The Expanse 2x5 Reaction | Home | Miller is Killing Me!

Romance author Anna Alexander watches and reacts to season two episode five of the sci-fi series The Expanse streaming now on Amazon.
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[@fluffy_walrus]

The way I look at it, Julie was determined to fight for the belters and "died" trying to save them from something her father, the leader of an Earth Corp, unleashed. This inspired Miller to try and save her, and when he couldn't do that, he helped save her home and her people, the way she was trying to save his. As he said in the episode, “You made a guy like me believe in something”. His rock bottom was finding Julie in her hotel room, dead. And after that, he found himself believing in her aims, at least to a significant degree. We saw him caring for other belters, caring for the belt, considering himself a belter, and sharing Julie's anger at the system of oppression he lived under. Her sacrifice helped him believe again. His sacrifice ensured a civilization would exist that could remember her, hopefully. Not quite full circle, but pobody's nerfect.

[@michaelnolan6951]

Just to point out... space is very very very very very very big and empty. Stray missiles are almost mathematically certain not to get in the way of anything ever unless deliberately steered.

[@noahrobin1941]

I mean, you might think it’s a long way down the street to the chemist’s, but.

[@charlie53echo]

There's nobody on Venus. It's atmosphere melts anything we've ever tried to land on it.

[@cinedelasestrellas]

Though Mercury is closest to the sun, the surface of Venus is actually hotter because Mercury has nearly no atmosphere while Venus has a very thick atmosphere of carbon dioxide and sulfuric acid, which creates a very strong greenhouse effect. The surface of Venus can get as hot as 900 degrees Fahrenheit (Mercury can reach 800 in the day and minus 290 at night). I first learned this at age eight from a show called “Cosmos,” hosted by astronomer Carl Sagan (Neil DeGrasse Tyson was a protege of Sagan). I remember a few days later, in my third grade class, we had a science test and one of the questions was what planet was the hottest? I answered Venus and the teacher marked it wrong, saying that Mercury was the correct answer. I was pissed. The next day, I brought the “M” and “V” volumes of the World Book Encyclopedia (this was in 1983 so no internet) into class and showed the teacher: Mercury 800 degrees, Venus 900 degrees. She gave me credit for a correct answer.

[@belinda35_77]

she seems terribly lost most all the time this show really isn't for everyone lol

[@louishermann7676]

​@@belinda35_77I'm realizing that too.

[@blackpaw29]

You know, I've watched that scene with Miller slinging that Nuke up the ladder, trying to get it in the tunnel so he can switch the timer off soooo many times and it still has me on the edge of my seat, even knowing he makes it.

[@blackpaw29]

This was the end of book one. Excellent questions re Venus, the nukes and the protomolecule. also the optics of Chrisjen being the only major politician to stay on earth. I feel that Miller finally reached a place of peace - he reconciled with his Belter heritage and found Julie. He was content. It wasn't full circle or a resolution - one of the things with The Expanse - it doesn't tie things up in neat tidy bows, it strives to be like life, messy and complicated and sometimes you just don't ever know. One furthur thing to consider - Julie was seeing visions of Miller before she died and Miller had visions of her after she died. Great reaction, I thoroughly enjoyed it, had my full attention all the way through.

[@whtz9000]

Can't stop the work.

[@NigelSmith72]

My take: Proto-Julie had given up on the Belt, after being abandoned by the OPA, and just wanted to go home to Earth (and her Razorback). Miller’s faith in even the Proto version of Julie was that she would never knowingly bring harm to others… he put his faith in that, and was proved right. As to whether the kiss was icky or romantic… Proto-Julie wasn’t original Julie, she was constructed specifically to talk to Miller - and she did have some free will because she chose Venus over Earth… which makes that kiss her choice, which makes it romantic, which makes Miller’s story full circle redemption. But none of this is obvious - it definitely seems a deliberate choice by the writers to keep it ambiguous…

[@AnaPradosA]

It's even better. The kiss was not in the script (and the author, didn't really like either) it was improvised by the actors, in the moment. Everyone on set liked the result so much, that it was chosen as the final take to go in the show.

[@louishermann7676]

​@@AnaPradosANot improvised, inserted by the showrunners. Ty and Daniel didn't have full autonomy and that decision was made above their heads.

[@LeeCarlson]

And Mao had no reason to "skip town" as he had no way of knowing that Eros was going to move. Nobody realized that Eros COULD move under its own power.

[@eds1942]

Eros was Mao’s science experiment as Errinwright put it. His people were monitoring the situation from the time they found Julie. And since they had no idea of what to expert, they monitored everything. They used Julie to spread the Proto-molecule throughout Eros just to find out what it was designed to do if it had enough resources.

[@Marzipanilla]

It isn't a spoiler to say, Arjun is a literature prof at a university. His marriage to Chrisjen was not political.

[@dallesamllhals9161]

But some COULD tell 'they' do change actor? Or: A Spoiler in 2023?

[@Marzipanilla]

@@dallesamllhals9161 Eh, I mean, I was being general to answer the question she had as I believe at this point in the series his prof status has already come up in passing conversation, which would be easy to forget. Yes, the actor does change, as the original was unavailable due to having a more prominent role on a different show. Very sad to see it happen, as I like her chemistry with this guy way better

[@dallesamllhals9161]

@@Marzipanilla OH! Sry' for being a SPOILER then?

[@aartsst3227]

Love how this show lets you start to think you know where its going ... & then NOPE!! 🚀

[@kirkdarling4120]

I'm sure the tagline in the writer's room was "Gotcha, beech!"

[@rodentnolastname6612]

Amazing how much tension can be generated by a simple beeping 😲

[@rodentnolastname6612]

"what happens to the Navoo?" Be patient, we'll get there, NO SPOILERS!!

[@blackpaw29]

20:56 - Classic end of episode Expanse Face! Also, the obligatory - "Now it really ramps up!"

[@billross7245]

I've seen this episode several times and that toast to Miller with his bottle of Ganymede Gin always hits me. What an episode

[@JohnComeOnMan]

I'm so jealous of where you are in this saga. Watching you experience it is the next best thing to living it the first time!

[@avsbes98]

I'm not sure if i would call Miller's outcome "salvation", but i do think that he was able to make his peace with how he was going out - or maybe not going out as he said, "if we don't die that will be interesting". Maybe we'll see and learn more about what happened, maybe not. But i do have to say: Strap in. The next episode has an excellent and very fitting title and it has that title for a reason.

[@petersmith6513]

RE 3:12 "I need a metaphor for this please". I can give you a simile. Eros' propulsion is so efficient it's like if your car engine can run on a shot glass of gasoline for a month. Borderline magical but still technically possible. That's what the calculations and "waste heat" comment was about.

[@alcor4670]

Naomi described the _waste heat_ at around 10 exajoules (10 _quadrillion_ joules). That's roughly equal to the *entire US's electricity bill back in 2009.* So, assuming the Protomolecule was using up energy at 99% efficiency (a *lot* more efficient than almost any engine invented by humanity, and likely a low estimation the Protomolecule's), it was using about 1000 exajoules of energy. If my math's correct, that's around *_20x_* of the entire *world's* electricity bill back in 2010. *_And_* we don't even know the *rate* of how fast it was generating energy. If we're talking 1 joule per second (1 watt), Eros was generating the equivalent of 2010 Earth's electricity bill in about 50 milliseconds (or about an eighth of a blink of an eye).

[@KevinLyda]

Oh, for the question about what happens to Eros on Venus, the books answer it right away. The show waits a while. So from a show perspective you're just going to have to wait! The answer might be disappointing though. Or it could be super interesting. Oh the mystery!

[@jamesholland5761]

I still have a hard time watching this episode! Miller finally found Julie. Miller a belter and Julie an Earther who fought for the belt saved billions on Earth! Dawes told Miller when he had lost everything he would finally see what matters most and he would find his way home. Miller told Naomi that he sees Julie, he knows she not really there but she takes his hand and tells him he belongs with her. R.I.P. Beltalowda!

[@YouHaventSeenMeRight]

Venus is a hellish planet, with a surface temperature of 464 degrees C (or 867 degrees F), which is hot enough to melt lead. It has a atmospheric pressure that 93x that of Earth's at the surface, which is equivalent to being 1 kilometer (or 625 miles) below sea level here on Earth. The atmosphere is composed of 96.5% carbon dioxide (which explains the surface temperature as it is a greenhouse gas). So living on the surface of Venus is impossible with our current level of technology. Most of the probes that we sent to Venus to analyze it only lasted minutes, if that, after entering the atmosphere.

[@obelisk21]

Eros is an asteroid. Its orbit of the sun actually has it crossing Mars's orbital path although most of its orbit is between Earth and Mars.

[@michaelgonzalez6295]

21:30 I would like to think Miller got his salvation. It is like the hard boiled pulp detective stories of old. The jaded detective saved (what was left of) the girl, defeated the mad scientist, and redeemed his soul. Sometimes these things are more important than simply living.

[@OlmanWillo]

To your missile question, the solar system in terms of things being out there is pretty damn empty. Likelihood is that the missiles would just go on for long long time without hitting anything and if anything get captured by the gravity of something once out of fuel. At least that's my best guess. Most maps of the solar system aren't to scale ... it's REALLLLLY empty out there.

[@daxeah8472]

I don't think he was even looking for salvation, but u think it was the best ending Miller could have had all things considered. I cry watching this episode even now after 20+ rewatches.

[@danbadd]

Technically, Julie did save the Belt because they are still dependent on Earth to survive.

[@kirkdarling4120]

Errinwright to Avasarala: "In all your years, did you ever imagine a moment like this?" Avasarala to her grandson earlier: "I fear people throwing rocks." Avarala staying on earth was a reversion of the usual trope of the stalwart male leader staring death in the face after removing his family to safety. Did you notice when Julie touched the nuke, its panel went dark. She had sucked out its power. Yes, I think Julie was "special" to the Protomolecule not only because she was the sead crystal on Eros, but also because Dresden had souped her up with radiation more than any other likely Protomolecule nexus. As far as the missiles going "to where," interplanetary space is immense. The chance of them striking anything is vanishingly small, and if they did, it would be just a big "clonk!" because the nukes are not armed. Dawes had told Miller: "When you have lost everything, then you will find your way home." Miller told Semetimbe, "Julie is all I have." Then he lost Julie. So he found his way "home." Hence, the title of the episode. The kiss was actually an _ad lib_ by the actors. Personally, I thought it was over the top...Miller had sealed his commitment when he removed his faceplate and took a deep breath. The Protomolecule was clearly intent on continuing the "work." It would know what Venus was from Julie's mind (and probably many others on Eros like Kenzo). So, I'm figuring if it was willing to divert to Venus, Venus must be an acceptable "work" site. Remember that it was originally sent toward the solar system billions of years ago, when even Earth was much like Venus.

[@iDuckman]

Yeah, I could have done without the kiss. But it kinda works. Re: the protomolecules' "intention". We cannot assign sentience to it, at least not yet. No, Eros was headed to Earth because Julie wanted to go home. SHE is the sentience in this amalgam. Miller convinced her not to go home, so Eros went elsewhere. (Nor for that matter was Pheobe targeted at Earth. Two beellion years ago, Earth was just a rock with possibilities. Venus and Mars would have done just as nicely. The idea was to get it into the system and let things develop.)

[@kirkdarling4120]

@@iDuckman "Sentience" is a charged word that I didn't use. We know that the Protomolecule was sent for a purpose, that it is building something, that it can defend itself, and that it has "work." I figure whoever sent it that far back in the past was only able to determine that three good-sized planets were developing in Sol's Goldilocks Zone and, yes, any of them might develop the proto-life it needed, so they took a shot. Were they necessarily aiming at Earth? Well, Earth _is_ smack in the middle of Sol's Goldilocks Zone.

[@blackpaw29]

So happy to see you reach those one! absolutely epic.

[@LeeCarlson]

There are lots of places that those missiles could go in a huge solar system. As a metaphor, imagine shooting a marble down a four-lane blacktop, with maybe a dozen other marbles on it.

[@LeeCarlson]

Naomi explained the science of what kind of energy it would take to move a mass as big as Eros out of the orbital path it has followed for billions of years and start it accelerating toward Earth. Basically, the protomolecule broke physics as we know it. And the fact that Eros suddenly shifted its course for Earth in no way implies that it even CAN flip-and-burn to slow down. And as far as "sciency things" go, if you do not get the facts correct, then they ARE by definition WRONG.

[@rodentnolastname6612]

"so many questions" By now you should trust that the show will give you answers but please continue to speculate. We love watching how close to right you get and how hilariously wrong you go 😀🤣

[@evilvolts]

you were right he didn't push the button the next time he had Julie hold it ]:P

[@bobriemersma]

"Go to Venus, Work continues."

[@troywilliams2777]

Eros is a potato shaped asteroid that is roughly the size of Lake Tahoe. It orbits the sun in the Asteroid Belt (hence Belters) between Mars and Jupiter.

[@raymondamador1487]

You're going to negotiate with a girl that thinks she's a space station? No. The Space Station thinks it's Julie, it was the opposite. Why didn't the writers see that?

[@MattNolanCustom]

One possibility: Holden is under intense stress. He's not always going to say stuff that is perfect.

[@stevenspringer1599]

The plot of "Laura" 1944

[@KevinLyda]

Remember how Miller asked Holden what rain tasted like? Well, rain tastes like lead on Venus because it rains lead on Venus. There's an idea we could have cloud cities on Venus. But it doesn't seem to be a thing in The Expanse universe.

[@heatherreasby4555]

Tycho was contracted to create them, but the project got cancelled after 8 years when a huge series of lawsuits ensued.

[@ezrawyrd9275]

@@heatherreasby4555 Yeah that's a fun little bit of incidental worldbuilding in the books. It's not that they don't have the technology or didn't have the idea, it's that human bickering prevented it from happening. Very on-brand for this fictional universe!

[@pssthpok]

I know it's hot enough on the surface of Venus to melt lead... but as for rain, the only thing raining down from the sky on Venus is hot sulphuric acid. Not much of an improvement, if you ask me. And don't get me started on the pressure! Almost 100 times as dense as ours. I'm not going to fall for the timeshare pitch on THAT planet!

[@KevinLyda]

@@ezrawyrd9275 very on brand for our universe too!

[@pwph8361]

Fun as always to watch your reaction tonight - and for a change of scene myself, I am in Las Vegas 😂. Where's your drinkies? ❤

[@AnnaAlexanderAuthor]

I had one. It was a Moscow mule 😁

[@jubronaljoan]

Oh Anna! You're too much. Eros "Land" on Earth? Asteriods that "land" on Earth tend to have massive side effects, like wiping out the dinosaurs. Interesting you think it might slow down first. You're the only reacter I've watched that immediately went to that possibility.

[@kevlh78]

Did she really ask “What about the people living on Venus?” Ummmm…

[@billross7245]

The Russians landed a few probes on Venus in the 70's and 80s, and they all lasted about an hour before melting into a pool of metal. They managed to transmit some pics back of the surface before they died..

[@LeeCarlson]

Even being hit by Eros won't destroy the Earth, however, it will kill billions of Earth's population of 30 billion, basically doing to humans what the asteroid did to dinosaurs.

[@dallesamllhals9161]

Oh, so you wanted a single kamikaze-captain for the BOOM between an astroid and a BIG ASS(Mormon) ship? Heh...

[@ThePharaz]

I believe I posted a comment last episode as to what Eros is, an asteroid. Stay tune to the next exciting episode - Same Bat Time, Same Bat Day.

[@richb313]

It gets better.

[@wombat5334]

This is a decent react series! (subbed) You seem a tad dismissive of the science and the show's fidelity to real science (for the most part).. The protomolecule is the only thing that is flat out breaking the laws of physics as we know them :) But, you are really getting emotionally invested and enjoying the crap out of the scenes - which is great to watch :)

[@SampoPaalanen]

I know this is kind of late but in regards to Venus it's probably uninhabited due to having normal surface temperature of around 450 degrees Celsius (850 degrees Fahrenheit) and IIRC rather hostile "weather" so colonizing Venus would most like not be worth it. By contrast Mars has "merely" -60 degrees Celsius (-80 degrees Fahrenfeit) average temperature and it's easier to deal with cold then with excess heat, also IIRC apart from global dust storms Mars has fairly "mild" weather.

[@alanhembra2565]

I read the books so I won’t comment on what comes next. Let’s just say it gets even more interesting.

[@michaelgonzalez6295]

3:36 "Words, Words Words" = It is not even plausible, unless GOD his/her/itself is moving Eros. Under the laws of physics as we and the Roci Crew understand it, Eros is doing the impossible. Miller should have been crushed by the acceleration. The sharp turns should have cracked Eros into smaller chunks, it is not made of "stealth" materials and so on. The makers of the proto-molecule are truly godlike in a material/physical sense to be able to create such powerful effects with their tool/weapon. Pray we don't meet "them".

[@rnkelly36]

End of the first book. Space is really really big. So big normal people can't possibly understand the size of it. A thousand nukes floating around is nothing noticeable. The sun itself is millions of nukes going off every moment. However there is story to come you just have to hold on. Scale wise if the sun was the size of a basketball you would have to get in a car and drive 25 miles to get to the earth which is the size of a bead. Space is really really really big.

[@adamwells9352]

This is the episode I've been waiting to see your reaction to. Did you think the Miller/Julie thing was forced? I often justify it to myself by saying that the protomolecule entangled them in time. But I'm just not sure I buy the romance.

[@echozero3316]

eros and venus. Miller and Julie

[@garethlawton5278]

Venus is not exactly a nice place to be, there wouldn't be any people on Venus to worry about Eros smashing into. It's about 900f on the surface of Venus thanks to the end game of the greenhouse gas effect. Venus should be a warning of what happens when too many greenhouse gasses gather in an atmosphere.

[@raymondamador1487]

For the Algorithm 🌹

[@annefox926]

Het Anna- season 7 of Outlander came out 4 days ago- where is it?

[@silafuyang8675]

This episode confirms that if you chase a girl long enough, sooner or later you get her. And after a while you regret that you got her.

[@arandomnamegoeshere]

Eros is like a massive iceberg in the ocean. The plan was to alter its course in to warmer climates (the Sun) so it would break up by smashing in to it with the world's biggest vessel. Turning an ocean liner (the Nauvoo) in to a vessel-sized billiard ball / missile isn't something you want a front-row seat. Slim Pickens aside. So... unmanned massive hulk set on course to move massive object. Except the iceberg just up and moved as if someone had strapped on an outboard motor and made that thing perform outside the realm of known physics.

[@dallesamllhals9161]

WTF! Stop talking "earth sizes" FFS!??

[@arandomnamegoeshere]

@@dallesamllhals9161 what about "earth sizes" has you upset? The comment was Anna needing an analogy. So here's one. Imperfect as it may be.

[@dallesamllhals9161]

@@arandomnamegoeshere OKAY! Let HER defend herself?

[@arandomnamegoeshere]

@@dallesamllhals9161 eh - you're the one all bent out of shape about MY choice of analogy using "earth sizes"... whatever that's supposed to mean. Again. Not sure why that's got you so upset. Genuinely curious about that.