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What TV SHOWS are you watching?
- ThirstyMan
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- D10
It was often held up as an example of how to write a long arc as opposed to making it up as you go along aka Lost etc
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- ChristopherMD
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- Road Warrior
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ThirstyMan wrote: As I understood it, the writer (J. Michael Straczynski) knew he was doing a 5 season arc from the beginning and planned it that way.
Correct but then they got canceled and he fit the 5th season arc mostly into the 4th season. Then the show was picked up for a 5th season by another network and he used whatever was left to fill that.
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This is a five part mini series about World War 1. It depicts the experiences of two soldiers, one German and one British, during the Great War. There is a book series of the same name but I don't think this show is based on them.
The Good:
The premise is good. I always crave historical dramas that depict the viewpoint of the side less told like the Germans in the world wars or a confederate soldier in the Civil War etc. In regards to WW1, with the exception of All Quiet on the Western Front, we usually only are told of the war from the British point of view. So having a dual focus on both British and German viewpoints is cool. Even if, as usual, the French are minimized.
The costumes seem to my inexpert eye to be fairly accurate. They seem to time the switch from the silly spike helmet to the steel helmet appropriately.
At least some passing attention is paid to the Eastern Front. Not a lot but some. And some good stuff depicting the families on the home front.
The So-so:
The Battle scenes are not very impressive which I assume is because to make an impressive battle would cost a huge amount of money. So you have close shots of guys running across some uneven ground with an occasional artillery sound effect and some thrown dirt. There is one notable exception when the German soldier gets involved in some house to house fighting on the Eastern Front. That was pretty harrowing.
The history of the war is weak. They speak the expected names. Verdun, the Somme, etc but you have no context for these battles so no real investment in them.
The Bad:
So I see on Wikipedia that the script was written for a younger crowd and family viewing which explains the maudlin tone through out. If you have never read Farewell to Arms or All Quiet on the Western Front then you won't have to throw up your hands when you see the plot points stolen from those classics. The ending is supposed to be gut wrenching and filled with bitter irony but I found it lazy.
So overall a mixed bag.
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Lady Gaga was justly made the star of this season, as the Countess. I'm not a fan of her music, but she has an amazing presence and surprisingly decent acting ability. She plays off well against various AHS regulars like Evan Peters, Angela Bassett, Sarah Poulson, and Kathy Bates. The surprise was AHS regular Denis O'Hare, who stole so many scenes as a transvestite bartender.
The story, though loaded with subplots and twists, was told in a straight-forward manner. But the style was often languid and dreamy, which made events seem a bit unclear even when they really were clear. The early focus was on the driven cop storyline, but that fortunately veered sharply away from cliche after a while. This show could have actually ended with episode 10 and I would have been fairly happy. But the show soldiers on through two more episodes, giving each character a satisfactory conclusion. The final two episodes dragged at times, but the emotional beats were great.
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mc wrote: Has anyone watched El Ministrio del Tiempo? It's this Spanish time travel thing but there's a LOT of Spanish references/jokes that I know are going over my head... just wondering if it's worth persisting or not, particularly as there were some plot holes in the first episode (I think)... the light comic tone would probably make up for it but then, I'm missing half the jokes.
Never heard of it, but one of the best time travel movies that I've seen was a Spanish science-fiction movie called Timecrimes. Maybe the show was dropping references to that movie.
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mc wrote: Has anyone watched El Ministrio del Tiempo? It's this Spanish time travel thing but there's a LOT of Spanish references/jokes that I know are going over my head... just wondering if it's worth persisting or not, particularly as there were some plot holes in the first episode (I think)... the light comic tone would probably make up for it but then, I'm missing half the jokes.
We've watched the first two episodes and want to return to it. I've really enjoyed what we've seen so far and I rather enjoy a time travel series that plays with a history I'm very unfamiliar with.
Probably should be watched with easy access to Wikipedia.
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- hotseatgames
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- hotseatgames
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Also finished season 2 of Westworld. Ugh. Utter nonsense. Also, there is an end credits scene, fyi.
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Enjoyed the first episode of Goliath season 2.
I just finished the first season of Six and it was alright. Not sure if I'll watch the second season.
The most recent episode of The Handmaid's Tale really bothered me. I really enjoy the show but it just struck me in a way which was very upsetting, something that is rare for media to do (Room is the only other thing from the past few years which bothered me nearly as much).
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- hotseatgames
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- Black Barney
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- D20
- 10k Club
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Black Barney wrote: Charlest, for Room was it the sort of casual and inevitable nature in which rape was portrayed that bothered you? That movie in unsettling in a bunch of ways and I’m just curious which part hit you hardest?
Mostly the stuff with the kid. I've become a big baby due to being a father.
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I'm kinda surprised it took that long. I gave up about a third of the way through Season 1, when I realized the show only made me depressed and angry. Please do not feel the need to tell me what put you over the top.charlest wrote: The most recent episode of The Handmaid's Table really bothered me. I really enjoy the show but it just struck me in a way which was very upsetting, something that is rare for media to do (Room is the only other thing from the past few years which bothered me nearly as much).
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