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Foundation explained: Everything to know about the world of this Apple TV Plus sci-fi series

Here is everything you need to know about the world of Foundation and how the show updates the source material.

FoundationApple TV+ series Foundation is based on Isaac Asimov's books.

Apple TV+’s science-fiction TV series Foundation is based on celebrated author Isaac Asimov’s eponymous trilogy of books. The man in charge is David S. Goyer, known for co-writing The Dark Knight trilogy with Christopher Nolan.

The series has mostly little names in the cast, with only Jared Harris (Chernobyl and The Terror) and Lee Pace (The Hobbit trilogy and Guardians of the Galaxy) being recognisable.

Still, the trailers and promos suggest Apple has not skimped on the budget of the series. The visuals particularly look breathtaking.

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Here is everything you need to know about the world of Foundation and how the show updates the source material:

The story is set in the future. The setting is the final years of Galactic Empire, which incorporates the Milky Way galaxy. Harris plays the lead role of mathematics professor Hari Seldon. He ​has spent his life studying a new kind of mathematical sociology and his predictions indicate the fall of Galactic Empire. He has developed a theory of psychohistory and uses it to make accurate predictions about the future of humanity.

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As per his calculations, the Empire is going to fall soon and it will be 30,000 years before a new empire rises and stability returns. Although he knows the eventual destruction of the empire cannot be stopped, he plans to limit the 30,000 year gap to 1000 years. For this purpose, he created the Foundations, groups of scientists and engineers staying at the opposite ends of Milky Way. Their aim is to preserve the traditions and ways of life so that the inevitable new empire will start on a strong note.

That is the basic summary.

How the show differs

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In the books, the emperors are actual human beings. But in the show, they are turned into a long line of clones, called Cleon. This is an interesting change, and we do not know how it will play out in the show. As far as we are told, cloning does not exist in Asimov’s works.

In fact, many sci-fi staples like robots, cybernetics, cyborgs, androids, and so on were not not even thought of when the Foundation stories were written. Even computers were in the early stages of development.

The the series is also far more diverse than the show. There are people of colour in the cast.

First uploaded on: 24-09-2021 at 08:25 IST
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