Awake TV Show Review - Is the Red or Green Reality Real? More Awake Theories
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Awake TV Show
The Awake TV Show first aired on NBC, on the 1st of March 2012. It aired at 10/9 central and is a fantasy cop drama series.
What makes the Awake TV series so different is that it is not just any cop drama. It is about one particular detective struggling with the loss of his family, and the strange coping mechanism he has developed to deal with a highly emotional situation.
Whether Detective Britten is Awake, or asleep, is a question that even the professionals can't prove outright. Each does their best to help Michael Britten through his loss, while dealing with his split lives. Michael can't have everything in one place. His world has been divided into 2 and the people he loves are separated, and he can no longer have his family all together.
The Awake TV series is about how Detective Michael Britten deals with the loss of his family, while still managing to continue to do his day job. It's a struggle but he's starting to understand the price he will have to pay to keep his life together, or separate. However, staying Awake may come at a price.
What is NBC's Awake TV Series About?
NBC's Awake TV series is about the Britten family, Detective Michael Britten, Hannah Britten and Rex Britten. They are involved in a car accident and one of them dies. Which one is not completely clear.
Michael Britten is stuck in a strange situation where in one reality his wife survived the car crash but his son died. When he falls asleep in this reality, and opens his eyes again, he finds himself in a sort of parallel reality where his wife died in the accident and his son survived. Michael has no idea which reality is real, why this is happening or what he is supposed to do about it.
As he's a member of the Police Force he's sent to a Psychologist to ensure he is ready to handle the strain of coming back to work, after such a crushing personal loss. This happens in both realities.
This could soon become confusing, so Michael develops a method to keep track of which reality he is in at any moment in time. He wears a green wristband for when he's in the reality where Rex survived and his wife, Hannah, died. He wears a red wristband for when he's in the other reality where Hannah survived, but Rex died. In the Red reality, he has an Asian male Shrink called Dr. John Lee. In the Green reality, he has a whilte female Shrink called Dr. Judith Evans.
Michael has shared his dual realities with both Shrinks, in the hopes of trying to figure out what is going on and how to move forward. Both Psychologists stress to him that their reality is real and the other reality is when he's asleep. They believe he is doing this subconsciously to deal with the loss of his son/wife. They both try to find ways to prove that their reality is real. Michael Britten has no conclusive way to prove which reality is real and decides he can act as a bridge between his son and his wife.
Hannah doesn't like the idea that Michael sees their son in his dreams. She is trying to move on with her life, without the son she was forced to bury. She wants her husband to support her and she wants to move house to get away from the pain of the loss of their son. Michael can't move, as to him Rex is still upstairs, waiting for him in the Green reality. Hannah is thinking of having another child.
Rex is doing the best he can to deal with the loss of his mother and takes up tennis again. Although he had previously quit to play football, he returns to tennis as it was his mother's sport. He feels closer to her when he plays and tennis is his coping mechanism.
More Information on Awake TV Series
- Awake Cast and Characters
Find out more about the cast and characters of Awake.
However, it's not just Michael's family life that is different. His work is also different. In the Red reality he has a new partner called Detective Efram Vega.
In the Green reality, his old partner is Detective Isaiah Freeman, but everyone calls him Bird. The cases are different, but have similarities. When these similarities start to cross over into the other reality, Michael starts to discuss things his police partners have no idea about.. This is clearly going to cause issues and will no doubt be taken up the chain to Det. Britten's bosses, who are keeping a close eye on him.
Long term, there could be major side effects of thinking you're in two realities. If he's not getting proper sleep how will that impact upon the situation? Also, Michael doesn't remember how they got into a car accident.
Dr. Lee says there was alcohol in his system that night but he denies drinking the night of the accident. Dr. Lee thinks Michael is using this dual reality as a coping mechanism as he blames himself for the death of his son. On the other hand, Dr. Evans thinks the dual reality is a way for Michael to follow the clues to what actually happened the night of the car accident.
Michael Britten has no intention of getting better if it means he'll lose either his wife or his son permanently in this Awake TV series.
Is Michael Britten Awake?
Awake TV Show Theories and Which Reality is Real in Awake?
The Awake TV Show was intriguing and interesting. It was emotional and it made me wonder where the show could end up and it also raised a number of questions.
It clearly states that he had been drinking the night of the accident but he claims he wasn't. Is it possible that he was living in both realities before, but wasn't aware of it because everything was the same in both realities?
Could it be in one reality he drove home alone after a drink at the bar, but fell asleep at the wheel and woke up in the other reality causing him to crash and kill his wife or son? Strange theory but it could be close to the truth.
Another theory is that perhaps Michael Britten isn't alive either. Perhaps he died in the accident.
The theory I like best is perhaps he's unconscious, in a coma, and is asleep the whole time. Maybe he's never Awake and all of this is in his head.
What will happen longer term? Will he have a baby with Hannah in the Red reality and perhaps have a girlfriend, or new wife, in the Green reality? How will Michael Britten keep it all straight in his head and how long before he slips up and his Superiors notice somethng is disturbing with Detective Britten?
Although Awake had a loyal audience it had been cancelled. Please read the Cancelled TV shows 2012 hub to find out more details why.
How long can Michael survive without proper sleep?
I loved every minute of NBC's Awake TV series and I can't wait to see where it goes from here.