Big History
Big History
| 02 November 2013 (USA)
SEASON & EPISODES
  • 1
  • Reviews
    Hellen

    I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much

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    FuzzyTagz

    If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

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    Delight

    Yes, absolutely, there is fun to be had, as well as many, many things to go boom, all amid an atmospheric urban jungle.

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    Billy Ollie

    Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

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    TxMike

    I came across this on DVD set from my public library. Narrated by Bryan Cranston and discussing the history of our universe and us, it is a can't-miss for this scientist. In my casual time (I am retired now) I have often looked at today's technology, like cars, cell phones, flat screen TVs, computers, space exploration ... things like that and wondered "What random sequence of events and discoveries were responsible for these things to happen?" And a related question, "What if one of the discoveries had not come about how different would our world and its technology be today?"This series (or film, the DVD set has several 21-minute episodes plus one 90-minute movie of all this) seeks to tie up history this way. It makes the point often that we usually think of history in a linear manner but "Big History" is more like a web showing all the connections and interconnections. In fact, the narration mentioning "Big History" so often it became annoying and a bit distracting.But it does serve a good purpose, explaining things like how the horse shaped not only much of history but also the spread of language. And the 8 thresholds, from the Big Bang to what we have today, then speculates on what the 9th threshold might be? Aliens? An asteroid that destroys most life? A global nuclear war that does it? So, as a scientist myself, I found the series (film?) a fascinating glimpse into all of the history of the universe, the Big Bang, the various unlikely "accidents" that led to the Earth becoming a place that could support life, life and evolution on Earth. But much of it is all educated "speculation", and in fact in the past year or so many theoretical Physicists are now saying they don't believe there ever was a Big Bang at all. The series (film?) takes a specific agnostic point of view, that everything that happened and continues to happen is simply by blind cosmic luck. But maybe God really does exist, maybe He really did create the universe and the conditions for life to arise. Maybe He really did create an Adam and an Eve that are responsible for human life? There is much we still don't know and if anything this program makes us realize that even more.

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    mario-furcic

    Every episode lays out 5-6 ideas about a theme, doesn't investigate further into those concepts but you can google it and it shows that they did their research pretty good. The videos in the background are just for enhancing your memory of the show, of those 5-6 ideas. You can recollect every show very fast when somebody asks you! Unlike Cosmos, where you get lost very fast, cannot recall anything, and have no idea what they wanted to say, this is quite the opposite - very clear concepts, presented in a memorable way. I find all the ideas very contemporary. *And the do like drama - seems like they can connect your morning coffee with the Big Bang :) but i don't mind the theatrical approach, probably gets to wider audience

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    gviolet66

    I wish someday TV producers would assume their viewers might just possess an educational level past the grade 5 level.There is indeed some basic value to the content of Big History. But, shamefully, it seems written for children. Why is the sound background so unimaginative and overbearing ? The loud and "fancy" sound effects only disrupt the viewing experience. Despite any interest I might have in the material, I have to switch to other channels.You might perhaps learn from PBS documentaries how to properly present a subject.I don't expect the same quality as PBS from you, but, at the very least please have the decency of respecting your viewers intelligence.Gilles Violette

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    chucklin72

    This show turns history into shows like "Best Police Chases" or "When Animals Attack".There are more useless CG and intros than the actual content. Remove all the CG of flying through networks, the mindless summary of the show after EVERY commercial break, I would be surprised if there are 10 minutes of actual content in any episode.They interview renowned scientists and only get the sound bite of the most basic concept. If they had interviewed Albert Einstein, their question would be "so, physics... pretty cool huh?"To see a proper example of the same concept of this show, watch Connections, a show by James Burke. It was done in 1978 but far better than this show.

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