Orphan Black

Author: John Fawcett

Who are we? That's a major question that has plagued philosophy and the sciences for generations. Now, add to that the question of who are we when we know we're a clone. That's a bigger kettle of fish, right? That's the entire concept behind Orphan Black, the best Canadian television series ever made! We follow Sarah Manning, one of a long line of identical clones, as she assumes the identity of Det. Beth Childs after she commits suicide. That alone would be enough, but the show goes on to dig around the implications of human cloning, of personal identity when you discover you're no longer unique, and perhaps most devastatingly, how media conglomeration shaping our view of the world mirrors that of gene manipulation to create clones. Where it really hits hardest is in the virtuoso performance of the incredible Tatiana Maslany. She plays so many different characters, sometimes having to flow between them in reaction to one another. It's a helluva role, and it calls on Maslany to go between a wide variety of approaches, all at once. It's next level stuff! Why it's on the list: A smart series, a powerful performance, and a show whose themes just get deeper and deeper.