Beacon 23

Annoys me when people give low ratings for no reason, or after just 1 episode!

Anyway, this is a decent sci fi, good claustrophobic in space vibes, and Lena Hadley is brilliant as always. If you liked the Expanse and generally like sci fi, give it a watch.

I wonder sometimes when there's low reviews if it's targeted to try and tank a show, which is pretty lame isn't it. I hope that doesn't happen to this show, the characters are likeable, I'm intrigued as to what's going to happen, the effects are good and the world they've created has been well thought out.

I hope this review has encouraged you to give this show a watch.

Never witnessed such horrible pacing. Visceral anger rages in me because on one hand the story appears intriguing, but the nonsense just stupefies me. Plot holes the size of Texas, sheer incontinuity, half of what one sees leads literally nowhere. Good acting, great production values, great aesthetics, slightly above brain dead scripting. What a combination. I want to like it I really do. At this point I am no longer convinced there is any story at all, just spectacle, psuedo-depth, and great cgi. Heres a thought script writers: try thinking just one thought coherently from beginning to end, just one. Bombarding the audience with a litany of half-thought thoughts is akin to mental torture, do you really have such disdain for your own ideas? Or rather the audience?

In the 23rd century, humanity has colonized the galaxy. Beacons are space lighthouses warning the presence of dangerous dark matter. Beacon 23 is malfunctioning and a passing spaceship is destroyed. Aster Calyx (Lena Headey) is the sole surivor and Harmony (Natasha Mumba) is her personal AI. She finds a lone lighthouse keeper, but he's actually military soldier Halan (Stephan James) with lots of issues. Nobody is who they claim to be.

It's a lighthouse in space. That's the concept. It has the spooky atmosphere of an old horror with a lot of techno babble. The characters get a bit too mysterious and too complicated. The show keeps piling on layers upon layers. It's a big problem when the show loses its biggest name going into the second season. Lena Headey can put an entire show on her shoulders. Without her, the seams start to fall apart. All the convoluted history and politics become too much to overcome. The show ends after two seasons.

I don't get the bad reviews. This show has a great story that unfolds a bit more every episode. The acting is very well done and the two leads are excellent. The dialogue is sometimes simplistic in that it's there to move the story, not hit you in the feels or expand your mind but it's there to give you information so that things that have or will happen make some sort of sense. Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of great dialogue, it's just used where it's needed, not to add flourishes to something that doesn't require it.

The script that everyone is dunking on manages to make you feel the vast space of the universe they're building. From the disparate types of people, languages and motivations to the thoroughly believable advanced tech.

Visually, they've done a great job. When appropriate, the CGI is well done and not overly flashy. Just solid and believable. Overall production design, sets and wardrobe are all great as well. Nothing about the show feels cheap or skimped over.

I feel like people are just mad because the writers aren't handing you scenes that show whether a person is good or bad. There's a lot of ambiguity going on but the show manages, if you give it a chance, to answer many of the questions that arise. That said, I also feel like the show has a lot more to say about a lot of things. Things like where AI is leading us and how we might interact with it. Whether some knowledge or "progress" is too expensive or dangerous. If humanity forcibly evolves itself are they still human? And of course, what's going on with the weird rocks?

They've obviously left room for more answers in a (thankfully) renewed second season and I look forward to more thought provoking, enjoyable and sometimes beautiful episodes.

If you're looking for non-stop action or nail biting suspense, this ain't it. If you're looking for good, solid, moderately hard sci-fi with some decent but infrequent action sequences and a bit of philosophy thrown in, this might just work for you.

The first season was pretty good. It followed along with the book enough that it held my attention. Just tried watching the second episode of the second season and I gave up about three quarters of the way through. I have no clue what is going on anymore. It is as if the writers are on drugs. The long plot is gone. There may be a secondary plot going on but it is not realistic and little to do with the long term plot.

The acting is ok. I could not see any problems with the CGI. Sound and background music is good. None of that matters though without a decent plot.

Watch the first season and think of it as a mini-series. Skip anything after that.