Apple's new Foundation streamed series

RichardAbbott

Hi all, curious to hear if anyone else has tried the (comparatively) new AppleTV streamed version of Foundation? I tried the initial episode (well , it was free providing you signed up for a trial week) and decided not to follow it through. It is without a doubt gorgeously done, and has some very interesting ways of putting flesh on Asimov's sparse descriptions. For example, the depiction of Trantor is splendid, and the addition of a space elevator rathe than endless shuttlecraft a good one (Asimov would probably have included such a thing if he'd known about the concept). And transforming some of the main characters to women rather than men was again a sound judgement IMHO.

However, I am so familiar with the plot that the considerable liberties made started to grate rapidly, and I decided that I would just find myself getting annoyed with it rather than taking it as it came.

Anyone else tried it?

Apocryphal

Yes, I’m watching it. I never read the novels, so I’m unspoilt in that regard. I have listened to the BBC radio dramatizations, and the series doesn't seem faithful to that - more like inspired by. This is probably a good thing - now I can read the novels without worrying I've seen it all before.

I’ve watched 3 episodes, now. It’s not a fast-paced series, I have to say. In the pilot, there are several nods to (or shameless copying of) other SF media that I thought were interesting, including films Interstellar, Event Horizon, the Homeworld computer game, and the Mars trilogy.

RichardAbbott

@Apocryphal said:
I’ve watched 3 episodes, now. It’s not a fast-paced series, I have to say. In the pilot, there are several nods to (or shameless copying of) other SF media that I thought were interesting, including films Interstellar, Event Horizon, the Homeworld computer game, and the Mars trilogy.

Agreed, and I don't think it necessarily suffered for that. Also, perhaps A Memory Called Empire which we read recently?