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SCIENCE FICTIONFEATURED

Dalyanews

10/25/20247 мин чтение

The series is an adaptation of the three-volume book of the same name by Chinese author Liu Cixin and initially promises to be "a quality science fiction experience.

The series "The Three-Body Problem" released by Netflix sparked quite a lot of discussion. Even before it was aired, news such as that it bore the signature of the creators of "Game of Thrones" and that each episode had a budget of around 20 million dollars raised expectations considerably. In Turkey, however, it became notable mainly because a commander from the PYD was included in the team that would "save the world from aliens." In the end, a mediocre series emerged, where classic Netflix and Hollywood clichés were combined with anti-China and anti-socialism sentiment.

The series is an adaptation of the three-volume book of the same name by Chinese author Liu Cixin and initially promises to be "a quality science fiction experience." Recently, topics like physics, space, parallel universes, quantum entanglement, and string theory have become elements of popular culture. These subjects, once only discussed by scientists, are now part of conversations among much wider circles; articles written on these subjects, but in a more popular, sensational language, are more widely read. One of the most fundamental characteristics of humans is the sense of curiosity, which leads them to wonder about the boundaries and beyond of their own world, universe, and living space.

That’s where our positive evaluation of the series ends. What follows is a typical American-style production, drenched in a science fiction sauce...

A chain of inconsistencies and clichés

The series takes Stephen Hawking's warnings about not establishing contact with aliens as its starting point. In a speech in 2015, Hawking stated that "aliens might not be friendly," that they could be much more powerful than us, and "could view us as insignificant as we see bacteria." Referring to history, Hawking warned that encounters between civilizations with advanced technologies and those with primitive ones have always ended badly for the less developed. He suggested that aliens coming to Earth could create a much more terrible outcome than when the Spaniards set foot in America and decimated the native tribes.

The series begins with this theory. Signals sent from a space station in China attract the attention of the Santis, a race living in a system with three suns whose gravitational effects are causing the destruction of their planets. The Santis set out for Earth to settle, and through conversations with their collaborators on Earth, they decide that humans are "as insignificant as insects" and should be annihilated.

The chain of absurdities begins with this first link. A Santi who sees the message sent from China warns that humans should not establish contact with them or they will suffer. Yet the natural reaction of a creature fighting for survival because its planet is being destroyed would first be to save its own life, as it has no other choice. For a Santi to reject this opportunity (the chance of migrating to Earth and surviving) is utterly illogical.

Then, we learn that the Santis set off with a fleet and that it will take them 400 years to reach Earth. Humans immediately "spring into action," raising millions of dollars in donations and preparing to either stop the Santis or fight them when they arrive.

For a catastrophe that will happen 400 years later! They start preparing today!

This is an absurd claim that goes against the spirit of capitalism. The "law of maximum profit," which forms the foundation of capitalism, focuses not on long-term plans but on the given situation. When a contractor builds a building, they sell the apartments, take their money, and leave; they don't care about the problems the building might have unless it creates new money-making opportunities. For example, even though "Turkey is an earthquake country," thousands of skyscrapers have been built that are not earthquake-resistant. Let alone 400 years, they don't even care about 4 years ahead! They are only interested in the profits they can make at that moment. Another American film, "Don't Look Up," has portrayed this reality in a striking manner. In that film, scientists discover that a meteor is approaching Earth and that the collision will cause the destruction of the planet. Their efforts to explain this to the authorities are met with complete indifference. In the end, when the meteor becomes visible to the naked eye, the scientist makes one last attempt to warn them by saying, "If you just look up, you'll see it." The response they get is, "Then don't look up." So, the idea in the series that humanity would panic and start massive preparations for an alien invasion 400 years in the future is entirely unrealistic.

The characters in the series are also overly stereotypical. For instance, they plan to send a "human brain" into space. Since the brain will be taken out and placed in a spaceship and cannot return to Earth if the mission fails, they need someone who is "about to die." What a coincidence that the close friend of the woman leading the project, who is also in love with her, is in the final stages of cancer and volunteers immediately to ensure the success of the woman's project, even though she is unaware of his love.

Or take the last episode of the series, where the scientist who is included in the three-person team to save the world, without his knowledge or consent, embodies all the clichés of a Hollywood hero: At first glance, his loose, lazy, and nonchalant nature does not suggest he is up for the difficult task at hand; in fact, he is not even willing to do it. His initial reaction is to reject the mission, but circumstances force him into it. Clearly, over time (likely in season 2), he will prove that he is the most suitable person for the job!

One of the most controversial aspects of the series is that one of the three people chosen to save the world is a woman who was the commander of the battle against ISIS in Raqqa, and an expert in asymmetric warfare. Many rejected the idea of a "Kurdish savior" with a chauvinistic approach. We don’t agree with this chauvinistic and racist assessment, of course. But politically speaking, we can't help but ask two questions. First, why was a "Kurdish commander" included in the series? Perhaps as an indication of the U.S.'s intention to further collaborate with the Kurdish movement in the future (for example, needing the Kurdish movement's support in a possible "war with Iran" to help Israel out of the Gaza impasse); or perhaps as an atonement for not keeping the promises made to the Kurds despite all the collaboration since the 1990s... (Barzani's systematic support since 1992 has not led to the establishment of a Kurdish state in Iraq in 32 years. Similarly, the PYD's involvement in the Syrian war in line with U.S. interests did not prevent the U.S. from handing Afrin over to Turkey...) Second, why was this person introduced as the "commander of the battle in Raqqa" and not the "commander of the battle in Kobani"? Here’s the answer: The battle in Kobani was a very significant one in which the PYD-YPG fought ISIS with their own means and won "despite the U.S."; in Raqqa, however, there were only very limited skirmishes with ISIS. The main feature of Raqqa was that it wasn’t a Kurdish city, yet at the direct request of the U.S., YPG fighters entered the city while ISIS fighters left without much of a fight, driving out in vehicles.

Chinese Social Imperialism and the Cultural Revolution

Now let's move on to the main reason for writing this piece. The series uses the mistakes made after the Chinese Revolution as a backdrop, even though this is not necessary in a science fiction narrative. In fact, it doesn't just serve as a simple "backdrop"; it becomes an integral part of the series' plot.

According to the narrative, the woman who invites the aliens to Earth is a scientist who suffered greatly during the Cultural Revolution. As part of the Cultural Revolution, her father, like other scientists, is tried, accused, humiliated before thousands of people, and forced to renounce his views; because he refuses to abandon science, he is beaten to death. Aside from this father, everyone else living in China is portrayed as an "enemy"! While the father is being killed, the woman’s mother, also a scientist, submits to the regime; she even criticizes her tortured husband and urges him to comply. Left completely alone, with her father dead and her mother a turncoat, the woman is imprisoned for years, tortured, and further pressured because she refuses to denounce her father’s friends. When she eventually starts working at a space station, a colleague she trusts and becomes close to steals her idea and presents it to their superiors as his own. Realizing that she has no one left to trust, the woman sends a message to the aliens, inviting them to destroy Earth. Later, she moves to England and becomes the leader of the organization established to welcome and collaborate with the aliens.

The Cultural Revolution is one of the most controversial periods in post-revolution China, but it has no connection to "socialism." In fact, the Chinese Revolution was not carried out under socialist leadership; it was a peasant revolution led by petty-bourgeois revolutionaries that could not transition from a democratic revolution to socialism. With ideological deviations such as the Three Worlds Theory (a theory that applies class compromise between the proletariat and the bourgeoisie to a global scale), and influences drawn from its Confucian philosophical history, China took a wrong path after the revolution. Nevertheless, the Chinese Revolution of 1949 brought significant improvements in living conditions, an increase in prosperity, and advances in education for the masses. However, relations with the Soviet Union soured after Stalin's death, and China's progress toward capitalism accelerated.

During this period, there were two major phases known as the "Great Leap Forward" (1958-61) and the "Cultural Revolution" (1966-71). These campaigns were presented as the "strengthening of socialism," but the approach they took, especially during the Cultural Revolution, was contradictory to the fundamental principles of socialism, essentially a struggle between different bourgeois factions within the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The “proletariat” was subjected to torture, humiliation, and "repentance sessions" during this time, including academics, workers, and intellectuals, as part of a broader class conflict between the new Chinese bureaucracy and its subjects.

While recognizing that the Cultural Revolution and its leader, Mao Zedong, were reactionary figures, it should be emphasized that China's descent into social imperialism began much earlier. These movements marked the consolidation of an oppressive, non-proletarian dictatorship in China, rather than any genuine struggle for socialism. The harsh conditions and injustices suffered by millions of Chinese people during this time are important to acknowledge. The series, however, presents the Cultural Revolution as an excuse for why its main protagonist turns against humanity itself and collaborates with alien invaders, suggesting that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is directly responsible for all the ills that plague its society.

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