Vincent is a puppeteer. In the first episode of Eric, we learn that Vincent (Benedict Cumberbatch) achieved fame as the creator of a children’s television program called “Good Day Sunshine,” the vast popularity of which has begun to dwindle. Crisis erupts one morning in 1985, when Vincent’s son, Edgar (Ivan Howe), disappears into the depths of New York City on his way to school. The trauma of this event is compounded by Vincent’s tense marriage and the angst caused by his failing show, and it leads him to aggrieved paranoia. In a state of immense anxiety, Vincent latches on to the idea that Eric, a monster drawn by Edgar on a sheet of paper left in his room, may be the key to luring the boy home. So Eric is dreamt up by Vincent and becomes a sort of psychosis-induced confidant who trails the father on a quest that’s less Monsters, Inc. than Donnie Darko. —Jack Sullivan