lizardbeth (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
lizardbeth) wrote2007-03-26 09:35 am
lizardbeth) wrote2007-03-26 09:35 am
Sun night t.v: Rome and BSG: Crossroads II
First, *snuggles her ROME finale, gives it kisses and tears*. Goodbye, sociopath Octavian. Goodbye, Atia of the Julii, who started out a soap opera diva and became a woman I wish I could know. Goodbye, Marc Antony, you hot hunk of a man, even if you're a crazed barbarian. Goodbye, Octavia, who was everybody's victim and rose above it anyway.
Goodbye, Vorenus.
Goodbye, Titus Pullo.
*sniffle*
Goodbye, show. Despite historical inaccuracies aplenty and the lack of any battles or famous oratory, you were my home for two years and I will miss you.
However, the Rome finale ran long, so I missed the first ten minutes of BSG.
I missed SHIRTLESS SAM! *wail* (although in exchange I saw Pullo PWN Octavian, so that was worth it, but STILL!)
It was an odd experience to be so completely spoiled for something. I felt a bit like I was watching it for the second time, even though I hadn't seen it before. I avoided spoilers the last two weeks, hoping that at least something was left unknown, but... not really. Watching was pretty much a checklist, of Yep, here's the "perry mason" moment (though a true Perry Mason movement would probably have been to call the prosecutor to the stand, but close enough); yep, here's lee's big speech (which while, yes, a speech, I thought was well done, bringing in a lot of the ethically dubious actions that they've all taken throughout the series). No, these things aren't forgotten, and that always pleases me.
Not surprisingly the parts I enjoyed the most were the small surprises: like Gaeta lying his ASS off on the stand. Racetrack training the nuggets. Roslin's cancer being real (I had thought she might have lied about it). Caprica saying that she was protecting Hera.
Although Baltar's trial outcome was never really in doubt, I think it was a valuable thing to have done, to bookend the New Caprica storyline. In one way or another, this season has been about the consequences of what happened there, so it was fitting. I think we got just enough of the trial to be interesting, while not belaboring it too much. Lamkin's weaselly defense counsel was fun to watch. There aren't many 'colorful'/eccentric characters on BSG, so I enjoyed his time around.
What else? hm I have to say I disagree with people who call Kara's return 'predictable' in the pejorative sense. I think it was expected, and I'm fiercely GLAD that Ron paid off that expectation. Because if he hadn't? How much wailing and gnashing of teeth would there be today? Me, for one, and I'm sure I wouldn't have been alone. Think about it from his side of things - he had two choices: bring her back now or S.4 (I don't think not bringing her back at all was ever really on the table). All those viewers who believed Kara was dead and not coming back, were going to be surprised and happy whenever she came back. But for those people like me? Who were more sure after "Maelstrom" than before it that she was coming back? He had to pay that off or it would really have been cheating. So he did exactly what he had to do narratively. No, it wasn't a surprise, but in this case I think a "surprise" for the sake of a surprise, would've been the weaker solution.
(ETA: And I'm also glad we're spared of nine months of hype and teasing and leaked spoilers that would have made Kara's return in S.4 even MORE anticlimactic. At least now we can debate what her return means rather than the return itself.)
Having long since digested the idea of the Four and their identities, thanks to the spoilers (and now that Ron has apparently confirmed that they really are the Four, I can finally just accept that they are and move on), it wasn't a surprise of course. Though I am very intrigued by the use of Earth music ("All Along the Watchtower" - c'mon, how is that not cool?). McCreary didn't come up with a Cylon theme - they very specifically chose a modern, well-known song, and more than likely paid through the nose for the rights, too. So I think it's more than just a whim. I like it a lot.
While I'm thinking the Four -- it was awesome how Tigh took the revelation as a way to return to his duty. To return to his humanity, in a basic way. And he got the others to do it too. Yay, for Saul Tigh! Weird. Would never have thought that during LDYB,y'know?
So, what do we have for Season 4? A whole lotta basestars, a whole lotta ships without ability to jump, Kara in a Viper with the way to Earth, four now-revealed Cylons doing their Human duty, an unknown Fifth still lurking, Nick Tyrol another (unknown) hybrid, Baltar free and off with some cultists, some sort of mystical battle over Hera... It's not as visually stunning as Cylon warships above New Caprica, but man, that's a lot of threads laid out for the new season.
I will cross my fingers that Ron and Co use this time to figure out where all of them are going. But I remember a lot of doubt about the Year Gap and the conquest of New Caprica and THAT paid off, so ... for now, I'll keep the faith.
Finally, hooray, for the word that that the Pegasus movie will feature the main cast. PHEW! Boy, does that relieve my mind that there's not as much stupidity and/or crack being smoked as I feared...
Goodbye, Vorenus.
Goodbye, Titus Pullo.
*sniffle*
Goodbye, show. Despite historical inaccuracies aplenty and the lack of any battles or famous oratory, you were my home for two years and I will miss you.
However, the Rome finale ran long, so I missed the first ten minutes of BSG.
I missed SHIRTLESS SAM! *wail* (although in exchange I saw Pullo PWN Octavian, so that was worth it, but STILL!)
It was an odd experience to be so completely spoiled for something. I felt a bit like I was watching it for the second time, even though I hadn't seen it before. I avoided spoilers the last two weeks, hoping that at least something was left unknown, but... not really. Watching was pretty much a checklist, of Yep, here's the "perry mason" moment (though a true Perry Mason movement would probably have been to call the prosecutor to the stand, but close enough); yep, here's lee's big speech (which while, yes, a speech, I thought was well done, bringing in a lot of the ethically dubious actions that they've all taken throughout the series). No, these things aren't forgotten, and that always pleases me.
Not surprisingly the parts I enjoyed the most were the small surprises: like Gaeta lying his ASS off on the stand. Racetrack training the nuggets. Roslin's cancer being real (I had thought she might have lied about it). Caprica saying that she was protecting Hera.
Although Baltar's trial outcome was never really in doubt, I think it was a valuable thing to have done, to bookend the New Caprica storyline. In one way or another, this season has been about the consequences of what happened there, so it was fitting. I think we got just enough of the trial to be interesting, while not belaboring it too much. Lamkin's weaselly defense counsel was fun to watch. There aren't many 'colorful'/eccentric characters on BSG, so I enjoyed his time around.
What else? hm I have to say I disagree with people who call Kara's return 'predictable' in the pejorative sense. I think it was expected, and I'm fiercely GLAD that Ron paid off that expectation. Because if he hadn't? How much wailing and gnashing of teeth would there be today? Me, for one, and I'm sure I wouldn't have been alone. Think about it from his side of things - he had two choices: bring her back now or S.4 (I don't think not bringing her back at all was ever really on the table). All those viewers who believed Kara was dead and not coming back, were going to be surprised and happy whenever she came back. But for those people like me? Who were more sure after "Maelstrom" than before it that she was coming back? He had to pay that off or it would really have been cheating. So he did exactly what he had to do narratively. No, it wasn't a surprise, but in this case I think a "surprise" for the sake of a surprise, would've been the weaker solution.
(ETA: And I'm also glad we're spared of nine months of hype and teasing and leaked spoilers that would have made Kara's return in S.4 even MORE anticlimactic. At least now we can debate what her return means rather than the return itself.)
Having long since digested the idea of the Four and their identities, thanks to the spoilers (and now that Ron has apparently confirmed that they really are the Four, I can finally just accept that they are and move on), it wasn't a surprise of course. Though I am very intrigued by the use of Earth music ("All Along the Watchtower" - c'mon, how is that not cool?). McCreary didn't come up with a Cylon theme - they very specifically chose a modern, well-known song, and more than likely paid through the nose for the rights, too. So I think it's more than just a whim. I like it a lot.
While I'm thinking the Four -- it was awesome how Tigh took the revelation as a way to return to his duty. To return to his humanity, in a basic way. And he got the others to do it too. Yay, for Saul Tigh! Weird. Would never have thought that during LDYB,y'know?
So, what do we have for Season 4? A whole lotta basestars, a whole lotta ships without ability to jump, Kara in a Viper with the way to Earth, four now-revealed Cylons doing their Human duty, an unknown Fifth still lurking, Nick Tyrol another (unknown) hybrid, Baltar free and off with some cultists, some sort of mystical battle over Hera... It's not as visually stunning as Cylon warships above New Caprica, but man, that's a lot of threads laid out for the new season.
I will cross my fingers that Ron and Co use this time to figure out where all of them are going. But I remember a lot of doubt about the Year Gap and the conquest of New Caprica and THAT paid off, so ... for now, I'll keep the faith.
Finally, hooray, for the word that that the Pegasus movie will feature the main cast. PHEW! Boy, does that relieve my mind that there's not as much stupidity and/or crack being smoked as I feared...