October Faction (TV series)

Last updated
October Faction
Title screen for October Faction.jpg
Genre
Created by Damian Kindler
Based on
The October Faction
by
Starring
ComposerTim Welch
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes10
Production
Executive producers
  • Damian Kindler
  • James Thorpe
  • Eric Birnberg
  • Thomas Walden
  • Lydia Antonini
  • Matthew McCluggage
  • Steve Niles
  • Ted Adams
  • John Calvert
Producers
  • Mohamad El Masri
  • John Calvert
Production locations Toronto, Ontario
Cambridge, Ontario
Cinematography Miroslaw Baszak
Editors
  • Ben Wilkinson
  • Lisa Grootenboer
  • Michael Doherty
  • Hugh Elchuk
  • Don Cassidy
Camera setup Single-camera
Running time36–49 minutes
Production companies
Original release
Network Netflix
ReleaseJanuary 23, 2020 (2020-01-23)

October Faction is an American supernatural drama television series created by Damian Kindler, based on the comic series of the same name by Steve Niles and Damien Worm. It premiered on Netflix on January 23, 2020. [1] The series stars Tamara Taylor, J. C. MacKenzie, Aurora Dawson-Hunte, Gabriel Darku, Wendy Crewson, Megan Follows and Stephen McHattie. In March 2020, the series was canceled after one season. [2]

Contents

Synopsis

October Faction follows the story of a monster-hunting couple, Fred and Deloris Allen, and their twin teenage children, Geoff and Viv. Following the death of Fred's father Samuel, the family decides to go back to their home town Barrington-on-Hudson, in New York, to arrange the funeral. Haunted with childhood memories of his brother's death and the incessant arguments with his parents over his inadequacy and his choice in women, Fred is repulsed by his childhood home. The children soon begin showing supernatural tendencies. During an impromptu séance Viv has visions of a creature with long hair chained to the seafloor, struggling to free itself. Her brother Geoff accidentally reveals a teacher's deepest, darkest secret about his wife in front of his classmates. Both are ridiculed by the popular cliques for being outsiders.

Fred and Deloris are members of Presidio, a secret organization tasked to protect humanity from various breeds of monsters. They must hide their identities from the townsfolk and appear to live a normal life. This proves hard from the start as strange things begin to unfold in the sleepy little town.

Cast

Main

Recurring

Episodes

No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal release date
1"Presidio" Director X Damian Kindler January 23, 2020 (2020-01-23)
Fred Allen and his wife Dolores work for Presidio, an organization that hunts and kills various supernatural creatures. During a Presidio assignment, Fred is notified his father, Samuel, has died. He takes his family back to Barrington-on-Hudson, his hometown in upstate New York, for the funeral. At his boyhood home, he and Dolores clean the house of Presidio weapons and files, as his parents and his brother, Seth, were also Presidio agents. At the wake, other teens from the town are rude to Fred and Dolores' seventeen-year-old twin children, Viv and Geoff. To impress them, Geoff suggests a seance to contact their grandfather to find where money that is rumored to be in the house is hidden. During the séance, Viv makes a psychic connection with Alice Harlow, a woman who is chained to concrete blocks underwater. The connection revives the woman and releases the chains. After the woman surfaces, it is apparent she is not a normal human, but a powerful warlock.
2"No Country for Old Vamps"Director XMohamad El MasriJanuary 23, 2020 (2020-01-23)
The Allens have settled into Fred's old home, and the twins are attending the local high school. Alice attacks Presidio agents in Boston and accesses the Presidio computer to learn the location of the Allen family. Fred begins to clean out Seth's old room and discovers a large ritual symbol on the floor. Geoff is bullied by a teacher and suddenly reveals embarrassing personal information in class that humiliates the teacher. The twins go on a school field trip. Alice disables the school bus and blocks it with a truck. She freezes time to get close to the twins unnoticed. She realizes Viv was the one who released her, and therefore leaves. Later, Viv finds one of the sketches she did before the field trip showed the scene of the truck blocking the bus. Fred's father is not dead but being held prisoner by Presidio. He is interrogated about the symbol Fred found, but won't cooperate.
3"The Horror Out of Time"Damian KindlerGeorge StraytonJanuary 23, 2020 (2020-01-23)
Presidio electronic communications are on lockdown since the computer breach in Boston. Fred has to meet with a Presidio agent. Hannah Mercer, to give her a copy of the symbol he found in Seth's room. They sleep together as they have been having an ongoing affair. Dolores goes out for a drink and is attacked by a gang of creatures seeking revenge for her and Fred killing their brethren. She is able to fight them off and escape. Viv confides in Geoff and her new friend Cathy about her premonition about the truck and the bus. Geoff strikes up a conversation with Steve Thompson, a student he sees in the school hall and finds out later that he had been killed in a car wreck. The agent returns to Presidio with the photograph on the symbol and indicates Samuel Allen has succeeded in some clandestine experiment that maybe a threat to a Presidio project called "The Initiative". The leader of Presidio indicates Fred and Dolores may be a threat also. Fred and Dolores track down the gang that attacked Dolores only to find they have already been killed.
4"Soirees of Future Past"Damian KindlerKeely MacDonaldJanuary 23, 2020 (2020-01-23)
In 1995, Fred and Dolores are fighting monsters in Bangalore and Dolores is wounded in the abdomen. When she receives medical treatment, the doctor informs them that Dolores will not be able to have children. In the present, Dolores and Fred go to Presidio headquarters in New York City, and Geoff decides to throw a party at their house while they are gone. Alice arrives at the party and slips through time to get to past the all the students unnoticed. Steve reappears to Geoff, and Geoff has visions of the night Steve died. Viv meets a boy, and he talks her into going outside where he forces himself on her. She begins to fight back, but the boy is thrown off her by a hooded stranger with a scanner attached to his eye. He scans Viv and leaves. Alice makes her way to Samuel's study and finds a secret room full of artifacts. Fred and Dolores return home unexpectedly and see the extensive aftermath of the party. They begin to chastise Viv and Geoff. Alice is startled when she hears the Allen's voices and hurriedly grabs a small urn off a shelf, setting off a security alarm. Fred and Dolores grab weapons to pursue the intruder. Geoff and Viv walk in and see the weapons and the room full of artifacts. Alice escapes into the woods and Fred and Dolores try to figure out a way to explain everything to the twins.
5"Truth and Consequences" Megan Follows Melissa BlakeJanuary 23, 2020 (2020-01-23)
The dust settles after the party, and Geoff and Viv are angry with their parent's long deception, but return to school. Discussions ensue, but are interrupted by breaches to Fred's security systems. He leaves to track intruders. Dolores is elsewhere in the woods and is confronted by Gina, who has figured out Fred and Dolores may be involved in a recent murder (of a monster, which was covered up) at a supermarket. But their standoff is interrupted by Alice the warlock, who has gained in strength by bathing in blood and the ashes from the urn. Alice makes Gina turn her gun on herself and she is shot in the abdomen, and ends up in hospital. A surprise band of monsters, in military fatigues and armed, arrive and almost kill Alice, who escapes. Alice then hunts down and kills most of this armed band. The search for Alice escalates and the kids are recalled home.
6"Open Your Eyes"Megan FollowsChristina WalkerJanuary 23, 2020 (2020-01-23)
Viv shields the strange hooded stranger with a scanner attached to his eye at the family house, believing him to be no threat. The episode deals with increasing distrust of Presidio by the Allens. In Presidio hq, Hannah Mercer starts gossip about the Allens, while her boss still secretly detains Samuel Allen. In the woods, Alice continues to murder the armed group of monsters and then heads to the Allen's house. Fred's insider contact in Presidio helps him covertly identify marauding vampires and helps Fred connect Alice to a band of warlocks knows as 'Harlow House' (but he is found out assisting Fred and Hannah shoots him dead). Alice enters the house, knifes Fred's mother who is still breathing by the end of the episode, but another group of Presidio armed forces are now chasing her and she kills most of them also. Chaos ensues.
7"Nadir" Mina Shum James ThorpeJanuary 23, 2020 (2020-01-23)
The episode deals with the humanization of monsters and their stories, and Fred and Dolore's realization that Presidio is inhumane and has a secret, but still unknown, agenda. Running to save his family, Fred gets in a standoff with the last remaining armed monster, a vampire named Moshe. A spirited discussion ensues, in which Moshe reveals how his family spent years evading capture and death, before Fred's deceased brother, Seth, killed his wife and child in cold blood. Seth is revealed to have been a sadistic hunter. Fred wavers in killing the vampire, and an uneasy truce is made so they can locate Alice. Dolores cauterizes Fred's mother's wound to stop her bleeding to death. Alice now has Geoff and Viv captured in another house, and tells them that they are, in fact, warlocks. They are unsure, escape, but are recaptured by Presidio forces, who they then neutralize with warlock powers. Meanwhile, Fred Dolores and Moshe infiltrate a secret Presidio facility still in upstate New York, to rescue one of Moshe's group (Niklaus) capable of detecting warlocks, and discover experimentation on monsters taking place. Niklaus is rescued but dies. The Presidio boss shows Fred's mother that Samuel is still alive.
8"Alice"Mina ShumKeely MacDonald & Mohamad El MasriJanuary 23, 2020 (2020-01-23)
A backstory about Alice, who as a warlock living in a secluded community (Harlow House), tries engaging with humanity and makes a human friend. Her warlock community are highly skeptical. The friend turns out to be an undercover agent directed by Samuel, and turns her over to Presidio, having got Alice to reveal the location of Harlow. Presidio attacks Harlow and kills many, using sonic tech to neutralize warlock powers. Omari, Alive's partner, is killed by Seth and Samuel takes the ashes of warlock leaders, where powers reside, to use it for his own scheme. A bombshell is that it turns out Alice's twins, born on that day, are actually Geoff and Viv, already exhibiting warlock powers, and they were taken from Alice and adopted by Fred and Dolores as babies. So, the tables are turned.
9"Bonds of Blood" David Frazee Melissa Blake & George StraytonJanuary 23, 2020 (2020-01-23)
A year-old flashback, dealing with Samuel 'creating' Dante in a ritual using the ashes, for unknown reasons....(he turns out to be a reincarnation of Seth, his son, who he desperately wanted back). Samuel is imprisoned earlier in the series because of it, but is not talking. Fred and Dolores are having a rethink about their Presidio actions and long careers, now that their adopted kids have been revealed as warlocks, and hate them for what they did. Fred realizes Dante is Seth reincarnated. But then Fred gets shot.
10"The October Faction"David FrazeeDamian Kindler & James ThorpeJanuary 23, 2020 (2020-01-23)
The exciting finale, of a series that was not renewed.... The teens from school are all clustered at a party, Alice summons her powers there and, using the ashes of her elders, places the deceased warlocks in the teens bodies, using a spell to recreate her lost community. Presidio locate her through spike in supernatural activity. The Barrington police force and their feisty chief suspect the just-arrived 'FBI' (actual Presidio) are more than they seem. Presidio attack anybody they suspect anybody of being a warlock, capture all the teenagers (the ones hosting warlocks), pursued by the town police, aided by Moshe. Teens are taken by Presidio to the family house. The nasty head of Presidio, Edith, threatens Alice, who is chained there too. Edith's motive is to wipe out warlocks, having captured several to experiment on, but she also wants to destroy all of Barrington and all evidence of their actions with it ("cleaning a mass-scale event" is what she and Presidio call it). She tries to enlist Viv with a semi-plausible argument, offering her the option to stop the violence. Dolores reconciles with Geoff, explaining how she and Fred came to adopt them. Meanwhile Fred is in a limbo state between life and death, conversing with the twin's real father, Omari. Teh twins join hands in the family house, allowing them to find Alice and restore her powers. Alice releases Dolores who she was being transported with, and with their different skills they corner Edith, and Alice kills her. Moshe teams up with the feisty police chief: they are both after Alice now. Maggie Allen, Fred's estranged mother, takes over Presidio, which could be good for all the Allens, but maybe not Samuel and Seth (this is left hanging). A loose thread, whether Fred rejoins the world from limbo, is not resolved. Series end.

Production

Development

On September 28, 2018, it was announced that Netflix had given the production a series order for a first season consisting of ten episodes. Damian Kindler, Director X, Megan Follows, Mina Shum, and David Frazee are set to direct some episodes. [3] [4] The series was created by Damian Kindler who will also act as writer and executive producer. Additional executive producers are set to include James Thorpe, Steve Niles, Thomas Walden, Eric Birnberg, George Strayton and Melissa Blake. Production companies involved with the series include High Park Entertainment and IDW Entertainment. [5] On March 30, 2020, Netflix cancelled the series after one season. [2]

Casting

Sometime after the series order announcement, it was confirmed that Tamara Taylor, J.C. MacKenzie, Aurora Burghart, Gabriel Darku, Wendy Crewson, Megan Follows and Stephen McHattie would star in the series. [6] [7] In October 2018, Maxim Roy was cast in a recurring role. [8]

Filming

Filming for the first season took place on location in Cambridge, Ontario from September to December 2018. [9]

Release

On January 8, 2020, Netflix released the official trailer for the series. [10]

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds an approval rating of 29% with an average rating of 5.5/10, based on 7 reviews. [11] Complaints were made about unfinished plotlines but some reviewers found the series quirky and entertaining, regretting its cancellation after one series.

Related Research Articles

Stargate SG-1 is a military science fiction adventure television series within Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Stargate franchise. The show, created by Brad Wright and Jonathan Glassner, is based on the 1994 science fiction film Stargate by Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich. The television series was filmed in and around the city of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The series premiered on Showtime on July 27, 1997, and moved to the Sci Fi Channel on June 7, 2002; the final episode first aired on Sky1 on March 13, 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wendy Crewson</span> Canadian actress

Wendy Jane Crewson is a Canadian actress and producer. She began her career appearing on Canadian television, before her breakthrough role in 1991 dramatic film The Doctor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jared Padalecki</span> American actor (born 1982)

Jared Tristan Padalecki is an American actor. He is best known for playing the role of Sam Winchester in the TV series Supernatural. He rose to fame in the early 2000s after appearing on the television series Gilmore Girls as well as the films New York Minute (2004) Flight of the Phoenix (2004) and House of Wax (2005), later starring in Friday the 13th (2009).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J. C. MacKenzie</span> Canadian actor (b. 1970)

John Charles MacKenzie is a Canadian actor. He is best known for portraying Skip Fontaine on the HBO series Vinyl (2016) and Reagan "Normal" Ronald on the Fox series Dark Angel (2000–2002). He has also appeared in several films directed by Martin Scorsese, including The Departed (2006), The Wolf of Wall Street (2013), and The Irishman (2019).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maxim Roy</span> Canadian actress (born 1972)

Maxim Roy is a French-Canadian actress. In English, she is best known for playing Detective Isabelle Latendresse in the English version of the Canadian police drama television series 19-2, Jocelyn Fray in the fantasy series Shadowhunters, and Mob mistress Michelle in Bad Blood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shawn Levy</span> Canadian filmmaker (born 1968)

Shawn Adam Levy is a Canadian film director, film producer, screenwriter, actor, and founder of 21 Laps Entertainment. He has worked across genres and is perhaps best known as the director of the Night at the Museum film franchise and primary producer of the Netflix series Stranger Things.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Damian Kindler</span> Screenwriter

Damian Kindler is an Australian-Canadian screenwriter, television producer, director and showrunner. He has worked on a number of genre TV programs, including Stargate SG-1, Sleepy Hollow, Krypton, and American Gods. Kindler is best known for creating, writing, and producing the Syfy fantasy science-fiction series Sanctuary (2007-2011).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1965–66 Ashes series</span> International cricket tour

The 1965–66 Ashes series consisted of five cricket Test matches, each of five days with six hours play and eight ball overs. It formed part of the MCC tour of Australia in 1965–66 and the matches outside the Tests were played in the name of the Marylebone Cricket Club. M.J.K. Smith led the England team with the intent on regaining the Ashes lost in the 1958–59 Ashes series, but the series was drawn 1-1 and they were retained by Australia. The Australian team was captained by Bobby Simpson in three Tests, and his vice-captain Brian Booth in two Tests.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simon Barry</span> Canadian writer, director, producer (b. 1966)

Simon Barry is a Canadian screenwriter, film producer, director and television producer.

<i>Wynonna Earp</i> (TV series) 2010s TV series

Wynonna Earp is a Western horror television series. Developed by Emily Andras, the Canadian-American program is based on the comic book series by Beau Smith. Melanie Scrofano plays the titular character, the great-great-granddaughter of legendary lawman Wyatt Earp. In the series, Wynonna returns to her hometown of Purgatory, near the Canadian Rockies, where she battles revenants, the reincarnated outlaws that Wyatt killed.

<i>Altered Carbon</i> (TV series) Science-fiction television series

Altered Carbon is an American cyberpunk television series created by Laeta Kalogridis and based on the 2002 novel of the same title by English author Richard K. Morgan. In a world where consciousness can be transferred to different bodies, Takeshi Kovacs, a former soldier turned investigator, is released from prison in order to solve a murder. The first season consists of ten episodes and premiered on Netflix on February 2, 2018. On July 27, 2018, the series was renewed for a second season of eight episodes, which was released on February 27, 2020, with an anime film set before the first season released on March 19, 2020. Though the series received generally positive reviews, it was canceled after two seasons.

<i>Travelers</i> (TV series) 2016 science fiction TV series

Travelers is a science fiction television series created by Brad Wright, starring Eric McCormack, Mackenzie Porter, Jared Abrahamson, Nesta Cooper, Reilly Dolman, and Patrick Gilmore. The first two seasons were co-produced by Netflix and Canadian specialty channel Showcase. After the second season, Netflix became the sole commissioning broadcaster and worldwide distributor. The show premiered in Canada on October 17, 2016, and worldwide on December 23, 2016. A second season followed in 2017, and a third season was released on December 14, 2018. In February 2019, McCormack said that the series had been cancelled.

<i>Dark</i> (TV series) 2017 German science fiction TV series

Dark is a German science fiction thriller television series co-created by Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese. It ran for three seasons from 2017 to 2020. The story follows characters from the fictional town of Winden, Germany, as they pursue the truth in the aftermath of a child's disappearance. They follow connections between four estranged families to unravel a sinister time travel conspiracy that spans several generations. The series explores the existential implications of time and its effect on human nature and life. It features an ensemble cast.

41 Entertainment LLC (41E) is a privately held American animation company that develops, produces, and distributes popular television shows. Allen Bohbot is the founder and managing director of 41E.

<i>Another Life</i> (2019 TV series) American sci-fi television series

Another Life is an American science fiction drama television series created by Aaron Martin, which premiered on Netflix on July 25, 2019. The series stars Katee Sackhoff, Selma Blair, Justin Chatwin, Samuel Anderson, Elizabeth Ludlow, Blu Hunt, A.J. Rivera, Alexander Eling, Alex Ozerov, Jake Abel, JayR Tinaco, Lina Renna, Jessica Camacho, Barbara Williams, Parveen Dosanjh, Greg Hovanessian, Chanelle Peloso, and Tyler Hoechlin. In October 2019, the series was renewed for a second season, which was released on October 14, 2021. Netflix announced it had canceled the series in February 2022.

<i>Upload</i> (TV series) American science fiction comedy-drama television series

Upload is an American science fiction comedy-drama television series created by Greg Daniels. The series premiered on May 1, 2020, on Amazon Prime Video and was renewed for a second season. The second season premiered on March 11, 2022; it had seven episodes, three fewer than the first. In May 2022, the series was renewed for a third season, which premiered on October 20, 2023 and consists of eight episodes. In March 2024, the series was renewed for a fourth and final season.

<i>Warrior Nun</i> (TV series) American fantasy drama television series

Warrior Nun is an American fantasy drama television series created by Simon Barry based on the comic book character Warrior Nun Areala by Ben Dunn. Developed as a feature film adaptation, the idea was re-imagined as a television series for Netflix when the service had given the production a series order for a first season. Filming takes place in multiple locations in Andalusia, Spain, such as Antequera, where the headquarters of the fictional Order of the Cruciform Sword was filmed.

The Vampire Diaries Universe is an American media franchise and a shared universe that is centered on various interconnected television series airing on The CW. The series were developed by Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec, and based on characters who appeared in the original novel series, The Vampire Diaries, by L. J. Smith.

Sydney Meyer is a Canadian actress. She starred in the Netflix series V Wars (2019) and the Shudder series Slasher: Flesh & Blood (2021). She had recurring roles in the third season of the Freeform series Shadowhunters (2019), Grand Army (2020), also on Netflix, and the FX on Hulu adaptation of Y: The Last Man (2021).

References

  1. ↑ See What's Next [@seewhatsnext] (December 11, 2019). "New Year, New Titles from the final season of #AnneWithAnE to movies like Inception, A Cinderella Story, and The Bling Ring...Here's everything coming to Netflix US in January!" (Tweet). Retrieved 11 December 2019– via Twitter.
  2. 1 2 Sippell, Margeaux (March 30, 2020). "Netflix Cancels 'V-Wars' and 'October Faction' After 1 Season". The Wrap. Retrieved March 30, 2020.
  3. ↑ "Netflix adds three new series to thrilling sci-fi drama slate including THE I-LAND, OCTOBER FACTION and WARRIOR NUN". Netflix Media Center. September 28, 2018. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  4. ↑ Andreeva, Nellie (28 September 2018). "'The I-Land' Starring Kate Bosworth, Natalie Martinez & Alex Pettyfer Among 3 Sci-Fi Series Ordered By Netflix".
  5. ↑ Otterson, Joe (September 28, 2018). "Netflix Orders Three Sci-Fi Shows, Including Kate Bosworth Produced 'I-Land'". Variety. Retrieved July 13, 2019.
  6. ↑ "The October Faction – Showatch". The Futon Critic . Retrieved December 20, 2019.
  7. ↑ Petski, Denise (12 October 2018). "'October Faction': Tamara Taylor & J.C. MacKenzie To Lead Cast Of Netflix Sci-Fi Series".
  8. ↑ Petski, Denise (16 October 2018). "'October Faction': Maxim Roy To Recur In Netflix Sci-Fi Series".
  9. ↑ Booth, Laura (September 13, 2018). "New Netflix series films in Cambridge". The Record. Retrieved July 13, 2019.
  10. ↑ Nolan, L.D. (January 8, 2020). "October Faction: Netflix's First Trailer Leans Into Horror (Excl)". Comic Book Resources . Retrieved January 8, 2020.
  11. ↑ "October Faction: Season 1 (2020)". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved August 31, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.