One of the few new Fox Network series of the 2000-2001 season to be tagged as a "sure winner,"
Dark Angel was produced, written, co-created, and co-directed by
James Cameron, of
Terminator and
Titanic fame. Nineteen-year-old
Jessica Alba shed her ingenuous
Flipper image as Max Guevara, the creation of a diabolical futuristic laboratory that specialized in creating human prototypes for their own evil purposes. Escaping from the lab as a child, Max managed to survive into adulthood through a combination of drop-dead gorgeous looks, the cunning of a fox, the agility of a cat, and the strength of a superhuman. Managing to elude her mad-scientist pursuer, Lydecker (
John Savage), by living in a squalid inner-city slum, Max is lured out of hiding by fearless cyberjournalist Logan Cale (
Michael Weatherly), who convinces the heroine to join his fight against the oppressive post-apocalyptic status quo. Along the way, Max solicits the aid of her fellow lab subjects, some of whom have gone over to the other side. The supporting cast includes
Alimi Ballard as Herbal Thought, Jennifer Blanc as Kendra, Richard Gunn as Sketchy, J.C. MacKenzie as Normal, and
Valarie Rae Miller as Original Cindy. The weekly, 60-minute
Dark Angel ran from October 3, 2000 through May 3, 2002. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide