Posted by Rosie Reeves on February 3, 2012 · 1 Comment
Touch is a new series on the Fox Network starring Keifer Sutherland as the widower father of a special needs child. His eleven-year-old son doesn’t speak and doesn’t like to be touched, but he can see patterns in the world and in the ways people are meant to connect. The show focuses on seemingly random coincidences, which are not random but actually part of a complex Fibonacci pattern. Some of the coincidences are plausible, while others seem completely contrived. While I am not qualified to review the mathematical or spiritual concepts introduced in the show, I am qualified to report on how the show presents the issues faced by a special needs parent.
Keifer Sutherland shows us once again that he is an amazing actor, jumping between paternal devotion, grief, hopelessness, cynicism, determination and affection. Watch his face as he looks at some typical children in a school bus, then glances to his own distant son. He tells us so much about his character’s struggle in a scene with no dialogue. We hear through a child services caseworker how he has had to sacrifice his once-successful career and is now jumping from job to job. It’s no wonder he isn’t fired from his current job when the police and fire crews call him three days in a row to come and talk his son off a cell phone tower. His son has gone from school to school, doctor to doctor, and you can see the emotional and physical toll it is taking on his character, even though he has the financial means to provide for his son. He seems close to giving up, yet he still holds on to hope and finds the energy to act on that hope. He also still loves his child, longing to hug him yet respecting his son’s preferences and tirelessly trying to find ways to connect with him.
Fox showed a preview of the first episode but the show officially premieres on Thursday, March 15, 2012. It will be interesting to see how the series treats the characters in future episodes, and how Keifer Sutherland portrays the struggles his character will face.
this show is so amazing !