of behinds. She’s been my hero since for 19 years now and I wouldn’t have it any other way. As a kid (10-13 years old) I had Dark Angel and my recorded vhs tapes of it to get through the struggles of overcoming cancer. I’m a cancer survivor now and I still have Dark Angel marathons with my loved ones. God bless freak nation lol.
Author
Thanks for sharing your story, and love for Dark Angel!
I absolutely loved the show. It came out at a time in my life when I felt my power & confidence had been stripped from me and I really enjoyed watching a woman who had a great deal of both. It was a great show at the time. I still periodically look for it online to try & watch it but none of my streaming sites ever have it.
Author
I’m glad Dark Angel was a source of positivity in your life. It was fun looking back on the show all these years later and I also wish the show was streaming, thankfully I’ve still got the DVDs if I need to get my fix.
I really liked the show and felt disappointed at the ending. I thought the characters were terrific and Jessica Alba did a great job. It got a bit campy with the last 4-5 episodes but who cares? That is what made it entertaining. With the present pandemic, current issues over Trump and his Post Office scandle, including all his other political stupidity, he brings a rather current flavor to the story since it was set in 2019. May I add, that that America isn’t too wonderful right now so the show, in a way, fits the times! The show could have been even a bit more dark and sexy given the passion people have for shows today that are rather apocalyptic, such as Revolution, Hunger Games and so on. Bring it back! They did it with Battlestar Galactica, a terrific show and also Roswell as well as the flavor found in The 100, which like Dark Angel ended way too soon. Give it a new go! But applause to Jessica Alba who carried the show brilliantly.
Author
100% agree with you. When I revisited Dark Angel over a year ago I already thought there were some strong parallels but we have only gotten closer to the scary future depicted in the series. Thankfully we still have mostly working technology *knocks on wood*. I also love BSG, Revolution, and The 100!
I loved this show. I was so disappointed that they cancelled it after the second season. I would love to see a reboot.
Dark Angel, remains to this day, the most inclusive and diverse superhero show ever created. People sometimes tend to focus on a specific area (gay black woman or mexican-american lead) but this show went well beyond that. Even the background extras were diverse. Minor roles also reflected the diverse community most of us live in (and did so 30, 40, 50 years ago) – especially in most cities.
If you went to a street vendor, they might be asian (one of the lead cops was asian too). If you walked to the back of a store, you might see latino. If you went to the main cast’s workplace, you could run into someone who was muslim. If you visited the lead male character, he had someone who was black working on rehabilitating him. Nothing felt pushed, there were no politics. They were simply the same people (and I can’t stress this enough) that you see in everyday life.
Even today, the most diverse superhero shows might feature one or two people of color. They might even share lead roles. But when you look around at store owners, extras walking in the background and other similar (minor) roles – you don’t see the diversity that is the US.
When one speaks about institutional racism, Hollywood is a prime and clearly visible example. For all the entertainment it offers, it is also a disease in how it perverts the American consciousness and part of the reason why there is still so much racism in America. You really have to make a strong conscious effort NOT to include a diverse cast – especially given the strong calls for fair representative diversity over the last several decades. These calls are nothing new.
There are some current superhero shows that are handling diversity better (Umbrella Academy, Runaways, Black Lightning, Doom Patrol) but most others fail miserably in this regard. And none can hold a candle to Dark Angel.
Author
Thank you for you for taking the time to leave such a thoughtful comment about Dark Angel, superhero shows, and representation then and now. Inclusivity is so crucial and I completely agree that there have been a few bright spots in the last two decades since, I’d add Agents of SHIELD and Cloak and Dagger to your shortlist, but there’s still a lot of work to be done.
Moved into a new place and the internet won’t be turned on for a few days so had to dust off the DVD player. Dark Angel is one of my very few Series Collections, and I’m glad I bought it when I did (as you said, it’s not streaming anywhere). When the show aired, I always thought it had such a hip, cool vibe, and now it makes me feel super nostalgic. Dark Angel actually led me to Supernatural, because it had the cute guy in it, which I’ll always be grateful for, because that fandom has become a huge part of my life. (Also, the other cute guy from Gilmore Girls, so it was a double hit for me!) As far as representation goes, Dark Angel was important to me. I know Max is of Mexican ethnicity, and I’m Filipino-American, but it was great to see a brown girl kick some ass! The only other show at the time was Relic Hunter (Tia Carrere, I love you forever). I knew that the show took place far into the future, and I knew it was set in a time that is now close to present day. So when I looked up the year, I stumbled upon your piece. I may be late to the party, but I very much enjoyed it.
I loved this show and I have always wished it didn’t get cancelled
I recently rewatched Dark Angel series. I forgot how much I loved the first season!!!!! It was filled with cat and mouse chases with LYDECKER, secret government lab plot and all the X5’s brought the drama and action.
Although Jessica Alba has openly stated that she felt objectified filming the show, and that she was always wet or showing skin. As a female teen watching the show, I did not feel that she was overly sexy. I felt that her character was strong, kicked a lot of butt, who happened to show some skin and was witty. I felt her character helped teach teens to be comfortable with their body, be secure, confident and strong. Very rarely has tv brought us a character that has combined all of those qualities.
I would love to see a reboot of this show ASAP. I think a 3 season mini series with some major updating of the overall look of the show would be amazing. Just keep in mind, that many fans were turned off my the extreme switch to a monstery and super scifi season 2. I think a reboot with a new cast could be a huge hit! Please let’s get this going!!! 🙏