Murdo Macleod

When I watched the first episode of The Expanse, I found myself intrigued by its re-working of the old 1940's gumshoe motif - a hard-nosed detective in pursuit of a missing person who works his way through the sometimes brutal, inter-planetary mining stations in 'the belt'. However, through various twists and turns, the plot develops and the main characters’ mission evolves into a multi-layered territorial conflict between Mars and Earth, with various subtexts reflecting; colonialism, nationalism, the threat of technology and rising above it all human greed and ambition, while simmering below are the more traditional human traits of love, patriotism and betrayal. I got totally engrossed in the first series and, while there are moments when suspension of disbelief is challenged (wait until the Mormon spaceship arrives) it has continued to draw me in.