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Netflixis used to taking gambles.

Weiss, whose reputation took a significant hit after the high-fantasy HBO shows divisive final season.

Jin Cheng holds up an apple in a fantasy VR setting in Netflix�s 3 Body Problem TV show

Netflix’s 3 Body Problem messes multiple genres together, despite its high-brow sci-fi story.

As a deep-thinking, multi-genre, and surprisingly intimate series, however,3 Body Problemlargely hits the sweet spot.

Secret Invasion

3 Body Problems plot jumps between two storylines set in different time periods.

If you really focus on the narrative playing out, however,3 Body Problemrewards you.

A Chinese soldier and Ye Wenjie stand in a field in Netflix’s 3 Body Problem TV series

Ye Wenjie (right) is the character who sets3 Body Problem’s narrative in motion.

Indeed, those who concentrate can spot clues that foreshadow events to come.

Its an interactive form of storytelling that showcases one of3 Body Problems biggest strengths, i.e.

its ability to subconsciously turn you into a prescient detective, rather than simply being an objective observer.

Auggie Salazar starts her nanofiber research again in a Oxford-based lab in Netflix’s 3 Body Problem TV series

3 Body Problem’s science-led subplots aren’t as complex as you might think. Well, mostly anyway.

Speaking of story exposition, theres a frustration in how some of this is delivered.

Other times, characters vexingly repeat facts from one episode to the next.

My memory isnt what it was, Netflix, but come on.

Jack Rooney wears one of the mysterious VR headsets in Netflix’s 3 Body Problem TV show

You won’t look at virtual reality in the same way again after3 Body Problem.

3 Body Problem is a cleverly constructed and sweeping epic

Its genre-bending makeup is also periodically erratic.

Alas, thats as terrifying as things get.

There are, though, moments that are genuinely shocking.

The Oxford Five sit in a pub drinking in Netflix’s 3 Body Problem TV adaptation

The Oxford Five (Raj, third from the left, not included) are the heartbeat of3 Body Problem.

They might havetraded high fantasy for mind-bending sci-fi, but their fingerprints are evident across the final product.

An equal-parts international and intergalactic mystery, its anambitious, mind-melting Netflix sci-fi show that demands your attention.

Once youve gorged yourself on all eight episodes on launch day, Im confident youll understand why.

Thomas Wade and Da Shi have a tense conversation in Netflix’s 3 Body Problem TV show

The dynamic between Thomas Wade and Da Shi is brimming with deadpan humor and occasional tension.

3 Body Problem exclusively launches in full on Netflix on Thursday, March 21.