The Expanse, Season 6 Review
Jan. 23rd, 2022 11:34 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rogueslayer452After I finished watching I felt a little melancholy and needed some time to process everything, and now that I have I, without further ado, here are my thoughts on the sixth and final season of The Expanse.
As a whole, I really enjoyed it. I do think it could have benefitted with having ten episodes instead of six to kind of give space to elaborate on certain things and even extended what they were building up, but overall I liked it.
I think a lot of people were wondering how on earth they were going to wrap everything up in just six episodes, because the story presents a lot of larger-than-life aspects, from characters being at war to the unknown alien artifacts and worlds and threats and what humanity is going to do with it, etc. The answer, of course, was the prioritize the characters more than anything protomolecule related, which makes sense because while the protomolecule and the Ring Gates and everything connected with those alien worlds (the builders, whatever killed the builders, etc) are all interesting and fascinating in itself, the show was always first and foremost about these characters, of humanity and the conflicts that have arisen. Everything related with the protomolecule was mere backdrop, an exciting one but is was more of a catalyst of pushing these characters forward than anything else. And as much as I wanted to learn and understand more of what else is in store when it comes to exploring these other alien worlds and the threats they give off, the show needed to end with giving satisfaction with the characters.
And I think that's why there's been some confusion about what they did with Laconia -- which I personally liked, by the way -- because even though it was still continuing the mystery that's been building for seasons it also felt rather detached from everything else going on in this last season, and it's understandable because it was introduced and had an interesting setup, and then left unresolved. Obviously, the show adapted only six of the nine books that are in the series so clearly the story isn't done and it's a mere teaser of what's to come, but still, it's understandable that some would be tilting their heads in confusion about that storyline.
The things I liked about the final season:
** The fact that it was about the characters. The show has always been about these characters, and other characters they meet along the way, but I definitely think, with the limited episodes they had, they wanted to focus on the characters, their growth and personal journeys throughout the show, their relationships with one another, seeing how they've developed over the course of their particular arcs. It goes beyond our main crew, too. Like, yes, I absolutely adored seeing the dynamic between Amos and Bobbie, the continuing bond between Amos and Clarissa, the softness of Holden and Naomi, and all of them just working as a crew together, but I also really loved seeing other characters as well, like how much Drummer has grown and developed over the course of the series, everything she has sacrificed for what she believed to be the right thing, how Filip's emotional journey was this season as he finally gives into the revelation to the true person his father really is, to other minor characters such as Monica Stuart who, despite a small role, still played a big part in the final season and has shown how much she'd grown since her introduction. Truly, as much as there's a lot going on with the story and plot, the characters are the backbone of everything The Expanse is and how these characters and the bonds they form with each other are done so naturally, so effortlessly, that when you look back at how far they've come it's remarkable. This final season really nailed that by giving as much spotlight as they could on these characters.
** Speaking of characters, I also liked that they attempted to bring back characters from previous seasons even if just for a small cameo in video messages. Anna Volovodov, Prax, and Elvi were such nice surprises that I didn't expect, and yet it makes sense because, well, final season. It brings everything back full circle of showing these characters, even if just briefly, and they did it in a way that made sense for why these characters would appear in the ways they did.
** Marco Inaros was such a fantastic villain, the actor did such a good job with making me feel so much disdain for him, while also understanding where the character is coming from, his motivations, etc. I felt like his death was very fitting, that for someone who loves grand speeches and making a larger-than-life claims about things he went out on a whimper.
** Camina Drummer. Just, Camina Drummer.
** Okay, to further elaborate on the point above: I have loved everything surrounding Drummer's storyline during the past two seasons. She has come such a long way since her introduction as being a minor character to being a main character, and I loved seeing her take and forge her own path. It wasn't without sacrifices, since she has lost so much along the way, friends and family, her polyamorous family has since split apart because of the choices she made, choices she knew she would risk everything for, and she ultimately did pay that price. Seeing her character in such a vulnerable and emotional state was heartbreaking, because she was truly being backed into a corner, running out of options. It worked out in the end, the fact that she and Avasarala got to talk and meet face-to-face was such a delightful moment and I loved everything about their interactions, and from what we can tell her remaining family -- Michio and Josep -- are still there supporting her so that's a hopeful place for us to conclude on her story. But oh man, what a journey her character has gone through, and I just love her so, so much. Cara Gee is phenomenal.
** As I mentioned, I actually quite liked the Laconia storyline. It made me curious about what it was leading towards, and I know some are like, "what was the point?" when there was no ultimate payoff of what was going to happen to those two children, I think the point was that this was the next step in humanity's evolutionary discovery of what the protomolecule could do when utilized in a certain way, from the alien spacecraft orbiting around that planet to those "strange dogs" that apparently are able to fix the dead, there's clearly a lot going on that we weren't seeing but we can take a guess on what was most likely happening. I liked that the scenes were done at the beginning of the episodes, I just wished that they integrated it a little bit more than just that, that's my only nitpick, aside from having more episodes to extend things a bit more.
My nitpicks:
** I don't have many, but like I've been stating I wished the season had been extended to ten episodes so we could get things like the Laconia storyline integrated better throughout, and I do think we should have spent a little bit more time with certain characters and seeing how they're doing especially in the final episode. I also wished we could have seen Holden and Drummer planning their strategic move that was done in the finale, because it was brilliant and I wished there was just more scenes with her and Holden kind of teaming up.
Again, these are just small things, because the more I think about it the more I actually really, really loved the finale and the final season as a whole. It's just that, like with any series finale, not everything is going to be perfect, not everything is going to be wrapped up in a nice little bow and please everyone, and there will ultimately be things that we wished we could've seen that wasn't included.
Overall: The Expanse remains perhaps one of my favorite science fiction shows in recent years, and when they announced that the sixth season was to be its last I was a bit heartbroken, but regardless I knew that they would make it good and they definitely succeeded. Yes, there are things I wished they could have done, but when you look at the final season as a whole it did what it set out to do, and while not entirely concluding the story it definitely closed a chapter and gave us a satisfying ending that makes sense for the characters. Ending it on the Roci crew, doing their thing on the ship, and with Naomi and Holden holding each other and just being, even for a moment in the never-ending chaos that is still happening around them, was honestly so beautiful, and touching. The show ended on an uplifting note, and I love that.
Honestly, it's been a wild ride with The Expanse from beginning to end, and as bittersweet as it was watching the final season this show has had an incredible journey. From being cancelled after three seasons on Syfy to then being saved by Amazon thanks to the successful fan campaign and continuing on for three more seasons, and while they didn't adapt the entire book series as I would've loved for them to do they succeeded in concluding the story they wanted to tell, and in my opinion they did so on a high note, and a positive one at that. I want more, of course I do, the story itself isn't done (even they say that they're hoping that one day they'll be able to finish adapting the books on the small screen), but six seasons is nothing to sneeze at and I'm just grateful to get what we got. :)
As a whole, I really enjoyed it. I do think it could have benefitted with having ten episodes instead of six to kind of give space to elaborate on certain things and even extended what they were building up, but overall I liked it.
I think a lot of people were wondering how on earth they were going to wrap everything up in just six episodes, because the story presents a lot of larger-than-life aspects, from characters being at war to the unknown alien artifacts and worlds and threats and what humanity is going to do with it, etc. The answer, of course, was the prioritize the characters more than anything protomolecule related, which makes sense because while the protomolecule and the Ring Gates and everything connected with those alien worlds (the builders, whatever killed the builders, etc) are all interesting and fascinating in itself, the show was always first and foremost about these characters, of humanity and the conflicts that have arisen. Everything related with the protomolecule was mere backdrop, an exciting one but is was more of a catalyst of pushing these characters forward than anything else. And as much as I wanted to learn and understand more of what else is in store when it comes to exploring these other alien worlds and the threats they give off, the show needed to end with giving satisfaction with the characters.
And I think that's why there's been some confusion about what they did with Laconia -- which I personally liked, by the way -- because even though it was still continuing the mystery that's been building for seasons it also felt rather detached from everything else going on in this last season, and it's understandable because it was introduced and had an interesting setup, and then left unresolved. Obviously, the show adapted only six of the nine books that are in the series so clearly the story isn't done and it's a mere teaser of what's to come, but still, it's understandable that some would be tilting their heads in confusion about that storyline.
The things I liked about the final season:
** The fact that it was about the characters. The show has always been about these characters, and other characters they meet along the way, but I definitely think, with the limited episodes they had, they wanted to focus on the characters, their growth and personal journeys throughout the show, their relationships with one another, seeing how they've developed over the course of their particular arcs. It goes beyond our main crew, too. Like, yes, I absolutely adored seeing the dynamic between Amos and Bobbie, the continuing bond between Amos and Clarissa, the softness of Holden and Naomi, and all of them just working as a crew together, but I also really loved seeing other characters as well, like how much Drummer has grown and developed over the course of the series, everything she has sacrificed for what she believed to be the right thing, how Filip's emotional journey was this season as he finally gives into the revelation to the true person his father really is, to other minor characters such as Monica Stuart who, despite a small role, still played a big part in the final season and has shown how much she'd grown since her introduction. Truly, as much as there's a lot going on with the story and plot, the characters are the backbone of everything The Expanse is and how these characters and the bonds they form with each other are done so naturally, so effortlessly, that when you look back at how far they've come it's remarkable. This final season really nailed that by giving as much spotlight as they could on these characters.
** Speaking of characters, I also liked that they attempted to bring back characters from previous seasons even if just for a small cameo in video messages. Anna Volovodov, Prax, and Elvi were such nice surprises that I didn't expect, and yet it makes sense because, well, final season. It brings everything back full circle of showing these characters, even if just briefly, and they did it in a way that made sense for why these characters would appear in the ways they did.
** Marco Inaros was such a fantastic villain, the actor did such a good job with making me feel so much disdain for him, while also understanding where the character is coming from, his motivations, etc. I felt like his death was very fitting, that for someone who loves grand speeches and making a larger-than-life claims about things he went out on a whimper.
** Camina Drummer. Just, Camina Drummer.
** Okay, to further elaborate on the point above: I have loved everything surrounding Drummer's storyline during the past two seasons. She has come such a long way since her introduction as being a minor character to being a main character, and I loved seeing her take and forge her own path. It wasn't without sacrifices, since she has lost so much along the way, friends and family, her polyamorous family has since split apart because of the choices she made, choices she knew she would risk everything for, and she ultimately did pay that price. Seeing her character in such a vulnerable and emotional state was heartbreaking, because she was truly being backed into a corner, running out of options. It worked out in the end, the fact that she and Avasarala got to talk and meet face-to-face was such a delightful moment and I loved everything about their interactions, and from what we can tell her remaining family -- Michio and Josep -- are still there supporting her so that's a hopeful place for us to conclude on her story. But oh man, what a journey her character has gone through, and I just love her so, so much. Cara Gee is phenomenal.
** As I mentioned, I actually quite liked the Laconia storyline. It made me curious about what it was leading towards, and I know some are like, "what was the point?" when there was no ultimate payoff of what was going to happen to those two children, I think the point was that this was the next step in humanity's evolutionary discovery of what the protomolecule could do when utilized in a certain way, from the alien spacecraft orbiting around that planet to those "strange dogs" that apparently are able to fix the dead, there's clearly a lot going on that we weren't seeing but we can take a guess on what was most likely happening. I liked that the scenes were done at the beginning of the episodes, I just wished that they integrated it a little bit more than just that, that's my only nitpick, aside from having more episodes to extend things a bit more.
My nitpicks:
** I don't have many, but like I've been stating I wished the season had been extended to ten episodes so we could get things like the Laconia storyline integrated better throughout, and I do think we should have spent a little bit more time with certain characters and seeing how they're doing especially in the final episode. I also wished we could have seen Holden and Drummer planning their strategic move that was done in the finale, because it was brilliant and I wished there was just more scenes with her and Holden kind of teaming up.
Again, these are just small things, because the more I think about it the more I actually really, really loved the finale and the final season as a whole. It's just that, like with any series finale, not everything is going to be perfect, not everything is going to be wrapped up in a nice little bow and please everyone, and there will ultimately be things that we wished we could've seen that wasn't included.
Overall: The Expanse remains perhaps one of my favorite science fiction shows in recent years, and when they announced that the sixth season was to be its last I was a bit heartbroken, but regardless I knew that they would make it good and they definitely succeeded. Yes, there are things I wished they could have done, but when you look at the final season as a whole it did what it set out to do, and while not entirely concluding the story it definitely closed a chapter and gave us a satisfying ending that makes sense for the characters. Ending it on the Roci crew, doing their thing on the ship, and with Naomi and Holden holding each other and just being, even for a moment in the never-ending chaos that is still happening around them, was honestly so beautiful, and touching. The show ended on an uplifting note, and I love that.
Honestly, it's been a wild ride with The Expanse from beginning to end, and as bittersweet as it was watching the final season this show has had an incredible journey. From being cancelled after three seasons on Syfy to then being saved by Amazon thanks to the successful fan campaign and continuing on for three more seasons, and while they didn't adapt the entire book series as I would've loved for them to do they succeeded in concluding the story they wanted to tell, and in my opinion they did so on a high note, and a positive one at that. I want more, of course I do, the story itself isn't done (even they say that they're hoping that one day they'll be able to finish adapting the books on the small screen), but six seasons is nothing to sneeze at and I'm just grateful to get what we got. :)
