Grey's in Space

04 Aug 2009 22 Comments

by Nikkiin tv Tags:

Why yes, I did start watching Defying Gravity simply because it was pitched as Grey’s Anatomy in space.  What can I say?  I like ridiculous soap opera plots and I like space.  Grey’s simply has too much of the medical drama bullshit I don’t enjoy; there’s a reason why the only medical drama I watch is House.  I mean, c’mon, the original concept of that show was to be a more CSI styled medical drama.  I like crime procedurals.  I like them a lot.

And, yes, Defying Gravity is most certainly lives up to its pitch.  In the first two episodes we’ve got sex in zero g, sex normal g and sex with oneself.  (Assuming that Steve found the porn.  Whether or not it was zero g remains to be seen.)  Hilarious shit, really.

For the soap opera drama angle, we’ve got Zoe, Zoe and more of Zoe.  “Oh noes!  I’m preggers cuz I believed a guy who said that he had a vasectomy!”  Of course, she desperately wants to get into space so she has an (illegal) abortion and is now wandering around the ship hearing a baby crying.  Problems with the last sentence?  I find it very, very hard to believe that abortion will be illegal in 2052 what with the population crisis we’ve got now and the fact that, for the most part, people seem to get more liberal as time goes on, not less.  To clarify, I’m not saying that each individual person gets more liberal (probably the opposite, to tell you the truth),  I’m saying that people in general between each generation.  The second problem?  Is a woman who freaked out over failing her psych eval really going to wander around the ship going ‘does anybody hear that?’ whenever she hears a baby crying?  C’mon, she’s got to be a smart woman – she’s on the bloody space ship after all – surely she knows that it’s all in head.

Good thing that Zoe herself doesn’t bother me.  I can put up with her angst, unlike Meredith on Grey’s who is just an annoying attention whore.

The only other characters that really interest me are the theoretical physicist (for obvious reasons – liking the theoretical physicist characters never steered me wrong in Stargate, for example), Steve the-guy-trying-to-hack-into-the-alleged-porn, Ajay, the Hindu dude who goes crazy and decides to paint his face and attempt suicide-via-space-walk, and the antagonist whom Donner sucker punches.  Also known as the only three characters even slightly fleshed out in the first two episodes.  Well, except for Mr. Sucker Punched – he just amuses me because he is such the cliche evil boss who knows more than you type.

Well, Donner was fleshed out too.  But, despite his angsty past (“oh noes!  I left my girlfriend to die on Mars!”), he’s pretty boring.  Probably because he stands around with no facial expression and then randomly beats the shit out of people.  And not in the awesome way Teal’c does so.

Ah well, enough about the characters.  Time for plot!

Plot One:  Have lots of sex in space.
Plot Two:  Visit a bunch of planets in six years.
Plot Three:  Beta.

Yes, yet another science fiction (or, hell, science fact) show that uses the Greek alphabet for its Mysterious Object.  I’d ask if they’d ever use a different alphabet, but I think real life science is to blame for this cliche.  From the perspective of a chemistry undergrad, everything uses the Greek alphabet in science.  Oh, how I loathe alpha and beta.  Why why why must you look so much like a and b and, yet, are often used with the variables a and b?!  Gamma is bad too, what with it looking like a y.

Anyway.  Beta.

So the premise of Beta is that it’s a mysterious object/entity that is, well, controlling the entire mission.  It is the one that chose who would go and who would be left behind.  The people on the Antares are (currently and except for one) unaware of its existence and the people on earth don’t understand it.  Sounds like a right fine combination to me what with it having the ability to make people sick (and reverse vasectomies, maybe?) and all.  I’m not sure what it is yet, but I’m leaning towards some sort of alien intelligence what with it ‘coming to them’ and choosing people for unknown reasons for the mission.  Whatever it is, it apparently inhabits pod 4.  Additionally, I think it may have some sorta communication with the HALOS, a libido suppressor that doesn’t seem to work, or the medipatches.  But that’s purely speculation from a writer’s standpoint.

Not much else to say about it other than the fact that it throws Defying Gravity straight into the science fiction category.  Yes, yes I know, I know that the show is already SF what with it being a little over 40 years in the future (christ – I’ll be nearly dead then) but, for whatever reason, I don’t see travelling about our solar system as SF.  Yes, even though I don’t believe that we’ll be travelling around our solar system in 2052.  What can I say?  I watch a lot of Trek and Stargate.

But, really, my problem with Beta is that the show would be perfectly interesting without it and you could probably then convince some non-sci-fi fans to watch the show.  Which, in all honesty, is what the show needs.  Science fiction skews male and Grey’s skews female.  The show is playing to a very small demograph – female SF fans.

To sum it up, I’ve rather enjoyed the first two episodes, but I doubt that the show will last.  I guess I’ll just enjoy it while I can!

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  • http://www.to-action.com monoclelad

    Beta was the only part of the show that really annoys me, because it's magical. It is God in this show. I also don't like it because its the driving force behind the overarching mystery of the plot. I am really burned out on these overly dramatic hidden mysteries. Its something every network does now because 'LOST' did it and it worked for 'LOST'. Except that it DIDN'T work for 'LOST' long term, because because people stop caring about the mystery long before you can narratively reveal the mystery, and the mystery is never interesting enough given the build up. It literally can't be interesting enough no matter what the answer is. They better reveal Beta's purpose early on even if its not to the crew cause otherwise I can't invest in the mystery. It doesn't matter what Beta does because the only interesting question is “why?” which is a question which you are purposefully not given enough to peice it together.

    He did find the porn btw. I mean the key was only 512k *rolls eyes* he just had to punch a touch screen enough before he was on his way to punching his own touch screen if ya know what I mean ;). as to why he didn't have the password to a hidden vault that was purposefully left for him? Well Beta works in mysterious ways.

    I liked the veteran science guy honestly. Though I can't seperate if I like him because his character on the show, or because I am treating this like a sequel to Office Space, but with more space and less office. He's essentially the same character really.

    Also re: the baby, isn't mars guy the father (well bio father, we all know Beta was the real daddy)? if not then she has a really strange and very specific taste in men. I'd have to watch it again cause it was hard to follow the timeline the way they spliced back and forth.

  • http://anovelconcept.net aethre

    I'm hoping that they reveal its mysteries soon too. At the very least, they are telling the crew something about it in ~45 show days. A deadline is (hopefully) a good sign… unless the show also is imitating Grey's by having one week be a season (practically). But, yeah, mystery objects never work well in TV – they get so blown out of proportion by fan theories that the real thing just… sucks. If I ever have a mysterious object/entity, smack me until I tell you exactly what it does.

    The question wasn't whether or not he hacked the encryption… its whether or not he was just being an ass cuz he was on camera. But, yeah, there's got to be porn on that ship anyway. And the lack of a password for it makes me question the existence of his porn stash. Either that or he has geeky/annoying friends.

    I like Donner's backstory and I like who he could be… but I just don't like him in this show. He… just doesn't interest me. And, yes, he's the kid's father. I just couldn't fit it into that paragraph without it getting overly long, obnoxious and full of unnecessary backstory.

  • http://www.to-action.com monoclelad

    I really need to watch the dual-episode premiere again I guess. The scene about Donner's vascectime is one of the ones I need to pay attention to more closely. I don't recall which state he had believed his parts to be in and what state the doctor informed him they were.

    Of course I'm operating the conclusion that Beta is a God of some sort, and that will be the subject of a blog I will write when I get home. I can make a pretty good case of it DG being an allegory for Judeo-Christian religion. :3 Its a more interesting way to interpret the story anyways.

  • http://anovelconcept.net aethre

    He believes that he had a vasectomy after the Mars mission, and it's on file that he did, but for whatever reason his bits are still functioning reproductively.

    Technically any mysterious alien artifact/entity is a god in that they are beyond our ken. Really, all a god is is something that we cannot understand/is ineffable.

    Actually, on the note of Christianity, are any of the characters said to be Christian? I suppose it might be implied with the crazy camera lady that she is what with her disapproval of Jen's natural selection experiment, but abortion is also illegal so it may not be just a Christian thing.

  • http://www.to-action.com monoclelad

    I don't think its been said explicitly, however I wouldn't be suprised if Jen was christian. Also I belive Donner has some sort of religious beliefs but thats only implied.

    Honestly though, I am probably interpreting christian overtones where there are just generic religious overtones. But I live in america so assuming that they are using it as a construct to talk about christianity isn't that implausible. Also God is the bad guy, so I guess thats the shows statement. I am also fully willing to admit that I would put this meaning into the show even if it wasn't there. Because based on the values of its Sci-fi, I think its a pretty shitty show. But if I base it on the idea that its about exploring religion then its something I'm actively interested in watching more of.

    Also when I am using words like God and Magic I am meaning them in a much more strict definition then how you are interpreting them. they are not things that are just science that we don't understand yet. These are things that defy scientific explanations, because science does not apply to these things.

  • http://anovelconcept.net aethre

    I'm referring to anything in sci-fi/fantasy that can't be explained by science. There's a surprisingly large number of them that aren't referred to as god.

    Also, you expected too much of this show going in, XD I expected exactly what I got – sex in space.

  • http://www.to-action.com monoclelad

    I expected a show that clearly had an ample budget to be a competently written story, so yes clearly my head was in the wrong place going in.

  • http://www.monoclelad.com monoclelad

    Beta was the only part of the show that really annoys me, because it's magical. It is God in this show. I also don't like it because its the driving force behind the overarching mystery of the plot. I am really burned out on these overly dramatic hidden mysteries. Its something every network does now because 'LOST' did it and it worked for 'LOST'. Except that it DIDN'T work for 'LOST' long term, because because people stop caring about the mystery long before you can narratively reveal the mystery, and the mystery is never interesting enough given the build up. It literally can't be interesting enough no matter what the answer is. They better reveal Beta's purpose early on even if its not to the crew cause otherwise I can't invest in the mystery. It doesn't matter what Beta does because the only interesting question is “why?” which is a question which you are purposefully not given enough to peice it together.

    He did find the porn btw. I mean the key was only 512k *rolls eyes* he just had to punch a touch screen enough before he was on his way to punching his own touch screen if ya know what I mean ;). as to why he didn't have the password to a hidden vault that was purposefully left for him? Well Beta works in mysterious ways.

    I liked the veteran science guy honestly. Though I can't seperate if I like him because his character on the show, or because I am treating this like a sequel to Office Space, but with more space and less office. He's essentially the same character really.

    Also re: the baby, isn't mars guy the father (well bio father, we all know Beta was the real daddy)? if not then she has a really strange and very specific taste in men. I'd have to watch it again cause it was hard to follow the timeline the way they spliced back and forth.

  • http://www.monoclelad.com monoclelad

    Beta was the only part of the show that really annoys me, because it's magical. It is God in this show. I also don't like it because its the driving force behind the overarching mystery of the plot. I am really burned out on these overly dramatic hidden mysteries. Its something every network does now because 'LOST' did it and it worked for 'LOST'. Except that it DIDN'T work for 'LOST' long term, because because people stop caring about the mystery long before you can narratively reveal the mystery, and the mystery is never interesting enough given the build up. It literally can't be interesting enough no matter what the answer is. They better reveal Beta's purpose early on even if its not to the crew cause otherwise I can't invest in the mystery. It doesn't matter what Beta does because the only interesting question is “why?” which is a question which you are purposefully not given enough to peice it together.

    He did find the porn btw. I mean the key was only 512k *rolls eyes* he just had to punch a touch screen enough before he was on his way to punching his own touch screen if ya know what I mean ;). as to why he didn't have the password to a hidden vault that was purposefully left for him? Well Beta works in mysterious ways.

    I liked the veteran science guy honestly. Though I can't seperate if I like him because his character on the show, or because I am treating this like a sequel to Office Space, but with more space and less office. He's essentially the same character really.

    Also re: the baby, isn't mars guy the father (well bio father, we all know Beta was the real daddy)? if not then she has a really strange and very specific taste in men. I'd have to watch it again cause it was hard to follow the timeline the way they spliced back and forth.

  • http://anovelconcept.net aethre

    I'm hoping that they reveal its mysteries soon too. At the very least, they are telling the crew something about it in ~45 show days. A deadline is (hopefully) a good sign… unless the show also is imitating Grey's by having one week be a season (practically). But, yeah, mystery objects never work well in TV – they get so blown out of proportion by fan theories that the real thing just… sucks. If I ever have a mysterious object/entity, smack me until I tell you exactly what it does.

    The question wasn't whether or not he hacked the encryption… its whether or not he was just being an ass cuz he was on camera. But, yeah, there's got to be porn on that ship anyway. And the lack of a password for it makes me question the existence of his porn stash. Either that or he has geeky/annoying friends.

    I like Donner's backstory and I like who he could be… but I just don't like him in this show. He… just doesn't interest me. And, yes, he's the kid's father. I just couldn't fit it into that paragraph without it getting overly long, obnoxious and full of unnecessary backstory.

  • http://anovelconcept.net aethre

    I'm hoping that they reveal its mysteries soon too. At the very least, they are telling the crew something about it in ~45 show days. A deadline is (hopefully) a good sign… unless the show also is imitating Grey's by having one week be a season (practically). But, yeah, mystery objects never work well in TV – they get so blown out of proportion by fan theories that the real thing just… sucks. If I ever have a mysterious object/entity, smack me until I tell you exactly what it does.

    The question wasn't whether or not he hacked the encryption… its whether or not he was just being an ass cuz he was on camera. But, yeah, there's got to be porn on that ship anyway. And the lack of a password for it makes me question the existence of his porn stash. Either that or he has geeky/annoying friends.

    I like Donner's backstory and I like who he could be… but I just don't like him in this show. He… just doesn't interest me. And, yes, he's the kid's father. I just couldn't fit it into that paragraph without it getting overly long, obnoxious and full of unnecessary backstory.

  • http://www.monoclelad.com monoclelad

    I really need to watch the dual-episode premiere again I guess. The scene about Donner's vascectime is one of the ones I need to pay attention to more closely. I don't recall which state he had believed his parts to be in and what state the doctor informed him they were.

    Of course I'm operating the conclusion that Beta is a God of some sort, and that will be the subject of a blog I will write when I get home. I can make a pretty good case of it DG being an allegory for Judeo-Christian religion. :3 Its a more interesting way to interpret the story anyways.

  • http://www.monoclelad.com monoclelad

    I really need to watch the dual-episode premiere again I guess. The scene about Donner's vascectime is one of the ones I need to pay attention to more closely. I don't recall which state he had believed his parts to be in and what state the doctor informed him they were.

    Of course I'm operating the conclusion that Beta is a God of some sort, and that will be the subject of a blog I will write when I get home. I can make a pretty good case of it DG being an allegory for Judeo-Christian religion. :3 Its a more interesting way to interpret the story anyways.

  • http://anovelconcept.net aethre

    He believes that he had a vasectomy after the Mars mission, and it's on file that he did, but for whatever reason his bits are still functioning reproductively.

    Technically any mysterious alien artifact/entity is a god in that they are beyond our ken. Really, all a god is is something that we cannot understand/is ineffable.

    Actually, on the note of Christianity, are any of the characters said to be Christian? I suppose it might be implied with the crazy camera lady that she is what with her disapproval of Jen's natural selection experiment, but abortion is also illegal so it may not be just a Christian thing.

  • http://anovelconcept.net aethre

    He believes that he had a vasectomy after the Mars mission, and it's on file that he did, but for whatever reason his bits are still functioning reproductively.

    Technically any mysterious alien artifact/entity is a god in that they are beyond our ken. Really, all a god is is something that we cannot understand/is ineffable.

    Actually, on the note of Christianity, are any of the characters said to be Christian? I suppose it might be implied with the crazy camera lady that she is what with her disapproval of Jen's natural selection experiment, but abortion is also illegal so it may not be just a Christian thing.

  • http://www.monoclelad.com monoclelad

    I don't think its been said explicitly, however I wouldn't be suprised if Jen was christian. Also I belive Donner has some sort of religious beliefs but thats only implied.

    Honestly though, I am probably interpreting christian overtones where there are just generic religious overtones. But I live in america so assuming that they are using it as a construct to talk about christianity isn't that implausible. Also God is the bad guy, so I guess thats the shows statement. I am also fully willing to admit that I would put this meaning into the show even if it wasn't there. Because based on the values of its Sci-fi, I think its a pretty shitty show. But if I base it on the idea that its about exploring religion then its something I'm actively interested in watching more of.

    Also when I am using words like God and Magic I am meaning them in a much more strict definition then how you are interpreting them. they are not things that are just science that we don't understand yet. These are things that defy scientific explanations, because science does not apply to these things.

  • http://www.monoclelad.com monoclelad

    I don't think its been said explicitly, however I wouldn't be suprised if Jen was christian. Also I belive Donner has some sort of religious beliefs but thats only implied.

    Honestly though, I am probably interpreting christian overtones where there are just generic religious overtones. But I live in america so assuming that they are using it as a construct to talk about christianity isn't that implausible. Also God is the bad guy, so I guess thats the shows statement. I am also fully willing to admit that I would put this meaning into the show even if it wasn't there. Because based on the values of its Sci-fi, I think its a pretty shitty show. But if I base it on the idea that its about exploring religion then its something I'm actively interested in watching more of.

    Also when I am using words like God and Magic I am meaning them in a much more strict definition then how you are interpreting them. they are not things that are just science that we don't understand yet. These are things that defy scientific explanations, because science does not apply to these things.

  • http://anovelconcept.net aethre

    I'm referring to anything in sci-fi/fantasy that can't be explained by science. There's a surprisingly large number of them that aren't referred to as god.

    Also, you expected too much of this show going in, XD I expected exactly what I got – sex in space.

  • http://anovelconcept.net aethre

    I'm referring to anything in sci-fi/fantasy that can't be explained by science. There's a surprisingly large number of them that aren't referred to as god.

    Also, you expected too much of this show going in, XD I expected exactly what I got – sex in space.

  • http://www.monoclelad.com monoclelad

    I expected a show that clearly had an ample budget to be a competently written story, so yes clearly my head was in the wrong place going in.

  • http://www.monoclelad.com monoclelad

    I expected a show that clearly had an ample budget to be a competently written story, so yes clearly my head was in the wrong place going in.

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