Night Sky

I guess tonight a lot of reviews for new shows. On the recommendation of someone here I started to watch Outer Range, but that show just lost my interest fast. Unlikable characters and protagonist, a very very slow progression of a plot that went nowhere. I didn't finish watching it.

But I did recently (last week) watch the 8 episodes of Night Sky on Amazon Prime.

It opened up with a captivating scene. It revolves around a married couple up in years, Franklin and Irene, that look like in their late 60's early 70's. They have been frequenting their shed for 20 years. Underneath is a portal to another planet. They lost their son who had a daughter himself, to suicide, and soon after Franklin discovered the metal hull underneath his yard while he was digging. Anyway the wife thought it was a way to connect to her dead son and they would both go into the portal (he built a shed over it to keep it hidden) and would sit and just "watch the stars" as they would say. An alien landscape. There is a door that opens into the alien world but Franklin was never brave enough to open it.

Then one night Irene decides she is going to open the door inside the portal to the alien world even if it kills her. She sneaks while her husband is sleeping and as soon as she opens the door to go into the alien planet's atmosphere a man appears on the floor where they sit and "watch the stars." So she takes him home and nourishes his health back.

There is an annoying neighbor that finds out about the secret bunker underneath the shed by his snooping around and while at first Franklin dislikes him immensely when they are out one night drinking with each other he confides the secret with him.

There is also a woman and her daughter living in the desert mountains of Argentina that have one of these portals the mother is guarding. The daughter doesn't know anything about it. Until one day a man appears and tells the mother, Stella, to take care of a matter. And that is when she has to reveal to her daughter that they have been guarding a secret in their family for generations.

It is more of a story of the enduring love that Franklin has for Irene. And that is what really hooked me. Their chemistry is perfect, and the way he loves her and watches out for her. She takes in the mysterious stranger and treats him like her lost son. At one point Franklin tells Irene, "You know he's not your son." And she responds with depth and understanding in her voice, "Don't you think I know that?" This mystery man is named Jude and Franklin doesn't like him at all and tries to get rid of him, but keeps him around because his wife wants him to. And they also have the granddaughter, Denise, the daughter of their son they lost. She gets wrapped up in everything eventually.

There is a lot of drama, suspense, and some good action. It is not an action driven story at all. But people do die and there are some really suspenseful scenes. The science fiction is done really well. I enjoyed the ride. Finally, it ends on a good cliff-hanger. Some things are tied up, but it does leave more questions than answers.

This is like picking up a good old science fiction novel and getting lost in it for a day. And wanting the next installment to come out to see how it progresses.

a reply to: randomuser

I totally agree, loved the characters and the story so far. Only a few episodes in.

Also, some pretty deep themes, a bit like 'The Man Who Fell to Earth' (the TV remake, not the Bowie film).

Also, did you mean 'Outer Range'? - I couldn't find 'Outer Edge' TV series?

originally posted by: chr0naut
a reply to: randomuser

I totally agree, loved the characters and the story so far. Only a few episodes in.

Also, some pretty deep themes, a bit like 'The Man Who Fell to Earth' (the TV remake, not the Bowie film).

Also, did you mean 'Outer Range'? - I couldn't find 'Outer Edge' TV series?

Yep. I'll edit to fix that.

a reply to: chr0naut

The depth they put into the back story is what makes it so good. Like the little wood carvings Franklin puts on his son's tombstone. You see him fiddling with the carving every now and again throughout the series then finally see him putting it on the tombstone, he has his granddaughter put it on, and you see there are a lot others there. All which probably mean something.

A scene that really gets me is when Irene goes to visit an old friend in a nursing home. She has Alzheimer's and keeps asking the same thing over and over, so when Irene finally reveals her secret, it really doesn't matter. It was already forgotten in a couple of seconds. That hits home for me because I'm taking care of an 80 year old with Alzheimer's, and my mom was diagnosed with it last year.

originally posted by: randomuser
a reply to: chr0naut

The depth they put into the back story is what makes it so good. Like the little wood carvings Franklin puts on his son's tombstone. You see him fiddling with the carving every now and again throughout the series then finally see him putting it on the tombstone, he has his granddaughter put it on, and you see there are a lot others there. All which probably mean something.

A scene that really gets me is when Irene goes to visit an old friend in a nursing home. She has Alzheimer's and keeps asking the same thing over and over, so when Irene finally reveals her secret, it really doesn't matter. It was already forgotten in a couple of seconds. That hits home for me because I'm taking care of an 80 year old with Alzheimer's, and my mom was diagnosed with it last year.

Oh, man, I hope it is mild.

As long as there's moments of lucidity and love, though!

I'm also getting forgetful and hope it isn't on the cards for me or my wife.

I also am still friends with a 98 year old who's seeing and hearing things as a result, and sometimes she's sharp as a tack, sometimes she's miles away...

Night Sky, really good. Watched almost all episodes in one night because i simply couldn´t stop watching anymore. Can´t wait for the next season and hope it stays as good as season one is. We had a lot of good starts, good first seasons of series over the last decades. But then most of it turned into BS after the first season or was not continued after two or three seasons for no good reasons.

And that hyped Outer Range thing couldn´t catch me at all.

Cheers