Imagine being connected to another person and having all their thoughts and feelings appear as your own. Now imagine having the thoughts and feelings of multiple people projected on to you while you try to live your day-to-day life. Trippy, right? That’s the world the characters in the Netflix original series Sense8 live in.

The sci-fi series follows eight strangers from around the globe, all from different backgrounds and dealing with their own things in life, who become connected to one another through a vision, then through their thoughts and emotions. Even though they are on different parts of the planet, they are able to experience things like the rain from another sensate in their clusters’ area as well as the sun shining in their own backyard.

The show is all filmed on location, with a representation of characters and cultures that made Orange is the New Black an instant hit. Viewers are able to experience new cultures and areas in the same way that the other characters in the show do.

Characters have their own struggles in life. For example, Miguel Angel Silvestre plays Lito Rodriguez, a famous Mexican action star who is hiding the fact that he is gay and is living with his boyfriend. Jamie Clayton plays political blogger Nomi Marks from San Francisco who happens to be a transsexual woman (just like Clayton in real life) dealing with her parents not acknowledging her new life and her girlfriend’s friends’ disapproval. Tuppence Middelton plays Riley Blue, a DJ living in London who is trying to cope with her past. These are only three of the eight “sensates” in their cluster who eventually need to use their new powers to keep each other safe all while being on different parts of the globe.

Though the actors chosen are relatively unknown, they each bring something very special and genuine to the small screen. The chemistry that the actors have with one another is evident.

The creators and directors of the series are the Wachowskis, a brother – sister duo known for the Matrix franchise, who have a strong love and passion for cinema. Netflix took a leap in green lighting a show that has a big cast of unknown actors, a filming schedule much like hit show Game of Thrones, and a premise that leaves people baffled for the first half. Yet all these aspects are what make it so great.

The way the show is presented makes viewers feel like they themselves are “sensates” and a part of the cluster. We find out what’s going on with these characters at the same time they do. It also is a series that is marketed as being sci-fi yet has a lot of different genres mixed into it. However, Sense8 breaks all the rules for the sci-fi genre, which is hard to make work, yet the filmmakers do so with flying colors.

Explaining what this series is about without giving too much away is hard. Though the beginning of the series is confusing to most, it is worth the wait to watch all twelve episodes and be left anxious for the second season.

For those of you interested in the behind the scenes of television shows and how they are filmed, you should check out Sense8: Creating the World, which will give you an entirely new appreciation to the show.