Sarah Manning has been running away from her life for some time, but wants to return home to see her daughter. While waiting at the train station, Sarah runs into a woman who looks exactly like her, who then commits suicide by stepping in front of a train. In an attempt to clear out the woman’s bank account, Sarah steals her identity, only to discover Beth Childs wasn’t the only one with the same face. Soon Sarah finds herself caught up in a scientific mystery, which exposes her own past and brings her face to face with her “genetic identicals” and the ways in which their upbringing influenced their personalities.
In addition to Sarah and Beth, the clones include an uptight soccer mom named Allison, a geeky grad student named Cosima, and a crazed zealot named Helena—all of whom are played by the enormously talented Tatiana Maslany. Maslany’s acting skills alone are reason to watch this show, as you’ll quickly forget there’s only one actress on screen in most scenes.
Orphan Black is a sci-fi drama full of danger and intrigue, with phenomenal acting, writing, and memorable characters. Season 2 was recently released and quickly raises the stakes while introducing new twists and clones–making the wait for season 3 (airing on BBC America in April) all the longer!