(5 minute read)
Why should you care?
It's a story unlike most and a binge-worthy Netflix Original series. Here we'll dissect the thematic anatomy of this science fiction thriller without giving away any spoilers.
Netflix introduced the Altered Carbon television series in February of 2018 with 10 episodes in its first season. Based on the novel by English author Richard K. Morgan, the show takes place 300 years in the future in what a futuristic society typically looks like with floating cars, bright LED lights, and holographic AI assistants. The term "Altered Carbon" is likely based on the fact that living species are made up of carbon and on the story of a futuristic society that has learned to cheat death and turn human bodies into a commodity.
If you like Blade Runner, this is the perfect show for you, and if you haven't seen Blade Runner or don't like it, here are some themes that may encourage you to hit play...
Altered Carbon is set in a society that figured out a way to transfer people's minds into bodies like how a USB memory stick can transfer data to different computers. This transfer involves humans uploading their consciousness to a "Cortical Stack", a device lodged in the back of your neck connected to your spine. Then in the presence of an untimely death or old age, anyone can pay to transfer his stack's data into an empty body, and he can live again with all of his memories in tact.
It's a very creative idea, and the characters use terms like "sleeves" to describe human bodies and "stacks" to identify the device that holds your brain's memories. "Needlecasting" is the term used to describe the transfer of data to a new host body.
Immortality is not a theme that we think of everyday because it's as science fiction as it gets, yet it is one of the oldest and most interesting thought experiments to date.
What would you do with the gift of immortality? What sort of jobs would you handle and would you be comfortable with never retiring? How many kids would you want? Would you stay married to the same person for 300 years? To what extent could your mind cope with an endless past chalk full of memories?
These are the intriguing questions that aren't necessarily answered in the show, but you will get a real sense of how immortality affects the mind.
The "man" pictured above is Poe, an AI that becomes a loyal partner to the story's hero, Takeshi Kovacs. Poe is an important ally that can move between the virtual world and the real world. What I really like about the story is its depiction of Artificially Intelligent machines as invaluable resources. While other works portray artificial humans as corruptible robots (i.e. I, Robot) or as love interests (i.e. Blade Runner), the Netflix special has us more so respecting the AI "good guys".
Throughout the two seasons, Poe has access to seemingly unlimited data sources: police camera footage, historical news records, and public/private profiles. His amazing technical prowess to search for information quickly and on-demand is something we wish our Amazon Alexa's and Google Home's could do a better job of since half the time these devices mishear us.
Unlike in Star Wars where C3PO scuttles around anxiously and proves himself defenseless, Poe can wield a shotgun and is more confrontational against both his enemies and his masters if he really believes he is in the right. To sum up, he's a digital, bolder, and younger version of Alfred Pennyworth that the audience begins to grow closer to as the season progresses.
Season 2 introduces a second AI, DIG 301, and I don't think I've ever felt more of an emotional attachment for an AI after watching her story unfold.
Income inequality is a central underlying theme in this series, playing a monumental role in the overarching plot. Much of it revolves around Meths, the wealthiest individuals in this society that re-sleeve regularly and therefore have lived the longest. Meths have enormous political influence, and they live in the sky above everyone else.
Joel Kinnaman: Swedish-American actor
Will Yun Lee: Korean-American actor
Renée Elise Goldsberry: African-American actress
Martha Higareda: Mexican actress
Dichen Lachman: Australian actress born in Nepal
James Purefoy: British actor
Kristin Lehman: Canadian actress
Ato Essandoh: Ghanese-American actor (studied chemical engineering at Cornell University)
Dina Shihabi: Saudi Arabian, Palestinian actress (the first Middle Eastern-born woman to be accepted to Juilliard and the NYU Graduate Acting Program)
Simone Missick: African-American actress
Trieu Tran: Canadian-American actor born in Vietnam
James Saito: Japanese-American actor
Lela Loren: Mexican-American actress
Waleed Zuaiter: Palestinian-American actor who grew up in Kuwait
I really liked Will Yun Lee's story as an Asian-American actor, which you can read here in the Chicago Tribune: https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2000-11-25-0011250288-story.html
If this post has gotten you to watch the show, just take note, this series has a lot of violence and nudity, so if you were ok with Game of Thrones, you should be ok with this one.
Why should you care?
It's a story unlike most and a binge-worthy Netflix Original series. Here we'll dissect the thematic anatomy of this science fiction thriller without giving away any spoilers.
 |
| Credit: https://ramenswag.com/altered-carbon-season-2-quotes |
Netflix introduced the Altered Carbon television series in February of 2018 with 10 episodes in its first season. Based on the novel by English author Richard K. Morgan, the show takes place 300 years in the future in what a futuristic society typically looks like with floating cars, bright LED lights, and holographic AI assistants. The term "Altered Carbon" is likely based on the fact that living species are made up of carbon and on the story of a futuristic society that has learned to cheat death and turn human bodies into a commodity.
If you like Blade Runner, this is the perfect show for you, and if you haven't seen Blade Runner or don't like it, here are some themes that may encourage you to hit play...
- Living Forever
- AI for Good
- Some are more equal than others
- The United Nations Cast
Living forever
Altered Carbon is set in a society that figured out a way to transfer people's minds into bodies like how a USB memory stick can transfer data to different computers. This transfer involves humans uploading their consciousness to a "Cortical Stack", a device lodged in the back of your neck connected to your spine. Then in the presence of an untimely death or old age, anyone can pay to transfer his stack's data into an empty body, and he can live again with all of his memories in tact.
It's a very creative idea, and the characters use terms like "sleeves" to describe human bodies and "stacks" to identify the device that holds your brain's memories. "Needlecasting" is the term used to describe the transfer of data to a new host body.
Immortality is not a theme that we think of everyday because it's as science fiction as it gets, yet it is one of the oldest and most interesting thought experiments to date.
What would you do with the gift of immortality? What sort of jobs would you handle and would you be comfortable with never retiring? How many kids would you want? Would you stay married to the same person for 300 years? To what extent could your mind cope with an endless past chalk full of memories?
These are the intriguing questions that aren't necessarily answered in the show, but you will get a real sense of how immortality affects the mind.
Artificial Intelligence for Good
The "man" pictured above is Poe, an AI that becomes a loyal partner to the story's hero, Takeshi Kovacs. Poe is an important ally that can move between the virtual world and the real world. What I really like about the story is its depiction of Artificially Intelligent machines as invaluable resources. While other works portray artificial humans as corruptible robots (i.e. I, Robot) or as love interests (i.e. Blade Runner), the Netflix special has us more so respecting the AI "good guys".
Throughout the two seasons, Poe has access to seemingly unlimited data sources: police camera footage, historical news records, and public/private profiles. His amazing technical prowess to search for information quickly and on-demand is something we wish our Amazon Alexa's and Google Home's could do a better job of since half the time these devices mishear us.
Unlike in Star Wars where C3PO scuttles around anxiously and proves himself defenseless, Poe can wield a shotgun and is more confrontational against both his enemies and his masters if he really believes he is in the right. To sum up, he's a digital, bolder, and younger version of Alfred Pennyworth that the audience begins to grow closer to as the season progresses.
Season 2 introduces a second AI, DIG 301, and I don't think I've ever felt more of an emotional attachment for an AI after watching her story unfold.
Inequality
Income inequality is a central underlying theme in this series, playing a monumental role in the overarching plot. Much of it revolves around Meths, the wealthiest individuals in this society that re-sleeve regularly and therefore have lived the longest. Meths have enormous political influence, and they live in the sky above everyone else.
In fact a very underrated part of the show is the production design throughout scenes that capture the two different social class divisions between Meths and everyone else. Included in the show are shots of mansions in the sky to brothels for the wealthy to the dark underground markets where people sell weapons and ammunition. The costume design is a key part of that income class separation as the wealthy are dressed in bright, clean clothing while the less wealthy are wearing dark, worn-out jackets.
While income inequality is definitely a theme in Altered Carbon, I wish the writers included some more dialogue around the social class division because there's so much opportunity there. Season 2 lacked sentiment around the larger working class, instead choosing to focus more on the family of a bounty hunter. Had Altered Carbon dedicated one episode to multiple minor characters struggling to make ends meet and at the same time how the government plays into that struggle, the show would have had a more powerful narrative to describe inequality. We know the wealthy can live forever but what does daily life look like in Harlan's World?
While income inequality is definitely a theme in Altered Carbon, I wish the writers included some more dialogue around the social class division because there's so much opportunity there. Season 2 lacked sentiment around the larger working class, instead choosing to focus more on the family of a bounty hunter. Had Altered Carbon dedicated one episode to multiple minor characters struggling to make ends meet and at the same time how the government plays into that struggle, the show would have had a more powerful narrative to describe inequality. We know the wealthy can live forever but what does daily life look like in Harlan's World?
The Cast
Last but not least, Netflix's Altered Carbon series is about its characters' diversity, and I don't just mean the character arcs, I mean the cast. Yeah it's astounding they got the United Nations to act in a Netflix series. Scrolling through the cast, I haven't seen this much of a diverse cast in any TV series or movie in a long time. Maybe that's where our future society is headed, a richer melting pot of cultures.Joel Kinnaman: Swedish-American actor
Will Yun Lee: Korean-American actor
Renée Elise Goldsberry: African-American actress
Martha Higareda: Mexican actress
Dichen Lachman: Australian actress born in Nepal
James Purefoy: British actor
Kristin Lehman: Canadian actress
Ato Essandoh: Ghanese-American actor (studied chemical engineering at Cornell University)
Dina Shihabi: Saudi Arabian, Palestinian actress (the first Middle Eastern-born woman to be accepted to Juilliard and the NYU Graduate Acting Program)
Simone Missick: African-American actress
Trieu Tran: Canadian-American actor born in Vietnam
James Saito: Japanese-American actor
Lela Loren: Mexican-American actress
Waleed Zuaiter: Palestinian-American actor who grew up in Kuwait
If this post has gotten you to watch the show, just take note, this series has a lot of violence and nudity, so if you were ok with Game of Thrones, you should be ok with this one.