Brave New World, Season 1

Something new and a little different from me today. Well, it’s different as in it’s a TV review that doesn’t involve a superhero? But today’s post is my Brave New World review.

Company:  Peacock/Sky One | Date: 2020 | Cast: Alden Ehrenreich; Jessica Brown Findlay; Harry Lloyd

Plot: In a utopia whose perfection hinges upon control of monogamy and privacy, members of the collective begin to question the rules, putting their regimented society on a collision course with forbidden love and revolution.

Brave New World Review

I heard about Brave New World after reading a review, and thought it sounded up my street. A futuristic world with a clear divide between the rich/privileged and the poor, separated by impenetrable barriers, reminded me of Osiris. Having enjoyed that, I wanted to see different takes on a similar idea.

I stayed with it throughout, but I’m not certain I knew what was going on.

The first four episodes introduced the world and the clash between the societies, with increased tension each time. We got to know our main characters, and see how they react when their world comes tumbling down. It reached a small crescendo, and I was intrigued.

But then the pacing stalled. A man from the outskirts is brought into this privileged society. The plot revolves around him trying to adapt to a very different lifestyle, and the community trying to adapt to him. Each episode felt like the same story, undermining any plot development and failing to establish future story-arcs in an effective manner.

This is a society where everyone belongs to everyone else: being with one person is frowned upon and everyone is drugged up to ensure their levels are optimum and happiness is guaranteed. It’s a system with alphas and betas, with a focus of everyone in their place and not disrupting the network as a whole. It’s an intriguing premise, but was an excuse to have some sort of orgy party in every episode that dragged out for considerable screen time without advancing the plot.

John was the strongest character by far: thrust from one world to another in the midst of grief and fear, he has to adapt. But when his morals don’t correlate with that of his new home, he begins to discover he’s not the only one who isn’t satisfied with the system.

Lenina always knew she was a little different: pushing the rules for a beta without being sure why. Her experience in the ‘savage land’ change her – she can no longer accept the status quo of her old life, but it’s so ingrained that breaking free is easier said than done.

Bernard is an alpha – but one who struggles with his position. He wants more, but can’t always do what is expected of him. As friendships and romances blossom between the three, it soon becomes clear that one man has the power to topple the entire network.

The stunted pace meant what could have been an intriguing plot felt flat and boring at times. There’re multiple secondary stories occurring – the network going rogue and an uprising of the more suppressed – but it was difficult to follow where they fitted. The uprising exploded out of nowhere in the penultimate episode, and I didn’t understand what was going on.

Brave New World is an interesting premise with some in-depth characters. It had great visuals and the concept caught my attention. I wish there had been more time given over to the plot and its development than wild parties, though.

Have you seen Brave New World? I’d love to hear what you think – or if this sounds like your sort of show.

You may also like:

• Book Review: The Nothing Within by Andy Giesler
• Television Review: The Witcher

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