I just want to emphasise that I genuinely like The Expanse, but just not Season 5. Also, if you want more non-Doctor Who videos then please check out my Patreon since these are less likely to get views. Thanks! www.patreon.com/harbowholmes
More Expanse videos! I need more people saying that they love The Expanse so I can go like "ah, yes, the validation of loving things that other people love"
@@ferrumoferebus @Apophis Prime aw. Listen mate, if you're that insecure about the size of ur pee pee, commenting the same thing multiple times isn't gonna fix ur little problem. Not every woman cares about size, look up man! You'll find her
The belter part you did I completely disagree with It’s expanded a lot more in season 6 Basically a lot of belters still fear the inners And a lot would kill Fred Johnson not as belters are not a single unified faction
The difference is that GOT went ahead of the books. The Expanse is following the books and the 5th book doesn't have much to do with the protomolecule. I think season 5 was better than season 4 but the series is about so much more than the protomolecule. It is a "history" of how war starts. Season 6 is a pause. Maybe the end, but maybe not.
@@ferrumoferebus I would disagree tbh, especially the drummer rant. Because let me tell you, I don't think any Males are bulletproof. And he point it fucking out himself that "It woudl take an average man with balls" THATS THE ISSUE RIGHT? DRUMMER IS INFAMOUS FOR A REASON. The main issue is I think he just doesn't like Women in any literal position of power. Even if said Women already has a notoriety beforehand due to being with Dawes and Ashford. Also he's literally ranting about Women not looking like Supermodels in Bobbie Draper case. She's not even fat or anything and calls it Body positivity pandering? Literally the rant is just Boo Hoo there's Woman in my show and theyre a major part of the narrative.
The writers actually said that season 6 will be the ending of the current story arc but that they plan to continue the story with more seasons if Amazon or the company that owns the rights want to continue on. It's a bit weird, but makes sense considering the structure of the books and the fact that Amazon initially bought three seasons. I dont think they'll try and do three books in one season, seems like theyre going to adapt book 6 only and then others later on
The best characters in this show are Amos, Alex and Miller, and two of them are dead now... I agree with pretty much everything you said in your vid. I will add I had no idea the actor for Alex was in all that legal trouble, holy shit, that being said I still loved his character.
@@ferrumoferebus I would disagree tbh, especially the drummer rant. Because let me tell you, I don't think any Males are bulletproof. And he point it fucking out himself that "It woudl take an average man with balls" THATS THE ISSUE RIGHT? DRUMMER IS INFAMOUS FOR A REASON. The main issue is I think he just doesn't like Women in any literal position of power. Even if said Women already has a notoriety beforehand due to being with Dawes and Ashford. Also he's literally ranting about Women not looking like Supermodels in Bobbie Draper case. She's not even fat or anything and calls it Body positivity pandering? Literally the rant is just Boo Hoo there's Woman in my show and theyre a major part of the narrative.
This is an important point, and probably a matter of expectations. The Protomolecule is a McGuffin. It's like the ark in Raiders of the Lost Ark or the black bird in The Maltese Falcon. It is just a motivator for the human drama that is the real story. The Expanse was never a space-war or BEM story, it was always a human drama.
@@sithman1 why not just make an on-earth contemporary political drama if that's the emphasis; this is a space opera--seasons 4-6 are just terrible. expanse game-of-thrones itself by eliding the space molecule and ancient civilization for relatively pointless star system conflict and an antagonist who just gets absurd plot armor. it's like season 4 in general; we have this super interesting big sci-fi thing but they just start ignoring it.
Why would Belter politics change, again? What material change was there that would make them change their politics? Season 4 was exactly about how, politically, the Ring Gate changed nothing for the Belters. They are still second-class citizens of the System, they are still not seen as equals, and their militant factions still, rightly, consider cooperating with the Inners as treason.
Naomi's spacewalks and rescue are actually pretty much identical in the books. There is considerable thought put into how it would work, and it nearly kills Naomi the first time. The second time, she's fully expecting to die too, and the rescue scene is completely edge-of-your-seat epic. I definitely recommend the books, even if you weren't quite a fan of season 5. They are really compelling reads and are quite enjoyable!
doesn't matter if they are identical to the books, or not, in both cases it was too much, writing went off rails, that part should've been handled better, if possible, and if not possible, then skipped, but writers took a wrong pill, or hit their head, or something
The first scene where Naomi jumps in space is alright, since it's done well enough that you can understand what happens without needing to know too much about space physics. But the second one is just jarring. The ship is somewhat moving in circles even though it's accelerating, meaning that rather the cylindrical loop trajectory we see in the show, it would look more of a outwarding spiral. Meaning when Naomi jumped out of the ship, she would have still have been cooked by the drive plume, as she jumped in a tangent to the direction of the ship's curve trajectory. It would have made a lot more sense for her to jump sideways to the ship's curve, that way the drive plume would not have intersected with her trajectory. Which could have been written in the show, as it's not shown how many access docks the ship have.
@@MabusParodies2nd 2nd jump was so false that was insulting to audience and characters, together with false physics of the Chet's trajectory and how she got spotted out there in nothingness of space, first jump was better, but the Pella moved away from the Chet about 300-400m in 40sec after ship hit control/manuev thrusters, so jump would have to be over 10m/s to ever catch the Chet, then she jumped in those engaged(the Pella wasn't under main thrust)mag boots after taking 1.5 step and made it, yeah right, well done Naomi Protomolecule Nagata, well done
@@ferrumoferebus I would disagree tbh, especially the drummer rant. Because let me tell you, I don't think any Males are bulletproof. And he point it fucking out himself that "It woudl take an average man with balls" THATS THE ISSUE RIGHT? DRUMMER IS INFAMOUS FOR A REASON. The main issue is I think he just doesn't like Women in any literal position of power. Even if said Women already has a notoriety beforehand due to being with Dawes and Ashford. Also he's literally ranting about Women not looking like Supermodels in Bobbie Draper case. She's not even fat or anything and calls it Body positivity pandering? Literally the rant is just Boo Hoo there's Woman in my show and theyre a major part of the narrative.
@@MabusParodies2nd Yep they messed that part up, which the show writer and director admitted for suspense purposes. The same reason why Martian had full visor in S2 onwards instead of just eye holes like in S1. Artistic licenses
I think Season 5 has a few issues, but overall is utterly what The Expanse has been about since the start. Though many sci-fi shows and movies have gone straight for the aliens and extraterrestrial planets, The Expanse has always been a human centered story. Season 5 did take a step back from the ring gates, but that was because of the abundant conflict elsewhere. The comparisons to Game of Thrones just confuse me because The Expanse is actually sticking to the content from the books. In fact, I would argue the show is doing the opposite of GOT in actually slowing down and telling a story rather than cramming everything together. It seems like most of this claim assumes that season 6 will try to throw the last 4 books together, which is completely opposite to the approach of season 5. The authors were probably faced with a choice of trying to finish the whole story in seasons 5 & 6 or following just books 5 & 6 and leaving the ending open to continuation. This is exactly what happened when the show was eventually canceled and contributed to why it was picked up by Amazon. If anything, I think books 5 & 6 could have been combined into a 2-part season like season 3. But this could ironically run into the GOT issue of rushing several plot lines together, so I'm glad they avoided it. Also, ending after the 6th book is a natural pause in the series and leaves the show open to a potentially groundbreaking and unique resumption further down the timeline.
You make some good points, but I am surprised to find you praising season 4. Season 4 was the start of the show's problems. It got small right at the point where it should have gotten immense. Expanded, if you will.
There are rumblings that season 6 won't actually be the final season, and the show isn't really finishing, so much as it is taking a break. Given that the gap between books 6 and 7 is about 30 years, you might be able to understand why.
Yeah so if that happens then this video can just be disregarded, but it is a difficult timeskip for a TV show considering a lot of the cast would have to be replaced for it to be believable and I could see that making networks not really want to commit for that reason
Yeah, it's a tricky sticky one, isn't it? Regardless, I have a pretty good level of confidence in Alcon - haven't been perfect, but they've been bloody good. If your only two major scientific nitpicks are those two particular scenes, they've got to be doing something right. (as an aside, I'm fairly certain that Naomi's spacewalk was doable almost solely because the Chetzemoka and Pella hadn't started manoeuvres just yet, so most of the complex manoeuvres that you need to do for a spacewalk didn't need to be done because their trajectories were pretty much the same. I might be devoting entirely too much effort to explaining it, but it's a scene that I loved to bits, so nyeh! Nyeh, I say!)
I could not disagree with you more. As a reader of the books, was season 5 perfect, no. But the former half of the second duology is not about the "gold rush" its about the Belters losing their niche and lashing out.
@@ferrumoferebus aw. Listen mate, if you're that insecure about the size of ur pee pee, commenting the same thing 3x (that I know of) isn't gonna fix ur little problem. Not every woman cares about size, look up man! You'll find her!
@@TheElectricitychick While I agree with you, you also have to accept that, besides the sexist and racist bullshit, there is some basic truth to his or her words.
@@ChrisEffpunkt I would disagree tbh, especially the drummer rant. Because let me tell you, I don't think any *Males* are bulletproof. *And he point it fucking out himself* that "It woudl take an average man with balls" THATS THE ISSUE RIGHT? DRUMMER IS INFAMOUS FOR A REASON. The main issue is I think he just doesn't like Women in any literal position of power. Even if said Women already has a notoriety beforehand due to being with Dawes and Ashford. Also he's literally ranting about Women not looking like Supermodels in Bobbie Draper case. She's not even fat or anything and calls it Body positivity pandering? So please tell me what basic truth there is in his or her words. Literally the rant is just Boo Hoo there's Woman in my show and theyre a major part of the narrative.
I agree that Season 5 wasn't the best but that because it was clearly only a setup for Season 6. Also, because the last 3 books occur 20 years in the future, it will NOT be included in the current story lines that will wrap up in Season 6.
@@ferrumoferebus Jesus christ what is wrong with you? This show is not "woke", its 200 years in the future, OF COURSE THERE WILL BE WOMEN IN THE MARTIAN MILITARY IF WE GO THERE. Its pathetic you let such stupid excuses ruin a good show for you. Its actually disappointing. The quality here is immense, but you're blinded by your hate towards what, women? Black people? Who are you to define who can and cannot get a rank in a future military? Grow up, everyones the same, stop acting like you're from 1820.
@@ferrumoferebus muscle-less? they arent fuckin throwing fists, they have weapons. Care to notice the exosuits martians almost always wear in battle? Chubby women? Hardly. Just because someone doesnt have lines on their body defining their muscles doesnt mean they arent strong. Seems like you're being more nitpicky than necessary here.
@@ferrumoferebus I disagree honestly. In my view, belters being thin and painting symbols on them makes complete sense. They want to be part of a community, they want to be recognised. Not all of them are terrorists. Having a symbol is part of their culture. You need to accept that this is entirely plausible, belters are not your first "space farers" they have been there for generations, 90% of them are children and teenagers, uneducated masses. They will be dumb, edgy and stupid because theres no better example being set. Doesn't that make sense to you? I feel you're being a little harsh here. A lot of thought has gone into this world, and it shows. Yes, some belters are bigger than others, but its kind of hard to find 8ft actors to represent the real population of the belt. Drummer is strong by belter standards, and she certainly isnt some kind of warlord or marine. She's a leader, her job isn't to pack on muscle. The people sitting in offices commanding the military around today probably couldnt win against one of their own soldiers unless they personally were a marine in the past. This is not real life, these belters have grown up there for centuries, they have completely different rules, cultures, attitudes. Drummer doesnt have makeup to look "hard" or strong, she has it because its part of her symbol and identity. Not to mention, people are allowed to wear cosmetics..
@@ferrumoferebus i think the eye shadow is just another symbol to her, like a tattoo. She wears it religiously, I don't think it's just a choice to "look prettier" or even "look scarier". Anyway, I love the show regardless. I'm not gonna let silly things like that get in the way. The world is so unbelievably well crafted that I'm fine letting a few things slide.
@@ferrumoferebus I agree, but I really do believe the expanse has a level of quality above many, many other shows. Its entire universe has been constructed well. Even in the past, not many shows (yes, there are still a few) reach this level of care. You can see how much the creators care if you watch the aftershow for s6 ep1. I think thats rare these days. The expanse fits well within my standards, its excellent science fiction. No, its not real, or true to life, but its still a well constructed world. And honestly, i'd argue better actors > realistic physiques. The expanses actors are great, some excel, some are decent.
I actually had the same issue with season 5 it was chore finishing it, I didn't think it was terrible but it got repetitive. They can still pulled it off make season 6 a masterpiece. Also i think the amazon deal is only for three seasons and they will finish this story arc so we will get 3 more season covering the rest of the books
Season 5 was ok, but I skipped most of the Noami and her son parts. Got to predictable and boring, often gringy. I'm glad it's there, but family drama it's not why I watch sci fi. Its why I loved The Martian. Who gives a fuck about Marks family just let me see if he's smart enough to not die.
I think now there’s huge cause for concern and worry as it’s just been confirmed that season 6 is only 6 episodes huge mistake. Not enough to close out the show
I've re-watched every season of The Expanse multiple times. It was borderline addiction. Donated to campaigns to save the show after it was cancelled, but I haven't bothered to re-watch season 5 and I'm pretty sure I won't. I have to agree with a lot of this video. Once those asteroids hit earth, they decided they should spend 3-4 episodes on Naomi's family squabbles. It drove me nuts that a near extinction level event was pushed aside so that they could tell a story about Naomi trying to connect with her murderous son. It was so small and petty compared to the larger issues at hand that I just couldn't bring myself to care about her family issues. I haven't read the books yet, but I no longer have any hope that season 6 will do anything other than deal with Marco while all of the larger questions presented over the previous seasons will go unanswered. With the way the TV show loves cliffhangers, I can totally see season 6 ending with some alien faction finally appearing on screen and then boom...roll credits never to get another episode of The Expanse ever again.
I think you will be surprised with how much gets resolved, at least they do in the books before they jump 30 years into the future...with old forgotten threats returning (that's all I will say without getting too close to spoilers). But the books are Written in such a way that the end of book 6 does have a somewhat good point for a story ending, with possibilities to come back to the world.
I see you doing a lot of Si-fi shows, but if you ever decide to go off the route for a video, I’m sure you would enjoy doing a video essay on Line of duty, its the number 1 British drama currently, and it just had a controversial ending, it would be a good one for you to consider !
@@ferrumoferebus aw. Listen mate, if you're that insecure about the size of ur pee pee, commenting the same thing 3x (that I know of) isn't gonna fix ur little problem. Not every woman cares about size, look up man! You'll find her
@@ferrumoferebus I would disagree tbh, especially the drummer rant. Because let me tell you, I don't think any Males are bulletproof. And he point it fucking out himself that "It woudl take an average man with balls" THATS THE ISSUE RIGHT? DRUMMER IS INFAMOUS FOR A REASON. The main issue is I think he just doesn't like Women in any literal position of power. Even if said Women already has a notoriety beforehand due to being with Dawes and Ashford. Also he's literally ranting about Women not looking like Supermodels in Bobbie Draper case. She's not even fat or anything and calls it Body positivity pandering? Literally the rant is just Boo Hoo there's Woman in my show and theyre a major part of the narrative.
too few fx, too many dialogs...this is not what I expected by watching this show....espcially when you 're used to star wars/gate/trek and co the amount of scenes in space or planetary is too low, action scenes are basic and not breathtaking only dialogs dialogs dialogs again and again, in almost the same place each entire episode
I thought the show drops off significantly mid season 2, jumping the shark if you will. Idc what happened in the books it just becomes so outrageousout of nowhere. I finshed s2 and started s3 but full on stopped at the showing of the leftover proto molecule from having that creature punching at the spot in the cargo hold. It's no longer a show about people, just the blue goo. Boring.
Good points, I agree mostly with what you've said. Season 5 was still solid. But you made one error, they aren't going to adapt all 3 remaining books, only up until the time jump in the book series (end of book 6, which is what s5 is also based on). And that's what s6 is building up to and will end on. It's a solid spot for the show to make its exit, even though I'd love it if they continued.
Yeah I cannot disagree with you more on this one. Season 5 could very well be the best season of the show yet. The fact that it didn't go the direction you would have liked to see it go in doesn't mean it's bad. The story is not and never was about the protomolecule, but instead about how humans react to existential threats and changing times, and that's all of what season 5 is about. How do the belt and Mars react to having their culture and people existentially threatened by the ring gates? How do people survive on Earth after it's been severely damaged? How does Avasarala deal with her grief while trying to hold Earth together? What's more important to Holden or Drummer protecting those they love or doing what's right? These are the sorts of questions the Expanse deals with, not "what new form will the blue goo take this week?"
I fully agree. The Expanse has never been about space battles or about bug-eyed-monsters, but has always been about human drama. The Protomolecule is basically a MacGuffin like the One Ring in LOtR or the ark in Raiders or the black bird in The Maltese Falcon...it sets the stage for the human drama, but it's not a character in its own right.
I disagree, I thought season 4 was the weakest (and as a book reader wasn't a huge fan of book 4 either [that said, I love the series/books and even at its weakest is like a 8/10 to me]), and season 5 was very good I thought, still would say it was the second weakest season, but I think you aren't seeing this as a whole yet. I think when Season 6 finishes we will have a trilogy with the first 3 seasons, a interlude with season 4 and a duology for 5 and 6. If they are going the direction I think they are, we will be judging season 5 differently post season 6. But regardless of the speculation, or some having disappointment, I still think "The Expanse" is the best sci-fi on screen right now.
Are you kidding me? It's the best season of the Expanse, and it is precisely because of Marco Inaros. The Expanse is never about ring gates, or even the protomolecule - it is always about human in-conflict as they react to the unknown or just-known. It was the ring gate that sent Belters towards a realization that they are an "obsolete" class, which can never populate the ring worlds (their children who can will no longer be Belters), so their culture is given a death sentence by the new travel "tech". The rational response is to control access to the ring gate - so no Inner or Belter can pass through or trade without benefitting the Belter. This is exactly the reasoning that Inaros exploited. The theme has always been the same. Protomolecule was discovered, the shadow elite has to induce a war as a distraction. When the protomolecule shows its powers on Eros, the war has to be made real over the control of the protomolecule - with Erinwright and Korshunov at a race. And then the ring gates were created, forcing the emergence of Inaros. It has always been that way - humans react to reorganize their hierarchy at the face of new scientific knowledge or technology.
The only gripe i have with S05 is that the politics on Earth felt kinda simplified. Btw, my favourite episode from S05 was probably Naomi's struggle on the Chetzemoka. Never have i experienced more hopelessness than with Naomi. It was portrayed perfectly.
Even though I generally agree that Series 5 was the weakest; The Expanse is still one of the best shows around and I would recommend to anyone, and Series 5 was miles ahead of the tripe that Star Wars/Trek and Doctor Who is serving up these days
I respectfully disagree. I think season 5 was the 2nd best season of the show, just behind the epic season 3. Episodes 1-4 and 9-10 are some of the best episodes of the entire show. I will agree however that the middle episodes, episodes 5-8, were kinda lackluster, and felt like going from 60 right back down to 0. But I think the episodes I mentioned previously more than make up for that. Episode 4 might be the best episode of the entire show. It was just so perfectly paced, non-stop shit hitting the fan. You really got the feeling that everything was going to hell, and the Free Navy had everyone beat at every turn.
There were pacing issues, and insufficient emphasis on the scope of the devastation on Earth, but otherwise... yeah, have to say, not a great take. I like your Doctor Who takes, but your certainty in diagnosing what's wrong with The Expanse makes the fact that they aren't very good takes even worse. I say that as someone for whom Season 5 is their least favorite. It has a lot of issues, and I find it to be generally disappointing, having read the books, but for evidently very different reasons than you.
It's a step up from the concept of filler episodes - a filler season. At that rate they'd need a Santa Barbara worth of episodes to tell their story. I'm not surprised they are getting shut down.
Just finished watching s5. What a disappointment compared so s1-4. Flimsy story line with obvious plot holes. Whats the point of Amos’s storyline except providing filler content and seriously, annoyed with a constantly whining!, begging and crying Naomi.
The only thing that would draw me to this series is the protomolecule aliens, However, the fact that most of the series is boring human political cold war drama means I'm not interested and never will be, sorry.
what a waste of a show, the last three seasons could have been summed up in a movie... Bad guy dies, trouble on the frontier, belter reconciliation... they could have given each of those 30 minutes and it would have been done... The first three seasons were pure gold, this is pointless...
Dude. You have missed the entire point of the story. The builders and the ring are just backdrops. The story has always been about how Humanity, in spite of how far technology has come, will always be fighting wars against it self but ultimately makes the right decisions to unite at the crucial moments. Honestly the books have started focusing more on the Builders and I think that the quality is lesser for it.
Nope, season 6 will be book 6 pretty much and probably not much else. Sorry, but all the protomolecule/builder/extermination complex (along with other things) is stuff for the third arc of the story, which is books 7-9 and no seasons of TV, as it stands now. If we are lucky we will get the conclusion you long for in a few years time in the form of a new show, miniseries or TV movies. But no guaranties as of yet. There are always the books though...
While I don't agree with you, I respect your opinion and you do make very valid points. Or I rather agree with your points, but I still very much enjoyed season 5. It had some bloody brilliant moments. I will grant however that I spent most of the season feeling I was watching things get setup and when I felt things were at the point of really going for it, the season ended. But thank you for sharing your take.
@@ferrumoferebus while you have some points regarding physical strength etc that I can't dispute. And the writers are admitedly woke. Most people who are very off put by woke crap, like myself, still find within ourselves to think this is one of the best shows on TV. Shame you can't see past your own bubble. But to each their own.
@@ferrumoferebus Sorry dude, I'm the one who is not about to pander to you. You don't like it it's ok. But I do think your reasons are misguided. But that's just an opinion, my opinion. But I don't care if you change your mind or not. Nor do I think I could persuade you to. At the end of the day, it's just a show. I like it you don't.
I don’t understand what you dislike about Star Wars, Star Trek or current DW. I like them all! 🙂 As well as the Expanse s5. But taste is sooo subjective unless it’s influenced by others. That’s why I always avoid reviews
Unusual and interesting take. On the whole, the majority view seems to rank S5 as number two after S3. S4 is usually the one that draws the largest complaints (unjustified as far as I am concerned - so we agree on that). S5 is not really about plot (besides showing the consequences of things, and setting things up for season 6). It is about what is going on inside characters' heads. They have stuck quite closely to the books, so S6 is mostly just an abbreviation / interpretation of Book 6 of 9, there was no rush to cram 4 books into it. Given their budget was less than they wanted and they had to film it during Covid restrictions, I think they did an excellent job. Some think / believe / hope that the last 3 books will be adapted, eventually. We'll have to wait and see.
As a huge fan of both the books and show, in my opinion season 5 is absolutely the weakest of the bunch, but should admit I find book 5 to be the weakest of the book as well (the first six at least). Season 4 did have a slow start, as did season 1, but both would build to have intriguing ends to their seasons with brilliant payoffs. Season 5? The only bits that stick out in my memory are the brilliant sequence of Earth being rocked in episode 4, and the final 20 minutes of the finale (excluding the sudden death of a certain character but we all know why that had to happen). Beyond that, nothing much. Amos and Clarissa bonding was nice enough, but Bobbie/Alex had next to nothing to do, same for Holden, and whilst Niomi was faithfully done, it just wasn't compelling viewing for the amount of screen time she had.
People like you killing any perspectives for good sci fi. Once the show slow down a bit you jumping on the bandwagon and trashing the show, leading to it's termination. The expanse is by far the best tv series existing. But why do you care
The most wonderful and main character in The Expanse is the Protomolecule. When the story arc focuses on its main character, you get tremendous television entertainment. When it focuses on the interpersonal struggles of the the minor characters (the people) the entertainment value plummets. Sure, there are fans who only enjoy character-based drama, and love The Expanse for its efforts to create interesting characters who interact with each other in interesting ways. That's just no me. Part of everybody's problems in evaluating the worth of The Expanse is that the protomolecule-starring S.1-S.3 was so damn good, nothing can be favorably compared with it. S.4 tries to escape that trap by going small, and it succeeds in going small, so small in the stakes involved (unless you truly come to care about the chance a couple of hundred people might die) that it never generated any real suspense, especially when you begin with the idea that the Roci crew was certain to have plot armor. S.5 was better, but the best scene in the entire season was the half-minute or so that brought the protomolecule back to center stage, and you had to wait for the credits to run in the final episode of the season to enjoy it. A mediocre season of The Expanse is still better than 98.87645% of anything else available on your home television. The comparison to the wind-up of GoT was just plain wrong and an enormous insult to the creators and fans of The Expanse, and it turned your video essay into over-the-top trolling clickbait. Nothing will ever compare to the torture killing of GoT.
Naomi does get really annoying this season and the Alex/Bobbie story is a poor use of time but besides that I completely disagree. The Laconia arc is slow burning in the background and Marco’s vision, means, strategy, and rhetoric are really refreshing to me. He’s a distillation and polarization of daws, ashford, and all these other belter leaders. I’m not saying there aren’t legitimate criticisms here, but I thing season 5 as a whole is a smashing success
I speedran this show and it helped understand why season 5 just wasn't as good. The antagonists were too cartoonish, the middle was too drawn out and dry, no real conclusion to the season other than - wait for new season. The first couple of seasons had a lot of great scenes that you could put in a museum and call a painting and nobody would object to it but now it's almost too bland and it also feels like they just milked the characters dry and had 0 sense of scale and direction for the story, the entire season just doesn't hold up to a single episode from season 2. It wasn't horribly bad - it just wasn't amazing like it was before.
The fact that they even veered into the Marco story for so long " utterly disappointing" I don't want to see anymore of the show! Because the bigger story is the protomolecule aliens, who say we want to know what happened to our makers also. And really to have Marco come in and kill the people who saved the universe as they know it ridiculous. All the belters should be saying where were you when all this was going on? In season 6 on episode 3 just this for in it's like work watching it.
Compared to Star Trek and Doctor Who, Season 5 is a fucking masterpiece! As far as The Expanse goes, yes, it was a little dragged out and slow, but I didn't hate it, far from it!
The Expanse is alright, there's some really poor acting in it and quite a few boring episodes. But don't say this to fans of the show because they will freak out and go for your throat.
I haven't read the books, coming from that perspective I completely agree with your analysis. I understand the people that are happy the writers are faithful to the books, but we knew we were never getting more than 6 seasons. You can't cram 10 books into 6 seasons. Just like you said, the writers needed to do a better job going through all of the book content and cutting out or rewriting less critical time consuming plot elements. Like you get at 9:20 the whole Naomi theme here just doesn't resonate. It's a waste of time on exposition that won't do anything. Marco doesn't have enough depth, there's nothing interesting about his character that requires this much screen time. He's coming off as a generic terrorist with the same played out themes that go along with that we've been seeing for the last 20 years.
Wrong, wrong, wrong. Season Six will be book 6. If you're expecting a resolution to the story of the builders, you'll be disappointed, but the story has never been about them. It's about how people react to their discovery.
This is just the same as Game Of Thrones. The series is just as bad as it is good. But in the end all the teasing kills the fun. It has its moments but the good stuff is just stretched to increase watchtime. And that means it steals your time. There are some good characters, like detective Miller or madam undersecretary but in the end the acting is pathetic and everybody carries their heavy faith around and tells it to anyone who wants to know it or not. And they can't let a good riddle stand for itself like in Alien I, they have to explain it all for dummies and destroy the tension before it can grow. At the same time the scenes that are supposed to be exciting are again stretched across a whole season. You know the game and you are better than that. What a giant waste of time. Just another commercial platform series. 💔 Don't get me wrong, it is so addicting because the show really leads you on to see how the plot continues. I enjoy this review on a therapeutical level instead of watching season four, five and six.
I must strongly disagree, but if I was going to find some middle ground, then it would be that the Inaros events could have happened at some other point in the story
My biggest issue with season 5 is that they resolved the stealth asteroid attack plotline waay to soon. By episode 4 they quickly neutralized the asteroid threat, and after that, for the next 6 episodes we have... The Adventures of Naomi Nagata on a Crappy Ship. About as exciting as watching paint dry. But what really screwed the pooch IMO was the ep. 1 reveal about the alien threat that killed the Ringbuilders. The ending of S3 was set up to implicate that there was some serious alien threat much more dangerous than the protomolecule that could still be alive and could still be just as dangerous, with a hint that it's still out there and that would play a role almost as big as the protomolecule did. Then the S4 ending further reinforces that by showing that "Eye of an angry god", which given that it just kills any PM tech it touches, it's clearly a leftover from the war, but it's not clear if the alien threat that created it is still around, since it's possible that all that alien smoke Holden saw at the end on S3, could have been just this weapon, especially when Okoye fell through the orb and the same alien smoke was present. Maybe some last images from the dying PM tech? It's not made entirely clear though, even though there are hints that it could be more. Then S5 starts, and in the very first episode Holden just dumps it all: that alien smoke is the alien threat that wiped the Ringbuilders and we might be next if we keep using the Ring gates. The scene ends with Fred displaying some skepticism at the reveal, but come on, it's clear to anyone with half a brain that the guy who was always right about visions from long lost alien technology will always be right. Would it have really hurt not to have had this scene (which was also released on YT right before the season aired) at all, so that when the Barkeith gets erased, the reveal would have been more shocking? I believe the books revealed the Goth threat much smoother than the show did.
Best advice is after season 1,2,3&4 have a fast forward button close for season 5&6 even then it will be a complete dragging nightmare of an experience
I gave up on The Expanse a few episodes into Season 4. I was hoping Season 4 would progress the protomolecule story forward and/or we would see many of the new planets with alien creatures and/or intelligent species. But instead, we focus on the boring conflict on the only planet that has been attempted to be colonized. And the protomolecule storyline barely gets focus in the first four episodes. The story was just moving too slowly for me, so I gave up. Game of Thrones kept things interesting before the White Walker threat affected everyone by constantly changing the political landscape every couple of seasons. The Expanse doesn't do that. Its political landscape remains relatively unchanged after Season 1. The mystery of the protomolecule is the only thing that is interesting about the show, but it decided painfully slow crawl reveals about that mystery on top of relatively unchanging political landscapes were the best way to pace the show.
You would really hate Season 5 then, since those are basically my exact issues with it. Interesting to hear you say Season 4 was your breaking point. I thought it was by far the best season because it balanced everything perfectly (the protomolecule stuff gets a lot of play towards the end)
@@HarboWholmes I couldn't sit through anymore of Season 4. I realized I was dreading watching another episode, because I was getting bored. I was entertained with Alex in the tower, but I shouldn't have to put up with that weak colonization conflict plot to get to something interesting.
The Expanse isn't about the protomolecule, aliens, or discovering new worlds and intelligences. Any of those things that are in the story are largely the stage upon which human stories about fear, conflict, self-destructive behavior, and how to overcome those things. Hoping that it'll suddenly turn into star trek shows that you misunderstood the purpose of the show.
@@ferrumoferebus It's really not... whilst I would agree that the show likes it's diversity, it doesn't beat you over the head with it like Doctor Who and Star Trek do now. I'll admit, I've never liked Naomi very much she always lies and everyone still loves her despite the amount of times she betrays Holden and the rest of the crew... Also, the Belters were quite cool in the first couple of season, and season 4, the ones on Ilus at least, but season 5 on Drummers ship especially, they turned them into free love hippies...
This video essay failed me as a viewer. The script was just bad; you did not do nearly enough review or editing. You repeated your points constantly, and the points themselves were just... lazy. This entire video was lazy. You could have a channel I suppose, but not if your sole thing is saying the opposite of 99.9% of people just for the sake of saying something different.
I just want to emphasise that I genuinely like The Expanse, but just not Season 5. Also, if you want more non-Doctor Who videos then please check out my Patreon since these are less likely to get views. Thanks!
www.patreon.com/harbowholmes
More Expanse videos! I need more people saying that they love The Expanse so I can go like "ah, yes, the validation of loving things that other people love"
@@ferrumoferebus @Apophis Prime aw. Listen mate, if you're that insecure about the size of ur pee pee, commenting the same thing multiple times isn't gonna fix ur little problem. Not every woman cares about size, look up man! You'll find her
The belter part you did I completely disagree with
It’s expanded a lot more in season 6
Basically a lot of belters still fear the inners
And a lot would kill Fred Johnson not as belters are not a single unified faction
Naomi still has that speed given to her from the ship and the razorback was at a constant acceleration
I’ve never seen this episode of Doctor Who before
Turns out the BBC never stopped junking after all
Not even close.. just watch and find put
I still haven't. And don't care😂😂
The difference is that GOT went ahead of the books. The Expanse is following the books and the 5th book doesn't have much to do with the protomolecule. I think season 5 was better than season 4 but the series is about so much more than the protomolecule. It is a "history" of how war starts. Season 6 is a pause. Maybe the end, but maybe not.
@@ferrumoferebus I would disagree tbh, especially the drummer rant. Because let me tell you, I don't think any Males are bulletproof. And he point it fucking out himself that "It woudl take an average man with balls" THATS THE ISSUE RIGHT? DRUMMER IS INFAMOUS FOR A REASON. The main issue is I think he just doesn't like Women in any literal position of power. Even if said Women already has a notoriety beforehand due to being with Dawes and Ashford.
Also he's literally ranting about Women not looking like Supermodels in Bobbie Draper case. She's not even fat or anything and calls it Body positivity pandering?
Literally the rant is just Boo Hoo there's Woman in my show and theyre a major part of the narrative.
The writers actually said that season 6 will be the ending of the current story arc but that they plan to continue the story with more seasons if Amazon or the company that owns the rights want to continue on. It's a bit weird, but makes sense considering the structure of the books and the fact that Amazon initially bought three seasons. I dont think they'll try and do three books in one season, seems like theyre going to adapt book 6 only and then others later on
1:50 amazon saw this video and said "oh, tom bombadil, that's a great idea!" ... 3 years later: rings of power
The best characters in this show are Amos, Alex and Miller, and two of them are dead now... I agree with pretty much everything you said in your vid. I will add I had no idea the actor for Alex was in all that legal trouble, holy shit, that being said I still loved his character.
@@ferrumoferebus I would disagree tbh, especially the drummer rant. Because let me tell you, I don't think any Males are bulletproof. And he point it fucking out himself that "It woudl take an average man with balls" THATS THE ISSUE RIGHT? DRUMMER IS INFAMOUS FOR A REASON. The main issue is I think he just doesn't like Women in any literal position of power. Even if said Women already has a notoriety beforehand due to being with Dawes and Ashford.
Also he's literally ranting about Women not looking like Supermodels in Bobbie Draper case. She's not even fat or anything and calls it Body positivity pandering?
Literally the rant is just Boo Hoo there's Woman in my show and theyre a major part of the narrative.
The Expanse is not about 'the Builders' - the protomolecule is a backdrop that forces tension between Earth, Mars & the Belt.
This is an important point, and probably a matter of expectations. The Protomolecule is a McGuffin. It's like the ark in Raiders of the Lost Ark or the black bird in The Maltese Falcon. It is just a motivator for the human drama that is the real story. The Expanse was never a space-war or BEM story, it was always a human drama.
But the backdrop of the protomolecule and more sci fi stuff is part of what made the show interesting, especially in season 4
@@kirkdarling4120 I don't watch sci-fi for "human drama"
@@sithman1 why not just make an on-earth contemporary political drama if that's the emphasis; this is a space opera--seasons 4-6 are just terrible. expanse game-of-thrones itself by eliding the space molecule and ancient civilization for relatively pointless star system conflict and an antagonist who just gets absurd plot armor. it's like season 4 in general; we have this super interesting big sci-fi thing but they just start ignoring it.
Yeah this was a mistake, it's not interesting. Instead, they should have focused on the Proto molecule arc a bit more. Or human drama around it.
Why would Belter politics change, again? What material change was there that would make them change their politics? Season 4 was exactly about how, politically, the Ring Gate changed nothing for the Belters. They are still second-class citizens of the System, they are still not seen as equals, and their militant factions still, rightly, consider cooperating with the Inners as treason.
Sorry man, season 5 was one of the better seasons. Had no clue that there even were people who felt that the show dropped off until his vid
Naomi's spacewalks and rescue are actually pretty much identical in the books. There is considerable thought put into how it would work, and it nearly kills Naomi the first time. The second time, she's fully expecting to die too, and the rescue scene is completely edge-of-your-seat epic. I definitely recommend the books, even if you weren't quite a fan of season 5. They are really compelling reads and are quite enjoyable!
doesn't matter if they are identical to the books, or not, in both cases it was too much, writing went off rails, that part should've been handled better, if possible, and if not possible, then skipped, but writers took a wrong pill, or hit their head, or something
The first scene where Naomi jumps in space is alright, since it's done well enough that you can understand what happens without needing to know too much about space physics. But the second one is just jarring. The ship is somewhat moving in circles even though it's accelerating, meaning that rather the cylindrical loop trajectory we see in the show, it would look more of a outwarding spiral. Meaning when Naomi jumped out of the ship, she would have still have been cooked by the drive plume, as she jumped in a tangent to the direction of the ship's curve trajectory. It would have made a lot more sense for her to jump sideways to the ship's curve, that way the drive plume would not have intersected with her trajectory. Which could have been written in the show, as it's not shown how many access docks the ship have.
@@MabusParodies2nd 2nd jump was so false that was insulting to audience and characters, together with false physics of the Chet's trajectory and how she got spotted out there in nothingness of space, first jump was better, but the Pella moved away from the Chet about 300-400m in 40sec after ship hit control/manuev thrusters, so jump would have to be over 10m/s to ever catch the Chet, then she jumped in those engaged(the Pella wasn't under main thrust)mag boots after taking 1.5 step and made it, yeah right, well done Naomi Protomolecule Nagata, well done
@@ferrumoferebus I would disagree tbh, especially the drummer rant. Because let me tell you, I don't think any Males are bulletproof. And he point it fucking out himself that "It woudl take an average man with balls" THATS THE ISSUE RIGHT? DRUMMER IS INFAMOUS FOR A REASON. The main issue is I think he just doesn't like Women in any literal position of power. Even if said Women already has a notoriety beforehand due to being with Dawes and Ashford.
Also he's literally ranting about Women not looking like Supermodels in Bobbie Draper case. She's not even fat or anything and calls it Body positivity pandering?
Literally the rant is just Boo Hoo there's Woman in my show and theyre a major part of the narrative.
@@MabusParodies2nd Yep they messed that part up, which the show writer and director admitted for suspense purposes. The same reason why Martian had full visor in S2 onwards instead of just eye holes like in S1. Artistic licenses
I think Season 5 has a few issues, but overall is utterly what The Expanse has been about since the start. Though many sci-fi shows and movies have gone straight for the aliens and extraterrestrial planets, The Expanse has always been a human centered story. Season 5 did take a step back from the ring gates, but that was because of the abundant conflict elsewhere.
The comparisons to Game of Thrones just confuse me because The Expanse is actually sticking to the content from the books. In fact, I would argue the show is doing the opposite of GOT in actually slowing down and telling a story rather than cramming everything together. It seems like most of this claim assumes that season 6 will try to throw the last 4 books together, which is completely opposite to the approach of season 5.
The authors were probably faced with a choice of trying to finish the whole story in seasons 5 & 6 or following just books 5 & 6 and leaving the ending open to continuation. This is exactly what happened when the show was eventually canceled and contributed to why it was picked up by Amazon.
If anything, I think books 5 & 6 could have been combined into a 2-part season like season 3. But this could ironically run into the GOT issue of rushing several plot lines together, so I'm glad they avoided it. Also, ending after the 6th book is a natural pause in the series and leaves the show open to a potentially groundbreaking and unique resumption further down the timeline.
Yeah ..
You make some good points, but I am surprised to find you praising season 4. Season 4 was the start of the show's problems. It got small right at the point where it should have gotten immense. Expanded, if you will.
There are rumblings that season 6 won't actually be the final season, and the show isn't really finishing, so much as it is taking a break. Given that the gap between books 6 and 7 is about 30 years, you might be able to understand why.
Yeah so if that happens then this video can just be disregarded, but it is a difficult timeskip for a TV show considering a lot of the cast would have to be replaced for it to be believable and I could see that making networks not really want to commit for that reason
Yeah, it's a tricky sticky one, isn't it? Regardless, I have a pretty good level of confidence in Alcon - haven't been perfect, but they've been bloody good. If your only two major scientific nitpicks are those two particular scenes, they've got to be doing something right.
(as an aside, I'm fairly certain that Naomi's spacewalk was doable almost solely because the Chetzemoka and Pella hadn't started manoeuvres just yet, so most of the complex manoeuvres that you need to do for a spacewalk didn't need to be done because their trajectories were pretty much the same. I might be devoting entirely too much effort to explaining it, but it's a scene that I loved to bits, so nyeh! Nyeh, I say!)
Aren’t there 9 books?
@@platonymous Yes. Book 9 comes out this November and will be the end of the story that was planned. There could of course be more novellas.
I could not disagree with you more. As a reader of the books, was season 5 perfect, no. But the former half of the second duology is not about the "gold rush" its about the Belters losing their niche and lashing out.
@@ferrumoferebus aw. Listen mate, if you're that insecure about the size of ur pee pee, commenting the same thing 3x (that I know of) isn't gonna fix ur little problem. Not every woman cares about size, look up man! You'll find her!
@@TheElectricitychick While I agree with you, you also have to accept that, besides the sexist and racist bullshit, there is some basic truth to his or her words.
@@ChrisEffpunkt I would disagree tbh, especially the drummer rant. Because let me tell you, I don't think any *Males* are bulletproof. *And he point it fucking out himself* that "It woudl take an average man with balls" THATS THE ISSUE RIGHT? DRUMMER IS INFAMOUS FOR A REASON. The main issue is I think he just doesn't like Women in any literal position of power. Even if said Women already has a notoriety beforehand due to being with Dawes and Ashford.
Also he's literally ranting about Women not looking like Supermodels in Bobbie Draper case. She's not even fat or anything and calls it Body positivity pandering?
So please tell me what basic truth there is in his or her words.
Literally the rant is just Boo Hoo there's Woman in my show and theyre a major part of the narrative.
The collapse of mars, the rise of inaros, the identity struggle of the belters. So many things in season 5
@@90enemiesyou are an embarrassment to humanity
Don’t really agree. I really enjoyed season 5. I do feel they painted themselves into a corner with one character. Nemesis games is my favorite book.
I agree that Season 5 wasn't the best but that because it was clearly only a setup for Season 6.
Also, because the last 3 books occur 20 years in the future, it will NOT be included in the current story lines that will wrap up in Season 6.
I still really enjoyed season 5, and by the ratings it seems like most people did aswell
@@ferrumoferebus Jesus christ what is wrong with you? This show is not "woke", its 200 years in the future, OF COURSE THERE WILL BE WOMEN IN THE MARTIAN MILITARY IF WE GO THERE.
Its pathetic you let such stupid excuses ruin a good show for you. Its actually disappointing. The quality here is immense, but you're blinded by your hate towards what, women? Black people?
Who are you to define who can and cannot get a rank in a future military?
Grow up, everyones the same, stop acting like you're from 1820.
@@ferrumoferebus muscle-less? they arent fuckin throwing fists, they have weapons. Care to notice the exosuits martians almost always wear in battle?
Chubby women? Hardly. Just because someone doesnt have lines on their body defining their muscles doesnt mean they arent strong. Seems like you're being more nitpicky than necessary here.
@@ferrumoferebus I disagree honestly. In my view, belters being thin and painting symbols on them makes complete sense. They want to be part of a community, they want to be recognised. Not all of them are terrorists. Having a symbol is part of their culture.
You need to accept that this is entirely plausible, belters are not your first "space farers" they have been there for generations, 90% of them are children and teenagers, uneducated masses. They will be dumb, edgy and stupid because theres no better example being set. Doesn't that make sense to you?
I feel you're being a little harsh here. A lot of thought has gone into this world, and it shows. Yes, some belters are bigger than others, but its kind of hard to find 8ft actors to represent the real population of the belt. Drummer is strong by belter standards, and she certainly isnt some kind of warlord or marine. She's a leader, her job isn't to pack on muscle. The people sitting in offices commanding the military around today probably couldnt win against one of their own soldiers unless they personally were a marine in the past.
This is not real life, these belters have grown up there for centuries, they have completely different rules, cultures, attitudes. Drummer doesnt have makeup to look "hard" or strong, she has it because its part of her symbol and identity. Not to mention, people are allowed to wear cosmetics..
@@ferrumoferebus i think the eye shadow is just another symbol to her, like a tattoo. She wears it religiously, I don't think it's just a choice to "look prettier" or even "look scarier". Anyway, I love the show regardless. I'm not gonna let silly things like that get in the way. The world is so unbelievably well crafted that I'm fine letting a few things slide.
@@ferrumoferebus I agree, but I really do believe the expanse has a level of quality above many, many other shows. Its entire universe has been constructed well. Even in the past, not many shows (yes, there are still a few) reach this level of care. You can see how much the creators care if you watch the aftershow for s6 ep1. I think thats rare these days.
The expanse fits well within my standards, its excellent science fiction. No, its not real, or true to life, but its still a well constructed world. And honestly, i'd argue better actors > realistic physiques. The expanses actors are great, some excel, some are decent.
Hold up, there's a season 5? Ah man, I'll be back. Here's a like and a comment, though.
Just finished Expanse today and I genuinely liked S.5, S.6 was rushed but I was satisfied at the end. It was a beautiful journey
I actually had the same issue with season 5 it was chore finishing it, I didn't think it was terrible but it got repetitive. They can still pulled it off make season 6 a masterpiece. Also i think the amazon deal is only for three seasons and they will finish this story arc so we will get 3 more season covering the rest of the books
Season 5 was ok, but I skipped most of the Noami and her son parts. Got to predictable and boring, often gringy. I'm glad it's there, but family drama it's not why I watch sci fi. Its why I loved The Martian. Who gives a fuck about Marks family just let me see if he's smart enough to not die.
Personaly thought S4 was the weakest and S5 a great improvment. Each to their own I suppose.
I think now there’s huge cause for concern and worry as it’s just been confirmed that season 6 is only 6 episodes huge mistake. Not enough to close out the show
I've re-watched every season of The Expanse multiple times. It was borderline addiction. Donated to campaigns to save the show after it was cancelled, but I haven't bothered to re-watch season 5 and I'm pretty sure I won't. I have to agree with a lot of this video. Once those asteroids hit earth, they decided they should spend 3-4 episodes on Naomi's family squabbles. It drove me nuts that a near extinction level event was pushed aside so that they could tell a story about Naomi trying to connect with her murderous son. It was so small and petty compared to the larger issues at hand that I just couldn't bring myself to care about her family issues. I haven't read the books yet, but I no longer have any hope that season 6 will do anything other than deal with Marco while all of the larger questions presented over the previous seasons will go unanswered. With the way the TV show loves cliffhangers, I can totally see season 6 ending with some alien faction finally appearing on screen and then boom...roll credits never to get another episode of The Expanse ever again.
I think you will be surprised with how much gets resolved, at least they do in the books before they jump 30 years into the future...with old forgotten threats returning (that's all I will say without getting too close to spoilers). But the books are Written in such a way that the end of book 6 does have a somewhat good point for a story ending, with possibilities to come back to the world.
my boyfriend and i loved season 5. and can't wait for season 6!! the series is amazing!!
He loved it because he's your prisoner and was afraid to speak up
I love every season. Great show.
The only letdown with this show is that it didn't get those three more seasons (7-9) to finish the story.
I only managed to watch 2 episodes of season 5 I was too bored to keep going, and that's after being hyped like a madman for it.
I see you doing a lot of Si-fi shows, but if you ever decide to go off the route for a video, I’m sure you would enjoy doing a video essay on Line of duty, its the number 1 British drama currently, and it just had a controversial ending, it would be a good one for you to consider !
After season 3 i hate naomi nagata
I loved the exploration of Naomi's character and how her past has come to inform so many of her decisions. I loved this latest season
@@ferrumoferebus aw. Listen mate, if you're that insecure about the size of ur pee pee, commenting the same thing 3x (that I know of) isn't gonna fix ur little problem. Not every woman cares about size, look up man! You'll find her
@@ferrumoferebus I would disagree tbh, especially the drummer rant. Because let me tell you, I don't think any Males are bulletproof. And he point it fucking out himself that "It woudl take an average man with balls" THATS THE ISSUE RIGHT? DRUMMER IS INFAMOUS FOR A REASON. The main issue is I think he just doesn't like Women in any literal position of power. Even if said Women already has a notoriety beforehand due to being with Dawes and Ashford.
Also he's literally ranting about Women not looking like Supermodels in Bobbie Draper case. She's not even fat or anything and calls it Body positivity pandering?
Literally the rant is just Boo Hoo there's Woman in my show and theyre a major part of the narrative.
The Expanse like all American Science fiction shows started off well but soon ran out of steam and now has ended before the story has finished!
Yeap, The bad dialogue, the bad acting also did not help. Season 1 was the best season by far.
@@danielkjm Also far too much sex as well!
No idea what you talking about.
It's ended and I still want more.
Season 5 kicks so much ass its crazy. You are wrong
too few fx, too many dialogs...this is not what I expected by watching this show....espcially when you 're used to star wars/gate/trek and co
the amount of scenes in space or planetary is too low, action scenes are basic and not breathtaking
only dialogs dialogs dialogs again and again, in almost the same place each entire episode
I thought the show drops off significantly mid season 2, jumping the shark if you will. Idc what happened in the books it just becomes so outrageousout of nowhere. I finshed s2 and started s3 but full on stopped at the showing of the leftover proto molecule from having that creature punching at the spot in the cargo hold. It's no longer a show about people, just the blue goo. Boring.
S5 is all about the people and barely about the blue goo 🤣
Good points, I agree mostly with what you've said. Season 5 was still solid. But you made one error, they aren't going to adapt all 3 remaining books, only up until the time jump in the book series (end of book 6, which is what s5 is also based on). And that's what s6 is building up to and will end on. It's a solid spot for the show to make its exit, even though I'd love it if they continued.
Yeah I cannot disagree with you more on this one. Season 5 could very well be the best season of the show yet. The fact that it didn't go the direction you would have liked to see it go in doesn't mean it's bad. The story is not and never was about the protomolecule, but instead about how humans react to existential threats and changing times, and that's all of what season 5 is about. How do the belt and Mars react to having their culture and people existentially threatened by the ring gates? How do people survive on Earth after it's been severely damaged? How does Avasarala deal with her grief while trying to hold Earth together? What's more important to Holden or Drummer protecting those they love or doing what's right?
These are the sorts of questions the Expanse deals with, not "what new form will the blue goo take this week?"
I fully agree. The Expanse has never been about space battles or about bug-eyed-monsters, but has always been about human drama. The Protomolecule is basically a MacGuffin like the One Ring in LOtR or the ark in Raiders or the black bird in The Maltese Falcon...it sets the stage for the human drama, but it's not a character in its own right.
I disagree, I thought season 4 was the weakest (and as a book reader wasn't a huge fan of book 4 either [that said, I love the series/books and even at its weakest is like a 8/10 to me]), and season 5 was very good I thought, still would say it was the second weakest season, but I think you aren't seeing this as a whole yet. I think when Season 6 finishes we will have a trilogy with the first 3 seasons, a interlude with season 4 and a duology for 5 and 6.
If they are going the direction I think they are, we will be judging season 5 differently post season 6. But regardless of the speculation, or some having disappointment, I still think "The Expanse" is the best sci-fi on screen right now.
Are you kidding me? It's the best season of the Expanse, and it is precisely because of Marco Inaros. The Expanse is never about ring gates, or even the protomolecule - it is always about human in-conflict as they react to the unknown or just-known. It was the ring gate that sent Belters towards a realization that they are an "obsolete" class, which can never populate the ring worlds (their children who can will no longer be Belters), so their culture is given a death sentence by the new travel "tech". The rational response is to control access to the ring gate - so no Inner or Belter can pass through or trade without benefitting the Belter. This is exactly the reasoning that Inaros exploited.
The theme has always been the same. Protomolecule was discovered, the shadow elite has to induce a war as a distraction. When the protomolecule shows its powers on Eros, the war has to be made real over the control of the protomolecule - with Erinwright and Korshunov at a race. And then the ring gates were created, forcing the emergence of Inaros. It has always been that way - humans react to reorganize their hierarchy at the face of new scientific knowledge or technology.
The only gripe i have with S05 is that the politics on Earth felt kinda simplified. Btw, my favourite episode from S05 was probably Naomi's struggle on the Chetzemoka. Never have i experienced more hopelessness than with Naomi. It was portrayed perfectly.
It's crazy to think that the show falls flat in season 5. I'm only half way through season 3 and I'm already considering dropping the show
Even though I generally agree that Series 5 was the weakest; The Expanse is still one of the best shows around and I would recommend to anyone, and Series 5 was miles ahead of the tripe that Star Wars/Trek and Doctor Who is serving up these days
I generally think that the 1st season was the weakest Becouse of its dry start but your opinion is your opinion.
I respectfully disagree. I think season 5 was the 2nd best season of the show, just behind the epic season 3. Episodes 1-4 and 9-10 are some of the best episodes of the entire show. I will agree however that the middle episodes, episodes 5-8, were kinda lackluster, and felt like going from 60 right back down to 0. But I think the episodes I mentioned previously more than make up for that. Episode 4 might be the best episode of the entire show. It was just so perfectly paced, non-stop shit hitting the fan. You really got the feeling that everything was going to hell, and the Free Navy had everyone beat at every turn.
There were pacing issues, and insufficient emphasis on the scope of the devastation on Earth, but otherwise... yeah, have to say, not a great take. I like your Doctor Who takes, but your certainty in diagnosing what's wrong with The Expanse makes the fact that they aren't very good takes even worse. I say that as someone for whom Season 5 is their least favorite. It has a lot of issues, and I find it to be generally disappointing, having read the books, but for evidently very different reasons than you.
It's a step up from the concept of filler episodes - a filler season. At that rate they'd need a Santa Barbara worth of episodes to tell their story. I'm not surprised they are getting shut down.
Just finished watching s5. What a disappointment compared so s1-4. Flimsy story line with obvious plot holes. Whats the point of Amos’s storyline except providing filler content and seriously, annoyed with a constantly whining!, begging and crying Naomi.
i like that you used a screenshot from best friends
The only thing that would draw me to this series is the protomolecule aliens, However, the fact that most of the series is boring human political cold war drama means I'm not interested and never will be, sorry.
True, season 1 Protomolecute was interesting and full of mistery, but turns out its just a boring monster/weapon
what a waste of a show, the last three seasons could have been summed up in a movie... Bad guy dies, trouble on the frontier, belter reconciliation... they could have given each of those 30 minutes and it would have been done... The first three seasons were pure gold, this is pointless...
Dude. You have missed the entire point of the story. The builders and the ring are just backdrops. The story has always been about how Humanity, in spite of how far technology has come, will always be fighting wars against it self but ultimately makes the right decisions to unite at the crucial moments. Honestly the books have started focusing more on the Builders and I think that the quality is lesser for it.
Nope, season 6 will be book 6 pretty much and probably not much else. Sorry, but all the protomolecule/builder/extermination complex (along with other things) is stuff for the third arc of the story, which is books 7-9 and no seasons of TV, as it stands now.
If we are lucky we will get the conclusion you long for in a few years time in the form of a new show, miniseries or TV movies. But no guaranties as of yet. There are always the books though...
So any followup for season 6?
Really hated Naomi family drama being the focus of a WHOLE SEASON!
While I don't agree with you, I respect your opinion and you do make very valid points. Or I rather agree with your points, but I still very much enjoyed season 5. It had some bloody brilliant moments. I will grant however that I spent most of the season feeling I was watching things get setup and when I felt things were at the point of really going for it, the season ended. But thank you for sharing your take.
@@ferrumoferebus while you have some points regarding physical strength etc that I can't dispute. And the writers are admitedly woke. Most people who are very off put by woke crap, like myself, still find within ourselves to think this is one of the best shows on TV. Shame you can't see past your own bubble. But to each their own.
@@ferrumoferebus Sorry dude, I'm the one who is not about to pander to you. You don't like it it's ok. But I do think your reasons are misguided. But that's just an opinion, my opinion. But I don't care if you change your mind or not. Nor do I think I could persuade you to. At the end of the day, it's just a show. I like it you don't.
well I agree with you on that.
I don’t understand what you dislike about Star Wars, Star Trek or current DW. I like them all! 🙂 As well as the Expanse s5.
But taste is sooo subjective unless it’s influenced by others. That’s why I always avoid reviews
Unusual and interesting take. On the whole, the majority view seems to rank S5 as number two after S3. S4 is usually the one that draws the largest complaints (unjustified as far as I am concerned - so we agree on that). S5 is not really about plot (besides showing the consequences of things, and setting things up for season 6). It is about what is going on inside characters' heads. They have stuck quite closely to the books, so S6 is mostly just an abbreviation / interpretation of Book 6 of 9, there was no rush to cram 4 books into it. Given their budget was less than they wanted and they had to film it during Covid restrictions, I think they did an excellent job. Some think / believe / hope that the last 3 books will be adapted, eventually. We'll have to wait and see.
As a huge fan of both the books and show, in my opinion season 5 is absolutely the weakest of the bunch, but should admit I find book 5 to be the weakest of the book as well (the first six at least). Season 4 did have a slow start, as did season 1, but both would build to have intriguing ends to their seasons with brilliant payoffs. Season 5? The only bits that stick out in my memory are the brilliant sequence of Earth being rocked in episode 4, and the final 20 minutes of the finale (excluding the sudden death of a certain character but we all know why that had to happen). Beyond that, nothing much. Amos and Clarissa bonding was nice enough, but Bobbie/Alex had next to nothing to do, same for Holden, and whilst Niomi was faithfully done, it just wasn't compelling viewing for the amount of screen time she had.
Funny, I have the opposite take. Season 4 was the weakest season. I thought Season 5 was great.
People like you killing any perspectives for good sci fi.
Once the show slow down a bit you jumping on the bandwagon and trashing the show, leading to it's termination.
The expanse is by far the best tv series existing. But why do you care
I’ve read all the books and they are not adapting books 7,8,9. Maybe 20 years from now
It seems like Solar Trash to me.
The most wonderful and main character in The Expanse is the Protomolecule. When the story arc focuses on its main character, you get tremendous television entertainment. When it focuses on the interpersonal struggles of the the minor characters (the people) the entertainment value plummets. Sure, there are fans who only enjoy character-based drama, and love The Expanse for its efforts to create interesting characters who interact with each other in interesting ways. That's just no me. Part of everybody's problems in evaluating the worth of The Expanse is that the protomolecule-starring S.1-S.3 was so damn good, nothing can be favorably compared with it. S.4 tries to escape that trap by going small, and it succeeds in going small, so small in the stakes involved (unless you truly come to care about the chance a couple of hundred people might die) that it never generated any real suspense, especially when you begin with the idea that the Roci crew was certain to have plot armor. S.5 was better, but the best scene in the entire season was the half-minute or so that brought the protomolecule back to center stage, and you had to wait for the credits to run in the final episode of the season to enjoy it.
A mediocre season of The Expanse is still better than 98.87645% of anything else available on your home television. The comparison to the wind-up of GoT was just plain wrong and an enormous insult to the creators and fans of The Expanse, and it turned your video essay into over-the-top trolling clickbait. Nothing will ever compare to the torture killing of GoT.
I'm so sick of grown men crying about star wars. Stfu, you're just mad you're not 8 years old anymore. The original trilogy wasn't actually that great
Naomi does get really annoying this season and the Alex/Bobbie story is a poor use of time but besides that I completely disagree. The Laconia arc is slow burning in the background and Marco’s vision, means, strategy, and rhetoric are really refreshing to me. He’s a distillation and polarization of daws, ashford, and all these other belter leaders. I’m not saying there aren’t legitimate criticisms here, but I thing season 5 as a whole is a smashing success
I speedran this show and it helped understand why season 5 just wasn't as good.
The antagonists were too cartoonish, the middle was too drawn out and dry, no real conclusion to the season other than - wait for new season. The first couple of seasons had a lot of great scenes that you could put in a museum and call a painting and nobody would object to it but now it's almost too bland and it also feels like they just milked the characters dry and had 0 sense of scale and direction for the story, the entire season just doesn't hold up to a single episode from season 2. It wasn't horribly bad - it just wasn't amazing like it was before.
I respectfully disagree with you. Your title should have how it failed Harbo Wholmes..... but who cares.
That wasn't very respectful, in fairness.
The fact that they even veered into the Marco story for so long " utterly disappointing" I don't want to see anymore of the show!
Because the bigger story is the protomolecule aliens, who say we want to know what happened to our makers also. And really to have Marco come in and kill the people who saved the universe as they know it ridiculous. All the belters should be saying where were you when all this was going on? In season 6 on episode 3 just this for in it's like work watching it.
Wait till you see Season 6 haha.
I love the show it’s my favorite show besides game of thrones but I hate that they rushed the season 6
It's a bummer the first Expanse video you made was largely negative. Might turn people off from an excellent show
The true beratnas know
season 4 was terrible - but 5 and 6 were even worse
9:13 stretch the good plot to increase watchtime
"Incredible season 4"?
got so bored me and my Mrs DNF'd it
Maybe we'll try again in the future but not gonna hold out much hope
What you talking about? 4 is my favourite season, than 2nd and im 3rd place the 5th season
Compared to Star Trek and Doctor Who, Season 5 is a fucking masterpiece! As far as The Expanse goes, yes, it was a little dragged out and slow, but I didn't hate it, far from it!
The Expanse is alright, there's some really poor acting in it and quite a few boring episodes. But don't say this to fans of the show because they will freak out and go for your throat.
Huh, apparently I wasn't the only one. . .
thankfully, you are wrong
The books are so much better.
I haven't read the books, coming from that perspective I completely agree with your analysis. I understand the people that are happy the writers are faithful to the books, but we knew we were never getting more than 6 seasons. You can't cram 10 books into 6 seasons. Just like you said, the writers needed to do a better job going through all of the book content and cutting out or rewriting less critical time consuming plot elements.
Like you get at 9:20 the whole Naomi theme here just doesn't resonate. It's a waste of time on exposition that won't do anything. Marco doesn't have enough depth, there's nothing interesting about his character that requires this much screen time. He's coming off as a generic terrorist with the same played out themes that go along with that we've been seeing for the last 20 years.
I loved Naomi’s plot the most
Wrong, wrong, wrong. Season Six will be book 6. If you're expecting a resolution to the story of the builders, you'll be disappointed, but the story has never been about them. It's about how people react to their discovery.
This Show Peaked at Season 1.
This is just the same as Game Of Thrones. The series is just as bad as it is good. But in the end all the teasing kills the fun. It has its moments but the good stuff is just stretched to increase watchtime. And that means it steals your time. There are some good characters, like detective Miller or madam undersecretary but in the end the acting is pathetic and everybody carries their heavy faith around and tells it to anyone who wants to know it or not. And they can't let a good riddle stand for itself like in Alien I, they have to explain it all for dummies and destroy the tension before it can grow. At the same time the scenes that are supposed to be exciting are again stretched across a whole season. You know the game and you are better than that. What a giant waste of time.
Just another commercial platform series. 💔
Don't get me wrong, it is so addicting because the show really leads you on to see how the plot continues. I enjoy this review on a therapeutical level instead of watching season four, five and six.
I must strongly disagree, but if I was going to find some middle ground, then it would be that the Inaros events could have happened at some other point in the story
the problem with the expanse is that the real story ends in the season 3 finale, everything after that is just boring filler.
My biggest issue with season 5 is that they resolved the stealth asteroid attack plotline waay to soon. By episode 4 they quickly neutralized the asteroid threat, and after that, for the next 6 episodes we have... The Adventures of Naomi Nagata on a Crappy Ship. About as exciting as watching paint dry. But what really screwed the pooch IMO was the ep. 1 reveal about the alien threat that killed the Ringbuilders. The ending of S3 was set up to implicate that there was some serious alien threat much more dangerous than the protomolecule that could still be alive and could still be just as dangerous, with a hint that it's still out there and that would play a role almost as big as the protomolecule did. Then the S4 ending further reinforces that by showing that "Eye of an angry god", which given that it just kills any PM tech it touches, it's clearly a leftover from the war, but it's not clear if the alien threat that created it is still around, since it's possible that all that alien smoke Holden saw at the end on S3, could have been just this weapon, especially when Okoye fell through the orb and the same alien smoke was present. Maybe some last images from the dying PM tech? It's not made entirely clear though, even though there are hints that it could be more. Then S5 starts, and in the very first episode Holden just dumps it all: that alien smoke is the alien threat that wiped the Ringbuilders and we might be next if we keep using the Ring gates. The scene ends with Fred displaying some skepticism at the reveal, but come on, it's clear to anyone with half a brain that the guy who was always right about visions from long lost alien technology will always be right. Would it have really hurt not to have had this scene (which was also released on YT right before the season aired) at all, so that when the Barkeith gets erased, the reveal would have been more shocking? I believe the books revealed the Goth threat much smoother than the show did.
Best advice is after season 1,2,3&4 have a fast forward button close for season 5&6 even then it will be a complete dragging nightmare of an experience
It didn’t. Quite the opposite actually.
it never wrapped up =(
Didn't even watch it all before I said. I disagree
Thanks👍 Now I don't have to waste my time with this series
This guy is a a moron, judge the show yourself.
Inaris was dumb but the show overall was great
lol nothing quite as sensitive as The Expanse fanbase
I disagree
I gave up on The Expanse a few episodes into Season 4. I was hoping Season 4 would progress the protomolecule story forward and/or we would see many of the new planets with alien creatures and/or intelligent species. But instead, we focus on the boring conflict on the only planet that has been attempted to be colonized. And the protomolecule storyline barely gets focus in the first four episodes. The story was just moving too slowly for me, so I gave up.
Game of Thrones kept things interesting before the White Walker threat affected everyone by constantly changing the political landscape every couple of seasons. The Expanse doesn't do that. Its political landscape remains relatively unchanged after Season 1. The mystery of the protomolecule is the only thing that is interesting about the show, but it decided painfully slow crawl reveals about that mystery on top of relatively unchanging political landscapes were the best way to pace the show.
You would really hate Season 5 then, since those are basically my exact issues with it. Interesting to hear you say Season 4 was your breaking point. I thought it was by far the best season because it balanced everything perfectly (the protomolecule stuff gets a lot of play towards the end)
@@HarboWholmes I couldn't sit through anymore of Season 4. I realized I was dreading watching another episode, because I was getting bored. I was entertained with Alex in the tower, but I shouldn't have to put up with that weak colonization conflict plot to get to something interesting.
The Expanse isn't about the protomolecule, aliens, or discovering new worlds and intelligences. Any of those things that are in the story are largely the stage upon which human stories about fear, conflict, self-destructive behavior, and how to overcome those things. Hoping that it'll suddenly turn into star trek shows that you misunderstood the purpose of the show.
The show you're looking for is Stargate. Each week, the crew explores a new planet. Enjoy.
22:30 just filler no killer absolute bars
Honestly, I liked season 5 way more than season 4.
You can skip season 4 and would barely miss anything...
@@ferrumoferebus It's really not... whilst I would agree that the show likes it's diversity, it doesn't beat you over the head with it like Doctor Who and Star Trek do now.
I'll admit, I've never liked Naomi very much she always lies and everyone still loves her despite the amount of times she betrays Holden and the rest of the crew...
Also, the Belters were quite cool in the first couple of season, and season 4, the ones on Ilus at least, but season 5 on Drummers ship especially, they turned them into free love hippies...
Everyone just wait for how Marco will be defeated, super easy, barely an inconvenience. I hope the writers change it up.
Are you referencing the books? Because Marcos end there is definifinitively "barely an inconvienience"
This video essay failed me as a viewer. The script was just bad; you did not do nearly enough review or editing. You repeated your points constantly, and the points themselves were just... lazy. This entire video was lazy. You could have a channel I suppose, but not if your sole thing is saying the opposite of 99.9% of people just for the sake of saying something different.