I just watched the series premiere, and I must say, I like...and I want more. For those of you who don't know, it's about a secret, underground, cross-country road race with a grand prize of $32 million. Each contestant is sent clues at certain intervals indicating where to go next, and must get there by private transporation (no planes, trains, etc.). In addition to this, each of the racers featured in the series has a complicated backstory and their own, personal reason to race. One guy is an astrophysicist who has just been diagnosed with terminal cancer and wants to see outer space before dieing. Another is a new mother who wants to escape her abusive husband with her child.

Oh, and also, the guys who run the race are very bad. The main character (or at least the guy whose name appears first in the credits) is played by Nathan Fillion (Firefly, Slither), and did not enter the race voluntarily. Somebody wanted him to race, so they kidnapped his wife, then contacted him with information on how to start the race. Also, the new mother came in last after the first day, so in order to stay in the race, she was given a loaded gun and a picture of another contestant (in a group of 3). She was told that it was an 'elimination' round, and that if that car reached the next checkpoint with that girl in it, then she'd be kicked out of the race. I'll not say how that ended, for those who tivo'd it.

As if all this isn't enough, Tim Minear (also of Firefly) has 'created by' credits. The series, so far, is quite suspenseful, and the only thing I didn't like is that I found myself sometimes wanting to hit 'fast forward' when it switched to another contestant so I could see what happened to the one I was just watching.

If you missed the premiere, all you need to know is what I printed above and the fact that all of them must now reach Rome, GA from Cape Canaveral before dark (the sun is already very low in the sky). You should probably be able to figure everything else out, except that the two Hispanic guys are half-brothers whose dad denies the existence of the older, thuggish one (he's a politician now, and it wouldn't look good to the voters for him to have walked out on a 7 year old kid).