Having Seth MacFarlane, creator of the Primetime Emmy Award-winning Family Guy, as executive producer for new science documentary TV series Cosmos: A Space-Time Odyssey means a healthy dash of animation will come in with the time-travelling storytelling sequences of past heroes of the Science world.

This is a major departure in the National Geographic Channel’s upcoming series, modeled on Cosmos: A Personal Voyage, which introduced us to America’s best known astronomer, the great and late Carl Sagan, which first aired on television sets in Sep 28, 1980 and reached an audience of 400 million.

Not surprisingly, this reboot of the groundbreaking and popular series reunites the 2 living original writers of Cosmos: A Personal Voyage, only this time, Carl’s widow and co-author, Ann Druyan, is now taking on larger roles like executive producer, writer and director.

Fellow astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, who earned 19 honorary doctorates and a NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal, steps in Sagan’s footsteps, as our host to the wide, wondrous world of science. His work will be to deliver research and scientific theories and grandiose concepts in a way that is accessible and exciting for a layman audience.

Not unlike the original series, Tyson will travel all over the universe, showing a mixture of spectacular effects interwoven with scientific knowledge, through a souped up Spaceship of the Imagination and putting key events into a cosmic calendar, where the universe’s history as we know it, will be condensed into a figurative year.

According to Druyan, who spoke to UrbanWire and other local media at a press conference in ArtScience Museum, thanks to the talents of Alan Silvestri (Forrest Gump, The Avengers), who composed music for every single minute of the series, and Sir Patrick Stewart who does voiceover work, Cosmos: A Space-Time Odyssey will deliver a cinematic and breathtaking television experience that will evoke strong emotions, and bring back some of love viewers had during school science lessons.

 

Cosmos: A Space-Time Odyssey premieres on Mar 15, 10pm on National Geographic Channel (mio TV Ch 201/203, StarHub TV Ch 411/457).

Photos courtesy of Fox.