The Expanse Season 3

Discussion in 'Science Fiction & Fantasy' started by B.J., Apr 11, 2018.

  1. PlainSimpleJoel

    PlainSimpleJoel Fleet Admiral Premium Member

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    Not gonna say as I think I she will do. I think I know who she is.
    I do wonder with the rest of the season what they will do with Chrisjen and Bobbie, as they weren't in book 3 much.

    And found this on twitter also - Steven Strait visits
     
    Last edited: May 24, 2018
  2. Christopher

    Christopher Writer Admiral

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    I saw that Orphan Black's Ari Millen was in the guest credits, but I didn't recognize him in the episode. Who did he play?

    Meanwhile, the reporter on the Roci is Anna Hopkins, who was Oliver Queen's baby mama on Arrow (and The Flash, where she was actually introduced during a crossover). I have to say, I find her character rather a sexist cliche, the sexy reporter trying to seduce her subjects to get her story.

    It continues to be really weird how this show is paced, with what should be season finales and premieres coming midseason. But I'm glad they've jumped past all that war stuff and gotten into a new story which is more exploration-focused. Good to see David Strathairn too, but it's going to take some time to get used to his idiosyncratic version of the Belter accent.

    Speaking of said accent, it's interesting to see Naomi code-switching, using her Belter dialect among her own people and a more Earthlike diction among non-Belters. But if she can do that, why is her accent Cockney in the latter case? For that matter, even her Belter accent has a Cockney tinge to it.

    By the way, I just looked up Dominique Tipper's Wikipedia article, and it turns out she's always had that pseudo-Mohawk hairstyle, since at least 2012. I was wondering if she was actually shaven-headed and wearing a wig in character as a Belter fashion. I think Larry Niven's Belters had Mohawks.
     
  3. uniderth

    uniderth Commodore Commodore

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    Well, don't expect to get an anatomy lesson.
     
  4. Mr Awe

    Mr Awe Vice Admiral Admiral

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    That was an OK episode. Part of the slow down is natural with such a change of trajectory from the previous story. We get a new setup for the upcoming story lines. That said, it was still disappointing seeing the crew of the Roci sidelined. Just there to be interviewed. That's just a gimmick for having them in the story at all. Hopefully, the setup for the upcoming story lines pays off.

    The Belters are trying to unify with a legitimate, civilized government. Earth and Mars are investigating the ring. Mystery woman doing mysterious things on the ship. (I don't think she's a Martian BTW, but I think she's working in conjunction with the male reporter on the Roci who is also appears to be doing something mysterious on the Roci.)

    Lots of potential, but I miss having the Roci crew plus Bobby and Prax around.
     
  5. Forbin

    Forbin Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Well, that episode certainly switched things up!

    That crazy guy's ship - I hope there was more to it than a cockpit. I mean, MONTHS sitting in that pilot's seat?? Yeesh!
     
  6. Forbin

    Forbin Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    I believe that lady reporter was also "Berlin" on Defiance.
     
  7. Mr. Adventure

    Mr. Adventure Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Thanks, stranger, I'll keep it in mind.
     
  8. Marc

    Marc Fleet Admiral Premium Member

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    yep - Anna Hopkins who was in S5 of Arrow as well.
     
  9. Reverend

    Reverend Admiral Admiral

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    I assume Miller's appearance has something to do with the proto-molecule residue they missed. I'm just curious why it's been inert all this time while every other contamination we know of has been anything but subtle. For a second there I thought maybe that's what the blind cameraman was picking up one when he started wandering around, but I'm not 100% certain.
     
  10. eschaton

    eschaton Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Haven't seen the new episode yet (will do so tonight) but IIRC the in book explanation was...

    Basically, Miller "downloaded" into the little bit of protomolecule stowed on the ship and effectively took it over as his processing site until a better opportunity arose. Thus he is stopping it from spreading.
     
  11. Forbin

    Forbin Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    They're at least trying to convey zero-G environments, but the magnetic boots just don't sell it when the actor is still sauntering around with a normal gait.
     
  12. Reverend

    Reverend Admiral Admiral

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    I'd just put that down to practice honestly. Especially with the Belters as for them it's not so much second nature as first nature. Most probably barely even think about it.
    As for the rest, I think it's just one of those practical things with filming episodic television that's just way too complicated to try and pull off consistently at all times. So long as the plot is aware of zero-g and never overtly cheats, i think we're good.
     
  13. FreezeC77

    FreezeC77 Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Maybe it is just me, but after being away from Belter stuff so long I had issues understanding completely what was being said with the accents and slang.
     
  14. Christopher

    Christopher Writer Admiral

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    Except that people born and raised in space would see no reason to clomp around stuck to the deck like they were on a planet. It's an incredibly inefficient and limiting way to move in microgravity, tantamount to trying to swim by strapping weights to your ankles and walking along the bottom of the pool. Belters would probably embrace the freedom to move in 3 dimensions rather than relying on magnetic boots, as a matter of spacer's pride. At least, they would if it were logistically feasible for the show to film them doing so.
     
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  15. Mr Awe

    Mr Awe Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Agreed. It's just a practical reality of filming in Earth's gravity. Shocking I know. If we demand that series faithfully reproduce zero G on a reasonable budget, we're going to be disappointed. I've seen these demands/criticisms around and they're a bit amusing to say the least. It's a TV show with a TV budget!

    I'm just thankful we have a smart SF show!

    It did throw me for a loop too. It had been awhile since we've had to grapple with that accent!
     
  16. Mr. Adventure

    Mr. Adventure Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    I watch shows like this with the captions on that helps differentiate from slang you don't know from a word you didn't hear correctly.
     
  17. The Wormhole

    The Wormhole Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    So I remember back in the first season's discussion thread, I made a vague allusion to how Miller's role would change over the course of the series, and nearly everyone shit bricks because I gave too much away in their opinion. So the point I was talking about has finally come in this very episode, and what do you know the show itself gave away the plot twist by including Thomas Jane in the episode's opening credits. Amusing.

    Not bad set up for everything. Something that's been getting to me, they really skimmed when it comes to UNN ship interiors. Pastor Anna apparently is allowed to go to the bridge and mingle with the crew. Indeed, the bridge even has its own drinks cabinet. Also, while Anna is watching the message from her wife, she does it in the middle of a corridor, which you think she'd want to go to her quarters for something that private. In fact, we had a similar problem a few weeks back, Admiral Souther watched the message of Ehrenwright admitting to starting the war in the middle of a corridor, definitely far too public a locale for something so inflammatory. Is there reason a VIP stateroom set wasn't built and people are instead watching private messages or sensitive material in the corridors?

    I can't help but notice, when we see Bobbie she now has a rank insignia of three chevrons, which is of course correct for a sergeant. Problem is, in all previous episodes, we've seen the Martian officer ranks are also represented with chevrons, and with three chevrons representing a naval Captain, something I also pointed out in the season 1 discussion thread. If three chevrons represents both a Captain and a Sergeant, how exactly do Martians know how to determine rank insignia?

    And yeah, pseudo-Scottish accented Belter XO is already rubbing me the wrong way.

    And finally, when did Amos become so popular a choice for people to want to have sex with?
     
  18. Mr Awe

    Mr Awe Vice Admiral Admiral

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    To be fair, it's an entirely different matter of being spoiled years in advance versus less than an hour in advance. Back then, non-book readers didn't even know he'd be leaving much less coming back. At this point, we knew he was gone. The open credits let us know only that he'd back in some capacity (e.g., flashback) for this specific episode. That's much smaller in scope.

    Being a celebrity, or at least infamous, has that effect!
     
  19. eschaton

    eschaton Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    I still haven't seen last night's episode (will see it tonight) but given how much Tomas Jane owned the role (and how he felt so much more like the lead in Season 1 than Steven Strait), I'm going to...

    be sad if his role ends halfway into Season 5, which is about what you'd expect from how the series has rolled when compared to the books.
     
  20. Reverend

    Reverend Admiral Admiral

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    Yeah, except when the ship suddenly changes speed or direction and slams them into a wall, floor and/or other people. Magboots seem like basic equipment that everyone learns to use at a very young age.