Comment:

So uh... a little world-building, here. Have I mentioned that the world of Forward has no FTL and no contact with aliens? I want to be clear that the "Martians" Lee talks about are human beings. Even without warp drive or stargates, I do think a permanent human colony on Mars is possible by 2167. In fact, the first colonies were set up in 2060, and Mars is recognized as an independent nation by 2120.

And yeah, most of the entertainment consumed on Earth is of Martian origin. They also produce most of the world's medical breakthroughs, technological developments, et cetera. Exporting information, after all, is far more cost-effective than exporting physical goods, so that's the direction their economy goes.

The Martian economy is interesting, because they pretty much went from constant frantic improvisational pass-me-that-wrench-or-we're-all-going-to-die disaster to a post-scarcity Utopia within a single generation. They never really developed capitalism as we understand it - they didn't need to. Functionally, the entire planet is not only a single nation, but a single household.

Picture an idyllic Google campusy sort of environment under a cluster of domes, with lots of big beautiful trees and expertly designed open spaces and the equivalent of TED talks and Nobel prize ceremonies constantly going on and you can just go grab a shwarma without having to put your shoes on. Culturally, the Martians are all about maximizing positive stimulation in order to maximize innovative productivity... and vice versa.

There's a reason why people like Lee idolize and fantasize about Mars and the Martians.

There's a reason why Lee isn't up there.

Transcript:

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0032 - 2167/07/05/18:58 - Lee Caldavera's apartment, living room
LC: You were reading the individual episode summaries while we were watching, weren't you? Admit it!
Zoa: Uh... I hate to tell you this, Lee, but a lot of modern movies, shows, books... particularly Martian ones... the authours are... shall we say... machine-assisted.
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LC: So what, this was all algorithmically generated? You were able to derive the ending of the story?
Zoa: It was an educated guess. Also, it helps that I don't really have a subconscious mind. Everything is surface-level for me.
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Zoa: There's a lot of subtle touches in the background - the patterns of clothing, the scratches on the wall - that are put in there by the animation program to trigger ideas in your subconscious about what the ending of the story should be. That's why it's so intensely satisfying when it happens - it's like music, you develop an instinct for what "twist" is supposed to happen next.
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LC: I guess I just figured Mariko Kohleru had more of a direct hand in the process.
Zoa: Mars has a population of fewer than a million people, and puts out most of the world's entertainment. I can assure you, there is very little we just saw that was directly animated by a human hand.
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