One theme is whether a democratic society is an inevitable trend in the development of human society.
From a historical point of view, the ultimate driving force of social development is productivity. Just as we have learned, the economic foundation determines the superstructure. In an environment where individual productivity is extremely low, society has a strong tendency to centralize power, such as nomadic society and agricultural society; while in an environment where trade and industry are developed, individual productivity is highly developed, and the centralized system is unsustainable.
However, there is a new social unit-enterprise, which was born in industrialized countries along with the democratic system. After hundreds of years of development, today's large enterprises have concentrated a huge amount of production resources. With the help of science and technology, they can produce productivity that is completely unmatched by the intelligence and physical strength of individual workers. The social status of the individual is declining, and the value of the individual is more and more limited to the production of products for the labor of the enterprise and the consumption of these products for earning remuneration. When one day, an enterprise can provide irreplaceable products and provide society with an unprecedentedly convenient life, the existence of the enterprise itself will become a necessity for people's lives. If the products provided by such enterprises or enterprise alliances can cover people's lives in all aspects, the role of the government will be weakened and eventually replaced by enterprises, making the latter a new centralizer.
The society's vigilance towards enterprises may be far lower than the vigilance towards the government.
The heroine of the film, the future policeman, Kiera, has a happy home and a happy life in a centralized society. She does not care (or does not realize) that corporate alliances deprive her of her rights and rule her own life, nor do she care about the general living conditions of the society like the Europeans and Americans do today, but only defend that society with an instinctive and simple sense of justice. Order.
Another theme is about time travel.
Whether it is possible to travel through time and whether it can change the past or the future are the two most interesting questions for people. These two problems are essentially one problem, because as long as time travel is carried out, it will definitely have an impact on the past or the future. In other words, if the past or the future cannot be changed, it means that time travel is impossible.
Under the setting of this film, time travel is obviously feasible, so the change should be inevitable-at least I hope that the second season can develop like this, not like some science fiction movies describe people in the past or the future. Can only be a ghostly bystander-then, how did this change happen, how did the events of 2012 affect the society in 2077, and how did this influence be applied to these few years from 2077? As for the characters in 2012, this is the most challenging part of the screenwriter. Because of the wonderful script of the first season, I have high expectations for the second season.
However, whether the plot is wonderful, in addition to the extraordinary imagination of the screenwriter, it also requires sufficient rationality, and this rationality will mainly be reflected by a few time travelers, and this involves the third theme—— ——The relationship between human behavior and environment.
Human behavior is a reaction to the real world. When the environment changes drastically, human behavior will also change drastically at the same time. Although this performance in the first season is not obvious, it is understandable, because in addition to the advanced and backward technology, and a small group of revolutionary armed forces (terrorists) on the margins of society, the mainstream society in 2077, On the surface, it doesn't seem to be much different from 2012.
But the difference is internal. From 2012 to 2077, a democratic society managed by a democratically elected government has become a centralized society ruled by high-tech companies. We can imagine how drastic the changes in these 60 years have been, and this change has already surfaced in the last episode of this season.
For Liber8 members, the violent revolution they originally believed in was to overthrow an existing oligarchic enterprise that ruled the society and regain people's right to choose their own way of life, so it has its own rationality. But back in 2012, when it is necessary to prevent the emergence and development of such an enterprise in a democratic society, it is another matter. The rationality of exercising violence no longer exists. How Liber8, led by the young Sonya, responds to this changing situation, should be a highlight of the second season.
For the protagonist, Kiera, who has never questioned the legitimacy of the power authorities, she will witness the rise of a centralized power, witness its weakening and disintegration of democratic government, and begin to notice the internal differences between the social rulers of the two eras. This will affect or even subvert her perception of society in 2077 and Liber8.
Of course, the plot may also be completely in another direction: Liber8 continues to pursue violentism, Kiera's world view has not changed, and finally the future police defeated the future terrorists in 2012, and the whole drama ended. But judging from the foreshadowing of the first season, the development of the plot should not be so vulgar and superficial.
Through the 10 episodes of the first season, I think the director, performance, special effects, etc. of this drama are excellent. If the script is well written, it is likely to become an epic science fiction masterpiece. I hope I can travel through time to go to July 2013 and start the second season directly. . .
View more about Continuum reviews