The embrace of inclusion and diversity
Season one of Foundation updated some of Asimov’s characters to reflect more diversity—casting actors from a variety of races and backgrounds, and switching male book characters Gaal Dornick and Salvor Hardin into women for the series. Season two continues this momentum with the character of Bel Riose (Ben Daniels), a decorated but rebellious general serving hard time on a prison planet. When Empire decides they need to press him back into service, he agrees only after he learns that his husband, Glawen Curr (Dino Fetscher)—who he believes was executed years prior—is still alive. Foundation’s world may have a lot of problems, but homophobia is refreshingly not one of them; the fact that queer people exist and have loving relationships is simply woven right into the story. Beyond that, Daniels and Fetscher bring a lot of depth to their characters, showing a long-awaited reunion that’s tender but also challenged by disagreements and sci-fi messiness.
