Constellation

Don't let the sci-fi elements mislead you. This show is a very dry mom-child drama, stretched to absurdity, with a few sci-fi teases here and there in the background to lure in gullible viewers like me and you.

The most interesting thing about it - the phenomenon - was not explored at all. The most interesting characters that showed at least some desire to deal with it - pushed to second class citizen status in favor for the obnoxious child and mom doing the you're-not-my-mommy BS.

0 entertainment value.

Fringe did this concept better and delivered far more entertainment than this catastrophe. Hell, even that episode in Star Trek: Discovery, where they go to the fascist reality was far more enjoyable than this.

And why is it named Constellation? Even the title is bad and misleading.

I have been waiting for a sci-fi this well-written and thought-provoking. I feel like anyone who is confused simply isn't into sci-fi (or quantum physics, for that matter). It reminds me of Fringe in a lot of ways, Jacob's Ladder, in others. The only thing that disappoints me is the lack of marketing/buzz surrounding this amazing series. I had never heard of it when I just saw it while randomly searching in the sci-fi category on Apple TV+. I really hope we'll get a second season, because this is exactly what I've needed. Amazing acting, writing, direction, etc. 10/10 Highly recommended if you love multiverse or many worlds theories. Just fantastic.

And the reason is the last episode, the season finale. At least I believe it is the main reason, although I suspect quite a few people could not get past episodes 3/4. Which is a shame, as the series pick up from then onwards until espisode 7, which for me was the best, along with the intriguing opening episode.

So what is the issue with the season finale? I have written an extensive review of that episode, but to quickly sum I up (and also to have no spoilers, as there are quite a few in that one): it feels cheap. Like a low budget sci fi/horror mix, one that would go straight to TV. We have this great premise, this solid cast with some brilliant actors in it (I am a big fan of Rapace by the way, she is so underrated), some solid development...and you choose to go with characters doing the most illogical things and creating even further mess, along with stuff just...happening, to advance the plot, with no real explanation.

It is obvious this was destined for at least one more, if not numerous future seasons, but considering the ratings here, and no official confirmation from Apple, even though this TV series were close to the top of the rankings for some time, I am beginning to doubt those future seasons would happen. And I would hate that, as there is still hope for this, to turn out great. But it could have worked just as well, if not better, as limited TV series,8, 10, or even 12 episodes. Instead the creator decided to make the season finale a mindless filler not answering any questions, and creating new ones, including with the final scene, again completely unexplained and looking like it's there to be a final beg for renewal.

I wasn't entirely sure where the show was headed when early reviewers and synopsis described it as a show about an astronaut who returns to Earth to find it different. Through subtle and not so subtle scenes, the story builds its plot device on "quantum physics for dummies" to weave a story where two events can happen or not happen, and happen AND not happen at the same time. Understandably, this can be confusing to follow, and a good review and a bad one can coexist and both could be right.

As with most interesting mysteries, there are secrets being kept that will be revealed. The show incorporates sci-fi horror elements, such as darkness, screams, imagery of the dead, and the terror of the unknown. The main premise seems that those who went out to space and back no longer experience reality as a certainty, in the quantum physical sense.

The acting is fine though a bit uneven, but in retrospect, this could be due to the way the story develops nonlinearly at certain points. But the suspense does start to build up by the third episode, and there is enough there to make me speculate on what's going on. Some may need to suspend a little disbelief early on, on how the entire ISS can be rendered so useless by one impact, as if the minds of multiple space agencies haven't planned for myriad contingencies, module and system isolation and redundancy, etc. But it's realistic enough to get the story going.

This appears to be a decent sci-fi horror suspense thriller in the making, and maintains Apple TV's standard for production quality. I do hope there is more to this than Hollywood's literal take on Einstein's "spooky action at a distance".

Watchable actors and a plot that was engaging if a bit soapy in places, but left wanting for lack of a little exposition and terribly uneven pacing. There are plot holes in abundance, mostly masked by the fundamental premise so not fatal to enjoying the show. The mystery builds with hints at a scientistic multiverse explanation, though character viewpoint identification wasn't always clear and the shifts and flashbacks often confusing. But we got trapped in getting the same level of hints over and over again without any development of the idea or progress in the characters' realisations. Just as it looked like it was going to go deeper and get somewhere -the place I'd expect to be by epsiode 3 or 4 -the season ended. I only realised this when the next episode didn't show up and that was it. No resolution, not a satisfying watch.