So, last night’s episode was so rife with conspiracy-laced storylines, that we needed to list out the parts that struck us as the most absurd first… then we can go back and address some of our readers’ more specific questions from last night. So, here’s a list of the most laughable elements from “Agro”…

Safety Testing:

The biotech entrepreneur had one great monologue toward the end of the episode – where he recounted just how much his company had researched this experimental pesticide’s safety. I’m not sure just what Bruckheimer’s point here was, because it seems to me (and to credible food safety experts) that he made a very strong case for present-day regulation. In the real world, every single crop developed through biotechnology goes through extensive testing with strong regulatory oversight. The amount of testing behind any new bio-enhanced crop brought to market is astounding, and this testing process is supported by regulators, industry players and scientists. It’s not going away, and no one is trying to circumvent the process. Even the apparent “bad guy” from last night’s episode had no qualms about going through the lengthy and necessary process of ensuring consumers’ safety.

Biohazard Disposal:

Are we supposed to believe that a clearly lethal substance is going to be sent to a biohazard facility that… is akin to burying a dead parakeet in your backyard? Nonsense. If the show’s researchers had done their job, they would know there is NO WAY that:

(a) You just dump biohazard containers into the ground
(b) You let your employees haul a couple of containers of biohazardous materials home with them at the end of their shift
(c) You have an entirely unsecure facility

Seriously guys… even Walmart has better security than the show’s biohazard disposal site.

Biotech Entrepreneur Caricature:

Could they have made the biotech entrepreneur seem any sleazier? It seemed more likely he would be kneecapping someone in a back alley than run a wildly successful company. Perhaps they could have dressed him in some more black? Or given him some more hair grease?

Today’s biotech entrepreneurs are a savvy set of smart? folks who are trying to “heal, fuel and feed the world”. This fact is so inherent in the industry that Bruckheimer didn’t even bother to try and refute it… he just made the biotech entrepreneur’s lofty goals of feeding the starving world into some sort of nefarious plot (key the “dr. evil” music). Once again… we’re not quite sure what Bruckheimer was trying to prove with this caricature of a greasy biotech entrepreneur who dares to try and feed the world, but perhaps he should take a moment to actually meet one or two of these folks. I think he’d be pretty impressed at just how above-board and educated these folks actually are.

Hood Remains Skeptical on Food Safety

So, this is probably the most laughable point of them all. Either the character Hood is a scientist or not. If he is a scientist, he knows perfectly well that all scientifically viable studies have proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that bio-enhanced foods are safe. If – as the show would seem to be showing – his scientific sensibilities are easily overcome by superstition and conspiratorial theories, then perhaps Eleventh Hour should reposition his character as a shaman investigating “science’y stuff”.

Biotech as an industry relies on scientific studies to prove the safety of these crops… so such a prominent scientific figure as Dr. Hood’s character pretends to be should probably hold to the same criteria.