Denis Villenueve. A solid lineup. A different take on first contact. I loved Sicario but went in expecting a cerebral epic sci-fi.
That was a mistake.
Good things:
- Some really nice visual scenes
- Interesting aliens Calligraphy aliens!
- Clear theme of communication is omnipresent
- A neat score that might be awesome in a different movie
Bad things:
- The acting
- The lack of emotional reaction to ALIENS! The students asking to turn on the TV, all of the main characters
- Lack of useful characters Only the aliens and Louise actually did anything the entire movie.
- Supporting characters are very stupid in an attempt to foil the main character slightly
- Very clumsy exposition. Genre-typical news reports, voice-overs, dumb characters asking stupid questions.
- Very slow pacing. This worked in parts of Sicario, but didn't work in this movie because there was no tension. The main characters never seemed remotely threatened.
- Lousie showing up at school thinking everyone will be there after aliens arrive and there's a state of emergency
- Why can't you translate alien language like you can translate Farsi. This is a paraphrase but in the spirit of what Colonel Weber was saying.
- Useless love interest when the costars have no chemistry.
- Ultrasecure military base lets someone steal a ton of explosives and put it in an ALIEN SPACECRAFT without anyone noticing.
- Many unbelievable plot points
- Poor dialogue Let's make a baby - real quote
- Poor handling of the major plot points Looking through time seems to undermine the fact that the aliens need help. Why did one have to die if they could see the future? Why did only one die when they were right next to each other?
- Very heavy handed moral messaging that didn't align with the rest of the movie.
- Why couldn't Ian also see into the future as he studied the language, or any of the others?
Overall extremely disappointing. I'm honestly surprised critics or general moviegoers like this. The premise was very good. It's a real shame the execution failed so miserably.
I am incredibly grateful to Game of Thrones for this adventure I have found myself sucked into for some years now. I am grateful for all the emotions it brought me since day one, bitter and sweet alike. I am grateful for all the laughs, all the tears, all the jokes and gags, every single bit of it, I really am grateful and appreciative of it all. It's been just... wonderful.
That said, I am feeling robbed and betrayed right about now. This ending is arguably one of the worst series finales in the history of television and trust me I realize how bold of a statement that is. The terrible violations the characters have suffered this season, the lack of proper resolution to many of the plots and narratives developed over seasons worth of buildup, the seeking of shock value at the expense of quality writing... that and much much more solidified this as an absolute disappointment of a finale, as opposed to the marvel wrap it could've given this cultural phenomenon.
This episode does have its positives, as always the score, acting and cinematography are perfectly performed but I just do not think it's nearly enough to compensate for how lackluster the writing has been, as much as I wish they did. Oh well, sad as it may be, I'll just hold on to the good stuff and hope that GRRM's book, once finished, will tackle the ending in a more coherent, more respectful and more meaningful way. It's been real y'all...
P.S: I'll leave this here lest some people jump me again. This comment is a representation of my own personal opinion, I am entitled to one just as all of you are. If you enjoyed this season and felt this finale delivered what you were looking for then more power to you mate, but that doesn't nullify my opinion nor does it make yours any valid. If you want to discuss or challenge my views, I'd be more than happy to engage you on that basis but if all you have to offer are petty remarks then please keep them to yourself.
Bran: I can never be Lord of Winterfell, I can never be Lord of anything, I'm the Three-eyed Raven.
Also Bran: I'm the King.
What in the actual f*ck.
I'm a reasonable man, I realize I've been crapping on D&D even more than usual this season but I really do have to give them props for doing exactly what they set out to do. They hoped to subvert our expectations and they did just wonderfully in that regards.
We expected all of that buildup over the years to actually amount to something that at the very least passes for a presentable series finale but instead, we got an incoherent, steaming pile of shit. Expectations subverted!
We expected all of that character development to actually result in a beautiful pay-off that respects the journey of self-discovery each and every one of our beloved characters went through to get to where they are now but instead, we got a painful, disrespectful cycle of character regression. Expectations subverted!
We expected the final season of this show to keep us at the edge of our seats with thrilling writing that didn't subvert our expectations for the sake of subverting our expectations via low-quality shock value-seeking writing, but to introduce plot twists that make sense within the overall narrative of the story but instead, we got CW-level predictable, cringe material. Expectations subverted!
I get it. I really do. GRRM let them down by not getting the books ready in time and so they had to improvise away from his influence, but this? This? For a long while, Game of Thrones lived up to the slogan of its parent network, it wasn't just TV, it was something different, something unique and now to have to see it come to this... it's nothing short of disappointing.
On the bright side though, at least this episode didn't suck completely. The acting, score and cinematography were all on point, so I guess it's nice that I didn't walk out of it having appreciated absolutely nothing about it.
So why do I even bother anymore? I honestly could not tell you, though it's probably a mixture of masochism and a faint sliver of hope that they won't flush our collective investment into this series down the drain by the end of it, just one more episode dammit.
For the love if shit, people. Without the first 3 episodes we wouldn't have this episode. Without the first 3 episodes this one wouldn't be as impactful. It's storytelling and all part of a larger whole. Stop saying, "finally we're getting somewhere," or "this is what the show should have been from the start." Its a journey. Just sit back and enjoy the ride. Holy shit.
Watching order
Because there are some issues with watching this, here is the order.
Copying from the site in case it ever goes down, but this info came from here: http://thunderpeel2001.blogspot.com/2010/02/battlestar-galactica-viewing-order.html
It's probably more confusing here on trakt, so go to the above linked site for a better layout.
The Miniseries
Night 1
Night 2
Season 1
1.01 33
1.02 Water
1.03 Bastille Day
1.04 Act of Contrition
1.05 You Can't Go Home Again
1.06 Litmus
1.07 Six Degrees of Separation
1.08 Flesh and Bone
1.09 Tigh Me Up, Tigh Me Down
1.10 The Hand of God
1.11 Colonial Day
1.12 Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I
1.13 Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part II
Season 2
2.01 Scattered
2.02 Valley of Darkness
2.03 Fragged
2.04 Resistance
2.05 The Farm
2.06 Home, Part I
2.07 Home, Part II
2.08 Final Cut
2.09 Flight of the Phoenix
2.10 Pegasus (56 minute extended version)
2.11 Resurrection Ship, Part I
2.12 Resurrection Ship, Part II
2.13 Epiphanies
2.14 Black Market
2.15 Scar
2.16 Sacrifice
2.17 The Captain's Hand
Razor (101 minute extended version - not the 81 minute broadcast version)
Important note: This was originally broadcast just before Season 4, but chronologically it fits here, telling more of the Pegasus's story. Some people argue it's better to watch after Season 3, as originally broadcast, but it makes most sense to watch it here.
The reason that the placement of Razor is a hotly contested issue among BSG fans is because of a bit of dialogue at the very end (in the last 10 minutes) which sets the tone for Season 4 (barely even a spoiler). Everything else in this TV movie is not a spoiler.
So why place it here, and not where it was originally broadcast, if there's any sort of issue? Because, chronologically, the story is set here, and by the time you reach the end of Season 3, the story of Pegasus will feel like ancient history. Indeed, that was the complaint echoed around the internet from fans after Razor originally aired -- it had nothing to do with what was going on in the story at that time.
As a result of this, most fans agree it's better to watch Razor here. In doing so, you'll appreciate the story more and it will have greater emotionally resonance. In short: I highly recommend that you follow my advice and watch it here.
There is one small caveat, however: In order to deal with the above dialogue issue, and so not to unintentionally alter the tone of Season 3, I have two, very specific instructions that I recommend that you follow for your absolute optimum enjoyment.
I will try not to spoil anything with these instructions, so pay attention. You need to press MUTE on your TV (and/or turn off any subtitles) in the following two moments. Both of these moments occur in the last 10 minutes of the story, so you can relax and enjoy the first 90 mins before you need to worry.
Press MUTE when:
and shortly afterwards:
That's it! That's all you have to worry about. Two very small moments, and even if you don't unmute it, it's not a huge spoiler, it just unintentionally alters the tone of Season 3 if you don't, so do try your best to follow my instructions.
2.18 Downloaded
2.19 Lay Down Your Burdens, Part I
2.20 Lay Down Your Burdens, Part II
The Resistance
A 10 episode web-based series bridging seasons 2 and 3. (25 mins.)
Season 3
3.01 Occupation
3.02 Precipice
3.03 Exodus, Part I
3.04 Exodus, Part II
3.05 Collaborators
3.06 Torn
3.07 A Measure of Salvation
3.08 Hero
3.09 Unfinished Business (70 minute extended version - Note: Not included on Region 2 DVDs, but is included on ALL Bluray releases.)
3.10 The Passage
3.11 The Eye of Jupiter
3.12 Rapture
3.13 Taking a Break From All Your Worries
3.14 The Woman King
3.15 A Day in the Life
3.16 Dirty Hands
3.17 Maelstrom
3.18 The Son Also Rises
3.19 Crossroads, Part I
3.20 Crossroads, Part II
Razor: Yes, this again. (Well this is where Razor was originally broadcast, after all.) Remember the last 10 minutes where I told you to MUTE two small moments? Well, guess what, now is when you get to go back and hear what was said. Watch the last 10 minutes of Razor here.
Season 4
4.01 He That Believeth In Me
4.02 Six of One
4.03 The Ties That Bind
4.04 Escape Velocity
4.05 The Road Less Traveled
4.06 Faith
4.07 Guess What's Coming to Dinner?
4.08 Sine Qua Non
4.09 The Hub
4.10 Revelations
Season 4 Continued (aka "Season 4.5" or "The Final Season")
4.11 Sometimes a Great Notion
The Face of the Enemy
A 10 episode web-based series (although it plays together like an intense mini-episode). (36 mins.)
4.12 A Disquiet Follows My Soul (53 minute extended version - only on Bluray releases)
4.13 The Oath
4.14 Blood on the Scales
4.15 No Exit
The Plan (DVD/Bluray movie)
A stand-alone movie that shows (approximately) the first two seasons from the Cylons' perspective. (You finally get to see "The Plan", mentioned all those times in the opening sequence!) Although The Plan was originally released after the show had finished, it is generally agreed that it should be watched here, so that everything is all tied up when you do reach the end.
4.16 Deadlock
4.17 Someone to Watch Over Me
4.18 Islanded In a Stream of Stars (62 minute extended version - only on BluRay releases and Region 1 DVDs)
4.19 Daybreak (150 minute extended version - only on BluRay releases and Region 1 DVDs)
The Plan : This is where this DVD/Bluray movie was originally released (after the show had finished). It seems universally agreed that it's preferable to watch this after No Exit, instead of after you've finished the entire series, but there's no harm in waiting until now.
Then Caprica the series: http://trakt.tv/show/caprica
I'm really not sure if I want to watch this...I really didn't like the last few episodes, maybe even the entirety of season 5. Not necessarily because the show is bad, but as a fan of the books, it's really easy to get annoyed with some of the pointless storylines, whilst seeing many of the good ones not realising their full potential. Also, some of the storylines have now caught up with the books. I think I'll have to wait watching this season untill all the books have come out. And then probably wait a while.
Anyone else have similar thoughts?
Ends on cliff hanger. Starts new ep. 5 minutes in its good. next 40 minutes its quite disappointing. Ends on cliff hanger. Repeat.
"iF yOu ThInK tHiS hAs A hApPy eNDinG, yOu hAvEn'T beEN pAyInG aTteNtIOn"
Literally everyone except Daenerys got a happy clean ending.
This episode and this season as a whole have been a complete and utter disaster. the decline of storytelling quality from the last seasons is shocking. The show is barely recognizable at this point.
A character who wasn't a contender for the throne ended up on it even though they have done absolutely nothing this whole season, had lots of potential to make for a very interesting role but was ignored and swept aside then suddenly elected king.
Daenerys's character being completely butchered as she was turned from someone who never showed the slightest disregard to innocents' safety to someone who commits mass genocide and shows no remorse afterwards, all in the span of 2 episodes.
So many character arcs were neglected or wrapped up poorly. Jon being reduced to a secondary character with a combination of three sentences of dialogue, Jaime's development being thrown out the window, Cersei barely doing anything and then getting killed by bricks, Tyrion, the master tactician, turning to a gossiping idiot then getting promoted after he quits his job (seriously?)
So many plot points were discarded or turned out insignificant. Azor Ahai, Jon's lineage, The Lord of Light, Cersei's prophecy...etc
The whole White Walkers storyline being eliminated in one episode, then the whole Iron Throne storyline being eliminated as well in the end (FFS)
So much shit not making the slightest bit of sense. Dany's army multiplying, Arya's impenetrable plot armor, The North getting the independence while the Iron Islands didn't when they were the first ones to demand it, Drogon not killing Jon after he killed Daenerys, hell, the Dothraki and the Unsullied not killing Jon after he killed Daenerys, The point of the Night's Watch now that the WW are gone. Tyrion being in chains and holding up a presidential vote over who would run the 6 republics. HBO c'mon man.
Overall the pacing was too fast and inconsistent, the ending was rushed, anti-climactic and nonsensical. This couldn't have ended in a worse way. Kudos to D&D!
Should we pretend this season never happened?
My most beloved TV show got destroyed in a matter of minutes. The previous episodes of S08 at least gave me some kind of emotion, episode 05 was a flat line. This truly is a masterpiece, a masterpiece of destruction. They've destroyed everything! The character development, the story, the plot, the meaning of GOT, the writing of G.R.R. Martin. They've destroyed all the hard work put in all of these years, they've spit on everything. I'm not going to hate the show, it gave me so much, and it will continue to be my favorite, but i'm just going to pretend this last season was never made. I'm going to imagine all the possible theories, all the story plots that could have been made, and just hope the writer finishes the series some day.
Sesion 8 the waste of our time.
Dune was an amazing visual and audial experience, and it definitely captured the vibe of Dune very well, but it lacked almost all of the depth of the book, from the lore, to the characters, and especially the plot. They cut out a huge chunk of the plot in the book, almost all of the political intrigue, and that resulted in it feeling incredibly rushed and the decisions of the characters often seemed odd and unexplained. For example, in the book, House Atreides know that House Harkonnen is planning a trap, they know the Emperor has turned on them, and they know to expect the Sardauker. They also strongly suspect there's a spy among them, and the drama surrounding this is incredibly interesting, and acted as a brilliant build-up to Doctor Yueh's betrayal. Alas, all of this was cut, and the film suffered for it.
Another fairly major gripe I had was the portrayal of Lady Jessica. In the book, she was an incredibly powerful character and was feared and respected by all. She was calm, collected, intelligent, and strong. In the film, she comes across as a mentally unstable mess, constantly crying and having mental breakdowns, and very little of her Bene Gesserit power was shown.
I had mixed reactions to the other characters. Paul and Leto Atreides were great, but Rabban Harkonnen felt very odd and not like a Harkonnen at all. Thufir Hawat was also disappointing, first they made him fat when he's supposed to still be strong (albeit ageing) warrior, but then they removed any mention of him being a Mentat and cut most of his scenes from the book.
And let's not forget to mention they cut my favourite scene from the book, which featured a dinner party and acted as very important character development for Paul, as well as showcasing the political situation on Arrakis as well as the extent of the Bene Gesserit powers.
In general, it felt like this film was less of an adaptation of the story and more of an illustration of it - omitting much of the plot, lore, and character development, and replacing it with beautiful visuals and music. Overall however, despite my disappointments at the various cuts and changes, and although I will continue to wonder what could have been achieved if the story had been split into 3 films instead of 2, this remains a fairly faithful adaptation of a book which is notoriously difficult to adapt to the screen, and as a result I thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to the sequel.
Wow, this was way better than I expected it to be.
A bit sad, that the federation seems to have strayed from its main mission.
The participation of Star Trek veterans as producers shows. Buildings and technology look like they belong in the ST Universe, no 2 million gigantic technological leaps in the first 45 minutes (well one, but that one is kind of needed...)
Best of all: They concentrated on the story instead of preaching some agenda.
So thats a 9/10 from me.
Despite it being slow, I like the show. But come on guys.... Of all character exits in TV-shows, Donna's must be one of the worst, most nonsensical ones EVER. Especially considering there were multiple options before it, that would've made so much more sense. Deathstroke, Connor, even Gar.. Any of them killing Donna would've made more sense than this crap..
ANYONE could've evaded the mast, including Dawn, making Donna her sacrifice unnecessary. Conner, who just regained his control and can withstand more than Donna, could've catched it instead - or even jumped in to take over from Donna before the electricity became fatal. Both Conner and Donna could've saved any retard that didn't move with their super speed, instead of catching the mast. And last of all, she is fucking Wonder Girl and had just (for the first time) finally showed on screen how much she can withstand, in her fight with Conner. So how the hell could she not survive this?
And then I haven't even gone into the Deathstroke part of the episode...
Whoever wrote this (and approved it) should be fired and never be allowed to touch a script again, EVER!!! This just basically threw a big bucket of shit, over the whole season (ending).
That Baby Yoda is too damn cute!! OMG I laughed so hard when he pressed the button after being told not to touch anything.
Enjoyable but incredibly overrated and an absolutely terrible ending.
I get emotional every time. Deep Space Nine ends with a beautiful farewell that manages to cover a lot of bases. It wraps up the Dominion War and gives - mostly - satisfying farewells for these characters. This show had by far the characters with the most depth and development in the franchise. There is no room for arguing that fact at all. They felt real. They had faults and they had arcs and evolved throughout the show.
So, it's a real shame that this is the final on-screen appearance for all of them bar Worf. If there was any Trek show that deserved a continuation in film format it was this one. The stories developed here were so rich, and even though this episode wraps things up it still leaves enough open questions and paths for exploration (with one MASSIVE cliffhanger in particular).
This episode itself is strong though certainly not without problems. The pacing is mostly good, but every time we cut to Kai Winn and Dukat on their pah-wraith search it really spoils the momentum. I've now learned (thanks to online forums that didn't exist for me back in the day) that a lot of people were not fans of any of this storyline. I can kind of understand why, even though it never bothered me too much. I really like the mythos that was slowly built up around the Bajoran religion, and certainly when I was younger I couldn't see the way elements became shoehorned in. The pah-wraiths amount to little more than hand-waving magic when you really look at them and they had the effect of turning both Winn and Dukat into pantomime villains.
I don't really accept the way that Winn changed her entire religious beliefs so readily, even though she tries to justify it. I also don't quite understand most of Dukat's motivations after he loses his daughter in season 6. If we are supposed to believe that he's just gone a bit insane then it could have been portrayed better. The whole showdown is over and done with far too quickly and it all gets a bit Star Wars (which I adore, but Star Wars is fantasy-based whereas Star Trek is science fiction/technology based). It doesn't fit. And we get a fast wrap up where Sisko and Dukat just fall into the fire which is... silly, to be polite.
The rest of the episode makes up for this, though. The final battle of the Dominion War is a visual feast and a gripping rollercoaster. The space battle is a tremendous accomplishment for 1990s television standards, but the best part is the Kira/Garak/Damar resistance storyline. Those three characters have such rich histories of conflict to mine that putting them together leads to nothing but joy on screen. The death of Damar does feel like a gut punch even though we've spent so much time hating him for his actions over the course of the past few seasons. It's a shame that his murder of Ziyal is never directly addressed by Kira or Garak. The love-to-hate-him character Weyoun gets a satisfying send off, and the war is ended with a moment of compassion and understanding when Odo offers to give himself up to save everyone.
The individual character bookends are also greatly satisfying, and often bittersweet. Odo leaves, O'Brien leaves, Worf leaves. Odo's decision feel natural even though he leaves hurt people in his wake, but Miles' is much more unexpected and actually the more emotional for me. The O'Brien/Bashir bromance was among my favourite parts of this show, so the video collage of their past moments is heartbreaking for me. Worf's departure is a bit stranger, since we will see him again in Star Trek: Nemesis and it doesn't acknowledge his decisions here at all. Additionally, I will be forever disappointed that there are no flashback to Jadzia due to licensing reasons.
In happier endings, Julian and Ezri are finally together and I like it. It was all a bit forced but I'm just happy at the thought of them together. Nog gets promoted to Lieutenant (take that, Harry Kim), Kira is in charge of the station and Quark gets to keep running the bar while Rom has become Grand Nagus!
That leaves the saddest ending of all: the Siskos. In particular, I think Jake gets the short straw. His dad is gone but just within reach. Benjamin has not only left his son behind, but his pregnant wife. It's a bold ending that leaves you wanting to know more, and extremely bittersweet. Ben and Jake were the heart and soul of this show from the very beginning and I think it's appropriate that it finishes on a shot of Jake thinking about his dad while being comforted.
I said in my review of 'Emissary' that DS9 was my favourite TV show of all time. This rewatch has solidified that statement for me. The characters here are mismatched, broken people who grow and evolve into true friends and take us on that journey with them. It has also really struck me how much DS9 continues to stand up to today's modern TV landscape, while the other Trek shows feel very much liked dated products of their time. Here we have a tale of terrorism, religion, war and through all that a thread of hope and idealism.
I absolutely can't leave it here, and I'm going to be delving into the "relaunch" novels that pick up where the show ended and continue the journey. It's not official canon and could easily be overwritten at any time (especially given the announcement of all the new Trek heading our way on TV), but that doesn't take away from these new stories at all, and given the "black sheep" nature of DS9 in the franchise I have a feeling that these stories are probably the best I can hope for. There's also the upcoming documentary What We Left Behind to look forward to, and maybe one day we'll get a nice HD upgrade for the show.
See you again down the road, DS9.
At least they don’t have to build a new throne now that Bran is king.
Absolutely excellent, probably the best episode of the season so far. Some real edge-of-your-seat enjoyment with stunning visuals.
SPECTACULAR!!! Spot on casting, authentic setting, faithful to the original book, wonderful acting, moving and joy filled drama. CBC on Sunday nights. I give it a 9 (superb) out of 10, only because I should probably see 2 episodes before granting it the 10 that I very much anticipate it will deserve. I feel as superlative as Anne. YAY!
New faces and new scenery and still Baby Yoda continues to steal the show. A good balance of action and storytelling but I'd be happier if the episodes were longer. The AT-ST Raider was a nice surprise too. It's cool to see the concept art at the end of each episode.
My investment in this season is dwindling. It started off semi-strong. Now, each episode feels like a chore to get through.
unlike most of the other CW superhero shows, Black Lightning isn't overblown with soap opera type storylines. yes, there is some family drama thrown in, but that's to be expected with the main character being a family man, but it's not overdone. good first episode and if this keeps up, i think we have a winner. i also have to mention his costume, which looks awesome by the way
Is it rough on the edges?
Yes.
Is it high on teenage drama like other cw series?
Not yet.
Even that alone is saying something.
I have to say, I really don't understand why so many people rave about "The Godfather: Part II." I mean, yeah, it has some decent moments here and there, but overall, I found it to be a pretty lackluster film. For one thing, it's just way too long. I mean, come on, who has the patience to sit through three hours of this stuff? And even then, I didn't feel like the story was all that compelling or well-told. To be honest, I found myself checking my watch more than once during the movie, just waiting for it to be over. All in all, I'd give it a generous 6 out of 10 at best. I really don't understand why this movie is so overvalued in the eyes of some.
I’m gonna come out and say it. The Cabin in the Woods is a straight up masterpiece! A must see for every horror fan that has ever felt bored or irritated by the over use of cliches left over from the 80s. While most discussion around this film tends to revolve around the genius call-backs to classic horror films and Easter eggs but I believe focusing on these elements does a disservice to the film as a whole. This is far more than a serious of Easter-eggs. All of the horror elements are genuinely effective (especially Jules’ death scene), all the humour lands perfectly and the third act says everything that Goddard and Whedon wanted to say about the horror genre. “We would rather let everyone die than let the old gods have their way.” It is a truly remarkable film that needs to be seen again and again to be fully understood and appreciated.
Booooooooooooo! Booooooo! throws vegetables at TV and hissing in Peasantry
This may have been the most boring tv episode I have ever watched. This season was like, ok, we don't want to do this show anymore lets wrap it up as quick as possible, but the last episode lets just have everyone sit around and talk.
Worst season ever... this will make Lost final look a masterclass
