And now, a departure from "Sharktopus vs. Whalewolf"
December 2, 2015 9:53 AM Subscribe
The "SyFy" network has released the first episode of their space noir television adaptation of James S. A. Corey's The Expanse novels on YouTube: "Dulcinea." (region-restricted to US viewers only -- contains a scene that may be NSFW)
The show begins airing on the network December 14. The possibly-NSFW scene begins at time index 12:30.
The Premise
Based on the books by James S.A. Corey, (pen name for Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck's collaboration,) the new television show is set 200 years in the future, when humans have colonized the solar system. The U.N. controls Earth. Mars is an independent military power. The planets rely on the resources of the Asteroid Belt, where air and water are more precious than gold. For decades, tensions have been rising between Earth, Mars and the Belt, who are now on the brink of war. "The series follows the case of a missing young woman that brings a hardened detective and a rogue ship’s captain together in a race across the solar system that will expose the greatest conspiracy in human history."
SyFy has posted a prequel-to-the-series novella from the authors called "Drive" There is also a blog which currently includes some trailers and concept art for the show.
Reviews (Contain Spoilers)
* io9: The Expanse Is the Show We’ve Been Wanting Since Battlestar Galactica
* Variety: TV Review: The Expanse
* IGN: "A dense and intriguing world"
* Discovery: 'The Expanse': An Epic Sci-Fi Glimpse into Our Future
* Tor: A Risky Adaptation: Syfy’s The Expanse
The show begins airing on the network December 14. The possibly-NSFW scene begins at time index 12:30.
The Premise
Based on the books by James S.A. Corey, (pen name for Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck's collaboration,) the new television show is set 200 years in the future, when humans have colonized the solar system. The U.N. controls Earth. Mars is an independent military power. The planets rely on the resources of the Asteroid Belt, where air and water are more precious than gold. For decades, tensions have been rising between Earth, Mars and the Belt, who are now on the brink of war. "The series follows the case of a missing young woman that brings a hardened detective and a rogue ship’s captain together in a race across the solar system that will expose the greatest conspiracy in human history."
SyFy has posted a prequel-to-the-series novella from the authors called "Drive" There is also a blog which currently includes some trailers and concept art for the show.
Reviews (Contain Spoilers)
* io9: The Expanse Is the Show We’ve Been Wanting Since Battlestar Galactica
* Variety: TV Review: The Expanse
* IGN: "A dense and intriguing world"
* Discovery: 'The Expanse': An Epic Sci-Fi Glimpse into Our Future
* Tor: A Risky Adaptation: Syfy’s The Expanse
The NSFW warning is nice, but if anyone here has a workplace where they can stop to watch a one hour sci-fi show during the workday, I'm betting they're chill enough not to care if there's a sex scene.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:59 AM on December 2, 2015 [25 favorites]
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:59 AM on December 2, 2015 [25 favorites]
I liked it too. I've only read the first book (of 4, I think) so far, I'll probably get around to them too.
posted by kingless at 10:00 AM on December 2, 2015
posted by kingless at 10:00 AM on December 2, 2015
Wait, is "Sharktopus vs. Whalewolf" real?
posted by clockzero at 10:02 AM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by clockzero at 10:02 AM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
Syfy is Releasing a Film, De-Rebranding, and Becoming Super Interesting
posted by Artw at 10:03 AM on December 2, 2015 [7 favorites]
posted by Artw at 10:03 AM on December 2, 2015 [7 favorites]
One thing I enjoyed about this universe they've created is that it feels lived in. That is one thing that BSG did right, you felt like the various planets, peoples, machines, etc. are places you can explore and live in. And while there is some exposition/explanation, it's not something you're drowning in. The world is as you see it, and the more you watch, the more familiar and the more comfortable the viewer will become. I think this is going to be a fun series.
posted by Fizz at 10:05 AM on December 2, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by Fizz at 10:05 AM on December 2, 2015 [4 favorites]
Thanks for the warning that it's region-restricted -- it's much appreciated, and oddly not at all frustrating to see that as compared to clicking a link and finding out that way.
posted by Shepherd at 10:06 AM on December 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by Shepherd at 10:06 AM on December 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
The book series is mostly awesome, and skirts the line between hard SF and space opera really nicely, with some great characters, including a foul-mouthed 70 year old Indian grandmother who has to save the world. The villains can be a bit mustache-twirling, but that will work well on TV.
posted by blahblahblah at 10:07 AM on December 2, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by blahblahblah at 10:07 AM on December 2, 2015 [5 favorites]
The NSFW warning is nice, but if anyone here has a workplace where they can stop to watch a one hour sci-fi show during the workday, I'm betting they're chill enough not to care if there's a sex scene.
Also, if they are hiring, my contact information is in my profile.
This sounds great and I can't wait to watch it.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 10:08 AM on December 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
Also, if they are hiring, my contact information is in my profile.
This sounds great and I can't wait to watch it.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 10:08 AM on December 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
clockzero: Wait, is "Sharktopus vs. Whalewolf" real?
Yes. I didn't want to include it in the post for fear it would derail the thread, but here's the trailer. The movie is a sequel to Sharktopus Vs Pteracuda.
posted by zarq at 10:10 AM on December 2, 2015 [4 favorites]
Yes. I didn't want to include it in the post for fear it would derail the thread, but here's the trailer. The movie is a sequel to Sharktopus Vs Pteracuda.
posted by zarq at 10:10 AM on December 2, 2015 [4 favorites]
Shepherd: Thanks for the warning that it's region-restricted -- it's much appreciated, and oddly not at all frustrating to see that as compared to clicking a link and finding out that way.
You're very welcome!
DirtyOldTown: The NSFW warning is nice, but if anyone here has a workplace where they can stop to watch a one hour sci-fi show during the workday, I'm betting they're chill enough not to care if there's a sex scene.
True! :)
posted by zarq at 10:14 AM on December 2, 2015
You're very welcome!
DirtyOldTown: The NSFW warning is nice, but if anyone here has a workplace where they can stop to watch a one hour sci-fi show during the workday, I'm betting they're chill enough not to care if there's a sex scene.
True! :)
posted by zarq at 10:14 AM on December 2, 2015
I agree that there is not room for it in the thread, but there is room in my heart for a SyFy that airs both decent sci-fi series and cheesy wonderfully-awful movies.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 10:14 AM on December 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by MCMikeNamara at 10:14 AM on December 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
there's a sex scene.
In zero-gravity too!
posted by Fizz at 10:16 AM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
In zero-gravity too!
posted by Fizz at 10:16 AM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
Oh shit! Definitely going to watch. I have been looking forward to this so much. I'm not sure I loved the latest book, but the first three were pretty much excellent. Missteps here and there, sure, but I want more system-scale space opera with rad ships and powered battle armor and a really likeable cast.
posted by brennen at 10:17 AM on December 2, 2015
posted by brennen at 10:17 AM on December 2, 2015
And now, a departure from "Sharktopus vs. Whalewolf"
Eh. I'm more a fan of Piranhaconda. But then, I'm a man of very discriminating tastes.
posted by duffell at 10:18 AM on December 2, 2015
Eh. I'm more a fan of Piranhaconda. But then, I'm a man of very discriminating tastes.
posted by duffell at 10:18 AM on December 2, 2015
I'm excited about Sharktopus vs. Whalewolf 2: Whalewolf Bar Mitzvah.
posted by emelenjr at 10:21 AM on December 2, 2015 [6 favorites]
posted by emelenjr at 10:21 AM on December 2, 2015 [6 favorites]
MetaFilter: more system-scale space opera with rad ships and powered battle armor
posted by Fizz at 10:22 AM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Fizz at 10:22 AM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
This looks pretty cool. I've been wanting a space series for years without all the Star Trek magic like FTL travel, artificial gravity and such.
posted by octothorpe at 10:23 AM on December 2, 2015
posted by octothorpe at 10:23 AM on December 2, 2015
Thanks for the warning that it's region-restricted
Here is a link that seems to work where grits and chicken fried steak is not a thing.
posted by CynicalKnight at 10:23 AM on December 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
Here is a link that seems to work where grits and chicken fried steak is not a thing.
posted by CynicalKnight at 10:23 AM on December 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
Does the series follow the books closely? Does it cover all the books or just the first one?
posted by signal at 10:31 AM on December 2, 2015
posted by signal at 10:31 AM on December 2, 2015
Watched this yesterday. I felt it was a good first episode, though I did set my expectations low. I'll be interested to see where it goes (eventually—I won't get a chance to watch the series until it finds its way to a streaming service).
I've enjoyed the novels a lot, thus my lower expectations for the series.
The villains can be a bit mustache-twirling, but that will work well on TV.
Yeah, and I do hope it'll translate better to TV. On the other hand, outlandish villains give Amos an excuse to do his thing.
posted by audi alteram partem at 10:34 AM on December 2, 2015
I've enjoyed the novels a lot, thus my lower expectations for the series.
The villains can be a bit mustache-twirling, but that will work well on TV.
Yeah, and I do hope it'll translate better to TV. On the other hand, outlandish villains give Amos an excuse to do his thing.
posted by audi alteram partem at 10:34 AM on December 2, 2015
Thanks for the reminder! I loved the first three Expanse novels and have been looking forward to this series.
posted by Kwine at 10:38 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Kwine at 10:38 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
Regarding low expectations, I have lingering decades-old deep adolescent bitterness about "SyFy" and everything that happened with them becoming not the Sci-Fi Channel, but I guess I'm prepared to think that after so many years of resolutely self-parodical suck the worm might potentially turn.
I mean, probably not, but stranger things have happened.
(icarus.scifi.com represent)
posted by brennen at 10:41 AM on December 2, 2015
I mean, probably not, but stranger things have happened.
(icarus.scifi.com represent)
posted by brennen at 10:41 AM on December 2, 2015
skirts the line between hard SF and space opera
I've just started reading it, but I'd be reluctant to call this "hard" SF. It's the kind of story and setting that would make you think it ought to be, the first chapter made me think it was going to be. It then sort of goes a bit soft to my taste. Every once in a while there's a little glitch in the writing that makes me wonder if the writers really don't understand orbital mechanics or some other physics or technology thing that comes up, and it takes some deliberately charitable reading to accept that maybe they do and just are just trying too hard to simplify things by not getting into the details. Also it seems to be full of "cop logic". It's skirting the line between space opera and a detective novel. But then I'm only half-way though the first book and haven't given up on it. Should be ideal for TV though.
posted by sfenders at 10:42 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
I've just started reading it, but I'd be reluctant to call this "hard" SF. It's the kind of story and setting that would make you think it ought to be, the first chapter made me think it was going to be. It then sort of goes a bit soft to my taste. Every once in a while there's a little glitch in the writing that makes me wonder if the writers really don't understand orbital mechanics or some other physics or technology thing that comes up, and it takes some deliberately charitable reading to accept that maybe they do and just are just trying too hard to simplify things by not getting into the details. Also it seems to be full of "cop logic". It's skirting the line between space opera and a detective novel. But then I'm only half-way though the first book and haven't given up on it. Should be ideal for TV though.
posted by sfenders at 10:42 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
The first three books are really good outer space scifi, with interesting, non-cardboard characters and thrilling developments that keep things moving. My main complaint was that there wasn't enough description of the lived-in worlds and the tech that keeps those worlds running, but it's clear that lots of science wasn't high on Abraham and Franck's agenda.
One thing that is clear, though, is the casual inclusion of relatively complex multiracial, lesbian and gay characters throughout. I found myself wondering what the Sad Puppy types have had to say about the books, which satisfies many of their yearnings for classic space opera - spaceships, exobiology, etc - but also clearly has an inclusive agenda. Don't care enough to search, but it definitely straddles some sort of line they think they see clearly.
High hopes for the series will probably be dashed, but I'm glad to hear it's starting well enough.
posted by mediareport at 10:43 AM on December 2, 2015 [8 favorites]
One thing that is clear, though, is the casual inclusion of relatively complex multiracial, lesbian and gay characters throughout. I found myself wondering what the Sad Puppy types have had to say about the books, which satisfies many of their yearnings for classic space opera - spaceships, exobiology, etc - but also clearly has an inclusive agenda. Don't care enough to search, but it definitely straddles some sort of line they think they see clearly.
High hopes for the series will probably be dashed, but I'm glad to hear it's starting well enough.
posted by mediareport at 10:43 AM on December 2, 2015 [8 favorites]
The books are wonderful, and you should definitely read them.
My only complaint I had was that my mental image of Amos was of a big dude. I'm thinking like a Dave Bautista type. Wes Chatham isn't quite doing it for me so far. I kept losing track of who was supposed to be Alex and who was supposed to be Amos. But I'll give them time, they might grow on me.
posted by JDHarper at 10:44 AM on December 2, 2015 [5 favorites]
My only complaint I had was that my mental image of Amos was of a big dude. I'm thinking like a Dave Bautista type. Wes Chatham isn't quite doing it for me so far. I kept losing track of who was supposed to be Alex and who was supposed to be Amos. But I'll give them time, they might grow on me.
posted by JDHarper at 10:44 AM on December 2, 2015 [5 favorites]
I enjoyed the hell out of the first two books, the third felt like a bit of a slog, and I've started the fourth a couple times now but keep getting distracted by other things.
Anyway, this pilot looks awesome! (Though I also imagined Amos as way bigger.) Hope the rest of the series only gets better.
posted by rtha at 10:58 AM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
Anyway, this pilot looks awesome! (Though I also imagined Amos as way bigger.) Hope the rest of the series only gets better.
posted by rtha at 10:58 AM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
Sci-Fi Channel was too generic to gain global trademarks. They went with SyFy. At one point it was going to be called "Beyond".
Can we get over the rebranding please? It's been 6 years!
posted by andreaazure at 11:04 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
Can we get over the rebranding please? It's been 6 years!
posted by andreaazure at 11:04 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
Concur on the Amos/Alex thing, but other than that the premier was a... relief? There's SO much material in the Expense series and universe that if it's good, the show could keep humming along for years. I summarized my feelings when describing the show to my wife: "It's not as good as I'd hoped, but a lot better than I expected."
posted by verb at 11:05 AM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by verb at 11:05 AM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
I was most impressed with the way they imagined the Belters, those born and raised in low G, not so much Holden, who's too much of a kid to be the seasoned character in the book. Looks good enough to dive into though.
posted by OHenryPacey at 11:07 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by OHenryPacey at 11:07 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
andreaazure: "Sci-Fi Channel was too generic to gain global trademarks. They went with SyFy. At one point it was going to be called "Beyond".
Can we get over the rebranding please? It's been 6 years!"
It doesn't help much with the sucky content and all the shows I like being cancelled though.
posted by Samizdata at 11:07 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
Can we get over the rebranding please? It's been 6 years!"
It doesn't help much with the sucky content and all the shows I like being cancelled though.
posted by Samizdata at 11:07 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
I will be watching when this premieres on the 14th. Go space opera!
posted by Kevin Street at 11:10 AM on December 2, 2015
posted by Kevin Street at 11:10 AM on December 2, 2015
> Here is a link that seems to work where grits and chicken fried steak is not a thing.
As if anyone would want to live in a such a place.
I'm most excited to see what they do with Childhood's End, which my father tells me is the first sci-fi story he ever read as a kid, and it had a profound impact on his life - giving him a passion for the genre that he still holds to this day. I've never read it, but I'm sure as hell gonna watch it, based upon that point alone.
posted by davelog at 11:14 AM on December 2, 2015
As if anyone would want to live in a such a place.
I'm most excited to see what they do with Childhood's End, which my father tells me is the first sci-fi story he ever read as a kid, and it had a profound impact on his life - giving him a passion for the genre that he still holds to this day. I've never read it, but I'm sure as hell gonna watch it, based upon that point alone.
posted by davelog at 11:14 AM on December 2, 2015
This is on the Expanse's Twitter feed right now.
Same image they used when they posted the first episode. Wonder if they're going to drop the second today.
posted by eyeballkid at 11:15 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
Same image they used when they posted the first episode. Wonder if they're going to drop the second today.
posted by eyeballkid at 11:15 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
davelog: I'm most excited to see what they do with Childhood's End, which my father tells me is the first sci-fi story he ever read as a kid, and it had a profound impact on his life - giving him a passion for the genre that he still holds to this day. I've never read it, but I'm sure as hell gonna watch it, based upon that point alone.
The thing about Childhood's End is you have to place it in the context of when it was published: 1953. Some of its concepts were used in dozens of subsequent stories and tv shows and movies. From V to Contact to Independence Day and even a few anime classics. Star Trek and The Twilight Zone and Babylon 5 all included episodes based on ideas from Childhood's End. Heck, even Prometheus' core concept descends from the novel.
The novel's still a really good read, and I highly recommend it. Clarke was a hell of a writer. But it's fun to contemplate how it entered the zeitgeist and helped shape the entire genre.
posted by zarq at 11:27 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
The thing about Childhood's End is you have to place it in the context of when it was published: 1953. Some of its concepts were used in dozens of subsequent stories and tv shows and movies. From V to Contact to Independence Day and even a few anime classics. Star Trek and The Twilight Zone and Babylon 5 all included episodes based on ideas from Childhood's End. Heck, even Prometheus' core concept descends from the novel.
The novel's still a really good read, and I highly recommend it. Clarke was a hell of a writer. But it's fun to contemplate how it entered the zeitgeist and helped shape the entire genre.
posted by zarq at 11:27 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
Watched it last week. It's a bit... rough. As my wife said "It's got an interesting premise and has potential, but they need to do a bit of work on it".
posted by blue_beetle at 11:32 AM on December 2, 2015
posted by blue_beetle at 11:32 AM on December 2, 2015
I kept losing track of who was supposed to be Alex and who was supposed to be Amos.
Alex is the brown one.
not so much Holden, who's too much of a kid to be the seasoned character in the book
I thought this too from the earlier trailers, but thought the actor sold it pretty well. I just started going back through Leviathan Wakes, the first book, and was surprised that Holden is only supposed to be in his early 30s.
Still not quite sold on Amos, but we haven't had anything yet where he's been required to deploy the requisite Amos attitude.
SyFy's plans are all very heartening, but I also feel like any enthusiasm I have is just setting myself up for betrayal.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 11:38 AM on December 2, 2015
Alex is the brown one.
not so much Holden, who's too much of a kid to be the seasoned character in the book
I thought this too from the earlier trailers, but thought the actor sold it pretty well. I just started going back through Leviathan Wakes, the first book, and was surprised that Holden is only supposed to be in his early 30s.
Still not quite sold on Amos, but we haven't had anything yet where he's been required to deploy the requisite Amos attitude.
SyFy's plans are all very heartening, but I also feel like any enthusiasm I have is just setting myself up for betrayal.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 11:38 AM on December 2, 2015
sfenders: "Every once in a while there's a little glitch in the writing that makes me wonder if the writers really don't understand orbital mechanics or some other physics or technology thing that comes up"
I'm only mostly though the second book but the series seems to play a little fast and loose with travel time, acceleration and velocity.
posted by Mitheral at 11:42 AM on December 2, 2015
I'm only mostly though the second book but the series seems to play a little fast and loose with travel time, acceleration and velocity.
posted by Mitheral at 11:42 AM on December 2, 2015
As I said in the Fanfare thread I want to watch this so bad but I am not going to watch it on Youtube. I have a big high definition television for a reason, dammit.
posted by Justinian at 11:47 AM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Justinian at 11:47 AM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
Justinian - I thought this when I read it in the Fanfare thread: Don't you have any way of watching YouTube on your tv? Smart TV? Roku? Chromecast? If not, you should, they're really handy, plus ChromeCast is like $25.
posted by Inkoate at 11:50 AM on December 2, 2015
posted by Inkoate at 11:50 AM on December 2, 2015
Sure, but the quality isn't the same as an uncompressed HD feed from the network.
posted by Justinian at 11:56 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Justinian at 11:56 AM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
I watched it on youtube. Twice. Then on the 14th I will watch it again, but more betterer!
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 11:57 AM on December 2, 2015
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 11:57 AM on December 2, 2015
This had better wash the bitter lingering taste of Defiance from my mouth, SyFy. I had such hopes for that show. But it never came together.
I loved the Expanse novels. Gobbled them down like candy. I have Expectations for this show (especially after they make it through the first book/season and the world really *ahem* opens up...).
Star-Trek-level sensawonda plus Firefly-like team-building plus FUCKING AMOS, a stone-cold killer whose heart isn't exactly made of the purest gold. Please be good please be good please be good.....
posted by BitterOldPunk at 12:06 PM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
I loved the Expanse novels. Gobbled them down like candy. I have Expectations for this show (especially after they make it through the first book/season and the world really *ahem* opens up...).
Star-Trek-level sensawonda plus Firefly-like team-building plus FUCKING AMOS, a stone-cold killer whose heart isn't exactly made of the purest gold. Please be good please be good please be good.....
posted by BitterOldPunk at 12:06 PM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
I'm sorry, but we need this show to fail in order to prevent Daniel Abraham from getting distracted from working on his The Dagger and the Coin series. I've made do with doodles of Magister Cithrin bel Sarcour kneeing Nice Guy Geder Palliako in the cupcakes with a variety of custom made kneepads, but I'm running out of room.
posted by robocop is bleeding at 12:14 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by robocop is bleeding at 12:14 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
I was impressed by some of the elements that were a bit hard-scifish relative to typical TV, including the zero-G sex, flipping the ship to maneuver, hard-G maneuvers, and lack of magical artificial gravity. I was not very impressed by the characterization or acting, which felt like pretty worn genre types. Some of the effects were cool, some felt like standard cheesy SyFy. I might watch another episode.
posted by jjwiseman at 12:20 PM on December 2, 2015
posted by jjwiseman at 12:20 PM on December 2, 2015
Is the name of the woman Dulcinea? Interesting if so.
posted by OmieWise at 12:29 PM on December 2, 2015
posted by OmieWise at 12:29 PM on December 2, 2015
Inkoate: "Justinian - I thought this when I read it in the Fanfare thread: Don't you have any way of watching YouTube on your tv? Smart TV? Roku? Chromecast? If not, you should, they're really handy, plus ChromeCast is like $25."
My primary monitor on my PC is a 31" Sony Bravia I got a good deal on a few years ago. Sadly, I end up doing mainly computer stuff on the primary, and putting streaming on my 19" secondary,
posted by Samizdata at 12:32 PM on December 2, 2015
My primary monitor on my PC is a 31" Sony Bravia I got a good deal on a few years ago. Sadly, I end up doing mainly computer stuff on the primary, and putting streaming on my 19" secondary,
posted by Samizdata at 12:32 PM on December 2, 2015
I'm sorry, but we need this show to fail in order to prevent Daniel Abraham from getting distracted from working on his The Dagger and the Coin series.He's already finished the last book.
posted by dfan at 12:38 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
Listen to my voice, there will be more books in the series. You will write them, Daniel. Listen to my voice.
posted by robocop is bleeding at 12:43 PM on December 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by robocop is bleeding at 12:43 PM on December 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
I really enjoyed the first episode but the casting of Miller seemed way off. I imagined someone much older and haggard looking. Instead he looked like a PUA.
posted by munchingzombie at 12:48 PM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by munchingzombie at 12:48 PM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
the casting of Miller seemed way off.
Funny, I was just watching it and thinking how haggard Thomas Jane was looking in this show.
The books are on my TBR list but this was good enough to make me bump them up some.
posted by Sternmeyer at 12:52 PM on December 2, 2015
Funny, I was just watching it and thinking how haggard Thomas Jane was looking in this show.
The books are on my TBR list but this was good enough to make me bump them up some.
posted by Sternmeyer at 12:52 PM on December 2, 2015
I'm sorry, but we need this show to fail in order to prevent Daniel Abraham from getting distracted from working on his The Dagger and the Coin series.
But it would be unprecedented for an author living in New Mexico to be distracted from his bestselling SF series by opportunities in other media. Unprecedented I say!
posted by Justinian at 12:53 PM on December 2, 2015 [4 favorites]
But it would be unprecedented for an author living in New Mexico to be distracted from his bestselling SF series by opportunities in other media. Unprecedented I say!
posted by Justinian at 12:53 PM on December 2, 2015 [4 favorites]
Whee! My big screen TV has a decent YouTube app, so this is on the menu for tonight.
posted by Sheydem-tants at 1:07 PM on December 2, 2015
posted by Sheydem-tants at 1:07 PM on December 2, 2015
Watched this the other day. It feels like the story is long, rather than TV-episodic, which is good, but that also makes just watching one episode feel like I watched the first fifteen minutes of a movie, so I don't quite have enough stuff for my mind to really grab onto.
I can already feel myself making allowances for how hard/expensive it is to shoot zero-g on a TV schedule/budget, and it wasn't super-distracting, what with the magnetic shoes giving them an excuse to let actors stand on floors. I have already started imagining how you could film seated actors sideways or upside down to give their arm or head movements a little subtle hint of weightlessness, but who knows if they'll bother?
The fact I'm thinking about it tells me I'll definitely watch the rest of the season one way or another.
posted by Mister Moofoo at 1:27 PM on December 2, 2015
I can already feel myself making allowances for how hard/expensive it is to shoot zero-g on a TV schedule/budget, and it wasn't super-distracting, what with the magnetic shoes giving them an excuse to let actors stand on floors. I have already started imagining how you could film seated actors sideways or upside down to give their arm or head movements a little subtle hint of weightlessness, but who knows if they'll bother?
The fact I'm thinking about it tells me I'll definitely watch the rest of the season one way or another.
posted by Mister Moofoo at 1:27 PM on December 2, 2015
I was most impressed with the way they imagined the Belters, those born and raised in low G,
It looks like they putting a casting call out in Vancouver or where ever they filmed this for anyone with Marfan's.
posted by thecjm at 2:15 PM on December 2, 2015
It looks like they putting a casting call out in Vancouver or where ever they filmed this for anyone with Marfan's.
posted by thecjm at 2:15 PM on December 2, 2015
Yes. I didn't want to include it in the post for fear it would derail the thread, but here's the trailer.
Given that I could not watch an entire 45 minute episode but had time for a trailer, I went - for now - with the derail.
The whalewolf does not live up to expectations.
posted by rtimmel at 2:18 PM on December 2, 2015
Given that I could not watch an entire 45 minute episode but had time for a trailer, I went - for now - with the derail.
The whalewolf does not live up to expectations.
posted by rtimmel at 2:18 PM on December 2, 2015
Can we get over the rebranding please? It's been 6 years!
I'm still not over shit that spilled over into people being assholes on a niche IRC server in the mid-to-late 1990s, of which the rebranding thing seems merely sort of a symptomatic final echo of a particular strain of bone-deep cluelessness.
I mean, ok, I'm over it. I'm 34 years old and it's basically been my entire life since then. I was a dumb teenager, whatever. But I still think of it with a little twinge of reflexive disgust, when I think about SyFy at all, which until this show came along had basically dropped to nil other than a periodic "heh" with regards to Sharknado sorts of things. The kind of laser-focused dumbshittery that produces ideas like "SyFy" is close kin to the memeplexen that make my blood pressure shoot through the roof every time I hear words like "rebranding" in a professional context I have to care about. Instant fight-or-flight.
posted by brennen at 2:54 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
I'm still not over shit that spilled over into people being assholes on a niche IRC server in the mid-to-late 1990s, of which the rebranding thing seems merely sort of a symptomatic final echo of a particular strain of bone-deep cluelessness.
I mean, ok, I'm over it. I'm 34 years old and it's basically been my entire life since then. I was a dumb teenager, whatever. But I still think of it with a little twinge of reflexive disgust, when I think about SyFy at all, which until this show came along had basically dropped to nil other than a periodic "heh" with regards to Sharknado sorts of things. The kind of laser-focused dumbshittery that produces ideas like "SyFy" is close kin to the memeplexen that make my blood pressure shoot through the roof every time I hear words like "rebranding" in a professional context I have to care about. Instant fight-or-flight.
posted by brennen at 2:54 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
I was hoping for a more pronounced Martian (Texan) accent from Alex, to be honest. I thought it was a great gag, greater than Miller's porkpie, that Martians were substantially ethnic chinese who sound like they're from such an un-Chinese place like Texas.
Hopefully it'll be more pronounced when Bobbie Draper, Martian Marine, pays a visit next season. As far as I can tell, though, casting for Bobbie has not been announced. I can imagine she'd be hard to cast for TV; she was tall and thick even for a Martian. I just hope they don't cast some tough-but-tiny chick to take her place; the TV Amos is small enough. If they take two characters who are so large in a solar system full of tall people that even Martians and Belters take notice and cast them as earth-normal (though probably beefy), I'm going to have a harder time suspending my disbelief. (And then there's the matter of Bobbie's armor, which had better be as kickass as I pictured it.)
posted by Sunburnt at 3:01 PM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
Hopefully it'll be more pronounced when Bobbie Draper, Martian Marine, pays a visit next season. As far as I can tell, though, casting for Bobbie has not been announced. I can imagine she'd be hard to cast for TV; she was tall and thick even for a Martian. I just hope they don't cast some tough-but-tiny chick to take her place; the TV Amos is small enough. If they take two characters who are so large in a solar system full of tall people that even Martians and Belters take notice and cast them as earth-normal (though probably beefy), I'm going to have a harder time suspending my disbelief. (And then there's the matter of Bobbie's armor, which had better be as kickass as I pictured it.)
posted by Sunburnt at 3:01 PM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
I just watched it, with running commentary on Facebook, of which these are a few examples:
The Expanse, 10 minutes in:
1. Impressive visuals
2. Cool that they decided to actually try to portray the different ways bodies develop on planets with gravity vs. zero G environments
3. Can't remember if this earth cop on Ceres was in the book or is the necessary excuse for the cop from Ceres to do a lot of exposition
4. There's one scene in a crowded underground habitat for low-end workers that so resembles the kind of thing they did all the time on Farscape that I kept expecting John Creighton and Aeryn Sun to come through the crowd, bickering.
=====
The Expanse, 12:50 seconds: Personally, if I were having sex in zero G I'd choose a more interesting position than front-facing cowgirl, which can be done on any bed, floor, or table on earth. Seems like a wasted opportunity to me.
=====
The Expanse, 22 minutes: I observe that in the rough-and-tumble world of an ice freighter working the asteroid belt, none of the men have the time or the energy to shave their faces. Chest waxing, though? They sure haven't let that go! Just because they work the frontier, that doesn't mean they're complete barbarians!
=====
The Expanse: Even though a ship's log is an important historical and legal document, portions of it can be deleted with the touch of a button if the crew decides to cover up their decision not to respond to a distress signal. But the deleted portion will appear in the computer files as "deleted file: distress signal" and can be re-accessed with the 23rd-century space-version of command-Z. This is so dumb on so many levels I almost can't stand it.
=====
The Expanse: My friend Dan will be disappointed to hear that man-buns will still be in fashion two centuries from now, on the asteroid Ceres.
=====
The Expanse: In zero-g, once you latch your magnetic boots to the deck, your hair doesn't float anymore.
=====
The Expanse: In the books, the navigator of the ship is Ade Tukundo, an earth woman of Nigerian descent. In the TV show, she's a white woman with light-brown hair named something scandinavian that I can't remember. She's a minor character, but still. Was it just going to be too much to have two women of color, not from the US, in a crew of 8 or so? At least Naomi Nagata, who is a major character, is still mixed-race/black.
=====
The Expanse: It's the 23rd Century. You're a white male police detective, and you decide to consult your female colleague about this case you're on. You sit down next to her and say, "Female colleague, you're good at this stuff. You've had years of experience, and you've cracked cases the rest of were completely baffled by. Your have a remarkable ability to see patterns that elude the rest of us, and your knowledge of the various subcultures here on Ceres surpasses even mine. If you've got a few minutes, I'd appreciate your thoughts on this missing-persons thing I've been saddled with."
Ha! Just kidding.
You say, "I could use some feminine intuition."
=====
The Expanse: the detective wears a fedora because underneath it he has a terrible undercut that makes him look like Lyle Lovett circa 1994.
=====
I was really looking forward to this, but didn't see what people were so excited about in this first episode, other than visuals and special effects. I don't feel eager to watch more episodes, but I might give it another couple episodes to see if it starts working better for me.
posted by not that girl at 3:06 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
The Expanse, 10 minutes in:
1. Impressive visuals
2. Cool that they decided to actually try to portray the different ways bodies develop on planets with gravity vs. zero G environments
3. Can't remember if this earth cop on Ceres was in the book or is the necessary excuse for the cop from Ceres to do a lot of exposition
4. There's one scene in a crowded underground habitat for low-end workers that so resembles the kind of thing they did all the time on Farscape that I kept expecting John Creighton and Aeryn Sun to come through the crowd, bickering.
=====
The Expanse, 12:50 seconds: Personally, if I were having sex in zero G I'd choose a more interesting position than front-facing cowgirl, which can be done on any bed, floor, or table on earth. Seems like a wasted opportunity to me.
=====
The Expanse, 22 minutes: I observe that in the rough-and-tumble world of an ice freighter working the asteroid belt, none of the men have the time or the energy to shave their faces. Chest waxing, though? They sure haven't let that go! Just because they work the frontier, that doesn't mean they're complete barbarians!
=====
The Expanse: Even though a ship's log is an important historical and legal document, portions of it can be deleted with the touch of a button if the crew decides to cover up their decision not to respond to a distress signal. But the deleted portion will appear in the computer files as "deleted file: distress signal" and can be re-accessed with the 23rd-century space-version of command-Z. This is so dumb on so many levels I almost can't stand it.
=====
The Expanse: My friend Dan will be disappointed to hear that man-buns will still be in fashion two centuries from now, on the asteroid Ceres.
=====
The Expanse: In zero-g, once you latch your magnetic boots to the deck, your hair doesn't float anymore.
=====
The Expanse: In the books, the navigator of the ship is Ade Tukundo, an earth woman of Nigerian descent. In the TV show, she's a white woman with light-brown hair named something scandinavian that I can't remember. She's a minor character, but still. Was it just going to be too much to have two women of color, not from the US, in a crew of 8 or so? At least Naomi Nagata, who is a major character, is still mixed-race/black.
=====
The Expanse: It's the 23rd Century. You're a white male police detective, and you decide to consult your female colleague about this case you're on. You sit down next to her and say, "Female colleague, you're good at this stuff. You've had years of experience, and you've cracked cases the rest of were completely baffled by. Your have a remarkable ability to see patterns that elude the rest of us, and your knowledge of the various subcultures here on Ceres surpasses even mine. If you've got a few minutes, I'd appreciate your thoughts on this missing-persons thing I've been saddled with."
Ha! Just kidding.
You say, "I could use some feminine intuition."
=====
The Expanse: the detective wears a fedora because underneath it he has a terrible undercut that makes him look like Lyle Lovett circa 1994.
=====
I was really looking forward to this, but didn't see what people were so excited about in this first episode, other than visuals and special effects. I don't feel eager to watch more episodes, but I might give it another couple episodes to see if it starts working better for me.
posted by not that girl at 3:06 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
> 3. Can't remember if this earth cop on Ceres was in the book or is the necessary excuse for the cop from Ceres to do a lot of exposition
Yup, he's in the book.
posted by rtha at 3:15 PM on December 2, 2015
Yup, he's in the book.
posted by rtha at 3:15 PM on December 2, 2015
not that girl: " Can't remember if this earth cop on Ceres was in the book or is the necessary excuse for the cop from Ceres to do a lot of exposition"
He's there in the book and he's been around for a while IIRC, not a brand new noob like portrayed. But he is also used in the book for exposition.
not that girl: "I observe that in the rough-and-tumble world of an ice freighter working the asteroid belt, none of the men have the time or the energy to shave their faces. Chest waxing, though? They sure haven't let that go! Just because they work the frontier, that doesn't mean they're complete barbarians!"
It could just be fashion. That certainly happens here on earth. Lots of guys in camp end up growing beards while still doing their other shaving. In some ways a nicely trimmed beard is more work than shaving everyday.
I just don't know how practical it would been in space where a person can't scratch while suited up.
posted by Mitheral at 3:30 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
He's there in the book and he's been around for a while IIRC, not a brand new noob like portrayed. But he is also used in the book for exposition.
not that girl: "I observe that in the rough-and-tumble world of an ice freighter working the asteroid belt, none of the men have the time or the energy to shave their faces. Chest waxing, though? They sure haven't let that go! Just because they work the frontier, that doesn't mean they're complete barbarians!"
It could just be fashion. That certainly happens here on earth. Lots of guys in camp end up growing beards while still doing their other shaving. In some ways a nicely trimmed beard is more work than shaving everyday.
I just don't know how practical it would been in space where a person can't scratch while suited up.
posted by Mitheral at 3:30 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
Add me to the chorus of people who hate (most of) the casting but will stick with it out of love for the books. (My specific gripes, largely echoed above: Miller is nowhere near old enough nor grizzled enough. Holden is also too young and for some reason I always picture him as blonde. Amos isn't nearly big enough - I mentally pictured him as a deceptively-doughy version of Vin Diesel. Naomi isn't tall enough to be a belter.)
posted by namewithoutwords at 3:37 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by namewithoutwords at 3:37 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
namewithoutwords: "Naomi isn't tall enough to be a belter."
That's a tough one. Here's a list of tall female actors and it is very short even if you consider tall to be 5'11". It'll be interesting to see who they cast as Bobbie; I don't think they are going to be able to get someone significantly imposing without using perspective tricks like was done in The Lord of the Rings movies.
posted by Mitheral at 3:56 PM on December 2, 2015
That's a tough one. Here's a list of tall female actors and it is very short even if you consider tall to be 5'11". It'll be interesting to see who they cast as Bobbie; I don't think they are going to be able to get someone significantly imposing without using perspective tricks like was done in The Lord of the Rings movies.
posted by Mitheral at 3:56 PM on December 2, 2015
Aren't the actors playing Miller and Holden both within a couple years of their character's ages? I think people might be picturing Miller and Holden as older than they actually are in the books. Holden is, what, 32 at the beginning? And Miller is 48-49?
posted by Justinian at 4:29 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Justinian at 4:29 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
Problem is they are working actors so not only are going to appear younger in general they also are heavily made up and carefully lit and filmed. So they appear younger than people would have though in their mind picture.
posted by Mitheral at 4:55 PM on December 2, 2015
posted by Mitheral at 4:55 PM on December 2, 2015
It never occurred to me that they might use CG hair on live-action people. As a hair-challenged individual I find this intriguing.
posted by XMLicious at 5:05 PM on December 2, 2015
posted by XMLicious at 5:05 PM on December 2, 2015
I was really looking forward to this, but didn't see what people were so excited about in this first episode, other than visuals and special effects.
I wanted to like it, but I was both bored, annoyed, and turned off and quit after about 15-20 minutes, wondering what the hell it was I was supposed to love.
posted by jenfullmoon at 6:06 PM on December 2, 2015
I wanted to like it, but I was both bored, annoyed, and turned off and quit after about 15-20 minutes, wondering what the hell it was I was supposed to love.
posted by jenfullmoon at 6:06 PM on December 2, 2015
the deleted portion will appear in the computer files as "deleted file: distress signal" and can be re-accessed with the 23rd-century space-version of command-Z.
That was the worst moment. All the more so because it's not in the book. Hey TV producers, this world already looks like enough of a grim dystopia where everyone is nasty and corrupt, there's no need to exaggerate it even further, especially when it requires such an idiotic design for the ship's log editor UI. Failing to respond to a distress signal in space has got to be even worse than doing so at sea, and that's pretty seriously bad. The way I remember it in the book, where the captain knew that ignoring the signal was not only illegal but unconscionable, he's not some kind of pirate or monster, he just wanted someone on whom to place the blame for the inevitable decision not to do that, there being some crew members who would grumble about the right choice, even though everyone else on the ship or even in the room was by no means going to be collectively okay with the wrong one; that was better in every way and you fucked it up. It's exactly this kind of unforced error that ruins TV and movie versions of science fiction if you make too many of them. You should be fixing the ones from the book, not adding your own. You're allowed one though, and I didn't see any other big ones really, so it's fine. Nice work not getting the look of zero-gravity too badly wrong, the average big-budget space movie can't even do it as well these days to judge from the last one I saw.
It was so fast-paced that I have to wonder if people who don't already know all the characters are going to have insufficient time to care about any of them before all of them get introduced. But that's how I felt watching the first episode of Game of Thrones, and it turned out good.
posted by sfenders at 7:31 PM on December 2, 2015
That was the worst moment. All the more so because it's not in the book. Hey TV producers, this world already looks like enough of a grim dystopia where everyone is nasty and corrupt, there's no need to exaggerate it even further, especially when it requires such an idiotic design for the ship's log editor UI. Failing to respond to a distress signal in space has got to be even worse than doing so at sea, and that's pretty seriously bad. The way I remember it in the book, where the captain knew that ignoring the signal was not only illegal but unconscionable, he's not some kind of pirate or monster, he just wanted someone on whom to place the blame for the inevitable decision not to do that, there being some crew members who would grumble about the right choice, even though everyone else on the ship or even in the room was by no means going to be collectively okay with the wrong one; that was better in every way and you fucked it up. It's exactly this kind of unforced error that ruins TV and movie versions of science fiction if you make too many of them. You should be fixing the ones from the book, not adding your own. You're allowed one though, and I didn't see any other big ones really, so it's fine. Nice work not getting the look of zero-gravity too badly wrong, the average big-budget space movie can't even do it as well these days to judge from the last one I saw.
It was so fast-paced that I have to wonder if people who don't already know all the characters are going to have insufficient time to care about any of them before all of them get introduced. But that's how I felt watching the first episode of Game of Thrones, and it turned out good.
posted by sfenders at 7:31 PM on December 2, 2015
Wow. Lighten up, people. It was pretty good. Give it a chance.
posted by papercake at 8:19 PM on December 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by papercake at 8:19 PM on December 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
It's cool, Metafilter basically hates everything on TV. Except Hannibal. Clearly they need to up the eating-people and Mephistopheles references.
posted by Justinian at 10:02 PM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Justinian at 10:02 PM on December 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
> That was the worst moment. All the more so because it's not in the book. Hey TV producers, this world already looks like enough of a grim dystopia where everyone is nasty and corrupt,
The authors of the books are also writers on the series. TV is not books.
posted by rtha at 10:27 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
The authors of the books are also writers on the series. TV is not books.
posted by rtha at 10:27 PM on December 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
I dunno. I do IT shit for a living. I have admined many a sys, as it were, and learned a lot of painful things about how often data is ever actually perma-deleted on purpose by people who want to make a system easy to administer. The log undelete bit didn't bug me that much. I just read it as an abstraction over "Holden knows where to find shit on the computer".
Anyway, having watched it, I'm provisionally impressed. They aren't quite the book characters I had in my head, but it's really not bad casting, at least for the mains. The spaceships look pretty cool. They're trying to establish some conventions about things like null g, airlocks, pressure suits, acceleration as a major factor. I don't get the sense that this is going to be a space show where I keep yelling things like "WHY THE FUCK DID YOU BEAM DOWN TO THE PLANET WITHOUT A SPACE SUIT ON AGAIN".
posted by brennen at 7:47 PM on December 3, 2015 [2 favorites]
Anyway, having watched it, I'm provisionally impressed. They aren't quite the book characters I had in my head, but it's really not bad casting, at least for the mains. The spaceships look pretty cool. They're trying to establish some conventions about things like null g, airlocks, pressure suits, acceleration as a major factor. I don't get the sense that this is going to be a space show where I keep yelling things like "WHY THE FUCK DID YOU BEAM DOWN TO THE PLANET WITHOUT A SPACE SUIT ON AGAIN".
posted by brennen at 7:47 PM on December 3, 2015 [2 favorites]
One moment I thought was particularly cool -- the first time we meet Naomi, she's banging her fist on a recalcitrant piece of machinery. It sparks and resets itself. We don't even know her yet, and already Naomi is fixing stuff.
posted by BitterOldPunk at 12:34 PM on December 4, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by BitterOldPunk at 12:34 PM on December 4, 2015 [2 favorites]
I've read the first two books (flawed masterpieces I have suggested to everything I think will enjoy them), and seen the stunning opening credits.
Cannot wait.
posted by Mezentian at 10:57 PM on December 4, 2015
Cannot wait.
posted by Mezentian at 10:57 PM on December 4, 2015
Maybe I'd have been more forgiving of the "undelete" thing if I hadn't been reading the book, which throws up some kind of ridiculously annoying weirdness every few dozen pages. Got back to reading it again this morning. My pedantic instincts were set off slightly by an apparent identical misunderstanding of the meaning of the word "anaerobic" by two different characters which had me wondering if it was shared by the writer as well or whether I had it wrong, but I shrugged that one off without too much difficulty. A few pages later I was stuck once again. "Besides," Miller said, "it's a rad hazard. You don't need air loss to kill everyone in the station. Just burn a few quadrillion spare neutrons through the place at C, and there won't be any trouble with the oxygen supply."
It's usually lower-case c, and you can't make neutrons go that fast, but that's fine. But a few quadrillion? Seriously? A mole is 10^23 or something right? A quadrillion subatomic particles is a really small amount of stuff. I can't remember exactly the how large this station is meant to be, but many square kilometers at least. Thanks to metafilter I know there's significant neutron flux on the surface of Mars due to them getting knocked loose from the rocks by cosmic rays, so they probably have the same thing going on there and some shielding to deal with it. But I guess these are much higher-energy neutrons than normal, being close to C and all. How much could you do with them I wonder? Is it plausible even without radiation shielding? So instead of lying in bed reading some science fiction I'm here looking up neutron bomb yields and effectiveness, and finding that no, it really doesn't make sense.
posted by sfenders at 5:18 AM on December 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
It's usually lower-case c, and you can't make neutrons go that fast, but that's fine. But a few quadrillion? Seriously? A mole is 10^23 or something right? A quadrillion subatomic particles is a really small amount of stuff. I can't remember exactly the how large this station is meant to be, but many square kilometers at least. Thanks to metafilter I know there's significant neutron flux on the surface of Mars due to them getting knocked loose from the rocks by cosmic rays, so they probably have the same thing going on there and some shielding to deal with it. But I guess these are much higher-energy neutrons than normal, being close to C and all. How much could you do with them I wonder? Is it plausible even without radiation shielding? So instead of lying in bed reading some science fiction I'm here looking up neutron bomb yields and effectiveness, and finding that no, it really doesn't make sense.
posted by sfenders at 5:18 AM on December 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
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