It has been 13 years since one of the most iconic sci-fi series debuted on streaming and it offered up a unique challenge for its star, who delivered what might be one of the best performances on television. There have been some great sci-fi shows on television over the past few decades, but there is one show that doesn’t get as much attention as it deserves. One thing that always keeps shows from hitting the big time is the fact that they don’t always appear on major networks, and when Orphan Black debuted 13 years ago, it aired in the United States on BBC America.
Orphan Black premiered its first season on March 30, 2013. In that series, Tatiana Maslany starred not only as the main character, but she took on countless roles, each with different personalities, delivering a performance like no other.
Orphan Black Debuted 13 Years Ago
Image Courtesy of BBC America
The first episode of Orphan Black, “Natural Selection” premiered on March 30, 2013. The first episode started with a bang and opened up the overarching mystery from the series as Tatiana Maslany starred as Saras Manning, a con artist living in Toronto, who sees a woman who looks exactly like her jump in front of a train and die by suicide. When Sarah picks up the woman’s bag and realizes she is wealthy, she decides to take over her life and steal all her money.
That makes Sarah seem like a villain from the opening of the show, but the series also made her sympathetic by showing she she has a daughter named Kira who lives with a foster family, and this money would allow her to regain custody of the girl. This doesn’t work out though she it turns out the other woman was a cop named Beth and when Beth’s old partner catches her, Sarah has to escape. However, at the end of this premiere, she sees another woman who looks just like her named Katja, only to watch as a sniper kills her and Sarah has to go on the run.
As sci-fi fans might expect, this is a sci-fi series about clones and the mystery was why they exist and who is killing the clones. There ended up being five seasons and 50 episodes of Orphan Black. Through those five seasons, Sarah ended up learning more about who created the clones and why, as well as who wants to see them dead. The mythology of the series was one of its biggest selling points, trumped only by Maslany’s incredible performance as all the clones. What is even more impressive is that Orphan Black ended on a high note, and it stuck the landing where other sci-fi shows often struggle. This made the entire five seasons worth the watch, as it remained one of the smartest and best acted shows on television from start to finish.
Tatiana Maslany Proved She Was a Star in Orphan Black
Image Courtesy of BBC America
Tatiana Maslany proved her immense talent on Orphan Black long before she took on the role of She-Hulk in the MCU. However, her performance on Orphan Black dwarfed what she did in the MCU and was bigger than almost any other star in a sci-fi series since her groundbreaking series ended. It was impressive to watch her turn from the con artist Sarah Manning into the police officer Beth Childs and disappear into another woman’s life.
However, this led to further clones, and she played them all. She portrayed the hippie scientist Cosima. She was an alcoholic housewife named Alison. She took on the role of the serial killer Helena. She was a corporate villain named Rachel. She even played a transgender man named Tony. Not only this, but every single one of those clones were different people, with different personalities, and different quirks, and Maslany delivered every role masterfully.
It was no surprise to hear Maslany’s name called during awards season. However, for all the nominations and wins she received in Canada at the Canadian Screen Awards, her recognition in America was criminally misrepresented. She only received three Emmy Award nominations, winning just one in 2016 for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. She only received one Golden Globe Awards nomination, in 2014, and lost that one. In all, Maslany warned 39 award nominations across the world, and won 23, and her work on Orphan Black stands up to any other sci-fi series that debuted in the 21st century.
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