The Silent Sea (Season 1) is set in an alternate reality that is very close to a possible and foreseeable future.

Because of drought and overpopulation, humanity is on the verge of extinction. The populace is given class cards with different designations, indicating how much water each member of the populace can extract from the water-supply kiosks. This is the source of class disparity in this dystopian dystopia of the near future.

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ImageCredit: Netflix

The Silent Sea has been set in turbulent times. The whole series revolves around a mission to go to Balhae Station on the surface of the moon and to retrieve some crucial samples that hold the key to solving the water crisis on the Earth that is assigned to Bae Doona’s Dr. Song Jian. This operation is also joined by the Captain Han Yunjae of Gong Yoo who is the brawn and military head of this operation. And he joins her in leading this expedition in the moonbase where five years earlier 117 researchers died due to an unknown radiation leak.

As soon as the series begins, the spaceship can be seen in complete disarray; as on its way to the moon, the landing mechanics of the ship cause the ship to crash-land on the surface on the edge of a cliff. The whole crew travels to the moon-base in search of the samples, barely scaping the crash site. However, as soon as they come in contact with the base of the moon the things begin to go horribly wrong as the crew discovers a new mystery that might endanger their time there.

Sci-fi goes best when it takes the conceptual things that are easy to imagine in the ongoing landscape and can imagine the solution of the problem. However, season one of Silent Sea is an exception to the rule of character-driven Korean dramas. It is not that the writer Eun-Kyo Park (Mother) doesn’t create a sci-fi and horror series that feels like a genre experiment done correctly.

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ImageCredit: Netflix

The Silent Sea is best at capturing the claustrophobic vibe and tone of the show, once the characters enter the moonbase and get to know about the mysterious findings that are not entirely consistent with the information provided to them. Also, it adds an intriguing twist when all of the characters have a strong sense of individualism and personal stakes. These almost always result in squabbles, particularly between the two protagonists. However, the events that occur eventually force the two protagonists to work together, even as the supporting cast begins to dwindle.

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The premise of the aforementioned show, the solution to the water crisis, is one of those extremely simple sci-fi concepts that, when used correctly, works wonders. As the title suggests, The Silent Sea manages to make even a natural resource like water terrifying for the audience, which is simply clever writing at work. It’s also worth noting that how the water has been used here foreshadows our current situation as we face a pandemic. Too much information would be a spoiler, so the author is on pins and needles here.

The combination of simple conceit with the ideas of claustrophobic sci-fi horror that resembles an Alien as well as leaning toward the strange like The Girl with All the Gifts or even Claire Denis’ High Life, and The Silent Sea is a lot. The script and plot of the series, on the other hand, are grounded by the leads and their motivations, which the audience finds empathetic and relatable. Even the supporting cast is mostly likable, though some of them don’t get a chance to go above and beyond their stereotypes.

However, some of the characters of the series feel like exposition machines in the first couple of episodes, content to voice their motivations, the narrative becomes much more assured by the third episode, and the plot details slowly begin to unfold. It also helps that the science used in the sci-fi angle is much closer to reality, allowing the audience to follow the story as it progresses.

The show’s pacing may feel sluggish at times, but credit must be given to how quickly the show establishes its world without becoming bogged down by too many backstories. The action sequences are well-staged and edited, and the cinematography adds to the visual splendor of the show, even if the illusion of the moon being an actual sound-stage threatens to break at times, but it isn’t enough to break your immersion.

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ImageCredit: Netflix

The overall emphasis on humanity and its various aspects serve to highlight how humanity is its own worst enemy. To find a solution for the entire world, humanity has resorted to measures that have been exposed as illegal and outlawed. While these are common sci-fi tropes, they work when executed well. The emphasis on conspiracies between two rival corporations, as well as a rival corporation sending in saboteurs to derail the operation, may appear to be unnecessary additions to the show, but they are well woven into the narrative when managing to maintain a suitable amount of tension as the show heads towards the finale.

For me, the show’s weak point is its conclusion. It’s easy to criticize a sci-fi show for plot holes, but the ending of The Silent Sea (Season 1) introduces a twist that comes out of nowhere. It also concludes in a way that could be interpreted as ambiguous in one aspect or as inviting a continuation in another. Knowing Netflix, the latter is the more likely outcome, which is both a good and a bad thing. Good thing, because the world introduced here is a one-of-a-kind one that I wouldn’t mind seeing expanded upon, the ending revelation deserves an answer.