I’ve had Apple TV+ for the past few months and finally made my way through the Jason Momoa-led show.
“See” takes place on Earth in the far future when the human race has lost its ability to see (hence the name of the series).
The outbreak of a deadly virus in the 21st century reduced the human population on the planet to less than 2 million people. The survivors all emerged blind.
As a result of the mass blindness, a society emerged that has adapted to a world without vision (over the course of centuries).
Some of the methods used for communicating in a sightless existence are fairly clever. For example, tied knots on pieces of rope serve as a substitute for the written word.
The world presented is tribal in nature, and the first season of “See” feels more akin to a 19th century wilderness story than a futuristic tale.
Momoa plays Baba Voss, the chief of the Alkenny tribe. He is married to Maghra (Hera Hilmar), a pregnant woman who came to Alkenny village seeking help.
Maghra’s twin children (a boy and a girl) are born able to see — something considered to be a witch-like ability.
The twins’ forbidden gift — and the danger the ability brings — sets into motion the macro narrative that carries “See” through its first season.
The twins attract the attention of Queen Kane (Sylvia Hoeks), the peculiar leader of the Payan Kingdom. She dispatches General Tamacti Jun (Christian Carmago) to hunt the heretics down (a hunt that, at times, reminded me a bit of plot points featured in the George Lucas fantasy film “Willow”).
The twins are named Kofun (Archie Madekwe) and Haniwa (Nesta Cooper). We soon learn they are the children of a mysterious man named Jerlamarel (Joshua Henry).
“See” is the creation of screenwriter Steven Knight. Knight is probably best known for the Netflix series “Peaky Blinders” (which he created and serves as a writer and executive producer). I’ve never watched that show, but have noticed it was available on Netflix.
Knight also wrote the screenplay for the 2016 World War II thriller “Allied” (read my review).
I went into “See” not really knowing what to expect.
As I watched the first season, my opinion bounced around like the readout on a PKE meter. Some moments were quite compelling. Other moments left me somewhat underwhelmed.
Overall, I found the first season of “See” to be something of a mixed bag.
The strong points in “See” rest largely on the shoulders of Jason Momoa.
If you’re looking to cast a brawny leader of a futuristic tribe, the “Aquaman” star seems tailor-made for the part. With his scraggly locks, bushy beard, and tattoos, Momoa brings instant authenticity to the role of Baba Voss.
You genuinely believe he is a blind man who has developed a keen sense of hearing — and a warrior’s intuition for unseen dangers lurking at every turn — in this environment.
Momoa definitely brings an enthusiasm to the material, and his performance is the best thing about the first season. You can tell he is having a good time in the role.
He recently posted some fun behind-the-scenes material from “See” on his YouTube channel:
A number of the other cast members do a yeoman’s job in their roles, creating characters that show promise for the future.
Alfre Woodard brings quite a bit of energy to the character of Paris, a spiritual elder in the Alkenny tribe (a welcome trait in a show that can plod along at times). The character is tasked with a number of responsibilities in the season’s story structure — and the exposition she doles out helps viewers make sense of this mysterious world.
Even though I found the Queen Kane character to be overly bizarre, Sylvia Hoeks did create a memorable character. She created a character that was cunning, paranoid, and downright weird.
I also thought that Nesta Cooper did a solid job as Haniwa (one of the sighted twins). Cooper portrays the character during her teenage years, and brings a tough feistiness to the role. It is a nice counterpoint to Archie Madekwe’s performance as her brother Kofun.
The frustrating thing about a show like this is that a considerable amount of time is spent doing “world building” during the early episodes. While that task is necessary to establish the rules of the unique world in “See,” the added exposition can cause the storyline to drag.
The frustrating thing about a show like this is that a considerable amount of time is spent doing “world building” during the early episodes. While that task is necessary to establish the rules of the unique world in “See,” the added exposition can cause the storyline to drag.
That’s why a lot science fiction and fantasy movies and TV series rely on familiar tropes when telling stories.
Be that as it may, you have to admire the filmmakers for trying to do something different with “See.”
“See’s” production is the real highlight of the first season. The show is filmed in some gorgeous locales around Vancouver, British Columbia.
Lush forests and breathtaking mountain landscapes envelope much of the first season’s story. The 4K UHD video presented on Apple TV+ is really lovely.
One of the technical aspects I didn’t care for was the show’s musical score — or lack thereof. The music (what there is of it) is composed by Bear McCreary.
While McCreary’s score tries to convey a sense of foreboding and tension, it didn’t quite resonate with me. Parts of it reminded me of Hans Zimmer’s score for the movie “Dunkirk” (read my review) — where the score is less about the “music” and is employed to emphasize the sound effects on screen (if you get my drift).
Despite some promising elements, the overall tone of the show is so “dreary” that it can be hard to stick with. It took me a few months to work my way through the eight-episode season (each episode runs about an hour).
I think there are some interesting possibilities for future seasons. To that end, the season finale set things up for what could become a fascinating story as things move forward.
(The eighth episode also features one of Momoa’s best “one liners” of the season — it happens during a fight sequence at the end of the episode. This is a “no spoilers” review, so you’ll just have to watch for yourself to see what he says!)
I just can’t tell at this point whether or not I really like “See.”
The show is like a bizarre mix of “Mad Max,” “Waterworld,” and “The Hunger Games.”
It’s very possible that “See” will be a series that is more of a “slow burn” — requiring multiple seasons to develop a truly compelling narrative.
We’ll see…
If you’d like to learn more about the series — and watch the first two episodes for free — visit the Apple TV website or watch via the Apple TV app.
If you’d like to learn more about the series — and watch the first two episodes for free — visit the Apple TV website or watch via the Apple TV app.
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