The Expanse season 3 can’t come soon enough. Fans have been waiting — remarkably patiently for the kind of cliffhanger the second season ended on — and a brand new chapter of the compelling space-adventure story is right around the corner.
Where did season 2 leave things?
In case you forgot where season two of The Expanse left things off, we came face-to-face with the protomolecule monster, which was in the cargo bay of the Rocinante. Holden’s leg is crushed when the monster throws a crate at him in an effort to get to the ship’s reactor core — it needs the radiation. Amos has a plan, which is good, but it would probably also kill Holden, which I think we can all agree is bad.
If the details of Amos’ plan are fuzzy, here’s general idea of how it would go: The crew of the Rocinante would use the extra air on the ship to force the monster into space through a pressurized blast. But then there’s that pesky Holden thing. Prax, on the other hand, has a theory: the monster is basically a biological creature and radiation is its nourishment. They can use the nuclear core of one of the ship’s missiles to lure the monster out, instead. After all, it’s obviously constantly craving radiation.
Naomi and Prax go with this plan, exposing the core of one of the missles. Just when you think things are going to go wrong, Prax gets the core out of the ship — and, as anticipated, the monster jumps out after it. Exhaust from the main engine takes the monster out as the crew makes their escape. Meanwhile, Cotyar and Avasarala owe a major debt to Bobbie, who manages to save both of them after Cotyar is wounded in a shootout with Mao’s men.
The UN science team is also the subject of a major cliffhanger for the series. They set out in a ship and descend towards the surface of Venus in order to get a better look at the protomolecule structure. Then, suddenly the ship bursts into pieces. The fate of the crew is uncertain.
Oh yeah, and Naomi reveals that she never destroyed the same of the protomolecule. But at least we discovered that poor, innocent Mei is still alive, though she’s being held captive with several other kids by Dr. Strickland.
What to expect from The Expanse season 3
As you may or may not know, The Expanse is based on a series of books by the same name written by Ty Franck and Daniel Abraham (under the pen name James S. A. Corey). The Expanse season 2 launched solidly into plot lines that happen in the second book in this series, Caliban’s War. (You might recognize that name as the title of The Expanse season 2 finale.)
If the series does, in fact, cover one book per season, then they’re looking at an eight season run — unless they deviate from the books at the end in order to keep the story going.
The network has said very little about the upcoming season, leaving all of us hungry for details. But we do know that The Expanse season 3 “finds Earth, Mars and The Belt at war, with each competing entity vying for control. Now, more than ever, the mission to unlock the secret of the protomolecule reaches an all-time high and every decision made could jeopardize the survival of the solar system.”
The battles aren’t only external, however. The trailer for the upcoming season makes it clear that we’re going to get a better look within at least some of the character as well. “We’ve all made mistakes. Each of us has demons, regrets, a past that haunts us. But now it’s time to decide if we’ll let those mistakes define us,” Holden can be heard saying. “In war, we not only have to face our enemies, but we must fight the battle within ourselves. It’s time to find out who we really are.”
Watch the trailer further on down in this article.
The Expanse season 3 cast
You’ll be seeing a lot of familiar faces in The Expanse season 3, but there are some newcomers. The stars of the show, Frankie Adams, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Cas Anvar, Wes Chatham, Steven Strait and Dominique Tipper of course will be back. Fans who have read the book series will recognize the new additions from their character descriptions, but those of you who joined with the release of the Syfy show will just have to wait and find out what these additional characters will bring to the series.
You’ll catch Nadine Nicole, who you might know from the show Casual, in a major recurring role throughout the season that’s described as “a lowly electrochemical technician who is single-minded of purpose in her hidden agenda,” by Den of Geek.
Midway through the season expect to see Anna Hopkins of Defiance join the show as a recurring character who’s a journalist from Earth who, among other things, will document the Rocinante and how it’s being run by Holden. And you’ll also see Lost alum Elizabeth Mitchell and David Strathairn, who you might know from The Blacklist or Alphas, appear for recurring roles at some point throughout the season.
The Expanse season 3 trailer
We know you’re already jonesing for The Expanse season 3 to start, but isn’t there something fantastic about making it worse with a sneak peek. Check out the teaser trailer released by Syfy before if you want even more to look forward to:
Not enough for you, sci-fi fan? We figured. Don’t worry, the network already released a longer trailer that’s a full two minutes, and it will leave you biting your nails in anticipation of the first episode in the new season.
The Expanse season 3 release date
The very first episode of The Expanse season 3 isn’t too far away, but the wait is still going to feel excruciating. Catch the first episode when it drops of Syfy on Wednesday, April 11 at 9:00 p.m. EST. While you wait, rewatch the first two seasons to make sure you’re all caught up on the political dynamics and intricacies of the conspiracy theory behind controlling the protomolecule.
