Tonally the show strikes just the right balance between education and inspiration. The science explored in the opening episode isn’t anything teenaged astronomy fans wouldn’t already be aware of, but the show doesn’t talk down to the viewer. That said, those already familiar with the antics of Dr. Tyson may feel like they’re getting a watered-down version of the real thing. In Cosmos he’s part Captain Kirk, part travelogue host, but he’s missing the charismatic urgency he’s become known for. The passion he displayed during a SXSW Q&A was infinitely more engaging than his performance in the show, even when he’s recounting his own inspirational childhood encounter with Sagan.

Thankfully Cosmos finds its footing in the final stretch, when Tyson visualizes the lifetime of our entire universe through the scale of a human calendar year. The Big Bang starts on January 1st — complete with an epic blast that threatens to envelop the host — whereas the breadth of human history encompasses just the final moments of December 31st. It’s the show at its very best: visually conveying an abstract concept, weaved into the context of humanity’s place in the universe.

It’s hard to imagine an educational show about science being any sort of major network hit in 2014 — no doubt part of the reason why Cosmos features so many visual effects — but Fox is leveraging multiple arms of its media empire to make it work. Even after the splashy debut the entire season will air both on the Fox network and on National Geographic, and as cable has proven shows don’t need to have a Friends-sized audience to work their way into the zeitgeist. One episode in, Cosmos certainly isn’t perfect, but the fact is that right now there’s nothing else like it on television. At SXSW Dr. Tyson said the goal of the show was simply to start a conversation — and by that measure, it’s certainly off to a good start.