Arthur C. Clarke’s 1953 science fiction novel Childhood’s End has finally been adapted into a television series, which aired the second week of December last year.

Arthur C. Clarke’s idea for the book began with his short story Guardian Angel published in 1946, which later became the first part of Childhood’s End. Published in 1953, the first printing sold out extremely quickly due to several good reviews and put Clarke on the map as a well respected science fiction author. Though the book is often regarded by both readers and critics as Clarke’s best novel.

In the 1960s, director Stanley Kubrick was interested in making a film adaptation of the novel, but another director had already optioned it. So instead, Kubrick collaborated with Arthur C. Clarke on adapting the short story The Sentinel into what eventually became the critically acclaimed 2001: A Space Odyssey.

The next scene brings us back to present day 2016 and a fleet of massive alien spaceships have appeared in the skies. Mankind dubs the aliens ‘the Overlords’ and they speak through a chosen emissary, a farmer named Ricky Stormgren played by Mike Vogel of Under the Dome fame. He only has contact with one of the aliens, the ‘Supervisor for Earth’ named Karellen, played by Charles Dance better known as Tywin Lannister on Games of Thrones, who hides himself away not allowing anyone to see what the alien race actually looks like. The Overlords proceed to eliminate disease, war, hunger, and pollution, bringing on the Golden Age of Humanity but it takes another 15 years before they are ready to reveal to the world what they look like. Now I hadn’t read the book so I was really in for a shocker when Karellen came down the stairs hand in hand with two small children emissaries and it was revealed that he looked like the devil. And boy the computer graphics on this thing was amazing.

The next night’s episode fast forwards to 2035 and life on Earth is blissful. Slowly though we see that not everything is as it should be. There have been a scattering of children with high cognitive skills and Peretta Jones played by Yael Stone of Orange is the New Black, tries to counsel one of the children. There’s a lot of science fiction mixed with spirituality which is great but I’m not going to try to explain it in this review instead just go with the idea that a new higher species of man evolves and brings forth the apocalypse. And let me just say it was so refreshing to see an apocalypse that yes we caused but more in our reluctance to ask questions than via mutual thermonuclear destruction.

The final night of the series jumps forward four years and we see the evolved human now able to communicate with all the other children. Karellen announces to the world that all of the children will be gathered together, that no more children will be born, and that the adults are free to live out their lives as they wish. The children begin to float up into the sky, which was slightly hoaky but impactful.

Milo, the guy from the first scene, stows away on an Overlord ship and is transported to their homeworld where he witnesses a being of vast cosmic intelligence. Milo is shown the true meaning of the universe and returns to Earth to witness the moment the children join the intelligence, which unfortunately is the same moment the Earth is destroyed. He offers to transmit a report to Karellen of the final moments and asks Karellen in return to leave behind some memento of Earth’s culture, and Karellen obliges.

And that’s it. The end. No long running series. No sequel. Just a great story told over three nights. Believe me I wish Hollywood was more willing to make these types of short lived shows. Good storytelling doesn’t have to require multiple seasons or sequels.