very strong season 3 (which is actually season 2 part 2). Missed the princess squad action, but I recoginze the need to sacrifice their screen time for the development of Catras and Adoras core story arc.
I am really astonished by the strong emphasis on Entraptas moral development. This is really a modern take on She-Ra, telling a story on the moral side of tech. Entrapta is the Silicion Valley tech genius, helping an imperialistic army, without questioning the end that justifies her means.
I wonder what it is, that enable animated tv series mainly aimed at kids to tell stories with diverse and morally ambiguous characters, making even the meanest adversairies relatable and the most empathetic protagonist showing their flaws in the end, while big, multibillion dollar production sturggle with even developing an interesiting villain.
It's weird, but I am bothered most with the ceiling in the sub. It may be because I watched a bunch of submarine movies before seeing this episode recently, but ceilings are not so high in subs (or at least not in every other sub portrail in television and cinema). The frog perspective in some scenes did the framing no favours, since you even could see the lamps, which were a weird choice. Like in an office building. Those are miniscule details, but that the stuff you notice after three rewatches.
Besides that the episode was midtier. I think they tried to make something on the scale of the first Dalek episode in the season one of New Who, but didn't quite get the spirit. Liam Cunningham does a great Sean-Connery-Hunt-for-Red-October-style captain.
The second season extends the first season's initial situation by a few interesting components. In the classical manner of a middle part of a trilogy (see Empire Strikes Back), Jonas reaches the lowest point of the story. At the same time Jonas is also his own Darth Vader (besides many other timerelated curiosities) . This interwovenes makes DARK unique and the recurring Ariadne motif makes it clear, that rather than telling us a story, the showrunner want us, the audience, to activley unravel DARK.
And I think we will see the Ariadne themes even more clear in the third season. At the end of this, an alternative Martha shows up, pulling Jonas out of the labyrinth, like Ariadne pulling Theseus out of the laybirinth.
"She is not a Nazi, just flexible" Midges mother should write an NYT Op-Ed.
This season was a good expansion of the history of the 80s in relation to east germany. It felt like a step into a broader world , although Martins way home felt a bit detached from the rest of the season arc.
Besides Jonas Nay, Sylvester Groth and Fritzi Haberland carried this season. I wished Rose had more screentime though and were allowed to have an independent character arc that not only supports Leonoras character development.
But the best aspect was really the camera work. The framing of persons, the angles! Reminded my in part of the camera in Mr. Robot.
I so hope we get a third season (my theory is, that the plan was/is to do three seasons, each three years apart, so the third season would be set in 1989 until the fall of the Berlin Wall)
a great series finale for setting up a third and final season (only my assumption, since it would make sense: 83 - 86 - 89).
Very good performances by Sylvester Groth and Fritzi Haberland this season. Anke Engelke was also very entertaining but her character remained too two-dimensional.
One of the Who-iest episodes in ages. The essence of Doctor Who is a show for kids, teaching them about history. This episode embodies it in its very heart. And they find the perfect balance between addressing race relations then and in the present through dialog between the two PoC companions. The white protagonists are not the heroes, but need to acknowledge that they can't change Rosas life. That's the sensitivity Moffat never had. This season is going to be glorious!
really like her! There is a lot of Christoper Eccleston going on here, even more Season 1 vibe with the companions. Down to earth but also mythical
I really liked Cress Williams, his deep voice and that he is very Idris-Elba-like. The setting as far as introduced seemed a bit uninspired. On the one hand it's good that a tv series incorporates social issues of POCs, but on the other hand it seems like the tv makers think "it's a black tv series, so it has to have black themes". I don't see Arrow or Flash dealing with such things, specially not in their pilot.
But this pilot was not bad. The themes as uninspired as they were, were very well executed. If they find their own spin on the whole thing it could get very good.
And, to repeat my self, I really liked Cress Williams acting. He is grumpy, but has room for witty comments.
Black Lightning could become the perfect series to replace Arrow as a serious CW superhero show. Because Arrow has jumped the shark a long time ago.
Screw Dibney!
Go Black Bison!
Thank god for Mary Elisabeth Winstead!
A good mix of the tried and trusted Fargo formula, multiple intertwined story lines, a police chief, bad and dumb people and death combined with new faces.
I've never been so relived seeing someone hit by a A/C-Unit
And I wonder if "Ehrmantraut" was a shout out to the other best TV-Show currently airing?
in the voice of a local news anchor
Might your Windows 95 screensaver be cursed? We tell you all about it later.
But first: Queerbaiting. How is this still a thing?
The best Doctor Who Episode of 2007
I missed Oliver performing Starcity as Flarrow Version of City of Stars
The Master is the true Iron Fist!
Better Call Billy
Goliath starts interesting but needs a firm cutting. There is too much unnecessary fluff. I love Billy Bob Thornton though. He really holds this series together, the other actors are fine but not more.
The end is nigh
It's exposition time in Westworld, y'all! So Bernard was created because Ford wasn't able to recreate true emotion. Only another host could do it. Maybe this is analoge to programming we have now. In the early days of computing coders needed to code in assembly, tell the computer every operation it had to do. Nowadays we have higher level programming, in some cases we can even talk in natural language to it. So i think the way Ford works is not so far away to the way we work with computers. For me it is totally logical, that just hosts can model their own emotions, fulfill such a complicated task. My current Arnold-Theory is, that he was a host, that Ford created to do a similar task. But it got out of hand. So Bernard is Arnold 2.0.
Ford also quotes Mary Shelly's Frankenstein: One man's life or death were but a small price to pay for the acquirement of the knowledge which I sought, for the dominion I should acquire and transmit over the elemental foes of our race.
It is a bit to on the nose for my taste, but i guess this late in the season they really to tell it to the last viewer, who didn't already understand.
One gripe i had with the episode was, that apparently you can photoshop people out of surveillance footage. Who thought this was a nice feature to have? "Oh, and make sure we can edit our security tapes. You know...just in case" "Of course, that is not at all creepy and suspicious"
What i expected: This show is about a terrorist attack, that wipes out the entire US government. So it will be mainly about hunting the (muslim) terrorists, like in 24. And a President, who does everything to stay in power, like House of Cards.
What it's actually about: How terrorist attacks affect Muslim-Americans, how a right-wing, islamophobic governor tries to establish a police state. About a naive, but lovable president, who takes time for his family, while his wife is kick-ass lawyer. About a president, who tries to find the terrorists, but doesn't want to attack someone without being 100% sure.
It's not a dystopian vision of the USA after a devastating attack. It's an utopia!
What if Frank Underwood would become Pope?
The Young Pope is one of the most remarkable series of 2016. Jude Law not only acts but lives the role of the egocentric, mystic and near maniac Pope Pius XIII. The camera uses every aspect of Vatican architecture to bring this series to life. The soundtrack underlines but also contradicts.
You need to give this series time. Like it's protagonist it doesn't like to tell you it's plan. It conveys the big enigma that is the roman catholic church like i've never seen before. Even if you are an atheist for a short time you need to buy into the narrative of catholic belief to feel the epicness of the story.
Duke of Edinburgh, but sexy
The Crown is the most expensive series Netflix produced to date and i really looks like it is. It can definitely parallel Peter Morgan's earlier imagination of Queen Elisabeth in "The Queen". But for me the real star is Matt Smith as Prince Philip. Often times he is just standing or sitting in the backround of a scene, but in the most elegant and at the same time chilled way i ever saw.
The Crown is an ambitous project, set out for six seasons (and a movie?), and it could become an epic telling of Queen Elisabeth II.'s life.
I really liked that intro. Although it wasn't necessary, it was a nice way to explore Elliot's state of mind. And it is another way to interpret his perspective of the world. For Elliot the world must look like a sitcom. On the top-layer it's intact, everyone acts happy and problems doesn't seem to be grave, but it's just an illusion, fake as the greenscreen. Problems and dysfunctional relationships are laughed away, which compares to the real world, where Elliot sees how people always try to overplay their personal and societal problems.
But the producers need to be careful to don't overplay this creative tidbits in future episodes, otherwise it tends to distract from the main plot and becomes just a gimmick. In general it seems to me that Elliot's plot is underdeveloped in this season, in this episode specially. He doesn't need to be the protagonist necessary, i can see him more as a commentator as well, but he was developed as a lead. Now he is more of a supporting character.
The strength of the episode lies with the women, as it was built up in the former episodes. Angela and Darlene have an intriguing dynamic and they focus on hands-on hacking, which made this series unique. It shows also, that, when they focus on just two story arcs instead on for or five like in the last episode, they have time to develop it better and make the whole thing coherent.
It feels like the season misses a general narrative. The single story lines are nice, but the feel disconnected not only from each other, but also from episode to episode. I don't see yet how they will bind those vignettes together
"I get mad at my self and then it makes my suck at everything i do even more!"
I feel you Amethyst, i feel you.
i think they bounced back very well from the plot mess that were the last couple episodes. I really hope they take Coleman down in a epic way. Shitgate was one of the moments, that are very UnReal-typical: You don't know if you want to laugh or cry, maybe both
Oh good. You didn't need me at all
I must admit, Amethyst is my least favorite Crystal Gem. It's not, that i don't like her, but i can't really connect with her goofy and irresponsible nature. (What does it say about me, that i am more in Pearl's side here? ;) )
But in this episode, Steven Universe delivers an emotional sucker punch, where i felt so sorry for Amethyst that i just wanted to hug her (thankfully Steven did that in the end).
In Mr. Greg we've dealt with Pearls problem to deal with the loss of Rose. We have a couple of episodes where we deal with Garnets emotional problems, but there are just a few episodes that deal with Amethysts emotions. I think she is constantly insecure for her imperfectness. We hear Jasper say, that Amethyst should have been as big as Jasper. Amethyst tries to mask her insecureness with goofiness but in this episode it really broke through. Jasper was made for fighting, and she does that not only on a physical level, but is also really good at making her opponents insecure. Without the support of Garnet and Pearl, i think it really got to Amethyst and we'll see that pan out in future episodes.
On a lighter note, we finally saw Stevonnie fight. I loved how they stood up to Jasper. Not only in an physical way, but also in an emotional way. They didn't let Jasper get to them on a psychological level like Amethyst did. Maybe Fusions are also stronger in a psychological way. Garnet barley shows emotions, because Ruby and Sapphire keep each other in check. Maybe it is the same with Connie and Steve and other fusions. The insecurities and inabilities of the fusionees are negated by each other and only or mostly their positive attitudes are prevalent.
What i noticed first in this episode was the color coding. Steven wears a light pink, puffy jacket while Connie wears a dark green hoodie (which made her look like Link, even more with the sword :D ). I like to think they consciously reversed the colors on them to contradict mainstream gender roles. This even more reflects in the dynamic of Connie and Steven, not only in this episode. When Steven got stuck in the snow after he rolled down the hill, Connie offers him help and he takes it. That is only a small gesture, but it isn't often in any show, even more in cartoons, that the male protagonist takes the help of his female sidekick. Connie is not only the girl, that is dragged along, she is a vital part of the team. She has the fighting and snowboarding skills. She is determined. In the end the whole story arc wasn't about Steven but about Connie and her relationship to Pearl. I really love to see her in episodes, because every time her story arc is as much important as Steven's.
I think the whole episode is about realizing you need and asking for help. Stevens accepts Connie's help to get out of the snow and in a bigger arc Connie realizes she needs help with the monster, and calls Pearl. In any other show it would play out like this: Connie overestimates her strength and ability and tries to take on the monster until in the last second she is saved by Pearl and then Pearl teaches her about taking help etc. But Pearl told them already they should call her when they are in danger. It really angers me, when plots are woven around the fact that a team doesn't hear on each other, but the in this case it is the opposite. Again SU tries to go new ways in terms of story telling and character building.
Also i really like Connie's relationship to her parents. In a lot of cartoons, parents are antagonists or at least hurdles that the kid protagonist has to overcome to advance in the plot. I think this is because kids often see their parents this way and so they can connect easily to it. But Connie has a strong bond to her parents, and naturally shows them all her pictures of her adventure. It doesn't come to her to have secrets before her parents. And why should she? They are her parents and only wish the best for her, even if the best is to fight monsters with a sword. I think it is okay to have secrets from parents but it is also important to show in such cartoons that healthy parent-kid-relationship is based on trust and truth.
S.S. Misery
It's obvious, that the whole Lapis-Jasper-Storyline is about toxic relationships. And they done it really well. People stay together not only for external reasons (for the kids etc.) but also for internal reasons. As Lapis say, she kind of misses Jasper. It is an unhealthy urge to surround oneself with people that drag you down. But i think the underlying motive of Lapis Lazuli is depression. First of all Lapis is blue, she is literally feeling blue all the time. Second she shows symptoms of depression (i am not a psychiatrist, though, so i could be wrong). No motivation to do anything, Steven has to urge her to come on the boat. Blaming herself for everything. Making herself miserable because she thinks she deserves it. Maybe, like Centi, she is corrupted in her own way. It isn't just fixed with repairing her gem.
It was a melancholic but also lovely episode. It was satisfying to see her stand up against Jasper. But i think that won't be the last of it. You can't overcome such unhealthy relationships with a bang, and i think the show runner know this.
I am not sure how i should interpret the title. Neither Steven nor Lapis nor Greg where alone in this episode. Maybe it's about Jasper, but i think it's more meta. Maybe Lapis is feeling alone at sea. She thinks nobody is there to help her, nobody can help her. But in reality she has a lot of people who like her (Steven, Greg, Peridot). She feels alone, but her friends are close, just behind the horizon.
Oh my god! It's character actress Margot Martindale!
This episode had a very good way of toying with my expectations. in the end i really couldn't say if Tony was infected or not.
I see strong parallels in Centis Crayon drawings and children drawings of war. I think this is not a coincidence. Centi was not only a fighter but is also a victim of war. Maybe her corruption is the gem version of PTSD. Very touching episode. I also liked it how Pearl ask Amethyst to stop, when she makes fun of Centi. Even if Pearl doesn't trust Centi and Amethyst doesn't want to be mean for Pearl it is important that nobody is made fun of for his/her/their appearance.
The roof, the roof is on fire!
After my reservations about the first episode i was amazed by this. Absolutely savage. Specially Walton Goggins shows his true talent. They could establish a common hate against Dr. Brown, wich made the protagonist more likeable. That is what i missed in the first episode. Now i am really excited for the rest.
