DEVS

I saw Devs last night. Episode one. Its an American TV drama written by Alex Garland. There is something about computers and mystery that go together and attract me. I'm not a computer buff in any way but I've always been aware of the thin dark veil that hangs over computer code. It seems as if we could re-write the code of life itself. Become Gods of code.

This union of code and playing God has spawned some great sci-fi movies like the Forbin Project, the original Tron, The Lawnmower Man, War Games and probably the sub-genre's poster boy, the Matrix.

With the rise of global computer corporations mysterious magnates have emerged now; driven, separate and somehow smarter than the rest of us, the likes of Zuckerberg and Jobs have shaped the way we perceive the idea of computer bosses, the new Masters of the Universe.

And so too some films have re-focused onto these gurus and their private empires. Films like The Social Network, Jobs, Ex-Machina, The Circle and now the TV drama Devs.

I enjoyed the first episode. Everything's there. A God-like hippy boss, a bizarre Silicon Valley complex full of indulgent wackiness, a loyal misguided assistant and a programmer who mysteriously vanishes.

I shall be tuning in again tonight 9pm BBC2.

Will you?