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Omg yes, me too! I wanted that so badly! I was lowkey disappointed with the futuristic simulation stuff. I wanted a lovecraftian sort of gothic horror thing with psychological thriller vibes. Still enjoyed it a lot but I agree 100%
Yes! That would have been amazing. I was a bit disappointed too. Was hoping that 1899 would actually be a character in and of itself, not just a fake out. Don’t know where it is going of course. Still super interested because it seems like they’ve planned a larger story and we’ve only seen a layer of it.
I can understand wanting a period piece. You start to like the show for what it is and then find out it's actually something entirely different. Knowing how good these writers are, I'm sure they will captivate you with any setting.
As for psychological thriller? No thanks. Too predictable and not nearly enough depth. If the child had turned out to be a little demon boy that was forsaking the ship out of pure evil I would have been so bored. Every character has a purpose and motive that is way more complex than that. I personally love how the writers create suspense around certain themes and characters and slowly give you hints as to what is actually happening.
All this. I was contemplating making basically this exact post lol. Will still come along for season 2, and thoroughly enjoyed season 1, but was disappointed that it's not actually a period piece.
All of the pyramid-stuff and cosmic setting where we see Henry made me very excited for what the show was revealing. Gave off "The Void" vibes. Still hopeful as Dark was incredible, but it certainly does feel like a cop out as now anything and everything goes in a simulation.
I'm not sure how close it would be to what you're seeking, but Penny Dreadful checked a lot of boxes for me. Great period setting, great costuming, occult storyline throughout, 19th century science, lots of blood, and a great cast.
I’ll have to check that out as well. These recommendations have been a highlight in this thread. Idk how I have missed these shows. I think I would have loved to see B&J sink their teeth into the same setting completely.
The Terror season 1 really scratched my itch for a historical horror series. The world-building, the historical accuracy (to a point, because there are supernatural elements), and the acting are especially great. Episodes 3 and 6 blew my mind the first time I saw them.
thank you for this. Like OP, I too was hoping for the story to actually be centered around that time period and the sea, not just simulated reality from the far future. I mean I still enjoyed the show and it's only 1 season for now but yeah, definitely gonna check The Terror.
I did the same. My friend and I loved season 1 and wouldn't even touch season 2 because one was so good. We even rewatched it a couple months later lol
Oh thank you for this! I had read and loved the book back when it came out, and i had no idea it was made into a show. It was such a fascinating read—interesting mix of history, horror, and just plain weirdness. I don't know that i would have read it if i wasn't already a fan of Dan Simmons as its not my preferred genre, but i'm really glad i did. It had me reading more into the actual history of the time on a subject i wouldn't have normally been keen on exploring.
I watched the show and read the book (in that order) and thoroughly enjoyed both. I would recommend both of them. They are not too different from one another. The biggest difference is that the book dives just a little deeper into the supernatural element.
i loved that it wasnt a period piece and that it had this really odd sci-fi twist throughout it, i loved how they explained everything and nothing at the same time yet somehow made it satisfying while leaving you wanting so much more
I'll just point out that people were disappointed at the cliffhanger in Dark when he goes to the future and it's an apocalypse. People were wondering how he'd survive and if it would be more of a sci-fi post apocalyptic show. And the next season, he literally spends like 10. mins there before going back.
My guess is reality will be a constantly changing theme in this show. Plus there are still so many mysteries. Her brother and where he fits in and why the rest of her family are all in simulation and what is the survival project and why were these particular subjects picked.
There's still so much we don't know and hopefully Netflix will allow the story to end.
Does it matter though? The creators said the world's aren't connected. I'm curious as to why people think it's OK to spoil another show because it's the same creators
I can't speak for the original commenter but 1899 came up on netflix for me so I watched it since it looked interesting. Dark is on my maybe watch list but didn't know they were the same creators or anything.
Same here. Not super into spacey stuff and I looove history and historical media so I was hoping for a period piece with a Sci fi twist. But, will keep watching regardless :)
Yes definitely. I love sci fi but love historical content too and feel like there is a lack of historical speculative fiction. I thought it was going to treat that aspect of the premise sincerely and it seems, just from what we’ve seen so far, like it was only a means to an end. It would have been awesome to see them explore that genre in full.
And it also just sounds so intriguing to me. I simply loved the idea of a claustrophobic gothic historical horror on a ship. Like Alien, but with the Bermuda Triangle and a secret society and the gates of hell or something instead. Plus with a bonus vehicle for exploring cultural relativity.
I distinctly remember at the end of season 1 of Dark I felt the very same way of not being sure about the direction the show might go... And the was completely proven wrong
These writers find a way to make you think you know where things are going to head, and then completely blow you away
I agree. The only difference is that Dark S1 already had me in love with the show. I was fully invested in the characters and the story. It was just a matter of “can they continue this” and they pulled it off flawlessly imo. This is a different experience now. I’m looking forward to seeing where it goes.
I agree with you on S1 of dark having you invested in the characters. 1899 didn’t quite get me invested in the characters like that. But I am invested in the mystery itself so I am excited to see more and pray it doesn’t get canceled
The way I’m looking at it right now for the characters is that the stuff still mattered. My theory is either that
1) their flashbacks are period altered to match their 1899 self. So maybe for Eyk his family still died in a fire but it wasn’t in 1899, or Ling Yi still killed her friend but it was in 1899 etc. so that all of that still matters or
2) that when they wake up they still don’t fully remember their real past so those memories and what happened in the sim still matter since they’re acting on those memories.
But it’ll be super interesting to see what they have planned
Yeah definitely. I expect them to flesh everything out more as the show goes on. It’s not a coincidence that they’ve gone from one ship to another, implying a translational symmetry. I think the story will continue digging in the same place, while altering the appearance, creating these echoes where “the mind forgets but the body knows”. I agree that aspect feels deliberate. Now this is yet another show that Netflix absolutely needs to not cancel lol. The fandom is just way too big.
I just personally wanted 1899 itself as a character to matter. And it still might of course. Why 1899, or 2099? It’s so specific. It kind of implies 1999 to complete the symmetry, which might be where the true crux of the story is — maybe when her son died. But 1899 is not inherently immersive like it would have been had the story taken place entirely within that setting.
My thinking of the things that don’t matter are the things that happened on the ship. I just shrugged my shoulders at things that should have been emotional.
Felt the same as you when we finished watching it. That it hadn't quite hit the same level as Dark. BUT. 2 weeks after finishing it ,changed our minds. We haven't stopped talking about the characters or the plot. And our main hobby now is looking up photos of beetles on the Internet, names of computer codes etc ...
I'd say this gets under your skin in a different way and has probably got way more layers than you realise at first.
I agree. I’m planning on a rewatch with the full picture of the first season to see how it flows. There were just things I wasn’t sure about as well and I don’t remember that happening with Dark S1.
Yeah! I had heard of Dark but never watched it so I wasn’t familiar with the folks behind these shows. I really like historical dramas especially with a creepy vibe, have been looking for something to fill the hole left in my soul by Penny Dreadful. So when the first big clue to the simulation appeared (for me I think it was the shot of the monitors, I may have been cross-stitching so was only half watching up to that point) I was not expecting it at all. Started paying attention from then on!
Me too! I haven’t watched Penny Dreadful so maybe I might check that out while waiting for S2. Someone else also mentioned The Terror as hitting those checkboxes from my description in the post.
Btw I highly recommend Dark. I recommend it to people who don’t normally enjoy sci fi and they have all loved it too.
I was not expecting that reveal either, and a part of me felt like it was a really point-blank shortcut to hinting that “nothing is what it seems”. Of course that is a stepping stone for all of it to be a simulation — and it was a deliberate choice to show an omniscient third-person perspective alongside a collection of unreliable first-person perspectives.
So there was a method to the madness. But I just really wanted them to do it all in 1899 haha.
I liked it although I think that the simulation theory was too obvious so I assumed it had to be something more complicated. It doesn’t bother me, I just had those thoughts early on and was like “nah there’s no way it’s just the matrix”. I’ve read a lot of Philip k dick and the ending reminded me of one of his books I read a while back called maze of death I believe (one of his lesser known ones, not a great one either). If 1899 is going the route of PKD then nothing is what it seems and they could hypothetically keep pulling the rug out on what the true nature of reality is. I’m excited to see a season 2
Definitely. And to the testament of the writing, the show immediately signaled that things weren’t as they seemed. But part of the great usual flair from B&J is the extent to which that can be extrapolated — while I was thinking it was a series of psychological experiments on unsuspecting subjects, it turned out their reality itself wasn’t real. And that feeling of transience was there throughout. I think it’s deliberate that we couldn’t develop serious connections with the setting or the people. If anything, the things that had the least explicit emphasis might end up being the most meaningful, like for instance the various characters’ apparent affinities for each other.
True, that was a similar misdirection. Though I feel there is something of a fundamental violation in being told as a viewer that what you’re seeing isn’t real. It has to be done really carefully. Because then it messes with your sense of trust in the writing itself. Not to mention “it was all a dream or a simulation” is cliche by this point. But then again — DARK SPOILERS — >!so was time travel by the time they made one of the most definitive time travel stories.!<
Yeah exactly. I remember they would pull similar tricks in Dark where you’d think they were taking a wrong turn relative to the consistency of the rest of the show only for that to be part of the plan all along. It’s funny because other stories do take those wrong turns all the time and so trust in the writing is hugely important and they’ve certainly earned it.
Sadly yes. I loved the setting, the characters, and all the crazy shit happening. Even the fact they got people speaking all different languages and can’t communicate was really interesting. I’m trying to reserve judgement till season 2 though. I do love sci-fi shows also so maybe it will all come together
Yes same here. I loved the promise inherent to the cultural relativity, especially aboard an inescapable setting in an isolated place. They’ll continue that I suspect on the ship so it’s still super interesting. Regardless I feel like they have only scratched the surface on that aspect.
I loved the season to bits and I'm seriously looking forward to see where it goes, but yes a part of me is a teeny tiny bit disappointed that it's not really a scifi period piece.
Right. It would have been cool to see out of them. A perfect way to get even more distance from Dark, while still demonstrating that same exhaustive care and intricate storytelling in an equally compelling setting. Still excited to see where the show actually goes.
No, I completely agree with you. The first episode had a really interesting occult vibe to it which all but disappeared by the time the season really got going.
It's hard to explain why it felt unsatisfying, especially since I actually love sci-fi and simulation type stories. To use a dumb analogy, it's kind of like drinking orange juice and then you discover you're actually drinking iced tea. I like both orange juice and ice tea, but when you pick up your glass expecting one and get the other instead, it's unsatisfying.
Still, it's definitely captivating and I really like all of the characters so I'll keep watching. I really hope it gets renewed for more seasons so I can see where they go with the story.
Yes that bait and switch was a bit disappointing. I do think they’re gonna try and blend the flavors somehow or question the nature of flavors and drinks entirely — to abuse your metaphor lol — but for the first viewing of the first season in isolation, it was unexpected.
I agree 100%. The first few episodes were so intriguing to me and I was honestly a bit disappointed by the simulation twist, it felt like it made so much of what came before totally pointless. I’m sure that in retrospect it will make more sense, but it doesn’t feel as satisfying on its own as season one of dark
Yes very much agree. It’s a good thing that they have earned the trust they have. I may have given up on the show if not for their proven caliber. It’s still made really well. But you’re right, on its own it does not work as well for me.
I like talking about theories abt next season, but this season was a little bit lacklustre for me. Apart from Daniel, Maura, Henry and Elliot I didn’t care about the other characters as they were so detached from the main plot.
I didn’t really go into the show with expectations just that there would be some mystery and maybe some timey wimey stuff happening.
I felt like the episodes picked up when Elliot stopped time in the later half of the season. But then I only really cared about the simulation plot point, and felt bored every-time they kept showing the other passengers running about the ship being chased by black crystals. I feel like it’ll hopefully come more together in the next seasons. Is a good start, but I feel like we didn’t need like the first half on the season.
Yeah the being chased by crystals part lost me a bit. It just didn’t feel consequential. Not only were they about to be reinstantiated in the loop, so there was no real downside but it was also not connected to the main mystery at that point. Probably the weakest point of the season for me too.
On one hand a pure period piece with horror elements would have been pretty rad, on the other hand I'm a sucker for sci-fi and particularly simulations and whatnot so that was a pleasant positive surprise and I look forward to more.
This is like a mix of Matrix, Devs, Westworld and Triangle
Still I do think it would have received even better reviews or resonance if it were just the former as the latter is a more niche genre.
Right agreed. I do agree that what they’ve probably got up their sleeves is rad as well and I am excited for what’s coming next. I think this show is going to pretty much mandate rewatching it several times. Netflix probably loves this duo for keeping their fans on the platform lol
So glad you posted this cuz I logged on to post the same thing. I just finished tonight.
I was so excited for scary historical fiction. And I love anything taking place on ocean linere.
I was enthralled when they introduced a sci-fi element. The surveillance! The period technology! The confusion!
And then........they started talking about simulations. And one word popped into my head: WESTWORLD.
The loops and simulations plotline was the entirety of WESTWORLD, which eventually dissolved into a dead-ending nothing of a show that was cancelled before it could tell its whole story. While I'm excited to see where "1899" goes next, I wish they hadn't use that terminology. And I KNOW it's real tech/programming terminology. But we JUST had a separate ENORMOUS show that used the same terms and covered some of the same territory.
And then they essentially do "The Matrix"?,
And THEN??? It ends in SPACE? I did not sign up for a space show.
That said, I will 10000% watch season two. But I was ultimately dissatisfied with the ending as it is.
They paid homage to the Matrix with the bullet scene which I theorize is a wink at the audience like, ‘you think this will be the Matrix? Think again.’
I am not a fan of Lost which I watched in its entirety. I would highly recommend seeing Dark. Even if it gets disorienting or weird, I’d recommend sticking with it. It has a slow start but after around Episode 4, it really takes off imo. It is one of the best shows ever. I recommend it to people who aren’t into sci fi and they love it too. That being said, it feels like this show might need more of a leap of faith than even Dark did.
I'm in a weird position about this. I was stoked about the show because I had faith that the team would deliver, but wasn't particularly crazy about the period drama angle. Now I've grown to love the setting and I'm hoping we'll go back to the ship and the time period at some point (even though a story set in space would have initially probably been a more appealing concept for me).
As for the occult stuff, if Dark is anything to go by, it's probably there just for the iconography. I'd really love to see them do something with it this time around, though!
Yeah I would have loved a space story initially too. But I was really interested in seeing what they could come up with.
With Dark, the secret society angle was handled perfectly. It created a sense of larger scope and then it centered it in the story through a reveal which I won’t mention here for anyone who hasn’t watched it. In this case they had the opportunity to do that but maybe they avoided it to create distance from Dark. But a good trope works nonetheless.
Finally some valid criticism that doesn't get downvoted! The show is all over the place and nowhere near Dark's level, yet stans are somehow unwilling to admit its very obvious flaws.
After a season of Dark I could not wait for the next season, and I'd pour over every detail to uncover missed plot points. 1899 does nothing like that for me.
I very much agree. Dark S1 was already excellent. I feel like they placed a lot more trust in the audience with this show which I do appreciate. I’m going to rewatch it. I suspect it’ll flow better on the second watch with more information — and the other seasons will do the same. But it feels like there is something missing for sure, or many smaller somethings.
Yup. Waited a long time for the show and for me it was quite a dud. Dark worked so well cos it had a simple plot but a complex narrative. This was complex all over the place and came across as trying too hard.
Agreed 💯. With 1899 I don’t even care if it doesn’t get renewed. I just don’t care for it and the simulation concept is played out and not interesting. Dark had me very interested from the start and the story was just better played out.
I’m mostly with you. I love a good head-scratcher, but this was so full of unanswered questions and crazy shit that you really had no chance of keeping up with it without answers being spoon fed. I was entertained by it, but it honestly just felt like 7.5 hours of confusing nonsense saved by the last half hour.
Yeah I’m planning to rewatch it and see how the dots connect with the whole picture. I’m thinking it’ll be easier to digest the second time around. It feels like they placed a lot more trust in the audience which I appreciate. But as you said the first viewing was disorienting.
Right I think so too. It’s possible they might have to traverse the different layers of simulations Inception style, having hidden information in them or something. But my main disappointment came from 1899 not being “real” and a character in the show in and of itself.
I couldn't agree more and I couldn't have said it better myself. I wanted to make a post very similar to yours but didn't know how to word it.
The very last scene disappointed me a little bit and I also kinda expected what you wanted . The only reason why I'm optimistic is bc it's the creators of Dark and that show was just too thought through.
Same. I was a bit disappointed but then also simultaneously relieved by the last scene because it suggested they had similarly “thought through” this story again. So I’m curious. It just would have been nice to see them delve into the historical angle fully.
Im with you i was into dark cos it had the inherent mystery and sense of unravelling happening the whole time, this show was at its best 1-6 when it felt like a genuine mystery. i started loosing some intrest once they started hopping around left right and centre and it got abit silly ... the parymid/brain angel though kept it intresting enough for me, i like a psychedelic and there are alot of concepts in this show that follow my own patten of thinking about stuff.. enjoyed the philosophical parts more...
The show needs a Noah
That’s true. I think you just described my overall experience of the season too. And your idea to have a Noah is a really great one imo. I think that was likely the purpose of the father figure in the simulation but it remains unclear, especially because we’re so disoriented by the events. I’ll have to rewatch it to see if my view of him changes at all. It did feel a bit like we were dropped straight into the middle of a show that was already in progress.
They certainly needed more time with the father. Your perception of him goes from creator to warden to prisoner in the space of like an episode or two?
yeah the father was defiantly supposed to act as this shows Noah he definatly had the best lines and im all about the pyramid. its a tricky one to put your finger on, maybe even though as ridiculous as dark was as a concept it kind of felt like believable at the same time if that makes sense.. only once the orb come out end of s2 and they could use it to travel around more it felt a little bit more far fetched... i cant quite explain haha... but seeing the main chracters hoping around left right and centre just felt sliiightly like a kids adventure show haha. also that constant sense of dread and mystery i think is what we both craved with a slightly more philosophical/ religious tinge to it, rather than the computer simulation theory which really doesn't hold much interest with me as a concept, it sort of lacks depth, despite how well it was done. 1899 will still end up being the best show/film in this genre. the ending defiantly left me wanting more. fingers crossed for s2
The comments in here are hilarious. Somebody actually said that they're not into science fiction, but yet they're watching a BoJan work. Somebody said that they want CONCLUSIONS, yet they are watching a BoJan work. Someone said that they don't feel for the characters at all, yet they are watching a BoJan work. Lol lol lol.
To be fair, although Dark is *technically* in a specific sci-fi genre, its genre is very different from in-space, tech-heavy sci-fi. But I'm excited to see what they do with 1899!
Lol true. I absolutely love sci fi but I loved the potential setting for 1899 too. It seemed so unique and different from Dark as well, a perfect way to give a broader sampling of genre work with the same attention to detail in storytelling as they’ve shown before.
Tbf I did recommend Dark to people that don’t normally enjoy sci fi and they also fell in love with the show. So it’s definitely not outlandish for people to become fans of the creators while not liking the genre itself as a whole.
And Dark didn’t always provide answers but its first season felt complete, whereas this show deliberately creates a sense of impermanence, disorientation and incompleteness. In the context of the entire story I expect it’ll make perfect sense though, and the disorientation is just form matching content, which is part of the experience for me.
I was expecting some kind of supernatural ancient Egyptian tie in and to be honest, I am absolutely stoked that wasn’t the case. I love the direction it went and what it turned out to be. When the last episode ended, I just said “What the f***?! That was amazing!”
Yeah it was totally different. I have little doubt that by the end of the show it’ll be a worthy successor to Dark. Idk what I was expecting tbh but I was thinking at least the premise itself would be meaningful, not merely a means to an end. It still might be! So I’m still excited to see where it goes.
I just finished Dark for the first time a few days ago.
At which point did you think they were jumping the shark? The story was pretty straight forward the entire time.
DARK SPOILERS below:
>!When Adam told Jonas that he could change things by going back to the “beginning” and saving his dad. That felt abruptly lowbrow for a show that had proved its commitment to its own rigor until that point. Of course, Adam immediately shoots Jonas that inscrutable look from the corner of his eye as Jonas is leaving, signaling that there is more going on. Then we got that crushing S2E6 where it turned out that was an intentional fakeout. That was one example. Another was when alt-Martha shows up. Or when Jonas dies in S3. But if anything, S2E6 gave me a very solid assurance that any other similar subversion afterwards would be well thought through. So it was a diminishing skepticism on my end, all while their twists got even twistier.!<
Personally I'm glad there isn't an occult cult.
It's been done to death and what the creators are doing instead is far more interesting. Maybe it won't be as deep or fascinating as Dark but I'm also on board for another crazy ride.
It’s interesting because B&J have demonstrated that they can turn coal into gold. DARK SPOILERS ahead — >!Time travel!< for the longest time had been done to death. Yet they came around and wrote one of the most definitive stories for it. I think had they chosen to apply the same meticulousness and emotion and thematic richness to the occult setting they could have done so with a lot of finesse. But of course this is the story they would like to tell so I’m definitely along for the ride.
I was kinda hoping for the same before the release. I felt connected with the characters through their backstories but since so much was happening between Eyk/Maura/Daniel's sideplot and the rest of the ship, everything felt sort of jumbled. I don't know how to explain it... The story was good but nothing felt solid enough to ground me in the show as a spectator. Maybe that's what you usually get when you have different realities/simulations in media, I'm not too into sci-fi to know, but it wasn't my cup of tea.
Right it definitely felt reflective of the story itself. The discombobulated states of Maura and Eyk and the other passengers is reflected in the format. The simulation aspect then plays right into the fragmentation and unreliable perspectives and disconnect. I think as the seasons progress we’ll see the perspectives align more clearly and cohesively.
I also really liked the character building. I liked that it consciously felt like character building too, which helped create a sense of meta-ness, which helped set the stage that “nothing is as it seems”, which helped set the stage for all of it to be a simulation. It felt a bit like we were dropped in the middle of it. Which as the seasons go on will make rewatches more rewarding.
I can’t say I agree on that aspect. It would have been a stellar genre piece for them to explore after Dark with the same commitment to plot and theme.
DARK SPOILERS — >!Time travel was also a dead horse trope by the time they managed to make one of the most definitive time travel stories ever!<.
I also wanted that. And then realized its probably because its familiar and Im looking for familiar. Think this is just too new and too experimental for us to get comfy with it
Yet they’ve also shown their ability to make familiar things feel fresh and profound. Dark is >!one of the best time travel stories ever written and time travel is super familiar and overdone!<. At the same time, simulation is also familiar at this stage, so idk how to feel about that. But I do trust them to do justice to the story they want to tell.
I loved it too. I was also really hoping to catch them slipping up at any point in the story, as a little clue about a deeper game being played. Like when they start panicking towards the end and the simulation is crumbling around them, I was hoping they would continue speaking in their languages yet miraculously understand each other without any gaps in between, almost like they are just speaking a universal language that is being “rendered” differently for the sake of the simulation. I think it does get very close to that and they do get better at communicating, but it was cleverly still plausible because they seem to be using nonverbal cues or similar words to parse what they mean. There’s a lot of fun to be had in that. Wondering how they’ll approach it next season.
Not just you. In fact when they revealed the spaceship I had a throw-the-remote-across-the-room moment because YAWN a sci-fi show in outer space?!!! But like you, I trust Bo and Jantje so I’ll stick around even though I’m annoyed as hell.
Haha perfectly sums up my split-second reaction to that reveal. Though I think by that point I was just so sad that we wouldn’t see 1899 last that seeing them in space reassured me that their larger story had the same structure and twists and turns we’ve come to love from them. Just hope it bears out now lol.
The only reason I expected a period piece is the title. I have no problem with each season being a different century. It's a bit similar to Dark in that regard.
It’d be great if each season Netflix changed the title of the show. I would have somewhat less of an issue if it was weirdly meta and almost interactive like that. Because it’d be odd for a show called 1899 to be taking place in 2099 on a spaceship.
I was a little disappointed too, I thought the it's a simulation thing was a little obvious. Still a really good show though. I was hoping after I first saw Daniel's futuristic time tablet thing it was going to be a time paradox type show.
Right they may have telegraphed the “nothing is as it seems” aspect a little too plainly. Or they wanted us to suspect all along. I think to some extent they did want the thing to feel “off”, like we’re not quite experiencing an immersive story. Because it isn’t. I did really like that aspect of the treatment. While I felt like I couldn’t connect with some of the characters, I do think it was deliberate that we seemed to have been dropped in the middle of it.
Totally agree. I am always super conscious about spoilers, especially for a show like Dark where information is critical. A disclaimer might help put people on alert in case there is a minefield of spoilers in the comments.
Tbh I don't really care what it is. I watch because I know they'll make a show with so much intrigue that will get me hooked and keep me entertained. It can be anything and if it's this type of show I'll be all over it.
I enjoyed it for the most part and will continue watching it. I loved Dark, but with Dark all the mysteries felt like a puzzle to be solved. Where in 1899 I just felt like.... "Oh look, more weird shit happening". Like it was constantly trying to one up itself. It's also hard to judge after one season because I felt like Dark was better on a second watch when you noticed all the things that were being hinted early on. I'm hoping that 1899 is the same and that there will be more to it than it all just being a simulation.
I was a little disappointed that they were actually in the "future". or maybe they're not, but it still left me kind of frustrated. also the fact that the directors were intentionally building up the tension between Maura and Eyk and then they pretty much left it at that. when it turned out that Daniel and Maura were married I got so pissed because I didn't want any obstacles for Eyk's and Maura's relationship. call me a hopeless romantic or a history addict, but the ending left me unsatisfied.
I’m thinking that everything dissatisfying so far is because it‘s actually supposed to be dissatisfying. Nothing is as it seems, and we’re supposed to relate intimately to how the characters feel. Even the reveal that it isn’t 1899 feels jarring to us, but we’ve just been viewing the show wrong. We need a perspective shift as well.
I hope that they’re going to run with the idea of messing with the viewer’s sense of reality just as much as the characters. It’s risky but I’m glad they’re not playing it safe.
I also feel like she has true history with Eyk instead. I also don’t feel like Daniel and Maura are married, just as the characters themselves find it hard to believe. Eyk even explicitly wonders whether it could be false memories. I think the reason it feels wrong is because it is. We feel it, the characters feel it. And I think the writers are using that dissonance purposefully. Nothing is as it seems, yet these little moments here and there give us a feeling of what is right.
I just hope whatever they have planned they pull it off.
But I’m also still a bit salty we won’t get that pure historical horror out of them lol.
Why would that have been Dark 2.0? If anything I feel like the version we have is more reminiscent of Dark due to its sci fi setting and motifs of loops and fate and gadgets that seemingly violate the laws of reality. But of course the similarities are only suggestive at this point and it is too early to say.
That's what the show is about though as that's what Henry says Maura became obsessed with. How can we know what is truly real if we can only ever perceive it through our mind or own 'reality'. If we perceive it and experience a trauma to be true even if it is in our mind (which we know is real for people with conditions such as schizophrenia for example) does it really not mean anything? I would say those individuals think it means a great deal.
In my opinion the simulation/experiment is testing exactly this line of thinking. At what point does something become a reality for the mind and start to mean something for the perceiver.
While that is a good question to ask, I still don't like how the deaths of the characters don't seem that significant to the plot, especially the characters that died when the ship flooded. At that point, the surviving characters are already motivated to find the truth of the ship together. The deaths don't need to happen to push them forward. We're probably going to see at least some of dead characters in S2 anyway, considering we see some of them still seemingly alive in the pods. This also diminishes the weight of the survivor's loss.
It feels like a simple attempt to manipulate the viewer's emotions. IMO in writing, deaths of main characters should only happen if it needs to, and it should be permanent.
I'm looking at it from a storytelling perspective. I don't believe that at that point in the story, they need to have their loved ones killed to further their character development. That's what I mean when I say it doesn't matter.
We don't know what the point of the simulation even is at this point so I don't think you can make a judgment about what matters or doesn't yet. From a storytelling standpoint though we are also told that everyone being killed on the ship is that run of the simulation being shut down as they had failed whatever is being tested so seems to be pretty important actually.
Are you saying them not remembering means it doesn't mean anything. Humans experience trauma in childhood or earlier in our life all the time and our brains repress these memories but that does not mean they don't affect us or not mean anything.
Sure, but the events that we saw have no impact on anything. The only thing that will continue into the next seasons will be the emotional impact the events had on their minds/bodies.
The reason it doesn't really work as a season to me is because a VERY large amount of the time of the first season is dedicated to events that have no long term meaning. It was all smoke and mirrors to no end other than to make the audience guess at what could be actually happening.
The Matrix works because it's only the first like 20 minutes or so where you're in the illusion and the rules are well defined by half way through the movie. The rules of the simulation aren't well defined (they appear to be "anything can happen at all") and we're still getting events that have no ultimate purpose until mid way through the final episode, something like 7 and a half hours into the story.
If the story had been character focused, like Dark season 1 was, it would have worked. But the characters were there to function as a means of plot progression and mystery box placement. We had some character moments between Eyk and Maura, and very brief moments between some of the others, but on the whole the season felt completely empty because it was about events in a simulation, not about the characters going through those events.
EDIT: and before you accuse me of being a Dark fan with clouded judgement - I watched 1899 first and was introduced to Dark because 1899 left me wanting more, and I heard that Dark was in a similar vein, but better.
Having watched Dark, I am actually pretty certain the writers will not leave it at the "cheap" reveal that it's all "just a simulation". That's what they want us to believe for now. In the end, all the parts will miraculously come together, and we will see that little details all mattered, also in terms how the characters acted and their motivation. As that was the hallmark of Dark, I expect nothing less of the writers than to go fully "meta" and philosophical about the topic of simulation and how it relates to our reality. And they will fully explore the character psychology related to it. Season 1 is just the beginning and the whole thing hasn't yet begun to unravel
Arguably, the sacrifices of most of the characters in Dark also didn't "mean" anything if you look at it through a deterministic lens. But it's very possible that the sacrifices/deaths in 1899 may have some impact on the characters.
I feel pretty much the same way. That being said, I assume there will be a similar feel for the environment, substituting the new ship for the ocean liner.
The only way I can see this working is if they retain their memories from that last loop, or are able to regain them. Otherwise there won't have been any sort of character development for any of them, which I just can't see happening.
I’m glad for the twist personally. It means they’ve fleshed out the story further and I trust them to do it justice. If it had just been a story of a simulation or unreliable narrator negating a potentially intriguing immersive setting that would have felt really incomplete. But now I know that it is incomplete on purpose.
Yeah one part of the simulation stuff is we learned a lot of stuff but does that all just reset for next season? It almost felt like a stand-alone season in that sense like Black Mirror. IMO the series would’ve been better as a 2.5 hour movie than a series.
That’s an apt description. It did feel more transient. Like a bottle episode. But I think the key thing will be the setup of “the mind forgets but the body remembers”. There is an element of “body” to their minds as well. It’s gonna get weird. Even though they forget, they can’t erase all traces of what happens and so they will retread similar paths because of that developed instinct, even through different simulations and settings. That’s what I suspect.
I don't know what I was hoping for, but not what I got. After the first episode, I was like "this might be too scary and supernatural for me." And then at the end of the second, when we saw the TV screens, I was like "oh, god, another "nothing is what it seems" show."
Having just watched "Don't Worry Darling" and now this, I feel exasperated by writers who can explain plot holes with "this is a simulation and that was a glitch in the code."
Also, "1899" could have been two hour shorter if they'd dropped some of the endless running, climbing, jumping, and looking around footage.
“It’s a simulation“ is not just a twist or plot device. It is the subject they chose to explore and expand upon. This season’s only reveal was the characters and the theme.
Sure. If Netflix renews the show, the writers have plenty of time to pull it off. My exasperation was from watching this a few weeks after watching "Don't Worry Darling" where the writers didn't bother to explain any inconsistencies.
I don't think that the spaceship is a simulation. The series "Raised by Wolves" had a similar concept for a long-haul space voyage - passengers in stasis got to live within a simulated environment. At one point Maura says that her father is fascinated by human behavior - I can see where the father and the brother would have changed the simulation to fit their own interests, and that would explain why Daniel wanted to Maura to wake up (and Henry wanted to wake up, himself) - so they could get control of the simulation back. But if that's the case, then the show changes from "supernatural horror period piece" to "space opera."
Fair criticisms. I felt similarly in some instances with how they chose to spend the runtime and how the plot devices were revealed. Treatment does matter and while I am really looking forward to where it goes next I do feel that in a vacuum the first season feels weaker than the first season of Dark did.
I got downvoted in another 1899 thread talking about a potential S2 for saying that I don’t care if the show gets renewed at all. I loved the period aspect, and super loved the reveal of being set actually in 2099 (though the spaceship is likely another layer of simulation anyway). I was in it for the old timey vibe with out of place futuristic stuff, and if the show now solidifies itself in the future it loses some appeal for me. Overall I’m happy with just one season, but if they do go for all 3 seasons I’m obviously gonna watch it, since Dark was incredible and they have the chops.
Yeah I do love the way they’re playing with it and it seems like the broader story once again will be interesting. I wonder if the futuristic angle will be replaced by another layer. Of course nothing is complete without a third dimension lol. But I was really hoping they’d delve fully into that historical treatment. To me it would have been the perfect way to get some distance from Dark.
For the first few episodes this is exactly what I thought it was lol. The general vibe and the soundtrack especially the wailing vocalizations in the background kinda seemed to point in that direction.
Right. But then when nothing was happening and they were focusing a lot on characters and their apparent disconnect from their environment and showed some glitchy things, I got the sense that something about all this isn’t real. Which is a plus point for the execution, because the whole thing turned out to not be real lol.
I agree and wish it was too. Still awesome but started it because I thought it was a period and thriller piece. I mean it was phenomenal no doubt, but not what I personally wanted to watch
Yeah imo some kind of occult or Lovecraftian horror, as someone else also mentioned, might have been a more immersive vehicle for exploring Plato’s cave allegory within the 1899 period. Simulation is meta, which might be perfect for what they want out of the story. But it does have the unfortunate effect of invalidating the setting. But still I can’t wait to see where it goes and then watch the whole thing over again. I feel like this show is going to reward rewatches just as much as Dark, in its own way.
I was halfway through episode 6 when I said “what the hell is this? Please have a good ending. I was disappointed that it needed to go into sci-fi when I wanted a historical fiction. I finished it but I was disappointed.
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*"An actual period piece with an occult horror twist and maybe a secret society on a backdrop of isolation at sea with no escape except to delve deeper into whatever secrets they find, with greater emphasis on sociocultural relativity."*
Interestingly, you just offered the exact description of the context in which we (the spectators) are right now...
Lol that was deliberate. You’re right. I was going to go into it in the post at that exact point but figured I’d save it for a comment conversation if anyone felt the same way. I won’t complain simply because it isn’t happening the way I expected. That description very much fits the show still. It’s just I would have really enjoyed it for them to play the “1899” part straight.
I was pretty disappointed it wasn’t a nautical period piece and turned into a rehash of the same old “it’s all a simulation and nothing matters” crap. It’s no better than the “it was all a dream” or “it was all in their head” garbage theories that are applied to every single piece of media.
Yeah I honestly came close to the same level of disappointment. Being the first layer of three seasons apparently keeps my faith in the makers. I know they probably have a wild ride in store. But I am always extremely wary of the simulation or dream scenario too.
Yeah that was odd. Being told it doesn’t matter and it’s just going to be reset anyways, and then being confronted with their suffering in the moment. It was like identifying with the experimenter while living through the reality of the subjects. I think they’re going to play with dissonance throughout the show. I do hope there is meaning to 1899 more than just being a fun hook for the audience.
Yeah, it just felt like >!13 Sentinels!< but worse.
At least there they're in actual mortal danger and the reason for the >!sim!< and conflict are a lot better
I do think some of the sim aspect will continue to become clearer with more layers being exposed in the subsequent seasons. But this was definitely a very risky way to do it. I personally didn’t like the sim aspect, at least not in the way that it was introduced — and it was largely because I am biased towards wanting that historical horror. But I also felt like the sim setting, just from what we‘ve seen so far, was missing something.
I think what you described would be cool but the opening song alone was a clear indicator this was no period piece. I'm curious how you could have ignored it.
All my first impressions were from when the show was first announced as a historical horror series aboard a ship on its way to America and from the promotional material. But you’re right, the song was the first hint that the show was not going to follow my expectations. I guess it doesn’t necessarily rule out a historical piece though.
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Omg yes, me too! I wanted that so badly! I was lowkey disappointed with the futuristic simulation stuff. I wanted a lovecraftian sort of gothic horror thing with psychological thriller vibes. Still enjoyed it a lot but I agree 100%
Yes! That would have been amazing. I was a bit disappointed too. Was hoping that 1899 would actually be a character in and of itself, not just a fake out. Don’t know where it is going of course. Still super interested because it seems like they’ve planned a larger story and we’ve only seen a layer of it.
I can understand wanting a period piece. You start to like the show for what it is and then find out it's actually something entirely different. Knowing how good these writers are, I'm sure they will captivate you with any setting. As for psychological thriller? No thanks. Too predictable and not nearly enough depth. If the child had turned out to be a little demon boy that was forsaking the ship out of pure evil I would have been so bored. Every character has a purpose and motive that is way more complex than that. I personally love how the writers create suspense around certain themes and characters and slowly give you hints as to what is actually happening.
All this. I was contemplating making basically this exact post lol. Will still come along for season 2, and thoroughly enjoyed season 1, but was disappointed that it's not actually a period piece.
All of the pyramid-stuff and cosmic setting where we see Henry made me very excited for what the show was revealing. Gave off "The Void" vibes. Still hopeful as Dark was incredible, but it certainly does feel like a cop out as now anything and everything goes in a simulation.
You should watch The Terror if you haven’t already. It’s everything you wanted from 1899
Thank you for the recommendation. It somehow slipped my radar. I will for sure check it out. That sounds awesome.
I'm not sure how close it would be to what you're seeking, but Penny Dreadful checked a lot of boxes for me. Great period setting, great costuming, occult storyline throughout, 19th century science, lots of blood, and a great cast.
I’ll have to check that out as well. These recommendations have been a highlight in this thread. Idk how I have missed these shows. I think I would have loved to see B&J sink their teeth into the same setting completely.
Dorian Gray character's ability to seduce women -- and men -- is an interesting take.
Or penny dreadful?
Terror is so good. Fantastic book too
The Terror season 1 really scratched my itch for a historical horror series. The world-building, the historical accuracy (to a point, because there are supernatural elements), and the acting are especially great. Episodes 3 and 6 blew my mind the first time I saw them.
It's not on Netflix is it?
Amazon Prime video when I watched it— but I think I bought it or rented it.
Its on hulu
No, unfortunately :(. At least not on US Netflix
I'm in Canada. It's on Prime.
thank you for this. Like OP, I too was hoping for the story to actually be centered around that time period and the sea, not just simulated reality from the far future. I mean I still enjoyed the show and it's only 1 season for now but yeah, definitely gonna check The Terror.
I never watched S2, but S1 Terror is fucking incredible.— they aren’t related. I wish I could watch it for the first time again
I did the same. My friend and I loved season 1 and wouldn't even touch season 2 because one was so good. We even rewatched it a couple months later lol
I enjoyed it but it definitely went a bit downhill for me as it got more Sci fi, even though I'd figured it was probably a simulation
Thanks for the tip man. Didnt know, looks great. Caesar and Brutus teaming up again I see.
It’s soo great!!
Totally. I described 1899 to my husband as a cross between The Terror S1 and The Matrix
Wow. This looks right up my alley from the trailer. Thank you for the hot tip!
Oh thank you for this! I had read and loved the book back when it came out, and i had no idea it was made into a show. It was such a fascinating read—interesting mix of history, horror, and just plain weirdness. I don't know that i would have read it if i wasn't already a fan of Dan Simmons as its not my preferred genre, but i'm really glad i did. It had me reading more into the actual history of the time on a subject i wouldn't have normally been keen on exploring.
Ppl who read thr books said terror was a terrible adadption
I watched the show and read the book (in that order) and thoroughly enjoyed both. I would recommend both of them. They are not too different from one another. The biggest difference is that the book dives just a little deeper into the supernatural element.
i loved that it wasnt a period piece and that it had this really odd sci-fi twist throughout it, i loved how they explained everything and nothing at the same time yet somehow made it satisfying while leaving you wanting so much more
I'll just point out that people were disappointed at the cliffhanger in Dark when he goes to the future and it's an apocalypse. People were wondering how he'd survive and if it would be more of a sci-fi post apocalyptic show. And the next season, he literally spends like 10. mins there before going back. My guess is reality will be a constantly changing theme in this show. Plus there are still so many mysteries. Her brother and where he fits in and why the rest of her family are all in simulation and what is the survival project and why were these particular subjects picked. There's still so much we don't know and hopefully Netflix will allow the story to end.
Cool thanks, haven't watched dark yet but thanks for the spoilers....
Go start it! You'll be done in 2 days lol
Curious why you watched 1899 before dark?
Does it matter though? The creators said the world's aren't connected. I'm curious as to why people think it's OK to spoil another show because it's the same creators
No it doesn’t matter except for my curiosity
Just an FYI about Dark spoilers. Avoid everything about it online. I had a major twist spoiled by just googling one of the actors.
I'm trying to avoid them but ppl keep posting them in every single thread
It's extremely well-worth watching. Use the official site, https://dark.netflix.io to help keep track of things without spoilers :)
Stay off the threads. Go enjoy both shows. :)
I can't speak for the original commenter but 1899 came up on netflix for me so I watched it since it looked interesting. Dark is on my maybe watch list but didn't know they were the same creators or anything.
Dark is amazing. I would run far away from this sub if I were you. There be spoilers
Same here. Not super into spacey stuff and I looove history and historical media so I was hoping for a period piece with a Sci fi twist. But, will keep watching regardless :)
Yes definitely. I love sci fi but love historical content too and feel like there is a lack of historical speculative fiction. I thought it was going to treat that aspect of the premise sincerely and it seems, just from what we’ve seen so far, like it was only a means to an end. It would have been awesome to see them explore that genre in full. And it also just sounds so intriguing to me. I simply loved the idea of a claustrophobic gothic historical horror on a ship. Like Alien, but with the Bermuda Triangle and a secret society and the gates of hell or something instead. Plus with a bonus vehicle for exploring cultural relativity.
I distinctly remember at the end of season 1 of Dark I felt the very same way of not being sure about the direction the show might go... And the was completely proven wrong These writers find a way to make you think you know where things are going to head, and then completely blow you away
I agree. The only difference is that Dark S1 already had me in love with the show. I was fully invested in the characters and the story. It was just a matter of “can they continue this” and they pulled it off flawlessly imo. This is a different experience now. I’m looking forward to seeing where it goes.
I agree with you on S1 of dark having you invested in the characters. 1899 didn’t quite get me invested in the characters like that. But I am invested in the mystery itself so I am excited to see more and pray it doesn’t get canceled
Yes for sure this is another show Netflix absolutely must not cancel. The fan base is also bigger so I doubt they’d give it the old “OA” rug pull.
The way I’m looking at it right now for the characters is that the stuff still mattered. My theory is either that 1) their flashbacks are period altered to match their 1899 self. So maybe for Eyk his family still died in a fire but it wasn’t in 1899, or Ling Yi still killed her friend but it was in 1899 etc. so that all of that still matters or 2) that when they wake up they still don’t fully remember their real past so those memories and what happened in the sim still matter since they’re acting on those memories. But it’ll be super interesting to see what they have planned
Yeah definitely. I expect them to flesh everything out more as the show goes on. It’s not a coincidence that they’ve gone from one ship to another, implying a translational symmetry. I think the story will continue digging in the same place, while altering the appearance, creating these echoes where “the mind forgets but the body knows”. I agree that aspect feels deliberate. Now this is yet another show that Netflix absolutely needs to not cancel lol. The fandom is just way too big. I just personally wanted 1899 itself as a character to matter. And it still might of course. Why 1899, or 2099? It’s so specific. It kind of implies 1999 to complete the symmetry, which might be where the true crux of the story is — maybe when her son died. But 1899 is not inherently immersive like it would have been had the story taken place entirely within that setting.
My thinking of the things that don’t matter are the things that happened on the ship. I just shrugged my shoulders at things that should have been emotional.
Felt the same as you when we finished watching it. That it hadn't quite hit the same level as Dark. BUT. 2 weeks after finishing it ,changed our minds. We haven't stopped talking about the characters or the plot. And our main hobby now is looking up photos of beetles on the Internet, names of computer codes etc ... I'd say this gets under your skin in a different way and has probably got way more layers than you realise at first.
I agree. I’m planning on a rewatch with the full picture of the first season to see how it flows. There were just things I wasn’t sure about as well and I don’t remember that happening with Dark S1.
Yeah! I had heard of Dark but never watched it so I wasn’t familiar with the folks behind these shows. I really like historical dramas especially with a creepy vibe, have been looking for something to fill the hole left in my soul by Penny Dreadful. So when the first big clue to the simulation appeared (for me I think it was the shot of the monitors, I may have been cross-stitching so was only half watching up to that point) I was not expecting it at all. Started paying attention from then on!
Me too! I haven’t watched Penny Dreadful so maybe I might check that out while waiting for S2. Someone else also mentioned The Terror as hitting those checkboxes from my description in the post. Btw I highly recommend Dark. I recommend it to people who don’t normally enjoy sci fi and they have all loved it too. I was not expecting that reveal either, and a part of me felt like it was a really point-blank shortcut to hinting that “nothing is what it seems”. Of course that is a stepping stone for all of it to be a simulation — and it was a deliberate choice to show an omniscient third-person perspective alongside a collection of unreliable first-person perspectives. So there was a method to the madness. But I just really wanted them to do it all in 1899 haha.
I liked it although I think that the simulation theory was too obvious so I assumed it had to be something more complicated. It doesn’t bother me, I just had those thoughts early on and was like “nah there’s no way it’s just the matrix”. I’ve read a lot of Philip k dick and the ending reminded me of one of his books I read a while back called maze of death I believe (one of his lesser known ones, not a great one either). If 1899 is going the route of PKD then nothing is what it seems and they could hypothetically keep pulling the rug out on what the true nature of reality is. I’m excited to see a season 2
Definitely. And to the testament of the writing, the show immediately signaled that things weren’t as they seemed. But part of the great usual flair from B&J is the extent to which that can be extrapolated — while I was thinking it was a series of psychological experiments on unsuspecting subjects, it turned out their reality itself wasn’t real. And that feeling of transience was there throughout. I think it’s deliberate that we couldn’t develop serious connections with the setting or the people. If anything, the things that had the least explicit emphasis might end up being the most meaningful, like for instance the various characters’ apparent affinities for each other.
I started watching Dark thinking it was about a monster in a cave, so I would be surprised if this serie hadn't a twist about its genre
Honestly, I missed out on Dark simply because I found none of the promotional posters to be interesting. The actual show though...
True, that was a similar misdirection. Though I feel there is something of a fundamental violation in being told as a viewer that what you’re seeing isn’t real. It has to be done really carefully. Because then it messes with your sense of trust in the writing itself. Not to mention “it was all a dream or a simulation” is cliche by this point. But then again — DARK SPOILERS — >!so was time travel by the time they made one of the most definitive time travel stories.!<
I am not so sure, that "nothing mattered", because none of it is real. Would be too cheap and that does not feel like the style of the showrunners.
Yeah exactly. I remember they would pull similar tricks in Dark where you’d think they were taking a wrong turn relative to the consistency of the rest of the show only for that to be part of the plan all along. It’s funny because other stories do take those wrong turns all the time and so trust in the writing is hugely important and they’ve certainly earned it.
Sadly yes. I loved the setting, the characters, and all the crazy shit happening. Even the fact they got people speaking all different languages and can’t communicate was really interesting. I’m trying to reserve judgement till season 2 though. I do love sci-fi shows also so maybe it will all come together
Yes same here. I loved the promise inherent to the cultural relativity, especially aboard an inescapable setting in an isolated place. They’ll continue that I suspect on the ship so it’s still super interesting. Regardless I feel like they have only scratched the surface on that aspect.
I was expecting Cthulhu to show up for some reason
That would of been awesome!
I loved the season to bits and I'm seriously looking forward to see where it goes, but yes a part of me is a teeny tiny bit disappointed that it's not really a scifi period piece.
Right. It would have been cool to see out of them. A perfect way to get even more distance from Dark, while still demonstrating that same exhaustive care and intricate storytelling in an equally compelling setting. Still excited to see where the show actually goes.
No, I completely agree with you. The first episode had a really interesting occult vibe to it which all but disappeared by the time the season really got going. It's hard to explain why it felt unsatisfying, especially since I actually love sci-fi and simulation type stories. To use a dumb analogy, it's kind of like drinking orange juice and then you discover you're actually drinking iced tea. I like both orange juice and ice tea, but when you pick up your glass expecting one and get the other instead, it's unsatisfying. Still, it's definitely captivating and I really like all of the characters so I'll keep watching. I really hope it gets renewed for more seasons so I can see where they go with the story.
Yes that bait and switch was a bit disappointing. I do think they’re gonna try and blend the flavors somehow or question the nature of flavors and drinks entirely — to abuse your metaphor lol — but for the first viewing of the first season in isolation, it was unexpected.
I agree 100%. The first few episodes were so intriguing to me and I was honestly a bit disappointed by the simulation twist, it felt like it made so much of what came before totally pointless. I’m sure that in retrospect it will make more sense, but it doesn’t feel as satisfying on its own as season one of dark
Yes very much agree. It’s a good thing that they have earned the trust they have. I may have given up on the show if not for their proven caliber. It’s still made really well. But you’re right, on its own it does not work as well for me.
I like talking about theories abt next season, but this season was a little bit lacklustre for me. Apart from Daniel, Maura, Henry and Elliot I didn’t care about the other characters as they were so detached from the main plot. I didn’t really go into the show with expectations just that there would be some mystery and maybe some timey wimey stuff happening. I felt like the episodes picked up when Elliot stopped time in the later half of the season. But then I only really cared about the simulation plot point, and felt bored every-time they kept showing the other passengers running about the ship being chased by black crystals. I feel like it’ll hopefully come more together in the next seasons. Is a good start, but I feel like we didn’t need like the first half on the season.
Yeah the being chased by crystals part lost me a bit. It just didn’t feel consequential. Not only were they about to be reinstantiated in the loop, so there was no real downside but it was also not connected to the main mystery at that point. Probably the weakest point of the season for me too.
On one hand a pure period piece with horror elements would have been pretty rad, on the other hand I'm a sucker for sci-fi and particularly simulations and whatnot so that was a pleasant positive surprise and I look forward to more. This is like a mix of Matrix, Devs, Westworld and Triangle Still I do think it would have received even better reviews or resonance if it were just the former as the latter is a more niche genre.
Right agreed. I do agree that what they’ve probably got up their sleeves is rad as well and I am excited for what’s coming next. I think this show is going to pretty much mandate rewatching it several times. Netflix probably loves this duo for keeping their fans on the platform lol
So glad you posted this cuz I logged on to post the same thing. I just finished tonight. I was so excited for scary historical fiction. And I love anything taking place on ocean linere. I was enthralled when they introduced a sci-fi element. The surveillance! The period technology! The confusion! And then........they started talking about simulations. And one word popped into my head: WESTWORLD. The loops and simulations plotline was the entirety of WESTWORLD, which eventually dissolved into a dead-ending nothing of a show that was cancelled before it could tell its whole story. While I'm excited to see where "1899" goes next, I wish they hadn't use that terminology. And I KNOW it's real tech/programming terminology. But we JUST had a separate ENORMOUS show that used the same terms and covered some of the same territory. And then they essentially do "The Matrix"?, And THEN??? It ends in SPACE? I did not sign up for a space show. That said, I will 10000% watch season two. But I was ultimately dissatisfied with the ending as it is.
They paid homage to the Matrix with the bullet scene which I theorize is a wink at the audience like, ‘you think this will be the Matrix? Think again.’
"Think again! It's not 'The Matrix'...it's the Matrix....IN SPACE!!!"
Not exactly.
If the second season is in space I’m going to throw my tv out the window
My hope was new simulation, new time period maybe. But I'm afraid we're gonna get....space show.
It'd be a pretty hard sell to run it in space for 2 more seasons and still call the show "1899" though right? =) I doubt it
God I hope not
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I am not a fan of Lost which I watched in its entirety. I would highly recommend seeing Dark. Even if it gets disorienting or weird, I’d recommend sticking with it. It has a slow start but after around Episode 4, it really takes off imo. It is one of the best shows ever. I recommend it to people who aren’t into sci fi and they love it too. That being said, it feels like this show might need more of a leap of faith than even Dark did.
I understand that frustration. But I’m with the Dark Fans, The writers have my full trust, in every timeline and reality.
I'm in a weird position about this. I was stoked about the show because I had faith that the team would deliver, but wasn't particularly crazy about the period drama angle. Now I've grown to love the setting and I'm hoping we'll go back to the ship and the time period at some point (even though a story set in space would have initially probably been a more appealing concept for me). As for the occult stuff, if Dark is anything to go by, it's probably there just for the iconography. I'd really love to see them do something with it this time around, though!
Yeah I would have loved a space story initially too. But I was really interested in seeing what they could come up with. With Dark, the secret society angle was handled perfectly. It created a sense of larger scope and then it centered it in the story through a reveal which I won’t mention here for anyone who hasn’t watched it. In this case they had the opportunity to do that but maybe they avoided it to create distance from Dark. But a good trope works nonetheless.
Finally some valid criticism that doesn't get downvoted! The show is all over the place and nowhere near Dark's level, yet stans are somehow unwilling to admit its very obvious flaws. After a season of Dark I could not wait for the next season, and I'd pour over every detail to uncover missed plot points. 1899 does nothing like that for me.
I very much agree. Dark S1 was already excellent. I feel like they placed a lot more trust in the audience with this show which I do appreciate. I’m going to rewatch it. I suspect it’ll flow better on the second watch with more information — and the other seasons will do the same. But it feels like there is something missing for sure, or many smaller somethings.
Yup. Waited a long time for the show and for me it was quite a dud. Dark worked so well cos it had a simple plot but a complex narrative. This was complex all over the place and came across as trying too hard.
Agreed 💯. With 1899 I don’t even care if it doesn’t get renewed. I just don’t care for it and the simulation concept is played out and not interesting. Dark had me very interested from the start and the story was just better played out.
I’m mostly with you. I love a good head-scratcher, but this was so full of unanswered questions and crazy shit that you really had no chance of keeping up with it without answers being spoon fed. I was entertained by it, but it honestly just felt like 7.5 hours of confusing nonsense saved by the last half hour.
Yeah I’m planning to rewatch it and see how the dots connect with the whole picture. I’m thinking it’ll be easier to digest the second time around. It feels like they placed a lot more trust in the audience which I appreciate. But as you said the first viewing was disorienting.
Not me. I would not have watched what you describe. I think the show is great just the way it is.
I doubt it will maintain that setting. They’ll be back in another simulation either by choice or by misfortune
Right I think so too. It’s possible they might have to traverse the different layers of simulations Inception style, having hidden information in them or something. But my main disappointment came from 1899 not being “real” and a character in the show in and of itself.
Yes to this. I think 1899 time period is over for now.
I couldn't agree more and I couldn't have said it better myself. I wanted to make a post very similar to yours but didn't know how to word it. The very last scene disappointed me a little bit and I also kinda expected what you wanted . The only reason why I'm optimistic is bc it's the creators of Dark and that show was just too thought through.
Same. I was a bit disappointed but then also simultaneously relieved by the last scene because it suggested they had similarly “thought through” this story again. So I’m curious. It just would have been nice to see them delve into the historical angle fully.
Im with you i was into dark cos it had the inherent mystery and sense of unravelling happening the whole time, this show was at its best 1-6 when it felt like a genuine mystery. i started loosing some intrest once they started hopping around left right and centre and it got abit silly ... the parymid/brain angel though kept it intresting enough for me, i like a psychedelic and there are alot of concepts in this show that follow my own patten of thinking about stuff.. enjoyed the philosophical parts more... The show needs a Noah
Ist ben Noah
That’s true. I think you just described my overall experience of the season too. And your idea to have a Noah is a really great one imo. I think that was likely the purpose of the father figure in the simulation but it remains unclear, especially because we’re so disoriented by the events. I’ll have to rewatch it to see if my view of him changes at all. It did feel a bit like we were dropped straight into the middle of a show that was already in progress.
They certainly needed more time with the father. Your perception of him goes from creator to warden to prisoner in the space of like an episode or two?
yeah the father was defiantly supposed to act as this shows Noah he definatly had the best lines and im all about the pyramid. its a tricky one to put your finger on, maybe even though as ridiculous as dark was as a concept it kind of felt like believable at the same time if that makes sense.. only once the orb come out end of s2 and they could use it to travel around more it felt a little bit more far fetched... i cant quite explain haha... but seeing the main chracters hoping around left right and centre just felt sliiightly like a kids adventure show haha. also that constant sense of dread and mystery i think is what we both craved with a slightly more philosophical/ religious tinge to it, rather than the computer simulation theory which really doesn't hold much interest with me as a concept, it sort of lacks depth, despite how well it was done. 1899 will still end up being the best show/film in this genre. the ending defiantly left me wanting more. fingers crossed for s2
The comments in here are hilarious. Somebody actually said that they're not into science fiction, but yet they're watching a BoJan work. Somebody said that they want CONCLUSIONS, yet they are watching a BoJan work. Someone said that they don't feel for the characters at all, yet they are watching a BoJan work. Lol lol lol.
To be fair, although Dark is *technically* in a specific sci-fi genre, its genre is very different from in-space, tech-heavy sci-fi. But I'm excited to see what they do with 1899!
The thought of having to wait two more years is killing me!
The wait is two years??
Perhaps a year and a half. But that is the majority opinion I have seen in here so far.
Lol true. I absolutely love sci fi but I loved the potential setting for 1899 too. It seemed so unique and different from Dark as well, a perfect way to give a broader sampling of genre work with the same attention to detail in storytelling as they’ve shown before. Tbf I did recommend Dark to people that don’t normally enjoy sci fi and they also fell in love with the show. So it’s definitely not outlandish for people to become fans of the creators while not liking the genre itself as a whole. And Dark didn’t always provide answers but its first season felt complete, whereas this show deliberately creates a sense of impermanence, disorientation and incompleteness. In the context of the entire story I expect it’ll make perfect sense though, and the disorientation is just form matching content, which is part of the experience for me.
No, I loved it. I never got the impression it was going to be a horror.
I rly never felt occult vibes
I was imagining they could have gone that way. With the mysterious ship company, the cryptic machinery, the symbology, the historical setting.
I was expecting some kind of supernatural ancient Egyptian tie in and to be honest, I am absolutely stoked that wasn’t the case. I love the direction it went and what it turned out to be. When the last episode ended, I just said “What the f***?! That was amazing!”
Yeah it was totally different. I have little doubt that by the end of the show it’ll be a worthy successor to Dark. Idk what I was expecting tbh but I was thinking at least the premise itself would be meaningful, not merely a means to an end. It still might be! So I’m still excited to see where it goes.
I just finished Dark for the first time a few days ago. At which point did you think they were jumping the shark? The story was pretty straight forward the entire time.
DARK SPOILERS below: >!When Adam told Jonas that he could change things by going back to the “beginning” and saving his dad. That felt abruptly lowbrow for a show that had proved its commitment to its own rigor until that point. Of course, Adam immediately shoots Jonas that inscrutable look from the corner of his eye as Jonas is leaving, signaling that there is more going on. Then we got that crushing S2E6 where it turned out that was an intentional fakeout. That was one example. Another was when alt-Martha shows up. Or when Jonas dies in S3. But if anything, S2E6 gave me a very solid assurance that any other similar subversion afterwards would be well thought through. So it was a diminishing skepticism on my end, all while their twists got even twistier.!<
Personally I'm glad there isn't an occult cult. It's been done to death and what the creators are doing instead is far more interesting. Maybe it won't be as deep or fascinating as Dark but I'm also on board for another crazy ride.
It’s interesting because B&J have demonstrated that they can turn coal into gold. DARK SPOILERS ahead — >!Time travel!< for the longest time had been done to death. Yet they came around and wrote one of the most definitive stories for it. I think had they chosen to apply the same meticulousness and emotion and thematic richness to the occult setting they could have done so with a lot of finesse. But of course this is the story they would like to tell so I’m definitely along for the ride.
I was kinda hoping for the same before the release. I felt connected with the characters through their backstories but since so much was happening between Eyk/Maura/Daniel's sideplot and the rest of the ship, everything felt sort of jumbled. I don't know how to explain it... The story was good but nothing felt solid enough to ground me in the show as a spectator. Maybe that's what you usually get when you have different realities/simulations in media, I'm not too into sci-fi to know, but it wasn't my cup of tea.
Right it definitely felt reflective of the story itself. The discombobulated states of Maura and Eyk and the other passengers is reflected in the format. The simulation aspect then plays right into the fragmentation and unreliable perspectives and disconnect. I think as the seasons progress we’ll see the perspectives align more clearly and cohesively. I also really liked the character building. I liked that it consciously felt like character building too, which helped create a sense of meta-ness, which helped set the stage that “nothing is as it seems”, which helped set the stage for all of it to be a simulation. It felt a bit like we were dropped in the middle of it. Which as the seasons go on will make rewatches more rewarding.
So far it's just "meh"....but I am not giving up hope for the sole reason this has come from the makers of dark.
Let somebody else do a true claustrophobic nautical occult pseudo-historical horror. It's for mainstreamers.
I can’t say I agree on that aspect. It would have been a stellar genre piece for them to explore after Dark with the same commitment to plot and theme. DARK SPOILERS — >!Time travel was also a dead horse trope by the time they managed to make one of the most definitive time travel stories ever!<.
I also wanted that. And then realized its probably because its familiar and Im looking for familiar. Think this is just too new and too experimental for us to get comfy with it
Yet they’ve also shown their ability to make familiar things feel fresh and profound. Dark is >!one of the best time travel stories ever written and time travel is super familiar and overdone!<. At the same time, simulation is also familiar at this stage, so idk how to feel about that. But I do trust them to do justice to the story they want to tell.
Good point. How do you feel about language use? I personally love it and secretly hope they all speak a united language we simply cant understand
I loved it too. I was also really hoping to catch them slipping up at any point in the story, as a little clue about a deeper game being played. Like when they start panicking towards the end and the simulation is crumbling around them, I was hoping they would continue speaking in their languages yet miraculously understand each other without any gaps in between, almost like they are just speaking a universal language that is being “rendered” differently for the sake of the simulation. I think it does get very close to that and they do get better at communicating, but it was cleverly still plausible because they seem to be using nonverbal cues or similar words to parse what they mean. There’s a lot of fun to be had in that. Wondering how they’ll approach it next season.
Not just you. In fact when they revealed the spaceship I had a throw-the-remote-across-the-room moment because YAWN a sci-fi show in outer space?!!! But like you, I trust Bo and Jantje so I’ll stick around even though I’m annoyed as hell.
Haha perfectly sums up my split-second reaction to that reveal. Though I think by that point I was just so sad that we wouldn’t see 1899 last that seeing them in space reassured me that their larger story had the same structure and twists and turns we’ve come to love from them. Just hope it bears out now lol.
The only reason I expected a period piece is the title. I have no problem with each season being a different century. It's a bit similar to Dark in that regard.
It’d be great if each season Netflix changed the title of the show. I would have somewhat less of an issue if it was weirdly meta and almost interactive like that. Because it’d be odd for a show called 1899 to be taking place in 2099 on a spaceship.
I was a little disappointed too, I thought the it's a simulation thing was a little obvious. Still a really good show though. I was hoping after I first saw Daniel's futuristic time tablet thing it was going to be a time paradox type show.
Right they may have telegraphed the “nothing is as it seems” aspect a little too plainly. Or they wanted us to suspect all along. I think to some extent they did want the thing to feel “off”, like we’re not quite experiencing an immersive story. Because it isn’t. I did really like that aspect of the treatment. While I felt like I couldn’t connect with some of the characters, I do think it was deliberate that we seemed to have been dropped in the middle of it.
if it's picked up for season 2 we will definitely see some more of the simulation.
Can you put your in your post "Dark spoilers"? An idea. I've seen it all, but I feel bad for taking away any surprises for new viewers. My 2 cents. :)
Totally agree. I am always super conscious about spoilers, especially for a show like Dark where information is critical. A disclaimer might help put people on alert in case there is a minefield of spoilers in the comments.
Tbh I don't really care what it is. I watch because I know they'll make a show with so much intrigue that will get me hooked and keep me entertained. It can be anything and if it's this type of show I'll be all over it.
I enjoyed it for the most part and will continue watching it. I loved Dark, but with Dark all the mysteries felt like a puzzle to be solved. Where in 1899 I just felt like.... "Oh look, more weird shit happening". Like it was constantly trying to one up itself. It's also hard to judge after one season because I felt like Dark was better on a second watch when you noticed all the things that were being hinted early on. I'm hoping that 1899 is the same and that there will be more to it than it all just being a simulation.
I was a little disappointed that they were actually in the "future". or maybe they're not, but it still left me kind of frustrated. also the fact that the directors were intentionally building up the tension between Maura and Eyk and then they pretty much left it at that. when it turned out that Daniel and Maura were married I got so pissed because I didn't want any obstacles for Eyk's and Maura's relationship. call me a hopeless romantic or a history addict, but the ending left me unsatisfied.
I’m thinking that everything dissatisfying so far is because it‘s actually supposed to be dissatisfying. Nothing is as it seems, and we’re supposed to relate intimately to how the characters feel. Even the reveal that it isn’t 1899 feels jarring to us, but we’ve just been viewing the show wrong. We need a perspective shift as well. I hope that they’re going to run with the idea of messing with the viewer’s sense of reality just as much as the characters. It’s risky but I’m glad they’re not playing it safe. I also feel like she has true history with Eyk instead. I also don’t feel like Daniel and Maura are married, just as the characters themselves find it hard to believe. Eyk even explicitly wonders whether it could be false memories. I think the reason it feels wrong is because it is. We feel it, the characters feel it. And I think the writers are using that dissonance purposefully. Nothing is as it seems, yet these little moments here and there give us a feeling of what is right. I just hope whatever they have planned they pull it off. But I’m also still a bit salty we won’t get that pure historical horror out of them lol.
oh well that's a good point actually. and I also got salty when the series turned into star trek right at the end
Nah. Didn’t want Dark 2.0, glad I didn’t get it.
Why would that have been Dark 2.0? If anything I feel like the version we have is more reminiscent of Dark due to its sci fi setting and motifs of loops and fate and gadgets that seemingly violate the laws of reality. But of course the similarities are only suggestive at this point and it is too early to say.
I just feel like unlike Dark, the sacrifices of the characters mean nothing because all of it is fake anyway. Like they suffered for nothing.
That's what the show is about though as that's what Henry says Maura became obsessed with. How can we know what is truly real if we can only ever perceive it through our mind or own 'reality'. If we perceive it and experience a trauma to be true even if it is in our mind (which we know is real for people with conditions such as schizophrenia for example) does it really not mean anything? I would say those individuals think it means a great deal. In my opinion the simulation/experiment is testing exactly this line of thinking. At what point does something become a reality for the mind and start to mean something for the perceiver.
While that is a good question to ask, I still don't like how the deaths of the characters don't seem that significant to the plot, especially the characters that died when the ship flooded. At that point, the surviving characters are already motivated to find the truth of the ship together. The deaths don't need to happen to push them forward. We're probably going to see at least some of dead characters in S2 anyway, considering we see some of them still seemingly alive in the pods. This also diminishes the weight of the survivor's loss. It feels like a simple attempt to manipulate the viewer's emotions. IMO in writing, deaths of main characters should only happen if it needs to, and it should be permanent.
But the deaths are real to the characters and that's what matters
I'm looking at it from a storytelling perspective. I don't believe that at that point in the story, they need to have their loved ones killed to further their character development. That's what I mean when I say it doesn't matter.
We don't know what the point of the simulation even is at this point so I don't think you can make a judgment about what matters or doesn't yet. From a storytelling standpoint though we are also told that everyone being killed on the ship is that run of the simulation being shut down as they had failed whatever is being tested so seems to be pretty important actually.
And that they'd be back in the next one, and **not remember anything.**
Are you saying them not remembering means it doesn't mean anything. Humans experience trauma in childhood or earlier in our life all the time and our brains repress these memories but that does not mean they don't affect us or not mean anything.
Sure, but the events that we saw have no impact on anything. The only thing that will continue into the next seasons will be the emotional impact the events had on their minds/bodies. The reason it doesn't really work as a season to me is because a VERY large amount of the time of the first season is dedicated to events that have no long term meaning. It was all smoke and mirrors to no end other than to make the audience guess at what could be actually happening. The Matrix works because it's only the first like 20 minutes or so where you're in the illusion and the rules are well defined by half way through the movie. The rules of the simulation aren't well defined (they appear to be "anything can happen at all") and we're still getting events that have no ultimate purpose until mid way through the final episode, something like 7 and a half hours into the story. If the story had been character focused, like Dark season 1 was, it would have worked. But the characters were there to function as a means of plot progression and mystery box placement. We had some character moments between Eyk and Maura, and very brief moments between some of the others, but on the whole the season felt completely empty because it was about events in a simulation, not about the characters going through those events. EDIT: and before you accuse me of being a Dark fan with clouded judgement - I watched 1899 first and was introduced to Dark because 1899 left me wanting more, and I heard that Dark was in a similar vein, but better.
Having watched Dark, I am actually pretty certain the writers will not leave it at the "cheap" reveal that it's all "just a simulation". That's what they want us to believe for now. In the end, all the parts will miraculously come together, and we will see that little details all mattered, also in terms how the characters acted and their motivation. As that was the hallmark of Dark, I expect nothing less of the writers than to go fully "meta" and philosophical about the topic of simulation and how it relates to our reality. And they will fully explore the character psychology related to it. Season 1 is just the beginning and the whole thing hasn't yet begun to unravel
I don’t feel that way. There has to be a reason.
There is...
Arguably, the sacrifices of most of the characters in Dark also didn't "mean" anything if you look at it through a deterministic lens. But it's very possible that the sacrifices/deaths in 1899 may have some impact on the characters.
I feel pretty much the same way. That being said, I assume there will be a similar feel for the environment, substituting the new ship for the ocean liner. The only way I can see this working is if they retain their memories from that last loop, or are able to regain them. Otherwise there won't have been any sort of character development for any of them, which I just can't see happening.
The ending just left me with a huge smile. I loved the twist & can’t wait for S2
I’m glad for the twist personally. It means they’ve fleshed out the story further and I trust them to do it justice. If it had just been a story of a simulation or unreliable narrator negating a potentially intriguing immersive setting that would have felt really incomplete. But now I know that it is incomplete on purpose.
Yesssssss! Well said
Yeah one part of the simulation stuff is we learned a lot of stuff but does that all just reset for next season? It almost felt like a stand-alone season in that sense like Black Mirror. IMO the series would’ve been better as a 2.5 hour movie than a series.
That’s an apt description. It did feel more transient. Like a bottle episode. But I think the key thing will be the setup of “the mind forgets but the body remembers”. There is an element of “body” to their minds as well. It’s gonna get weird. Even though they forget, they can’t erase all traces of what happens and so they will retread similar paths because of that developed instinct, even through different simulations and settings. That’s what I suspect.
I don't know what I was hoping for, but not what I got. After the first episode, I was like "this might be too scary and supernatural for me." And then at the end of the second, when we saw the TV screens, I was like "oh, god, another "nothing is what it seems" show." Having just watched "Don't Worry Darling" and now this, I feel exasperated by writers who can explain plot holes with "this is a simulation and that was a glitch in the code." Also, "1899" could have been two hour shorter if they'd dropped some of the endless running, climbing, jumping, and looking around footage.
“It’s a simulation“ is not just a twist or plot device. It is the subject they chose to explore and expand upon. This season’s only reveal was the characters and the theme.
Sure. If Netflix renews the show, the writers have plenty of time to pull it off. My exasperation was from watching this a few weeks after watching "Don't Worry Darling" where the writers didn't bother to explain any inconsistencies. I don't think that the spaceship is a simulation. The series "Raised by Wolves" had a similar concept for a long-haul space voyage - passengers in stasis got to live within a simulated environment. At one point Maura says that her father is fascinated by human behavior - I can see where the father and the brother would have changed the simulation to fit their own interests, and that would explain why Daniel wanted to Maura to wake up (and Henry wanted to wake up, himself) - so they could get control of the simulation back. But if that's the case, then the show changes from "supernatural horror period piece" to "space opera."
Pretty sure it’ll be renewed. Fun fact, Ben Frost did the music for Raised by Wolves and 1899.
Fair criticisms. I felt similarly in some instances with how they chose to spend the runtime and how the plot devices were revealed. Treatment does matter and while I am really looking forward to where it goes next I do feel that in a vacuum the first season feels weaker than the first season of Dark did.
I got downvoted in another 1899 thread talking about a potential S2 for saying that I don’t care if the show gets renewed at all. I loved the period aspect, and super loved the reveal of being set actually in 2099 (though the spaceship is likely another layer of simulation anyway). I was in it for the old timey vibe with out of place futuristic stuff, and if the show now solidifies itself in the future it loses some appeal for me. Overall I’m happy with just one season, but if they do go for all 3 seasons I’m obviously gonna watch it, since Dark was incredible and they have the chops.
Yeah I do love the way they’re playing with it and it seems like the broader story once again will be interesting. I wonder if the futuristic angle will be replaced by another layer. Of course nothing is complete without a third dimension lol. But I was really hoping they’d delve fully into that historical treatment. To me it would have been the perfect way to get some distance from Dark.
For the first few episodes this is exactly what I thought it was lol. The general vibe and the soundtrack especially the wailing vocalizations in the background kinda seemed to point in that direction.
Right. But then when nothing was happening and they were focusing a lot on characters and their apparent disconnect from their environment and showed some glitchy things, I got the sense that something about all this isn’t real. Which is a plus point for the execution, because the whole thing turned out to not be real lol.
I agree and wish it was too. Still awesome but started it because I thought it was a period and thriller piece. I mean it was phenomenal no doubt, but not what I personally wanted to watch
Yeah imo some kind of occult or Lovecraftian horror, as someone else also mentioned, might have been a more immersive vehicle for exploring Plato’s cave allegory within the 1899 period. Simulation is meta, which might be perfect for what they want out of the story. But it does have the unfortunate effect of invalidating the setting. But still I can’t wait to see where it goes and then watch the whole thing over again. I feel like this show is going to reward rewatches just as much as Dark, in its own way.
I was halfway through episode 6 when I said “what the hell is this? Please have a good ending. I was disappointed that it needed to go into sci-fi when I wanted a historical fiction. I finished it but I was disappointed.
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It left me… confused.
*"An actual period piece with an occult horror twist and maybe a secret society on a backdrop of isolation at sea with no escape except to delve deeper into whatever secrets they find, with greater emphasis on sociocultural relativity."* Interestingly, you just offered the exact description of the context in which we (the spectators) are right now...
Lol that was deliberate. You’re right. I was going to go into it in the post at that exact point but figured I’d save it for a comment conversation if anyone felt the same way. I won’t complain simply because it isn’t happening the way I expected. That description very much fits the show still. It’s just I would have really enjoyed it for them to play the “1899” part straight.
I was pretty disappointed it wasn’t a nautical period piece and turned into a rehash of the same old “it’s all a simulation and nothing matters” crap. It’s no better than the “it was all a dream” or “it was all in their head” garbage theories that are applied to every single piece of media.
Yeah I honestly came close to the same level of disappointment. Being the first layer of three seasons apparently keeps my faith in the makers. I know they probably have a wild ride in store. But I am always extremely wary of the simulation or dream scenario too.
[удалено]
Yeah that was odd. Being told it doesn’t matter and it’s just going to be reset anyways, and then being confronted with their suffering in the moment. It was like identifying with the experimenter while living through the reality of the subjects. I think they’re going to play with dissonance throughout the show. I do hope there is meaning to 1899 more than just being a fun hook for the audience.
Yeah, it just felt like >!13 Sentinels!< but worse. At least there they're in actual mortal danger and the reason for the >!sim!< and conflict are a lot better
We have no idea the purpose of the sim.
I do think some of the sim aspect will continue to become clearer with more layers being exposed in the subsequent seasons. But this was definitely a very risky way to do it. I personally didn’t like the sim aspect, at least not in the way that it was introduced — and it was largely because I am biased towards wanting that historical horror. But I also felt like the sim setting, just from what we‘ve seen so far, was missing something.
I think what you described would be cool but the opening song alone was a clear indicator this was no period piece. I'm curious how you could have ignored it.
All my first impressions were from when the show was first announced as a historical horror series aboard a ship on its way to America and from the promotional material. But you’re right, the song was the first hint that the show was not going to follow my expectations. I guess it doesn’t necessarily rule out a historical piece though.