It may be the political drama and characters of The Expanse that make the franchise a beloved piece of science fiction, but its exploration of body horror can't be overlooked. Even if The Expanse's most brutal death scene was way too gruesome for the TV show, and likely only able to exist on the page.

The idea of The Expanse universe being called 'horror' will make sense to existing fans, since the body-absorbing Protomolecule at its core is as terrifying as it is alien. Engineered not as a weapon, but an unstoppable force, the unleashed Protomolecule was weaponized to infects humans, convert them into carrier 'Pukers' to spread, and convert their organic mass for a larger design. The potential of this alien entity became the obsession of Paolo Cortázar, leading to one of the darkest 'experiments' in the entire series.

Cortázar Saved His Most Twisted Experiment For The Expanse's Sequel

The Protomolecule-Testing Mad Scientist Grows More Evil in The Books

Fans of the TV show only got a glimpse of the true cruelty and depravity of Cortázar. And those qualities are used literally, since the values (and mental limitations) of ethics, comion, and morality were all intentionally removed in the scientist's pursuit of brilliance. Brilliance, no matter how horrifying the cost on innocent people, of course. But the true depths of Cortázar's experimentation with the Protomolecule came later than the TV show's six season run allowed to be adapted.

The farthest limits of Cortázar's science were explored in later novels, serving as the chief science officer under Winston Duarte, the self-appointed High Consul of Laconia. In that far-off world, not only was the Protomolecule used to extend Duarte's life (allowing his own brutal rule to continue), but grant Cortázar the kind of superhuman horrors that can only be described as... pleasurable.

The Expanse's Most Disturbing Death Was Too Harsh For TV

Killing A Laconian Soldier in Even Worse Fashion Than Marco Inaros

The following novels by James S. A. Corey test the limits of just how far Cortázar will go, and how many human lives he would see as expendable, but don't dip too deeply into truly disturbing. That was saved for an unforgettable scene in The Expanse: Dragon Tooth, the BOOM! sequel series set directly after the show concluded its run. Like Marco Inaros, the series followed a Mars special forces soldier named 'Dhillon' doomed to learn that even loyal Martian heroes are just tools in Duarte's arsenal.

So after spending over a decade covertly operating on Laconia's behalf, Dhillon succeeds in a bombing mission before gaining age through the forbidden Laconian gate. Awakening with his skin completely burned off, but 'home' once again, Dhillon is onished, discharged, and turned into a test subject for Cortázar. Or more accurately, a specimen for Cortázar to kill.

There's no real way to understand the scientific value of a person in skin-seared agony, nerves exposed, being consumed by the bare hands and bodily fluids of Protomolecule Pukers (a.k.a. 'vomit zombies'). Thankfully, Cortazar shows this test isn't about science at all, telling His assistant that he wishes to hear the horrifying murder and consumption as it happens.

For obvious reasons, viewers of The Expanse would not have been able to witness this entire grisly scene for themselves, as multiple elements would almost certainly be ruled too graphic for anything short of an R-Rating. A shame if the scene ever does get adapted, assuming The Expanse TV show follows the sequel's story before the other novels, of course.

The Expanse: Dragon Tooth is available from BOOM! Studios.