This episode has the dumbest ending of the entire series. An injection is all it needs to survive in cold space without a suit? Really? Is Naomi somehow related to Skywalkers? This is disappointing, considering that this series is one of the most scientifically accurate concept of future in space, excluding the protomolecule, of course.
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@pepperonzo That injection was mentioned earlier in the season when Holden and Bull save Monica. It's hyper-oxygenated blood, meant to help save you in the event your suit fails or you find yourself in a vacuum. Not a silver bullet, but clearly it helped her get to the Chetzemoka.
The pace slows a bit in this episode, but again the highlight here is the characters in play.
Again I am struck by Chrisjen Avasarala (Shohreh Aghdashloo), and not in a good way. Although her accent is beautiful, I don’t believe Aghdashloo’s portrayal at all. She doesn’t seem to penetrate the character’s motivations and what I am perceiving is her delivering her lines, not so much acting. Consequently, her role seems off and aloof rather than a woman of passion that Chrisjen clearly is, at least on paper.
Which is a pity. Her role is such a juicy one for a woman, that it is a shame she feels like bad casting, and the role could have gone to an actress with more chops. I can see Tilda Swinton playing this role with gelid-eyed ferocity.Hers is the only real problematic portrayal, everyone else is doing a great job.
All of that said, this episode continues to build the story relentlessly from the previous episode.
We have an interesting additional ‘backstory’, that of Diogo (Andrew Rotilio), who we saw in earlier episodes in scenes with Miller where he was warned to 'Stay away from the aqua!’, and his uncle Mateo (Alex Karzis). This sequence gives us an emotional and tense story line, giving you some of the grit and determination of the Belters to make a sacrifice for what’s right, even though it’s clear they’re mistreated and taken advantage of. Although it doesn’t appear as though this character is important, the fact that this dramatic little side story appears, leads me to believe that Diogo, who we last see floating on his own, will become an important secondary character later on.
Regardless of the vicious machinations going on way above their heads, the Belters clearly deserve some justice.
We also get further evidence of the growing close knitting of the crew of the Rocinante. The handle Fred Johnson and his demands deftly, and head into God knows what by the end of the episode. Holden continues to display wit, and his team loyalty.
The byplay between Miller (Thomas Jane) and Octavia (Athena Karkanis) is also looking like something we will watch play out later on in the story. The chemistry between them is there, and I like all the scenes between them. Jane plays his character’s bitterness perfectly with her, and she hits her character’s notes perfectly. Tough but vulnerable, willing to stretch, but not quite bend the rules. Her rescuing of Miller in this episode definitely deserves a brownie point or two.
It is clear that this is a series that requires you to pay attention. It’s easy to miss some details on the first watch, so you cannot ignore anything or anyone at this point.
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@sungoddess Through subsequent seasons and play throughs, do you still feel the same way about Aghdashloo’s portrayal of Avasarala? Maybe I'm looking at it through rose tinted glasses, but I can't picture that character being played by anyone else now.
Just to preface this, I thought A Force Awakens was emotionless trash that undermined the entire purpose of the original three films.
Rogue One was the opposite.
The best thing about this movie was the emotional impact. It underlined the sacrifices made to make the original trilogy possible. Some people have called it long, but that helped build up characters that you actually felt for, and who weren't carbon copy ripoffs (cough cough A Force Awakens). The final scenes as the two main characters face their fate, recognizing that it was worth it, gave such a high emotional payoff. Each major death scene actually made you feel something.
The second best thing was K-2SO. Very funny, and much needed comedic (but not goofy) relief.
The CGI for landscapes and the world creation was outstanding. When I see a movie like Star Wars I want to be amazed and see things that I haven't seen done before. I want to be impressed and drawn into new, beautifully crafted worlds. In this respect, the movie just kept delivering over and over.
The cinematography was great during the action sequences. The sequences looked epic, and the violence and sacrifice felt meaningful. The Vader fight sequence was intense.
It also had interesting ties to current events with its commentary on terrorism/rebellion/weapons of mass destruction. By the way, the science genius character realizing that he isn't priceless in developing some major device is fantastic. All of the movies with "only so-and-so can figure this out" are very disappointing.
The moral message of the movie was also very clear and well delivered.
I really enjoyed the movie overall and thought that it was a big step in the right direction. It was adventurous again, it was sometimes shocking, original, and most of all meaningful. A Force Awakens failed on all of those points. It's good to see a franchise movie that's taking a bit more risk than average. AFA was just like the new Star Trek films, shiny bling low-impact action movies that just happen to be set in space. Rogue One pushes far beyond to show the what drives the Rebellion in a world we know and love.
Despite the fact that I really liked the movie, it had some flaws:
- Tarkin face CGI
- Some of the acting in the first half.
- Tarkin face CGI
- Some of the cuts were really weird and the pacing felt off for portions of the first half.
- Tarkin face CGI
- Forest Whittaker just deciding to die instead of trying to escape.
- Tarkin face CGI
- A few unbelievable plot lines (thankfully most were minor). Like Cassian being sent to kill Galen for almost no reason, and then deciding not to for no reason, and then Jyn forgiving him surprisingly easily. How did she even know that he was trying to kill her father?
- Tarkin face CGI
- Does every Star Wars movie need to have a father character die? Why didn't Cass follow orders when he heartlessly killed someone else in his first scene?
- Tarkin face CGI
- Heavy handed political messaging.
- Tarkin face CGI
- Said "hope" too many times.
- Tarkin face CGI
- You can just push Star Destroyers that easily?
- Tarkin face CGI
- The word "Stardust"
- Tarkin face CGI
- Too many random worlds introduced that you don't have the time to get invested in.
- Tarkin face CGI
- Too much awkward fan service.
- Tarkin face CGI
- Darth Vader's voice sounded off.
- Tarkin face CGI
- Some of the dialogue was really terrible.
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@jared It bothers me irrationally that you call it A Force Awakens. It's actually "The", not "A". Everything else, totally respectable.
As for pushing the Star Destroyer, it was disabled by ion cannon fire from the Alliance Y-Wings. It wasn't obvious unless you're a Star Wars fan.
