Eureka in San Diego
When I found out the stars from Eureka were coming to Comic-Con this year, I was thrilled. I’m not a huge SciFi fan (or at least I wasn’t a year or two ago), but since I got a DVR, several new series have come into my life that I’m addicted to, and Eureka was one of the first.
If you aren’t yet a fan of this SciFi Channel series, it’s about a “typical” small town named Eureka, which is actually a community of geniuses assembled by the government to 
conduct top-secret research. Just about everyone in town, from the auto mechanic to the church organist, is actually a top level scientist, and anything can and does happen in the course of their work or day-to-day life. (If you’re a fan of the 1985 Val Kilmer film Real Genius, imagine the students of Pacific Tech all grown up, living in one town, with unlimited budgets.)
In the pilot episode, we were introduced to the main character, U.S. Marshal Jack Carter (played by Colin Ferguson). He was just passing through town with his delinquent daughter Zoe (played by Jordan Hinson), when the townspeople found themselves in need of a new sheriff. Jack (who, by the way, isn’t a genius) was subsequently assigned to Eureka by Washington, and he and Zoe moved in and became part of this quirky community. The science is cool and imaginative, but it’s the relationships that make this series work.
Here’s the early teaser:
At Comic-Con’s Eureka panel, Salli Richardson (who plays Allison Blake) was first asked about the love triangle between her character, Jack, and her character’s ex-husband Nathan Stark (played by Ed Quinn); she was asked to put us out of our suspense and tell us which one it’s going to be - Carter or Stark. Ferguson and Quinn both stood up and flexed, while Joe Morton (who plays Henry Deacon) held up a hand behind each of them in turn, gathering the crowd’s applause. Richardson said, “Well, I think this is Eureka. We’re progressive, and I’m doing ‘em both.”
Colin Ferguson (who plays Jack) was asked what it was like to work naked this year. He said, “Repetitive,” and Quinn added, “And very uncomfortable for the crew.”
Creator Jaime Paglia was also on hand to discuss the creation of the show, and the direction that it’s now taking. If you’d like to watch the whole Comic-Con Eureka panel, go to Sci Fi Pulse.
So where was Neil Grayston (who plays Douglas Fargo) during Comic-Con? He was flying in from Vancouver, and was delayed in Denver. Too bad. I have the feeling he’s building quite a fan base.
Someone in the audience mentioned the podcast that Ferguson did during Season one and said that it was great. Ferguson confirmed that he’s continuing the podcast in Season two. You can find it at SciFi.com, where you can also listen to the commentary without subscribing to the podcast, using the links provided to download the MP3 files to your computer.
There are also Webisodes, which supplement the TV series and just make the season more fun. You can even watch video of the full television episodes online now.
It was noted by a member of the audience that last year, Ferguson was the only member of Eureka’s cast at Comic-Con. They all made jokes about him hanging around at the booth, hoping someone would notice him. This year, it was great that so many other cast members were here in San Diego to join him and meet their fans.
Later, at the Eureka Press Op, Ferguson said that the reception at their panel was awesome. Paglia said all of the sudden, there are millions of people that have an investment in Eureka. He cautioned that they don’t want to fall into the “monster of the week” scenario, so they plan to work toward episodes that deal with other supporting characters. They do try to make every episode stand alone without the science fiction, trying not to rely on it as a gimmick. The show will continue to be very character driven. They set out to do a lot of homages, to make the series sort of a love letter to SciFi.
Humor is also an important element of the show. They shoot tons of comedy, but it’s also the first thing that’s cut. (Expect much comedy in the bonus footage on season DVD’s.)
Paglia filled us in a little about the casting of Eureka. He said that Jack Carter’s character was the hardest to cast. He met Colin on day 2. Andy (co-creator Andrew Cosby) flew down to meet him, shook his hand and said, “That’s the 
guy.”
The character of Henry was originally written for Ossie Davis, but Joe Morton owns the character now.
There’s been talk about stunt casting Stephen Hawking or bringing in William Shatner as Carter’s dad, but nothing is definite.
Near the end, Paglia was asked how long it was before they realized that they had a hit, and he answered, “Pretty much today.” Thanks for coming to San Diego, Eureka. I wish we could all visit your town too.
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