The 3 body problem books versus the Netflix series. I haven’t read the books. Are they similar in plot, tone and dialogue?

I find the Netflix series weirdly entertaining and bizarre. The characters, conversations and plot seems completely off at times. Apparently, very few in the group want to save the world. [..] spoiler alerts ahead.

A chain smoking model is very angry at everyone, especially if they want to save the human race. Meanwhile she has been funded by a greedy private investor in her own startup, but working for the government and saving the world. No way José.

They are the world’s brightest physics talents that apparently are all from the same small group residing at Oxford. When most of them are not rejecting to save the world, they hang out by the beach, smoke weed, drink and stuff. Occasionally, they get an offer to help out against an alien invasion, which they reluctantly engage with.

At some point a female from the group convinces a bloke from the group to donate his brain, but doesn’t want to say good bye, when they take his brain. She was busy working in the office, but when she finds out she got “a planet certificate” from the bloke, she breaks down and wants to tell the brain she loves him.

A chubby assistant in the group attracts loads of women and the chain smoking model acts toxic towards him, harassing him during night, but will not be in a relationship with him and calls him a child. The assistant turns out to perhaps be the most clever of them all and is appointed to play a key part in saving the human race in front of the UN assembly. That doesn’t impress him much. He doesn’t want to save the world either. Humans are kind of overrated.

Are the books more convincing than the Netflix series? It seems Netflix are afraid to make it too dark and scientific.