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The pilot of Revolution is up, I haven't bothered to watch it yet, the trailers were enough to put me off.
http://www.nbc.com/revolution/
But Favreau directed the pilot, Abrams is Executive Producer, and the Supernatural guy is the creator, so anyone giving it a try?
If the trailer turned you off then why are you starting a thread about it, LoL?
I'd hesitate to put too much stock in J.J. being involved; he bailed on Lost after the first handful of episodes, after all, and Alcatraz was certainly nothing special. As for Favreau directing - that'll be the first episode or two, max. It's doubtful how much impact he'll have on the show beyond that.
For what it's worth, I've read two pretty lackluster reviews so far (A.V. Club and FutonCritic), but I liked the trailer, so I'll probably give it a shot. The premise reminds me of S.M. Stirling's Change novels, which I'd read if they weren't so long and loaded down with detail. (Never have I wished to know so much about how chainmail is made).
Some SPOILERS below:
Watched it last night.
It was a good setup. The (re-)casting of Elizabeth Mitchell as the mom means you know there's more to the mom's story than just being dead and out of the picture.
The best performance was Giancarlo Esposito as Captain Neville. He's a brutal, lethal man without remorse -- but he's not a psychopath. Like Gus Fring, he's doing what he needs to do to survive, and he's very philosophical about just how fragile his position is. He can be very mean, but he's no meaner than he has to be.
The lead actress Tracy Spiridakos is very, very attractive, but she doesn't have much of a range. Hopefully, she'll improve as the series unfolds. Favreau's visualization of an overgrown world is one of the most compelling parts of the show.
Although, NBC better be cutting S.M. Stirling a huge-ass check right about now...this certainly feels like "Dies The Fire: The Series" in more ways than one. This could either be the next Jericho, or the next The Event -- the latter show promising a lot, but never fully delivering. It could go either way. However, Eric Kripke's spearheading this, not Abrams, so you know the mythology will be satisfying, and that the show's larger arc is likely already planned out.
I think the big, Abrams-esque secret of this show will be that General Electric executives pulled the plug on electricity to make the people appreciate them in some sort of bizarre, Atlas Shrugged-kinda way.
(...Or that General Monroe is a secret Civil War LARPer, and wanted to take his weirdo obsession global.)
Aaaaand...ninja'd by Tony by only two minutes (re: S.M. Stirling).
But yeah -- looks like I'm not the only one here who notices this.
Apparently they had this big vote to select 10 cities for the pilot to screen in. The town I live in, Wilmington, is where they're filming the series, so we also made it on the list. Last week I was super excited to get free tickets to the screening tomorrow night....then they put the damn thing online days before. Brilliant. Why not have the screenings last week?
Anyway, I hope this is cool. I like the concept, but find all the sword fighting in the commercials a little silly.
Funny thing about them filming in this area, a few months ago, some co-workers were talking about how an emp attack could leave us without power for years, and the joke was made that my home-county wouldn't notice (because, we're in the sticks). Fast-forward a few weeks and they're filming this show in that same county.
Aaaaand...ninja'd by Tony by only two minutes (re: S.M. Stirling).
But yeah -- looks like I'm not the only one here who notices this.
Oh, I was shouting "Dies the Fire!" the second I saw the preview for this. Although the show looks like it will have much much less Wicca in it, which is a plus.
Am I the only one who thinks that Kripke had little or nothing to do with the success of Supernatural? The first two seasons, which he directly oversaw, were a big mass of bleah. It wasn't until Edlund and a few others came on board that it got entertaining. And then the finale, which Kripke wrote, was a big pointless mess. The few direct contributions he made are pretty much blatant swipes from Neil Gaiman.
I actually think Abrams is a more talented writer and director, even if he's affected by some serious ADD and has a laughable grasp of basic science and narrative logic at times.
I think Uncle Miles summed up this pilot the best-"underwhelmed."
I like Billy Burke as Miles but that's about it. Capt Neville is destined to be the bad guy turned good.
The kidnapped brother is all sorts of annoying and the way they killed the father with him holding a crossbow vs an army was a dumb way to start. They need to squash this part of the storyline quick.
IF the showrunners learn from Fringe and cut to the mystery quickly(Fringe introduced the altworld 2 years early) then it has a chance to hold my attention. It gets at most 13 episodes unless it's really bad. If after 13 episodes they are still spinning their wheels I'm out.
Am I the only one who thinks that Kripke had little or nothing to do with the success of Supernatural? The first two seasons, which he directly oversaw, were a big mass of bleah. It wasn't until Edlund and a few others came on board that it got entertaining. And then the finale, which Kripke wrote, was a big pointless mess. The few direct contributions he made are pretty much blatant swipes from Neil Gaiman.
I actually think Abrams is a more talented writer and director, even if he's affected by some serious ADD and has a laughable grasp of basic science and narrative logic at times.
Fair enough but now that he is gone from Supernatural.......have you see it? The last 2 years have been really rough.
I'm going to have to straight up disagree about Supernatural Prankster, that show's first five seasons is maybe one of the best examples of long form tv storytelling EVER, SIGNIFICANTLY better than, say, Lost. Also, Walt makes an excellent point. Supernatural is a shadow of the great show it used to be. I feel like you're under valuing the show.
Kripke was a great conductor in that he obviously knew how to corral the talent and get good ideas out of them, particularly with regards to the greater arc of the show. But I do agree with Prankster, he's simply not as good a writer as the others. Even now, episodes by guys like Edlund and Carver crackle in ways that his never did, which is also why I wouldn't worry too much if the pilot of Revolution isn't that great. I imagine the show will live or die by the talent of the writers he has under him.
I liked it enough to watch the rest of the season, though there is plenty to criticize.
Typically, when you hire a movie director for your TV pilot, you do it to get some visual style and atmosphere to set the tone for the series, presumably to be carried on from that point by the DP. When you hire Jon Favreau, whose specialty is "flat, but competent", that's what you get.
Most of this pilot seemed to want to fast forward through the premise as quickly as possible, with nary a character moment to make us care about these pretty faces or tell us why we are watching a TV show about them. The details of the world were so minimal they were nonexistent, except that the dirt in the middle of the town square is the best place for your corn crop.
Blonde Main Character's initial optimism about her fellow dystopians was pretty damn funny. "They can't all be rapers! They just can't be!". Immediately after almost being raped and killed.
By the end of the pilot, it felt like it was just good enough, with just enough potential to stay intersting. However much Kripke had to do with it, Supernatural always nailed the progression of it's season arcs, and improved steadily (at least through season 5 from what I hear, I'm about to start that one now). There is plenty of time along the way for the good world building details, interesting plots, and Blonde Main Character's growth, Jared Padalecki-style, from "Ehhhh...." to "Alright, I guess.".
As an aside, this setup also has a lot in common with my beloved, short lived Harsh Realm, Chris Carter's series from 1999. That one also had a scrappy band of outsiders vs. a self-styled dictator in a semi-Road Warrior type situation, where gas and bullets are the best currency. Except in that case, the pilot set up the world smoothly and elegantly, delivered kickass action, badass D.B. Sweeney, and Terry O'Quinn being a total boss as Santiago, the dictator.
Sure beats the hell out of Revolution's dictator, who looks at a piece of paper with really bad news, and then just kinda sits down in his chair without reacting. Gripping!
If it lasts long enough I'll check back in a few episodes. It looks (and kinda sounds) like Terra Nova.
Kripke was a great conductor in that he obviously knew how to corral the talent and get good ideas out of them, particularly with regards to the greater arc of the show. But I do agree with Prankster, he's simply not as good a writer as the others. Even now, episodes by guys like Edlund and Carver crackle in ways that his never did, which is also why I wouldn't worry too much if the pilot of Revolution isn't that great. I imagine the show will live or die by the talent of the writers he has under him.
This. I'll definitely give the guy credit for knowing how to assemble a good writing team. But it took quite a while.
I haven't seen the last two seasons of Supernatural, but the fact that it's gone downhill in quality doesn't actually make the prior seasons better.
And I don't know what to say to the idea that the long-form storytelling in Supernatural is one of the best ever. I just completely disagree. I mean, Lost may have dropped the ball eventually, but during its best years the plot was driven by character evolution and complex ideas. The first few seasons of Supernatural are an almost comical cycle of "One of the brothers sacrifices himself to save his brother/father", rinse, repeat, with very little in the way of character-based storytelling. Sam's an emo guy who never wanted to be there, Dean's the wacky likeable one who wanted to follow in his father's footsteps. There's a demon who wants to do demon-y things. That's basically all there is to it. When things start to get more interesting in the third season (which features a lot of legitimately good single episodes) the storyline nevertheless ends up being pretty predictable. Dean knows he's going to be dragged off to hell; at the end of the season, he gets dragged off to hell. Then he comes back in S4 through no particular agency of his or Sam's own. While there's much about the show in those seasons that's entertaining, that longer-form arc is pretty boring storytelling. The only one that gets particularly cool is S5's swiped-from-Good-Omens apocalypse arc, and even then it's more about the amusing individual encounters with the Four Horsemen, the antichrist, etc.
Don't get me wrong, the show's fun, but I don't think Kripke's got much to do with the good aspects of the show other than, as Evi says, rounding up a good team. As a long-form storyteller I don't think he's all that.
So, the big question for me is will Gus Fring be enough to make me check this out? I'll be following the board to see which way this trends. Might be something I catch up with, if people like it.
So, the big question for me is will Gus Fring be enough to make me check this out? I'll be following the board to see which way this trends. Might be something I catch up with, if people like it.
He's good in the pilot, but has barely anything to work with so far. It's a 2-parter worth of plot and introductions crammed into 42 minutes.
He's slumming it for the network paycheck. Can't blame him, dude's gotta work. At least it's slightly better than the network jobs most of the Wire crew ended up with.
Tried it, couldn't even make it through the pilot.
Eh, caught the pilot over the summer and all I can really say is "WE HAVE TO INTRODUCE ALL THIS STUFF AND JAM PACK THIS EPISODE SO WE CAN TRY AND GET A FULL SEASON IN THIS ONE EPISODE!" Christ, so much going on, so much I don't care about. How long did it take them to get to the city? Like...2 minutes? And then the first person they run into is the one person they're looking for? I know there's supposed to be serendipity and all that, but come on.
It's a bit lifeless, but the premise is good enough to keep people interested I'd suppose. Just...eh. It suffers from Star Wars syndrome: the fate of absolutely everything is falling upon the shoulders of this tiny group of people who all know each other and/or are related to one another. Just call the chick Katniss Skywalker already.
THUD REVIEW: REVOLUTION EP 101 -- PILOT
Probably the first and last episode I'm going to review. Maybe the first and last episode I'm going to watch. Not really a fan.
As someone who lives in a solar electric powered home (still on grid - but with battery backup), my sig other and I sat there, perplexed. So, that big power failure affected the power that can be driven by sunlight? Or wind?
And/or everyone (scientists, physicists, engineers included) just threw up their hands with a "WTF" and gave up? For fifteen years? What about Tesla coils that are in museums? I know there's one at the OMSI in Portland. Can't something be harnessed via Tesla?
But besides these questions that kept replaying in my head over and over again; which is probably attributed to the fact that I could not find any character remotely interesting and I was bored and had to keep my mind busy elsewhere. You just look at that list of "Executive Producers", followed by "Directed by", and then, "Created by" and your eyes start to get glossy with thoughts of, "holy crap, this SHOULD be great stuff", but within the first 15-minutes, you. just. don't. care.
Oh, this so reminded me of Terra Nova. And will probably be a one season like Terra Nova.
Haven't seen the pilot, only the trailer, which didn't impress me. It looked like they filmed it with the stand-ins.
Question:
Do they explain what the "rules" are?
If "electricity" is disabled to the extend that even batteries don't work it means that electrons can not flow freely in electrical/ chemical reactions. then no one/ nothing would be alive. The brain, neural system and muscles work electrically. If electrons can't flow freely, then electromagnetism and the fundamental interactions don’t work and then the whole planet (solar system?) would cease to exist.
Maybe I am too anal (I’m german after all ;-) but this is VERY basic stuff, driving the whole premise of the show. It feels like one of these ideas you have while you are drunk and you write it down and in the next morning you read it an throw it away because it is too silly.
Originally Posted by Mr Pretzel
Do they explain what the "rules" are?
Not in the least little bit. All the show illustrates is the power going out, both from devices plugged in and devices run on batteries. Seems kind of ludicrous.
Seems kind of ludicrous.
It is.
In a show like Lost i think it is okay. Partly because they don't explain phenomena, partly because a vague explanation like "it's magic" would be okay in a fictional setting.
But "no electricity" doesn't leave much room for interpretation.
Funny that even JJ Abrams doesn't appear to know what made Lost so popular.
Funny that even JJ Abrams doesn't appear to know what made Lost so popular.
Right, I feel like if this were Lost, we'd have learned a lot more about the kindly African-American woman before it's revealed that she has ...
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
... perhaps the country's only working computer up and running in a secret room in her house.
I think Evi meant the exact opposite of what you said.
The makers of Lost didn't realize the importance and suggestive power of the mysteries they created. The ending to the show ignored this and so they focused on giving the characters a kind of closure, but the mysteries of the show were wrapped up in quite a lazy fashion.
Keeping the mysteries interesting and vague made Lost interesting.
This new show doesn't even care to do this in its setup - there is a central mystery, but it seems to be a lazy and not thought out gimmick.
EDIT:
Lost showed something that you could not possibly place - Desmond in the station i.e. - and took the time to then flesh that character out. Over three seasons.
I think Evi meant the exact opposite of what you said.
The makers of Lost didn't realize the importance and suggestive power of the mysteries they created. The ending to the show ignored this and so they focused on giving the characters a kind of closure, but the mysteries of the show were wrapped up in quite a lazy fashion.
Keeping the mysteries interesting and vague made Lost interesting.
This new show doesn't even care to do this in its setup - there is a central mystery, but it seems to be a lazy and not thought out gimmick.
EDIT:
Lost showed something that you could not possibly place - Desmond in the station i.e. - and took the time to then flesh that character out. Over three seasons.
Hmm, maybe. But I thought she meant that Lost gave us reasons to care about these people first before smashing us over the head with too many mysteries. But I've been known to be wrong before.
Evi?
As someone who lives in a solar electric powered home (still on grid - but with battery backup), my sig other and I sat there, perplexed. So, that big power failure affected the power that can be driven by sunlight? Or wind?
Having solar power would do nothing to protect you from an EMP. EMPs fry electronic circuitry, regardless of how power is delivered.
Odds are that your solar panels have some electronics and would be fried as well, but even if not, they'd be delivering power to a bunch of dead TVs and appliances.
Do they explain what the "rules" are?
If "electricity" is disabled to the extend that even batteries don't work it means that electrons can not flow freely in electrical/ chemical reactions. then no one/ nothing would be alive.
Maybe I am too anal (I’m german after all ;-) but this is VERY basic stuff, driving the whole premise of the show. It feels like one of these ideas you have while you are drunk and you write it down and in the next morning you read it an throw it away because it is too silly.
I haven't seen it yet either, but I suspect the explanation will be something like, "It's an EMP, but a super-special magical... err, sci-fi kind!"
Realistically, a global electromagnetic pulse would take out the vast majority of electronics on Earth (almost everything that was connected to an electrical source at the time). So batteries would still work, but there'd be hardly anything left to plug them into. The ensuing chaos could make the production and implementation of replacements an exercise in futility.
So, the premise is a stretch, but it's one I'm willing to make if the show is good. Sadly, it's a JJ Abrams show in name only (like Falling Skies is a "Spielberg" show), so we're not getting the two biggest hallmarks of Abrams own creations (Alias, Lost, Fringe): a stellar cast and a corker of a pilot.
I was about to say the stupidest thing was how bullets won't fire, so the bad guys had to use musket balls. Then, I remembered Gus' automatic pistol. What the hell...
The bad guys in the pilot were hilariously undertrained. I loved how when they filed into the bar, instead of storming it in any kind of organized manner, they just kinda lazily wandered in in a big blob. Instead of holding their swords in any kind of defensive pose, or ninja pose, or anything, they just absentmindedly dangled them in one hand. These bad guys don't make it a habit of anticipating danger.
Then, of course, they do the thing where they fight him one or two at a time instead of rushing him. I can deal with action movie logic, but that entire scene was still really really fucking bad. Heroes bad.
I'd say the show is heading toward Heroes territory already, if it even lasts a full season.
Oh, and there's a completely awful interview with Kripke up on Collider. The guy thinks that having a main character that needs to get from point A to point B puts his show in "mythic Joseph Campbell territory", "like Lord Of The Rings".
Quote:
Haven't seen the pilot, only the trailer, which didn't impress me. It looked like they filmed it with the stand-ins.
Question:
Do they explain what the "rules" are?
If "electricity" is disabled to the extend that even batteries don't work it means that electrons can not flow freely in electrical/ chemical reactions. then no one/ nothing would be alive. The brain, neural system and muscles work electrically. If electrons can't flow freely, then electromagnetism and the fundamental interactions don’t work and then the whole planet (solar system?) would cease to exist.
Maybe I am too anal (I’m german after all ;-) but this is VERY basic stuff, driving the whole premise of the show. It feels like one of these ideas you have while you are drunk and you write it down and in the next morning you read it an throw it away because it is too silly.
The electromagnetic principle at work in the show isn't necessarily flawed, per se -- the lack of free current-flow through a conductor is not the same thing as the lack of electricity. Yes, if there were no potential differences or exchange of charge, chemical processes, guns, and life itself would not function.
However, if the Macguffin is that current no longer flows freely through semiconductors or conductors, due to quantum-eddy currents or some other handwavium, you'd get all these effects without ending life, lightning, or the mighty power of the gun (which is what S.M. Stirling's novels dealt with).
I'm waiting for the show to address this more concretely, but it is doable, at least in theory. We'll have to see what the next few weeks bring us.
I was about to say the stupidest thing was how bullets won't fire, so the bad guys had to use musket balls. Then, I remembered Gus' automatic pistol. What the hell...
It's not that bullets won't fire -- remember that we got a pretty good glimpse of some heavy-duty modern automatic weaponry on Monroe's personal guard, in the encampment. It's simply more that (as pointed out in the show) most "modern" firearms were confiscated by the militias, forcing many people to revert to primitive musketry, as opposed to manufacturing any further reloads (since all of their automatics and semi-automatics -- as well as hunting rifles -- were taken away).
As for the gun-thing, Monroe probably convinced the soldiers on the base to follow him after the blackout, and a well-armed military force is going to be able to overwhelm a lot of the scattered groups they probably would've come across in the immediate aftermath.
And if you're a survivor, you start hearing stories about all these groups getting taken out, and to keep it from happening to your family, all you have to do is give them your guns, and maybe pay some food-taxes every year? I'm sure there are a lot of people who would probably sign up for that deal.
But anyway, we've really only seen a small drop of the world as it exists. True, they could probably do steam-powered things, but you first have to have the infrastructure and knowledge-base to build them (parts and other crap like that) -- if the show gets picked up for more seasons, likely they'll get into this a bit more.
Hmm, maybe. But I thought she meant that Lost gave us reasons to care about these people first before smashing us over the head with too many mysteries. But I've been known to be wrong before.
Evi?
Both are good points but yes, I meant that what made Lost work was their focus on creating characters we really care about.
Quote:
However, if the Macguffin is that current no longer flows freely through semiconductors or conductors, due to quantum-eddy currents or some other handwavium, you'd get all these effects without ending life, lightning, or the mighty power of the gun (which is what S.M. Stirling's novels dealt with).
What about Lightbulbs? I mean you could run them with potatoes or something. Would be a very basic chemical thing.
Batteries also work with chemical reactions.
But i agree, let's see what will happen with the show.
The Kripke interview sounds like he had a fantasy-like approach... that would explain why this concept feels more like a gimmick than science fiction.
The photos in that collider interview show a guy with an AC/DC shirt. That's a nice gag.
It might hold up alright. The pilot was pretty decent. while it likely won't spark a ton of buzz, I can't imagine it scaring away people who were interested enough to watch it.
I'll keep watching, mostly because I'm a scifi/serial junkie, and I need my fix, man. The lead actress is amiable enough, although the character's earnestness and complete inability to fight seemed detached from the world she lived in.
It really bothered me how clean everyone was. Apparently the world may be out of power, but there's a healthy supply of hair product and color-safe bleach. Their clothes were just distractingly bright and well-kept for being at least 15 years old. It may not seem like a huge deal, but that inattention to detail actually worries me more than anything else in the pilot.
The brother just randomly stumbling on someone involved with the blackout was groan-worthy.
Most of the better actors in the cast are dead by the end of the pilot. That is troubling. Long live Gus!
The early narration is supposed to be a teacher explaining things to little kids, but he's using anachronisms that only we the audience would be familiar with. Saying, "We used power for our computers, our phones..." to eight year-olds in a world that hasn't had power in 15 years is some clumsy writing.
So, I'm not turned off yet, but I'm not expecting much.
If it lasts long enough I'll check back in a few episodes. It looks (and kinda sounds) like Terra Nova.
I was coming here to say just that. The stupid troublemaking teen boy in TN is just like Asthma Lad. In this world, Asthma Lad would be dead and buried years ago. And I couldn't help but laugh when the Conspiracy Lady handed him the inhaler. Those things don't last fifteen years.
The piloit was just good to stay on my DVR for another week. My main problem with the first episode was Charlie is supposed to be on an epic quest and she is dressed like she is going out.
It was pretty fine. Swordfights for action are pretty damn cheap so we can expect a lot of them. Out of everyone involved with this show I trust Kripke the most to make it work.
DUMB AND DUMBER: THE POST APOCALYPTIC YEARS
Sorry.
Steam engines? Printing presses? Gas lamps? Assembly lines? Internal combustion engines? All work without electricity.
It's another show that fails basic science and history.
Yeah, I'm worried the maguffin of the magic electrical gadget necklace is going to get old quickly. I don't want this to be another Lost where the producers
basically didn't stick to any kind of internal rules about what was going on and lost me after the first season. I'd really be interested to see a set of good guys
develop electricity again and mash down the stupid Monroe clowns. Otherwise this is going to be the 2012 equivalent to shows from back in the eighties like Logan's
Run and Otherworld, where an interesting premise is exectuted by bad execution.
Steam engines? Printing presses? Gas lamps? Assembly lines? Internal combustion engines? All work without electricity.
It's another show that fails basic science and history.
To be sure, it's not quite as simple and clear-cut as that -- the people alive back during the nineteenth century at least had a low-tech, knowledge-based infrastructure in place, which we no longer possess. For example: agricultural/food production on an individual family-basis, steam-powered industrial equipment, folk remedies and chemistry formulas, etc.
Steam engines? Printing presses? Gas lamps? Assembly lines? Internal combustion engines? All work without electricity.
It's another show that fails basic science and history.
To be sure, it's not quite as simple and clear-cut as that -- the people alive back during the nineteenth century at least had a low-tech, knowledge-based infrastructure in place, which we no longer possess. For example: agricultural/food production on an individual family-basis, steam-powered industrial equipment, folk remedies and chemistry formulas, etc.
Plus, civilization made use of those "low-tech" solution through (relatively) stable progress. If this type of situation were ever to occur, the level of chaos would be unmatched in human history. All governments would essentially disappear as they rely on long-distance communication. The majority of the population would starve as the food transportation network shut down. Very few people would have the luxury to work on redeveloping old technologies.
And what we've seen was mostly the "serfs" of the show's world. Militia were punishing gun ownership with death; it's not a stretch that they would also frown on something like a steam engine. We haven't seen enough of their society to know they're as backwards as the common man.
At any rate, I'm going to see if the characters and story are worth a damn before going too far down the rabbit hole worrying about minutiae.
Skipped the pilot, but caught last night's episode. Thought it was alright. I'd much prefer the show to be more of a Deadwood-ian power struggle set against the backdrop of this new electricity free status quo. I don't care why the electricity stopped working, nor do I care to see it return. Let's see the "Pre-apocalypse" generation who have education and first hand experience with modern civilization, start to butt heads with the "Post-apocalypse" generation who just know how to survive and couldn't care less about a PS3.
Little House on the Prairie meets Mad Max meets Deadwood is what the show should aim for.
Also, what's with all the walking, where are the bicycles with huge spikes on them, deathcycles!
At this point, I hope it sticks around to grow into something cool. This seems like the type of show that in 4 years they could be saying, "Yeah, once we dropped the flash drive stuff and just delved into the horrors of the post-apocalypse, we really found our footing."
edited to add: Also, I thought the griping about the clothes/makeup had to have been blown out of proportion till I watched this. If nothing else, at least make the slaves dragging a helicopter through the forest look filthy. I've looked worse after checking the oil in my car.
Plus, civilization made use of those "low-tech" solution through (relatively) stable progress. If this type of situation were ever to occur, the level of chaos would be unmatched in human history. All governments would essentially disappear as they rely on long-distance communication. The majority of the population would starve as the food transportation network shut down. Very few people would have the luxury to work on redeveloping old technologies.
And what we've seen was mostly the "serfs" of the show's world. Militia were punishing gun ownership with death; it's not a stretch that they would also frown on something like a steam engine. We haven't seen enough of their society to know they're as backwards as the common man.
At any rate, I'm going to see if the characters and story are worth a damn before going too far down the rabbit hole worrying about minutiae.
I am so annoyed at the shitty 42 minutes of TV I finally got around to last night, so I apologize for the ironically disjointed rant.
We aren't talking about three years time. It's been 15 years. And since there are a slew of libraries and bookstores all over the place, what are they "reinventing" or whatnot exactly? These people have had time to create horse drawn car(t)s, fuel for lamps, medicines, stylish jeans, farming communities, etc.. The militia not allowing it is simply not something I am not willing to accept just so I can try and enjoy the show. It's giving them a helluva pass. It's just that the situation is remarkably inconsistent.
This show seems more concerned with being cool, rather than focusing on substance or logic. Let's give an ex-military fella with zero charisma the ability to slice people up with a sword. And since civilization has gone primitive only when we need it to, lets have the baddies use muzzle loaders. We need the girl to be a sex object, so she must be stylish, clean and modern.
And I am curious if they are referring to something else at the end. When she gets the computer running, she is asked, "did they find it?" I assume they mean the USB drive? Shouldn't the person on the other side know they didn't? I mean...they are talking to them...on the computer...because of the magic USB stick...
Considering everyone involved, this show should be so much better. I don't care if even after one episode. LOST is the standard, and it kicked ass right out of the gate. I have seriously high expectations, so I am going to be fickle and demanding - I don't think that's unreasonable at all. Even Flash Forward and The Event started a little more intriguing than this glossy, overproduced, too hip, convenient and inconsistent crap.
Considering the concept and those involved, I will still give it a few to see if they can resolve many of the problems I have, but my patience is already incredibly thin. I sincerely hope that Favreau and Kripke fizzled here because of studio meddling, reshoots, heavy editing, etc.
It's such a great concept and it's so..... "major network".
I'll spare you guys the trouble: it's a J. J. Abrams show, so you guys are almost definitely putting more thought into this than he or the other writers did. Abrams, along with his partner in crime Damon Lindelof, are the epitome of modern-day Hollywood's contempt for and incuriousity about anything they don't understand. As witnessed in Lost, left to their own devices, they create characters who act like particularly stupid teenagers, obsessing over crushes and butthurt about the minor ways the world has been unfair to them, to the point where they not only ignore but actively attempt to DESTROY the crazy, wondrous, unusual things around them. See: Jack smashing the lighthouse device in S6. John Rogers nailed this all the way back in S1, and the show never proved him wrong.
So naturally the world these characters inhabit is nonsensical, opaque, and basically fantastical, at the whim of capricious and incomprehensible gods. Abrams is one of these modern primitives who not only believes that coffee comes from magic demons living in the machine (actually, no, he probably believes that coffee is spontaneously generated by interns, who you summon by clapping) but honestly doesn't care to understand the process. He cares about narrative structure and landing six-figure deals, and everything else is background noise left to the little people. Of course he's not going to bother delving into the mechanics of how science fiction scenarios work, that shit is BORING to him. And surely if it's boring to a TV guy, who as we all know are the smartest people around, it'll have to be boring to the drooling morons out there in Peoria who actually watch his shows, right?
Sorry. This is a sore point with me.
Gave up on it last night. Katniss-lite leaving in the middle of the night to go after Uncle Fucka and leaving her two companions alone was enough for me.
Maybe Last Resort will be cool.
I'll spare you guys the trouble: it's a J. J. Abrams show, so you guys are almost definitely putting more thought into this than he or the other writers did. Abrams, along with his partner in crime Damon Lindelof, are the epitome of modern-day Hollywood's contempt for and incuriousity about anything they don't understand. As witnessed in Lost, left to their own devices, they create characters who act like particularly stupid teenagers, obsessing over crushes and butthurt about the minor ways the world has been unfair to them, to the point where they not only ignore but actively attempt to DESTROY the crazy, wondrous, unusual things around them. See: Jack smashing the lighthouse device in S6. John Rogers nailed this all the way back in S1, and the show never proved him wrong.
So naturally the world these characters inhabit is nonsensical, opaque, and basically fantastical, at the whim of capricious and incomprehensible gods. Abrams is one of these modern primitives who not only believes that coffee comes from magic demons living in the machine (actually, no, he probably believes that coffee is spontaneously generated by interns, who you summon by clapping) but honestly doesn't care to understand the process. He cares about narrative structure and landing six-figure deals, and everything else is background noise left to the little people. Of course he's not going to bother delving into the mechanics of how science fiction scenarios work, that shit is BORING to him. And surely if it's boring to a TV guy, who as we all know are the smartest people around, it'll have to be boring to the drooling morons out there in Peoria who actually watch his shows, right?
Sorry. This is a sore point with me.
Great reply and great points. However, the successful Abrams shows still have a quality to them that the shitty ones do not. Not sure I can quite put my finger on it, but to me a side-by-side comparison of LOST and Revolution would show glaringly obvious differences. (I'd also like to take this moment to say that I posted an interesting link to a LOST "what does it mean?" article in the LOST thread... )
I think people need to stop pretending he writes these shows he produces. At best, I'd imagine he takes part in some brainstorming and the critiqueing of scripts and first cuts and at worst, he sits back and collects paychecks. He himself has admitted that he had literally nothing to do with Lost, past the first season. So whether or not this show ends up being a success (FRINGE) or failure (ALCATRAZ), it'll be in spite, not because of him.
It's such a great concept and it's so..... "major network".
Can't disagree with that. I found the second episode to be pretty good, but on NBC, that's about where this show is going to top out, I'm afraid.
I give them credit for having the girl kill someone not because of self-defense, but because he was a murdering slaver and deserved it. They're setting up some interesting characters and mythology, which already puts the show ahead of recent slag like The Event, Flash Forward and Terra Nova. (High praise, I know).
But as a network show, it's forced to be too pretty, too clean, and too on-the-nose to become truly compelling. The networks settle for "watchable", and this show hits that mark.
I'll spare you guys the trouble: it's a J. J. Abrams show, so you guys are almost definitely putting more thought into this than he or the other writers did. Abrams, along with his partner in crime Damon Lindelof, are the epitome of modern-day Hollywood's contempt for and incuriousity about anything they don't understand.
So naturally the world these characters inhabit is nonsensical, opaque, and basically fantastical, at the whim of capricious and incomprehensible gods. Abrams is one of these modern primitives who not only believes that coffee comes from magic demons living in the machine (actually, no, he probably believes that coffee is spontaneously generated by interns, who you summon by clapping) but honestly doesn't care to understand the process.
Sorry. This is a sore point with me.
If it was such a sore point, I'd think you might bother to get your facts straight.
Abrams is not a writer on Revolution. Nor is he the showrunner. Nor is he involved in the day-to-day work on the show. Revolution is a "JJ Abrams show" in the same way Falling Skies is a "Steven Spielberg show". He's a name that could be used as a marketing tool.
If you want to bitch about serial TV shows that Abrams actually ran, you'll have fewer options. I eagerly anticipate your anti-Felicity rant.
Your butthurt over the LOST finale has no place here.
I think people need to stop pretending he writes these shows he produces. At best, I'd imagine he takes part in some brainstorming and the critiqueing of scripts and first cuts and at worst, he sits back and collects paychecks. He himself has admitted that he had literally nothing to do with Lost, past the first season. So whether or not this show ends up being a success (FRINGE) or failure (ALCATRAZ), it'll be in spite, not because of him.
Well, it'll be neither in spite nor because of him.
He did co-create and write the pilots for LOST and Fringe, so deserves credit there. If anything, I'd say a major problem with "his" more recent shows (Alcatraz, Revolution) is that there isn't nearly -enough- Abrams in them. The shows he actually created got off to a great start, no matter what opinion one may have on what happened after he handed off the reins.
(And to show that I don't think he's perfect, I do admit that UNDERCOVERS existed, even if there are no witnesses to prove it).
So to get back on-topic.. anyone with a deep-seated hate-on for Supernatural's creator? 
