They made this pretty clear in the pilot episode. They even used it as a torture/interrogation device.
Having never read the books, I thought the episode was great and nothing was confusing.
The politics and tech level remind me a lot of TSR’s old Buck Rogers XXVC setting, which makes me think I’m really going to enjoy this.
Earth is populated by the Terrans, or natives of Earth. The condition of Earth is very bad compared to the other inner planets. Due to centuries of exploitation by RAM, many natural resources are spent, cities are demolished, and hopes are crushed. Advanced technology is confined to independent arcologies, but also several communities try to reestablish a more civilized order as well - the so-called “orgs” like Los Angelorg, Chicagorg, etc. In orbit around Earth are many satellites, especially at the Lagrange points of Luna’s orbit; these L-5 colonies are teeming slums.
Luna, or Earth’s moon, was settled by the EBF. They deal extensively with interplanetary banking and trade. The Lunarians are staunchly neutral. They defend this position with large mass drivers mounted on the surface of the moon.
Mars was settled by RAM as the first colonization of another planet by humans. Mars is a center of trade and industry for the entire solar system. RAM has such tight control over the workings of the planet that the names “RAM” and “Mars” are used almost interchangeably. RAM wields power throughout the whole solar system, as demonstrated by their financial investments, military presence, and political clout on almost all the other planets and bodies.
The Asteroid Belt is a loosely-organized collection of settlements. Their inhabitants are commonly known as “Belters.” The belt contains space ports and cities that deal in mining, trade, and certain illegal business. The asteroid belt is the home of the Black Brotherhood.
I’d be shocked if the books weren’t at least slightly inspired from this…
Earth in the books is not depicted as a slum, but as a very populated place full of people who live without working (and without a lot of money). It is made very explicit that live outside of Earth is harsher and much more demanding, although also more “lively” and thus preferable (a conclusion of the politics of the the series, and something that doesn’t really make a lot of sense). Also, Earth seems to have the military, political and technological edge at the start of the series. It’s just that they have a lot to lose if full-out war breaks out, and thus the old-war lie, status quo
I would say it depicts a lot of Earth as being very much a slum. There’s a wealthy elite and even people who do work seem to live relatively well, but the vast majority of the population (and it’s hugely overpopulated) are on “basic” and get their minimum needs taken care of and that’s it. I think the best view of that side of Earth is in the first part of Nemesis Games (the most recent book) before things really kick off. People aren’t living on the Moon or Mars or in the Belt because they’re luxurious or easy - the Belt especially has been squeezed pretty hard by the Inner System powers of Earth and Mars - but because it’s still got more to offer than being one of the masses on basic on Earth. And I would say that Earth has the political edge, because they’re the homeland and still constitute the majority of humanity, but Mars has the military edge because they’ve got a more advanced navy (I can’t remember which of the two is larger) and possibly the technological edge. Not enough so to dominate, but there’s certainly plenty of tension. It’s definitely not Mars uber alles and Earth as the impoverished hellhole as Buck Rogers apparently has it, though.
I think “slum” might be a bit harsh. In one of the middle books (third?) Bobbie Draper (a Martian) visits Earth and is surprised to find how high the standard of living is, even for those “on basic.”
She later meets a waitress who explains that while “basic” is just fine, she yearns for more. Which is why she is apprenticing as a waitress to prove that she has enough of a work ethic to be accepted into a permanent job. It’s described as a system that provides a decent life for everyone and an equitable path upwards if you care to go for it.
Of course, in the fifth book you do get to see a darker side of it, showing how organized crime exploits the system.
To be fair, it’s been a while since I read the earlier books, whereas I just finished Nemesis Games a few weeks ago.
Bobbie Draper was walking around just outside the UN headquarters though. That’s definitely Earth putting it’s best foot forward.
I think it might be more authorial ping-pong, adjusting the setting as the plot/reader base requires it, given who the rest of the books read (projection of contemporary Western -American- cultural values pretending to be foreign and spacey). Having not read the latest book my only perception of Earth in the setting is that which Tin explains, and thus my previous comment. It sounds it has been changed in the latest book :P
Earth is a big place. Bobby was visiting the UN, while Amos is from the slums of Baltimore. I think there’s plenty of in-between not seen but suggested at, but my feeling is that it’s not so dissimilar from present day, albeit with a larger portion of the first world countries on welfare (although whether the third world countries are starving in mud huts and scraping by, or if they are also on Basic, isn’t clear.)
I finally got around to seeing the pilot and I’m impressed by how much work they put into presenting the physical differences between Belters and inner-world types. I’d assumed they would push that into the background, but you can do a lot with good casting choices and special effects.
I watched the first ep, it was good enough, will watch the rest
Yep, thought it was very decent, actually.
Will be recording this and Childhood’s End. Syfy suddenly on my radar again.
Yeah, a year or two ago Syfy realized that its route of not investing in dramas and in only no-budget, high-cheez movies of the week was a terrible idea. Content is king in this day and age, and they weren’t producing anything of value after BSG. Meanwhile, it was watching AMC and HBO completely dominate the cultural landscape with genre series. So they opened the budget up and started investing in drama again.
Uh, I wanted to read Chilhood’s End someday. I wonder if it will be faithful.
I liked it, but then again, I think I was 15 at the time I read it. It was clearly written in a different time, where we had classics as Children of the Dust, and others that clearly were a product of Cold War antics.
Wow, the first segment of this is also surprisingly decent (and looks to have an adequate budget). What the hell, Syfy? ;-)
Surprisingly good, but I can’t imagine SyFy continuing to support a budget of the size it took to product just this single episode. They’ve never been willing to put money into FX for very long.
Err… BSG?
(Granted, BSG is the only instance I can think of where they put money into FX, but still…)
BSG was their highest budgeted series to date, but it was still very modest compared to shows on other networks. Ron Moore and company had to beg, borrow, and steal for every penny, and they made every penny count.
Like I said, after BSG, SyFy went the really low budget route, but the TV landscape changed. It’s the golden age of TV, and you need to be trying your best if you want to get noticed.