This television series based on the Chinese author Liu Cixin's The Three Body Problem (2008) later became an American version entitled 3 Body Problem (2024) shown Netflix. This review is based on the first ten episodes of thirty episodes for comparison purposes to the American version of eight episodes of the first season. This series omits the violence of the cultural revolution and instead focuses its attention on nano-material scientist Wang Miao who is changed into a female character, Augustina "Auggie" Salazar, in the American version and for most of the ten episodes appears more like a crime mystery with a rather obnoxious counterterrorist detective Shi Qiang who becomes a British intelligence officer, Clarence "Da" Shi, a much more likeable character in the American version. Shi Qiang seems miscast as an unnecessary stereotype from American films. The slow pacing of the Chinese version may be too plodding and with insufficient action for American tastes. The plot unfolds rather inscrutably, typical of the Asian mindset. The special effects are crude but what stands out in the Chinese version is the opening and closing credits sung in oddly English with eerie lyrics and fashioned almost like a homage to many of the late James Bond themes as well as at times a rather unique use of flashback scenes or continuing storylines as the ending credits roll. The extended attention paid to Wang Wiao and his family is rather intriguing as to copes with the strange events of deaths of scientists around the world that is given much less American airtime as well as Vera, one of the scientists who commits suicide early on. The two televised versions of Three-Body are very different from each other so far with the American version more of an ensemble (strikingly more socialist nature) effort while the Chinese version is surprisingly individualistic (striking more Western in nature) and at the same time with also a surprising environmental message that seems to be left more in the background in the American version.
Instead of becoming more intriguing and compelling the second third (episodes 11 to 20) becomes more cumbersome and bloated. What started as an individualistic focus on characterization unlike the Netflix ensemble of a team effort creates an increasingly unbelievable storyline of a major crime thriller. With the world and global security interest at stake, the Chinese version of Three-Body requires the audience to believe that only three individuals would be assigned to uncover the mystery of scientists committing suicide instead of an international team (ensemble) of well-versed specialists. The cultural revolution storyline belatedly gets quite a bit of attention and yet almost becomes a separate story in itself unlike the compelling back and forth, interacting past with the present used in the Netflix version. Unlike the Netflix series, the Chinese includes another darker plot running parallel and in addition to the predominate Shen Yufei's presence in this series. The amazing goggles of the Netflix series is replaced by a dated animated virtual reality consisting only of famous figures and historical periods attempting to solve the Three Body Problem that really does not offer the same tantalizing and unpredictable approach taken with the Netflix Series.
By the end of the second third of the series, one is left with a simplified version of previous sci fi storylines from other movies becoming an us versus them, cloak and dagger thriller, a three body problem that currently scientists and mathematicians have already come to the same conclusions in our real world without having to go through the unnecessary gyrations described in this series. With the American penchant for mysteries over the decades and exposure to a multitude of science fiction movies, the mystery of what is going on is fairly obvious early on the Netflix Series and instead the audience must wade through the Chinese version becoming frustratingly obtuse and inscrutable like the stereotypical image of China itself. The mysteries being sought by scientist Wang Miao and detective Shi Qiang that come to light in these later episodes have already been mostly uncovered by an American audience and deduced much earlier in the Chinese version, except for the Chinese protagonists in this series. Unfortunately, even the opening and closing credits become repetitious and loses its originality from the earlier episodes. The most fascinating series experience oddly comes from the slow evolving character of Shi Qiang who seems from his interaction with Wang Miao and Miao's daughter becoming a more rounded and at least tolerable and perhaps even likeable person at times.
The last third of this series presents a strikingly different style as if directed by a different director. The first part of the rest of the series comes across as a crime drama followed by a scientific mystery drama, followed by a primary focus on a character that has a significantly reduced role in the Netflix version and that was more smoothly intercut in that version whereas in the Chinese version the shift to the cultural revolution presents a period drama that includes an excessive amount of narrative explanation while the ending portion of this series has a rather low-grade animation continues with an excessive narrative explanation almost as if the televised versions is more of a reading from script or from a book dialogue. The disjointed presentation tone of the series has its highpoint in how polished both the crime and science drama episodes come across offering captivating mystery investigative and experimenting research approaches to deliver their stories. One of the lingering questions regarding the Chinese version plot is how long it takes for the main characters to realize what is going on and why physics does not exist. It just seems with so much sci fi in American culture could Chinese culture be so insulated from or resistant to alternative scientific explanations?
Instead of becoming more intriguing and compelling the second third (episodes 11 to 20) becomes more cumbersome and bloated. What started as an individualistic focus on characterization unlike the Netflix ensemble of a team effort creates an increasingly unbelievable storyline of a major crime thriller. With the world and global security interest at stake, the Chinese version of Three-Body requires the audience to believe that only three individuals would be assigned to uncover the mystery of scientists committing suicide instead of an international team (ensemble) of well-versed specialists. The cultural revolution storyline belatedly gets quite a bit of attention and yet almost becomes a separate story in itself unlike the compelling back and forth, interacting past with the present used in the Netflix version. Unlike the Netflix series, the Chinese includes another darker plot running parallel and in addition to the predominate Shen Yufei's presence in this series. The amazing goggles of the Netflix series is replaced by a dated animated virtual reality consisting only of famous figures and historical periods attempting to solve the Three Body Problem that really does not offer the same tantalizing and unpredictable approach taken with the Netflix Series.
By the end of the second third of the series, one is left with a simplified version of previous sci fi storylines from other movies becoming an us versus them, cloak and dagger thriller, a three body problem that currently scientists and mathematicians have already come to the same conclusions in our real world without having to go through the unnecessary gyrations described in this series. With the American penchant for mysteries over the decades and exposure to a multitude of science fiction movies, the mystery of what is going on is fairly obvious early on the Netflix Series and instead the audience must wade through the Chinese version becoming frustratingly obtuse and inscrutable like the stereotypical image of China itself. The mysteries being sought by scientist Wang Miao and detective Shi Qiang that come to light in these later episodes have already been mostly uncovered by an American audience and deduced much earlier in the Chinese version, except for the Chinese protagonists in this series. Unfortunately, even the opening and closing credits become repetitious and loses its originality from the earlier episodes. The most fascinating series experience oddly comes from the slow evolving character of Shi Qiang who seems from his interaction with Wang Miao and Miao's daughter becoming a more rounded and at least tolerable and perhaps even likeable person at times.
The last third of this series presents a strikingly different style as if directed by a different director. The first part of the rest of the series comes across as a crime drama followed by a scientific mystery drama, followed by a primary focus on a character that has a significantly reduced role in the Netflix version and that was more smoothly intercut in that version whereas in the Chinese version the shift to the cultural revolution presents a period drama that includes an excessive amount of narrative explanation while the ending portion of this series has a rather low-grade animation continues with an excessive narrative explanation almost as if the televised versions is more of a reading from script or from a book dialogue. The disjointed presentation tone of the series has its highpoint in how polished both the crime and science drama episodes come across offering captivating mystery investigative and experimenting research approaches to deliver their stories. One of the lingering questions regarding the Chinese version plot is how long it takes for the main characters to realize what is going on and why physics does not exist. It just seems with so much sci fi in American culture could Chinese culture be so insulated from or resistant to alternative scientific explanations?