The Mandalorian (TV series) [Archive]

shootemindehead

24-Aug-2019, 06:33 PM

Trailer for Jon Favreau’s The Mandalorian:

Star Wars has had many highs and lows with the fans recently, but I’m super excited for this show!

Looks good and the tone seems to be to my liking. Werner Herzog, LOL.

As someone who was merely meh about 'The Force Awakens' and thought 'The Last Jedi' was absolute rubbish, I've long since abandoned Diswars. The only thing they've done that's been any way good was 'Rogue One', which I thought was an excellent film. But I couldn't care less about 'The Rise of Skywalker' and when the sequel trilogy is over, I won't bat a single hair on my eyelid.

But this show promises a lot.

The main problem with Star Wars, though, is Star Wars, which can be brilliant one the on hand and also utter shite on the other. It's a ying and yang and to paraphrase a certain idiot, "you never know your going to get."

bassman

24-Aug-2019, 07:08 PM

It looks cool, sure, but only on Disney+? BS. :(

Disney is making a huge push to dominate the streaming war. With their insane amount of properties, including original content such as this, they may very well win...

Taiki Waititi? Nick Nolte? Really?

Waititi is helming an episode, I’m not sure of his acting involvement, but I would imagine it’s a smaller role. Maybe an alien voiceover?

blind2d

25-Aug-2019, 02:54 AM

Disney is making a huge push to dominate the streaming war. With their insane amount of properties, including original content such as this, they may very well win...

What a dystopia that'll be. :( But hey, what can you expect from capitalism, amIright?

EvilNed

25-Aug-2019, 06:54 AM

What a dystopia that'll be. :( But hey, what can you expect from capitalism, amIright?

Competition.

Anyway, this looks great. But I won't watch it, because I'm not really into Star Wars anymore, and I won't get Disney+ either.

One curious thing, releasing this a month before the next Star Wars film, is that really a good move? I think after the last film a lot of people are on the fence on whether to watch the new one or not (It'll still make huge bucks, of course) but there is definetly a theory called "Theatricality" - essentially, people will not go to watch films that they feel that they can see at home while streaming. This show seems more interesting than the film they're putting out the next month. It's got to hurt the box office somehow, even if just a little.

bassman

25-Aug-2019, 02:46 PM

What a dystopia that'll be. :( But hey, what can you expect from capitalism, amIright?

https://media1.tenor.com/images/ab872e7ac2ee84f249060a592c87bbec/tenor.gif?itemid=7837063

One curious thing, releasing this a month before the next Star Wars film, is that really a good move? I think after the last film a lot of people are on the fence on whether to watch the new one or not (It'll still make huge bucks, of course) but there is definetly a theory called "Theatricality" - essentially, people will not go to watch films that they feel that they can see at home while streaming. This show seems more interesting than the film they're putting out the next month. It's got to hurt the box office somehow, even if just a little.

I’d thought the same thing, but I’m guessing their plan with Star Wars will be similar to their plan with Marvel, which is to alternate between streaming and theatrical premieres, creating very small windows of downtime without content. If not handled well, it can quickly turn into content overload, but we’ll see...

shootemindehead

25-Aug-2019, 03:48 PM

One curious thing, releasing this a month before the next Star Wars film, is that really a good move?

They're trying to use it to generate enthusiasm for 'The Rise of Skywalker'. They'll have a hard time doing that with a lot of folk, including myself.

blind2d

26-Aug-2019, 01:29 AM

https://media1.tenor.com/images/ab872e7ac2ee84f249060a592c87bbec/tenor.gif?itemid=7837063

Lol, nice. But Ned, innovation can exist (and does, far more easily and quickly) without the need for competitive pressures getting involved. So I'll ask you to stan some other facet of capitalism, if you wish, but yeah, it's completely evil and y'all need to realize that. I would think that Dawn of the Dead had already taught us all of this. Anyway, yeah, I don't see this going well. The whole Disney+/Star Wars thing that we're actually talking about.

EvilNed

26-Aug-2019, 05:50 AM

Lol, nice. But Ned, innovation can exist (and does, far more easily and quickly) without the need for competitive pressures getting involved. So I'll ask you to stan some other facet of capitalism, if you wish, but yeah, it's completely evil and y'all need to realize that. I would think that Dawn of the Dead had already taught us all of this. Anyway, yeah, I don't see this going well. The whole Disney+/Star Wars thing that we're actually talking about.

Capitalism made it possible for you to express your opinion freely. So I guess that's another point in favor of capitalism. ;)

MinionZombie

26-Aug-2019, 09:49 AM

Please do not derail this thread any further with politics. Thank you.

ProfessorChaos

02-Sep-2019, 02:53 AM

okay, well, i'm not trying to derail this with politics, but while we're on the topic of "FUCK DISNEY, DISNEY+, AND THEIR MONOPOLIZING BULLSHIT", i saw this redlettermedia video this morning and thought this would be a great place to share this. it runs a little long, but it's totally hilarious and worth watching if you're as jaded with hollywood as i am:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qejGHLAbo_c

was that as good for you as it was for me?

MinionZombie

02-Sep-2019, 09:47 AM

:lol::lol::lol:

There certainly is an issue with Disney being too big (I wasn't at all excited for the Disney/Fox merger because of that very reason), although I don't criticise them for obviously wanting to join The Mandalorian with their new streaming service ... but I won't be subscribing.

There's far too many streaming services and this rush by seemingly every platform to have their own subscription service is ludicrous and will fall flat on its arse as the market will dictate, and it will dictate "we ain't paying for all this shit" (especially in addition to cable packages). All these services you've never heard of won't last, or may get swallowed up by bigger fish (thus expanding other services' catalogues). If you don't have the content, people aren't going to cough up - look at Starz. Barely any programming people want, and the stuff that people did want (e.g. Ash vs Evil Dead) people would often sign up for a free trial, binge all ten episodes, and skedaddle.

There's also the issue of - there simply isn't enough time to watch all this stuff, nor the inclination to do so, and there's all kinds of different tastes.

It's understandable why Disney is doing one, because they own so much damn stuff (far too much stuff), so there'll be a wealth of material, but other services will struggle to prove their necessity. We've seen Internet streaming websites crumble before (e.g. Crackle), so this "streaming war" is just going to prove that not every damn channel needs their own subscription service. It's a piss take and will be shown up as much because the market simply will not support it. Disney+ will likely do just fine, but a lot of others will trip over and land face first in a face full of "fuck no".

Neil

29-Oct-2019, 10:27 PM

Some early reviews sound positive...

Neil

14-Nov-2019, 01:55 PM

Now the first episode it out, people generally seem positive(ish) about out...

MinionZombie

14-Nov-2019, 04:12 PM

Now the first episode it out, people generally seem positive(ish) about out...

Ooh, thanks for the reminder. I must have a shufty.

shootemindehead

14-Nov-2019, 09:12 PM

Now the first episode it out, people generally seem positive(ish) about out...

It's not bad.

A relatively decent start that's easily superior to what Disney has provided with "their" Star Wars already. 'Rogue One' being an exception, of course. Straight off the bat, it stomps all over 'The Force Awakens', 'Solo' and the awful 'The Last Jedi'. But, they're all really, really, low bars, so there's no great victory there.

If there's any issues, it's that it's too short at 30 something minutes, the music isn't hitting the spot and the blue fish alien guy at the beginning is terrible.

MinionZombie

16-Nov-2019, 04:10 PM

I watched the first episode last night and quite enjoyed it.

The blue fish type guy at the beginning did indeed seem a bit off in terms of the execution, and evidently it's playing things quite mysteriously, but as the episode got going I warmed up to it more. The climax was good. I also really dug how the bounty droid was (mostly) done practically.

There were a couple of slightly iffy CGI effects in there, but overall it looked good. And Werner Herzog, for goodness sake! Awesome!

It was also good to see that the main character, while adept at the beginning, did have some areas where he wasn't so skilled-up (i.e. riding those blerg things). Hopefully we'll continue to see a mix, so there is some continued peril (the battle towards the end had him fighting hard, too).

The second episode is out now. Will have a shufty and see how it goes.

- - - Updated - - -

Okay, saw the second episode - I dig it.

The main action set piece early on was good fun, having that classic-feeling Star Wars vibe of old school serials and derring-do with a little sprinkling of physical humour dusted on top.

I'm quite looking forward to seeing the next episode. :)

shootemindehead

17-Nov-2019, 10:57 AM

MinionZombie

17-Nov-2019, 06:18 PM

Yeh, I've been pleasantly surprised by it. Not too sure if I like the idea of baby yoda though, if that's who it is. But, it certainly has an original Star Wars vibe to it and on that basis, it's getting a thumbs up from me so far. It's way too bloody short though. I hear S2 is already a go'er.

One thing, is that the show has an actual story, which is woefully absent in Disney's sequel trilogy and the main character has his arse handed to him as well on occasion, which is great to see, after the laughable why Rey was written.

Hopefully they can keep it up and not shit the bed. It seems to be getting a lot of good will at the moment, so I'd say Jon Favreau is breathing a sigh of relief.

Is it a baby Yoda, though? At least a baby one of his species, anyway, although what his species is remains a complete mystery. After all, Yoda's 'force ghost' turned up in Episode 8, which takes place after this show.

Aye, 'Mando' is getting a good mix of arse kicking moments as well as arse kicked moments, so he actually has to fight and suffers bad luck, as well. Rey was too capable in Episode 7, but I will say that in Ep8 they did give her a bit more of a challenge, but she has felt a bit 'overpowered' (e.g. just hopping into The Millennium Falcon and pretty much rocking it from the get-go having never flown in one!) ... now, Luke, on the other hand, had to put in some graft to become who he was. Rey deserves more of a struggle to better suit her character

There's a good balance of tone in this show, too. There's some humour, some action, the heroics and tribulations of a 'shoot first' rogue - I'm digging it.

Would it be fair to say that you're enjoying it more because it's an entirely new set of characters, so the show can just be itself and not have to endure the titanic fan expectations that are attached to the sequel trilogy?

shootemindehead

17-Nov-2019, 08:12 PM

Rey is a ridiculous character. She's a poorly written wish fulfilment that's great at everything straight out of the box making it impossible to give a crap about what happens to her. Also, there's just no story in the sequels. It's all just a poor riff on what has come before. Rubbish stuff altogether. Finn isn't much better. A supposed 20 year veteran stormtrooper who becomes a buffoon twenty minutes after defecting from his first engagement. What the hell was he doing for twenty years? They're absolutely wretched and they don't make a lick of sense, even in the fantasy they're involved in. Almost impossible to believe how badly Disney buggered Star Wars up.

In any case, that's not to say that this Mandalorian guy is a highly complex, richly rounded, character either. But, even in the hour of screen time we've seen him for, he's had more to offer and his story has been far more engrossing. I actually want to know where this thing is going, whereas I couldn't give a toss what happens to Rey or the other non-entities in the movies.

As to the humour, it's been pretty good. Although, I'd be one to say that humour can be left out almost entirely from most dramas and it generally won't be missed. It's usually a terrible idea to try and get a laugh where no laugh is needed and far too often it's studio mandated and carried out by someone who isn't funny. Rian Johnson should take note at how a subtle line like the Jawas telling the Mandalorian that he speaks Jawa like a Wookie is much, much, funnier than an awkward 'Hardware Wars' reference or a "your mum" joke. The gargantuan tonal shifts of 'The Last Jedi' was one of the worst sins of that film.

I'm enjoying it so far, because it has the feel of Star Wars and doesn't come across as a phony reproduction of it, like the sequels have been. It has struck the right balance of familiar surroundings and acceptable fan service in a way that has eluded Disney so far with this franchise. And yes, these "new set of characters" have been more appealing than than the cyphers that have littered the sequel trilogy.

+Werner Herzog FTW <- I'm still laughing at that.

As far as...

who the Yoda baby is, I don't know. But, there are fan rumours (of course) that this baby is a clone of Yoda. Honestly, I have no idea. But, I would MUCH rather that it not be. Star Wars really needs to move away from hanging it's coat on past characters and often ruining them in the process. If the clone theory is correct, it'll require some epic level writing to pull it off successfully.

MinionZombie

18-Nov-2019, 10:53 AM

shootemindehead

18-Nov-2019, 12:22 PM

Was/is Finn a 20 year veteran, though? He's not old enough. :confused: I seem to recall he was pretty much a newbie, right? He hadn't really seen much combat when we're first introduced to him? His storyline in Ep8 was utterly pointless though, quite literally, as nothing he and Rose did had any impact upon how things shaked out.

They're supposed to be taken from birth (a really stupid idea in the first place) and trained constantly in this nouveau Stormtrooper Corps. So, Finn has been part of the First Order for about 20 years or so. Which makes his freak out look all the more ridiculous and his subsequent reduction to a comedy black sidekick trope even more lamentable. Finn's apparent age means that the First ORder have been knocking around for about 2 decades or more, which begs the question just what was the New Republic doing all that time.

It's just all round awful writing.

The right type of humour is the key thing, but I feel a little dusting of humour is always necessary. It always irks me when I see a drama that is absolutely devoid of a single smile or sarcastic comment or a little bit of something. Even in the darkest of times humans find something to gain a bit of levity, so humour is always important IMHO, but yes, how that is deployed is always key.

A little can be ok. But, it has to be funny and feel natural, which none of the so called humour in Disney's prequels has achieved. It all feels forced (pardon the pun) and studio mandated. A kind of "we need a laugh here..." order from up on high. Far, far too many directors and writers just aren't funny and their artificially injected comedy usually falls flat. So, it's normally better just to avoid it. The main problem here, though, is that these franchise offerings are producer driven exercises and they have waaaay too much say in how these films are mad, despite having little creative chops a lot of the time. But they are in a position whereby they can dictate terms to yes men directors, who are often completely without any vision of their own.

Humour, though, is the absolute hardest thing to get right in any movie and it's almost impossible to make it universal, which is quite often why Hollywood "humor" crashes badly over this side of the pond and films that do relatively well in America are greeted with a silence over here. But any film maker that can get a 90 minute comedy film to work for most of its running time has my salute. Next after that is horror, but even with that genre, there's a gulf of difficult involved. Humour is much, much, harder to do.

Aye, thus far 'Mando' doesn't have a huge amount of character story, so I'd like to get a bit more of that in due time, but hopefully we will and I assume we will. However, we've also had some characterisation of him through his actions.

I'm presuming we'll never see his face (Pedro Pascal does the voice, but it seems to be two performers doing the actual physical embodiment of the character).

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

The helmet will come off in time I reckon. I can't see them doing a Judge Dredd on this. That won't bother me TBH. There's nothing that says that Mandalorian warriors absolutely never take off their armour. In any case, in the hour we've seen of this show, we know he was a "foundling" by his tribe, his folks are probably brown bread and he's had to take up a dodgy and unglamorous profession to make a living. A living he's good at and is known for by certain people. We know he has a certain amount of honour because if how he interacts with people that help him. But we also know that he's no angel, because he has no problem murdering Jawas in the blink of an eye.

MinionZombie

18-Nov-2019, 04:16 PM

Yeah, but Jawas are thieving wee bastards, anyway, so sod 'em. :elol::elol::elol:

There's maybe the odd bit of humour in the new films that doesn't quite work, but over-the-piece I've not had too much of an issue - and considering some of the humour in the original trilogy, it doesn't feel out of place to me.

Ooh - another thing I like about this show is how this 'baby Yoda' (or whomever it might be) is mostly practical, by the looks of it. Not a load of over-animated CGI nonsense, and there's that subtle aspect of "this thing physically exists" really helps (e.g. the blanket moving in response to its hands/arms). There's a little touch of humour and even cuteness there, but it's not overplayed at all and is perfectly judged in the moment. I also like that, particularly with 'Mando', that you can sense the cogs in his brain going round but also his heart strings getting plucked - this is a bounty, but it's also a baby, who just so happens to be 50 years old. You can see through subtle little moments that there's a kinship brewing and even a sense of care ... I'm even getting a sniff of Shogun Assassin about them, which is cool.

I also dig how they use artwork for each episode as the backing for the main credits - a nice touch that highlights some more of the artistry behind all this.

shootemindehead

18-Nov-2019, 10:58 PM

There's maybe the odd bit of humour in the new films that doesn't quite work, but over-the-piece I've not had too much of an issue - and considering some of the humour in the original trilogy, it doesn't feel out of place to me.

The humour in the original films is mainly derived from Harrison Ford's sarcastic remarks and his double act with Chewbacca. There's actually very little humour in them really. But it's certainly nothing like the humour in either the prequels or the sequels, which was more of a slapstick nature (hello Jar Jar) and joke setups (lightsaber tossing). It's apples and oranges. But, Solo's sarcasm works, the attempts at humour in the other trilogies doesn't. Not by a long shot. In the original Star Wars films, the humour is very subtle. In the other trilogies, it's far too on the nose.

Ooh - another thing I like about this show is how this 'baby Yoda' (or whomever it might be) is mostly practical, by the looks of it.

Is it? I can't say that I 100% sure to be honest.

I also like that, particularly with 'Mando', that you can sense the cogs in his brain going round but also his heart strings getting plucked - this is a bounty, but it's also a baby, who just so happens to be 50 years old. You can see through subtle little moments that there's a kinship brewing and even a sense of care ... I'm even getting a sniff of Shogun Assassin about them, which is cool.

Yeh. It's good story progression. He's now sort of indebted to his bounty, because it's a child and it has saved his life, which is going to cause conflict in future episodes. As I said, in about one hour of this thing we have more story than there is across two whole movies in Disney's sequel trilogy.

To be honest, if there are going to be any more films in this franchise, I'd be giving them to Gareth Edwards and Jon Favreau and telling JJ and Rian to take a hike. At least the former two seem to get it.

MinionZombie

19-Nov-2019, 10:04 AM

Is it? I can't say that I 100% sure to be honest.

Yeh. It's good story progression. He's now sort of indebted to his bounty, because it's a child and it has saved his life, which is going to cause conflict in future episodes. As I said, in about one hour of this thing we have more story than there is across two whole movies in Disney's sequel trilogy.

To be honest, if there are going to be any more films in this franchise, I'd be giving them to Gareth Edwards and Jon Favreau and telling JJ and Rian to take a hike. At least the former two seem to get it.

1) There'll be some CGI shots in there, no doubt, and the practical stuff with have some CGI help (e.g. removing puppeteers, rods/cables etc), but to me it mostly looks practical. If it's actually CGI then they've done a very good job to keep the animation of it limited and more realistic. I hate over-animated CGI.

*goes a-Googlin'*

https://variety.com/2019/tv/news/baby-yoda-the-mandalorian-werner-herzog-1203406285/

“On the set, it looked absolutely convincing. It made you cry when you saw it,” Herzog told Variety at “The Mandalorian” fan premiere in Los Angeles. “I saw two technicians operating it remote[ly] — one was for the eyes and the mouth and the other was for other facial expressions. It’s a phenomenal technical achievement and beyond the technological achievement, it’s heartbreaking.”

Yep - animatronic. :)

The decision to commit to practical effects with an animatronic Baby Yoda was another big risk, but Favreau was ready to try something new. “‘Star Wars’ gives you the opportunity to tap into all these practical special effects. So there’s great puppetry, there’s great audio effects. I think with ‘Star Wars,’ there’s an acceptance of a certain look. And so I’m taking chances here that I wouldn’t take on a film that wasn’t this, but because the fans are already invested in those technologies. And then [we used] a lot of really cutting edge technologies, using game engine rendering and real-time rendering video wall set extension, using a lot of technology that we developed around ‘Lion King’ and ‘Jungle Book.'”

2) Ach, come on now.

3) Rogue One worked very well, and was helped by keeping it's link to the main films quite light. There's bits of links (e.g. Akbar, Leia) scattered about, and then a bigger link with Vader (who they actually made scary and intimidating again after the prequels shat all over him) and of course Tarkin, but it did benefit from predominantly being a new set of characters on a defined mission that is directly linked to the start of Ep4. There was a little bit of appropriate humour tossed in (the droid), some emotional impact (everyone fucking dies!), and it was well paced and had good spectacle (the tropical beach finale). I even liked that they didn't force a romance into Rogue One between the two leads - just that final look and a supportive holding of hands as they looked at their impending doom, knowing that they had succeeded in their task together. That was far more impactful and memorable.

shootemindehead

19-Nov-2019, 01:15 PM

3) Rogue One worked very well, and was helped by keeping it's link to the main films quite light. There's bits of links (e.g. Akbar, Leia) scattered about, and then a bigger link with Vader (who they actually made scary and intimidating again after the prequels shat all over him) and of course Tarkin, but it did benefit from predominantly being a new set of characters on a defined mission that is directly linked to the start of Ep4. There was a little bit of appropriate humour tossed in (the droid), some emotional impact (everyone fucking dies!), and it was well paced and had good spectacle (the tropical beach finale). I even liked that they didn't force a romance into Rogue One between the two leads - just that final look and a supportive holding of hands as they looked at their impending doom, knowing that they had succeeded in their task together. That was far more impactful and memorable.

'Rogue One' worked because Edwards was a genuine fan of the 1977 film and not just paying lip service, like other Disney directors and Kathleen Kennedy interference aside, he did a decent job steering the film in the right direction. I feel he may have got shafted when Kennedy brought in Tony Gilroy to do things slightly differently with the ending though. I'd really like to see Edward's version as he had originally envisioned it.

'Rogue One' is easily the best movie that Disney has put out and is simply light years ahead of the sequel trash and the lamentably mediocre 'Solo', which should never have gotten past bad idea stage. But, it's not without flaws. They got a bit too overzealous with their CGI Tarkin and that unnecessary Leia frontal shot at the end was just terrible. There's no way around it. There's a bit of gratuitous fan service scattered here and there too that could have been left out for the better and a touch of the Strong Woman TM nonsense going on with 5ft nothing 80lb Jyn Erso, as she beats the shite out of 6ft tall armed and armoured Stormtroopers, which was a bit much really. But, in the end these are all just minor quibbles.

On it's plus side, it features realistic and logical characters (for a fantasy anyway) and despite them not being well received by some people, I found them to be engaging. It's tone is perfect too and how it links up with 'Star Wars' is a grade a example of how to do a prequel film. My appreciation for it has continued to grow and I thought it was great the first time I watched it, whereas, on the other hand, my disdain for the sequel movies just gets more and more distinct.

Agreed on the lack of silly romance, which I thought was great too. It was far more touching (if one could say that about a silly Star Wars film) to see two people silently trade "what ifs" with their faces, as their visible end comes hurtling toward them.

MinionZombie

24-Nov-2019, 05:20 PM

Third episode - again, really enjoyed it. :)

Yeah, this 'Baby Yoda' (for lack of a better name - 'cos surely it can't be Yoda, as this is only set a few years after ROTJ and yet 'Baby Yoda' is 50 years old) is a combination of practical and CGI - the latter for more complicated movements (e.g. eating a frog in the second episode, or climbing out of its 'egg carriage' thing), and the former for the simpler and more intimate smaller moments.

I particularly loved how much emotion as well as how much internal thought going on for 'Mando' is conveyed almost totally silently and just in little gestures (e.g. the silver ball on that lever). It gives you character development, emotional investment, as well as continuing mystery and intrigue. It's perfectly balanced. :cool:

Moon Knight

24-Nov-2019, 05:26 PM

This is the Star Wars I cherish.

Loving every minute of this series.

MinionZombie

05-Dec-2019, 04:10 PM

Latest episode was pretty darn cool, too.

The ATST walker was well utilised - I dug the idea of old tech and weapons from the war falling into the wrong hands and being used by these roaming gangs. Indeed, they also made it quite intimidating (the red lights in the 'eye holes', the way it emerged from the forest, the sound of it) and the action was good solid stuff.

I also really enjoyed Gina Carano's character. Hopefully she'll return as they made a good team, her and Mando.

Plus - 'Baby Yoda'/The Kid messing with the buttons on the ship was great. :D

Neil

06-Dec-2019, 09:29 PM

Well, my other half started having ago at me during ep4 due to how many times I was going ahhhh.... awwww.... over the mini-Yoda :)

MinionZombie

07-Dec-2019, 10:37 AM

Ep 5 was a bit middling for me, although I'm not sure if it was the episode itself or me and my own anticipation. It wasn't bad by any means, it was just a bit 'meh' after the previous four being so damn good.

Well, my other half started having ago at me during ep4 due to how many times I was going ahhhh.... awwww.... over the mini-Yoda :)

:lol::lol::lol:

Well, it is pretty cute! :D

Moon Knight

09-Dec-2019, 03:33 AM

I'm glad they killed off that young aspiring BH already.

I'll bet a dollar that's why MZ found E5 "meh".

MinionZombie

09-Dec-2019, 09:31 AM

I'm glad they killed off that young aspiring BH already.

I'll bet a dollar that's why MZ found E5 "meh".

hehe, yeah. The character was a bit 'meh', but also the plot surrounding him. Perhaps it'll connect a bit more later, but it kinda felt a bit disconnected from everything ... a bit 'why are we here doing this?'

Moon Knight

09-Dec-2019, 02:01 PM

hehe, yeah. The character was a bit 'meh', but also the plot surrounding him. Perhaps it'll connect a bit more later, but it kinda felt a bit disconnected from everything ... a bit 'why are we here doing this?'

I accepted the fact that this series will always be structured this way. Reminds me of the format of an 80’s animated series; and I’m ok with that.

MinionZombie

09-Dec-2019, 04:01 PM

I accepted the fact that this series will always be structured this way. Reminds me of the format of an 80’s animated series; and I’m ok with that.

Oh, I know, and it wasn't quite what I was getting at ... it's just that I didn't really find the fifth episode all that compelling, whereas - for example - the fourth episode struck a much better balance. It was a self-contained little story, but it was also a part of the overall (e.g. Mando looking for a quiet place to leave "The Kid" to keep it safe, but because of the location he chose having it's own strife it draws too much attention from that isolated plot and then it impacts the overarching story). This latest episode felt a bit too 'loose' from that, and so it was one of the reasons I didn't enjoy it as much (not that it was bad by any means, just by comparison).

shootemindehead

09-Dec-2019, 09:08 PM

The first 3 episodes were fine. 4 was crap. And 5 feels like more filler, which in a series with just 8 episodes is a head scratcher indeed.

It's a strange old show so far. Not unentertaining, but very curiously structured.

Moon Knight

10-Dec-2019, 03:41 AM

Oh, I know, and it wasn't quite what I was getting at ... it's just that I didn't really find the fifth episode all that compelling, whereas - for example - the fourth episode struck a much better balance. It was a self-contained little story, but it was also a part of the overall (e.g. Mando looking for a quiet place to leave "The Kid" to keep it safe, but because of the location he chose having it's own strife it draws too much attention from that isolated plot and then it impacts the overarching story). This latest episode felt a bit too 'loose' from that, and so it was one of the reasons I didn't enjoy it as much (not that it was bad by any means, just by comparison).

Aye, I definitely understand.

MinionZombie

10-Dec-2019, 10:02 AM

The first 3 episodes were fine. 4 was crap. And 5 feels like more filler, which in a series with just 8 episodes is a head scratcher indeed.

Eh??? :stunned::confused:

shootemindehead

10-Dec-2019, 01:42 PM

Eh??? :stunned::confused:

Yeh, thought Ep.4 was pretty poor. It's story is kinda silly, Gina Carano can't act, there's an insipid attempt at romance and the whole plan to get rid of the AT-ST was just nonsense.

The first 3 episodes were building fine and then by episode 3, it's become the Mando doing nixers. Strange to have fillers on such a short run series.

Moon Knight

17-Dec-2019, 04:52 AM

Love this show. So refreshing.

MinionZombie

17-Dec-2019, 10:08 AM

Moon Knight

17-Dec-2019, 09:09 PM

I enjoyed episode six much more than five. It just felt a bit more rounded and fleshed out. Episode five felt kinda it didn't really have an awful lot of meat on the bone, whereas six felt the opposite way.

The next episode is tomorrow (18th), and then the last is on the 27th.

I just love how they showcase ALL the classic and Obscure SW races unlike the newer films where all the Alien and droid characters are used for laughs.

shootemindehead

18-Dec-2019, 07:46 PM

I enjoyed episode six much more than five. It just felt a bit more rounded and fleshed out. Episode five felt kinda it didn't really have an awful lot of meat on the bone, whereas six felt the opposite way.

The next episode is tomorrow (18th), and then the last is on the 27th.

6 is fine. But again, outside of it's own 40 minutes, it's kinda pointless to what was building over the first 3 episodes.

Moss's voice kept taking me out of it though.

- - - Updated - - -

So 7 is easily the best episode of the series so far.

I was grinning like a little boy at several stages. I won't spoil anything though.

MinionZombie

19-Dec-2019, 10:12 AM

Yep, episode seven was great.

I would argue, though, that the first four episodes were all closely linked (being that the events of four - escaping to a distant planet in search of a hideout and hoping to find a place to stash "the kid" - is directly linked to the main story). Episodes five and six, on the other hand (five especially), do feel 'outside of that' and are yet to yield any purpose to the main story (episode four impacts on episode seven, for instance).

Anyway - really enjoyed episode seven. It was tense, it had action, it was well paced, more mystery surrounding "the kid" etc etc - good stuff!

The characters are lightly drawn, but not in a lazy or underwritten way - it's more like the subtle character shadings of a western - and it's so nice to have characters that don't have to project every inner thought and struggle all the damn time with clumsily wedged-in monologues. In "The Mandalorian" actions are what speak louder than words, what the characters do and are shown to be thinking rather than just stating for the record.

It's also really good to see the heroes struggling in fights now and then. They're not just awesome at everything and that's it, because they actually have to fight during a battle by using their skills and smarts and all the tools at their disposal, and that garners for more respect and investment from the audience. :cool::thumbsup:

shootemindehead

19-Dec-2019, 01:29 PM

Mmmm, well the first three episodes definitely built up what seemed to be a central story. Episode four goes off on a bit of a tangent with its poor 'Seven Samurai' effort, but not as much as five and six do, as they add practically nothing at all to the main Yodakid story. The feel very much like short side quests in an Elder Scrolls game. It's all been relatively interesting, but the show has a curious journey.

There's a good bit of fan service going on, too, but in a good way. It doesn't feel ham fisted. There's a particular moment in Werner Herzog's Imperial compound that was just excellent. When the Kenner Imperial Troop Transport whizzed into frame, kid me grinned from ear to ear.

As for the characters abilities, it's good to see that they have to struggle in a scrap. Although Carano's character is a bit silly in this regard. The fact that she's an MMA fighter is getting a bit laboured and I hope that's the end of those kind of references. But, it does seem that Disney's Star Wars handlers have understood the "Mary Sue" criticisms about Rey in the sequels and toned down the uber powered hero factor.

All in all, and I know Eight is not out yet, it's been a decent show. Better than I expected. As an aside, Disney could do worse than give Deborah Chow a crack at a full length feature. She's shown that she, at least, understands the property in a way that JJ Abrams and Rian Johnson clearly did not.

MinionZombie

19-Dec-2019, 04:17 PM

Well, it'd be a bit silly to hire Carano and not use her fighting abilities on-screen! :D

Deborah Chow - apparently she'll be heading up the series centering around Obi-Wan Kenobi. She did an excellent job with eps 3 and 7, that's for sure - speaking of, Bryce Dallas Howard did a really good job with ep4.

It's interesting to note that eps 5 and 6 were both not written by Jon Favreau, but the other six episodes were/are written by JF.

shootemindehead

20-Dec-2019, 07:08 AM

Nah, I thought Howard's episode was easily the weakest. It had an unconvincing plot and a flat out awful attempt at a romance subplot that didn't work for second. Plus, the actual plan that was the centre of the story was ridiculous. In addition, the idea that the bad guys are just going to leave that "Polynesian" village alone now is just silly.

Um, so 5 and 6 were written by some one else? That may explain the feeling that they were kind of unconnected to the over all plot of the series.

For the second series, I'd like to see much tighter scripting. The villain of the week angle just isn't satisfying TV any more for dramatic television.

MinionZombie

20-Dec-2019, 10:00 AM

The 'romance subplot' was barely a subplot, and didn't feel at all intrusive or at-odds to me - it just further helped clarify who Mando is and what a Mandalorian is and, really, it's fitting with the western vibe of the whole show. We've seen the stoic hero be the person of interest/affection/desire/whatever for a female side character before in westerns, but their gunslinging ways just won't allow for them to settle down or even contemplate the idea - they're of a different breed to the mere civilians who surround them.

The raider gang seemed to really only be 'hard' because they had an ATST, now they don't and the villagers have been given some training, so they're not a walk over now either - so they've at least been given a chance to defend themselves. When Mando returned there was no news of anything untoward, so it must be assumed that the battle in ep4 was successful.

shootemindehead

20-Dec-2019, 07:42 PM

The 'romance subplot' was barely a subplot,

Exactly, so it comes across as forced, unrealistic and wholly unnecessary. The episode would have been better without it completely.

it's fitting with the western vibe of the whole show.

Its western vibe doesn't leave it free from criticism. There's too much of the episode that just soppy and when it isn't being soppy, it's being kinda silly. The whole plan to get rid of the AT-ST for instance it ridiculous, when the Mandalorian has a ship armed with two massive cannons. But, that's down to the writing as much as anything.

It just isn't that good an episode, made worse by the fact that we've seen the story done much. much better elsewhere before.

The raider gang seemed to really only be 'hard' because they had an ATST, now they don't and the villagers have been given some training, so they're not a walk over now either - so they've at least been given a chance to defend themselves. When Mando returned there was no news of anything untoward, so it must be assumed that the battle in ep4 was successful.

Nah, I don't really buy that Mini. The raider gang are all huge brutes. The village is made up of Polynesian fishermen. The idea that these guys will never bother going back there again because they lost a vehicle isn't even remotely convincing.

In the end, it doesn't have to be anyway, because this was pretty much a bottle episode and we'll never see that place again, more than likely. But that won't eliminate its shortcomings.

MinionZombie

21-Dec-2019, 10:13 AM

Well, I didn't say that it's western vibe excludes it from criticism, what I did say was that the 'no chance of a romance for the hero' idea is entirely in-keeping with the western vibe. The Man With No Name got some positive female attention now and then, but it's just not what's in store for his character and it's not what his life is about - same thing with Mando, even more-so because of his allegience to the Mandalorians and their ways. They don't spend much time on it in the episode and it's just there to make a point about Mando and further add to the intrigue and mythos surrounding him.

Fair point about not using his ship, but whatevs.

We did see that planet again (he returns to it in ep7 to get Carano's character) and aside from a (friendly) bar fight for money, everything seems quite peaceful and she doesn't report anything untoward - ergo, their battle with the raiders worked (thus far at least).

shootemindehead

22-Dec-2019, 08:06 AM

We did see that planet again (he returns to it in ep7 to get Carano's character) and aside from a (friendly) bar fight for money, everything seems quite peaceful and she doesn't report anything untoward - ergo, their battle with the raiders worked (thus far at least).

Well, it's the village I'm talking about. The odds that the show will go back there is quite low. Maybe the Mando might offload the kid there in the end.

MinionZombie

03-Jan-2020, 09:52 AM

So how did folks find the last episode? I enjoyed it.

The scene where IG-11 sacrifices itself to protect The Kid was quite powerful - oh, and I loved the early scene with the two troopers shooting the shit (and failing to shoot with any accuracy). :lol:

Moon Knight

03-Jan-2020, 02:46 PM

Loved the finale. Had a little bit of everything.

MinionZombie

03-Jan-2020, 04:18 PM

Loved the finale. Had a little bit of everything.

Yep. A really good mix. Action stuff, funny stuff, emotional stuff - a nice blend and all balanced really well to boot.

Apparently there were idiot fans on Twitter (where else?) who were going after Jason Sudeikis (who played one of the troopers) for hitting the bag. Some would be having a bit of fun with it, but others just take things too far - and it's just hatred and nastiness for the sake of it. Did I like the bag getting hit? No - but it's also entirely fictional! You're not supposed to 'like' that moment, and there's no need at all to go after the actor portraying that fictional character. Good grief!

Anyway - I found the season to be very entertaining and very confident throughout (mostly - episodes 5 and 6 aside, as they just felt a bit too 'outside' of the main story, a bit too 'adrift' of the thrust of the story). The balance of tone in particular was excellent and I really felt the show understood the original trilogy in terms of tone and storytelling as well as inspiration (e.g. 1930s serials, Kurosawa, westerns etc).

bassman

04-Oct-2020, 10:24 AM

Season two begins in just a few weeks(Oct. 30th)!

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I’ve burned through the first season four times now. I’m skeptical to say it’s the best Star Wars release in recent years because it’s still in its infancy, but I’m realllly leaning that way. Feloni and Favreau have hit on something great if they can keep it up.

Moon Knight

04-Oct-2020, 02:03 PM

I knew it was the best Star Wars in recent times just within the first few minutes of the first episode.

MinionZombie

05-Oct-2020, 10:14 AM

Aye, I've done the first season a couple of times now - and very much looking forward to the second season.

It really helps that it's set within a familiar universe but the characters are all new, so the show doesn't have to service any prior films or dance around pillars of story that are set in concrete, you know?

shootemindehead

06-Oct-2020, 12:34 AM

It really helps that it's set within a familiar universe but the characters are all new, so the show doesn't have to service any prior films or dance around pillars of story that are set in concrete, you know?

It's about bloody time Disney figured that out.

MinionZombie

06-Oct-2020, 10:08 AM

It's about bloody time Disney figured that out.

:lol::lol::lol:

Or rather, Jon Favreau figured it out for them. ;)

ProfessorChaos

15-Oct-2020, 02:43 AM

through osmosis, my son picked up on the baby yoda craze. while i had shown him a few star wars films (the originals and prequels of course, fuck the disney sequels), we hadn't paid any attention to this show.

but then, on his 4th birthday, he got "the child" as one of his gifts, and was really wanting to see "the baby yoda show"....i had heard nothing but high praise for the mandolorian from people from all walks of life that i know, so we ponied up for disney plus last week.....

....and binged the entire thing in two days, which was pretty fun. it totally lived up the hype, gave me faith again in star wars and its future after almost 15 years, and has me eagerly awaiting the second season coming out later this month.

my son, named lucas, or luke for short, is now known as "the mandolukian" and is pretty much joined at the hip with the child. don't know who's a bigger fan of the show, but we're both pumped about more adventures of that odd pairing.

this is the motherfucking way.

MinionZombie

31-Oct-2020, 11:46 AM

So ... season 2, episode 1 ... thoughts anyone?

Moon Knight

31-Oct-2020, 12:08 PM

So ... season 2, episode 1 ... thoughts anyone?

I really enjoyed it. Had good character touches and a great ending.

ProfessorChaos

31-Oct-2020, 12:48 PM

my son and i watched it last night, thought it was a great way to start the second season. timothy olyphant was excellent as always. if I'm not mistaken, that was boba fett's armor that he was in possession of? I have a feeling we may see more of his character later in the season. thought the giant sand monster was pretty awesome, even though I saw the final method of getting rid of it from a mile away.

after blowing through the first season in a single weekend it's gonna be different taking this new season a week at a time.

paranoid101

31-Oct-2020, 04:21 PM

It's just fantastic, the special effects are movie quality, I also do like bottle episodes, I know a few people complain about them but I like how the story isn't rushed.

Best thing on TV now that The Boys has finished.

MinionZombie

01-Nov-2020, 09:57 AM

I was a bit lukewarm on this episode, I'm surprised to say.

I kinda wandered how it really fits into the main quest, as it were ... it kinda felt like a side quest when you're playing a sandbox game and you go off the main mission path. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoyed it quite a bit, but did it also really need to be 52 minutes long? I dearly hope they're not going to do longer episodes all this season, because that 27-33 minute running time was ideal last season.

Big fan of Olyphant (folks should check out Santa Clarita Diet), so that's always a plus, but yeah ... not sure if it was my own expectations to a degree, but I felt a bit lukewarm about 2x01.

bassman

01-Nov-2020, 10:27 PM

I figured the longer run time is probably just down to the fact that Favreau directed it. As Disney’s second only to Kevin Feige, he was probably given free reign. The aspect ratio changes were also because he filmed the big sequences with IMAX equipment. Really pulled out all the stops.

Prof, that was indeed Boba’s armor. Although not confirmed, that was most likely Boba himself at the end. Same actor that played his father, Jango, who Boba is a clone of.

Lots of great references in this episode. The R5 unit is the same one Luke and Owen traded back for R2, the Marshall’s Pod speeder appears to be Anakin’s, the sand people travel single-file like Kenobi told Luke, and of course the first appearance of a living Krayt. And more of a fun trivia bit: the one-eyed gangster in the beginning is Cholo himself, John Leguizamo.

paranoid101

06-Nov-2020, 10:36 PM

Episode 2 watched still loving it, special effects in this series are on point, also when baby Yoda eats one the of baby spiders how much did it look like a facehugger lol

MinionZombie

07-Nov-2020, 10:13 AM

Enjoyed the episode. 40 minutes was plenty long enough (say 37 minutes when you take out the credits). As I've said before, I hope they don't elongate episodes unnecessarily.

As for The Child in this episode...

He kinda was a bit of a l'il psychopath in this episode, eating that lady frog's baby eggs. :lol:

Sure, he doesn't understand what they are, but geez kiddo ... that last little gobble was like a last 'fuck you' to close the episode, haha!

MinionZombie

05-Dec-2020, 11:07 AM

So we're six episodes deep now and I'm really enjoying it.

Some parts have felt a little bit 'side questy', as everyone who can help always needs Mando to do some chore for them, haha, but in recent episodes it has rediscovered a bit more propulsion for the main story, I feel.

The sixth episode (directed by Robert Rodriguez) was really good.

MikePizzoff

06-Dec-2020, 08:36 PM

I absolutely love this show! It’s the best piece of Star Wars universe, in my opinion. And I love that it’s essentially a 1940s/50s serial western. Bummed that there are only two episodes left of this season, but stoked to see what the future holds for ol’ Mando.

shootemindehead

18-Dec-2020, 01:27 PM

Well, that ended well (mmmm, well enough anyway). :D

Except, Luke's appearance shows why de-aging and CGI has a LONG, LONG, way to go before it can be considered ready to use as a method to bring back the OT stars into Star Wars. It was bad. I'm generally against recasts and this de-aging lark anyway. I think the OT crowd have had their day.

Wasn't that crazy about Boba Fett being brought back from the dead, either, and am even less enthused at a show about him in 2021 as teased in the post credits scene in S02E08. But I suppose that Disney just couldn't help themselves.

ProfessorChaos

18-Dec-2020, 11:41 PM

woah that was one hell of a finale! i hope not, but i could almost forsee that being the finale for the entire series. believe that i heard they are planning on a third season.

while I agree the digital de-aging of luke was a bit off-putting, it was still fucking awesome to see. my son and i just finished return of the jedi the other night so we were super pumped. poor grogu, hopefully luke's bitch-ass nephew doesn't kill him along with the rest of the students....but for me the timeline stops there for now. doubt i'll even show the sequel trilogy to my son. i've only seen the first of that turd-fest anyhow.

MinionZombie

19-Dec-2020, 10:18 AM

The second season got off to a bit of a slow start for me, I kinda felt like we were just straight into side missions rather than the main story, but after a couple of episodes it felt like it got moving again and I settled into it nicely. Solid finale with an emotional climax.

Also, yep, the CGI Luke Skywalker was pretty dodgy ... the dead eyes, the weird mouth (I swear it literally moved around his face at one point) ... you kinda wonder, why not just get some YouTuber who specialises in DeepFakes to just do it? The ones who know what they're doing can actually do better work than the big studios when it comes to this de-aging stuff.

Hopefully Grogu and Mando will team up again. Perhaps there'll be a time jump in season three, or after we've seen some of his training? Will they tie it into the sequel trilogy's backstory about the massacre, with Grogu escaping/being rescued, or maybe that was set a bit later?

shootemindehead

19-Dec-2020, 03:02 PM

paranoid101

19-Dec-2020, 04:54 PM

Should have got Bucky to do it.

Fantastic series, did everyone watch the after credit scene, no spoilers but wow lol

1491

MinionZombie

20-Dec-2020, 10:41 AM

Those deepfakes aren't particularly convincing either. I think people are just more good willed toward them cos they're made by some guy in his bedroom, as opposed to a giant moneybags media corporation.

Depends on which ones you look at. I've seen plenty okay/iffy ones, but I've also seen some really good ones. You can't help but wonder, those deepfakers with Disney resources could have really done a good job with it.

Anyway, oddness of the de-aging aside (I was questioning whether it was even his voice, as he's usually more gravelly now ... but then again, he is a professional voice actor as well), that whole sequence going through those droids was awesome.

Speaking of - Mando vs that one droid really made them intimidating and tough. You actually felt the tension, especially when they all turned up again.

shootemindehead

21-Dec-2020, 12:17 PM

It was about time there was some tension in the flippin show.

MinionZombie

25-Dec-2020, 10:24 AM

Someone's done a deepfake on the last episode...

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The eyes are better, but obviously they're only deepfaking on top of what was already there - which includes the lips that never actually close, they're always open, even when making "B" or "P" sounds. But it was a little improvement over all, I thought.

bassman

25-Dec-2020, 10:26 AM

MinionZombie

25-Dec-2020, 03:56 PM

The progression from the X-Wing arrival, to the black robe in the security footage, then the gloved hand and green saber reveal....I jumped up from my chair without even realizing it. So exciting. But then the uncanny valley took over during the full reveal. It didn’t ruin it entirely, but it would have been better as a recast(Sebastian Stan, who’s already in bed with Disney) and a voice replacement.

I suppose they needed the audience to know straight away who it was, rather than seeing a different lookalike actor and then wondering in a moment of confusion as to who exactly it was.

shootemindehead

25-Dec-2020, 06:33 PM

Casting this Stan geezer would just cause the majority of the audience to ask "WTF is this guy".

It had to be CGI. Just a pity it wasn't better CGI.

Moon Knight

25-Dec-2020, 07:32 PM

The dodgy CGI didn’t ruin the moment for me. That was my childhood right there.

bassman

26-Dec-2020, 10:18 AM

At the very least, I hope they recast before Luke is used again. Assuming he’ll be used again when Grogu reunites with Din at some point(Grogu can’t stay with Luke for very long). We’ve already seen a different actor playing Han, and he looked nothing like Harrison Ford. Sure, it was from a period of Han’s life that we hadn’t seen, but surely they could work something out without the floating faces they’ve now done three times with poor results.

Just ease in a different actor and give us some more of Luke at full power. Everyone loves Hamill, but a close enough replacement could work. We’ve seen practical make up effects for historical figures in movies for decades now and most of them are above and beyond the CG face replacement. I’m not meaning to drag the show through the dirt. It’s phenomenal. But the CG faces need to be left alone for another decade tor so until it’s more convincing.

Ironically, I just saw a de-aged Pedro Pescal(Din Djarin himself) in Wonder Woman 1984. “Oof” is the best I can say about that movie...

shootemindehead

26-Dec-2020, 01:19 PM

Ehrenreich is a perfect example of why there SHOULDN'T be any recasts of the original characters. It was awful. Not once was he convincing as Han Solo. Or I should say, not once was he convincing as Harrison Ford, because that's who Solo is. It was obvious that he was going to be rejected and it came as no surprise to me that that film failed. It was a disastrous idea from the beginning. The film wasn't helped by being a lump of meh either.

The problem here is that none of the original actors were that good, so they brought far too much of themselves to the roles. This means that anyone who gets recast is going to have to be an impressionist and that's a tougher ask than most think. It would be next to impossible to conjure up a completely successful replacement that everyone will accept. Personally it never really works for me and recasting a major character is always a failure to some degree. The only way it can work is if there's a significant age difference involved and even then it can be awkward.

In the end, the original characters had their time and it's over. Things need to move on and Disney need to make new characters and new stories for Star Wars. The thing is, they need to make them good, which so far has been a tall ask (with the exception of 'Rogue One' and 'The Mandalorian').

The period of Luke, Han and Leia has plenty of room to explore new stories. They just need to leave those characters out of it, because offering up a fake, whether it's CGI or somebody else, is going to fail.

bassman

26-Dec-2020, 02:50 PM

I like Solo. Ehrenreich certainly was no Ford, but he seemed to do okay with what he was given. It was a younger version that we hadn’t seen, so I was able to let go and accept him. The film itself doesn’t get enough credit, IMO. With it’s troubled production and the divided reaction to Last Jedi, people were primed to hate it before it even premiered. But in the end, I feel it’s a very fun western set within the SW universe. In certain ways, it may have paved the way for the tone of Mandalorian.

shootemindehead

26-Dec-2020, 04:21 PM

He doesn't look, act or talk like Harrison Ford though. That's the problem. He isn't Ford, so therefore he cannot possibly be convincing as Han Solo. He's Hank Solo. Some guy that vaguely reminds you of somebody better. It ends up being completely pointless and it's just a cheap nostalgia suck.

As for the film itself, it was a poor idea from beginning to end, and completely indicative of Disney's "what now?" approach to the thing they just forked out billions for. They hadn't a clue what to do with it and the awful sequels and 'Solo' is a prime example of that. No plan, but to riff on what had come before. Frankly, I'm delighted it tanked and it's a pity it didn't do worse, because it seems that some folk didn't get the message at the House of Mouse.

Too many people give 'Solo' a pass, because it didn't completely suck balls like 'The Last Jedi'. But it isn't a good movie. It's not a terrible one either. It's just the epitome of middle-the-roads meh blandess, made all the worse by having it be about Han Solo, where everything we know of him happens on screen in the space of 2 hours. It was an appalling idea, creatively bankrupt, and should have been nipped in the bud.

If it was a better written film and, more importantly, had nothing to do with Solo, it probably would have been much, much, better. But Disney seem terrified to go it their own way. Even 'The Mandalorian' was essentially Boba Fett. Then having Fett show up in the show just diminished the main character. Astonishing how these ideas get greenlit.

Disney really do need to "let the past die" and stop trying to hook everything on a few people, who they cannot hope to replicate successfully.

It's a big galaxy and most fans just want to explore it more. New characters and new stories in a familiar setting. It couldn't be simpler.

Moon Knight

26-Dec-2020, 04:32 PM

I’m just waiting for a story set during the Knights of the Old Republic era. So much creative freedom can be had there that doesn’t involve using older established characters.

MinionZombie

26-Dec-2020, 04:38 PM

EvilNed

31-Dec-2020, 09:57 PM

I liked The Last Jedi...

Although Finn's storyline was literally pointless. Everything else I really quite enjoyed. That movie gets too much flack, I feel. Some, sure, but the amount it usually gets? Unfair.

Finn's storyline was a sizeable chunk of the movie. And as you say - it was literally pointless.

While I enjoyed some parts of the film, I think the script is the weakest part. It felt like watching someone shoot a first draft. I'm more annoyed by it because I know millions of dollars were spent on it - and the script is what costs the least to fix.

Tricky

04-Jan-2021, 10:54 AM

I was gifted a Disney+ subscription for Christmas so finally watched The Mandalorian, it's definitely the best thing to come out of Star Wars since Rogue One and am looking forward to the next series at the end of the year.

Neil

14-Sep-2022, 10:39 AM

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MinionZombie

20-Jan-2023, 12:35 PM

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Neil

23-Jan-2023, 09:50 AM

Fingers crossed!

MinionZombie

07-Apr-2023, 01:45 PM

Better uncross those fingers ... *sigh* ... six episodes deep into season three now and what the fuck is the story of this season? We're all over the place ... it's just stuff happening sometimes with some really stupid shit inserted in here and there (e.g. the episode of Mandalorians vs Giant Space Bird - especially it's moronic ending moment; the far too cartoony 'space pirates' - I mean, seriously, striped shirts and a fucking giant wheel to steer the ship? Come on, now...), very poorly structured storytelling (e.g. people travelling vast distances through space to get an answer on something in-person that they could have got over the space-phone in seconds, all the while there's an emergency unfolding!!! - or the third episode segway with someone I barely remember and someone I don't remember at all as the focus, only for them to vanish from the story immediately after) ... and some fucking awful stunt casting: namely Lizzo and, somewhat shockingly, Jack Black. The former can't act at all and sticks out like a sore thumb every second she's on screen, and the latter is a gigantic distraction every split-second he's on screen (the same episode also featured Christopher Lloyd, who fit in much better, but is stuck with some rather shonky material).

There's good ideas in amongst the dreck and random side quests (that make the rare weaker moments of the first two seasons look like Oscar-darling material), but there's so much that's done wrong here. What on earth has happened with Favreau and Filoni?! :stunned:

Neil

08-Apr-2023, 11:27 AM

Oh dear :(

Go and watch Picard S3 instead :)

shootemindehead

24-Apr-2023, 03:39 PM

Jesus this thing dropped off the edge of a cliff.

Wow.

Neil

24-Apr-2023, 04:49 PM

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shootemindehead

24-Apr-2023, 09:12 PM

That guy's normally a whinging maggot, but he's bang on in terms of the inefficiency with which this show operates at. S01 and S02 had this problem too, but S03 takes it to a farcical level. The main issue, however, is that S02 was the perfect end to the show (dodgy CGI notwithstanding). Baby Yoda was handed off to bad CGI Luke and the pair of them head away to Luke's new school. Done.

If the series were to continue, what it should have done was make it a bounty of the week show, with no over all arch. Just have the Mando as a gun for hire, chasing down various bounties and ignore trying to shoehorn a greater tertiary plot into the mix. Because the show tends to ignore things like that anyway, so what's the bloody point. Plus bring back baby Yoda is just an albatross around the Mando's neck and one which he has to constantly hand off to someone else so he can, ya know, go to bleedin work.

MinionZombie

25-Apr-2023, 09:43 AM

He's being a bit harsh on seasons one and two, even though there was some padding in there - but also, at that point, it didn't matter anywhere near as much as it has done in season three, which he goes after quite fairly here. There was indeed a lot of filler and nonsense that offered nothing of any meaning or value to the story, plot points would come and go at random, 'important things' would be abandoned for episodes at a time or even entirely, and there was so much time spent on shit that didn't really matter much (e.g. the IG-11 subplot - which also squandered the season one finale sacrifice).

Season three has some parts that work, or ideas that could have worked if done properly in a well written and structured season (but are instead ruined) ... but the peak of shitness with season three has to be episode six. Fucking oof. :stunned:

shootemindehead

26-Apr-2023, 05:00 PM

MinionZombie

26-Apr-2023, 09:42 PM

Who the hell was that fat bird in E06, cos I know cups of tea that could act better.

Lizzo.

She's a musician, I think, but I'm not really sure. I just see articles now and then in-passing online that mention "Lizzo", usually in the context of her weight and her 'clapping back' at someone on social media about it. I kinda recognised her face just from those passing thumbnail images scrolling past endless UniLad posts (unsubscribed from them at long last, got fed up with the incessant double-posts every single day, as well as the constant re-posts of old shit as 'new' even though it was years old when they first posted about it, as well as 'unearthed footage' posts which are just some idiot writer with a worthless overpriced degree stumbling on some old and very much always available video by accident etc etc etc) ... where was I? Oh yeah, Lizzo ... yeah ... talk about stunt casting.

Even Jack Black, playing her husband/king in the same episode, was truly dreadful in episode six. He wasn't the character at all, it was just Jack Black with a huge beard playing Star Wars. Awful. Even Christoper Lloyd got stuck with the most pathetic lines of dialogue, especially in his big 'sorry' speech that must've been written by a child it was that stupidly simplistic. Shocking stuff.

And when Lizzo 'knights' Grogu for ... reasons? ... one of many times my eyes damn-near rolled out of my skull during that episode.

Rumour has it that Favreau has been shoved aside and Kathleen Kennedy has got her grubby mits on Mando, hence the dramatic drop in quality. Rumours also abound that, because of Gina Carrano's firing, a whole bunch of wider story material (including one or two spin-offs - including her own spin-off) had to be thrown out entirely, or mangled and re-incorporated into what has been Mando S3. Yeesh.

The couple of episodes in Boba Fett (another wasted show) focusing on Mando were enjoyable, although they did ride roughshod over the ending to Mando's second season, which really should've been the finish to that.

shootemindehead

27-Apr-2023, 06:05 AM

Lizzo.

She's a musician, I think, but I'm not really sure. I just see articles now and then in-passing online that mention "Lizzo", usually in the context of her weight and her 'clapping back' at someone on social media about it. I kinda recognised her face just from those passing thumbnail images scrolling past endless UniLad posts (unsubscribed from them at long last, got fed up with the incessant double-posts every single day, as well as the constant re-posts of old shit as 'new' even though it was years old when they first posted about it, as well as 'unearthed footage' posts which are just some idiot writer with a worthless overpriced degree stumbling on some old and very much always available video by accident etc etc etc) ... where was I? Oh yeah, Lizzo ... yeah ... talk about stunt casting.

Christ. I must be getting old, cos I've no clue about Lizzo or what clapping back means or what Unilad is.

Rumour has it that Favreau has been shoved aside and Kathleen Kennedy has got her grubby mits on Mando

Oh dear.

MinionZombie

27-Apr-2023, 10:08 AM

Christ. I must be getting old, cos I've no clue about Lizzo or what clapping back means or what Unilad is.

Oh dear.

1) "Clapping back", as 'da yoof' loves to say, often involves famous people you've no real clue who/why they are, mouthing off at anonymous strangers on Twitter or TikTok who slagged them off. So brittle is their self-esteem that they've never heard the phrase "don't feed the trolls" and they've gone running off to rant into their phones, post it online, and then hopefully bask in a lot of sycophantic affirmation. Unable to process that they may indeed not be so incredibly amazing and perfect, they turn every mean comment from a fucking nobody into Hamburger Hill.

2) Indeed. The behind-the-scenes scuttlebutt at Disney in general seems to be quite bad all-round, from fierce battles with the shareholders to thousands of firings happening at the moment amidst massive cost-saving measures. I can't imagine anybody in the higher echelons will get the axe - you know, the ones making the big decisions that have caused repeated box office failures and disappointments, focusing on identity politics far above story and characterisation - will no doubt go home unscathed to have a Scrooge McDuck bath as the company continues to slide backwards into the icy cold waters of creative bankruptcy. Mind you, they did fire Victoria Alonso, who has now gone away home with an undisclosed sum of money after legal action (i.e. eye watering amounts). Seems the official reason was a contract breach, but unofficially, rumour has it, that she's been very much attached to the decline in Disney Marvel and, so it is often heard online amongst the VFX world, a less-than-nice person to work for.

Further to that, it seems an awful lot of VFX companies now hate working for Disney - constantly changing their minds about VFX shots and then not paying for the work to be re-done. Companies are either being forced to put out inferior, rushed work or in some cases forced out of business because of the shoddy way they are dealt with by Disney. It also seems that there's a big shortage of VFX artists (due to the massive rush towards vast amounts of CGI use), so those who aren't under the Disney banner can pick and choose their projects and will often prefer to avoid the Mouse House like the plague.