'The Expanse': Season Five Review
Image Source: The Expanse Lives
The penultimate season of the series begins a tense final trajectory for the show. Season five follows the events of book five, continuing the Amazon series’ one-season, one-book pacing. If we look at the two halves of the series as two trilogies, this season fits the mold of the second act of a trilogy being the darkest, because this season is dark.
When we left off at the end of season four, Ashford’s hunt for Marco Inaros revealed part of his plan to raise Belter’s to the status of a superpower by dropping stealth-tech painted asteroids onto Earth. His plan works much like the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor; he wanted to take Earth and Mars out of the game so that he and his new Free Navy could establish power in the system and relegate the Inners to their respective orbits and whatnot. All of this happens while the Roci crew is split up, taking some time off to visit people, and Amos decides to go back to Earth at the worst possible time.
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Marco (Keon Alexander) and Filip (Jasai Chase Owens)
Image Source: Fandom
Meanwhile, Bobbie is working for Avasarala on Mars to unravel a plot involving strange activity within the Martian Navy. Alex uses his time away from the Roci to go back to Mars and visit his family and Bobbie. When his family shuts him out and Bobbie’s depression pushes him away, instead of leaving, Alex confronts and works with Bobbie to figure out what’s going on. Avasarala, missing the spotlight, has to work against the consequences of her action as UN Secretary General to try and keep Earth alive.
Every stake has been magnified in this season. Amos, Naomi, Avasarala, and Alex all find special attention in this season where it’s been sorely missing, at least for Alex and Naomi. Avasarala and Amos have had strong character development throughout the show, but it really shines in this season. Much of Avasarala’s arc has centered around how she thinks she’s indestructible, and while she’s come close in the past, at the end of season four when she loses her election, that’s the first time she’s really seen defeat, and in the political arena, it means more for her. In this season, she’s basically lost everything, and instead of manipulating and scheming her way back into power, she does the right thing, and it pays off in the end. Though I doubt anyone would want that power in her situation.
Naomi (Dominique Tipper) puts herself through the grinder, all to save her son.
Image Source: IndieWire
Naomi’s story though was the strongest of the season. It was powerful, emotional, and visceral. She gives up everything she had with the Roci, her relationship with Holden, and her friendships with Amos and Alex, all to save the son she left behind years ago. The depths of her relationship with Marco are revealed and you truly see how manipulative and abusive he can be, all veiled behind an incredibly charming persona. Her line to her son, when he asked why she left, was poignant and straight to the heart. After explaining that she spent months trying to find him when Marco hid him from her, and she almost killed herself, she told him “Walking away is the only choice anyone ever has.” Dominique Tipper deserved an Emmy for the performance she put on that season.
This entire review could be just about the performance of the cast. It’s the best season in the series and for that reason alone. Cara Gee as Camina Drummer, Keon Alexander as Marco, Jasai Chase Owens as his son, Filip, and newcomer José Zúñiga as Bull, Fred Johnson’s Chief of Operations, all deserve heaps of praise on their portrayals this season. I mentioned in a previous review that Bull gives one of my favorite lines. When he’s talking to Fred Johnson at the beginning of the season, he questions Johnson’s support of Belters (Bull is from Earth, he’s working for Johnson as a favor.). He tells Johnson his problem is he thinks “just because someone’s the underdog, means they're the good guy.” It’s a perfect line that sums up the last two seasons.
And it really hits home this season. The scope of what Marco does to Earth is incalculable. One issue I did take with this season was how Marco’s devastation was depicted on the show. Earth is a complex ecosystem. It has to be for everything on it to work and survive. Everything works together. Asteroids, as we know, disrupt that (sorry, dinosaurs). Marco’s successful strike with the first few asteroids is enough to bring nuclear winter to Earth. Crops die, people starve, and as they’ve already established, Earth is strained to take care of its population as it is. The show portrays it as millions dying, but the books, and what would happen in reality, claim it to be billions. That’s a scale I don’t think many people today can comprehend. Perhaps that’s why they only mention millions in the show.
Marco Inaros announced himself to the system and claimed responsibility for the worst terrorist attack in history.
Image Source: Gamespot
It really drives home one of the central tenets of the series. Humans are violent creatures, and we slaughter each other over identity and perceived superiority. That all has a consequence and the bill comes due at some point. You can only push people so far before they won’t take it anymore. Even still, that doesn’t justify the actions of Marco, and it further highlights Naomi’s objective that season. She wants to save her son, who’s been wrapped up in Marco’s ruthless political ideology since he was a child. It’s kind of like Luke and Vader. She knows he’s a good kid, but Marco is a master manipulator. She knows that all too well. Naomi knows the bill is coming due for Marco, but she’ll be damned if she lets him drag Filip with him.
Season five absolutely deserves the score it gets. It’s easily the best season in the series. The tension is on-point where the hits just keep coming and you are on the edge of your seat waiting to see how our heroes make it out. Dominique Tipper leads a stellar performance from the cast. And it sets up fantastic potential for the final season.
Rating: 10/10
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