Tom Hanks launched his web series “Electric City” on Tuesday, July 17th on Yahoo Screen. Hanks’ series has a very interactive element to it. The “Electric City” webpage has the episode viewer, map of the city that moves with the episode, live character guide and a Twitter feed. The first episode “Truth or Consequences” was six-minutes long. The series will run 20-episodes.

“It’s the high-tech version of having your own small theater company,” Hanks said in an interview with The Madeleine Brand show.

The show takes place in a dystopian future, years after an unnamed apocalyptic event has rendered planet Earth a dangerous and crime-ridden place. In addition to conceiving the idea and producing the series, Hanks lends his voice to the main character Cleveland Carr, a former police officer charged with maintaining order in the drab city.

Is this the future of television? The first episode of “Electric City” has 8,900 Facebook recommendations in eight days, which means it didn’t blow the roof off of the internet. The concept is brilliant and this is where mainstream television is going. The interactive element of the show is creative but distracts from the viewing experience. Since this is the beginning, I can’t wait to see what hanks will have for his viewers in year. My message to Mr. Hanks is, “Do not get discouraged, keep producing content.”