"Your God is too small!"
As are we...
While most of you were probably busy watching the Zombie Soap Opera that The Walking Dead has become, Fox revealed Cosmos to us. Cosmos is produced by Seth MacFarlane, don't know who he is? Here let me help you.
He made this
Thats right. The same guy who brought you Family Guy, American Dad and the much less popular, The Cleveland show, brings us Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey. Cosmos: ASO is a reboot of the show Cosmos: A Personal Voyage from 1980. It gave us a tour through the elements and theories of our universe. Today it is the same, but it is assumed that what we learned in the past 30 years, in both technology, effects and about the universe, will be added. The original series was well-received and narrated by Carl Sagan. This one is narrated by Neil deGrasse Tyson.
The first part of the episode takes us through the universe on the Spaceship of Imagination. It started with our planet, Earth, then continued through our Solar System, followed by the Milky Way, to the Local Cluster until it reached as far out as we humans had knowledge of. After that Tyson threw in a theory that we are just a bubble in an ocean full of other bubbles with their own universes. Each one, just as big as ours.
Still following?
"Are you feeling small yet?"
Ever felt that people judged you for your beliefs? Well it happened many years ago as well. The next segment followed an Italian monk named Giordano Bruno. His name may not sound familiar because he lived in between the times of Copernicus and Galileo. The animation was a great way to display what occurred over casting someone to do it in real life. This is where Seth MacFarlane's experience came in handy. He does some voices during the segment while Tyson depicts the story.
Bruno was banished by many for describing that the Earth nor the Sun was the center of the universe. He believed that the Sun was just another star and the other stars had their own planets like ours. In the 16th Century, to think like this was seen as blasphemy. For these beliefs Bruno was burned at the stake.
Bruno didn't question that God was real or the religions of that time. He just wanted for people to question their own way of thinking. He wanted for people to open their minds to much bigger possibiliites. Afterwards, Galileo discovered he was correct all along.
Yeah...nice job religious people
"We are made of star stuff"
In the final segment, which was the most interesting part of the episode, Tyson uses a Cosmic Calendar to show off the span the life of our universe. Utilizing the normal calendar we have today, starting with January 1st and ending on December 31st, gave a comprehensible perspective of the beginning of time to today, while using a lot of somewhat cheap somewhat nice CGI.
Starting off with the big bang in January the universe was dark. After a while energy was pulled together to make stars. Then supernovas occured....which helped all things come to life. Thats right we are made from the energy of dying stars, at least thats what I got out of it.
You see that big one towards the middle there? Hes going to be a REAL asshole
Around April or 4.5 billion years ago, our Sun was born. Then large rocks slowly began to revolve around it. At first our planet was hot but then it cooled and water formed on Earth. Tyson goes on to talk about how no one quite knows how life first formed. However, the first to drag itself on earth was the Ichthyostega(do your best to pronounce that).
In mid-December the dinosaurs walked the earth. In fact, it wasn't until the last day of the year that we, humans, lifted ourselves from all fours and walked on this planet. All the biggest people you can think of lived and died within a minute of this moment. Buddah was born seven seconds ago, Jesus Christ, five. So, do you feel small yet? Just thinking about that makes you realize that our time has only just begun. We are so young and immature. We have so much to learn.
Tyson concluded by paying homage to the original narrator, Carl Sagan. He talked about his achievements and how even though he was so successful, he invited a young Neil deGrasse Tyson to speak with him and also how inspired Tyson was to become the man he is today.
THOUGHTS AND OPINIONS
I've loved shows like this since I was a very small boy. I remember Sam Neill hosting a similar show to it and being attached to the television the whole time it was on. In school, when astronomy and similar topics were discussed, I paid close attention. When those movies that were so slow and boring were on, I never fell asleep. I loved hearing about space. This show reminds me of those times. It gave me that eye-widening reaction I always get when hearing or reading about outer space.
I couldnt think of a better person to host this show other than Neil deGrasse Tyson. Seth MacFarlane proved he could make a show that wasn't just about crude humor. The commercial breaks seemed to come out of nowhere and right when things were getting good, but I guess Fox has to make money right? I'll watch the rerun on National Geographic and I cant wait for next week's episode. Sorry, The Walking Dead. Looks like I have a new favorite Sunday show.
