REVIEW: ‘Silo’ Is The Best Sci-Fi Out Now

There are quite a few dystopian future science fiction shows out now, or from the last couple of years. Spanning countries and streaming platforms, dystopian societies are in, because, well, a post-apocalyptic world feels somehow closer than ever. But few have detached the narrative from our current world so sharply as AppleTV+‘s Silo has.

The 10-episode season is created by showrunner Graham Yost and adapts the novels by Hugh Howey. The series follows the story of the last ten thousand people on earth in their mile-deep home, protecting them from the toxic and deadly world outside. The habitants celebrate Freedom Day together to honor when the Founders protected the silo, having children when prescribed, and ultimately abiding by the one and only rule: don’t ask to go outside. But as the generations have passed in the walls of the silo history has been erased or rewritten, and the truth of how the community came to be is a mystery all on its own.

No one knows when or why the silo was built, and any who tries to find out faces fatal consequences. Relics of the before times are banned, questions are quelled, and despite the facade of a thriving community, there is something brewing under the surface. Silo stars Rebecca Ferguson as Juliette, an engineer, who seeks answers about a loved one’s assumed suicide and tumbles onto a mystery that goes far deeper than she could have ever imagined, leading her to unlock the truth about her home and the danger that comes with it.

By using non-linear storytelling, Silo’s narrative starts off strong with intense moments that show that order in the Silo is kept by control and control alone. Control over bodies, over information shared, and the complete removal of choice pushed by the Founder’s system from so far in the past that reasoning is no longer present. From one statement, “I want to go out,” the story begins, and different points in time converge to reveal small truths connecting across characters and time.

While I’m not always a fan of non-linear storytelling, Silo executes perfectly. Each scene from different points in time informs the audience of different pieces of the history at play in the Silo. Without overexplaining its premise or focus, the series drops the audience into a community of people and asks us to just take their idiosyncrasies and past as fact and trust that somewhere in it all we will come to intimately understand how it all connects to each other. And we do. We do learn, and that beauty of trusting your audience and having faith in your script and actors delivering it is what helps this series succeed.

On that point, the ensemble cast starring alongside Ferguson is absolutely stacked with Tim Robbins, Common, Harriet Walter, Chinaza Uche, Avi Nash, David Oyelowo, and Rashida Jones. Each and every actor brings something unique to the series and the characters themselves work so well together that it’s easy to be swept away by the series.

Oyelowo’s Sheriff Holston is moving in his grief and stalwart in his determination. He is the standout of the first two episodes. While I thought the cast would be sorely lacking given his “guest star” status, that wasn’t the case thanks to Ferguson and Common. For her part, Ferguson’s Juliette is smart, grieving, and buckling under the weight of the knowledge she carries. Her loneliness propelling her through the narrative is loud and adds a very intimate element to a large sci-fi story.

For Common, this is the first time I’ve fallen in love with the depth of his character since Hell on Wheels. Intimidating in his cool demeanor, and a man of few words, I want more of this Common in media, and I hope this is a sign we’re going to get him in roles that use more than just his stature and glare in the future.

Silo is produced by AMC Studios for AppleTV+ and it feels like it in the best ways. At this point, AMC series have consistently delivered expansive dystopian worlds with stellar production value, blending practical with CGI effects work in ways that bolster the other. From Into the Badlands to The Walking Dead and all the sci-fi stops in between, you can feel the production value and attention to detail at every level of the silo.

From the Down Deep to the top, each and every section is built out as a lived-in space, dynamic in the costuming, the things on the walls, the shops, the tunnels, and the plants; all of it feels real. This lends to how large this siloed story feels in every way.

A little bit of Bioshock, a whole lot of Fallout, and fueled by tension and mystery, Silo is a series that shouldn’t be ignored. Like much of AppleTV+’s programming, the series is pushing the boundaries on production value, effects work, and storytelling. That said, like other Apple Original gems, it stands the risk of being lost in the shuffle if only for how little reach the streaming platform has. And for that, it would be a shame.

Silo is the best sci-fi on TV right now. With its intricate sets, sprawling lore that doesn’t leave holes in in-world reasoning, and a cast of characters that are infinitely interesting in their roles; Silo is as great as they come. A deep mystery box, Silo is a winding story with a reward for those who trust its tension-building story.

Silo is streaming now, exclusively on AppleTV+ with new episodes every Friday through June 30, 2023.