Discuss and Rate the Last Thing You Watched (non-movies)
- Thread starter Hawki
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Midnight Texas season 2
(own copy)
Rating: 7 / 10
Tagline to get you to read more: "Liberal women who won't embrace tradition are all evil" - probably one of the writers on this show
Premise:
So the non spoiler version of this is for those who missed me talking about Season 1, Midnight Texas is a place where supernatural beings are drawn and the barrier between realms is supposedly weakest. It's also home to a number of supernatural's or people with supernatural abilities.
Following on from the events of Season 1 and the finale people are dealing with the fallout from that and how it's affected them, their relationships and people round them.
Add into this mix Patience and her Husband Kia and their spiritual healing business and new wellness retreat but as this is Midnight Texas could it be he is the real deal and just why would he want to come to a tiny out of the way town such as Midnight?
Also joining the residents of Midnight is Walker Texasranger demon hunter
Thoughts:
So non spoiler first and well they've improved the sets so it no longer obviously looks like a studio set every shot.
It's nice to see the actors and actresses in some cases get to show their range and bit more.
Plot wise it's got the same kind of structure as before with more episodic stories but with a few more overarching plotlines this time.
In terms of the arcs it has another case of the issue season 1 had where a storyline was hinted and and built at only to then be quickly resolved in 1 episode and feels fairly unsatisfying as it just seemed like they wanted to get to the end of the story and then drop it and end it.
Time for mild Spoilers
Social Commentary or wow did they really destroy any illusion of wokeness
well I talked about it for season 1 and had points either way but this time it's kind of hilarious how much it does about basically destroying any perception the show is woke.
I've got to go full spoilers now but the tag line at the start might give you an idea where this is going.
(own copy)
Rating: 7 / 10
Tagline to get you to read more: "Liberal women who won't embrace tradition are all evil" - probably one of the writers on this show
Premise:
So the non spoiler version of this is for those who missed me talking about Season 1, Midnight Texas is a place where supernatural beings are drawn and the barrier between realms is supposedly weakest. It's also home to a number of supernatural's or people with supernatural abilities.
Following on from the events of Season 1 and the finale people are dealing with the fallout from that and how it's affected them, their relationships and people round them.
Add into this mix Patience and her Husband Kia and their spiritual healing business and new wellness retreat but as this is Midnight Texas could it be he is the real deal and just why would he want to come to a tiny out of the way town such as Midnight?
Also joining the residents of Midnight is Walker Texas
Thoughts:
So non spoiler first and well they've improved the sets so it no longer obviously looks like a studio set every shot.
It's nice to see the actors and actresses in some cases get to show their range and bit more.
Plot wise it's got the same kind of structure as before with more episodic stories but with a few more overarching plotlines this time.
In terms of the arcs it has another case of the issue season 1 had where a storyline was hinted and and built at only to then be quickly resolved in 1 episode and feels fairly unsatisfying as it just seemed like they wanted to get to the end of the story and then drop it and end it.
Time for mild Spoilers
So Manny and Creek break up then seem to be getting back only for them to kill her off and just really? Really? I get sometimes relationships don't work but after Season 1 and her brother turning out to be a serial killer and her dad hiding them from her and the demon invasion and all the other stuff, it's amazing how out of character it feels for her to suddenly be almost a scared timid whimpering girl running away.
Oliva having been saved by Lem having her drink some of his Vampire blood (as he's not drunk hers ever it won't turn her) it gives Lem a psychic connection to her meaning that Lem can now feel everything she does and is determined to be the perfect husband. But is being able to act on her every desire or feeling what Olivia really wants? I personally quite enjoyed this up until a certain point when
Fiji and Bobo are enjoying their new relationship after they helped save the world last season by Bobo taking her virginity (no really this was a plot point) only now Bobo seems to be having some Final Destination level near misses and Fiji suspects it's more than just a bit of bad luck but how far will she go?
Joe being a fallen angel and his husband Chuy a half demon haven't had that much issue in their relationship but could the arrival of Walker Texasranger demon hunter bring complications especially as Joe starts to revert back to his older ways as a demon hunting angel?
Oliva having been saved by Lem having her drink some of his Vampire blood (as he's not drunk hers ever it won't turn her) it gives Lem a psychic connection to her meaning that Lem can now feel everything she does and is determined to be the perfect husband. But is being able to act on her every desire or feeling what Olivia really wants? I personally quite enjoyed this up until a certain point when
Fiji and Bobo are enjoying their new relationship after they helped save the world last season by Bobo taking her virginity (no really this was a plot point) only now Bobo seems to be having some Final Destination level near misses and Fiji suspects it's more than just a bit of bad luck but how far will she go?
Joe being a fallen angel and his husband Chuy a half demon haven't had that much issue in their relationship but could the arrival of Walker Texas
OK I liked this season a bit more and even though I feel I should have seen where the plot goes coming a million miles away I didn't which is either a credit to the shows writing or a discredit to it in me not expecting that kind of well executed red herring to be set up.
I quite enjoyed getting to see the evil Fiji
I wasn't that happy with the conclusion to the whole Olivia's father storyline as we're supposed to believe after years trying to track her down he just gives up trying to make amends after his spell fell apart. Hell this could have been a good chance to end the shows long running habit of no-one being allowed to have any redemption unless they are part of the core cast
I do like how they tied the storylines of Kai and Patience into the story of Fiji and Bobo
I quite enjoyed getting to see the evil Fiji
I wasn't that happy with the conclusion to the whole Olivia's father storyline as we're supposed to believe after years trying to track her down he just gives up trying to make amends after his spell fell apart. Hell this could have been a good chance to end the shows long running habit of no-one being allowed to have any redemption unless they are part of the core cast
I do like how they tied the storylines of Kai and Patience into the story of Fiji and Bobo
Social Commentary or wow did they really destroy any illusion of wokeness
well I talked about it for season 1 and had points either way but this time it's kind of hilarious how much it does about basically destroying any perception the show is woke.
I've got to go full spoilers now but the tag line at the start might give you an idea where this is going.
So the gay relationship falls apart in the end because Joe gets horny and Walker Texas ranger demon hunter is gay so playing into the stereotype of promiscuous gay characters who can't help being horny. Even if the character who the bring in as being gay is kind of a slightly less macho version of the Chuck Norris character Walker Texas Ranger.
The show reveals Rev isn't actually a reverend and has him leave Midnight with Len sort of taking over as the towns preacher.
Oh and we have the fact every female character who in any way represents any kind of liberal leaning ideas be it spirituality new age stuff or wiccan or just not being submissive ending up going evil or ending up dead, except Olivia who gets somewhat broody and start having motherly impulses and wanting to have a baby part way through the series. Fiji trying to become more powerful to save Bobo ends up turning her evil too. A female stripper in one episode who wishes to escape her abusive boss and get revenge from being denied a different job ends up regretting it as her friends end up dead and she goes somewhat evil.
Also for a show where the first season has a literal demon be the main villain it's funny how little it seems to want to mention the idea of the Devil or Satanism (though using some of it's symbolism in the final 2 episodes) but at no point suggesting maybe God screwed some stuff up or let the devil do anything not it's just the dark powers suddenly emerged into the world because of incest initiated by a woman kissing her brother having developed feelings for him.
The show reveals Rev isn't actually a reverend and has him leave Midnight with Len sort of taking over as the towns preacher.
Oh and we have the fact every female character who in any way represents any kind of liberal leaning ideas be it spirituality new age stuff or wiccan or just not being submissive ending up going evil or ending up dead, except Olivia who gets somewhat broody and start having motherly impulses and wanting to have a baby part way through the series. Fiji trying to become more powerful to save Bobo ends up turning her evil too. A female stripper in one episode who wishes to escape her abusive boss and get revenge from being denied a different job ends up regretting it as her friends end up dead and she goes somewhat evil.
Also for a show where the first season has a literal demon be the main villain it's funny how little it seems to want to mention the idea of the Devil or Satanism (though using some of it's symbolism in the final 2 episodes) but at no point suggesting maybe God screwed some stuff up or let the devil do anything not it's just the dark powers suddenly emerged into the world because of incest initiated by a woman kissing her brother having developed feelings for him.
Rings of Power, Season 2, Episode 1
The season opens with a protracted flashback that shows how Halbrand found himself adrift at sea two years ago in episode two of season one, if anybody was still dying to know. This opening becomes symbolic of the show: long circular walks ending where it all began.
Elrond is suspicious of the three Elven rings having been corrupted by Sauron (even though they were specifically fraught against that purpose, in literary canon as in the show's canon) so he steals away with them and entrusts them to Círdan to have them destroyed - only for Círdan to have a change of heart, and deliver them back to Lindon, where he shares them with Galadriel and Gil-Galad. So all that was for naught.
Nori the Not Quite a Hobbit and Gandalf (?) spend the whole episode lost and confused until they run into Poppy the Not Quite a Hobbit, who's decided to follow them and shows them the correct way. Not only does the show waste a whole episode on people literally walking in circles, it also undoes the poignancy of goodbye from the finale. Why not just have Poppy join them from the outset?
Lastly, Halbrand turns himself to Adar (the one recast this season, replacing one of the few actors who genuinely looked the part), only for Adar to release him on a mission to ingratiate himself with Celebrimbor... which he already did the previous season... until he decided to run away to Adar... so he could go back? Ugh.
The season opens with a protracted flashback that shows how Halbrand found himself adrift at sea two years ago in episode two of season one, if anybody was still dying to know. This opening becomes symbolic of the show: long circular walks ending where it all began.
Elrond is suspicious of the three Elven rings having been corrupted by Sauron (even though they were specifically fraught against that purpose, in literary canon as in the show's canon) so he steals away with them and entrusts them to Círdan to have them destroyed - only for Círdan to have a change of heart, and deliver them back to Lindon, where he shares them with Galadriel and Gil-Galad. So all that was for naught.
Nori the Not Quite a Hobbit and Gandalf (?) spend the whole episode lost and confused until they run into Poppy the Not Quite a Hobbit, who's decided to follow them and shows them the correct way. Not only does the show waste a whole episode on people literally walking in circles, it also undoes the poignancy of goodbye from the finale. Why not just have Poppy join them from the outset?
Lastly, Halbrand turns himself to Adar (the one recast this season, replacing one of the few actors who genuinely looked the part), only for Adar to release him on a mission to ingratiate himself with Celebrimbor... which he already did the previous season... until he decided to run away to Adar... so he could go back? Ugh.
Rings of Power, Season 2, Episode 2
Actually not nearly as exasperating as the previous episode, though again the plot is construed to waste my time and delay the inevitable: Halbrand spends the whole episode waiting outside Celebrimbor's window in the rain, stopping short from pulling out a boombox and holding it aloft; Elrond spends the whole episode saying he won't join Galadriel until he does; Gandalf (?) is afraid to perform magic until he isn't, and Durin and Durin's dad stay mad at each other until they're not.
I think I tolerated it a bit more because I kind of like Durin and his wife and Durin's dad, and their side of the story feels a bit more human and lived-in than the others, who don't seem to have a life outside of reacting to the things that happen around them. And I perked up seeing Ciara Hinds as... Saruman (?). Whoever that is the set and extras look freaky and bizarre like something you might find in Dune. Here comes more Mystery Box bullshit, probably, but the show caught my attention for a moment.
Actually not nearly as exasperating as the previous episode, though again the plot is construed to waste my time and delay the inevitable: Halbrand spends the whole episode waiting outside Celebrimbor's window in the rain, stopping short from pulling out a boombox and holding it aloft; Elrond spends the whole episode saying he won't join Galadriel until he does; Gandalf (?) is afraid to perform magic until he isn't, and Durin and Durin's dad stay mad at each other until they're not.
I think I tolerated it a bit more because I kind of like Durin and his wife and Durin's dad, and their side of the story feels a bit more human and lived-in than the others, who don't seem to have a life outside of reacting to the things that happen around them. And I perked up seeing Ciara Hinds as... Saruman (?). Whoever that is the set and extras look freaky and bizarre like something you might find in Dune. Here comes more Mystery Box bullshit, probably, but the show caught my attention for a moment.
Rings of Power, Season 2, Episode 3
Back to the two most boring ass storylines in the show: whatever's going on in Numenor and whatever's going on with that group of people that were being led by crew cut elf and the lady in the Lululemon outfit. Comically, we find out the lady in the Lululemon outfit died on the way back to her home planet between seasons, and you cannot tell me this had anything to do with the actress supposedly choosing not to come back because the show had no problem recasting other characters. So she was probably axed either due to backlash or simply for not knowing what to do with her. We're left with her annoying kid, the crew cut elf ("You're not my real father!") and Isildur, who in all of three and a half hours so far gets the only half-decent action scene when he fights a bunch of spiders.
Back to Numenor: some prequel-era throne room tosh involving the recently deceased king, the queen regent, the conniving vizier, his son, his rival, the cook, the thief, his wife and her lover. A palantir is dramatically produced, which reminded me of the old adage: "On film, it looks like a palantir; on TV, it's a bowling ball". An eagle shows up and picks the vizier over the queen regent, the crowd goes wild. I haven't been this excited by election-by-animal since that zombie deer magically puppeted to bow before Johnny Depp in Fantastic Beasts 3: Tokyo Drift.
Oh there's an orc lady with her orc baby, waiting in their orc home for orc dad to finish his work shift at the orc brewery.
Back to the two most boring ass storylines in the show: whatever's going on in Numenor and whatever's going on with that group of people that were being led by crew cut elf and the lady in the Lululemon outfit. Comically, we find out the lady in the Lululemon outfit died on the way back to her home planet between seasons, and you cannot tell me this had anything to do with the actress supposedly choosing not to come back because the show had no problem recasting other characters. So she was probably axed either due to backlash or simply for not knowing what to do with her. We're left with her annoying kid, the crew cut elf ("You're not my real father!") and Isildur, who in all of three and a half hours so far gets the only half-decent action scene when he fights a bunch of spiders.
Back to Numenor: some prequel-era throne room tosh involving the recently deceased king, the queen regent, the conniving vizier, his son, his rival, the cook, the thief, his wife and her lover. A palantir is dramatically produced, which reminded me of the old adage: "On film, it looks like a palantir; on TV, it's a bowling ball". An eagle shows up and picks the vizier over the queen regent, the crowd goes wild. I haven't been this excited by election-by-animal since that zombie deer magically puppeted to bow before Johnny Depp in Fantastic Beasts 3: Tokyo Drift.
Oh there's an orc lady with her orc baby, waiting in their orc home for orc dad to finish his work shift at the orc brewery.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds - Season 1 and 2 - 7/10
I never really got into Star Trek when I was younger and I've been trying to get into with the newer shows/movies but they mostly suck. I watched the 1st Season of Picard, it was really bad and really just a rip off of Mass Effect. I watched the 1st 2 episodes of Discovery and that was so bad I didn't continue on. I did like the 1st new Star Trek movie but the 2nd and 3rd movies in that series were pretty bad. I do really love Lower Decks but that's obviously a different show than what Star Trek usually is. I finally gave Strange New Worlds a try and it's pretty pretty pretty good.
I feel that Strange New Worlds is perfect for someone not into Star Trek that much as it's a prequel series to the original series (younger Spock, Uhura, etc are in the show) so you get to know the classic characters but also don't need any prior knowledge of the show. For example, a lot of the different races are also new to the characters in the show so you don't need to know their backstories and the audience can learn about them as the characters learn about them. The show feels like how I'd imagine the old Star Trek would feel, it's very episodic and it's essentially a new mystery every episode in essence. I have a feeling the show is a bit too neat and clean overall and the problems get solved a bit too nicely and there's not enough, I guess, "grittiness". I am surprised time to time with some of the themes presented that aren't that "PC" and the show is very much voicing that the PC option doesn't always work; episode 8 of season 2 "Under the Cloak of War" is a great example of that and also a great episode. I feel like Season 2 was a bit to romance heavy and I didn't care that it's ends on a cliffhanger.
I never really got into Star Trek when I was younger and I've been trying to get into with the newer shows/movies but they mostly suck. I watched the 1st Season of Picard, it was really bad and really just a rip off of Mass Effect. I watched the 1st 2 episodes of Discovery and that was so bad I didn't continue on. I did like the 1st new Star Trek movie but the 2nd and 3rd movies in that series were pretty bad. I do really love Lower Decks but that's obviously a different show than what Star Trek usually is. I finally gave Strange New Worlds a try and it's pretty pretty pretty good.
I feel that Strange New Worlds is perfect for someone not into Star Trek that much as it's a prequel series to the original series (younger Spock, Uhura, etc are in the show) so you get to know the classic characters but also don't need any prior knowledge of the show. For example, a lot of the different races are also new to the characters in the show so you don't need to know their backstories and the audience can learn about them as the characters learn about them. The show feels like how I'd imagine the old Star Trek would feel, it's very episodic and it's essentially a new mystery every episode in essence. I have a feeling the show is a bit too neat and clean overall and the problems get solved a bit too nicely and there's not enough, I guess, "grittiness". I am surprised time to time with some of the themes presented that aren't that "PC" and the show is very much voicing that the PC option doesn't always work; episode 8 of season 2 "Under the Cloak of War" is a great example of that and also a great episode. I feel like Season 2 was a bit to romance heavy and I didn't care that it's ends on a cliffhanger.
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Hoped for a bang but it ended with a fart and a whimper.
It's weird how the show implies that the "original timeline" is some kind of perfect utopia that was ruined by the introduction of the marigold when that actually doesn't make any sense. Even without the Umbrella Academy history would be exactly the same up until at least 1961 if not 1989.
It just feels like a weird cop-out like the writers went "fuck it everyone lives happily ever after and everything is perfect" and gave up.
How the hell do you guys watching House of the Dragon even follow what's going on? I keep seeing HOTD content on my feeds and everybody either looks the same or has stupidly (I guess purposefully?) similar names.
Finished a rewatch of Dexter.
The final season I’m still uncertain on, whether it was always meant to be like watching a train wreck in slow motion or if the writers just ran out of good ideas on where to go and what to do next. Guessing a combination of the two, as there are some bright spots that delve deeper into the relationships of main characters but the overarching plot is so frustrating. Even on second viewing my inner voice is screaming, “WTF are you doing, Dexter?”
But the funny part is, it kinda makes sense with gradually abandoning everything he was taught and dipping further and further into a “normal” human life. “You can’t have it both ways, Dex.”, says Harry more than once. Add to that it’s just kinda fucking tragic, even for a show deliberately bathed in a sunshiny overtone.
Went right into New Blood from there, which is much further a departure in setting than it is my recent memory, but it maybe it’ll reveal things I missed since the original show wasn’t fresh in mind back then either.
The final season I’m still uncertain on, whether it was always meant to be like watching a train wreck in slow motion or if the writers just ran out of good ideas on where to go and what to do next. Guessing a combination of the two, as there are some bright spots that delve deeper into the relationships of main characters but the overarching plot is so frustrating. Even on second viewing my inner voice is screaming, “WTF are you doing, Dexter?”
But the funny part is, it kinda makes sense with gradually abandoning everything he was taught and dipping further and further into a “normal” human life. “You can’t have it both ways, Dex.”, says Harry more than once. Add to that it’s just kinda fucking tragic, even for a show deliberately bathed in a sunshiny overtone.
Went right into New Blood from there, which is much further a departure in setting than it is my recent memory, but it maybe it’ll reveal things I missed since the original show wasn’t fresh in mind back then either.
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Agreed. So many plot holes. So many loose threads. And I hate when a hero show is about the existence of the heroes being the real problem (TV show "Heroes"). It really was super lazy with the writers just giving up. There are great analysis done regarding 5 acting out of character in S4E5. My problem is that for some reason, I really, greatly enjoyed S4E5.
There seems to be a consensus that S2 was a disappointment. I didn't hate it. I didn't care which is almost worse. I stopped watching, which is a thing I'm learning to do, even if something should be my jam (really started with Secret Invasion on Disney). I mean, it was a hoot watching fans tear Disney's "The Acolyte" a new hole. So much hilarity. If anyone is making fun of HOTD, I haven't watched it. I must write, even Season 1 was only OK. I got no idea where they go from here.
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A bit more about that -
George R.R. Martin Criticizes ‘House of the Dragon’ Storyline, Reveals Season 3 Ripple Effect
The 'Fire & Blood' author wrote blog to detail why one missing detail from 'House of the Dragon' Season 2 could have major effects on the coming season.
www.indiewire.com
Yeah, GoT was a rare thing; especially the first five seasons. Most shows shouldn’t go past five it seems.
I can appreciate a change between mediums to give a fresh take on something but mostly if most people can truly use a change. How many people are over-exposed to the writings this show is based upon? I'm not. Why are the show runners making the particular changes? Were they hoping to save a $ by not including Maelor?A bit more about that -
George R.R. Martin Criticizes ‘House of the Dragon’ Storyline, Reveals Season 3 Ripple Effect
The 'Fire & Blood' author wrote blog to detail why one missing detail from 'House of the Dragon' Season 2 could have major effects on the coming season.
Yeah, GoT was a rare thing; especially the first five seasons. Most shows shouldn’t go past five it seems.
I have not read Martin's version of this. I did audible of the 5 OG books. They too peaked at 3. So I just gotta find new entertainments.
Finished Band of Brothers. It's a 10/10, start to finish. Is The Pacific this good?
I want Major Dick Winters to run my life.
I want Major Dick Winters to run my life.
Rings of Power, Season 2, Episode 4
Tom Bombadil is here! Jolly old Tom, played by professional schlub Rory Kinnear. The casting for this show really was darts on a corkboard. If you ever read the books or got the talk from some insufferable fan, Tom Bombadil is characterized as a happy-go-lucky hippie of mysterious longevity and incomparable power who may or may not be a god, if not older than the gods, but isn't an asset to Gandalf et al because he doesn't know or care about anything happening outside his neck of the woods.
So of course the show presents the Opposite Day version of Tom: dull, present, deadly serious and deeply interested in the fate of Middle-earth, to the point of acting as a guide and quest-giver to Gandalf (?), bossing him around while lecturing him about the perils of Sauron. As an adaptation this is on par with making Clifford a small blue cat.
The two other storylines: Arondir and Isildur warm up to an ex follower of Adar (#NotAllSouthlanders) and save Theo after meeting two Ents that aren't quite believable as characters or special effects, and Galadriel and Elrond put together a team of uh teammates when the Fast Travel machine breaks down. Hate it when that happens. It was working fine for everyone else an episode ago. The Barrow Wights make their live action debut, kinda, and the team of teammates waves their swords at them for a bit.
Tom Bombadil is here! Jolly old Tom, played by professional schlub Rory Kinnear. The casting for this show really was darts on a corkboard. If you ever read the books or got the talk from some insufferable fan, Tom Bombadil is characterized as a happy-go-lucky hippie of mysterious longevity and incomparable power who may or may not be a god, if not older than the gods, but isn't an asset to Gandalf et al because he doesn't know or care about anything happening outside his neck of the woods.
So of course the show presents the Opposite Day version of Tom: dull, present, deadly serious and deeply interested in the fate of Middle-earth, to the point of acting as a guide and quest-giver to Gandalf (?), bossing him around while lecturing him about the perils of Sauron. As an adaptation this is on par with making Clifford a small blue cat.
The two other storylines: Arondir and Isildur warm up to an ex follower of Adar (#NotAllSouthlanders) and save Theo after meeting two Ents that aren't quite believable as characters or special effects, and Galadriel and Elrond put together a team of uh teammates when the Fast Travel machine breaks down. Hate it when that happens. It was working fine for everyone else an episode ago. The Barrow Wights make their live action debut, kinda, and the team of teammates waves their swords at them for a bit.
This is an intervention: You have to stop, man. You are hurting yourself and others with your actions. I know it is hard to stop cold turkey... but please watch something else as a substitute for a while, see how that feels.
I had to Google Tom Bombadil because I genuinely couldn't tell if you were doing a bit.
I don't do bits, Rings of Power does.
To play devil's advocate, people can change. Maybe in RoP's adaption, the events in the show will cause Bombadil to change his attitude.
That's the thing with adaptations where it's not direct but like a sequel or prequel or whatever- simply declaring "it's not like the source!" doesn't make sense. The whole point is to extend the story and you can't do that by just keeping the characters the same.
This is not to defend RoP, a show I quit after literally the first episode, but just the whole idea of "changing" characters. It's a pet peeve of mine I see in other things.
Anwyay...
That's the thing with adaptations where it's not direct but like a sequel or prequel or whatever- simply declaring "it's not like the source!" doesn't make sense. The whole point is to extend the story and you can't do that by just keeping the characters the same.
This is not to defend RoP, a show I quit after literally the first episode, but just the whole idea of "changing" characters. It's a pet peeve of mine I see in other things.
Anwyay...