Mysterious ALCATRAZ Artifacts Arrive at GeekTyrant HQ

So today I received a mysterious metal box filled with some interesting artifacts from Alcatraz prison. This is obviously a very cool viral marketing campaign for J.J. Abrams' new TV series Alcatraz. I was relieved when nothing blew up when I first opened the box. The metal box contained a visitor map of Alcatraz island giving a little historical background, a newspaper clipping talking about the prison being closed down, a postcard from a little girl who visited The Rock about an interesting experience she had, a little flower, a magazine book review, a Mustang car pin, photos of prison inmates (characters from the show), and a very cool metal Alcatraz prison cell key.

There's a note that came along with the package saying, "Over the next few months, we will be looking to you, and your audience, to help us uncover the mysteries of the island." I look forward to seeing what is revealed next. This could be a very fun viral campaign to be a part of!

I had a chance to see the pilot episode of the series down at Comic-Con last year, and I liked it. I'm excited to see where the show takes us. I went ahead and filmed a short video featuring the contents on the box and pointing out a few interesting things I found like how there are letter circled on the magazine tear out book review, those letters end up spelling out "Legends of Alcatraz."

Check out the video and photos below and tell us what you think!

Here's the full synopsis for the series:

When San Francisco Police Department DET. REBECCA MADSEN (Sarah Jones, “Sons of Anarchy”) is assigned to a grisly homicide case, a fingerprint leads her to a shocking suspect: JACK SYLVANE (guest star Jeffrey Pierce, “The Nine”), a former Alcatraz inmate who died decades ago. Given her family history – both her grandfather and surrogate uncle, RAY ARCHER (Robert Forster, “Jackie Brown”), were guards at the prison – Madsen’s interest is immediately piqued, and once the enigmatic, knows-everything-but-tells-nothing government agent EMERSON HAUSER (Sam Neill, “Jurassic Park”) tries to impede her investigation, she’s doggedly committed. Madsen turns to Alcatraz expert and comic book enthusiast, DR. DIEGO “DOC” SOTO (Jorge Garcia, “Lost”), to piece together the inexplicable sequence of events. The twosome discovers that Sylvane is not only alive, but he’s loose on the streets of San Francisco, leaving bodies in his wake. And strangely, he hasn’t aged a day since he was in Alcatraz, when the prison was ruled by the iron-fisted WARDEN EDWIN JAMES (Jonny Coyne, “Undercovers”) and the merciless ASSOCIATE WARDEN E.B. TILLER (Jason Butler Harner, “The Changeling”). Madsen and Soto reluctantly team with Agent Hauser and his technician, LUCY BANERJEE (Parminder Nagra, “ER”), to stop Sylvane’s vengeful killing spree.

By delving into Alcatraz history, government cover-ups and Rebecca’s own heritage, the team will ultimately discover that Sylvane is only a small part of a much larger, more sinister present-day threat. For while he may be the first, it quickly becomes clear that Sylvane won’t be the last prisoner to reappear from Alcatraz. Through the course of the investigation, Madsen and Soto will learn that Agent Hauser has known about the prison’s secret history and has been awaiting the prisoners’ return. Soto will witness his life’s work – the history of Alcatraz – come alive. Madsen will be forced to keep her supportive San Francisco cop fiancé, JIMMY DICKENS (Santiago Cabrera, “Heroes”), at arm’s length from the highly classified assignment as she sees everything she thought she knew about her family’s past shattered, all while fighting to keep the country safe from history’s most dangerous criminals