Nautilus

...clearly, because it is not just quite good, it is rather excellent!

So far a brilliant adaption to the original story from time honoured Science Fiction genius Jules Verne who, as the better SF Authors have been known to do, predicted technology (in this case submarines) well before they were a reality.

The cast is excellently chosen with the interactions and conflicts not only believable, but enthralling.

All the effects are immersive and cleverly drawn from historical realities mixed in with the fantasy derived from Vernes vision.

The story itself is character driven, with the infamous Nautilus being the biggest of these. Being drawn into the tale is fantastic fun, with the entire cast playing endearing characters from the villianous Admiral to the tormented Nemo and rest of the quirky unique crew of the Nautilus.

With Disney's latest offerings into SciFi, this comes as no surprise that an excellent Series was dropped by them. Bless AMC's cotton socks for picking it up, and I fervently hope enough people are exposed to this that they keep giving us more!

(UPDATED REVIEW: In order to reflect my change of star ratings. I still rate the first 3 episodes a solid 9/10, but it splashes down to a firm 7 until the final 30mins)

I remember this going into production the other year, and really looking forward to it, but I'm finding it hard to figure out what's the target ordinance, as it's not magical enough for kids, and a little underwhelming for adults. It looks like a Disney ride, and there's budget CGI, which dose not help the overall look. The characters are all a little predictable, as are the storylines, which is a real shame. I want to like it, but to be honest have found it a little boring. The touch paper has been lit, but I'm still waiting for the bang, which I'm hoping with come in a few episodes down the line.

I haven't read the book/s so I don't know how faithful the TV series is to it.

What drags the rating down is, among other things, that the dialogue is sometimes quite stilted and convoluted.

The personal portraits are very simple and the character development too obvious and easily guessed. They are forgiven a little by the fact that it is the Victorian era when you think that it is a little like what they were then.

It is unrealistic, yes of course it is a sic fi written 150 years ago but you can do a better job of making it all believable anyway. Above all, the technical solutions, even if they would work in theory, feel rather MacGyver, and the battle scenes (there are few of them, but they exist) sometimes feel like Indiana Jones, so very unrealistic, something that worked in the 80s but feels quite passé today . Then they are constantly in trouble, it feels kind of illogical to continue such a journey if they are constantly at risk of dying, in the end you hardly care, as you are thrown straight from one danger to another without them building up the threats enough beforehand.

The Computer Generated Imagenary is not always that good and is used far too much, a lot would have worked better without using it so much. You hardly get a sense of the sea, even though it takes place under and on the sea, this could have been done so much better, perhaps by actually filming a bit under the sea, including real creatures living in the sea, etc. That's probably the saddest thing about the whole series, what you'd hoped it would really capture, but no unfortunately they don't succeed at all here. Almost everything feels studio made and then put on Computer Generated Imagenary. It might not be like that, but that's the feeling you get.

The series rarely get really tense and you have a hard time empathizing with the characters.

What still makes it worth watching is that it is interesting to see a series that takes place in a different environment, there is an element of adventure and in between it glimmers and becomes quite good.

You also get a bit of the political aspects that existed then, even if you only get glimpses of it (and they are not completely historically correct, but you still get the idea), it is interesting to see the Indian freedom root/independence movement at that time, also some other historical perspectives even if they are often too obvious.

Worth seeing the series? Yes, it is entertaining, but hardly a masterpiece.

First things first, I don't remember much of the original, reading it in translation when I was a kid. So whatever discrepancies there are in the series with original (of which, I'm sure, there's aplenty), I can't tell. Judging the first season as "based on something", it's a very decent adventure with distinct characters and a straightforward plot and narrative. I liked the character design and portrayal, and most of the acting too. Scene and gear design is also great, IMO - the Nautilus is sleek and swift, the Dreadnought is heavy and menacing, insides of both are also accordingly delicate and utilitarian. It looks great, and complements the story greatly too.

The main downside, as I see it, is the script - not in terms of storyline but in terms of character relationship dynamics. At times, it's unbelievably cringy and stereotypical, with all the cutout mistrust and disdain for no reason, it's just too teenage and cartoonish for the otherwise realistic-looking settings. I mean, it's obviously fantastical and unreal, but it's at no point deliberately magical or superpower-like or anything. Also the ending is a bit too abrupt and haphazard.

I'm not sure there will be season 2, but season 1 is fairly finalised - with a promise of more, of course, but as an extra, not as a cliffhanger. It's a decent watch for a plain but exciting adventure.

I like it! So, I said it. And I am going to explain why I like it.

In a TV world where there is not much offered in terms of variety, it is nice to see this kind of genre coming to life. I mean, do we really need another crime/police/lawyer/doctor/fire fighting series? Is the zombie scene not fully explored? Are the Marvel, DC and Star Wars series not too much by now? Do we need another spin off of some series just because the executives think we will watch it anyway so they can make some more money with the same idea? My answer would be; NO!

Nautilus is a great adventures series and has no real connection, story wise, with the original 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea story by Jules Verne. They focus on the Nautilus and its Captain, Nemo, and his merry mix of crew and passengers. So, just relax, watch, enjoy.