As I played through the bi-weekly episodes of The Expanse: A Telltale Series a few months ago, I enjoyed the studios’ return to form and risk-taking, but lamented the brief nature and lack of decision clarity. Nevertheless, as a newcomer to the subject material, I was fascinated by the sci-fi space setting and the characters that felt grounded in reality. Now that the series is well and truly done, a bonus episode has come to fruition entitled Archangel, honing in on the UN General from the TV series/books, Chrisjen Avasarala, and a turning point in her political career. Is this episode worth downloading the game again?

Taking the reigns of a character I know absolutely nothing about, The Expanse: A Telltale Series manages to immediately showcase what kind of a person Chrisjen Avasarala is within the first few lines of dialogue. A no-nonsense, intimidating stalwart, Avasarala is as biting as she is resourceful. The first thing I did when I took control of the undersecretary was solve a perplexing puzzle without second thought, only to unlock something I wouldn’t even need for another twenty minutes. Amidst that, a friendly chess game with her husband, and the option to pray/meditate, Avasarala reveals there’s a very real person behind the political backbone that the rest of the episode focuses on.

As Shohreh Aghdashloo returns to voice and even mo-cap Chrisjen Avasarala, it’s evident that even though The Expanse wrapped up in 2022, there’s still plenty of life within this universe in The Expanse: A Telltale Series – Archangel. Even though this is just a typical day in the political side of the Syfy/Amazon show, it still manages to showcase interactions that wouldn’t be out of place within it. As an origin story, the characters may not be as vindictive and cold as they are within the series, but the roots of this tyrannical, complex character are fleshed out and evident in this hour-long escapade.

While I loved sifting through space stations in the main episodes of The Expanse: A Telltale Series, Archangel mostly takes place in one political office – with Avasarala mostly just doling out her political agenda. This results in the episode playing less like an interactive film and more like a visual novel – for better and for worse. While sparse moments of action come about, there isn’t enough meat on the bones of this brief episode for newcomers to develop a connection with the character before the credits roll. Nevertheless, those in keeping with The Expanse will experience the pivotal moment in the character that explains their actions throughout the show.

Despite the fan-favorite character being front-and-center, I would imagine those unfamiliar won’t have too much pulling them in to purchase The Expanse: A Telltale Series‘ bonus episode Archangel. Not much more than just a few inconsequential decisions existing outside of the realm of the bigger picture of the series, it can still serve as a nice distraction and a glimpse into the universe that tons of fans have come to love over the years.

A PC review copy of The Expanse: A Telltale Series – Archangel was provided by Telltale Games for the purposes of this review.

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The Expanse: A Telltale Series - Archangel

$5.99

7

Score

7.0/10

Pros

• Essential for Expanse Fans
• Not Phoned In
• No Fluff

Cons

• Just an hour long
• Politics, Politics, Politics