September 16: The Expanse 5x01

[kinetic_elaboration]

Another season, and quite different than the last and yet I feel like my response to it is roughly the same, honestly. I am more interested, perhaps very interested, in these ‘side’ stories, but the main arcs are not really catching my attention.

I do appreciate a previously on and some dialogue exposition, though.

I assume the main arcs are going to be more of the Ring Gate/Builders/Protomolecule stuff; and Marco Inaros, along with Naomi and Filip. As before, the Ring etc. should be interesting but I’ve just lost the thread of it so completely that even with more exposition I’m still not following. The cycle of not being interested enough to follow and not following very well causing me to zone out when it comes up. I guess I get the general contours, but that’s not enough. And with Inaros… that could turn into something that intrigues me, I guess. I was moved by Naomi’s reaction to hearing about her son, and seeing him on the video. It’s too early to see how that will all turn out.

 

I really don’t care about Holden, as an individual, or Holden/Naomi. Like that ship, honestly… not enough time was put into it after they got together. That’s my opinion on it. Their storylines have been mostly separate for how many seasons now? I’m just supposed to remember their love story; I’m never shown any of it particularly. I really dislike when shows do that: put effort into establishing a couple and then consider their job done.

Also, when Holden talked about Ilus he made it sound like the Roci had accidentally brought a bit of Protomolecule over and that was how everything had gone tits up, but… either I was misunderstanding (totally possible!) or that’s a retcon. Or it’s another way of saying that the Miller hallucination did stuff. But even then…he didn’t do it on his own; Holden was his hands. So. It feels a little revisionist history to me.

The stuff I did like: all the side quests, as usual. Alex’s made me a little sad—I’m with Bobbie that it’s too late to pretend his family matters to him; too late both morally in-universe and just as a story beat lol. But I still enjoy him. He’s been under-utilized for, like, two seasons (and I know about to be even less utilized…) so it was nice he got his own story in this long, packed episode.

Bobbie, still one of my favorites. Hilariously, I kind of was right that she’d double/triple/quadruple cross people. I mean she was legitimately working for black marketeers but NOW she’s a counter-spy, somewhat as predicted. It’s too early to see where this will go, but I’m optimistic, and tbh I find her magnetic no matter what she’s doing. Also loved that her contact for Chrisjen is “the old lady.” More Chrisjen and Bobbie content in S5!!

I really liked Amos’s scenes. I sort of miss his protective guard dog days but he’s developed in an interesting way and he remains extremely magnetic and fun to watch. Do I think it ever gets that deep with him? No, and it shouldn’t. But he’s always so enjoyable being his straightforward self. Like, the straightforwardness of his wants, needs, motivations, and solutions to problems IS the charm of the character, and the refreshing aspect of him. And I feel like the show at least mostly know that.

His scene with Chrisjen was the BEST of the whole ep and probably one of the best of the whole. “I’m a member of Parliament, not your favorite stripper.” / “Why can’t you be both?” Or “Are you going to murder anyone? I won’t bail you out if you do.”  More of this also please!! (I doubt there will be more but I at least appreciated this.) Two different types of BDE in the same room is really what it comes down to for me, I think.

One last thought: I do appreciate this show’s general world building: what Mars looks like, what Luna looks like, what the rooms on Tycho look like. It just looks cool, and it looks real.

So… I feel like this season won’t be better than last year’s but it will maybe be on the same level? That’s the prediction I’m making now at least…