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Warhammer 40,000 fans have a problem: everybody loves Space Marines. These transhuman soldiers are the special forces of the Imperium of Man, and can be found on the front lines against all mutants, witches, and xenos. They’re the best selling army in the Games Workshop catalog, they star in the most books, and they even get to star in the Secret Level animated adaptation. Space Marines are undeniably badass, and playing one in Space Marine 2 or Boltgun is a blast. They’re also the tool of a corrupt empire, rotten to the core, a society built on hatred and fear. Compared to some of the game’s wilder factions, the Space Marines are a bit boring – but they get to enjoy the largest percentage of screen time.
“And They Shall Know No Fear,” the Secret Level episode set in the grim dark future of 40K, stars Titus from Space Marine 2 along with a squad, presumably after the events of the sequel’s campaign. They are prepared for battle and armored by Ultramarine serfs, and then launched via drop pod onto the surface of a hostile planet. There, they find Chaos cultists, a band of Mad Max-style raiders who use vehicles and sheer force of numbers in an attempt to overwhelm their attackers. These are Space Marines, so things go pretty badly for the cultists.
There’s a phrase in the 40K community: “bolter porn.” Bolter porn, named after the massive firearms Space Marines wield, is when a piece of media stars the Space Marines and simply indulges in the badass action that inevitably follows. Astartes, for instance, is a much revered piece of fan-made media depicting the Space Marines boarding a craft and uncovering the mysteries within. (Important to note: Astartes’ creator, Syama Pedersen, assisted with the creation of “And They Shall Know No Fear.”)
Bolter porn is a guilty pleasure; I’ll admit to clapping like a seal at certain points of “And They Shall Know No Fear,” or Space Marine 2. The Secret Level episode also stars a pretty interesting baddy, a creature of the Chaos god Tzeentch, who is able to bypass the cool fight scenes with some Warp nonsense. There are some neat detours on Titus’ journey through this episode, but the core message is the same: Space Marines are cool.
Which is what makes the episode kind of disappointing, particularly given all we know about the deeper lore of them. These superhuman soldiers aren’t just cool guys; they’re recruited from children, and most aspirants are brutally murdered during the testing. The process of becoming a Space Marine includes severe indoctrination, and most aspirants never return to their families or home planets. They are built to die on some distant warfront, in one of the Imperium’s endless wars. It can be tempting to see them as sci-fi heroes, but they are meant to represent the tyranny and decay of the Imperium.
Plus, there are plenty of other cool factions in 40K who could use the spotlight. The various branches of the Aeldari, the T’au Empire, or even the humble Imperial Guard get crumbs of content for every cake the Space Marines get to enjoy. “And They Shall Know No Fear” is some great bolter porn, and perhaps that’s all we could expect from Secret Level, a show much more interested in flashy cinematics for recognizable brands. But I hope Amazon’s future 40K content has a little more nuance and variety.
The first eight episodes of Secret Level are now streaming on Prime Video. The next seven drop on Dec. 17.
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