Away (2020) User Reviews

This is not sci-fi...

[Willard1975 · 7/10 · 4 September 2020]

... and anyone going into this series thinking otherwise will be utterly disappointed. This is drama, about family and relationships. It just has a space backdrop in order to facilitate distance, and being apart from your loved ones. Yes, there are some sci-fi elements but those are scarce and are not what the show is really about. It's about people reaching for their dreams, and that life isn't always fair.

If you're still interested in the show knowing this, you won't be disappointed.

Easy watch

[laurenlouisebyrne · 8/10 · 30 September 2020]

Nice and easy watch, don't see why there is so many bad reviews

Too many clichés

[suvikoskela · 6/10 · 4 September 2020]

Great idea for series, I love sci-fi. But the writing is so full of clichés, I feel like they are constantly underestimating the viewers.

Characters are introduced by telling who exactly they are ("Lu here is the best chemist in China, she is quiet and reserved"), instead of us viewers finding it out ourselves as the episodes continue. The Russian one is obviously the a**hole and immediately there is beef with the American captain.

The teenage daughter of Captain Emma Green is also super annoying. Constantly whining wanting her mom back from the moon. I want to see space drama, not family drama.

This space mission seems to be doomed and after the first episode I already don't care what happens to the characters.

Amatuers in Space

[scorch1-1 · 22 September 2020]

It's like the crew did not prepare for anything. The stupid cable thing on the solar array and no tether long enough. Duh. The water situation with a bad pump should be redundant three times deep. And the solution, very unsatisfying and odd. The whining, blubbering tears accompanying every scene and the lame calls home. Cripes! The lack of discipline that started even before the launch. Making a big deal of space walks? Ugh. Stunk. I was hoping they would miss Mars and dive into the Sun.

Space Melodrama.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 6/10 · 7 September 2020]

Don't even think about watching this if like me you are in search of sci fi horror, or even a sci fi thriller, it's neither, what it is, is a long series where the key focus of it, is relationships. How people cope in their various relationships with adversity, be it loss or distance.

Ten episodes was complete and utter overkill, they could have done this in four or five, the plots are reworked a few times, the main issue here being the writing, it really isn't the best.

The show's main strength, the actors, there is plenty of acting talent here to enjoy, Hilary Swank is great, Ray Pathanki I enjoyed very much, his character was very entertaining.

Impressive special effects, and it is quite watchable, just as you know what you're in for, a rollercoaster of emotions, without a scare in sight.

Better than some reviews would have you believe.

Writing is not even high school...it's jr high. But great acting.

[deanw-323-930504 · 6/10 · 5 September 2020]

5/10...drama not sci-fi depending on how you look at it. Great cast..but we live In a world where we understand real science. The Martian vs this makes it a 3/10. BUT...acting and photograph is great. Writting is very weak and not high school...Jr high.

It gets better ...

[Mikewyn-32-457329 · 8/10 · 3 October 2020]

It gets better from one episode to the next. There are some scientific mistakes but overall it is good family entertainment.

Mixed feeling

[iconians · 7/10 · 5 September 2020]

Many reviewers absolutely hate it. I am not one of them. Here is why:

This is not a sci fi series. This a drama, on the base of a sci fi premise. How families and crew are dealing with a prospect of 3 year space travel and the unknown.

Here is what I think it got done well: -Overall atmosphere and drama. -Crisis and how different people deal with it. -Some scenes are very very good. -Some writing is very good. -Visuals are overall very good, with few exceptions noted below. -Music is great. I think casting is well done. -Chemistry is very good also. -I liked the Russian character. Very good done.

The bad (or what could have made it this great). -This needs another pass at editing -Some scenes are too gratuitous, where they just indulge themselves in special fx for special effects sake. -About 70% of flashback are either useless or too long while not offering anything substantial.

Overall, I enjoyed it, but with another edit/cut, I think it has potential to be very good. 6.5/10

Not really the sci-fi you probably expected, but really well done

[rallsopp-69274 · 8/10 · 5 September 2020]

As other reviews have complained, this is not The Expanse. It's far closer to First Man (which I thought was excellent). Away is a story about people and relationships, just set in space. Where most of sci fi is really shallow on character and script, and heavy on aliens and action, Away is the opposite, and I find it so refreshing. This is how actual humans behave and speak to each other, and I really wish this attention to character and story development was put into every movie and show. Hilary Swank does an amazing job of being both a strong, believable commander, and a mother and wife. I can't think of anywhere else I've seen this done so well, and it's a shame this doesn't seem to be what people want in their television. I guess I agree generally that some character tropes are present, but they are all written so well it just doesn't matter. I absolutely BELIEVE them, and I'm invested in their stories. I haven't rolled my eyes once during season 1 so far, which I cannot say for literally any other sci fi show I've ever seen (and I've seen A LOT). If you tend to cringe a lot while watching sci fi due to cheesy dialog and characters, I'd highly recommend giving Away a shot.

Soundtrack it's really good...

[ahmadrezarostami · 7/10 · 19 August 2021]

In addition to the series, the soundtrack was great, it attracted more of my soundtrack to the series than the series itself ...

Surprised the ship didn't blow up from cliché overload

[atayqeddd · 2/10 · 10 September 2020]

Good acting? Yes. Absolutely ridiculous plot line and characters, definitely. This bunch of misfits was just too much, even for a US series. Crazy, angry Russian - check. Detached, unemotional Chinese woman - check. Black African became English, became American and then Jewish as well? - check. Emotionally stunted Indian, with family issues - check. Daughter's boyfriend is so cute, but fatherless. Father crippled and daughter could have the gene too. The whole thing just insults your intelligence and just thrown in for good measure, a high-functioning Down syndrome girl and the NASA boss is implausibly dowdy. What a crock!

It's More Than an Attempt to Reach Mars

[dtporter-886-883020 · 9/10 · 7 September 2020]

I watched the first episode, became intrigued, and then curious. How did others view this series? I normally don't bother watching "TV series" with a rating lower than 7.0. Lo and behold, at the time Away was rated 5.4! Then I looked at the episode ratings, most of which were in the upper 7's. Odd descrepancy for sure.

So what? The user reviews were using two of my favorite series as touchstones--Star Trek and 2001 a Space Odyssey. They forgot this was a real story about real issues. Family, faith, struggling between career vs patriotism vs family, politics vs group cohesion.

Make no mistake about it, this is no fairy tale. Sure some liberties were taken with physics (e.g., comm speeds), but the struggle of humans to leave what is dear to encounter new frontiers? This what makes humans human. Soap opera? I don't think so. Humanity at its best, overcoming its own toxic nature.

Enjoy. Be patient. Swank, Charles, Bateman and the rest of the cast will bring you to a new understanding of professionals who are still people, real people, real heroes with real weaknesses.

The writing is crisply luxuriant, one of the great advantages of ten hours, rather than two. Listen for nuance, revel in a pool of learning about what it means to be human.

It's more than an attempt to reach Mars. The stars, my friends, the stars.

Deserves higher rating than 5.7

[roma-128-183898 · 7/10 · 5 September 2020]

The series are with the slow start, but getting better with each episode. The best part is the chemistry between main characters on the spaceship.

Tha Earth based characters and especially throwbacks are more boring, even though might be necessary to support spaceship plot.

Extra point to a Russian character, there is lately a positive trend in Hollywood to cast actual Russian speaking actors from former USSR countries. And even though there are few typical Russian stereotypes, there is also a lot done right. The actor is also great. The only unrealistic thing is his relationship with his daughter, it is very americanized - we don't get upset about some parenting issues as spoiled American kids do. The latter is one of most annoying parts of the series, but again it is in almost every Hollywood movie or series, kids are so terribly annoying with their narcissism.

Hollywood please read this review.

[robertdlar · 4/10 · 5 September 2020]

OK I am going to say this, and I know it will wrinkle some skirts in Hollywood but so be it. I think this show is getting such poor reviews because Hollywood keeps under estimating their viewers. NEWS FLASH we are NOT a bunch of idiots, specially people who watch Science fiction. I seem to remember Harlan Ellison once saying, you can't just make up stuff when you write science fiction, people who read it are smarter than your average reader. Same thing with movies.

First off NASA trains their "TEAMS" of astronauts together for years to make sure they work together well because once they are out there in the dark they are on their own. This BS of throwing together a team of people who not only do not work together but also don't even like each other is BS. When you are sending anyone on a long journey that will takes years they had BEST get along because even the BEST of friends will start to grind on each others nerves on a long trip let alone a group of people who already don't get along.

There was NO need to do this, there is enough drama and possible crisis that needs to be dealt with to fill each episode without the 'forced' personal drama. Please stop treating us like idiots and write something descent please.

Potential lost

[panados · 9 September 2020]

This series had potential to be something great. Unfortunately, it's very slow paced, boring, unrealistic and full of clichés.

Very ABC Family - milquetoast viewing

[michaelsnyder-59725 · 6/10 · 10 October 2020]

The acting was the best thing about this. Plot overall too trite and by-the-notes to ever feel like there was anything actually at stake. Very disappointed. Still giving 6 stars because I realize I wasn't the intended audience. This show isn't meant for serious lovers of science fiction and space fiction.

Compelling

[anthonydapiii · 6/10 · 3 November 2020]

I will be going to the moon one day.

Watching this was both personal, because of that, and entertaining since the cast was stellar.

The sound design, mixing, and music was great in this one too.

Well done dramatic show deserves a much higher rating

[terrylarosa · 8/10 · 5 September 2020]

First ep was dramatically suspenseful and not one millisecond was boring. My wife and I were stunned at how good this show was after reading so many negative reviews. These Fast and Furious reviewers needing infant dialogue and cars who defy physics should look elsewhere. Good acting and emotional dramatic storytelling make this a total winner. Well done effects and interesting characters certainly don't hurt either. Ignore the buffoonish naysayers and give it a chance.

Binged 10 eps in a Day

[darkokubra · 7/10 · 5 September 2020]

As a huge fan of The Martian, Apollo 13, Sunshine etc I was surprised and excited to check out this show when it appeared yesterday. Thoroughly enjoyed it, so much that I watch the entire thing in a day. As others have said, it has it's fair share of family drama back on Earth. But it has even more drama on the shuttle. Like Lost, most episodes tell a story in flashback, helping flesh out each member of the crew. But it's never overdone and adds to the present day drama. As for production, cinematography and direction, it's well done, it doesn't look cheap or hacky. The space stuff is particularly good with perfect VFX and enough grounded science to aid in the suspension of disbelief required. Looking forward to season 2.

People are just angry because it's not what they expected

[malinx-63745 · 9/10 · 5 September 2020]

This is an excellent, slow burn drama, with amazing acting. Definitely not the most original idea, but it's SO freaking refreshing to not see an over the top action-packed sci-fi series where every character is behaving irrationally every second to create unnecessary drama, because the teens watching can't watch anything that doesn't stimulate every part of the brain at all times.

The series allows you to actually feel for the characters, because they actually act like people. Could have done without the daughters arc, but whatever, it's a sweet story I guess. But yeah, this is a heavier kind of psychological drama, SET IN SPACE. Just watch it.

Some acuraccy problems, heart in the right place

[kvothetraspie · 7/10 · 5 September 2020]

The heart of the series I think is the right place, but it seems in their need to give the series human gravitas they bent some the rules of communication, Im not an expert but some lag should be show cased when communications are concerned, the human relations of the characters are well made, I only wished they did not bent the rules of communication on such long distances to make the interactions "better" I think they may have done that for sake of streamlining the story, but it diminished the realism of the show, and in doing so they broke part of my suspension of disbelief, Im only 2 eps in, so maybe the communications will lag more as they approach Mars, if they dont then... yeah that's quite the mistake.

So many series add horror elements or unnecessary problems to space travel (which also make me brake my suspension of disbelieve), and they do that to make the story "better" or more exiting, it seems its really hard for the creators of this type of series to not add this kind of things, and Im glad this series does not fall into that category, if they didn't not had screwed he communication lag I would have rated the series higher.

I hope the series improve as the eps go by, I want to see more of this type of grounded scifi series.

Who wrote the scripts? Why?

[smo-224-712201 · 1/10 · 13 September 2020]

After forcing myself through 9 episodes, I have to agree to the bad reviews.

I understand that the series is not about a mars mission, spacecrafts and sci/fi, but about the social stress from isolation of the loved ones, and social stress from group dynamics and t3echnical issues.

But the scenarios, which are used to create those social stress are so far from being believable, it's hard to understand how this could actually pass all production steps and came to screen.

The daughter behaves like an average teenager, yet both of her parents are in leading positions of the NASA. Her mother is a jet pilot and astronaut since when she was born, her father is a lead engineer. It's hard to believe that this is the first time she had to deal with life drama while her mother isn't there. She is probably 14 and in all those years, her mother only had one topic: Mars. That's the environment she grew up in. Demanding her to stay just some hours before takeoff, is something a she would never ask for in this situation. This is not how she was socialized. She rather learned from child on, that her parents have to fulfill duties, if she liked it or not.

This is just one example, how the social stress in this show didn't work, if you just think about it for one or two seconds.

All the technical issues, which are used to create group stress to the crew, are beyond any technical understanding. The solar panel is one of the critical system, but it's designed in a way it can fail so easily, like there is nobody at NASA who can mill a groove? What is the purpose of this steel rope anyway?

And the water system, the most critical system on board, is just described as a 4000 pieces puzzle. In order to repair it, they need to do a "heart surgery" and one of the crew members have to memorize every screw and part, like they don't can make photos while disassembling. All they have is a 3D exploded view like in an Ikea manual. I would buy all of this, but even the most complex system follows a logic. Somebody has made up this water system, thought about how it works and what does it take to write a service manual - let it be larger than the plot holes - and give it to the crew to they can fix it? You have such in every airliner, I think.

Nothing in this show makes any sense. This is just a soap opera in space with unbelievable characters and a lot of tears.

Shame on Netflix!

[katherine-britton · 8/10 · 3 November 2020]

Such a crying shame that Netflix has cancelled this show after just one season. I think it has been a very compelling and powerful watch with great acting, enticing and emotional story lines and a lingering feeling for the human impact, mental strength and drive such a challenge presents. Up to episode 8 now and there hasn't been one so far that has had me distracted or bored, quite the opposite reaction infact. I really hope Netflix will come to its senses and reinstate this show or that another network can pick it up....we need to know how it ends!

A very nicely put drama

[dvjmishka · 7/10 · 5 September 2020]

I can see now, after watching it, why some people gave this show low ratings and bad reviews, most people who watched this show thinking that it's pure sci-fi where there would be aliens and superheroes and villains or space wars etc... will be disappointed, but if you're a real series addict and love watching any well played show no matter what genre it is (like me) then you're in for a good treat, the show is a very emotional drama that has a great story and it is very well put together, in short, if you love a good heart-warming drama just watch it and i assure you that you're gonna love it!

Oh boy, no one bothered to consult a real astronaut.

[jamessmithurst · 2/10 · 5 September 2020]

OK. The crew almost killed themselves in a freak fire accident - but the mission goes ahead. The crew lie in an interrogation - but the mission goes ahead. The commander's hubby has a stroke hours before launch - but the mission goes ahead. They make calls from the moon and space to mobile phones on earth - what? Great CGI but utterly unrealistic. There's no backup crew and although half the crew is untrustworthy, the mission still goes ahead - what?