The Expanse - Why No Hugo Awards for Second Season?

[Al Jackson]

I am new around here, tho I have been in SF fandom since 1954 and am a long long long long time reader of SF. Have always been interested in SF as a visual narrative. If I am among seasoned fans can someone tell me why the heck an episode from season 2 of The Expanse was not nominated for a HUGO? Season 1 won one and season 2 of The Expanse was better than season 1.

 

[ctg]

If I am among seasoned fans can someone tell me why the heck an episode from season 2 of The Expanse was not nominated for a HUGO?

Welcome to Chronicles. The First book, Leviathan Wakes, was nominated for a Hugo back in 2012. Last year, similarly named "Leviathan Wakes" won a Hugo for the Best Dramatic Presentation. I think that is a new, expanded category. Outside of that I don't know.

 

[Al Jackson]

Welcome to Chronicles. The First book, Leviathan Wakes, was nominated for a Hugo back in 2012. Last year, similarly named "Leviathan Wakes" won a Hugo for the Best Dramatic Presentation. I think that is a new, expanded category. Outside of that I don't know.

The reason I say this is because I have never seen TV space opera like this. It is not like Star Trek or Star Wars or even Firefly and BSG.... I have not read the books but from what I know of the writers have said they are fans of 1950's SF (or words to that effect). I know one of them cites The Stars My Destination. What impresses me is how much this show is a homage to , well, really John W Campbell and his marching orders, as editor, in 1938 when he took over Astounding , to have the 'future' fiction world build so that it had verisimilitude .... this was something Robert Heinlein and Issac Asimov (and bout 100 other writers) did. Not only is the factual universe payed attention to but also the creation of the dirt-under-the-fingernails Belters and Martians , real future-on-a-chipped-plate science fiction. I never thought I would see it , this kind of space opera is common currency in the prose form , but has only been approximated in the visual narrative form (and not much there).
I wonder if long time SF readers feel the same way?
I mean there are ideas from Larry Niven and Joe Haldeman other 'hard ' SF writers right up to the present.
Never seen anything like it.

 

[ctg]

I wonder if long time SF readers feel the same way?

To be honest, after nineties "kill all SciFi" I'm glad to have whatever I can... well, not everything but I think there are a lot of people who are very happy at the current situation. I don't know for sure.

 

[Al Jackson]

I am surprise this show does not have more buzz among science fiction people! I have been waiting on a show like this for 60 years!! No HUGO nomination for this year , for season 2, is insane.

 

[Gnrevolution]

I am surprise this show does not have more buzz among science fiction people! I have been waiting on a show like this for 60 years!! No HUGO nomination for this year , for season 2, is insane.

Hey you're preaching to the converted here!

But seriously, the biggest problems are that (a) there was literally no marketing or advertising for it and it's subsequent placement on SyFy (which is not exactly regarded for quality programming anymore) doesn't exactly endear itself to people and (b) the international rights to the show are all over the place, with season 3 not available outside the US yet (and probably won't for several more months yet). There's no doubting the quality of the show and has been seen by the #SaveTheExpanse there is a large fan base out there, but it's not got the mainstream attention it deserves. Hopefully the move to Amazon will change all of that, but they seriously need to market and advertise the hell out of this show.

 

[Al Jackson]

Hey you're preaching to the converted here!

But seriously, the biggest problems are that (a) there was literally no marketing or advertising for it and it's subsequent placement on SyFy (which is not exactly regarded for quality programming anymore) doesn't exactly endear itself to people and (b) the international rights to the show are all over the place, with season 3 not available outside the US yet (and probably won't for several more months yet). There's no doubting the quality of the show and has been seen by the #SaveTheExpanse there is a large fan base out there, but it's not got the mainstream attention it deserves. Hopefully the move to Amazon will change all of that, but they seriously need to market and advertise the hell out of this show.

Yeah I know, but I have had trouble finding the choir in this matter. My optimistic surmise is that long time SF readers have not found this show! It is true that I did not know about The Expanse because it WAS on the Sharknado channel! (Even tho they had done a decent version, kind of, of Childhood's End in 2015, I still can't explain that.) An old time SF fan friend of mine told me I would be surprised if I watched The Expanse. I sure the hell was! Alas I don't read that much SF anymore , I mean I read obsessively from 1953 to about 1980 before good SF became to seem been-there-done-that too often. Did not know about the Expanse novels. Looked at one and decided Daniel Abraham* and Ty Franck must be fans of 1940's and 1950's prose SF. First look at the show a little voice in the back of my head said John W Campbell would have loved this!

(* I am still not sure of Abraham.)

 

[Al Jackson]

Well, SFFChronicles isn't as big as it used to be and most of the people are afraid talking, when they see Authors or then it's something else. What other forums do you mean?

File 770 , can't figure if it's been talked about there, Galactic Journey is Expanse friendly but the worldline structure keeps it out of discussion, can't figure if its been of SF Bluestocking or not, have not tried all the SF fan sites, it does have a following on Facebook....

 

[ctg]

File 770 , can't figure if it's been talked about there, Galactic Journey is Expanse friendly but the worldline structure keeps it out of discussion, can't figure if its been of SF Bluestocking or not,

Thank you, but those three are blogs, not forums. What I class as a forum is like for example a SFFChronicles style bulletin board system (BBS). FB or Twitter are neither, and you really cannot get a good conversation going in there. There is of course Reddit's r/theexpanse, which is kind of forum and a chat system, and hugely more popular than our stuff in here.

The only thing I get from doing reviews is a satisfaction of someone talking back. I've been thinking about contacting AMZ and asking PR stuff, like images for the Expanse, but I'm equally as comfortable on doing the screen shots on my own. At least that way I don't feel pressurised by the producers and if something is bad, I can voice rather than try to talk BS about it.

 

[Al Jackson]

Thank you, but those three are blogs, not forums. What I class as a forum is like for example a SFFChronicles style bulletin board system (BBS). FB or Twitter are neither, and you really cannot get a good conversation going in there. There is of course Reddit's r/theexpanse, which is kind of forum and a chat system, and hugely more popular than our stuff in here.

.

These are the Hugo Nominees for best Fanzine (does anyone print a zine anymore?)
Best Fanzine

File 770, edited by Mike Glyer
Galactic Journey, edited by Gideon Marcus
Journey Planet, edited by Team Journey Planet
nerds of a feather, flock together, edited by The G, Vance Kotrla, and Joe Sherry
Rocket Stack Rank, edited by Greg Hullender and Eric Wong
SF Bluestocking, edited by Bridget McKinney

They are all Blogs? They seems half blog half forum, some are more forum than blog.
I guess forums don't have a Hugo category?

 

[ctg]

I guess forums don't have a Hugo category?

No. They don't. Brian would deserve some sort of recognition for the work he has done over the years, but there is none, until someone with money does it.