UNCUT - The Expanse Season 5 Episode 8

Yeah even for me, this episode is stretched out way too much. I never read the books, but I understood almost immediately she was trying to warn Holden and/or Alex not to approach, and there's just a lot of repetitive scenes devoted to getting there. Any of the other stories could have used more time in exchange for less of Naomi tinkering on the ship.

Next up from the Bridge Crew...6 more seasons of Buffy, LOL

I read the book version before season 5 was out and thought the show did a good job of visualizing Naomi's situation and the way she deals with it. But at the same time, I _knew_ what she was trying to do because in the book you get the her inner monologue. It was one of the most tense, thrilling parts of that book. So your reaction of that makes me think that something may have been lost in the adaptation.

I admit I have a hard time with this episode. Being trapped on an exploding ship is terrifying on paper, but so much of this episode is Naomi going “UNNNNGGGGHH” that it kills the drama. I get upset when the “stretch the season to 10 episodes” ethos infects my favorite shows.

I guess there isn't much to say beyond how curious I find it to see the show through a lens so extremely divergent to my own. No tension, no meat on the bones eh...? It's fascinating how people can watch the same thing and reach polar opposite conclusions. Also saying that, I do agree that Star Trek on the Rocinante would have been a compelling angle to go down too. I'd have loved that. What we get instead in S4 is a high-concept sci-fi setting with limited character drama, and S5 is high-scope politics and Quazi submarine combat. And we know how much you liked Starship Down lol. I love Marco as a villain, and actor, which again speaks to perspective. If you hate him in both ways, yeah. Hard to look beyond his "protomolecule infection" of the story. On the parallel to the Dominion in DS9, I think it "gets away" with it because it has the blessing of being episodic, it can largely focus on character stories. I wonder what The Expanse could have been had it been an episodic / serialized mix, more like X-files or DS9. Certainly, interesting to ponder on. These Expanse reactions are barely about the show now and more about understanding you guys better, and that you're so damned sincere you'll never fake liking something that wasn't made for you. Mentioned it before but that's incredibly rare for reaction channels, so hang in there, and hopefully the Bridge Crew selects a show that will appeal to you.