Three-Body (2023)

Infintiely better (IMO) than the Netflix version

I'll keep this short (like me!)

I made the mistake of watching the Netflix version first. That vversion was awful: tried to do too much with too little time and inadequate characters & dialogue. Now that I've finished the original Chinese version, I can tell you this:

it's a long 30 episodes but worth it because the characters are allowed time to develop via exeperiences and thus, our understanding of their actions. The result is that the viewer comes away with a better understanding of why people made the choices they make - and in some cases, continue to make during the series.

Are there some holes and a few " hey wait a minute - you owe me more backstory!" moments? Yes. But I wonder how much of that is because of censorhsip and/or editing for time

cinematography is excellent borderlining outstanding

FX are amazing and not cheezy

Sound track is killing it (mostly because it's Chan Xueren)

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For Science Enthusiasts: 'Three Body' Is a Must-Watch Drama

Three Body was unlike any drama that I have watched before, however I really enjoyed the technical aspect of the show including all the physics. If you've ever studied physics or have knowledge about it, this drama is really great as you're able to understand the contents a lot better compared to someone that hasn't. It's very interesting, and I really loved how the entire show was put together and I'm eager for the continuation. I did feel like it did drag a bit in terms of the length but I also do think its necessary to be able to properly explain everything, without glossing over important details and depth. Wang Miao and Shi Qiang made such a funny duo, I loved their scenes and interactions together as they're essentially stark opposites that compliment each other very well. For some reason, I really liked Xu Bing Bing, I found her to be a really cool and strong cop that made up Shi Qiang's entire force because that was all he needed because she was that great. Overall, I think in terms of recommendations, only a specific niche of people would thoroughly enjoy and understand the depth of this drama but it definitely deserves all the praise it has received.

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A Faithful But Lackluster Adaptation of A Popular Sci-Fi Novel

Took me a while to write a review for Three Body because I honestly don't know how to start. All I know is that it's a deeply provocative drama about the nature of man. The drama is based on the Hugo Awardee science fiction novels by Liu Cixin entitled The Three Body Problem. It was also adapted by the same dudes who nuked Game of Thrones for Netflix. Sorry, I chose to forget their names. Hahahaha. I haven't seen that one yet so I can't say anything about that, but this C-drama version doesn't skimp on the science aspects of it. In fact, it never forgets to school you about physics, nanotechnology, space science, and so on. But the very core of this drama is about the good and evil side of humanity, our triumphs, failures, ability to create and destroy, and inability to appreciate life itself and see past our own flaws. The story follows an idealistic scientist specializing in nanotechnology and a scrappy police officer determined to get to the bottom of a series of murders connected to a particular cult-ish organization. At the center of this is a highly intelligent but troubled woman who made a regrettable mistake in her youth that led to a catastrophic mess involving the fate of humanity.

I like the drama for the most part as it is so brilliantly written that you'll either feel as if your IQ has increased after learning so much sciencey stuff or you're dumb AF because you can't comprehend any of it. Hahahaha! The characters are also well-fleshed out that I couldn't bring myself to hate even the antagonistic ones. Production-wise, it's pretty good but you can really tell that this drama could've used more budget for the CGI stuff. I found the computer generated imagery used in the scenes where they were inside the Three Body game very clunky and distractingly bad. The CGI versions of the characters showed very little emotion and moved awkwardly, I thought. They should've just used real actors for those scenes, it would've looked a lot better. This is one of the reasons I found the “game” scenes flat and dull. Another complaint of mine is they spend too much time inside the game with the characters being played by those horrid CGI versions of them. It was not interesting at all! I found myself dozing off every time they entered the game.

As a whole, this is a solid 8 drama and that's already a generous rating. The reason why I can't give it a higher score is because of the pacing. I watched the shortened version of the drama, cut down from 30 episodes in total to just 26, but I still found myself getting bored because of the slow pacing. I also felt that they should've made the science stuff more accessible to the masses, spelled it out in laymen's terms so to speak. I'm not saying they should've dumbed things down, just made them more comprehensible to those who aren't as well-versed in science. I understood the science elements for the most part but some flew over my head, and some I just didn't care for because I didn't feel like understanding them anyway. I was sick and tired of hearing the actors drone on and on about this and that. I think maybe the Netflix version did a better job at this. I haven't watched it yet so we'll see. But if you're into science, especially physics, then you'll appreciate this more, I suppose.

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Physics is Dead.

THREE-BODY (The Three Body Problem) is a psychological Chinese science fiction series about humanity's first contact and the subsequent invasion of a mysterious and an highly advanced alien civilization. It is a highly slow paced series, heavy with dialogue and concepts. The series starts slow, then slowly builds momentum, and then gradually picks up speed, offering some incredibly compelling subject matter, story and concepts in the process. This is a highly intriguing and intelligent series, based on the likewise brilliant book series by Cixin Liu, "Three-Body Problem".

This Cdrama was very interesting, but perhaps more suitable for people interested in hard science and scientific theory rather the usual light hollywood-esque space/alien sci-fi generally pumped out in other modern cinema. This story isn't really about the aliens, at least not in the sense of traditional "alien" science fiction. It is a very slow burn story. THREE-BODY has more depth and certainly expects the viewer to think and follow along, not just watch. The story is diluted only a little due to the book-to-film process, otherwise it contains much original dialogue, theories, story developments etc. The complex story is well portrayed, and quite mind-bending at times.

While at times the show can seem a bit dry, especially in the beginning (being somewhat heavy with dialogue and scientific conecpt), it definitely picks up speed as the series progresses, though it could never really be called fast-paced. Personally, I respect that about this series. It intends to retell the story the way it is most suitably told, as closely to the method that the author used. While certainly high quality, it doesn't seek to flash and awe, and never stoops to alter its content in order to sell or appeal to general audiences.

THREE-BODY never feels overly rushed or underdone as some series these days often tend to be. I enjoyed almost everything about it. The visuals and aesthetics are high quality and for the most part stunning, the music vastly suitable, and the casting was well-fitted to the characters in the book. The story really captivates and draws you in, keeping you entangled in its complexity and subtleties. Gotta love this gorgeous yet intellectual drama.

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As Interesting and Beautiful as it is Overlong and Sleep-Inducing

This is a weird duck. And so bullets --

1. The production quality is really movie like, especially in the flashback sequences set around the Red Coast. The only time it strangely looks like Cheesy TV is during the International Board Room meetings

2. This is post modern Arthur C. Clarke/Issac Asimov stuff, where the science is science fiction is meant to be your only entertainment. As a kid in the mid-70s, I read this type of SCIENCE fiction a lot but in no time backed off of it because they were slow lifeless reads. All good stories are about the human condition. THREE BODY had the perfect opportunity to explore this very topic because a character within makes a major decision about humanity -- yet -- it barely touched upon it.

(There's a funny irony here. Okay, when I was a kid I was reading a monthly Sci-Fi magazine called ANALOG. There was a story once about a really cool concept but the story itself was dull beyond imagination. It was simply an excuse to share a hard science idea and make anyone go WOW.

The idea was that if man could manufacture a strong enough material that was also very lightweight -- we could build an elevator shaft from Earth and attach it to a satellite in space, hence eliminating rockets. Imagine -- you could have a giant bar in space that people would travel up to for the wildest cocktails ever. And imagine the damn view of Earth and Space!

I forget most of what I read in that magazine over the decades -- except for this. And the same exact concept is mentioned inside of THREE BODY in one episode. And so... I was either reading this Chinese author all those years ago... OR... he was reading Analog magazine, lol.)

3. So many characters just... stood there. It was like COVID all over again where no one was allowed to touch anybody, social distancing, you know? Yes, of course, it's trite to create a love story just to make it like any other Chinese drama -- but this one really needed it. BADLY. If it doesn't matter later in the series, I would have made the ML a FL scientist -- so that -- there would have been some sexual tension between the lead and our favorite cop ever, Shi Qiang (Yu He Wei). That said --

4. -- if it wasn't for this cast I would have walked after six episodes. I knew two of them from other dramas (Yu He Wei, REBEL PRINCESS and he was even better here) and (Johnny Zhang who was better in THE GREAT CRAFTSMAN). I loved being introduced to Chen Jin and Wang Zi Wen, two ladies who masterfully played Ye Wen Jie in two different eras.

5. In general this show literally induces sleep. I'm not kidding but there were about 12 nights I had to fight from sleeping to finish it. Perfect for early day viewing but it's Ambien after 9PM. I'm not being mean, this is the truth. The characters rarely clash with each other, they're often shown in shadows in dim rooms, and there's this droning song at the end of most episodes which could best be described as a Trisolorian Lullably.

6. Okay so our lead dude with the glasses has a special clock that ticks and ticks downward. Was I asleep when it got 'turned off' or did they simply forget to show us where the clock was by the end of his part of the series. I thought our Trisolorians were going to arrive just as his clock reached zero.

I'm happy I saw this and somehow I want to see the 2nd Season of this but I can't recommend it with any enthusiasm. Oh, and I don't give a damn about how good the books are -- because I'm not reading the book. I'm watching a series. If the series puts me to sleep, they either picked the wrong series of books or they've made the series way too long.

A third of THREE BODY should have been clicked and erased to make the rest of this stronger.

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An Amazing Series But Not For Everyone

This series may at first seem to be a boring one, but the more episodes there are, the more interesting it will be. There is new informations in each episode, from the first episode to the last episode. Many things in this series seem strange, but in the end, everything has become as transparent as water. Gradually, the plot was opened. In the story, science has simply explained the complex issues. The series has created a good base for the second book, Dark Forest.

BGM, music was very good. Cinematography, colorgrading, and VFX are all very good. Don't find any shortage in the acting. Episode 3,5 was amazing. You will find a big twist in episode 7, who did not read books or plot details. episode 13/14 will introduce something new, which makes the series more interesting. Episode 21,25,28,29,30 are very good. The Main 2 character's last scene and speech were very beautiful; it was the most unforgettable moment in the series. Apart from this, the series was so beautiful that I took so many screen shots.

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The Three Body's problem is its non existent scifi plot!

This review contains spoilers so don't read it if you intend to watch this series either way.
I have read the book that the series is based on.




The problem of Three Body series is its uneven and self cancelling sci fi plot that follows closely the book that it is equally uneven and badly constructed. The book and the series are full of interesting ideas and scientific information, but it is obvious that the author of the book on which the series are based on, was not able to manage and develop properly his ideas and his material ending up having a flimsy plot that doesn't stand on its own and it needs a lot of special effects and complicated explanations in order to make sense.

The scifi plot lies on the imaginary Trisolar planet whose inhabitants have a non linear civilization, a civilization that is progressing in "episodes" due to the unpredictable way that their planet is destroyed constantly and it is literally reborn from its ashes. ( which is a very interesting idea btw).
All the rest of the plot and the subplots and characters and their actions take place on Earth and can be explained with many alternative ways. There is f.e a cult that believes that the aliens are coming to invade the Earth and is inspired by the ideas of a rather psychologically disturbed scientist. There are scientists that commit suicide and others that get killed. There are strange phenomena that are happening and make scientists hallucinating. There is a cop that is trying with unconventional methods to solve the mysterious deaths of the scientists. In other words loads of interesting ideas that could make the plot suspenseful without relying in complicated pseudoscientific explanations that mash up all about everything. From alien life,to environmental distraction, to particle accelerators! ( ok... whatever)

Instead the whole story about the Trisolar planet, turns out that is just an assumption made by the characters of the books, enhanced with plenty of fantasy presented into a VR game and there is nothing else in the book and nothing in the series to support and make realistic the whole Trisolar planet plot, other than the claims of the disturbed female scientist main character about the exchange of just four messages that supposedly are the base of this messy plot.

The messages go as following:

Message 1/ (Earth people send a message to space with the hope that someone will answer it).
"Hello we are from planet Earth and we have a multicultural civilization here and we are looking to contact other civilizations".

Message 2/ (An alien civilization replies:)
Don't send another message because we will come to conquer you. ( why??!)

Message 3/(The disturbed female scientist replies).
Do come and conquer us because we can't solve our own problems and our world is in a mess and we need the expertise of your civilization, ( that according the way that WE imagine that your civilization is, can't solve not even your problems),

Message 4/(The Aliens reply).
Ok we are coming. We'll be there in 450 earth years! In between will destroy with some sort of advanced technology (that we have but we don't use it to save our lives and our planet), your science in order not to be able to confront us when and if will manage to come, because we are considering you the equivalent of bugs!

Now how both of these civilizations came up to these conclusions is not explained.
Neither how the Earth people acquired information about the history and the environment of the Trisolar planet. Or how the Trisolarians figured out that Earth is suitable for them from this correspondence.

I assume that by now you can see what is the problem of the scifi plot.
That there is no actual scifi plot! Or there is one that of some aliens that are coming....!

This series though has an expensive production, some great acting, some very touching scenes by the actresses that play Ye Wen Jie, some very light criticism towards the Chinese Cultural Revolution ( Destruction) - in not to offend Zi Xiping I assume- and that's about all. I could go on and on and on writing about the plot holes of the sub plots, and the awful last episodes, but its meaningless.

The sci fi plot is not there and the VR game that we are forced to watch through the eyes of its players is boring as hell and has bad CGI. This demo didn't persuade me to buy the equipment that is needed in order to play it.


5.5 out of 10 from me for the whole concept.

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Based on an authoritarian propaganda piece

My main reason for dropping the title is that the book plot eventually revolves around war and authoritarian regimes and normalises xenophobia. We can further understand the mindset of the author, Liu Cixin, for his statement defending the Chinese government's mistreatment and mass internment of its Uighur Muslim population.

Speaking on the show, it's a slow moving story with multiple repetitions, eg. "The scientists are killing themselves!" every so often which was unnecessary. The people investigating these suicides don't really seem to care nor have any intelligence capabilities. It all rests on one scientist to act as a spy agent and provide them with answers and a cop that acts as his handler. Three Body is based on the first of three books. 30 episodes is overdoing it for an already slow moving plot.

The aspect that originally attracted me was the science which the series then proceeds to drive the point that "physics isn't real", again repeatedly.

Up to the mid of the 9th episode, the women in the series don't seem to serve much purpose apart from minor roles and eye candy. An apparently talented female officer is treated like a maid and 'errand boy' while doing the work of 10 men and not paid much (by her own admission). So much for equality.

There's also a game which seems pointless. One of the benefits of a computer is it allows us to do calculations and run simulations at a faster rate than a human would take. If a pattern exists, a computer would likely find it as long as some basic information is provided. The game offers no insight towards a solution. It's just added CGI effects to further drag the plot along that explains nothing. With every episode you are left with more questions than answers.

After reading the author's disdain for other humans, I didn't feel the need to watch further and it pretty much killed my curiosity. If these things don't bother you, you might be able to enjoy this lengthy series.

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It could have been better

I saw the first 2 episodes and didn't like what I saw. Stuff that was not in the book and that didn't add anything to the story was already visible then, so I said to myself I'd rather wait for the Netflix production. But then some of my best (Chinese) friends convinced me to give it another try as they were it watching it every day. So I continued until ep.6 and then I had enough when falling asleep twice while watching the episodes because the series is so slow. Really really slow. Why not take something out of the "Korean Playbook" and make just 16 or 18 episodes? Cut out the fluff and you should be fine. Anyway, then there are the usual exaggerated reactions that some people in the series have to completely mundane situations, familiar to anyone watching Chinese series, and the insisting on trivial matters to the point of getting on one's nerves, again just like with most Mainland series. The disconnect between how people live and act in China nowadays and what they present in their series is getting bigger and bigger everyday. You can see it with constantly the same stories, the horrible ageism and even in hyped up series like this one. I'll stick with the Korean series for the time being.

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Una parola sola, eccezionale! Ma prima è meglio leggere il libro!

Un drama eccezionale, perfetto adattamento cinematografico del libro, con un dispiego di mezzi e quindi risorse economiche non indifferente.
Una fantascienza diversa da quella che amo e alla quale sono abituata (vedi Asimov, Heinlein, P. K. Dick ecc) ma intrigante e introspettiva.
E' un drama lento perché rispetta fedelmente il racconto dello scrittore, perfettamente rappresentato in ogni sua parte: vengono persino riportate intere frasi dal libro.
Ottimamente interpretato, dall'introverso e gentile scienziato esperto in nanomateriali Wang Miao, all'esplosivo ed eclettico poliziotto Shi Qiang il quale con la sua intelligenza razionale e meno raffinata rispetto a quella del corpo scientifico, infonde il coraggio per continuare a lottare e non arrendersi. Le risorse della Natura sono quelle che meglio di tutte dimostrano che la resa è per i deboli, mentre i forti, i perseveranti, vincono.
La ribelle fisica Ye Wenjie dà l'avvio ad un cambiamento totale del futuro dell'umanità, credendo di darle una opportunità di redenzione per tutte le ingiustizie che perpetra nei confronti del nostro Pianeta, ma che se in mano a personaggi fanatici e senza scrupoli, ne decreta la fine.
E' consigliabile leggere prima il libro, di non facile lettura lo ammetto, e poi vedere questo stupendo drama, il quale farà luce a parti spesso incomprensibili per chi non è studioso di certe materie scientifiche.
Un binomio quello di libro e drama che si completano l'un l'altro.
La ost è superlativa! Musiche di Xueran Chen, un compositore, musicista e cantante eccezionale. Tutte dedicate a seconda del momento in cui la storia si svolge, un lavoro non indifferente.
Sono rimasta stupita per l'accuratezza della produzione, per gli effetti visivi, per il la realizzazione delle locations passate e di quelle future e del videogioco.
Ora non ci rimane che sperare nella realizzazione cinematografica degli altri due libri di Liu Cixin al quale va un grande applauso per questo capolavoro! Grazie come sempre ai sottotitolatori. Ottima traduzione dal cinese anche dei testi musicali! Bravissimi.

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Un SF comme on aimerait en voir plus souvent!

De la SF ici, chez les chinois? Pas du type "time travelling" ou comédie romantique. Un genre où le scénario privilégie la réflexion ainsi qu'une intrigue intéressante et angoissante. Plutôt inhabituel et confirme la volonté des chinois de s'imposer dans des domaines où nous n'avons pas l'habitude de les voir. Ont-ils réussi? Pour chéri qui est un fan de SF genre "Star Trek", la réponse est un grand "OUI".

Une intrigue qui a été judicieusement maitrisé et astucieusement amené jusqu'à son point culminant. Voici un des points forts de ce drama. Si la lenteur des épisodes peuvent rebuter ainsi que l'absence d'action musclée, il faut garder en tête que le drama se focalise essentiellement sur le développement progressif des protagonistes. Afin de ne pas trop en dévoiler, je ne dirai pas grand chose sur l'intrigue, mais le fait que le puzzle s'imbrique avec beaucoup de logique et de sens apporte une satisfaction réelle jusqu'à la toute dernière image. Ce n'est pas évident pour une novice comme moi de comprendre tous les termes scientifiques et je vous avoue qu'en anglais, c'est 10 fois plus compliqué à suivre. Malgré tout, on s'immerce involontairement dans cette folie absurde et nous arrivons tout de même à cerner l'enjeu de l'intrigue.
Nous avons fortement apprécié le jeu de la coopération avec le monde. Bien que le QG se soit installé en Chine, la place donné aux autres pays est assez inhabituel. Oui, après 40 ans de "nous sommes les plus forts" (vous savez de qui je parle), c'est rafraichissant de voir qu'ici il n'y a pas de "j'impose et vous me suivez" mais plutôt un enjeu planétaire qui implique tout le monde. Et, avouons le, des personnes qui parlent anglais, russes, espagnols ou japonais (avec chacun sa petite oreillette), cela me semble plus logique qu'une langue universelle (vous savez aussi de quelle langue je parle).

La réalisation est souvent à la hauteur de son budget. Il n'y a donc pas de scènes grandioses ou bluffantes comme il siéra à une série de SF et pourtant, le soin apporté ici comble parfaitement le manque d'effets spéciaux. Les CG du jeu virtuel est plutôt correct sans être extraordinaire et le but atteint : celui de nous impliquer et nous faire comprendre. La scène des derniers épisodes avec le bateau....sans entrer dans les détails et afin d'éviter le spoil est magistralement réalisée. La tension grandissante et l'exécution de la scène est parfaite! On applaudit donc une réalisation maitrisée malgré un budget limité. Croisons les doigts, un budget plus extravagant pour la seconde saison serait vraiment génial.

Je finirai sur mon personnage favori du drama. Après un premier quart où nous trouvions ce personnage fat , arrogant et lourd, il devient au fur et à mesure le personnage sur lequel le protagoniste peut compter envers et contre tous. Leur relation difficile au départ prend une tournure étonnante faite de complicité tacite et d'amitié solide. Je parle de Shi Qiang, l'inspecteur bourru et à l'attitude un peu vulgaire et familier. Il a été une révélation dans ce drama, son sens de la justice est mis en valeur par une volonté de ne pas se laisser abattre par l'équation inconnu. S'il faut se battre, cela sera jusqu'au bout. Que cela soit dans la douleur ou pas. Il est le personnage qui soulève des montagnes! Et sa dernière tirade dans le dernier épisode, sa démonstration a été incroyable. Epique. Magnifique. J'en ai pleuré, bouleversé par cet acteur de génie! Une fin comme on en voit si peu. Grandiose.

C'est donc avec impatience que nous attendons la saison 2, le spin off. En attendant, le livre traduit en anglais devrait aussi arriver à la maison. Fan de SF, n'hésitez pas.

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物理学が存在しないということ

そもそも私は「物理学とはなんなのか？」ということすら知らずに、このドラマを観始めました。
このドラマを観るのに躊躇している人は、おそらく「内容が難しそう」「物理学って何？」という私側の人たちが多い気がします。

私も最初は「物理学を知らない私が、このドラマを観て意味が分かるのだろうか？」と心配でした。
そして、その心配は的中。
視聴を始めた時、ドラマの科学者たちが何を言っているのか？何が問題なのか？さっぱりわからなかったからです。
しかも、途中でわかるようになる、と言うわけでもなく、ずっとわからない。

しかし、面白い。

その理由は、科学者ではなくWang Miaoの相棒になる警察のShi Qiangの存在が非常に大きいです。
Shi Qiangは「難しいことはわからないけど、世界で起こっているこの問題を解決したい。」という気持ちだけでこの問題と戦います。
そして、彼がわかってないことは私もわからないので、わからない人が１人この場にいることで、私を物語から置いて行かず繋ぎとめてくれました。
Shi Qiangがいなければ、とっくに脱落していたでしょう。

そして最後まで、どうこの物語が終わるのか全く予想できませんでした。
終わりがもの凄く美しく、格好の良い着地です。すばらしかった。

途中で脱落しそうになっている方には、最後の５分を観るためだけに完走する価値がある、と伝えたいです。

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