Pandora showrunner: Season 2 has “rearranged the game pieces”

The second season of Pandora has evolved The CW series. Showrunner Mark A. Altman talks about what’s changed — and what’s ahead — this season.

The new season of The CW‘s Pandora is underway, and it’s expanded the sci-fi series in several new directions. How did the show build on its first-season success, and where is it going next?

To get the answers to those questions and more, we spoke to showrunner Mark A. Altman about the show’s second season, which is airing now. Find out what he had to say about building the mythology, the new cast additions, and how his love of sci-fi genre has helped him create.

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WinterIsComing: What kinds of discussions did you have going into Pandora season 2 about what worked or perhaps needed to be changed after season 1?

Mark A. Altman: It’s funny you ask that since the title of the second season premiere is “Things Have Changed” and we do a six-month time jump forwards where we find Jax is now working closely with the Earth Intelligence Service—not to mention very closely with Xander, who is now a captain of a prototype starship, the Dauntless. We’ve definitely not only rearranged the game pieces, but made it very easy for new viewers to jump onboard as well.

WiC: You’re a well-documented expert in the sci-fi genre, having written fantastic oral histories about Star Trek and Battlestar Galactica, and also having been a co-executive producer on The Librarians. Has any of that knowledge/experience applied to Pandora?

MA: Absolutely, I love genre so having the opportunity to work on a straight-up genre show has been very rewarding. I’ve never gotten to do a space adventure series, but being well versed in Star Trek as well as Battlestar Galactica and Firefly has really been helpful in knowing where those shows went right—as well as where they went wrong to try and avoid those mistakes, and lean into what I love about the genre, which is the hopeful optimism of a better future and that by working together we can triumph over any adversity.

I think for fans who have been craving a more hopeful, optimistic sci-fi series with characters they care about, this will hopefully be their show. Much like college students who discover themselves during their four years in university, I think we really discovered the show in its sophomore year. It’s bigger, more action-packed and we spend a lot more time in space.

WiC: In season 2 you expanded the cast. What do the new characters you’ve added, and the actors who play them, add to Pandora?

MA: We’re so excited to welcome back Jett, played by the brilliant Akshay Kumar. I think he’s really going to surprise audiences this year. If you think you know what to expect based on his appearance last year, think again. I don’t think anyone could see what’s coming with him.

Also, Jax has a new sophomore year roommate Zazie, played by Nicole Castillo-Mavromatis, who’s bubbly and fun—as well as Shani Erez who plays Admiral Lucas, another high-ranking member of the Earth intelligence Services that Xander and Jax will be answering to this season.

We’re also joined by the wonderful Roxanne McKee from Game of Thrones and Strike Back. who plays someone very close to Jax who may hold the key to the mystery.

WiC: What were your highlights from Pandora season 2? Favorite storylines, episodes or things that were just exciting to write or to film?

MA: Anyone who knows science fiction knows how sci-fi shows often need a season or two to find their space legs (e.g. The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, etc.) and I really feel that the show takes a quantum leap forward this year in terms of the look, the cast, the stories. It almost feels like a whole new series. There’s so much to like about it; it has suspense, comedy, drama, romance and action.

I think one of the most exciting and surprising arcs is Ralen’s journey this season given everything he goes through. We really put him through the ringer, but Ben Radcliffe was up to the task. He gave us everything we asked for…and more. I also think people will also be really surprised by Tina Casciani as Tierney, who’s back in a big way.

That said, as a longtime genre fan, standing on the bridge of the Dauntless the first day we filmed, was probably a series high for me—just being surrounded by the giant viewscreen and the crew and a captain and knowing all the incredible space adventures we were about to go on. I’m also thrilled with the quality of the visual effects that Crafty Apes has been delivering this season. Our co-producer Chris LeDoux directed our third episode and it looks like a movie; huge action and big stakes and it also offers the promise to answer a lot of questions fans have had since episode one.

WiC: The biggest pitfall of sci-fi TV is shows get lost in their own mythos. How did you build the mythology further in Pandora season 2 while still making it easy to follow and for fans to keep being invested in the characters?

MA: While we have a very dense mythology. it was important for us to answer as many questions as we could while asking new ones as well. I think we simplified the mythology a little this season so Jax’s journey is very clear, and there will be some resolution by the end of the season, so we don’t just string viewers along for seasons on end. We knew where we wanted to go so we weren’t spinning our wheels.

But at the heart of the show is always character. That’s the most important thing to us and I think the characters this season have some surprising twists and turns to them and will evolve in really interesting ways and we’ll see relationships we didn’t really anticipate at first.

WiC: Outside of this genre, you worked on one of TV’s most underappreciated shows in Agent X, which everyone should see. Is there another project you’ve loved that you’d want Pandora viewers to check out next?

MA: I completely agree about Agent X. That show had so much potential and I loved doing an American James Bond for television. Steve Kriozere and I had so much fun working on that show, and we had an amazing cast and a big budget and could have done some incredible things. But the network [TNT] was really at a crossroads, and the executive who greenlit the show was gone by the time it aired, so I feel like we never had a chance.

It’s a shame because I feel that series could have gone seven seasons and really found an audience given more time. I loved Jeff Hephner, who played John Case, and the entire cast and crew so it was very disappointing, if not unexpected, that it was cancelled. It was similar to what happened with The Librarians, which should still be on the air but got canceled because the network wanted to rebrand—despite the fact it was one of their top-rated series to the day it was cancelled.

A lot of people are calling October the season of sci-fi, with Pandora’s second season premiere on The CW, Discovery’s third season and the return of The Mandalorian. I can’t disagree. If you’re a fan of space-based science fiction, it should be a great fall for fans and I’m excited to be a big part of it.

The next episode of Pandora airs this Sunday, October 25 at 8:00 p.m. EST on The CW. If you’ve missed any of the second season so far, you can catch up on CW Seed. The companion Unboxing Pandora podcast is available Mondays wherever you find your podcasts.

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