#3: It's not a genre show
I can't say that I expected much going into Defying Gravity. Sure, it looked like an okay show, but there wasn't anything that really drew me in. It was being marketed purely as a Grey's Anatomy in space, which I sooned learned was off by a long shot.
Sure, there are elements of romance and drama throughout the show. In the flashbacks, the characters struggle with complex romantic relationships, worry about their self-image, and contemplate deep moral decisions that will come to affect them for the rest of their life -- especially their life on the Antares.
But there's something else about Defying Gravity that's kept me coming back for more. There's a deep element of mystery to it that you can't find on Grey's Anatomy. There's a Lost-ian feel that it's no coincidence that the eight crew members are on the ship, even though two are last-minute replacements.
There are also the hallucinations. Like Jack saw Christian in the jungle on Lost, something is tantalizing the crew with hallucinations. Donner sees the astronauts he was forced to leave behind on Mars, Paula is shown visions of her dead dog, Evram sees visions of his time in the war, and Zoey continually hears a crying baby on the ship. Zoey and Donner even have corresponding dreams of a strange event that ends disasterously. Though they've been convinced that the hallucinations are just the result of faulty medical patches, their commanders on the ground know that this isn't the case.
And entity known as Beta is on board the ship with the crew members, hidden away in a storage pod. Beta apparently chose the crew, and is manipulating them at will, showing them hallucinations and visions. What is Beta, and what does it want? We don't know. Our characters haven't actually seen Beta, only the visions it presents to them, and only one of them even knows that it exists, and is hiding away in Pod #4 on the ship, manipulating the crew the ship for its own purposes...whatever those are.
NEXT: A call to action
Excellent review! SOMEBODY gets it! Thanks for elevating the conversation past the snide comments some pro journalists seem to indulge just to appear cool. I agree, DG is super and deserves a better fate than it's getting. Hope Canada has more sense and there can be a 2nd season for DVD!
Excellent review! SOMEBODY gets it! Thanks for elevating the conversation past the snide comments some pro journalists seem to indulge just to appear cool. I agree, DG is super and deserves a better fate than it’s getting. Hope Canada has more sense and there can be a 2nd season for DVD!
Excellent review! SOMEBODY gets it! Thanks for elevating the conversation past the snide comments some pro journalists seem to indulge just to appear cool. I agree, DG is super and deserves a better fate than it’s getting. Hope Canada has more sense and there can be a 2nd season for DVD!
Note that you (in Canada) can watch online from http://watch.ctv.ca also! (Hulu + Abc block canadian viewers.)
Love the review, just like I love the show. Episodes 1-7 are avaible for veiwing at ctv.ca as well! Its where I go to watch them, saddly I can't see it on Friday nights all the time do to work. Hope people start watching more often, I'd love a second season, or more..
Love the review, just like I love the show. Episodes 1-7 are avaible for veiwing at ctv.ca as well! Its where I go to watch them, saddly I can’t see it on Friday nights all the time do to work. Hope people start watching more often, I’d love a second season, or more..
Love the review, just like I love the show. Episodes 1-7 are avaible for veiwing at ctv.ca as well! Its where I go to watch them, saddly I can’t see it on Friday nights all the time do to work. Hope people start watching more often, I’d love a second season, or more..
Note that you (in Canada) can watch online from http://watch.ctv.ca also! (Hulu + Abc block canadian viewers.)
Note that you (in Canada) can watch online from http://watch.ctv.ca also! (Hulu + Abc block canadian viewers.)
I agree the show is easy on the eyes, but that doesn't make up for the weak storytelling & poor writing. Unless it improves drastically over the second half it deservedly won't see another season.
I agree the show is easy on the eyes, but that doesn’t make up for the weak storytelling & poor writing. Unless it improves drastically over the second half it deservedly won’t see another season.
I agree the show is easy on the eyes, but that doesn’t make up for the weak storytelling & poor writing. Unless it improves drastically over the second half it deservedly won’t see another season.
I am way over in Australia, and a friend pointed me to Defying Gravity on Thursday, and by Sunday all episodes were watched and rewatched. Then I get the surprise that it is not doing well. It has been disheatening reading all the "Bad Writing" and "Boring" comments. I am in love with this show because the writing is fabulous.
Don't worry – TV over here is even worse.
Here's hoping you can save the show, so I can start lobbying the local stations to buy it, maybe in a year or two:)
I am way over in Australia, and a friend pointed me to Defying Gravity on Thursday, and by Sunday all episodes were watched and rewatched. Then I get the surprise that it is not doing well. It has been disheatening reading all the “Bad Writing” and “Boring” comments. I am in love with this show because the writing is fabulous.
Don’t worry – TV over here is even worse.
Here’s hoping you can save the show, so I can start lobbying the local stations to buy it, maybe in a year or two:)
I am way over in Australia, and a friend pointed me to Defying Gravity on Thursday, and by Sunday all episodes were watched and rewatched. Then I get the surprise that it is not doing well. It has been disheatening reading all the “Bad Writing” and “Boring” comments. I am in love with this show because the writing is fabulous.
Don’t worry – TV over here is even worse.
Here’s hoping you can save the show, so I can start lobbying the local stations to buy it, maybe in a year or two:)
Remember that the Original Star Trek had a dismal TV run and the imaginative "Lost Room" only survived one season.
Defying Gravity is sadly another sci fi gem that will take the back seat to really exciting television like John and Kate!
Remember that the Original Star Trek had a dismal TV run and the imaginative “Lost Room” only survived one season.
Defying Gravity is sadly another sci fi gem that will take the back seat to really exciting television like John and Kate!
Remember that the Original Star Trek had a dismal TV run and the imaginative “Lost Room” only survived one season.
Defying Gravity is sadly another sci fi gem that will take the back seat to really exciting television like John and Kate!
I am such a big fan of Ron Livingston! So I would like to watch this show but I am living in Germany. Is there any possibility to watch it here? ABC or iTunes doesn't work outside the USA.
I am such a big fan of Ron Livingston! So I would like to watch this show but I am living in Germany. Is there any possibility to watch it here? ABC or iTunes doesn’t work outside the USA.
I am such a big fan of Ron Livingston! So I would like to watch this show but I am living in Germany. Is there any possibility to watch it here? ABC or iTunes doesn’t work outside the USA.
This show is outstanding! The characters are well developed, the visual are stunning, the technology is believable, and the storyline packs a punch. But I also liked Firefly and that was promptly cancelled. It seems the networks don't know when or how to play show likes this. Put this show on a primetime night and give it a lot more advertisment! The network has a real gem on their hands and can make a lot of money from it if they just wake up.
This show is outstanding! The characters are well developed, the visual are stunning, the technology is believable, and the storyline packs a punch. But I also liked Firefly and that was promptly cancelled. It seems the networks don’t know when or how to play show likes this. Put this show on a primetime night and give it a lot more advertisment! The network has a real gem on their hands and can make a lot of money from it if they just wake up.
This show is outstanding! The characters are well developed, the visual are stunning, the technology is believable, and the storyline packs a punch. But I also liked Firefly and that was promptly cancelled. It seems the networks don’t know when or how to play show likes this. Put this show on a primetime night and give it a lot more advertisment! The network has a real gem on their hands and can make a lot of money from it if they just wake up.
Great show ABC!! Don't be stupid and cancel,.. show a little patience and show the full 13 episodes and maybe there will be another season.
What do you think NASA would say??
Great show ABC!! Don’t be stupid and cancel,.. show a little patience and show the full 13 episodes and maybe there will be another season.
What do you think NASA would say??
Great show ABC!! Don’t be stupid and cancel,.. show a little patience and show the full 13 episodes and maybe there will be another season.
What do you think NASA would say??
NASA would hate DG, but I don't think that DG would have one of its asscans driving cross country weaing a diaper to avoid having to stop at a bathroom either. http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/02/06/an-as…
NASA would love everyone to think that all of their candidates are emotionally stable. I think the flaws shown in DG are more accurate than what we all actually know. Great show that needs more time and better marketing. Keep it alive. http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=14557911616…
NASA would hate DG, but I don't think that DG would have one of its asscans driving cross country weaing a diaper to avoid having to stop at a bathroom either. http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/02/06/an-as…
NASA would love everyone to think that all of their candidates are emotionally stable. I think the flaws shown in DG are more accurate than what we all actually know. Great show that needs more time and better marketing. Keep it alive. http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=14557911616…
NASA would hate DG, but I don't think that DG would have one of its asscans driving cross country weaing a diaper to avoid having to stop at a bathroom either. http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/02/06/an-as…
NASA would love everyone to think that all of their candidates are emotionally stable. I think the flaws shown in DG are more accurate than what we all actually know. Great show that needs more time and better marketing. Keep it alive. http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=14557911616…
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