I've not watched in a few episodes - but from what I understand there's going to be no way they can line up the end of the book with the end of the second season. It seems like they're barely two thirds of the way through the novel.
I agree that this episode was padding. Errinwright was the best part of this episode. They had excellent narrative pacing for most of the season but that's kind of fallen apart for the last third. Disappointed to hear that the finale is likely going to be a rush job, particularly in the context of some wasted screen time.
I really don't think we're going to see a rushed finale, because I don't believe for a second that we're getting to the end of the 2nd book this season. There climax of the 2nd book would take too much setup at this point. So we're either skipping the entire climax and action beats associated with it, and ending the story about 2/3 of the way through, or we're saving something for next season. And, honestly, there's an excellent place to break the season in the middle of the book, much like they did for the first book and season 1. Spoilers for the end of book 2 Spoiler Considering that they've cut the entire Nguyen subplot about UN military buildup at Ganymede, the climactic showdown doesn't have the pieces in place. But if you leave the growing threat of war for season 3, and open with the missing subplot, you establish a nice narrative throughline for the first part of season 3. Also, everybody has been assuming that they'll leave season 2 with the Venus protomolecule reveal leading into the ring gate, but there's a better way for the show to do it. They just introduced the essential elements of what the Ganymede experiment was trying to do, reprogram the protomolecule to do humanity's bidding. So you end season 2 with the defeat of the protomolecule hybrid aboard the Roci, and the revelation that the protomolecule is communicating across the system. That Venus is learning from the hybrids. That the protomolecule will not be contained, and will not be controlled. And ultimately, with the spectacular death of the Arboghast. Leave us hanging on the fact that the Eros evolution is ongoing, and scary, and learning from humanity's mistakes. I expect season 3 to wrap up the second book and launch into the third
^^ Spoiler: HUGE novel spoilers I'm actually expecting the end of the finale to be Proto-Miller showing up and telling Holden we need to talk. It seems logical, Thomas Jane could have filmed it before he left, and it would be a hook for guaranteeing his return for season 3. Mind you the snag here is they removed Thomas Jane from the credits but have kept Florence Faivre, which could suggest they're not doing Proto-Miller.
You're forgetting the plot twist they just threw in there: Erinwright and Mao are back together again, with the Martian diplomat dying on Errinwright's floor. The next thing Erinwright is going to do is send Admiral Nguyen to Ganymede to drive the Martian ships out of the area and claim the Protomolecule weapons for himself; that, plus the Big Escape on Mao's Yacht, will end up being the climax of Season 2. I think the Monster Fight in the Cargo Bay will come a little bit before that. Spoiler So the next couple of episodes have three major action sequences still to present: Giant Fleet Action over Ganymede, Bobbi in her powered armor pwning some suckas, and the Monster Fight in the Roci's cargo bay. I'm thinking the big climax at the end of Season 2 will be when the Protomolecule destroys the Arboghast.
I just assumed they were having Florence Faivre do double duty as playing Clarissa Mao and then try to claim the two are actually twins or something.
I thought they'd Spoiler: character spoiler be subbing in Julie for the Miller role - and also therefore explaining a continued presence.
We are using spoiler tags. No one has given away anything that hasn't yet happened in the show without it being spoiler tagged. If you've found an un-tagged spoiler, please point it out.
Yes, I certainly think so. But you may not need to get it on iTunes... Season 1 is streaming on Netflix outside the U.S., and on Amazon Prime in the U.S.
BTW, for those of you who care about the interior layout of the main ship (Rocinante), here's a deck plan as seen in the extended preview for next weeks episode: And here it is, perspective adjusted: The top half of the ship contains crew area (8 decks) and weapons. The aft part contains engineering/cargo/propulsion. And, yes, all ships in the expanse universe are more "vertical" than "horizontal". Thrust is the only artificial gravity available to ships. Think of them as tall buildings in space.
With the discussion about the depreasuring the Roci when going into the battle I thought perhaps it was let compartmentalized than a ship like the Donniger but obviously not.