Season 1

Chinese President Xi Jinping understands the greatest threat to the authoritarian state is not an invading army but the free minds of its people. This episode explores the fight for freedom of thought in China.

The story of China's meteoric economic growth and its earth-shattering repercussions.

China's return to imperial power after a century of humiliation.

After 150 years of British occupation, Hong Kong was returned to China in 1997. We examine how the territory has always been defined by the contest of influence between China and the West and how that tension plays out today.

The world's greatest rivalry began with hope and idealism. What went wrong?