Ascension: Season 1

METASCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 14 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 128 Ratings

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6.8

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6.8	Your Score
6.8	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 128 Ratings

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Season Details & Credits

SyFy | Season Premiere Date: December 15, 2014

Starring: Gil Bellows, Tricia Helfer, Andrea Roth

Summary: In 1963, a spaceship with 600 people was secretly launched to colonize a planet that would take 100 years to reach. Now 50 years later, a mysterious murder on board the ship causes the inhabitants to question their journey.

Creator: Philip Levens

Genre(s): Drama, Action & Adventure, Science Fiction, Documentary

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Season 1 Episodes

tbd
S1:E6. Chapter Three, Part 2
Air Date: March 9, 2015
tbd
S1:E5. Chapter Three, Part 1
Air Date: March 2, 2015
tbd
S1:E4. Chapter Two, Part 2
Air Date: February 23, 2015

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

TV Guide Magazine Matt Roush

Dec 15, 2014

The less revealed about the story the better. Let's just say that if you make it to the end of Monday's introductory chapter, you'll very likely feel compelled to see where else this unusual space/soap opera is heading. Read full review

Gail Pennington

Dec 17, 2014

The characters are well-enough developed in the early going.... As the story deepens, though, it also becomes so complicated that it threatens to squeeze out marginal fans of the genre. Read full review

David Hinckley

Dec 15, 2014

The dialogue only occasionally gets "Star Trek"-ish, and the special effects are nothing special. But it’s not a bad story, it moves well and you don’t have to wait a hundred years for the conclusion. Read full review

Jeff Jensen

Dec 12, 2014

Everything intriguing is nearly squandered by poor casting and clunky scripting. Still, I suspect the first night's climactic reveal, while clumsily foreshadowed, will make you return for the second. Read full review

Amy Amatangelo

Dec 15, 2014

The direction, at times, has a jerky feel. The dialogue is riddled with cliches.... But just when the whole miniseries, which Syfy is clearly hoping will become a regular series, is starting to feel mundane, there’s a last-minute twist that will demand your attention. It has the potential to make the series fascinating and much more than it originally seems. Read full review

Tim Goodman

Dec 15, 2014

Ascension has tons of potential and meets a little more than half of it in this early going. Read full review

Uncle Barky Ed Bark

Dec 12, 2014

Ascension aspires to be a cautionary tale on a grand scale. But its cardboard characters and a paint-by-the-numbers script just aren’t up to the task. Read full review

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User Score

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6.8

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User Reviews

kamiyamaninja1

Dec 18, 2014

wow what a show... Awesome, fresh and new.. very interesting and full of surprises.. looking forward to more of these shows.. love all the different actors..

6 of 14 users found this helpful68

avi_2727

Jun 21, 2015

Amazing show with twists and turns and the all around concept that could be taken a lot further than it was. Wish it had a season 2. The characters had a lot of interesting turns and would have liked to see them developed a bit further. All around it was one of the best shows I've seen andAmazing show with twists and turns and the all around concept that could be taken a lot further than it was. Wish it had a season 2. The characters had a lot of interesting turns and would have liked to see them developed a bit further. All around it was one of the best shows I've seen and left me hanging wishing itd continue.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

whammami

Jul 2, 2015

Very good, but not for the average IQ viewer, this thing is too smart to stay on TV that is why there is no second season. It caters more to a smarter audience which usually exists in the Netfilx viewership. Hopefully Netflix picks it up.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Gezzer

Jun 23, 2015

Wow what could've been. This show is a high concept SciFi drama that misses the mark not based on concept but more execution.
It's biggest flaws are the plot/script holes and the acting/ directing.
There are characters whose abilities seem to change based on the scripts need. For example aWow what could've been. This show is a high concept SciFi drama that misses the mark not based on concept but more execution.
It's biggest flaws are the plot/script holes and the acting/ directing.
There are characters whose abilities seem to change based on the scripts need. For example a trained agent that gets man handled by a skinny guy and when previously showing great ability in that arena.
A director that seems to think that extreme horror causes juvenile girls to have lock jaw and no other reaction.
A situation that calls for complete silence so that a character unaware of the others existence doesn't become suspicious to only get ambushed by another character that wasn't supposed to know as well, but obviously didn't react to all the noise before they had to go quite.
Actors that can't invest in their characters and come off wooden and uninspired.
I could go on and on, but why bother. It's a perfect example of how what could've been great some how got totally screwed up as it was being made. Don't expect a second season.
I only watched it because Netflix didn't have anything else compelling at the time. So it's worth a watch, but don't go into it with any high expectations, because this definitely isn't art. It's filler to round out a network's season and nothing more.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

reellm

Apr 18, 2015

2/5★ A great concept bogged down with uninteresting drama and politics. I would like to see a better execution of the central idea, because I think there are many possibilities and it would be interesting to explore it but Ascension is unoriginal, and too soap opera-ish to take seriously.2/5★ A great concept bogged down with uninteresting drama and politics. I would like to see a better execution of the central idea, because I think there are many possibilities and it would be interesting to explore it but Ascension is unoriginal, and too soap opera-ish to take seriously. There are plot holes that distract from the genuine Sci-Fi aspects of the show.
Verdict: Skip… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

crowbb

Dec 21, 2014

Wow, that was pretty awful. After the first big reveal I was interested to see where they would take it. The answer was sadly, down the tubes. The remainder of the show was an awful soap opera that goes nowhere.

2 of 4 users found this helpful22

Broyax

Jan 9, 2017

Encore une idée alléchante sur le papier, devenue une série débectante dans la réalité. C'est tellement nul à chier que ça devrait être interdit, qu'on devrait les poursuivre en justice, au moins pour insulte à l'intelligence et foutage de gueule éhonté. ça se traîne comme une limace, c'estEncore une idée alléchante sur le papier, devenue une série débectante dans la réalité. C'est tellement nul à chier que ça devrait être interdit, qu'on devrait les poursuivre en justice, au moins pour insulte à l'intelligence et foutage de gueule éhonté. ça se traîne comme une limace, c'est écrit avec les pieds et c'est aussi excitant qu'une feuille d'impôts. Même Derrick est plus palpitant que cette daube intergalactique.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

SEE ALL 40 REVIEWS

Seasons & Episodes

56

Series Overview
Season 1

56
- Season 1 Overview
  Air Date: December 15, 2014
- tbd
  S1:E6. Chapter Three, Part 2
  Air Date: March 9, 2015
- tbd
  S1:E5. Chapter Three, Part 1
  Air Date: March 2, 2015
- tbd
  S1:E4. Chapter Two, Part 2
  Air Date: February 23, 2015
- tbd
  S1:E3. Night Three
  Air Date: December 17, 2014
- tbd
  S1:E3. Chapter Two, Part 1
  Air Date: February 16, 2015
- tbd
  S1:E2. Night Two
  Air Date: December 16, 2014
- tbd
  S1:E2. Chapter One, Part 2
  Air Date: February 9, 2015
- tbd
  S1:E1. Night One
  Air Date: December 15, 2014
- tbd
  S1:E1. Chapter One, Part 1
  Air Date: February 2, 2015