Yeah, man Killing Eve really took a nose dive. They wouldn't stfu about the 12 and it ends up being such a massive let down. To make matters worse Eve and Ves relationship really turned to soggy milk. God I was just...bored.
Discuss and Rate the Last Thing You Watched (non-movies)
- Thread starter Hawki
- Start date
Eve proclaimed she was done with Ves at least like 1 or 2 times too many for any emotion/feelings to still be there. The show should've been like 2-3 seasons tops.
About a week ago I watched the first episode of Around the world in 80 days. Since I've read the original novel what interested me the most is how it stands up as an adaptation, regardless of overall quality otherwise. It was a long time since I read it though so I might be basing my views of a half-remembered memory more than anything else.
But the thing about the original novel is that there are plenty of things in it that could stand to be expanded or otherwise unexplored that you as a modern reader might raise your eyebrows at.
Case in point: Phileas Fogg. W are never privy to his inner thoughts in the novel and he is the quintessential "stuff upper lip" Briton where nothing ever fazes him. There was a sequence in the novel where they had to pass by a chasm via train and the bridge was incomplete so all the passengers went off while the train driver drove with full speed ahead over the bridge... and Phileas stayed onboard, not even noticing anything odd about the situation. The novel also starts with him firing his old manservant for bringing in his shaving water at one degree Celsius to hot temperature, so he is a man of order, unfazed. The only time he seemed to really get emotional was when it briefly appeared that he was broke, thereby throwing his entire world out of order.
I don't know if there are many characters today in modern fiction like that, but it appears they decided to actually get into his psychology a bit further. Specifically, in the original novel he more or less accepts the wager of traveling the globe in 80 days due to thinking it possible after an article says so, any underlying motivation is not brought up. In this adaptation they seem to hint on him having not lived a life of excitement and wanting to try new things. It starts with him receiving a postcard saying nothing but the word "coward", upsetting him, which I suspect is going to be explored in a "you've been afraid of actually *living* your life for far too long" fashion.
Once he hits the road he not only finds himself seasick on the boat to France, he also finds himself at the mercy of a mob trying to steal his possessions among people whose language(French) he does not understand. Which I suspect is how a character with a sheltered life would react to the situation he is in, and far that reason I suspect is a more honest portrayal than the original novel. So I am okay with this change.
Another change: his manservant Passepartout is black. Another change I have no problem with, after I gave it some thought. When racelifting in a historical setting you often find yourself running into the problem of not acknowledging how racist the past was so a character changing race sometimes bring with it a lot of baggage that ought to fundamentally change the story. Passepartout's role in the novel though is to be the more relatable viewpoint character not borne of wealth and being French. None of these points goes against what I know of the situation for black people in the 1800's.
Now that I write this down, I'm starting to suspect Passepartout sharing nationality with author Jules Verne was part of making him more relatable to the reader, and Phileas being British was the full stiff upper lip stereotype taken to its logical extreme.
The final central character they brought to the adaptation is one I groaned once I heard her name being mentioned: Abigail Nix. Detective Nix in the original novel was sent by Scotland Yard since the UK government thought Phileas was trying to escape justice after a bank robbery, the bet being a mere excuse. Abigail is however a journalist who intends to follow Phileas and document his travels, for the benefit of her readers, and to prove herself in a man dominated profession.
This is not taking an existing character and updating their role to make them more relatable to a modern audience, or to explore their psychology further, this is taking a whole new character and give them a name and nothing more from the original novel. Well almost, her role will be to be in Phileas footsteps, so that is a bit related.
Speaking of changes made for modern audiences: the original novel was written with the spirit of adventure, with the idea of going to exciting places and experiencing exciting things in mind. While there is nothing wrong with that when modern readers take a look at the world it was written in a fair criticism is that the society itself is underexplored. I bring this up because the first episode involves the gang heading into the first commune of Paris who are in the midst of staging an assassination. Which is hardly romantic or anything else I associate with the novel. Or even anything that was anywhere close to being brought up in the novel.
I am a bit okay with this, although it bears little resemblance to the entire outlook of the novel, because "We go to a place and have an adventure associated with that place" is still present. What I found more lacking is that all the things that happen after the assassination attempt occurs seems to be of the "and then this happened, and then that happened" school of plot rather than the "and this character was established as being this way, so logically this will happen" or "and this was an established fact in act 1, so now this ought to happen".
I probably will watch another episode or two.
But the thing about the original novel is that there are plenty of things in it that could stand to be expanded or otherwise unexplored that you as a modern reader might raise your eyebrows at.
Case in point: Phileas Fogg. W are never privy to his inner thoughts in the novel and he is the quintessential "stuff upper lip" Briton where nothing ever fazes him. There was a sequence in the novel where they had to pass by a chasm via train and the bridge was incomplete so all the passengers went off while the train driver drove with full speed ahead over the bridge... and Phileas stayed onboard, not even noticing anything odd about the situation. The novel also starts with him firing his old manservant for bringing in his shaving water at one degree Celsius to hot temperature, so he is a man of order, unfazed. The only time he seemed to really get emotional was when it briefly appeared that he was broke, thereby throwing his entire world out of order.
I don't know if there are many characters today in modern fiction like that, but it appears they decided to actually get into his psychology a bit further. Specifically, in the original novel he more or less accepts the wager of traveling the globe in 80 days due to thinking it possible after an article says so, any underlying motivation is not brought up. In this adaptation they seem to hint on him having not lived a life of excitement and wanting to try new things. It starts with him receiving a postcard saying nothing but the word "coward", upsetting him, which I suspect is going to be explored in a "you've been afraid of actually *living* your life for far too long" fashion.
Once he hits the road he not only finds himself seasick on the boat to France, he also finds himself at the mercy of a mob trying to steal his possessions among people whose language(French) he does not understand. Which I suspect is how a character with a sheltered life would react to the situation he is in, and far that reason I suspect is a more honest portrayal than the original novel. So I am okay with this change.
Another change: his manservant Passepartout is black. Another change I have no problem with, after I gave it some thought. When racelifting in a historical setting you often find yourself running into the problem of not acknowledging how racist the past was so a character changing race sometimes bring with it a lot of baggage that ought to fundamentally change the story. Passepartout's role in the novel though is to be the more relatable viewpoint character not borne of wealth and being French. None of these points goes against what I know of the situation for black people in the 1800's.
Now that I write this down, I'm starting to suspect Passepartout sharing nationality with author Jules Verne was part of making him more relatable to the reader, and Phileas being British was the full stiff upper lip stereotype taken to its logical extreme.
The final central character they brought to the adaptation is one I groaned once I heard her name being mentioned: Abigail Nix. Detective Nix in the original novel was sent by Scotland Yard since the UK government thought Phileas was trying to escape justice after a bank robbery, the bet being a mere excuse. Abigail is however a journalist who intends to follow Phileas and document his travels, for the benefit of her readers, and to prove herself in a man dominated profession.
This is not taking an existing character and updating their role to make them more relatable to a modern audience, or to explore their psychology further, this is taking a whole new character and give them a name and nothing more from the original novel. Well almost, her role will be to be in Phileas footsteps, so that is a bit related.
Speaking of changes made for modern audiences: the original novel was written with the spirit of adventure, with the idea of going to exciting places and experiencing exciting things in mind. While there is nothing wrong with that when modern readers take a look at the world it was written in a fair criticism is that the society itself is underexplored. I bring this up because the first episode involves the gang heading into the first commune of Paris who are in the midst of staging an assassination. Which is hardly romantic or anything else I associate with the novel. Or even anything that was anywhere close to being brought up in the novel.
I am a bit okay with this, although it bears little resemblance to the entire outlook of the novel, because "We go to a place and have an adventure associated with that place" is still present. What I found more lacking is that all the things that happen after the assassination attempt occurs seems to be of the "and then this happened, and then that happened" school of plot rather than the "and this character was established as being this way, so logically this will happen" or "and this was an established fact in act 1, so now this ought to happen".
I probably will watch another episode or two.
I never read the full blown novel, just some kind of kids storybook version. Does Fogg end up saving and marrying an Indian woman in the novel?
He does indeed. One he saved from ritual suicide after her first husband died.
A character, now that I think about it, who didn't really have a character, just being part on the sidelines of the story. Like the various dwarves in Bilbo. Which ought to give the writers of the show some material to work with.
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The Ellen DeGeneres Show: Final episode after 19 years, 
I'm not a huge daytime television person, but once the pandemic hit a couple years ago, my girlfriend and I got into a cadence watching Let's Make A Deal, The Price Is Right and The Ellen DeGeneres Show Monday through Friday, and for all the silliness, it was a few hours a day where we could forget the horror keeping us indoors and just laugh and smile for a while.
I really came to love and respect Ellen's show. I've always liked her as a comedian, and had never watched her show before 2020, but after a few episodes, I began to understand it was... different. Yeah, she would address important issues and had more than her share of moments of austerity, but mostly, it was just fun. She played games, she sent her staff out on silly errands, LOTS of dancing, and her unique brand of deadpan comedy was sprinkled into everything. It wasn't that eye-rolling "oh so wholesome" bullshit a lot of family-friendly daytime tries to sell you; it respected adults with a sense of humor, sometimes dark, sometimes dirty, etc. Atop that, she affected a LOT of people's lives. The past few episodes have been nothing but friends, past guests and people she's helped pouring their hearts out to her about how much she is loved and will be missed.
Her show will be missed. I miss her already, and wish her nothing but the best.
I'm not a huge daytime television person, but once the pandemic hit a couple years ago, my girlfriend and I got into a cadence watching Let's Make A Deal, The Price Is Right and The Ellen DeGeneres Show Monday through Friday, and for all the silliness, it was a few hours a day where we could forget the horror keeping us indoors and just laugh and smile for a while.
I really came to love and respect Ellen's show. I've always liked her as a comedian, and had never watched her show before 2020, but after a few episodes, I began to understand it was... different. Yeah, she would address important issues and had more than her share of moments of austerity, but mostly, it was just fun. She played games, she sent her staff out on silly errands, LOTS of dancing, and her unique brand of deadpan comedy was sprinkled into everything. It wasn't that eye-rolling "oh so wholesome" bullshit a lot of family-friendly daytime tries to sell you; it respected adults with a sense of humor, sometimes dark, sometimes dirty, etc. Atop that, she affected a LOT of people's lives. The past few episodes have been nothing but friends, past guests and people she's helped pouring their hearts out to her about how much she is loved and will be missed.
Her show will be missed. I miss her already, and wish her nothing but the best.
Superman and Lois: Season 1 (4/5)
Watching (and reviewing) this, I find myself vaguely reminded of Supergirl, season 2, where the best elements had nothing to do with the actual superhero stuff, and actual said stuff being pretty bleh. Speaking of Supergirl, that's something I'll address in a bit, but I'll start by saying that if I did decimals, this would be a 3.5, and I found myself wondering if I should round up or round down. However, I've given it a 4, just because. But on that note, I'm actually going to start with "the bad" stuff.
THE BAD
-Christ, the main story is (mostly) terrible. Kryptonians want to colonize Earth, and to do that, they want to put kryptonian minds in human bodies, that somehow gives them kryptonian (under a yellow sun) powers instantly. The whole thing is nonense in so many ways, in part because the 'rules' for the powers aren't consistent. The entire point for Supes is that it took him an extended period of time to master his powers (this is established in the show itself), yet these gits get their powers instantly. And when Morgan Edge/Tal-Rho lands on Earth as a child (more on that later), he can use his powers instantly, yet is captured, yet regains them by being exposed to sunlight for just a few seconds in prison, which allows him to escape. I...what?
I know SAL isn't the only Supes media that's had this issue, where the time taken for Supes to adapt isn't reflected in other characters (and it's a problem mirrored in DBZ), but this is just a new level of stupidity. At least Man of Steel at least acknowledged why being under a yellow sun kinda sucks for an average kryptonian, even if Zod still gained his powers instantly.
-Tal-Rho is just so tired at this point. The entire schtick is "I'm what you [Supes] could have been if circumstances had been different." Which is a nice idea in of itself, but it's an idea that's been done to death by this point - Red Son, Injustice, Brightburn, etc. It also doesn't help that, the point of him being a vanguard to rebuild Krypton on Earth has already been done (e.g. Man of Steel), and in the Arrowverse itself (see Supergirl season 1). It's old at this point. Oh, and speaking of Supergirl...
Watching (and reviewing) this, I find myself vaguely reminded of Supergirl, season 2, where the best elements had nothing to do with the actual superhero stuff, and actual said stuff being pretty bleh. Speaking of Supergirl, that's something I'll address in a bit, but I'll start by saying that if I did decimals, this would be a 3.5, and I found myself wondering if I should round up or round down. However, I've given it a 4, just because. But on that note, I'm actually going to start with "the bad" stuff.
THE BAD
-Christ, the main story is (mostly) terrible. Kryptonians want to colonize Earth, and to do that, they want to put kryptonian minds in human bodies, that somehow gives them kryptonian (under a yellow sun) powers instantly. The whole thing is nonense in so many ways, in part because the 'rules' for the powers aren't consistent. The entire point for Supes is that it took him an extended period of time to master his powers (this is established in the show itself), yet these gits get their powers instantly. And when Morgan Edge/Tal-Rho lands on Earth as a child (more on that later), he can use his powers instantly, yet is captured, yet regains them by being exposed to sunlight for just a few seconds in prison, which allows him to escape. I...what?
I know SAL isn't the only Supes media that's had this issue, where the time taken for Supes to adapt isn't reflected in other characters (and it's a problem mirrored in DBZ), but this is just a new level of stupidity. At least Man of Steel at least acknowledged why being under a yellow sun kinda sucks for an average kryptonian, even if Zod still gained his powers instantly.
-Tal-Rho is just so tired at this point. The entire schtick is "I'm what you [Supes] could have been if circumstances had been different." Which is a nice idea in of itself, but it's an idea that's been done to death by this point - Red Son, Injustice, Brightburn, etc. It also doesn't help that, the point of him being a vanguard to rebuild Krypton on Earth has already been done (e.g. Man of Steel), and in the Arrowverse itself (see Supergirl season 1). It's old at this point. Oh, and speaking of Supergirl...
-Where's Kara? No, seriously, where's Kara? This isn't some nitpick (e.g. I could ask why Barry Allen doesn't run to Smallville to help out), this is, in my view, such a glaring issue that the show doesn't even attempt to address. This takes place explicitly in the Arrowverse, but in light of one of Clark's sons gaining powers, in light of kryptonians invading, in light of the reveal that Tal-Rho is Supes's half brother, am I alone in thinking that maybe, just maybe, you'd want to let Kara know what's going on? Or, failing that, have her know what's going on, since she's the head of a news corp by this point in time? I understand out-of-universe reasons for keeping Kara sidelined, but it makes no sense in-universe. FFS, even John Diggle gets to show up for a bit, and while more John is always welcome (least when he's not dressed as Spartan), he's not exactly top tier hero material, so to speak (unless he ends up becoming Green Lantern, though that plot point's been dropped I guess).
-Also, the DOD are idiots. They have access to kryptonite weapons, and they never attempt to use any of these weapons outside the one time where they try to use them on Supes. God's sake, humanity deserves to be conquered, because it's being run by dumbasses.
Right, now that I've got that out of the way, let's deal with:
-Also, the DOD are idiots. They have access to kryptonite weapons, and they never attempt to use any of these weapons outside the one time where they try to use them on Supes. God's sake, humanity deserves to be conquered, because it's being run by dumbasses.
Right, now that I've got that out of the way, let's deal with:
THE GOOD
-"It's about family." With lots of furious people moving very fast, the family/relationship/growing up stuff is...actually, it's pretty well done. This applies to the entire Clark family at this point (Supes, Lois, Jordan, Jonathan), the Lang family, Lois's strained relationship with her father (and Clark's as well), and everything else. I know, I know, obviously there's shows that focus on this stuff and do it better, but in the specific context, it's done well. While the dramas are specific (Clark's sons finding out he's Supes, Jordan getting powers, Jonathan dealing with jealosy and assorted issues), and the relationship stuff isn't specific (though I think the Jordan-Sam stuff is pretty sweet, as in, all warm and fuzzy), when it does these things, it does them well.
-I'll give particular stuff to Supes here, in that when he's not fighting other kryptonians, the personal stuff is done well. The show has an interesting method of showing the leadup to this (by its timeline, he's been Superman for 20 years, would have married Lois probably around 15 years ago given their sons' ages), in that the pilot starts with a quick, well-done summary, then about 60% through, there's an episode that's mostly dedicated to summarizing those flashbacks again and expanding on them), and elaborating over his unease as to how much he should do, how he should do it, the risk of "letting go" as he puts it, etc. While I found myself questioning as to how...selective Supes seems to be in who he helps and where (I mean, it's nice to have a family, but time spent with them is time he could be saving people, because there's always going to be shit going on), but it's well done. Not really new, but unlike the stuff in "the bad" section, it's done well enough that I (mostly) don't mind.
-Steel is well done. In fact, he might be the best 'hero protagonist' of the show. Not necessarily the best character per se, but, well, the guy who's able to hold his own against kryptonians due to his suit and technical know-how, able to use technology to exploit their weaknesses (e.g. "solar grenades")...again, not doing anything new, but it does it well. It sort of reminds me of James Olson's schtick in Supergirl season 2 where he went full vigilante (human decked out in armour), except here it's, y'know, GOOD.
OVERALL
-Writing this, I'm still left wondering if I should take this down to three. In my Arrowverse ranking (which I'll post below), you'll see it on the edge of "good," with Arrow Season 1 being "excellent," everything up to SAL Season 1 being "good," everything after that being "okay" up to the very end (Black Lightning, Flash season 7). However, I guess the reason is that while 90% of the time, while the show has the pros and cons listed above, every so often there's a moment that's solid enough to give it an extra boost.
Or something. Anyway, probably the last Arrowverse season I'll watch in awhile, I plan to move onto Cobra Kai season 2 next.
-"It's about family." With lots of furious people moving very fast, the family/relationship/growing up stuff is...actually, it's pretty well done. This applies to the entire Clark family at this point (Supes, Lois, Jordan, Jonathan), the Lang family, Lois's strained relationship with her father (and Clark's as well), and everything else. I know, I know, obviously there's shows that focus on this stuff and do it better, but in the specific context, it's done well. While the dramas are specific (Clark's sons finding out he's Supes, Jordan getting powers, Jonathan dealing with jealosy and assorted issues), and the relationship stuff isn't specific (though I think the Jordan-Sam stuff is pretty sweet, as in, all warm and fuzzy), when it does these things, it does them well.
-I'll give particular stuff to Supes here, in that when he's not fighting other kryptonians, the personal stuff is done well. The show has an interesting method of showing the leadup to this (by its timeline, he's been Superman for 20 years, would have married Lois probably around 15 years ago given their sons' ages), in that the pilot starts with a quick, well-done summary, then about 60% through, there's an episode that's mostly dedicated to summarizing those flashbacks again and expanding on them), and elaborating over his unease as to how much he should do, how he should do it, the risk of "letting go" as he puts it, etc. While I found myself questioning as to how...selective Supes seems to be in who he helps and where (I mean, it's nice to have a family, but time spent with them is time he could be saving people, because there's always going to be shit going on), but it's well done. Not really new, but unlike the stuff in "the bad" section, it's done well enough that I (mostly) don't mind.
-Steel is well done. In fact, he might be the best 'hero protagonist' of the show. Not necessarily the best character per se, but, well, the guy who's able to hold his own against kryptonians due to his suit and technical know-how, able to use technology to exploit their weaknesses (e.g. "solar grenades")...again, not doing anything new, but it does it well. It sort of reminds me of James Olson's schtick in Supergirl season 2 where he went full vigilante (human decked out in armour), except here it's, y'know, GOOD.
OVERALL
-Writing this, I'm still left wondering if I should take this down to three. In my Arrowverse ranking (which I'll post below), you'll see it on the edge of "good," with Arrow Season 1 being "excellent," everything up to SAL Season 1 being "good," everything after that being "okay" up to the very end (Black Lightning, Flash season 7). However, I guess the reason is that while 90% of the time, while the show has the pros and cons listed above, every so often there's a moment that's solid enough to give it an extra boost.
Or something. Anyway, probably the last Arrowverse season I'll watch in awhile, I plan to move onto Cobra Kai season 2 next.
Current Arrowverse rankings:
24) The Flash: Season 7
23) Black Lightning: Season 2
22) Black Lightning: Season 1
21) The Flash: Season 5
20) Arrow: Season 3
19) Legends of Tomorrow: Season 3
18) The Flash: Season 4
17) The Flash: Season 6
16) Stargirl: Season 2
15) The Flash: Season 3
14) Supergirl: Season 1
13) Arrow: Season 5
12) Legends of Tomorrow: Season 1
11) Legends of Tomorrow: Season 2
10) Arrow: Season 6
9) Supergirl: Season 2
8) The Flash: Season 1
7) The Flash: Season 2
6) Superman and Lois: Season 1
5) Arrow: Season 4
4) Legends of Tomorrow: Season 4
3) Stargirl: Season 1
2) Arrow: Season 2
1) Arrow: Season 1
23) Black Lightning: Season 2
22) Black Lightning: Season 1
21) The Flash: Season 5
20) Arrow: Season 3
19) Legends of Tomorrow: Season 3
18) The Flash: Season 4
17) The Flash: Season 6
16) Stargirl: Season 2
15) The Flash: Season 3
14) Supergirl: Season 1
13) Arrow: Season 5
12) Legends of Tomorrow: Season 1
11) Legends of Tomorrow: Season 2
10) Arrow: Season 6
9) Supergirl: Season 2
8) The Flash: Season 1
7) The Flash: Season 2
6) Superman and Lois: Season 1
5) Arrow: Season 4
4) Legends of Tomorrow: Season 4
3) Stargirl: Season 1
2) Arrow: Season 2
1) Arrow: Season 1
Star Trek SNW episode 4:
Ok, ok you hacks, Im sold. Episode 4 sees the crew facing their Khan, Chang "Dogs of war" moment, encountering the Gorn for the first which I can already see becoming a series antagonist. The Gorn in this are a mystery Predator that only see other species as food. The crew go head to head against scary aliens that vastly outmatch them. The episode is a lot of cool tense submarine combat moments and the moral for this one focused on hope. There's a couple subplots of characters learning that hopelessness is a self-fulfilling prophecy.
This is the first episode Ive seen so far that is not only "fun" but does that classic Star Trek moral tale stuff Ive been kind of waiting for.
I was curious so I read Darrin Mooneys thoughts on it. I get that darrins shtick is that hes less reviewing and more deconstructing, but I find it a little tired and disingenuous that he pulls 10+ something episodes out of a hat that include similar themes or story and complains that "Weve seen this all before". I have trouble believing he just has that shit memorized. Ive watched every star trek series twice and I dont remember all that crap. If hes fatigued that much hes gotta be Rain man. I have to believe hes googling and using memory alpha and if you have to do that to complain about redundancy thats a logical fallacy.
The thing is I agree. Ive seen these character beats and themes before in other star trek shows, but thats like complaining about the mech suit in Avatar looking like the same one Aliens. Do you demand every pair of shoes you buy be completely different? No you buy what you like.
To me thats where Im at with this series. Its "fun". Im having a good time and sometimes thats enough. Now if youll excuse me I have to watch my poor Rockies lose in the same theyve been losing for 3 years, cause fuck it, I like Baseball.
Ok, ok you hacks, Im sold. Episode 4 sees the crew facing their Khan, Chang "Dogs of war" moment, encountering the Gorn for the first which I can already see becoming a series antagonist. The Gorn in this are a mystery Predator that only see other species as food. The crew go head to head against scary aliens that vastly outmatch them. The episode is a lot of cool tense submarine combat moments and the moral for this one focused on hope. There's a couple subplots of characters learning that hopelessness is a self-fulfilling prophecy.
This is the first episode Ive seen so far that is not only "fun" but does that classic Star Trek moral tale stuff Ive been kind of waiting for.
I was curious so I read Darrin Mooneys thoughts on it. I get that darrins shtick is that hes less reviewing and more deconstructing, but I find it a little tired and disingenuous that he pulls 10+ something episodes out of a hat that include similar themes or story and complains that "Weve seen this all before". I have trouble believing he just has that shit memorized. Ive watched every star trek series twice and I dont remember all that crap. If hes fatigued that much hes gotta be Rain man. I have to believe hes googling and using memory alpha and if you have to do that to complain about redundancy thats a logical fallacy.
The thing is I agree. Ive seen these character beats and themes before in other star trek shows, but thats like complaining about the mech suit in Avatar looking like the same one Aliens. Do you demand every pair of shoes you buy be completely different? No you buy what you like.
To me thats where Im at with this series. Its "fun". Im having a good time and sometimes thats enough. Now if youll excuse me I have to watch my poor Rockies lose in the same theyve been losing for 3 years, cause fuck it, I like Baseball.
Always the same in those sorts of thing, the regular authorities have to be useless or superheroes are a bit redundant or you need to put effort into your writing.
But there's useless and there's useless. Like in old Dr Who, where it has to be established in every story that the alien menace is more or less immune to modern weapons, cause otherwise it ends badly for the invaders, because obviously.
Star Wars Obi-wan:
Verdict: It's fine. It's closer to an extended movie than a TV show budget wise. Instead of Anakin, this time around we're forced to endure a 10 year old nausea inducing Leia whos just gonna take on the whole galaxy all by herself, gee willickers *puke*. Whomever said you need little kids in a movie to sell little kids toys is a fucking moron. That said she's tame so far in comparison to the wooden acting of anakin and the camera obsession with grogu fuckin around and being cute (as determined by a test audience) .
I think I've kind of hit my wall with Disney where I just feel saturated with shows balanced to fill the void in my free time, but with minimal caloric intake. There's no spice, it's just shit happening on screen. This is how I watch Disney shows anymore
Verdict: It's fine. It's closer to an extended movie than a TV show budget wise. Instead of Anakin, this time around we're forced to endure a 10 year old nausea inducing Leia whos just gonna take on the whole galaxy all by herself, gee willickers *puke*. Whomever said you need little kids in a movie to sell little kids toys is a fucking moron. That said she's tame so far in comparison to the wooden acting of anakin and the camera obsession with grogu fuckin around and being cute (as determined by a test audience) .
I think I've kind of hit my wall with Disney where I just feel saturated with shows balanced to fill the void in my free time, but with minimal caloric intake. There's no spice, it's just shit happening on screen. This is how I watch Disney shows anymore
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I tried to sit through the first episode of Obi-Wan Kenobi, but I was just too bored. I'm not big on Star Wars, but I can recognize when something has some goddamn energy to it, and this really didn't. The first minute long flashback was alright, but once that's over we're subjected to some terribly flat acting and scenery. We got inquisitors that have all the threatening presence of a supermarket clerk, and a jedi-in-hiding (not Kenobi) who seems confused why he's even on screen.
It all made me think back to the opening of the game Jedi: Fallen Order, and how it blows this episode out of the water.
As soon as kid Leia was introduced as 'the rambunctious child running through the forrest *gasp* totally unbecoming of nobility', I'd had enough. For Christ's sake Disney, stop trying to squeeze the last ounces of Star Wars from the few untouched parts in the Skywalker timeline. Stop jerking this timeline off and come up with something, you know.... NEW!
It all made me think back to the opening of the game Jedi: Fallen Order, and how it blows this episode out of the water.
As soon as kid Leia was introduced as 'the rambunctious child running through the forrest *gasp* totally unbecoming of nobility', I'd had enough. For Christ's sake Disney, stop trying to squeeze the last ounces of Star Wars from the few untouched parts in the Skywalker timeline. Stop jerking this timeline off and come up with something, you know.... NEW!
You know, we have spoiler tags... I know now there were rumors of the character showing up, but it was a surprise to me when I watched the show and it might be too for others.
Anyway, only real problem with the character for me was with how embarassing their action sequences were. Made the bounty hunters and Kenobi look realllll incompetent.
And while I still enjoyed the show, and thought it was a huge step up from Boba Fett, I can't help but feel like it isn't nearly as polished as The Mandalorian was. Is that how it's going to be now? Star Wars projects getting different budgets and levels of effort put into them? Not a big fan of that at all.
The Mandalorian may not have been a masterpiece of writing, but at the very least, the average episode made you think, damn, this is just a TV show? Now it's just, damn, that prop looks hella fake.
Anyway, only real problem with the character for me was with how embarassing their action sequences were. Made the bounty hunters and Kenobi look realllll incompetent.
And while I still enjoyed the show, and thought it was a huge step up from Boba Fett, I can't help but feel like it isn't nearly as polished as The Mandalorian was. Is that how it's going to be now? Star Wars projects getting different budgets and levels of effort put into them? Not a big fan of that at all.
The Mandalorian may not have been a masterpiece of writing, but at the very least, the average episode made you think, damn, this is just a TV show? Now it's just, damn, that prop looks hella fake.
To be fair though, there's a reason Leia must've turned to Obi-Wan("Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi, you're my only hope") in the very first Star Wars film. Having an established relationship makes sense. Even though the image I've gotten of the Disney Star Wars projects are that they are laden in nostalgia-baiting.
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Oh, I didn't even know that happened, I stop watching before that.
I don't even mind little Leia being there, it was the typical 'girl who's not like other girls cuz she runs through the forrest' introduction - the character trope especially Disney loves blanketing over its female (princess) characters - which was the final straw. After being subjected to a good 20 minutes of utter mediocrity I just couldn't anymore once I saw that scene.
To be clear, I have not watched the show you're talking about. I just assumed that your complaint was the nostalgia-baiting.
La Corde (or The Rope in English)
A bunch of astronomers find a rope and some decide to keep following it. Based on a German story.
A lot of effort and acting and good camerawork went in this. Atmospheric, but nothing is really explained.
A bunch of astronomers find a rope and some decide to keep following it. Based on a German story.
A lot of effort and acting and good camerawork went in this. Atmospheric, but nothing is really explained.