It’s “The X-Files” meets “Northern Exposure” in this new Sci Fi original series.

“Eureka” attempts to pull off the governmental secrecy of the former series and the quirkiness of the latter in this dramedy set in the Pacific Northwest. It’s an odd combination, but co-creators Andrew Cosby (“Haunted”) and Jaime Paglia nearly pull it off.

Eureka, named after an exclamation credited to the Greek inventor Archimedes, seems like a sleepy little hamlet. At least that’s what U.S. Marshal Jack Carter (Colin Ferguson) believes when he and his delinquent teen daughter Zoe (Jordan Hinson) end up there after a car accident.

Carter is soon disabused of that notion as weird stuff happens around him: explosions, superintelligent children, a corner of an RV being vaporized. After the town’s sheriff is incapacitated, Carter gets drafted and is allowed inside the secrets of Eureka.

Eureka is actually the result of a Cold War initiative, in which the country’s greatest scientific minds are stashed away in a secret installation where they’re encouraged to create. Unfortunately, this sometimes results in unexpected consequences.

Among the characters in Eureka that Carter discovers are the comely liaison between the community and the Pentagon (played by Salli Richardson-Whitfield), a sexy psychotherapist with clients in high places (Debrah Farentino), the genius engineer-turned-mechanic (Joe Morton), a wacky tracker-turned-dogcatcher (Matt Frewer) and the gung-ho Special Forces commando turned deputy (Erica Serra).

“Eureka” falls in the mid-range of Sci Fi’s original-programming history. It’s not as polished as “Farscape” or “First Wave,” but ahead of such stinkers as “Black Scorpion” or “The Chronicle.” In the early going, it only has its bizarreness going for it. But with its strong cast and intriguing concept, it definitely has potential, especially in summer, when reality (TV) bites.