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‘Altered Carbon’ Hits Netflix Today And Critics And Fans Are Excited

‘Altered Carbon’ Hits Netflix Today And Critics And Fans Are Excited

Critics are describing the show as a 'sprawling spectacle' and a 'solid addition to the canon of science fiction on television'

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie

Netflix is hoping its newest series, Altered Carbon, gets slotted into the same TV and film category as The Matrix, Black Mirror and Blade Runner.

In other words, they're hoping fans find it absolutely, undoubtedly incredible.

The show is casually set 300 years in the future where people who have enough money can 'download' their consciousness into waiting bodies - called a 'sleeve' - and essentially live forever. It's a science fiction styled detective drama which centres on former soldier Takashi Kovacs (Joel Kinnaman) trying to solve the murder of a rich bloke.

After a hell of a lot of promotion and hype, Altered Carbon has premiered on the streaming service today and critics have so far only good things to say about it.

Variety's Maureen Ryan writes: Like Electric Dreams, Altered Carbon is not perfect, but both are solid additions to the canon of science fiction on television. To see major TV platforms spending big money on TV series with shuttlecraft, flying police cruisers, multiple worlds and gorgeously inventive technology is heartening."

While The Hollywood Reporter's Tim Goodman described the show as: "Conceptually, in any case, Altered Carbon is a blockbuster - it's a sprawling spectacle that could go on for multiple seasons.

Netflix

"The cinematography and world-building is impressive frame to frame, the casting strong and all the riveting popcorn elements firmly in place."

The actor who plays the protagonist, Joel Kinnaman, says he was drawn to the role because of its Black Mirror style plot, which forces the audience to see how today's problems could be extrapolated and exaggerated in the future.

Speaking to NME, he said: "I think we already now are seeing rich people almost becoming a different species, when you see what the possibilities of health care are for the rich compared to people that live in poverty that are uninsured."

Netflix

The series is based on the 2002 book of the same name which was written by science fiction novelist Richard K Morgan.

The book won the 2003 Philip K Dick Award for Best Novel, so we can only hope the series does it justice. Judging by the trailer, we think it might just live up to those expectations, and thankfully there are 10 episodes to feast on Netflix from today.

If everyone gets on board with the series, we're sure that Broken Angels and Woken Furies (Morgan's other two books featuring Kovacs) will also be - to coin a phrase - Netflixed.

Sources: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, NME

Featured Image Credit: Netflix

Topics: Entertainment, Awesome, TV and Film, Netflix