Away is a Netflix original series that is available for streaming beginning September 4, 2020. I love Netflix, but I was disappointed in this series, considering it’s about a group of astronauts sent on a mission to Mars and involves a talented cast, which includes Hilary Swank and Josh Charles. With that winning formula, how could Away on Netflix have gone wrong?
AWAY (L to R) VIVIAN WU as LU WANG, MARK IVANIR as MISHA POPOV, HILARY SWANK as EMMA GREEN, RAY PANTHAKI as RAM ARYA, and ATO ESSANDOH as DR. KWESI WEISBERG-ABBAN in episode 101 of AWAY. Cr. DIYAH PERA/NETFLIX © 2020
Away on Netflix is a Mediocre Space Drama
Houston, we have a problem and even one of my favorite subjects, outer space, can’t save it. Away is about a group of astronauts (led by Commander Green, who is played by Hilary Swank) from different countries who are sent on a three year mission to Mars. The series toggles back and forth from present day to flashbacks. Commander Green, as you can probably imagine, is conflicted between pursuing her lifelong dream of landing on Mars to staying on Earth, as a mother and a wife. Some of the other episodes also reveal more about the other astronauts and their families through flashbacks. As Misha (played by Mark Ivanir) warns Commander Green, you can’t really have a family life while in outer space. Several scenes also focus on Green’s husband, Matt (who is played by Josh Charles), who suffers a stroke in the first episode, and their teenage daughter, Alexis (played by Talitha Bateman).
AWAY (L to R) TALITHA ELIANA BATEMAN as ALEXIS and HILARY SWANK as EMMA GREEN in episode 101 of AWAY Cr. KATIE YU/NETFLIX © 2020
Is Away on Netflix Kid Friendly?
Away is rated TV-14, mostly due to perilous situations that the astronauts are placed in as well as the frequent use of profanity, sexually suggestive scenes and innuendoes. Characters utter phrases like “shit”, “asshole,” “goddamn,” “shithead,” and “fuck.” There’s also one fairly detailed sex scene (although there isn’t any nudity) and characters also refer to an orgasm and an erection. There are also several kissing scenes. As a result, this series is not appropriate for younger kids.
Overall Thoughts
Away on Netflix had so much potential, which is one of the reasons that I’m so disappointed in this series. It seemed like it was trying TOO hard. Heavily focused on drama occurring back on Earth, I wanted more scenes in outer space. With that being said, I did enjoy the scenes that occurred in outer space. When some of the characters did a spacewalk, I found myself holding my breath. I also found some of it to be educational, like learning more about atrophy while in outer space as well as vision loss. So there’s that. And yes, as a mother, I even got teary eyed during some of the scenes. It’s not entirely bad, so if you are still inclined to watch the series, you can probably get away with watching episode one, episode seven, and episode ten and call it a day. You’ll end up saving seven hours of your life.
Overall, though, I probably would have been better off watching an IMAX documentary about space.
About Away on Netflix
From Executive Producer Jason Katims, the Netflix series Away is a thrilling, emotional drama on an epic scale that celebrates the incredible advancements humans can achieve and the personal sacrifices they must make along the way. As American astronaut Emma Green (Hilary Swank) prepares to lead an international crew on the first mission to Mars, she must reconcile her decision to leave behind her husband (Josh Charles) and teenage daughter (Talitha Bateman) when they need her the most. As the crew’s journey into space intensifies, their personal dynamics and the effects of being away from their loved ones back on Earth become increasingly complex. Away shows that sometimes to reach for the stars, we must leave home behind. Created by Andrew Hinderaker, the series is executive produced by showrunner Jessica Goldberg, Jason Katims, Matt Reeves, Andrew Hinderaker, Edward Zwick, Hilary Swank, Adam Kassan and Jeni Mulein.
Very good article.
So much potential, lost in unrelenting sappy melodrama. The world needs a show like Away to inspire all of us as to what can be done when the WORLD works together. Away only shows us that every country, or race can cry on demand. Astronauts are the best of the best of us, but they are denigrated in this series to overly emotional loved starved teenagers, and I mean the adults not the actual teenagers in the show who are equally love starved. In the first few episodes I thought the show was brilliant and the acting and writing had me emotionally hooked. But 1 tearjerker episode is enough and worthy of an Emmy, but I things every episode involved crying…Could this be a new College drinking game (shots on tears). Were the writers invent their own teary meme challenge to get at least one or all actors crying in every episode? Why couldn’t this series just inspire all of us with international cooperation, heroism, human ingenuity, and a shared realization we are on this planet together and our individual lives are meaningless in the scope of the solar system and cosmos…Season 1 had the potential, I think impossible in season 2 to right the ship, and only see it devolving into softcore porn for ratings.