With 35 hours before launch, there is still so much to do, discuss and devise. A mission to Mars has never been attempted before and already there has been a near-fatal disaster — having only just reached the moon. This is how Netflix’s newest 10-episode space drama, Away, opens, piecing together the events that have led up to this moment on the cusp of history.
Commander Emma Green (Hilary Swank) of the United States leads the crew of five international explorers about to embark on a three-year journey to Mars on their ship, the Atlas. The expedition, “The Mars Joint Initiative” has a diverse crew of the most capable minds in their respective fields: Dr. Lu Wang (Vivian Wu) a chemist from China; Dr. Kwesi Weisberg-Abban (Ato Essandoh), a British botanist: a medic from India named Ram Arya (Ray Panthaki); and the most experienced space-traveller on board, Misha Popov (Mark Ivanir), a Russian cosmonaut. Tensions are high as Emma’s leadership capabilities are questioned mere hours before all systems go. You’d think NASA would have a human resources team equipped to deal with workplace disputes on the moon.
The pilot episode, written by Andrew Hinderaker and directed by Edward Zwick, also stars Josh Charles as Matt Logan, Emma’s husband and one of NASA’s chief engineers. The episode dives into the psyche of the most famous astronaut in the world, the toll and sacrifice of such a historic mission, and interrogates when and if a lifelong dream can go too far. Through Emma’s interviews with a NASA psychologist, viewers are able to explore the mental toll of attempting the unprecedented.
Swank is strong in this lead role, but this character offers less nuance and depth than her notable performances in past films like Million Dollar Baby and Boys Don’t Cry. However, putting “leading man” back at the top of his resume since leaving The Good Wife in 2014 is Charles, playing a father at the top of his career while battling life-threatening health issues. Charles is as compelling as ever and the one to watch in the pilot as he develops a rarely seen on TV stay at home dad persona, however, flashy Swank’s spacesuit may be.
The most poignant scene shows a simple parallel between Emma’s home and work life. Matt tells Emma that every single time he’s watched her launch into space has been the worst day of his life. This honest revelation leads to a sex scene that cuts back and forth to Emma being dressed in her spacesuit for the mission. Set to Manchester Orchestra’s, “The Maze,” this brief montage is evocative and intimate, showing the internal dichotomy of Emma’s desires. Throughout the whole episode but especially here, I couldn’t help but think, not only would I never risk my life to travel to Mars for three years, I can’t imagine why someone would.
This is the central question and ultimately where the writers failed to give an explanation. For such a high-risk endeavour (a journalist informs the crew there is a 50 per cent probable fail rate), the screenplay does not offer a glimpse as to why the most dangerous and record mission in history is the livelihood of the main character. Most of the crew explicitly state they have no spouse or children to leave behind. Emma is not an underdog nor obnoxiously passionate like the cosmonaut. She isn’t the most brilliant either — her competency was called into question throughout — so a brief dialogue of explanation about the risk of this opportunity was warranted. This lack of clarity and backstory left me confused and disenchanted by the character.
I am looking forward to learning the personal stories of the crew members, especially astronaut Lu Wang who grows quiet around the subject of her necklace from a “dear friend” back home. The possible inclusion of a Chinese lesbian storyline would be remarkable as queer Asian love stories are negligible on mainstream TV. This would be a huge boost to the storyline and an important move towards true intersectionality on screen.
Elaborate costumes and set designs from the first episode can be attributed to Netflix’s ability to finance strong space effects. The zero gravity spaceships and hyper-realistic green screens reportedly cost the series $6 million per episode, according to Esquire.
Away began streaming on Netflix on Sept. 4th with the 44-57 minute episodes showing viewers a range of space, sex and workplace disputes; surely there’s something for everybody. Though the plot lacked coverage and explanation in the opener, I am hoping to see it be developed further in subsequent episodes. It is a perfect escapist drama for 2020, taking you out of your home office and hopefully onto Mars.