The TV Series discussion thread

[joxer]

I watched the first two episodes and abandoned it, but you mention ep 3 is good so will check it out. My problem with episode 2 is basically the 'goodie' character and how the others react. I would have smacked him after 1 minute but these supposedly 'hard ass' people just grumble a bit and still keep up with his stupidity. I find that less believable than the premise of their minds being wiped in a space ship.

Ep 2 is IMO just a filler although it does have it's moments.
But I've survived Hinterlands' (not talking about the superb Welsh crime drama, but the certain EA's game!) dozens of hours of filler, so this here was no big deal.

Happens I like the story so far, maybe you won't. The sad part is that it's SyFy who got the script. If this was in hands of HBO, I'm sure ep 2 would have been filmed completely different, perhaps even refined then combined with ep3 into a single ep (the show is not fastpaced).

 

[Dez]

Well, if you ask me - the same is true for games and movies as well.

I don't know why people aren't doing more with the genre.

To me, it seems all sci-fi movies are the same - and they're all about something other than what I think is interesting about the topic, which is to challenge our perceptions and expand our world view. That's why I love Star Trek, for instance.

These days, it seems sci-fi movies come in two categories: time travel and "save-the-broken-world-from-catastrophe". Oh, and a lot of B-grade horror movies totally inferior to the great ones.

Yes science fiction is best when it really expands our horizon and challenges us to think. When it makes us look life as we know from other perspective. It can place humanity in situations it cannot or has not encountered yet etc And you're right about trek, the concept of going where no man has ever gone before and exploring the unknown - thats the heart of science fiction imo. That us why I like series such as babylon 5, earth2, farscape, star trek. battlestar galactica and even x-files (to name a few) so much.

Sadly many modern scifi films or series don't embrace that idea enough. They often play safe. Or even if some series happens to have a cool idea, it just doesn't really focus on it enough. Its some kind of backdrop for the series, but writers seem to avoid focusing on it too much.

Edit: i will check out that Defiance next though. Maybe I will be positively surprised

 

[Thrasher]

My partner who watches a lot of STtNG reruuns, asked me this past weekend, "why don't they show Babylon Five reruns? That was a great show" And I wonder, why not? There were other great sci fi shows in the past, that don't' seem to get any air time. Yet Star trek is always on it seems.

 

[Couchpotato]

My partner who watches a lot of STtNG reruuns, asked me this past weekend, "why don't they show Babylon Five reruns? That was a great show" And I wonder, why not? There were other great sci fi shows in the past, that don't' seem to get any air time. Yet Star trek is always on it seems.

Babylon Five was bought by TNT, and the network used to air its reruns. They even made a few movies, and new series that was canceled after one season.

I'm glad I own the entire series on DVD now, and I bought it very cheap. Also a few older Sc-fi shows are still being aired on various channels. Just at weird times.

 

[wolfing]

My partner who watches a lot of STtNG reruuns, asked me this past weekend, "why don't they show Babylon Five reruns? That was a great show" And I wonder, why not? There were other great sci fi shows in the past, that don't' seem to get any air time. Yet Star trek is always on it seems.

Babylon 5 is harder for reruns as there is an ongoing story, so you can't just watch an episode today, then catch another one 3 days later, as you'd be missing things. ST:TNG is more a one story per episode, with a few exceptions, so you can watch them out of order and not miss anything.

 

[Ripper]

I think they should rerun Star Trek with all the crap episodes taken out, which would make a great series. Typically, any episode focused on children or Troy's mother is to be avoided, as is anything featuring the jazz stylings of Commander Riker.

 

[DArtagnan]

I think they should rerun Star Trek with all the crap episodes taken out, which would make a great series. Typically, any episode focused on children or Troy's mother is to be avoided, as is anything featuring the jazz stylings of Commander Riker.

I agree that a lot of episodes were crap, but they all belong there for character development.

My own special brand of hated episodes were those I called "down-on-planet-episodes" as they were nearly all dreadful. With a few notable exceptions, of course, including Inner Light, which is possibly my overall favorite Trek episode.

But I still think just about half of the episodes were truly great, which is almost unheard of in a show with 176 of them.

 

[ilm]

I just finished all 7 TNG seasons for the first time (movies are next) so everything is fresh in my memory. Frankly, I just found it mediocre as a series (6/10). As I like scifi I can increase that to a mere good, still making it hard to understand why so many people adore it.

I found Babylon 5 to be far superior (on the top of the list along with modern dr. Who). I do like my ongoing stories though, hence maybe that's why.

 

[wolfing]

I just finished all 7 TNG seasons for the first time (movies are next) so everything is fresh in my memory. Frankly, I just found it mediocre as a series (6/10). As I like scifi I can increase that to a mere good, still making it hard to understand why so many people adore it.

I found Babylon 5 to be far superior (on the top of the list along with modern dr. Who). I do like my ongoing stories though, hence maybe that's why.

That's probably why, I'm the contrary. Many people think Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is better, while it's my least favorite ST series, probably because it's the most 'storyied' one. I didn't care much about Babylon 5, so I guess I prefer exploring an interesting situation in each episode instead of following a story through a season (or several seasons).

 

[DArtagnan]

I love both TNG and Bab5, but for very different reasons. Bab5 steals a bit much from Tolkien, and G'kar could stand to tone down the preaching a bit towards the end, but overall it's pretty fantastic.

TNG edges out for me, because it challenged my views of the world in so many ways. Probably a case of when I saw it.

Age has a huge effect on science fiction stories in general.

 

[joxer]

Many people think Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is better, while it's my least favorite ST series, probably because it's the most 'storyied' one.

Dunno about many, but DS9 is my #1 ST series.
But IMO they should have made it as a nonST show. ST was always about exploring new systems, new species, new civilizations, new phenomena, new everything, never an old location or already seen mobs. Some villains and "helpers" would occassionally appear, but in DS9 there was always the same threat (evolving) and the same friends.
It's not the storyed part, it's just that DS9 was not an overpowered warship crusader falsely advertised in all ST series as an explorer ship where everyone work as a team.

 

[JDR13]

I can't comprehend how anyone could think Deep Space Nine was better than TNG, but that's just me.

 

[txa1265]

For some reason I never really hooked into many of the newer Sci-Fi shows like I did in the 70s and 80s ... So I prefer the 'real' Battlestar Galactica to the reboot, which I found dreary and ponderous. Babylon 5, Stargate, etc ... never grabbed me. Maybe I was too busy chasing around little kids to engage properly.

In terms of Star Trek, I love the original series which I feel like I've been watching forever ... and was in my final year at university when TNG started and remember watching the pilot in a room of 20 or so people. My wife and I watched Voyager and DS9 here and there, actually preferring Voyager at the time, probably because it was more 'lite' viewing ... but in retrospective viewing it is pretty bad. Oh well, still love TNG and TOS.

 

[joxer]

I can't comprehend how anyone could think Deep Space Nine was better than TNG, but that's just me.

It's just a matter of tastes. And of course, age. Do rewatch them when you get a bit older. I don't think DS9 would have the same impact on me if I watched it while I was 13-15.

Maybe I was too busy chasing around little kids to engage properly.

True 100%.
Since IIRC your kids are now older than me (well, not really, but something like that I bet… ), you should rewatch them!

 

[DArtagnan]

I recognised the inferiority of DS9 when I was in my early 20s. I rewatched the whole series a few years back, and it's still inferior.

They also messed up on the resolution of the main plot, in my opinion.

Also, I despise the whole Bajoran religious angle. I hated shows focusing on that part of the story.

 

[txa1265]

Since IIRC your kids are now older than me (well, not really, but something like that I bet… ), you should rewatch them!

haha - yeah, they're 17 & 18 (one goes off to college in the fall, other a senior in HS). I don't watch a ton of TV, but might be worth digging back in for these.

 

[CelticFrost]

Mr. Robot

Anyone watching this one. I have only seen the first one and it seems very good so far.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4158110/

 

[Dajjer]

I was channel surfing about 2 months ago and came across STTNG "Inner Light". I had seen this episode when it first came out and probably a couple repeats more. But I probably haven't watched an episode of STTNG in over 5 years. What an awesome episode. Thought provoking. With an emotional ending. I kinda teared up when Picard ended the episode playing that flute.

In any event for the next 3 or 4 days we went on a Star Trek - Netflix - buffet of Star Trek goodness. All the ones we picked still held up and were great. Of note the one episode where Georgi and Roe were transported to another dimension. And the one episode where Data communicates with a kid on a planet that is about to be destroyed by a natural disaster. Never has the phrase "In for a penny." been more appropriately used. When the writers for Star Trek were hitting their stride, they hardly ever missed a note.

 

[Corwin]

From CF- (Mr. Robot

Anyone watching this one. I have only seen the first one and it seems very good so far.)


Go back one page and you'll get your answer!!

 

[DArtagnan]

Finished second season of Penny Dreadful.

Overall, I thought it was weaker than the first season, and I don't think the ending worked very well.

I'm still fascinated enough to continue watching, if there's a third season, but I think they need to implement a proper plot for me to stay interested.