Carl Sagan was a great man, on that there is no debate. Perhaps the first person to really bring science into the public domain. In the wake of the moon landings and a public thirst of information, Sagan was able to communicate huge, important ideas and facts in a way that not only could everyone understand, but everyone could fall in love with and become inspired by. Forget Reagan, Sagan was the Great Communicator of the 1980's. In 1980, he presented Cosmos, the grandfather of science documentaries. Turn on the Discovery channel, and what you are seeing (so long as it isn't Auction Kings or some other reality TV bullshit) is a direct result of Cosmos' success and popularity. So it makes sense that his twenty first century counterpart, Neil deGrasse Tyson, would bring Cosmos back for a new generation.
The world is not lacking in science programming. For years, Patrick Moore's The Sky At Night gave British audiences a view of the universe, and Canadian audiences learned much about natural sciences from The Nature of Things with David Suzuki. Nowadays there are entire channels devoted to science and discovery, and the spirit of Cosmos continues in shows like Morgan Freeman's fantastic Through The Wormhole, deGrasse Tyson's own Nova ScienceNOW, or in Radio 4's The Infinitie Monkey Cage. But Cosmos was something different. And unlike the modern speciality cable channels, the original aired on the over-the-air PBS. And the relaunch will air on the equally accessible FOX.
Presented by deGrasse Tyson, and produced by Brannon Braga, Sagan's widow Ann Druyan and science fanatic Seth McFarlane, the new series, complete with modern digital renderings, animated segments and deGrasse Tyson's uncontrollable enthusiasm, this first teaser really sells the exciting, movie quality action that the series will use to hook the viewer, and hopefully make it seem less like a lesson and more like an adventure.
Via Collider.