The Eternaut (Netflix) 

By: Rachel Brodeur

Named after a fusion of the words “eternal” and “astronaut,” Netflix’s The Eternaut is a compelling science fiction series that places human conflict at its core. Set in Argentina, the series opens with an eerie and unexplained environmental catastrophe. Survivors are left in the dark: no answers, no aid, and no clear understanding of what happened.

The Eternaut explores how people respond when the familiar protections of society are stripped away. Though firmly rooted in science fiction, the series often feels more like a tale of primitive survival. Technology and communication are scarce, giving the story a hauntingly low-tech, almost post-apocalyptic tone.

The most compelling conflict in the series is not man versus nature or even man versus alien, but man versus man. As the characters confront their new reality, it becomes clear that the greatest threat isn’t the catastrophe itself, but the desperate, unpredictable actions of other people. Kindness and generosity can have severe consequences.

Creator Bruno Stagnaro (Pizza, Beer and Cigarettes, Okupas) skillfully uses contrast in his direction. Interior scenes like apartments, dinner tables, hallways and bathrooms, are shot in tight, quickly changing frames, evoking chaos and disarray. These are starkly juxtaposed with expansive, wide-angle shots of the empty streets and snowy landscapes, contributing to a sense of isolation and dread. The result is both cinematically striking and emotionally tense.

The series is available with subtitles in the original Spanish and a dubbed English version. Notably, Netflix employs AI technology to recreate the actors’ voices in multiple languages and digitally adjust their mouth movements, syncing them with the new dialogue. While this removes jobs of voice actors from the industry, it results in a surprisingly immersive experience for a dubbed production, helping to preserve emotional nuance without distraction.

Ultimately, The Eternaut is less about extraterrestrial threats and more about the fragile threads that hold humanity together and how quickly they can unravel when the world stops making sense.

Rachel’s Rating: 7.5/10

The Eternaut is a gripping Argentine sci-fi series that uses a mysterious disaster as a backdrop to explore the collapse of social trust. Visually striking and emotionally charged, it’s a haunting reflection on what remains of humanity when civilization falls away.