Discuss and Rate the Last Thing You Watched (non-movies)

[Casual Shinji]

I hear the ending is disappointing. So hopefully now with lowered expectations, you might not find it so disappointing, if you do at all.

But yeah, I'm surprised more people on here aren't talking about it. Not my cup of tea at all, but its on its way to being one the biggest Netflix shows of all time, if it isn't already. And while Netflix makes about as many bad decisions as they have shows on their service, there's no way Squid Game would have been made it this far if it wasn't for them.

Episode 7 already shows a drop in quality and I'm pretty sure I know what the big twist is going to be, which yeah, would be a bit trite. I don't know how I'm going to feel about this show afterward or a few years from now, maybe I'll have forgotten I've ever seen it, but those first 6 episodes were did a phenomenal job at pulling me in. And Episode 6 was just pain in the best way imaginable. The last time I felt that emotionally nauseous was during the Eclipse in Berserk.

 

[Xprimentyl]

Ted Lasso: Season 2: Amazing / Great

I can't recommend this show enough. It's so good if improbable. Imagine a world of flawed people, then imagine one person comes in with the exact thing each specific person needs to hear to feel and do better. There's a bit of a twist in the final episode I didn't see coming, but after the reveal, the cynic in me said "yeah, I could see that happening." Some people are so attached to the idea that something can be too good to true that they'll sabotage themselves just to ensure said good thing isn't true. I can't wait for the next and final season since they've already confirmed three seasons was it.

 

[Piscian]

Episode 7 already shows a drop in quality and I'm pretty sure I know what the big twist is going to be, which yeah, would be a bit trite. I don't know how I'm going to feel about this show afterward or a few years from now, maybe I'll have forgotten I've ever seen it, but those first 6 episodes were did a phenomenal job at pulling me in. And Episode 6 was just pain in the best way imaginable. The last time I felt that emotionally nauseous was during the Eclipse in Berserk.

Idk. For me Squid game was so good I'm sitting here thinking about watching it again. Episode 6 is definitely where the gut punch happens, however there's another one coming. For me the feeling of lowered quality in episode 7 is an affect of them having fleeced you of emotions at this point.

 

[Casual Shinji]

Idk. For me Squid game was so good I'm sitting here thinking about watching it again. Episode 6 is definitely where the gut punch happens, however there's another one coming. For me the feeling of lowered quality in episode 7 is an affect of them having fleeced you of emotions at this point.

Won't deny that it being in the wake of Episode 6 certainly contributes, but to be more precise it's the introduction of the VIPs. I think the acting of these characters is significantly bad, probably due them being english speaking actors being directed by non-english speakers. I mean, everyone else is phenomenal, but the rich people... Oof. Apart from the acting quality I also think that actually showing the power behind the operation takes something away from the threat. I don't feel that the VIPs add anything to the story other than the indifference and decadence of the wealthy, which we already assumed considering the set-up of the show. We don't even see any of the main player characters confront them, and see what's behind the curtain, so their inclusion just feels pointles to me.

I'm much, much less annoyed by the reveal at the end (eventhough I saw it coming) simply due to the acting and the scene being that well done. The guy who plays the old man has such a fantastically genuine atmosphere about him that he effortlessly sells every damn scene he's in.

Having finished the show I did really love it, and I am still thinking about it.

 

[BrawlMan]

Nice to see another Afro Samurai fan. There are more in the comments too.

​

 

[Hawki]

Castlevania: Season 4 (3/5)

This is easily the worst seasons of Castlevania. The only reason it isn't a 2/5 is that the animation and action manage to carry the piss-poor plot. If you're interested in excellently animated, if empty spectacle, have fun, but if you want a decent plot, don't bother. To explain why, I'm going to divide this post into various sections:

-Alucard's Story: With season 3, Alucard ended in a dark place, with the implication that he might be going down the same route as his father, with the impaled bodies of Taka and Sumi being visual metaphors. Season 4 ignores this entirely. There's a single offhand mention about the bodies outside Alucard's castle, but apart from that, he spends all of his time helping human refugees, becomes close with one of them, and becomes more relaxed around people. As an arc goes, this is fine. But it's tainted by completely abandoning the direction season 3 set up. That, or we missed something, which I suspect is the case, because season 4 feels like a season 5 in a lot of ways.

-Isaac's Story: Isaac is fine in this season, but his arc goes from:

1: I'm going to rebuild this village, to help build a better world, to show the world that we can be more than what we're meant to be.

2: I'm going to invade Carmilla's castle for...reasons.

3: I'm going to rebuild this castle, to help build a better world, to show the world that we can be more than what we're meant to be.

Like, the arc is there, but it's like they ran out of story for Isaac, but wanted to shove him into season 4 because...reasons? I'll grant that his battle with Carmilla is excellent in terms of visual spectacle, but in terms of plot? Not really. I don't think they've even interacted prior to this point, despite both being introduced in season 2.

-Hector's Story: So, at the end of season 3, Hector was borderline raped by Lenore, and made her slave. By season 4, they're in a mutual relationship of sorts. Um...what? Oh, and he wants to bring Dracula back, despite a realization of his being that Dracula betrayed him, but now he's making up for that, and he's willing to betray Carmilla and co., but wants to protect Lenore, because...I dunno, rape does that to a person?

Again, I can see them reaching the point depicted in this, but it feels like we're missing a season's worth of character development.

-Lenore's Story: Oh no, Isaac has me locked inside a castle, and my only escape from this hell is to walk out onto the balcony and let the sun burn me to cinders. Walking out when it's night and escaping, on the other hand, apparently never occurred to me.

I mean, the music is nice, but FFS, did Lenore lose her marbles?

-Saint Germain's Story: I'm evil now. I don't want to be evil, but I want my girlfriend back (who's never named - I honestly thought she might have been revealed as a figment of his imagination or Death in disguise or something). My descent from well meaning bumbler to sociopath will occur off-screen, in case you're wondering.

-Trevor and Sypha's Story: We'll visit Targoviste, find it ruins, and leave it in ruins after Zanfir's revealed to be crazy. We won't go back to Targoviste. They're screwed I guess. Also, Trevor gets to live at the end, despite fighting Death. Speaking of which...

-Death's Story: Hello, I'm Death. I'm the big bad of this entire series, and have always been here, despite never being seen or even mentioned until this very season. I can clearly interact with people in the real world and kill people, but I want to do this convoluted scheme to kill even more people. Also, I fight Trevor as the grand finale to the entire series, despite the fact that we've never interracted with each other up to this point. Yes, the animation of said fight is excellent, but there's no emotional stakes at all.

Oh, and I was "put here on this Earth," so does Trevor killing me mean anything? Or is it because we've used up all our villains at this point? Christ, at least I'm voiced by Malcolm McDowell.

So, yeah. I'm being snide, but it's astonishing to me just how poor the writing is. I don't know if the developers ran out of time, or ran out of story, but nothing in season 4 feels congruent with what's happened up to this point, and it doesn't even flesh out its own plot points sufficiently. I know there's been analysis of this series on the thematic level, but I just don't see it. You can say that Trevor killing Death is symbolic all you want, but to me, it's just an empty, brainless fight that occurs because the series needed to end in a bang. Alucard killing Dracula, for instance, was less over the top, but had more emotion in its one scene than anything in season 4 combined.

Bleh.

Oh, and if you're wondering, I'd rank the seasons as 1>3>2>4.

 

[Gordon_4]

Peter Gunn on Amazon Prime

By all accounts one of the popular in the day but faded to memory television shows of days gone by if not for one thing: its theme music, written and performed by the legendary Henry Mancini (The Pink Panther) and his Orchestra, and probably better known as the incidental music used in The Blues Brothers. But just as Pink Panther is the defacto theme of gentlemen thieves, Peter Gunn is the soundtrack any self respecting period PI should hear in their head.

Long story short, Craig Stevens plays Peter Gunn: gumshoe for hire with a weakness for jazz and dames. Its a cheesy, half hour resolution plot show that usually opens with a murder or grievous assault and ends with Gunn and/or his friend on the force, L.T. Jacoby, tying the whole thing up neatly. Its never complex or nuanced but it is consistent with its cast and locations. So if you like period noir detective stuff, its on Amazon Prime just be aware all attitudes are period appropriate. Although that being said I'm not sure exactly when its supposed to take place. It was made in 1958, but the setting feels more like the 20s or 30s. Mind you it doesn't specify WHERE in America it takes place either so maybe it was one of those things meant to have a certain timelessness to it.

 

[PsychedelicDiamond]

Wild Palms

5 episode miniseries from the early 90s. It's a surreal conspiracy thriller set in the then near future of 2008, following patent attorney and family man Harry Wyckoff, played by Jim Belushi, as the search for a former lover's missing child gets him caught up in a battle between two secret societies and a charismatic cult leaders, media tycoons and politicians plot for power and immortality. He's also haunted by a recurring dream about a rhinoceros, mainly because it makes for a striking visual, I assume.

Wild Palms, years before Lindelof and Abrams would coin the term with Lost, is the definition of a mystery box series. It sets up a whole lot of strange visuals and loose ends in the pilot, most of which turn out to be not all that exciting once it actually follows them up. It certainly has stylish presentation, in its hazy, sun drenched, vaguely psychedelic depiction of near future California, but all the pynchonian paranoia eventually gives way to a scatterbrained cyberpunk yarn about virtual realities, transhumanism, media manipulation and all those other old chestnuts. It's a whole lot of style, but not much substance, the direction tries to turn a cheesy 90's Sci-Fi story into an arthouse production, but all the lynchian dream sequences, vague dialogue and tryhard wordplay (You wouldn't believe how much mileage the series gets out of the word "go") can't conjure up narrative substance that isn't there.

The performances are fun, at least as long as we don't talk about the child actors, Wild Palms gets together a whole bunch of hammy character actors and lets them go to town on what is, at times, downright comically operatic dialogue. Robert Loggia is having the time of his life playing L. Ron Hubbard expy Tony Kreutzer and almost single handedly makes the show worth seeing.

Wild Palms is, in its way, a fun show, it's just not exactly a good one. Worth seeing for its over the top visuals and performances, complimented by an ethereal score and operatic dialogue. It's just the plot that presents a continous descent from evocatively weird, to stupid. By the end it's obsession with plot twists and tying every single character to its network of conspiracies borders self parody. In the end, Wild Palms is an amusing oddity from the early 90s, not the sort of thing that would ever have, or deserve, the cult status of something like Twin Peaks, but at 5 episodes it makes for an entertaining watch and has the decency to end, once the plot threatens to collapse under its own stupidity.

Boy, isn't that a glowing endorsement?

 

[BrawlMan]

-Hector's Story: So, at the end of season 3, Hector was borderline raped by Lenore, and made her slave. By season 4, they're in a mutual relationship of sorts. Um...what? Oh, and he wants to bring Dracula back, despite a realization of his being that Dracula betrayed him, but now he's making up for that, and he's willing to betray Carmilla and co., but wants to protect Lenore, because...I dunno, rape does that to a person?

By this point Hector's a death seeker. He does not care what happens to himself. It's why he offers no resistance when Issac makes it to him. Yet Issac spares Hector's life. I found it heartwarming. As for Lenore, they've grown to respect one another, and Hector developed genuine feelings for her. Some of the that might be Stockholm syndrome, but she was practically the only vampire that treated Hector close to an actual person.

-Lenore's Story: Oh no, Isaac has me locked inside a castle, and my only escape from this hell is to walk out onto the balcony and let the sun burn me to cinders. Walking out when it's night and escaping, on the other hand, apparently never occurred to me.

It's hypocrisy on her part. Lenore, up to that point, was used to getting whatever she wants. She'll happily in-prison others, but the moment karma catches up to her, she can't deal with it and rather die free. True, she could have escaped, but where the fuck Lenore was going to go? Carmilla died, the other two vampire ladies went awall and left them, assumingly, for dead. Yes, she could possibly survive, but either option would be hell to her and a fate worse than death. While she could take on any common human with little or no fighting skills, the risk of fighting a skilled vampire hunter or warrior is too great. So either live in the gilded cage, she and her comrades once forced Hector in to, go out to the wild lands and risk dying at some point, or die free. She chose option C.

Oh, and if you're wondering, I'd rank the seasons as 1>3>2>4.

I am the opposite: 2>4>1>3.

 

[Hawki]

By this point Hector's a death seeker. He does not care what happens to himself. It's why he offers no resistance when Issac makes it to him. Yet Issac spares Hector's life. I found it heartwarming. As for Lenore, they've grown to respect one another, and Hector developed genuine feelings for her. Some of the that might be Stockholm syndrome, but she was practically the only vampire that treated Hector close to an actual person.

If Hector's a death seeker and doesn't care what happens to him, why set up an escape route in Carmilla's castle? You can point to him subitting to Isaac about him not caring anymore, but clearly he does care about his own life to an extent.

As for Lenore and Isaac, I can buy that somehow, they could develop mutual feelings for each other, but it's development that must have occurred between seasons, ergo, violating the show, don't tell rule. At the end of season 3, Lenore's borderline raped Hector, and her 'feelings' for him seem akin to a pet at best, and a sex toy at worst. She hasn't really treated him any better than Carmilla did in the long run, since any acts of kindness she showed were to enslave him. Carmilla's at least honest in her darker side. Come season 4, however, they're casually flirting.

It's hypocrisy on her part. Lenore, up to that point, was used to getting whatever she wants. She'll happily in-prison others, but the moment karma catches up to her, she can't deal with it and rather die free. True, she could have escaped, but where the fuck Lenore was going to go? Carmilla died, the other two vampire ladies went awall and left them, assumingly, for dead. Yes, she could possibly survive, but either option would be hell to her and a fate worse than death. While she could take on any common human with little or no fighting skills, the risk of fighting a skilled vampire hunter or warrior is too great. So either live in the gilded cage, she and her comrades once forced Hector in to, go out to the wild lands and risk dying at some point, or die free. She chose option C.

I think that's underestimating Lenore though. Even if she's the weakest physically of the Styrian council, she can still turn into a flock of bats, and can still easily overpower Hector in season 3 when he tries to get the jump on her. Unless she comes up against a trained warrior, she's easily going to have the advantage.

And to be frank, I get what Lenore's death is meant to symbolize from a Doylist standpoint - her comitting suicide is symbolic of the end of one era and the start of another, and vampires' (apparent) inability to change. But it goes on far too long, and doesn't really work from an in-universe standpoint, since apparently, all Lenore has to do is wait for night, walk onto the balcony, turn into a flock of bats, and escape. Heck, she can even find Striga and Morana if she wants.

 

[BrawlMan]

Hector's a death seeker and doesn't care what happens to him, why set up an escape route in Carmilla's castle? You can point to him subitting to Isaac about him not caring anymore, but clearly he does care about his own life to an extent.

As long as he dies by either Dracula or Isaac's hands, he doesn't care. The escape room was nothing more than a backup option, just in case his plans failed.

As for Lenore and Isaac, I can buy that somehow, they could develop mutual feelings for each other, but it's development that must have occurred between seasons, ergo, violating the show, don't tell rule. At the end of season 3, Lenore's borderline raped Hector, and her 'feelings' for him seem akin to a pet at best, and a sex toy at worst. She hasn't really treated him any better than Carmilla did in the long run, since any acts of kindness she showed were to enslave him. Carmilla's at least honest in her darker side. Come season 4, however, they're casually flirting.

Even if it's not much, a bond is still a bond. I don't agree with that at all of course, whatever happened off screen, he certainly got treated better by Lenore than the rest. Even if Carmilla is being more honest about her darker side. Like I said, I'm not making excuses for Lenore, but it's pretty obvious she and Hector formed some connection. And like I said before, there is some Stockholm syndrome at play here.

think that's underestimating Lenore though. Even if she's the weakest physically of the Styrian council, she can still turn into a flock of bats, and can still easily overpower Hector in season 3 when he tries to get the jump on her. Unless she comes up against a trained warrior, she's easily going to have the advantage

I'm not underestimating her. While she is powerful, and is stronger than the average man or woman, up against a competent and skilled warrior, she wouldn't last long. She could probably put up a good fight, no doubt about it, but put her up against Alucard, Trevor, Sypha, or any seasonsed warrior, and it's obvious that she's not going to make it. Isaac could kill her without much trouble. Yes, he had his minions and all that against Carmilla, but he had to wear her down because she was so powerful in the first place. The other two vampire ladies left, cuz they felt it wasn't worth it, if that don't tell you something, I don't know what will.

And to be frank, I get what Lenore's death is meant to symbolize from a Doylist standpoint - her comitting suicide is symbolic of the end of one era and the start of another, and vampires' (apparent) inability to change. But it goes on far too long, and doesn't really work from an in-universe standpoint, since apparently, all Lenore has to do is wait for night, walk onto the balcony, turn into a flock of bats, and escape. Heck, she can even find Striga and Morana if she wants.

I'm sure she is more than aware. That's pretty obvious she felt some guilt and remorse by the last couple of episodes. Yes, she could have chose to find them, but decided not to either out of pride or guilt. Plus, they left her for dead anyway, so I don't think they're reunion will be exactly heartwarming. Look, if your bothered by all this, fine I guess, but a lot of the details didn't bother me.

 

[gorfias]

Ted Lasso: Season 2: Amazing / Great

I can't recommend this show enough. It's so good if improbable. Imagine a world of flawed people, then imagine one person comes in with the exact thing each specific person needs to hear to feel and do better. There's a bit of a twist in the final episode I didn't see coming, but after the reveal, the cynic in me said "yeah, I could see that happening." Some people are so attached to the idea that something can be too good to true that they'll sabotage themselves just to ensure said good thing isn't true. I can't wait for the next and final season since they've already confirmed three seasons was it.

Just finished Season 1 on Apple TV. There's a reason this thing is winning Emmy awards. It really is that good.

Ted Lasso

Ted Lasso: awards, nominations, photos and more at Emmys.com.

www.emmys.com

 

[Xprimentyl]

Just finished Season 1 on Apple TV. There's a reason this thing is winning Emmy awards. It really is that good.

Ted Lasso

Ted Lasso: awards, nominations, photos and more at Emmys.com.

www.emmys.com

I know, right? Generally, when things are this rabidly popular, I'm skeptical because "popular," to me, usually means bland and condescending. But for some reason I was drawn to this one, both out of curiosity surrounding its universal praise and my liking of Jason Sudeikis' work. Glad I didn't let the cynic in me win out on this one.

 

[Dalisclock]

Almost done with Community(Currently Watching Season 6).

While it's been a fun ride and often surreal one, it feels like the show peaked seasons ago(for me, arguably at the end of Season 3). Season 4-6 feels like they really started running low on ideas at times and while there's still some good stuff, half the cast eventually leaving to be replaced by other cast members makes it really feel like the show has overstayed it's welcome. Even though I like Chang as a character(or maybe I just like watching him be crazy), there's no real reason for him to still be around anymore at this point and he's not nearly as interesting as he used to be. Especially considering at one point he was dressing like Napoleon and ran the school like a 3rd world dictatorship, despite this literally being a community college that supringsly hasn't burned down out of sheer neglect.

 

[McElroy]

Squid Game
A Korean Netflix show that I can't help but compare to Alice in Borderland. Instead of the elaborate enigmas of AiB, Squid Game is pretty simple. Also the main characters contrast each other, as Arisu was pretty intelligent while here we have poor Gi-hun who is rather simple-minded. In fact, the viewer is probably smarter than he is. But in Squid Game you don't have to be the smartest or strongest to prevail. Just like in the "real" survival game of Survivor, you've got to be a team player first before going solo.

It's superbly put together, and even if the logistics don't make full sense it's a fun ride on that part as well. I also like that at least the Finnish subtitle translations trying to be (I'm guessing) true to the Korean speech.

 

[gorfias]

Netflix, Attack of the Hollywood Cliches! Fun enough. B. Worth watching just for the explanation of the Wilhelm Scream.

 

[Hawki]

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (2021): Season 1 (3/5)

So to be clear, this is the 2021 animated He-Man series, not Masters of the Universe: Revelation (which I'm also watching, and giving a 'proper watch' at that.

So, yeah. I barely had any experience to He-Man in any form, so I'm sure this diverges from the source material a lot, but I can't really comment on that much. But this is...fine, I guess? Animated show for kids, with good guys, and bad guys, and yadda yadda yadda. Kind of has a Star Wars-esque feel to it, though looking at Teela, I could swear she looks like a character from League of Legends. Is it just me?

What's weird is that I'd say the show is actually better before the titular masters get their powers, which takes close to about half of the season to occur. That, and Skeletor's more intimidating as a villain before actually becoming Skeletor, after which he's a ham sandwich with bone. That kind of describes the season as a whole, really - semi-serious first half followed by over the top second half. Honestly, I'm surprised this cartoon didn't set off the fanboys the way Revelation did, but I dunno, maybe their outrage was spent, and this went under the radar.

Anyway, meh. All I really have to say.

 

[Xprimentyl]

Squid Game: WTF / Great

Probably not news to most of you, but I'd only recently heard quite a bit of buzz and decided to bite. It's a Korean Drama/Thriller series about hundreds of people in substantial debt who, with no where else to turn, accept an ominous invitation from a stranger to play games for a cash prize. The twist? Losing a game means losing your life.

It's dark. Very unsettling. It's mostly colorful, and the games they play are common playground games, but the fact of death awaiting the losers each round just makes for an uncomfortable watch at times. I don't want to ruin too much more other than to say suspense is built each episode masterfully. The leaps in logic many of the contestants make in justifying their being there despite the intensely brutal and cruel nature of their situation are at times hard to refute; there were many times I found myself saying "if I can get past the fact I wouldn't be in that situation to begin with... I can't argue why some choose to do what they've done."

I recommend it.

 

[Hawki]

Cobra Kai: Season 1 (4/5)

So, I remember this being a big "thing" when it debuted, and I've only just got round to it. For reference, my experience with the Karate Kid movies is mostly confined to the original (saw it ages ago, it was okay, didn't stick in my memory much) and The New Karate Kid (garbage). So effectively, I kind of went into this blind. Overall, I'd say it's a good show, but I can't call it a great show.

THE GOOD

-Writing is pretty solid, mostly (I'll get to that in a bit), Laughed quite a bit, I love how it took the micky out of political correctness, and the characters range from likable, to likably dislikable (as in, dipshits that get what's coming to them).

-This is arguably a minor point, but the fight choreography is really good, especially since these are teenage actors. The tournament at the end for instance is great from an action standpoint.

-This is a 'kind of' point, but the show has a good 'feel' to it. As in, I think it does a good job of capturing the teenage experience, and what I assume is something true to California. I can't comment too much, but visited San Francisco once, so when I see stuff like the streets, and the style of clothing, and teenage mannerisms, it does seem true to real life.

However...

THE IFFY

-The writing relies far too much on misunderstandings to drive the plot forward. As in, wrong people in the wrong place, at the wrong time, interpreting things the wrong way. I get it, conflict is the essence of drama, but these characters seem to have the worst luck in the world at times.

-Minor point, but I'm supposed to believe that Miguel and Robby are able to make it to the finals after training in karate for less than a year each (in Robby's case, a month or so at best by my estimate), beating karate kids (heh) that have trained in dojos for years? Um, okay...Sure, you could point to the original as being guilty of this as well (Daniel trains for months, while Johnny's trained for years), but this is doubling the contrivance, so to speak.

-There's something weirdly antiquated about seeing teenagers get into karate so much, so quickly, so willingly. Maybe this is just me, I don't fully know what "kids these days" are into, but while I certainly had a 'ninja phase' as a kid, the kids of the 2010s/2020s have grown up in a world of Internet-access, and a hundred other distractions. This isn't just a plot point thing, it's the whole sense that the entire show is set in an 80s/90s mindset, not just Johnny himself. I mean, the show even acknowledges that attendance at the tournament has been steadily going down over the decades, but suddenly, everyone's into Karate now?

I dunno, guess smart-phones recording school fights is good for business.

So, yeah. Good. But not great.

 

[Hawki]

Masters of the Universe: Revelation - Part 1 (3/5)

I know that this show has been pounded to death by SQWs in regards to Teela and shafting He-Man. I'm going to say that they're mostly wrong on that, but on the other, this show does have a lot of problems, it's just not the kind of problems that grifters have been focusing on.

First thing to note is that I practically have no experience to the 80s cartoon - it was before my time, and I've probably seen more of it via memes than actual episode clips. I say this because while you could probably dive into this show and get some enjoyment from it, the way it's written, I can tell that it kind of expects the audience to be familiar with the setting and its characters. For instance, certain characters die, and are given a kind of gravitas that makes little sense in the context of a handful of episodes, but if I'm treating this as the conclusion to a long-running saga, then I can kind of understand that gravitas. However, taking this as its own thing, five episodes simply isn't enough time to flesh out this setting, or its characters, and towards the end, I was just short of asking "wait, who?" or "um, is this meant to mean something?" This isn't a bad or good thing in of itself, but it's a noticable thing regardless.

So, treating this show on its own terms, there's a problem right there. However, even if I consider what's entirely in the show by itself, regardless of any other context, there's still issues. For instance, lack of worldbuilding. Okay, fine. I'll accept that I need to be familiar with the cartoon. What's harder to overlook is that this show kind of has an identity crisis, because it doesn't seem sure what tone it wants to go for at times. Initially, I can see what it's going for, maybe. First episode is action-cheese, but after Adam and Skeletor 'die,' and magic is gone from the world, things get a lot grimmer. Not "dark and gritty," but there's the sense that "this is the real world/this is how the world really is, we're no longer playing with toys, this is the world we have to live in now." This is accompanied by flashbacks to the timeframe of the original series, where the action is much less violent, the writing's much cheesier, and the good guys easily win each time.

Both in-universe and out-of-universe, this is a nice idea. However, it doesn't really commit to this contrast, and the flashbacks stop, and what we're left with is cheesy moments seeping into the show itself. I've seen comments that the show wants to embrace its heritage, yet is also embarassed by it. I think these comments are kind of on the money, but if I was adding my two cents, it's more that the show can't really commit to a formula. Oh, it starts with a formula, but doesn't finish with it.

Final point, I'm going to deal with Teela, since everyone has an opinion on her. Now, the fact is, Kevin Smith did do a bait and switch - regardless as to how you feel about the writing in of itself, it's documented that he lied about what would be in the show and what its focus would be on, so if nothing else, I can understand people being pissed about that. However, as a character...I'm sorry, I think the whole "feminism ruined this show" is way out of proportion here. Teela doesn't really do anything that eclipses the characters around her, and it's clear that she and everyone else are living in the shadow of He-Man. Per what I said above, the old world was 'better,' but with him gone, everyone else has to 'grow up,' and deal with a harsher world, so even if He-Man isn't the protagonist, the show's still treating him with reverance. And that includes Teela herself, with her snarky personality being a veil for emotional wounds. This isn't even a matter of interpretation, this is borderline outright stated. So while there's individual moments of poor writing for her, there's plenty of story issues, period. So, yeah. Mountain out of a molehill.

Overall, meh. I'm probably the wrong audience for this, but while I'll give props to the animation and action scenes, story and character is stymied by a short running time. Plus, in my case, a lack of familiarity with the source material.