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Comment by mattmanser | Hacker News Reader

I couldn't get past the first episode, partly because I knew exactly what would happen as I read it recently, but partly because the belters aren't different enough.

I can totally understand why they aren't as the costs would have been astronomical, but it's such a huge part of the books it's a little jarring.

For those not in the know, Belters are people who were born/grown up in space and look very different as a result:

Humans born to the Belt are taller and thinner than those on Earth and Mars because of the decreased gravity. As a result of these physical differences, Belters are dehumanized by many Earth and Mars residents because they superficially seem to be a deviation from the species norms of humans. - http://expanse.wikia.com/wiki/Belter

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I wish more people could attempt anime adaptations of these sorts of works. The medium is just so much more high concept friendly; making strange alien characters and settings has a similar cost profile to storys about human characters and normal settings.

Alas, most of that artistic movement is very limited to adapting source material from its own unique cultural direction. However, a growing interest from western studios and growing understanding that non-comedy adult animation can be a thing makes me optimisic.

Also, my personal favorite for adaptation would be Hyperion Cantos. It has a lovely episodic feel at the start, as the pilgrims, tell their respective stories, and slowly piece togeather the true story. They seek a horrible, mysterious machine god on a distant colony pLanet, which is said to grant 1 wish for any appropriately sized band of pilgrims, at the cost of the rest of their lives.

Coming from a reader of the whole series: the second season has much better writing and budget, and the actors have also worked together long enough to gel well. Aside from the casting of a certain Martian girl (someone should introduce the director to some real Marines), I think they avoided major errors and everyone in the house is eagerly awaiting the next season.

The Martian girl was / is my biggest complaint with the series. I almost gave up watching even though I love show because of that one character.

She was not exactly Bobbie, as depicted in the books. But unless you find the Maori sister of the guy who played Gregor Clegane in GOT, nobody would be.

This can be the problem with adaptations. If you've read and enjoyed the books, you not only possibly know whats going to happen but you have specific expectations. Personally, I haven't read The Expanse and have enjoyed the series.

Yeah, I was drawn in pretty much immediately. I was only able to catch the first 3 episodes while waiting for a flight in Taiwan (they seem to have the same Netflix library as the States, whereas here in Canada, the Expanse is unavailable), but I found it mesmerising.

It's available on CraveTV in Canada. Only $9 a month, can cancel your subscription any time, first month is free. Tech sucks, content is pretty good.

Oh wow, I was under the impression it was much more expensive. I have a smart TV that has a Crave app, I guess I'll give it a shot.

In the first episode the Belter they arrested was supposedly 7ft tall, frail and thin. They tortured him by hanging him from his torso until his heart collapsed due to gravity. The belters have only been in space a few hundred(?) years so physiologically they wouldn't look that different from earthers.

The change is not due to evolution, but rather because there's lower gravity, which would affect bone growth (and density).

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