New US TV Series "Defying Gravity"

Jules76 (Julian) · #1 11-08-2009, 10:35 AM

Hi all,

Not sure if you guys have heard of it but a new Sci Fi/Drama/Thriller series started airing in the US on the ABC called "Defying Gravity". Not sure if it will ever be picked up here in Australia, but one can hope with the recent drought of good Sci Fi Space shows. Apparently the writers were inspired by the BBC's "Space Odyssey: Voyage to the Planets" and it's been done in collaboration with US/UK/German/Canadian networks, so it's not an all US thing.

More about it here:

http://beta.abc.go.com/shows/defying-gravity/

Quote:

Defying Gravity is a sexy, provocative thriller set in the very near future against the backdrop of our solar system, in which the eight astronauts from five countries undertake a mysterious six-year international space mission on the spaceship Antares.

They can’t run from karma, however, as their past actions reveal intimate and interconnected relationships that have a strange effect on the present. As the astronauts travel towards Venus, we travel into their past with flashbacks to earlier years from the grueling selection and training process. What could have happened?

Maybe there is something to this fate thing after all.

They have all the previously aired episodes in full to watch for US residents, but unfortunately outside the US you have to settle for previews.

The promo they have on there doesn't really sell it well enough in my opinion (I was a little apprehensive when I saw it), but after *ahem* "stumbling" across the first two episodes on the internet, the show definately has promise. I like it.

Well worth watching if you can get hold of it.

TrevorW · #2 12-08-2009, 08:17 PM

Do you think we will get it

what sci-fi show is on TV at the moment

????

Jules76 (Julian) · #3 12-08-2009, 09:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TrevorW

Do you think we will get it

what sci-fi show is on TV at the moment

????

To be honest I have no idea. Fox TV is involved in the series, so I'd say it would make an appearance on Foxtel at some time. As for free to air TV, the BBC is also involved in the series so with the ABC's ties with them you'd imagine that would improve it's chances of being seen here. However I reckon it would more likely be a shown one of the bigger commercial stations.

It's early days though, but so far it's getting positive reviews from what I've read, and like I said I'm enjoying it. Seems to be very well done which I think is because of it's multinational production, not your typical "gun-ho" all US production. It's being filmed in Canada and has a multinational cast (although as to be expected most of the cast have Canadian/US accents).

I wouldn't expect to see it here until well into next year. It's only just aired in the US (episode 4 screens this weekend). Get it on the net if you can.

hulloleeds · #4 12-08-2009, 09:32 PM

International Scifi (and really, all television) has so little chance of actually being aired properly, here. We tend to get the shaft. Only about 5% of "what is good" ever makes it here and of that 5% much of it is quickly discarded when the intensive six ad campaign conducted at 2am failed to draw the numbers. If you want to see something, don't hold your breath waiting for television stations here to get it, especially not scifi.

Jules76 (Julian) · #5 13-08-2009, 08:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hulloleeds

International Scifi (and really, all television) has so little chance of actually being aired properly, here. We tend to get the shaft. Only about 5% of "what is good" ever makes it here and of that 5% much of it is quickly discarded when the intensive six ad campaign conducted at 2am failed to draw the numbers. If you want to see something, don't hold your breath waiting for television stations here to get it, especially not scifi.

I agree. Which is why I get 99% of the TV series I watch from the internet. No waiting around for the TV networks to jump on the bandwagon if the series really kicks off. I'm there watching and enjoying days after it's shown in the US.

TrevorW · #6 13-08-2009, 10:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jules76

i agree. Which is why i get 99% of the tv series i watch from the internet. No waiting around for the tv networks to jump on the bandwagon if the series really kicks off. I'm there watching and enjoying days after it's shown in the us.

how!!!!

snowyskiesau · #7 13-08-2009, 11:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TrevorW

Do you think we will get it

what sci-fi show is on TV at the moment

????

Channel 10 used to show their few sci-fi shows on Ten HD. This stopped when they started up the sports channel One HD.
The only sci-fi show currently showing AFAIK is Eureka on channel 10, late on Thursdays (Sydney). I did catch an episode of 11th Hour on the new Go! channel last night.

renormalised (Carl) · #8 13-08-2009, 12:15 PM

None of the commercial channels in Oz are worth watching. Especially Channel 10 which seems to want to cater to the lowest common denominator when it comes to programming. All the commercial channels seems to want to program are shows that cater to the "knuckle dragging", lowbrow, instant gratification, celebrity fawning worship, sensationalist, gossipy trash loving, brain dead part of society. It's almost like a program of dumbing down of society is taking place. Use the media to feed the morons anything and they'll believe you. Keep them happy by feeding them garbage. The only news bulletins/current affairs shows worth watching or listening to these days are on SBS, ABC and the national radio channels. Commercial radio is just as bad as the commercial TV stations. Only good thing is you get to listen to some music.

TrevorW · #9 13-08-2009, 12:29 PM

Dumbing down I work for the Education Dept we fund RTO's who are delivering Cert IV courses in 8 weeks.

Courses when done at TAFE would take at least a year

No what we are pumping out is a paper qualified inexperienced selfish money grabbing N.O.W generation

renormalised (Carl) · #10 13-08-2009, 12:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TrevorW

Dumbing down I work for the Education Dept we fund RTO's who are delivering Cert IV courses in 8 weeks.

Courses when done at TAFE would take at least a year

No what we are pumping out is a paper qualified inexperienced selfish money grabbing N.O.W generation

They're precisely the type who follow the commercial stations religiously, especially Ch10.

TrevorW · #11 13-08-2009, 11:47 PM

Tell you what I just watched the first three episodes of this show and it's good

If you like sci-fi in any form you'll like this show

Top Notch

DavidU (Dave) · #12 14-08-2009, 12:05 AM

I agree. I gave up watching free to air TV years ago and what I have seen with Big Brother is, well, a tad depressing.
May be I'm getting old, being a grand parent and all.
Back to Registax !

Quote:

Originally Posted by renormalised

None of the commercial channels in Oz are worth watching. Especially Channel 10 which seems to want to cater to the lowest common denominator when it comes to programming. All the commercial channels seems to want to program are shows that cater to the "knuckle dragging", lowbrow, instant gratification, celebrity fawning worship, sensationalist, gossipy trash loving, brain dead part of society. It's almost like a program of dumbing down of society is taking place. Use the media to feed the morons anything and they'll believe you. Keep them happy by feeding them garbage. The only news bulletins/current affairs shows worth watching or listening to these days are on SBS, ABC and the national radio channels. Commercial radio is just as bad as the commercial TV stations. Only good thing is you get to listen to some music.

Jules76 (Julian) · #13 14-08-2009, 08:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TrevorW

Tell you what I just watched the first three episodes of this show and it's good

If you like sci-fi in any form you'll like this show

Top Notch

I told you it was good.

Looking forward to the next episode which airs in the US this weekend.

I'm a bit concerned about the ratings it's getting in the US though. Apparently after a good first episode (which was a double) it went on little decline. Hopefully it picks up or else it will be the same as other good shows over the years and only last a Season or Two. Really annoys me how the viewing public seems to be more interested in reality TV crap over good story telling.

renormalised (Carl) · #14 14-08-2009, 09:14 AM

Quote:

Really annoys me how the viewing public seems to be more interested in reality TV crap over good story telling.

That's because most of the viewing public have the attention span of a gnat and the intelligence of a lump of rock.

tornado33 · #15 14-08-2009, 12:34 PM

I too have seen the first 3 episodes of it. Thank goodness for broadband net access so I can download them

Another good Sci Fi show is Warehouse 13
Scott

hulloleeds · #16 14-08-2009, 12:44 PM

Yep, I got the first three yesterday, aswell and agree, it's interesting. Atleast - I, like the rest of you,simply must know more about pod 4. In retrospect, knowing what I know now, I would have let the season finish before watching it, as it is mildly irritating being at the whim of the "cliffhanger" style desire for more information.

TrevorW · #17 14-08-2009, 09:37 PM

Now we could speculate

a) pod 4 alien intelligence
b) the name of the ship Antares why name a ship after a star maybe the crew don't know it yet but it may not be a 6 year trip of the solar system they are on
c) equal distribution of male to female crew members
d) all those pods ????

Jules76 (Julian) · #18 14-08-2009, 10:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TrevorW

Now we could speculate

a) pod 4 alien intelligence
b) the name of the ship Antares why name a ship after a star maybe the crew don't know it yet but it may not be a 6 year trip of the solar system they are on
c) equal distribution of male to female crew members
d) all those pods ????

Interesting....just on C and D:

I was going to say that the guys had vasectomies (which is of course reversable), but then I remembered the part where Maddux has a checkup before going up. There he discovered the vasectomy he was suppose to have before the Mars mission didn't happen. Hmmmm.

As for all the pods, I think there is one for each landing because I noticed a few had a planet name written on them. So that would account for at least 7.

renormalised (Carl) · #19 15-08-2009, 12:33 AM

I haven't seen the series, yet, but I'll speculate on B.....pod 4 contains a secret drive system that was installed by the military (from you know where

), and the guys have to install it after a suitable number of days out from Earth. They have to go and find out why the outpost on 47 Ursae Majoris C has stopped transmitting (it's secretly been there for 60 years)...but they don't know about this, yet, and they'll be highly peeved to find out, but excited nevertheless

They'll start asking questions as to why NASA and such were left in the dark for so long about this technology and they'll get the "in the interest of national security" line spun to them

Just a bit of far fetched storyline there

hulloleeds · #20 15-08-2009, 01:00 AM

My concern with this show is that I believe they are going to drag out Pod 4. Who could blame them. Without it, the show has no genuine appeal to the mainstream public. Scifi fans can subsist on space exploration, the general public cannot.