TV post...
Apr. 10th, 2012 04:53 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
newnumber6After a fairly long dry spell of meh, it's actually a good time to be watching TV again for me, so let's do a TV post!
First, the last couple weeks I've been engaging in something I actually do fairly rarely... marathoning TV shows I've already watched. Two in particular, because (in one case) the new season and (in the other) a new sequel series are starting. Those are Game of Thrones, and Avatar: The Last Airbender. Aside from both being awesome, they have other things in common as well:
Birds used as messengers
Lots of Ice
Mostly-extinct dragons
Characters who are underestimated because a physical disability/difference but who are in fact among the most awesome characters.
Watching these both at the same time (I did about 2/3 of Avatar, then switched to GoT the weekend before season 2 of GoT, then back to Avatar), it's only natural to consider mashing them up, but let me assure you, there's NO WAY TO DO IT THAT IS NOT TOTALLY !@$@!ED UP. But occasionally hilariously-so, even if you really can't map them directly, you'd have to consider it a fusion world where some characters are combined, others exist side by side, and others have totally new roles. Like, Winterfell might be the waterbenders, making Katara and Sokka Starks. That would naturally put the Fire Nation as Lannisters, despite Daenerys being more connected to fire and dragons (she could be the last airbender, though!). Tyrion/Iroh might be a fusion character, providing both the voice of reason and all the awesome. But there's no way to make it work, trust me (and yet, why can't I keep myself from trying? Oh well, I'm sure it'll pass)
Anyway, let's separate them (which is probably for the best), and give some thoughts on the rewatch, followed by my thoughts on the new stuff:
Avatar: I was worried it wouldn't hold up, but it really did. Oh, sure, it's a kids cartoon, and there are all sorts of little flaws if you look for them (Earthbenders using their powers in totally awesome ways in some episodes, but completely ignoring ways to be awesome when surrounded by stone buildings in others being one off the top of my head... same for Waterbending sometimes), but it's probably one of the best cartoons I've seen. It's the type of cartoon that if I worked on it, I'd be extremely proud of... in fact, I sort of 'play' with franchises as a secondary stream of enjoyment... thinking of ways that I'd make it better if I had my way and was in control, but with Avatar, it's one of the few cartoons where I almost wouldn't change anything except trivial things. It's got a long continuing storyline that actually wraps up, and virtually every episode actually makes progress towards that goal (I was particularly surprised how tight the first season was... I expected there to be a fair amount of throwaway episodes, but there weren't... season 3 had a couple more where I think they tried to pad things out), the heroes occasionally totally lose, people die (not many, and certainly not as many as in a real war, but it is a kid's cartoon), and, of course, there are some awesome characters.
Particularly Toph (I love the running joke of the team forgetting she's blind, or of her playing with it by talking about things she couldn't possibly know), and Sokka (badass normal and comic relief character rolled into one), but many of the characters are great.
It was great we-watching it again, but it wasn't just for fun, it was because starting soon (and the first two episodes are already available) is The Legend of Korra!. I'll get to some minor spoilery comments after the cut, but first, general thoughts: I really enjoyed it! I was worried that after all the build up, they wouldn't be able to deliver, but the action was good, the animation and character designs awesome, and I loved the overall look, a sort of 1920s vibe crossed with Steampunk (and of course, the obvious asian influence). Best of all, it really does feel like a WORLD, one that actually could exist somewhere... too many cartoons fail on that. The only non-spoilery thing, in seeing the first two episodes, that I have to complain about are that, right now, I don't have as many awesome characters to latch on to as Avatar did. I like Kora, Bolin might be fun, Mako hasn't had much time to develop (and many, just hearing his voice I never would have guessed he's voiced by David Faustino... Bud Bundy of all those years ago), the kids are kids, not even as relatable as the Avatar kids (but of course, they're younger as well), and everyone else, so far, seems to be an authority-figure-type. However, it's only two episodes in, and it took a whole season before ATLA got Toph and a half season before Zuko became much more than a angry antagonist.
A few more thoughts with a few more spoilers (nothing big) behind the cut: One of the things I love most about it is that even though it's clearly an Avatar sequel, it feels so DIFFERENT, too... the benders vs. non-benders oppression vibe, the action mostly taking place in a single city, the Avatar already being pretty good at (most) bending, rather than having to learn it, it's clearly not content to just do the same things the original Avatar did.
I'm a little mixed on the Professional Bending angle. The sport itself is kind of cool in its design (one of the things that provoked the comment about it feeling like a world... it really feels like the kind of game that could develop, given the premises), but I'm not a big 'sporty' type, and I think I'll be annoyed and disappointed if too much of the action and drama revolve around sports.
All in all, a very good start.
Game of Thrones: Season 1 (which just earned a Hugo nomination for best Long Form dramatic presentation) really benefits from a second watch. The first time through, I had a lot of trouble telling people apart and didn't pick up on connections between characters because of it, so on the second time, things I missed or didn't know were important early one stood out. Still liked the same characters most: Jon Snow, Tyrion, and Arya (not in that order), but there are plenty of awesome ones.
Still think the sex and nudity gets a little too... gratuitous, sometimes as though they had a contract that there had to be one sex scene or a certain number of bare breasts per episode (and I seriously hope the Ros character has some major role in the later books/seasons, because otherwise her scenes could be eliminated entirely and probably improve the whole)
Season 2 is already started, only two episodes in, and watching it on the tail of a rewatch of the first season, it feels like a direct continuation... that is, if you hadn't told me where the season breaks were, I wouldn't have known a new season started (and if you'd told me one had, I'd have placed it probably a few episodes before season 1 ended). That's good, but at the same time, leaves me without much to say... the characters I liked, I continue to like, and there are great scenes throughout. Of the new stuff (minor spoilers) Stannis is a little dry and although I'm sure he has an important role, right now it's not really feeling like he's important enough to the story to justify the time. Aside from Tyrion trying to behave as the King's Hand, I'm mostly interested in Arya and the bastard's story right now, but we've barely got any time with them.
Anyway, Korra and Games of Throne will keep me looking forward to TV for the forseeable future... and when GoT ends, Falling Skies (which is enjoyable, but not great) should be starting up.
Now, on to some other shows, either starting up again or starting to wind down, that I feel compelled to offer some thoughts on...
Ultimate Spider-Man: No... no, no, no, no, no. Why? We had such a GOOD cartoon with Spectacular Spider-Man, and I can understand the (stupid) corporate reasons it had to go, and could have forgiven it if it was replaced with something awesome, but.... this? This?
The animation's good, I guess. And I actually like the idea of (minor spoilers)Spider-Man working with a group of teen heroes as part of a separate SHIELD training... although I might have chosen different heroes. Don't care for Nova at all, Iron Fist is just annoying, Power Man's okay but bland, and the only of them I like so far is White Tiger. Couldn't we have gotten some new characters, say, adapted from Avengers Academy or Young Avengers, or at least a couple girls on the team (seriously, four guys and one girl?)
But no.... it's not the idea... it's the presentation of everything else. Like the constant cut-away gags... what is this, Family Guy? And the last episode where they literally made it like a video game fighting game two different times in the episode, complete with an announcer and score. Or having Peter constantly break away to give a bio on every villain or supporting character they encounter, instead of having their details explained through the action and dialog. What, have kids attention spans dropped THAT much since I was one?
But worst of all is crap like the Spider-Cycle. Seriously.... SHIELD DESIGNED A MOTORCYCLE THAT CAN RIDE ON WALLS AND SHOOT WEBS THAT SPIDER-MAN CAN RIDE BECAUSE IT APPARENTLY GETS HIM ACROSS THE CITY FASTER. THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR THIS. Bah. I guess I'll continue to watch, but... man, disappointed.
In slightly better news, Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes started up again, and while I'll never love it the way I do a few other shows, it's at least solidly enjoyable on a regular basis. I also need to catch up on Young Justice and Generator Rex (which I believe is, sadly, ending).
Moving away from cartoons, we have other shows that are either ended, continuing, relatively new that I've given a chance to but haven't commented on, and just in general I have a few thoughts on.
House: This is supposedly the last season. Is it really too much to ask that instead of constantly pulling the "Shocking development! Oh, no, wait, it turns out House is just messing with everybody to prove some obscure point!" card, they actually make some big developments that lead to wrapping up? Seriously, I can't take them seriously anymore. Ehh, really I only still watch this because there's not much else on Mondays at that time.
Speaking of...
Alcatraz: I wanted to like it. I like the leads. Unfortunately, it seems to be exactly as I feared... it's just a series of one-shot criminal-chasing stories with the 'twist' that the criminals are all from the past... which might be cool enough, except that they never ONCE seem to ACT like they're from the past in any way. They seem to be able to slip into the modern world with no trouble, even getting jobs without existing in any database. When they're holding someone hostage, they remember to get the cell phone, too! I simply can't buy the premise, because they're not selling it... and when I can't buy the premise, the mystery about it doesn't thrill me. I have no confidence I'll be able to believe whatever backstory they come up to explain it, because they can't even get the simplest part of their story believable. I was already expecting a crappy LOST style ending just because of the creators, but now I'm expecting that they couldn't possibly do anything BUT one. If it survives at all, I'll continue to watch if nothing good is up against it, but it's not good enough to download.
Fringe: Have been going a little cold on the series this year. There were a few standout eps (like the Astrid ep), but mostly... it all just feels like a waste. And this last episode really solidified something for me (spoilers, both for the season as a whole and the most recent Lincoln ep): I'm thinking more and more that this season should have completely abandoned the storyline about Peter not existing, and focused the whole season on the two universes teaming up to investigate outside threats. This whole 'third universe, which is really the other universes except Peter's been erased but really he hasn't and yet Olivia remembers because she's in LOVE!' is just... ill-advised. They should have kept with the universe we knew, maybe had a tight 3-5 episode arc at the beginning that had the Peter-less world and then RESTORED the world we came to love the first few years... fully, not just Olivia (or maybe fully, except for a few stragglers like our-side-Lincoln who were caught at the nexus when the old universe reasserted itself and so is stuck with memories of a SLIGHTLY different world and a love affair with Olivia that now she doesn't remember, because from her point of view, Peter always existed). And then have a sort of cross-universal series going back and forth, instead of treading over retrod ground. Most of the best episodes/new additions to the year we still could have had with the old universe, and I can't think of a single thing that got better with the change.
The latest episode was good, except the ending was predictable, and, as![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
donna_c_punk said, a bit insulting to both characters. I'm not normally a shipper... much less a KINKY shipper, but I actually think the best result would have to been to go a little more fringe than Fringe... THREESOME. Yes, have both Lincoln's survive, but really take to each other, our-Lincoln moves as permanent liason to the other side's universe, and both having a kind of eerie love with Fauxlivia (and maybe even each other). That would at least have been a little daring. Instead, we get the suggestion that either character is replaceable... if you just give them a character who looks more or less like the one they love, it's all good and going to turn out well.
Once Upon A Time: Yes, surprisingly, I'm still watching this, but I don't really care all that much. Aside from too many characters having cartoonish morality, which I guess is kind of expected, my main problem is the lack of... momentum. I'm sick to death of shows that tease that there's going to be some big change, the bad guy's going to get exposed, only to 'surprise twist' at the end and the bad guy saw it coming and was able to cover up. Or the character who knows the truth and might convince Emma/the world about it dies. It's gotten beyond predictable, and there's no tension whatsoever, you know that nothing big's going to change until the season finale, and even then, they're probably planning to stretch
it out for years.
I really want a show that actually DOES things, that doesn't HAVE a status quo that must remain intact until the end (or at least, when it has a status quo, doesn't insult our intelligence by constantly trying to fool us into thinking that they might be changing it)
(And seriously, Rumplestiltzkin? You have a deal/magical enchantment with the mayor/Queen where she has to do ANYTHING YOU ASK if you say "please". And you remember the deal and the whole fairy-tale world. Why are you EVER conspiring with anybody else to get something over on her?)
Supernatural: I just don't care any more ever since Bobby died. Even though he's back as a ghost, it's not as cool. I watch mostly to mock. The show is really just hackwork now... remember how I praised Avatar for being a world that feels like a real world, that most cartoons don't manage that? Supernatural doesn't manage it either. It doesn't make sense by its own rules. Whatever the writers think is a good idea at any given moment is what they'll do, there's no cohesive whole like it had in the first couple seasons.
These aren't the only shows I watch, but they're the only ones I feel the need to comment on at the moment.
First, the last couple weeks I've been engaging in something I actually do fairly rarely... marathoning TV shows I've already watched. Two in particular, because (in one case) the new season and (in the other) a new sequel series are starting. Those are Game of Thrones, and Avatar: The Last Airbender. Aside from both being awesome, they have other things in common as well:
Birds used as messengers
Lots of Ice
Mostly-extinct dragons
Characters who are underestimated because a physical disability/difference but who are in fact among the most awesome characters.
Watching these both at the same time (I did about 2/3 of Avatar, then switched to GoT the weekend before season 2 of GoT, then back to Avatar), it's only natural to consider mashing them up, but let me assure you, there's NO WAY TO DO IT THAT IS NOT TOTALLY !@$@!ED UP. But occasionally hilariously-so, even if you really can't map them directly, you'd have to consider it a fusion world where some characters are combined, others exist side by side, and others have totally new roles. Like, Winterfell might be the waterbenders, making Katara and Sokka Starks. That would naturally put the Fire Nation as Lannisters, despite Daenerys being more connected to fire and dragons (she could be the last airbender, though!). Tyrion/Iroh might be a fusion character, providing both the voice of reason and all the awesome. But there's no way to make it work, trust me (and yet, why can't I keep myself from trying? Oh well, I'm sure it'll pass)
Anyway, let's separate them (which is probably for the best), and give some thoughts on the rewatch, followed by my thoughts on the new stuff:
Avatar: I was worried it wouldn't hold up, but it really did. Oh, sure, it's a kids cartoon, and there are all sorts of little flaws if you look for them (Earthbenders using their powers in totally awesome ways in some episodes, but completely ignoring ways to be awesome when surrounded by stone buildings in others being one off the top of my head... same for Waterbending sometimes), but it's probably one of the best cartoons I've seen. It's the type of cartoon that if I worked on it, I'd be extremely proud of... in fact, I sort of 'play' with franchises as a secondary stream of enjoyment... thinking of ways that I'd make it better if I had my way and was in control, but with Avatar, it's one of the few cartoons where I almost wouldn't change anything except trivial things. It's got a long continuing storyline that actually wraps up, and virtually every episode actually makes progress towards that goal (I was particularly surprised how tight the first season was... I expected there to be a fair amount of throwaway episodes, but there weren't... season 3 had a couple more where I think they tried to pad things out), the heroes occasionally totally lose, people die (not many, and certainly not as many as in a real war, but it is a kid's cartoon), and, of course, there are some awesome characters.
Particularly Toph (I love the running joke of the team forgetting she's blind, or of her playing with it by talking about things she couldn't possibly know), and Sokka (badass normal and comic relief character rolled into one), but many of the characters are great.
It was great we-watching it again, but it wasn't just for fun, it was because starting soon (and the first two episodes are already available) is The Legend of Korra!. I'll get to some minor spoilery comments after the cut, but first, general thoughts: I really enjoyed it! I was worried that after all the build up, they wouldn't be able to deliver, but the action was good, the animation and character designs awesome, and I loved the overall look, a sort of 1920s vibe crossed with Steampunk (and of course, the obvious asian influence). Best of all, it really does feel like a WORLD, one that actually could exist somewhere... too many cartoons fail on that. The only non-spoilery thing, in seeing the first two episodes, that I have to complain about are that, right now, I don't have as many awesome characters to latch on to as Avatar did. I like Kora, Bolin might be fun, Mako hasn't had much time to develop (and many, just hearing his voice I never would have guessed he's voiced by David Faustino... Bud Bundy of all those years ago), the kids are kids, not even as relatable as the Avatar kids (but of course, they're younger as well), and everyone else, so far, seems to be an authority-figure-type. However, it's only two episodes in, and it took a whole season before ATLA got Toph and a half season before Zuko became much more than a angry antagonist.
A few more thoughts with a few more spoilers (nothing big) behind the cut: One of the things I love most about it is that even though it's clearly an Avatar sequel, it feels so DIFFERENT, too... the benders vs. non-benders oppression vibe, the action mostly taking place in a single city, the Avatar already being pretty good at (most) bending, rather than having to learn it, it's clearly not content to just do the same things the original Avatar did.
I'm a little mixed on the Professional Bending angle. The sport itself is kind of cool in its design (one of the things that provoked the comment about it feeling like a world... it really feels like the kind of game that could develop, given the premises), but I'm not a big 'sporty' type, and I think I'll be annoyed and disappointed if too much of the action and drama revolve around sports.
All in all, a very good start.
Game of Thrones: Season 1 (which just earned a Hugo nomination for best Long Form dramatic presentation) really benefits from a second watch. The first time through, I had a lot of trouble telling people apart and didn't pick up on connections between characters because of it, so on the second time, things I missed or didn't know were important early one stood out. Still liked the same characters most: Jon Snow, Tyrion, and Arya (not in that order), but there are plenty of awesome ones.
Still think the sex and nudity gets a little too... gratuitous, sometimes as though they had a contract that there had to be one sex scene or a certain number of bare breasts per episode (and I seriously hope the Ros character has some major role in the later books/seasons, because otherwise her scenes could be eliminated entirely and probably improve the whole)
Season 2 is already started, only two episodes in, and watching it on the tail of a rewatch of the first season, it feels like a direct continuation... that is, if you hadn't told me where the season breaks were, I wouldn't have known a new season started (and if you'd told me one had, I'd have placed it probably a few episodes before season 1 ended). That's good, but at the same time, leaves me without much to say... the characters I liked, I continue to like, and there are great scenes throughout. Of the new stuff (minor spoilers) Stannis is a little dry and although I'm sure he has an important role, right now it's not really feeling like he's important enough to the story to justify the time. Aside from Tyrion trying to behave as the King's Hand, I'm mostly interested in Arya and the bastard's story right now, but we've barely got any time with them.
Anyway, Korra and Games of Throne will keep me looking forward to TV for the forseeable future... and when GoT ends, Falling Skies (which is enjoyable, but not great) should be starting up.
Now, on to some other shows, either starting up again or starting to wind down, that I feel compelled to offer some thoughts on...
Ultimate Spider-Man: No... no, no, no, no, no. Why? We had such a GOOD cartoon with Spectacular Spider-Man, and I can understand the (stupid) corporate reasons it had to go, and could have forgiven it if it was replaced with something awesome, but.... this? This?
The animation's good, I guess. And I actually like the idea of (minor spoilers)Spider-Man working with a group of teen heroes as part of a separate SHIELD training... although I might have chosen different heroes. Don't care for Nova at all, Iron Fist is just annoying, Power Man's okay but bland, and the only of them I like so far is White Tiger. Couldn't we have gotten some new characters, say, adapted from Avengers Academy or Young Avengers, or at least a couple girls on the team (seriously, four guys and one girl?)
But no.... it's not the idea... it's the presentation of everything else. Like the constant cut-away gags... what is this, Family Guy? And the last episode where they literally made it like a video game fighting game two different times in the episode, complete with an announcer and score. Or having Peter constantly break away to give a bio on every villain or supporting character they encounter, instead of having their details explained through the action and dialog. What, have kids attention spans dropped THAT much since I was one?
But worst of all is crap like the Spider-Cycle. Seriously.... SHIELD DESIGNED A MOTORCYCLE THAT CAN RIDE ON WALLS AND SHOOT WEBS THAT SPIDER-MAN CAN RIDE BECAUSE IT APPARENTLY GETS HIM ACROSS THE CITY FASTER. THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR THIS. Bah. I guess I'll continue to watch, but... man, disappointed.
In slightly better news, Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes started up again, and while I'll never love it the way I do a few other shows, it's at least solidly enjoyable on a regular basis. I also need to catch up on Young Justice and Generator Rex (which I believe is, sadly, ending).
Moving away from cartoons, we have other shows that are either ended, continuing, relatively new that I've given a chance to but haven't commented on, and just in general I have a few thoughts on.
House: This is supposedly the last season. Is it really too much to ask that instead of constantly pulling the "Shocking development! Oh, no, wait, it turns out House is just messing with everybody to prove some obscure point!" card, they actually make some big developments that lead to wrapping up? Seriously, I can't take them seriously anymore. Ehh, really I only still watch this because there's not much else on Mondays at that time.
Speaking of...
Alcatraz: I wanted to like it. I like the leads. Unfortunately, it seems to be exactly as I feared... it's just a series of one-shot criminal-chasing stories with the 'twist' that the criminals are all from the past... which might be cool enough, except that they never ONCE seem to ACT like they're from the past in any way. They seem to be able to slip into the modern world with no trouble, even getting jobs without existing in any database. When they're holding someone hostage, they remember to get the cell phone, too! I simply can't buy the premise, because they're not selling it... and when I can't buy the premise, the mystery about it doesn't thrill me. I have no confidence I'll be able to believe whatever backstory they come up to explain it, because they can't even get the simplest part of their story believable. I was already expecting a crappy LOST style ending just because of the creators, but now I'm expecting that they couldn't possibly do anything BUT one. If it survives at all, I'll continue to watch if nothing good is up against it, but it's not good enough to download.
Fringe: Have been going a little cold on the series this year. There were a few standout eps (like the Astrid ep), but mostly... it all just feels like a waste. And this last episode really solidified something for me (spoilers, both for the season as a whole and the most recent Lincoln ep): I'm thinking more and more that this season should have completely abandoned the storyline about Peter not existing, and focused the whole season on the two universes teaming up to investigate outside threats. This whole 'third universe, which is really the other universes except Peter's been erased but really he hasn't and yet Olivia remembers because she's in LOVE!' is just... ill-advised. They should have kept with the universe we knew, maybe had a tight 3-5 episode arc at the beginning that had the Peter-less world and then RESTORED the world we came to love the first few years... fully, not just Olivia (or maybe fully, except for a few stragglers like our-side-Lincoln who were caught at the nexus when the old universe reasserted itself and so is stuck with memories of a SLIGHTLY different world and a love affair with Olivia that now she doesn't remember, because from her point of view, Peter always existed). And then have a sort of cross-universal series going back and forth, instead of treading over retrod ground. Most of the best episodes/new additions to the year we still could have had with the old universe, and I can't think of a single thing that got better with the change.
The latest episode was good, except the ending was predictable, and, as
donna_c_punk said, a bit insulting to both characters. I'm not normally a shipper... much less a KINKY shipper, but I actually think the best result would have to been to go a little more fringe than Fringe... THREESOME. Yes, have both Lincoln's survive, but really take to each other, our-Lincoln moves as permanent liason to the other side's universe, and both having a kind of eerie love with Fauxlivia (and maybe even each other). That would at least have been a little daring. Instead, we get the suggestion that either character is replaceable... if you just give them a character who looks more or less like the one they love, it's all good and going to turn out well. Once Upon A Time: Yes, surprisingly, I'm still watching this, but I don't really care all that much. Aside from too many characters having cartoonish morality, which I guess is kind of expected, my main problem is the lack of... momentum. I'm sick to death of shows that tease that there's going to be some big change, the bad guy's going to get exposed, only to 'surprise twist' at the end and the bad guy saw it coming and was able to cover up. Or the character who knows the truth and might convince Emma/the world about it dies. It's gotten beyond predictable, and there's no tension whatsoever, you know that nothing big's going to change until the season finale, and even then, they're probably planning to stretch
it out for years.
I really want a show that actually DOES things, that doesn't HAVE a status quo that must remain intact until the end (or at least, when it has a status quo, doesn't insult our intelligence by constantly trying to fool us into thinking that they might be changing it)
(And seriously, Rumplestiltzkin? You have a deal/magical enchantment with the mayor/Queen where she has to do ANYTHING YOU ASK if you say "please". And you remember the deal and the whole fairy-tale world. Why are you EVER conspiring with anybody else to get something over on her?)
Supernatural: I just don't care any more ever since Bobby died. Even though he's back as a ghost, it's not as cool. I watch mostly to mock. The show is really just hackwork now... remember how I praised Avatar for being a world that feels like a real world, that most cartoons don't manage that? Supernatural doesn't manage it either. It doesn't make sense by its own rules. Whatever the writers think is a good idea at any given moment is what they'll do, there's no cohesive whole like it had in the first couple seasons.
These aren't the only shows I watch, but they're the only ones I feel the need to comment on at the moment.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2012-04-11 12:17 am (UTC)Ros is a show-only character. The only way they could make her and the brothel scenes eventually useful would be later, and has to do with Tyrion and some of his manuevering as King's Hand.
Stannis is a little dry and although I'm sure he has an important role
Stannis has a HUGE role. But with the books, GRRM had plenty of time to set him up properly. They've already eliminated his young daughter, the only character who made him not dry, and whittled down his wife to nothing.
Aside from Tyrion trying to behave as the King's Hand, I'm mostly interested in Arya and the bastard's story right now
You might find the Catelyn/Renly plot I'm sure will be started next Sunday interesting. One of my favorite book characters gets intro'd in that SL. And the Theon/Iron Islands SL was pretty good in the books, but if the girl playing Asha (excuse me, YARA) doesn't get less bland, that won't even be good.
Re: House Did you see last night's ep? If I were Wilson, that would've been the end of it right there. But, well, I'm not and Wilson's proven himself to be a battered wife. I'm not sure if they knew going into this season it would be the last. I've heard conflicting stories about whether they decided to end it or it was cancelled and they acted like they decided to end it. Either way, the show hasn't been good since season five.
Re: Alcatraz I'm willing to give it some more time to try to explain things with the prisoners. I'm beginning to think there might be some knowledge uploads built into them as they "return". It seemed to be suggested in the pilot, when what's his face had no future shock upon waking up in the prison and leaving the island. After the finale, the scope has become country-wide, so that might add to the mix. I'm curious enough to keep watching. More than I can say for Grimm which I dropped after six episodes.
Re: Fringe COMPLETELY AGREED. I just don't even care if they cancel that series now.
Re: Supernatural Same thing. I've been watching it to mock and rage for a lot longer, though. I think I seriously stopped giving a damn about the plot in mid-season four. It just got downright BAD near the end of season five. Sera Gamble's problem is, I don't think she understands how to do seasonal arcs. She realized part of her mistake of last season, where the arcs made NO SENSE, but it's just pacing and lack of any story logic, internal or otherwise, in the show now. All signs point to a solid renewal for season eight. Stupid me, I'll probably watch next season, too.
no subject
Date: 2012-04-12 09:00 pm (UTC)The book character is the blonde-warrior woman, right? Yeah, she looks like she might be interesting. I don't mind Yara so far, but I haven't warmed to her either (although I could have sworn I knew the actress from something, but she doesn't appear to have been in anything I've ever seen... guess she just reminds me of somebody else).
Yeah, House's most recent ep inspired the rant... the one before it, too, but to a lesser extent. This one, I was watching the whole ep thinking, "Oh, come on, they can't be THAT cheesy, and have the surprise twist being House faking this too..." And yeah, Wilson is an idiot. The stupid thing is, every time Wilson _does_ pull away from House, it seems like it's for some relatively silly reason (well, not silly, like Amber dying it totally makes sense, but at the same time it wasn't House's FAULT, either). But when House pulls REAL crap that directly affects Wilson, all is always forgiven.
I can't keep track of all the seasons, but yeah, the House-drama has been old for a while. I do give them credit for some of the cast changes over the years (and I actually quite like Park this year, she's been one of the main reasons I'm still watching... though the other girl's no replacement for 13). And even if they didn't know the season was going to be the last when they started, surely they should have figured it out by the last couple episodes, especially since they announced it a couple months ago. So that's why I'm particularly annoyed at these "House is just dicking with somebody (and by extension, the show is just dicking with the audience)" episodes so late in the game.
Alcatraz: I don't know, if they have knowledge uploads, it feels very much like "what's the point?". They can fit in perfectly with the world, there's not a whole lot cool about it. It's like they're just chasing criminals. I mean, if they did a show about a group of people chasing criminals who are all reincarnations of previous criminals who all died in Alcatraz, I could accept that, but the idea is that these guys all just wound up in the present as though no time has passed. For them to act exactly like any criminal of today is a jarring change, and a poor choice IMHO. The mystery should match up with the standalone aspects, and instead it feels like a show about people investigating people somehow jumping ahead in time, who also happen to investigate traditional murderers, and half the time is spent on each unrelated point. And it doesn't help that it seems to be poorly-thought-through in other ways... like the criminals on several occasions (and maybe always) appearing IN modern day Alcatraz, and taking the ferry off (or in the case of those three who were after the gold, just staying there). You'd think that if you had a secret organization, BASED IN Alcatraz, dedicated to solving the mystery of why people who disappeared in the 60s suddenly are reappearing, they wouldn't be able to let THE PEOPLE THEY'RE AFTER SPONTANEOUSLY APPEARING IN ALCATRAZ slip under their nose multiple times. There should be cameras in every square inch of the place.
I forgot to mention Grimm in my post. I'm still watching it, still enjoying it, but sort of how I enjoy toast - yeah, it's bland, but I can enjoy bland sometimes as long as it doesn't make me reject it on grounds of stupid. And at least I get into the plots of the everyday episodes more than in Alcatraz (where the fact that the criminals all fit in perfectly to society makes that aspect MORE bland).
And for Supernatural, I've been mostly mock-watching for a few years too, but once they killed Bobby, the last thread of nostalgia tying me to the show's gone. I used to be able to mock watch and enjoy a little bit of Bobby. Now it's just mock-watching.