In a few century from now on, the solar system is divided in three factions : Earth, its former colony Mars, now independant and military advanced, and “the belt”, a group of space stations which provide all that Earth and Mars need. Tensions are permanent, but the destruction of a ship takes the pressure up a notch. Nobody knows exactly what happened, and each faction suspects the two others. The already fragile balance of power is on the verge of breaking up. However, a group of four people survived the destruction, they are key witnesses. At first, the little group run, but while they try to understand what mess they’re in, they unravel a power and an ennemy nobody had seen coming. Humans may have to stick together after all, in a journey that will lead them far away from the solar system.
One of the best SF series of all times !
The expanse ticks all the boxes of a great successful series : an excellent and addictive story, well adapted from a novel by James S. A. Corey. An impeccable casting : all of the twenty or so important characters are played by excellent actors (see below). And beautiful visual effects and environments : the ships, Mars, stations of the Belt, space fights : all images are really brillant. I can hardly find a weakness at all in this top quality series ! Proof if it was necessary, I watched it again years after the first time, thinking I would just see the beginning before writing this post, and I was hooked up again, even if I knew the whole story. If you’ve missed out on this little gem, give it a try.
6 seasons, 62 episodes (40 mn), 2015-2022, Amazon Prime
- The crew of the Rocinante : Steven Strait / James Holden, Dominique Tipper / Naomi Nagata, Wes Chatham / Amos Burton, Cas Anvar / Alex Kamal
- The Belters : Thomas Jane / Joe Miller, Jared Harris / Anderson Dawes, Chad L. Coleman / Fred Johnson, Cara Gee / Camina Drummer, David Strathairn / Klaes Ashford, Keon Alexander / Marco Inaros, Jasai Chase-Owens / Filip Inaros
- Mars : Frankie Adams / Bobby Draper – Earth : Shohreh Aghdashloo / Chrisjen Avasarala, Shawn Doyle / Sadavir Errinwright, François Chau / Jules-Pierre Mao, Florence Faivre / Julie Mao, Nadine Nicole / Clarissa Mao
