One evening not so many years ago, a young boy (yours truly) sat down in front of the bulky living room TV to watch a show called Cosmos.
From the first strains of Vangelis and the first words of the gentle man named Carl I was hooked. For the next 13 weeks I was in awe as the majesty of the Universe was revealed. To this day a part of me regrets I was not able (or perhaps not dedicated enough) to follow the dream of doing what Sagan did, studying the mysteries of the stars and galaxies.
But the fire that was ignited continues to burn inside me and I am an unabashed space and astronomy and science nerd, and I am proud of it. To this day hearing the music and watching the show transports me back to that first incredible journey of discovery.
And now a new journey begins as Neil DeGrasse Tyson brings us a new version of Cosmos.
Is it going to entirely satisfy me ?
Of course not. I prefer the acted scenes of old show to the animated scenes of the new. As much as I respect Neil, nobody will ever top Carl. And I miss the music, the ethereal strains of Vangelis.
But is the magic still there ?
You bet it is. The vastness of the universe, the clockwork precision of the system that allows us to exist remains inspiring to all. My niece and nephew are a bit young for it at this point but you can rest assured they will be watching BOTH series someday.
As a parting thought, one of my favorite memories of the old, brought back in the new, is the concept of the Cosmic Calendar.
The entire history of the universe compressed into a single year.
And on that calendar humanity gets…. 15 seconds.
That’s right folks. Every bit of recorded history. Everything you ever heard of, every person you ever knew, and everything they every knew all fits in just 15 seconds. Everything taught in every history class in every school of every country of all time… is just 15 seconds.
Makes you think, doesn’t it ?
The series airs Sundays at 9pm on Fox, and I strongly encourage you to check it out.