The Expanse—whether we're talking about the books or the Syfy series that's just starting its second season—is some of the best science fiction we've seen in years. Originally conceived as an MMO at the turn of the century, it finally appeared as a novel in 2011, written by Dan Abraham and Ty Franck (under the James SA Corey nom de plume). In December, the sixth book in the series was released, and last year it also hit our TV screens thanks to Syfy.

In fact, we're such big fans of the space opera that we've chosen is as the next subject to cover in Decrypted, our culture podcast. Season 2 of The Expanse premiered this week in the US, and to mark the occasion we lined up an interview with Messrs Abraham and Franck to dig a little deeper into the solar system they've created for us.

One particularly interesting aspect of the show is that the authors have a massive amount of input into the TV show. That means the story is likely headed to the same destination, but the journey doesn't mirror the books perfectly. This was something that initially unsettled me until I learned to deal with "canon shock."

I'll be analyzing, debating, and dissecting The Expanse every week with a different guest, and we'll post the podcast on Fridays throughout the season. New episodes air on Wednesdays in the US, so you have time to watch before we get into major spoilers. The Expanse season 2 will air in the UK on Netflix, though an exact premiere date hasn't yet been announced.

There are some minor book spoilers in this week's episode, but it's mainly the interview with Dan and Ty. Listen when you're ready!

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Decrypted is Ars Technica's weekly podcast about the TV that obsesses us. Currently we're dissecting The Expanse. Listen or subscribe however you please above and let us know what you think—ideas, questions, and so on—through the comments section, on iTunes, or via e-mail.