Philip K. Dick would be rolling over in his grave if he would’ve known one of his books would end up as a TV series that can only be streamed via thin monitors and the World Wide Web. A new Amazon Studios show about his novel, The Man in the High Castle, has just released its first season on Amazon Prime’s video streaming service.
Amazon originally aired its pilot episode earlier this year, citing that it was the most watched original television series for Amazon, and a month later had secured the rights to a 10-episode season. For those waiting since January for the other 90% of the show, it’s all out now for your viewing pleasure.
The Man in the High Castle looks at an America that had lost World War II to both Japanese and Nazi land assaults. The United States is now divided between the two world powers, with Japan controlling the Japanese Pacific States in the West Coast, and the Nazi’s controlling the Greater Nazi Reich in the East Coast and Central US. However, resistance movements across the two countries have been receiving film reels of our version of World War II: the flag at Iwo Jima, the Normandy landing, and the tearing down of the Third Reich capital.
After being three episodes in, I have to say that this feels like the most realistic version of an alternate World War II timeline that sci-fi has ever touched. And with Philip K. Dick having written the source material, I have a feeling that this plot’s going to kick it up a few notches. If you’re still interested, you can check it out more for yourself here.