After a Promising Start, MGM+’s Beacon 23 Loses Its Way

There’s something about the iconography of lighthouses that continues to stoke the imagination of storytellers and audiences alike, whether they be looming destinations like in VanderMeer’s Annihilation or places of overbearing isolation as in Robert Eggers’ aptly named horror flick. Perhaps it’s the mental image of their keeper’s solitary existence that captivates, specifically the idea of living alone with a machine that must be endlessly maintained to avert disaster. Maybe we can’t stop thinking about them because of their obvious symbolism as a torch in the dark that warns against imminent peril. Or, in all honesty, it could just be that they’re neat pieces of architecture.

Many of these facets are present in Beacon 23, a sci-fi TV show based on the novel of the same name by Hugh Howey, author of the books that inspired Apple TV+’s Silo. It’s another tale about lighthouses; in this case, centering on a technologically advanced variant meant to guide ships through the stars instead of seas. Unfortunately, while its initial episodes successfully tease out the tensions of being trapped on this remote installation, it becomes increasingly difficult to buy into this series’ stakes, eventually causing it to stray off-course and calamitously dash against the rocks.

The story begins as the keeper of Beacon 23, Halan (Stephan James), fails to warn an incoming spaceship of hazards, leading to a devastating crash. The sole survivor is Aster (Lena Headey), who explains that she’s been sent to this remote corner of the Milky Way by the ISA (Interstellar Space Authority) so she can collect important data. However, distrust quickly settles in between the pair, as Aster surmises that the lighthouse keeper isn’t who he says he is, and Halan calls her visit into question. As they try to get a handle on things, they find that a mysterious power may have drawn them here and that this secluded place potentially holds monumental secrets.

Through its initial stretch, the series makes great use of its premise. There is a crackling sense of danger as Aster and Halan size each other up, and paranoid cinematography conveys that they are both trapped in an exceptionally remote location with a potentially malicious stranger. Halan is irritable, but it’s unclear if this is from being alone for so long or due to a past incident, while Aster’s platitudes seem to hide thinly-veiled guile. Lena Headey gives an excellent performance as she strains against the pressures of her surroundings, and early on, there is an interesting tension between her readily espoused lies and inner doubts. The set design of this beacon pulls us further into both of their anxious headspaces, as its maddening spiral staircases and surrounding black void establish a sense of claustrophobia.

And although we’re trapped on this metal contraption throughout the story, we get plenty of tidbits about the state of the surrounding cosmos. It’s evident that this tale is based on a novel from the jump, as we’re hit with a barrage of worldbuilding that hints at tantalizing details. This space station’s inhabitants never stop and explain the rules, but the geopolitical circumstances of this far-flung 23rd century slide into place through implications, setting up sprawling corporations, interstellar wars, debates over colonial expansion into the stars, and struggles with artificial intelligence. These first few episodes set up engaging questions about our protagonists’ goals and the nature of this universe that left me eager to learn more.