There’s good news for all those people who have spent the last month wondering if Netflix was going to renew its epic science fiction show, 3 Body Problem, for a second season. Well, Netflix has finally ordered ‘additional episodes’ to see the story through to its conclusion.

There is no word on how many episodes or how many seasons, but showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff feel that the most expensive show in Netflix’s history needs at least four seasons to reach a satisfying conclusion.

Based on the first book — The Three-Body Problem — of Hugo Award-winning science fiction trilogy Remembrance of Earth’s Past by Liu Cixin, Netflix’s 3 Body Problem premiered in March 2024. The show, helmed by the Game of Thrones showrunners, is a must-watch for science fiction fans, and especially those who haven’t read the books (the show deviates from the book to make it a more global event). 3 Body Problem starts slowly, true, but it picks up from episode three and the last three episodes are absolutely binge-worthy.

3 Body Problem starts with the Chinese Cultural Revolution where a prominent scientist is brutally beaten to death on stage while his daughter Ye Wenjie, also an astrophysicist, has to watch it from the audience. Sent to a military labour camp, Wenjie is later shifted to a secret military base because of her science background. The plot then jumps to the present day where scientists around the world are committing suicide; particle colliders are behaving weirdly; and grumpy, acerbic detective Clarence Shi (Benedict Wong) is investigating these strange occurrences.

Also involved are the ‘Oxford Five’, a group of brilliant scientists from Oxford University — Will Downing (Alex Sharp), Jin Cheng (Jess Hong), Saul Durand (Jovan Adepo), Auggie Salazar (Eiza González) and Jack Rooney (John Bradley) — who become crucial to solving the threat to Earth. That the threat comes from a distant planet and will take 400 years to manifest makes it even more unnerving.

This is a show that not only crosses continents and timelines but realities and planets, making it a complex story which Weiss and Benioff are more than equipped to handle after Game of Thrones (at least till the fifth season which was the last one based on a book). Here, Weiss and Benioff have three complete books to adapt, which, given the renewal by Netflix, should soon be underway. If you are wondering if 3 Body Problem is as high on the gore quotient as Game of Thrones, the answer is no but there are a few instances, one in episode five in particular, that can give some of the goriest scenes from GoT a stiff competition.

The cast of 3 Body Problem, many of whom are familiar to Game of Thrones followers — including fan favourite Liam Cunningham who plays Thomas Wade, a mysterious all-powerful man who is Clarence’s boss — adds to the appeal of the show. Especially Wong as Clarence, Sharp as Will Downing and Hong as Jin Cheng.

And of course there is science. There is a lot of hardcore science in the series, which despite being extremely complex is not off-putting given the way it is handled. In fact, it is the mix of genres — science fiction, thriller, whodunnit, drama — that makes 3 Body Problem such an enjoyable ride.

We can’t wait to see where the storyline takes the surviving characters (oh yes, of course people die) in the next season. Better watch the show before the second season drops and you feel left out.