Brave New World

I read the book 20+ years ago, so I didn't totally remember the plot and I can't speak to whether or not the show follows the book plot. I'm sure there's more drama and violence in this show to capture a modern audience's attention. So far it's pretty good! I think when you watch sci-fi, you have to disengage from reality a little bit, sit with the weirdness and discomfort of things different from our familiar world. This world is in the 2500s, a time we can't actually imagine any more than people 500 years ago could imagine 2020 (or covid, but I digress). Obviously people are going to complain, because everyone's a critic and people hate it when you mess with classics, but you can't please everyone. Right now some of the other available shows to watch are a reboot of Unsolved Mysteries or I don't know, Fuller House, just some real schlock. I chose well. This is good. I'm into it.

Overall I liked this show. I like how it hit on a lot of political ideals and ideologies that we're seeing today without even trying. I honestly think a lot of people do not like this show because it directly points out hypocrisies that we see everyday in society, and points directly at them and their ideologies. We tell ourselves it will never be like that, it's too far out there. Example, This book was written in 1931 and while it's still not truly real life because our scientific technology isn't there....yet. But, you can bet if it was you'd see a society a lot like this one. It's scary / crazy to think that it is a possibility in the near future and it's even crazier to think that people can't see it coming like a freight train. Either way the show was pretty great. Good acting followed by some not so good directing and producing. Meaning it still felt like a TV show at times. cutting corners on certain things like character development, or simply just trying to hard to be edgy. I do appreciate the fact that they didn't go overboard with the sex and nudity. Not that I don't like those things but at a certain point I just want to watch a good show, not soft core. Hope they make a season 2!

You'll notice a lot of the negative reviews come from people who didn't make it past the pilot episode. The pilot isn't reflective of the series as a whole and if you find your way to the end of the next episode, you'll be hooked. Having read the book, don't expect a like for like adaption but the series is still rewarding with some great acting talent, intriguing characters/plot and some lovely visuals. Well worth a watch.

Good production, good acting, great conceptual themes. Pacing is excellent. Sound tracking is excellent. Very binge-able. It's set in the brave new world setting, but its it's own story. Don't expect a re-make of the book.

The dialogue, the acting, the camera work, the visual effects, the soundtrack, the sets and costumes, the seamless editing. As a film student, I'm blown away. One of the most engaging series I've ever seen. I was absolutely shocked when I saw the negative reviews. Did we watch the same show? Then I realized: unlike me, these people have read the book. They expected the series to follow the book, and got upset when they realized it didn't. I, on the other hand, had no expectations, I just knew it was gonna be a sci-fi story. And I enjoyed every minute of it. It makes me really sad to see people ruin its rating with 1-star reviews because they can't accept adaptations doing their own thing.