I love both The Expanse show and The Expanse book series, and I’ll likely talk about both at the same time a lot in future posts, but in this one, I mostly just talk about how I came to be obsessed with the show.

Still from the first episode of The Expanse. A pale, skinny Belter speaking to a crowd and pointing for emphasis.
A scene early in S1-E01: Dulcinea. The show had already grabbed hold of me here.

I was a little bit late to The Expanse. When the first season was airing, I kept hearing how great it was, but I didn’t get around to watching it until later. I put S1 E1 on one night after work and I immediately knew it was the show for me. Unfortunately, I was also very tired, and the first episode is very dark (I mean the lighting) and has approximately 50 characters. I knew I would have to re-watch it later. It still took me a few weeks, but then I binged. I also immediately ordered whatever books were out at the time, so I could go immerse myself in the fan stuff online without fear of spoilers (when a thing grabs me like that, I have a strong urge to immediately go find the fan discussions and learn everything I can about the thing).

A still from The Expanse. Part of the ship Rocinante is visible, looking like it's about to touch some weird green space.
The Rocinante bathed in mysterious green from S3-E09: Intransigence.

It’s been a love affair ever since. I read every more recent book pretty much as soon as it came out (on my phone, mostly), watched the new seasons as they came out, and tried to get everyone I knew to watch when the show got canceled. I was happy when it got revived, and sad again when it was revealed S6 was to be the last one, and books 7, 8, and 9 weren’t getting seasons (though I am pleased with what we did get!).

A still from The Expanse. Two people in space suits are hanging in space, with their heads pointing towards each other and their feet in opposite directions. They are holding hands. In the background is the surface of a planet, with land masses, water, and clouds. A space ship is in orbit between the people and the planet.
S4-E09: Saeculum.

A lot of people like The Expanse because of the space realism, and yea, that’s fun, but that’s not my main reason for liking it. It’s the characters, and their stories. It’s the hope and faith in humanity that’s in there, because, even though it can get dark, it’s never bleak. That’s what, to me, makes The Expanse really great, but I loved it before I learned that. It was the costumes, the props, the accents, and the made-up language that drew me in very early in the first episode. Then I saw Naomi and she looked SO COOL, I was sold.

Naomi’s first scene in S1-E1: Dulcinea.