SEE [seasons 1-2] |
★★★★★
2 May 2022
A television review of SEE [seasons 1-2]. |
Created by: Steven Knight (Taboo, Dirty Pretty Things, Locked Down).
Pilot directed by: Francis Lawrence (Red Sparrow, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire).
Starring: Jason Momoa, Dave Bautista, Hera Hilmar, Sylvia Hoeks, Christian Camargo, Archie Madekwe, Nesta Cooper, Joshua Henry, Hoon Lee, Eden Epstein, Olivia Cheng, Alfre Woodard.
“It’s astonishing how the smallest moment can change an entire world,” Maghra (Hera Hilmar)
It feels like ever since GAME OF THRONES, every TV studio wants their own version. Apple TV+ has not only finally managed it, they’ve bettered it. Eschewing B-movie nudity and sex, the focus is on those seeking to control others. Like Westeros, few escape the brutality. Innocents are sucked into the maelstrom. Here, there are consequences for those that dole out violence. Without preachiness, no-one escapes unscathed. The climactic melee of season two is as close as television has yet got so far to the ‘Battle of the Bastards’ episode of GAME OF THRONES - the most thrilling war depiction on any sized screen. The first two seasons of SEE hang its themes on a hunt: Those chasing and those evading. The variations are so thrillingly handled, the characters so charismatic, as to make the show compulsive viewing.
Pilot directed by: Francis Lawrence (Red Sparrow, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire).
Starring: Jason Momoa, Dave Bautista, Hera Hilmar, Sylvia Hoeks, Christian Camargo, Archie Madekwe, Nesta Cooper, Joshua Henry, Hoon Lee, Eden Epstein, Olivia Cheng, Alfre Woodard.
“It’s astonishing how the smallest moment can change an entire world,” Maghra (Hera Hilmar)
It feels like ever since GAME OF THRONES, every TV studio wants their own version. Apple TV+ has not only finally managed it, they’ve bettered it. Eschewing B-movie nudity and sex, the focus is on those seeking to control others. Like Westeros, few escape the brutality. Innocents are sucked into the maelstrom. Here, there are consequences for those that dole out violence. Without preachiness, no-one escapes unscathed. The climactic melee of season two is as close as television has yet got so far to the ‘Battle of the Bastards’ episode of GAME OF THRONES - the most thrilling war depiction on any sized screen. The first two seasons of SEE hang its themes on a hunt: Those chasing and those evading. The variations are so thrillingly handled, the characters so charismatic, as to make the show compulsive viewing.
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After a devastating virus, humanity is virtually wiped out. The fraction of the population remaining are left blind. 500 years in the future, vision has begun to re-emerge into a world of ultra-violence and superstition. There are nations (more akin to tribes) within America. Think the excellent QUEST FOR FIRE [1981]. Also, the gripping novel ‘The Three-Body Problem’ [2008] by Liu Cixin. These two works talk about fear of communities other than your own as your enemy – destroy or be destroyed. SEE is similarly pessimistic; in addition, observing envy and hate.
From the blind population has evolved those with almost superhuman abilities: new kinds of martial arts, seers, undetectable movement, etc. A new theology has arisen. Religion and parables have taken hardship and put positive spins to help the population: A higher power took humanity’s sight because of climate change. Vision is now in evidence in the rarest of newborns. Jerlamarel (Joshua Henry) is a recipient of this nascent ability. Born a slave, he is now building a promised land. He is a person who deems the end justifies the means. As does the Witchfinder General. Humans telling other humans what their deity wants. Then a slave goes the other way to believe himself almost a god.
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Jason Momoa is electric and ably supported by a mesmerising cast. Christian Camargo is a revelation as a merciless religious enforcer. Dave Bautista continues to show he is the most versatile wrestler-turned-actor. Characters feel nuanced not completely good nor completely bad, bar Queen Sibeth Kane (Sylvia Hoeks).
SEE intertwines mesmerising drama and action with thematic discussions, overt and under the surface: disability, superstition used to kill/subjugate, the environment, monarchy, slavery, etc. SEE portrays the blind as formidable and resourceful, not to be pitied. SEE is topically dense and visually lush. It is so epic and resplendent it wouldn’t be out of place at the cinema. The vistas are stunning. CGI is sparingly used, to illustrate our current machines and buildings worn down. The bursts of combat are exhilarating and imaginative.
Can’t wait for season three.
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