synthete reviewed
Foundation (2021)
July 21, 2026
Half of the show is compelling, and half is a travesty. The visuals are stellar in most of it (the made-up parts). The casting for Hari, Gaal, and Cleon is fantastic... which is what makes it so disappointing what they did with the actual Foundation half of the story. It is utter nonsense and ruins rewarding payoffs later in the series, for absolutely no impact in the show. And that's a pity, because the character writing in the books was rather bland for most of them, but the concepts were fascinating, so a proper adaptation is something that could have filled an actual need if the writers had any scruples whatsoever when it came to tackling high concept SF. The 'genetic dynasty' was not in the novels, so it qualifies as literal fan-fiction--but I don't mean that as an insult. After the decent introduction with Hari and Gaal, the Cleons are the only good part of the show, because that part was adapted into what is essentially original characters. The problem is that outside of that, the treatment of the characters of the actual Terminus, Gaal-Hari sections, and Fortnight 'Salvor Hardin' consists of utter nonsense plotting with incompetent science fiction writing and outright character assassination. It's like they actually set out to make a total inversion of what the characters and the concepts represent. Just as an example for those not in the know: Salvor Hardin was supposed to be a diplomatic negotiator. The entire point of his character and The Foundation was soft power despite being in a powerless and precarious position. Their power was knowledge (a bunch of geeks called The Encyclopedists), and Hardin diverged from everyone in his highly cerebral and socially adept brokering of peace between would-be invaders and warring kingdoms. What is the character in the show? A wet-behind-the-ears Fortnight character who picks up a gun in her first scene, and in just about every following scene, and is an absolute tool. They also have her destroy (an excellently rendered) point-defense battleship railgun with a bow and arrow. I am not joking. That's par for the course for every single scene in the Terminus half of the show.
Jony Moecke reviewed
Foundation (2021)
September 21, 2025

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Foundation (2021)

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synthete reviewed
synthete reviewed
Foundation (2021)
July 21, 2026
Half of the show is compelling, and half is a travesty. The visuals are stellar in most of it (the made-up parts). The casting for Hari, Gaal, and Cleon is fantastic... which is what makes it so disappointing what they did with the actual Foundation half of the story. It is utter nonsense and ruins rewarding payoffs later in the series, for absolutely no impact in the show. And that's a pity, because the character writing in the books was rather bland for most of them, but the concepts were fascinating, so a proper adaptation is something that could have filled an actual need if the writers had any scruples whatsoever when it came to tackling high concept SF. The 'genetic dynasty' was not in the novels, so it qualifies as literal fan-fiction--but I don't mean that as an insult. After the decent introduction with Hari and Gaal, the Cleons are the only good part of the show, because that part was adapted into what is essentially original characters. The problem is that outside of that, the treatment of the characters of the actual Terminus, Gaal-Hari sections, and Fortnight 'Salvor Hardin' consists of utter nonsense plotting with incompetent science fiction writing and outright character assassination. It's like they actually set out to make a total inversion of what the characters and the concepts represent. Just as an example for those not in the know: Salvor Hardin was supposed to be a diplomatic negotiator. The entire point of his character and The Foundation was soft power despite being in a powerless and precarious position. Their power was knowledge (a bunch of geeks called The Encyclopedists), and Hardin diverged from everyone in his highly cerebral and socially adept brokering of peace between would-be invaders and warring kingdoms. What is the character in the show? A wet-behind-the-ears Fortnight character who picks up a gun in her first scene, and in just about every following scene, and is an absolute tool. They also have her destroy (an excellently rendered) point-defense battleship railgun with a bow and arrow. I am not joking. That's par for the course for every single scene in the Terminus half of the show.