The Expanse is the most politically relevant sci-fi show on TV

Divided we fall
Tonight, The Expanse returns to the Syfy channel for its second season. Adapted from the novels by James S.A. Corey, it’s about our Solar System on the brink of a future war. This year, The Expanse not only kicks off with a bang, it’s quickly cemented itself as the most important science fiction show airing on television right now. We’ve seen the first four episodes, and they’re amazing.

In case you missed it, The Expanse is set two centuries from now. Earth is a political, overpopulated powerhouse, while Mars is a technological and military power working to terraform itself. Meanwhile, out on the fringes of the system are the Belters and Outer Planets Alliance, whose people are struggling to survive amid abject poverty and oppression from their more powerful neighbors.

In the first season, the destruction of an ice hauler called The Canterbury sets off riots and tension between the three factions after a survivor, James Holden, blames the massacre on the Martian military. On Ceres Station, a washed-up detective named Miller is sent to search for a woman named Julie Mao, who might have been involved in the destruction of the Cant. The plotlines come to a head when Holden and Miller meet on Eros station, and discover that the entire war has been orchestrated to cover up an even more terrible event.

A DIVIDED SYSTEM
Season 2 picks up immediately after the end of season 1, immediately introducing a new central character: a Martian Marine named Bobbie Draper. As we learned at New York Comic Con last fall, Bobbie’s presence in the show helps bring Mars to the table. While the planet was ever-present in the background in season 1, the show is now bringing in the Martian point of view as well. Mars’ existence is dependent upon resources stripped out of the asteroid belt, much to the chagrin of the Belters and OPA. The planet is a rising power, and Bobbie and her fellow soldiers are cocky and spoiling for a fight. As tensions build, it looks like they’ll get one.


One of the most important things about season 1 was its take on the racial makeup of the Solar System. We’ve seen deeply political television shows before, like Babylon 5 and Battlestar Galactica, but The Expanse quickly proved its worth by making politics a central point in the story: humans might leave Earth behind, but we’re taking our divisions and problems with us.

EARTH AND MARS HAVE BEEN STEPPING ON THE BELT FOR DECADES
Earth and Mars have the ability to draw on their own resources: their citizens don’t have to worry about where their next breath of air comes from, or about water or food. The Belt and its citizens have to scramble for survival, so their wealthier neighbors take advantage of them. This is happening right now all around the world, and that’s what makes The Expanse so intriguing. It’s not overly preachy about wealth disparity and financial exploitation, but some of its emotional story moments stand out: a group of Belter tenants forced out of their home coughing because their landlord wasn’t changing their air filters, or desperate Belters siphoning water out of Ceres’ system.

The idea of racial profiling isn’t as present in the books as it is in the show, but it’s also a part of the story, thanks to the physiological differences between different groups: the Belters are tall and skinny after living in space for generations, which makes it easier for Earthers or Martians to identify and dismiss them. With these three opposed sub-civilizations laid out, the Solar System has become a powder keg.


DIVIDED WE FALL
In the lead-up to season 2, Syfy has been posing a question in its marketing campaign: “Whose side are you on?” It’s a troubling question for the characters, because of the stakes: a war between Earth and Mars could be devastating, but it pales in comparison to what was released on Eros Station during the finale of season 1: the protomolecule, an alien organism that essentially turned the Belters on the station into zombies. We learned (and followers of the book series know what’s coming), that a major corporation is behind the protomolecule, and that it has radical plans to remake humanity to survive in space. Humans are playing with fire, because there are bigger things at stake with the protomolecule, and it can absolutely threaten all humanity if put in the wrong hands.

HUMANITY IS ILL-EQUIPPED TO DEAL WITH THE VAST DARKNESS OF SPACE
The Expanse book series has been playing out the idea that humans are tremendously ill-equipped to deal with the vast darkness of space, and that the divisions we always seem to create around ourselves are going to be a serious problem. Political divisions have divided the Solar System into discrete parts, all fighting with each other, while there’s a bigger threat lurking out there.

There are plenty of political parallels to draw here, whether it’s the election of a vastly unpopular president or more global threats like climate change, economic disparities, or radical terrorist movements. The message is always the same: divided we fall, but if we work together, we can overcome the greatest problems that face humanity. This is the same in 2017 as it is in the fictional 2260s. Watching the series and the first four episodes of season 2 has been an interesting experience as Washington, DC has been upended.

FULL STEAM AHEAD
These issues are front and center in the start to this season. Holden, Miller, the crew of the Rocinante and their allies know there’s something orchestrating the impending war, and they’re getting ready to take action to stop it from happening. The first four episodes help wrap up the remaining events of the first novel in the series, Leviathan Wakes, while helping set up the political tensions in the second, Caliban’s War.

SEASON 2 DOESN’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT EXPLAINING ITS WORLD
The second season has a huge advantage over the first: it doesn’t have to wade into the world-building quite so much. Season 1 was excellent, but viewers who haven’t read the books might find it a bit dense. The production does a good job of packing it in, but it’s one of those shows that’s worth watching more than once. (Fortunately, you can binge the entire season on Netflix if you’re outside the US, or stream it on Amazon Prime.)

Season 2 feels as though it’s off to a bigger start. The action isn’t as constrained to one handful of characters trying to make their way through the immediate problems. There’s more focus on how they take action now that they sort of know what’s going on. If The Expanse holds to the books, the rest of season 2 is going to go off the hook, getting bigger and better. If you haven’t started watching yet, get on that, because you’re missing out on one incredible story.