Cuarón and Abrams Will Make You 'Believe'

Alfonso Cuarón is maybe the most adorable badass in Hollywood. The Mexican director veritably SWEPT the Oscars this past Sunday for his film Gravity, and looked positively jovial doing it. But don't let his sweet demeanor fool you, because Cuarón is giving us some of the best visual effects on the screen, and next Monday, his first small screen effort, Believe, airs on NBC. Believe is a partnership with another huge name in sci-fi, J.J. Abrams. Here are five reasons you should definitely be adding Believe to your roster of shows to watch (you'll have time now that True Detective is ending):

1. Alfonso Cuarón's visual effects.

Sandra Bullock was compelling in Gravity, that's undeniable, but what was clearly the film's star was Cuarón's breathtaking visuals that gave us an awesome and quite terrifying view of Earth and space. I feel infinitesimal! Ah! He brings that same sensibility to Believe, a drama about a young girl Bo (Johnny Sequoyah) who has tremendous supernatural gifts (in the new teaser from NBC, she makes a lot of objects float around, Matilda-style) and the death-row inmate that has been tasked with protecting her (Jake McLaughlin). It's sure to be a visual feast, judging from the teaser trailer alone.

2. J.J. Abrams, King of Fandoms.

Could you think of anyone better than J.J. Abrams to produce this series? Lost fans must be wringing their hands in anticipation. Can Abrams live up to his Lost cult legacy? It's uncertain, and those are big shoes to fill (even though they're his own), but he ALWAYS delivers, not only with Lost but with his films Super 8 (which followed similar themes: little kids witness the supernatural, chaos ensues), Star Trek Into Darkness, and Mission Impossible III. Let there be lensflares!

3. Special Agent Dale Cooper!

The plot of Believe centers on the hunt for Bo, a little girl with powers beyond her, well, belief, and those among the hunters include none other than Kyle MacLachlan aka Special Agent Dale Cooper from Twin Peaks. The only thing better than the inclusion of our favorite Lynchian hero would be a 25-year anniversary Twin Peaks reboot, but for now, we'll take MacLachan as a sinister character with the sinister name Skouras (how would John Travolta pronounce this one?), a billionaire with a shady M.O. Much better than his stint as The Captain on How I Met Your Mother (but hopefully he still has time to play the Mayor on Portlandia.)

4. Little girls with superpowers are all the rage.

It's been a banner year for kids with a magic touch; are you not counting down the days until Divergent? There's something in the air that makes us want stories about young people with powers they are trying to harness, and their inevitable battle between youthful innocence and megalomania. Newcomer Johnny Sequoyah is compelling as Bo in the teaser trailer; she's got that wide-eyed thing going for her, that really softens the blow when she drops harsh truths or gets all freaky and supernatural.

5. A brooding ex-con with a moral conflict.

Call us soft, but we love a bad guy with a good heart. Not sure what Tate (Jake McLaughlin) did to end up on death-row, but he's absolved, ironically, by a priest, who helps him escape to protect Bo from the powers that be. Tate's got a lot to learn from Bo, and he also has beautiful hair and a gruff voice. Sigh, swoon, etc.

You can watch the teaser here, and make sure to catch the first episode of Believe on Monday, March 10, on NBC.

Images: NBC, Warner Bros.