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Post by Kon El on Aug 7, 2009 20:03:33 GMT
I personally enjoy the pacing of the show. It has the feel of a cable show. Characters tend to spend time just existing and interacting rather than being on this constant testosterone fueled action adventure story.
I guess it comes down to opinion and how you read though. I personally think Deadwood is an extremely entertaining and exciting show but most of my friends consider it the most boring thing they've ever seen. On the other hand I think just reading Deadwood's scripts would be excruciating if I didn't already have a solid sense of the character's and their voices.
Anywho, I'll be back later with a review of Five and Six, but the cliffhanger for six has me wanting to dig into seven right away so we'll see.
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Post by Michael Jay on Aug 7, 2009 21:36:39 GMT
I loved Deadwood, but you make my point for me. I'm READING this. I don't want to READ fifty plus pages of terribly uninteresting backstory while a bunch of people smoke weed. That's just not interesting to read and doesn't hold my attention. Having said that, I'm gonna skip episode 6's review b/c it'll be more of the same. I'm also wondering why for this one episode, there wasn't a teaser. It's also telling that the two flashback episodes with no plot whatsoever were the shortest of the lot thus far. And yet, took me the longest to read. Ugh. Having said that... Episode 7There we go! We've been on the road for 3 episodes now and FINALLY something actually happens. Best episode yet. The story takes a big leap forward here, mercifully, with every single character actually having something to do instead of sitting around talking. Loved Justin's little story. Again, get away from sitting around smoking weed for three episodes and having nonsensical dreams and now I like the guy again. His hero complex is fully on display. This is also when the zombies take on a higher level of menace. We haven't seen them kill someone directly related to a cast member since... ever. Amy's grandmother was already turned in the pilot. Here, they're chasing the Andersons (and I was dying to know how the kids made out after they collapsed), they've invaded the Walkers' house, Pitt goes down, Vince's jocks go down, again, stuff actually HAPPENS in this episode. There's plot development and character moments and all the great things the show's been lacking for six episodes. Vince getting paired up with Karl, well I wasn't expecting that. I do like it to the alternative of another fist fight. Thank God the zombies showed up! Theirs should be an interesting relationship moving forward. And Pitt's death, while I'm not a fan of the character, was very well done. It drags out inexorably with him frantically trying to get to safety until he's finally eaten. His actual end is quick, but the lead up to it was visceral and very very well written. Probably the best writing thus far on the show. See there? When stuff actually HAPPENS, I like. Thumbs Up
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Post by Dex on Aug 8, 2009 22:40:20 GMT
Yeah, what happened with the flashback episode was it was supposed to be one episode but went way too long. I was gonna finish writing the season and then come back to cut it down but I just put it off too long and ended up splitting it in two.
I'm still debating on whether or not I should attempt to fix it before releasing the vDVD but I think I'm just gonna let it be and move on.
Glad you liked episode seven. As I was writing I almost wanted to find a way to save some of the Zombie stuff for episode eight as the final two episodes have a tough time living up to the intensity of seven but it made for a better episode this way.
It's funny, Karl meeting Vince at the gas station was another one of those first thoughts when mapping out the series and it didn't go how I planned at all. Pitt was supposed to live and Vince was supposed to die. Vince and Karl together just had too much potential to let that happen though. Plus it sparked all kinds of ideas for season two.
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Post by Tom East on Aug 8, 2009 22:47:20 GMT
So there are nine episodes in season one?
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Post by Dex on Aug 8, 2009 23:34:58 GMT
Yep.
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Post by Tom East on Aug 10, 2009 22:42:44 GMT
Oh my God. What just happened?
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Post by Kon El on Aug 18, 2009 20:09:10 GMT
Wow! Easily the most intense episode of the season. Even Karl trying to convince Curtis to go on without him had a certain level of tension to it. I loved Ben sticking by his friends, and Karl standing up for Tanya despite all she's done to him only to get screwed over in the end. I've had a sneaking suspicion that Tanya was gonna screw Karl over at some point but I thought it would tie into Amy somehow.
I've been waiting for the Karl/Vince reunion for almost a year now and it was nothing like I expected. When Vince pulled the guns off the would be car jackers I assumed that he'd end up killing someone but what actually happened was way cooler. I love the idea of Karl and Vince as uneasy partners and now I'm just as anxious for when they finally meet up with Tanya again. It does seem a bit out of character for Vince though, to just ride along with Karl as opposed to just taking the car.
Oh, and I loved how the teaser and the first act opened on the same shot at the same time but still managed to be two completely different scenes. I never really got invested in the Andersons and when the car wreck happened I assumed they were dead and that was your way of writing them out but I'm very glad you didn't. Even though Robert hasn't really done anything all season and we know pretty much nothing about him he really comes off as the hero of the series in this episode. You've gotta real knack for shining the spotlight on seemingly unimportant characters and giving them new meaning. Robert and Seth especially shine in this episode and it looks like the National Guard is back now too.
I think I dig Justin's storyline a little more with every episode. His leaving home to be with his girlfriend was probably the dumbest thing anyone on the series has done and I love that you never let him off the hook for that. He's been paying for it almost every minute since he left the house.
There was quite a bit of death this episode as well. I always knew the Jocks had to die eventually but why Pitt? I was just starting to dig his character and you kill him off? Who's next, Amy? Well, at least you gave the Andersons a happy little ending right after to soften the blow.
Before I end this I just wanna ask a quick question about Justin. Is he really in love with Shelly or is it just one of those "young love" type things? I've been struggling to understand his motivation since he just seems too young to be so devoted to one girl.
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Post by Dex on Aug 22, 2009 15:58:22 GMT
Yeah, she likes to hide it but Tanya's an evil bitch. Always has been, probly always will be. Well, she might soften a little bit next year, but not much or for long.
Nah, Vince's a smart guy. I'm not saying he's forgiven Karl or anything like that. In fact, I think their fued is far from settled but they both realise that working together increases their odds of getting what they want. What happens once they get what they want, or if they find that what they want isn't something they can accomplish is anyone's guess.
The Andersons play a pretty big part in the future of the series (Seth more than the kids) so I always wanted to spend some quality time with them before the season was over and that took a little longer than I'd planned. When I initially came up with the car crash angle I had planned to do an entire episode that followed them as they were introduced to the Fallout shelter but in the end that just didn't make any sense.
Yeah, one thing I really enjoy doing is wreaking havoc on my characters and I think long term Justin's probably the only one who comes close to having as bad a day as Karl (who's troubles also started with him doing something really stupid).
Pitt had to die for the same reason the Jocks had to die. There's really just no significant place for them in the future of the series and I didn't want to let them just fade away and never be spoken of again. I think them dying creates more possibilites, especially where Pitt is concerned. His death will stick with Karl for quite some time.
Well, both I guess. Obviously it's young love as he's young and in love, but I think even if he doesn't fully understand what true love is, he feels it for Shelly with every inch of his heart. As far as he's concerned Shelly is his soulmate and that's a pretty strong feeling no matter how old you are. Whether or not she feels as strongly is another question entirely though.
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Post by Tom East on Aug 24, 2009 8:47:09 GMT
I've finished reading the season - I'll be reviewing it after I get back from my holiday!
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Post by Kon El on Oct 1, 2009 19:22:33 GMT
EPISODE 8
Son of a Bitch! I''m officially pissed! Of all the shit Amy's been through during the season this is how she dies? I can commend you on the surprise factor but it's the worst surprise ever. I'm not even sure I can comment on the rest of the episode... Okay I guess I can.
Apart from the completely out of the blue and seemingly unneccesary death of Amy this was a really good episode. Almost felt like it could have been the season finale with the majority of the cast already arriving at the Camp. I'm gonna be pissed (more pissed that is) if after all this Helen and Curtis end up being the only characters who don't make it.
I like the military getting a stronger presence in the series. At first I thought it would detract from the family but you've done it in a pretty organic way. It makes sense that the camp would be crawling with military so their appearance doesn't really feel as forced as it could have otherwise.
My biggest fault with this episode is that Justin's story seems to have suddenly slowed down to a crawl. At the same time though, knowing he's riding around with a guy who tried to rob Vince at gunpoint leads me to believe things will get more interesting soon.
The ending was pretty damn creepy. Between Tanya's "inspection" and Karl's first view of the camp I'm starting to think Justin might end up being better off than the rest of the family.
Sorry this review took so long. I'm gonna crack into the final episode right away here so I should have a review for that up pretty soon.
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