After seeing what Ascension had to offer it is definitely a mini-series you are going to want to watch. The ending alone is absolutely jaw dropping, you will not see it coming, I know I didn't.
Premiering December 15th at 9pm, It is 1963, and the U.S. government has launched a covert space mission sending hundreds of men, women and children on a century-long voyage aboard the starship Ascension to populate a new world. 50 years into the voyage a murder takes place, the first ever to be committed. It is a girl called Lorelei Wright who was the victim. You don't know who did it or more importantly why.
Aside from the crew mentioned so far, there is a ton of people you will meet. A Young girl called Christa Vallis (Ellie O'brien) who is one of the more interesting characters. She is in her teenage years, and feels she is an outsider which is only worsened by the sense of isolation. During the first episodes you will see that she is very different from the rest of the characters. She believes there are other people on the ship (other than the crew), and at one point even see's something that may or may not be there. It really kept me hooked.
The cast is huge, and there is way to many to talk about here. Some other highlights from the cast includes Al Sapienza, Gil Bellows and Tiffany Lonsdale who all make very brief appearances during the first two episodes. Gil Bellows's character looks set to play a huge part in the series, which I can't talk about since it will ruin the whole episode more importantly the ending, but he is definitely a character that will interest you.
The first two episodes were really intriguing, and had me hooked. At times it did get a little boring, with its slow pacing, but once it picked up it was magnificent. The show is very cleverly written; in the first two episodes you will see how everything that gets uncovered all fits together and everything that is happening is all connected to Lorelei. Many characters are not trustworthy, and only show this during the first episodes by their erractic behaviour, and nervous nature. The episode wasn't heavily action packed, in fact it was a little slow on action, the first episodes mainly were spent introducing the crew, and the story.
As the episode progresses you will see many big reveals, and a list of potential killers, but you will see one person in particular who stands out from the rest. This leads Oren into a compromising situation. The ending of the show is one of the most shocking ones I have seen from any pilot. When I say you won't see it coming, it is an understatement you will be in for a shock by the time the ending comes around, and you are going to want to watch episode 3. It will put the entire first episodes into a new perspective, and only then you will understand what the purpose of the mission is.
Summary
It was a good start to the show. The episodes were well acted, and provided us with some decent dialogue. The show did feel though like more of a drama series than a thriller that centres around space. I did expect a little more action. If the show drags out the whole murder story for too long, then it would have been a wasted opportunity for the show. Everything about the show looked believable, and provided a good starting point to the series. It introduced the characters, it introduced the plot and I have to appreciate that it dived straight into the mystery. The music throughout the episodes fitted perfectly into what was happening at the time, especially the song leading us into the first episode "Rocket Man". It was very appropriate. There are a lot of 1960's, and earlier references which really added the extra effect that the show was set in 1963. Overall, It is probably the best series to be set in space that we are going to get for a while. 7.5/10
As always, thank you for reading! Be sure to watch on December 15th!
