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Post by ArchdukeOfNaboo on May 27, 2022 1:17:24 GMT
Yes. That is a robust defence. It's just like something one of us might say. It's obvious that the prequels left the biggest (positive) impression on Hayden of all the recurring cast members. Other than the mild mentioning of George Lucas above (which is more a Disney thing than a Hayden thing), I can't really fault him for anything. Ironically, for someone accused of playing a "whiny punk" -- and, let's be honest, young Anakin has his issues (or there'd be no story) -- Hayden's conduct has always been exemplary.
The minute I read it in the Guardian, I was thinking, oh my God, is Cryogenic going to be pleased with this. Undoubtedly, one of the highlights of the whole press tour. And you what? Given enough time, in the right setting, I think he could even expand on that.
What I've most liked about McGregor is how he has reminded us all of the key influence of the critics (ie film critics) during the prequel era. He's more or less implied that they rallied, they goaded, the OT fanboys into the bashing. This is a very important difference with the sequel era.
And this is where the fun begins!
Okay time to call it quits now, and have one last rewatch of ROTS. The series is upon us.
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Post by Samnz on May 27, 2022 20:58:47 GMT
Just a few thoughts:- I have to say it again: It's simply mind-blowing how we ended up with a two or three minute long recap of the Prequel Trilogy right in front of a Disney production. That's what we achieved, but it's also sad to see how cynical Disney truly is, now trying to make money out of the same thing the trashed for years. We're just idiots supposed to consume, greetings from THX. - There was a noticable focus on both Qui-Gon and Padmé in the recap, which makes it pretty likely for Qui-Gon to appear and at least opens up a slight possibly for a Padmé cameo. - The first episode opened very slow and ended extremely interesting. Leia's abduction was a great way to get Obi-Wan off Tatooine, although it was strange how Bail as ruler of Alderaan just randomly showed up at Obi-Wan's cave. Shouldn't such a visit attract attention? - I think they nailed Alderaan. Many effects were pretty unconvincing for these days' standards, but that can also be said about many scenes on Tatooine. "The Volume" might make it feel like Star Wars for Ewan, but it's no Tunesia. Agree with Seeker of the Whills about the fake-looking cave. - Loved Joel Edgerton as Uncle Ben. He is probably my favourite character so far. - I can tell the writing for Leia is pretty spot-on by the fact that I didn't like her. She showed all those tiresome traits that I hate about her as an adult in the OT (ST is not part of my memory). Obi-Wan remembering Padmé was sweet. - Not enough Hayden. I know it makes dramatic sense to build him up slowly, but I'm just a fanboy^^ - I don't know what to make of the Inquisitors. We'll have to wait and see. - Overall this show feels like there is actually something at stake, which both Mandalorian and Book of Boba Fett kind of fail to deliver. Still missing something, though.
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Post by Cryogenic on May 28, 2022 2:01:18 GMT
Okay, great. I not long ago finished watching the two episodes (thanks to Alessio for making it happen), and now my head is buzzing with thoughts. I have work at 7 AM, but now I'm probably going to be up all night on adrenaline. Ah, Star Wars. Anyway, here's my initial jumble of thoughts:
First off, I'm not sure how objective I can be, to coin a phrase. The problem is that I hadn't seen any new Star Wars content since watching TROS at the cinema. But that was roughly 2.5 years ago. Know what that means? My brain interpreted this experience as like watching a whole new Star Wars movie. During the first episode, it was difficult not to be a little awed by absolutely everything. (It was even my first time signing into Disney+). Yes, ol' Cryo had that typical out-of-body, feverish feeling that comes from experiencing a new Star Wars thing for the first time. Everything was that little bit heightened and surreal, and I was probably feeling emotional and touched by moments that might fall flat on repeat viewings. Anyway, by the second episode, I had kinda settled into the thing a little bit. A little bit...
DANGER, WILL ROBINSON! BAGS OF SPOILERS!
But OMG, you guys. EWAN MCGREGOR PLAYING OBI-WAN KENOBI. JIMMY SMITS AS BAIL ORGANA. FUCKING JOEL EDGERTON AS OWEN LARS. ALDERAAN! DID I HEAR ANTHONY DANIELS THREEPIO-ING FOR A SECOND? ORDER 66 REENACTMENT AS THE OPENING SCENE! PREQUEL FLASHBACKS! JEDI USING THE FORCE. WAIT, A FAKE JEDI? OH, BUT HE'S HEROIC AND QUIRKY, I LIKE HIM! A CUTE AND SWEET LEIA WHO IS SASSY TO THE MAX! EVIL REVA! OBI-WAN ON A MISSION! OMG: THE APPRENTICE SLAYS THE MASTER. OBI-WAN LEARNING THAT ANAKIN STILL LIVES!!!
AND THAT RELEASE OF BIRDS FROM THE TRAILER THAT WAS SEEMINGLY POINTLESS, BUT AWESOME.
So, yeah... I guess I kinda liked it...
It was good spectacle. A good show. In a Disney way, but I dunno how else to describe it? This thing had a certain heft. I sat there, about half-way through the first episode, and I caught myself thinking , "You know, this is so much better than The Force Awakens, fuck me." I mean, really: Just seeing Tatooine and Obi-Wan being all low-key and humdrum was a million times better than Jakku and all that empty rehashed, time-wasting bullcrap in the Sequel Trilogy. And I like the Sequel Trilogy! (Well, TROS, at any rate). It looked and felt like magical Disney Kingdom Star Wars. Not Lucas Star Wars, but pretty much how you'd want and expect a Star Wars thing to feel under Disney. Contained, a little overly-managed, but pure, sweet, foreboding, compelling, engaging: good.
Maybe it was just good to get some semblance of Star Wars back. Story and character-driven Star Wars, with decent cinematography (for a "television" show, at least), and, in places, an arresting sense of the melancholic. Take Obi-Wan. Why not? He's the title character, right? Well, anyway: In the first episode, he's basically down and appears as a shell of his former self. And maybe that'll piss some fans off (along with whatever else fans take offence to these days). Rejecting the Jedi path? Shunning another Jedi and then trying his best to shun Bail? "Oh, it's TLJ Luke all over again." Yeah, but just as with TLJ Luke, note the little glimmers of Obi-Wan within the persona of "Ben" all the time (not the least of which is his calling on Qui-Gon, a silent ghost, for guidance). See his subtle show of guilt when that other Jedi who went to him for help is hung in the marketplace (his body is intact and not mutilated, but still pretty edgy for a kids' show). See how there isn't even a chrysalis moment for "Ben". Bail appears in-person and just wears him down. It's all in Ewan's eyes. No big musical score or epic moment of realisation required.
This is where the show was kinda interesting. Ewan just seems to have slipped back into the role like putting on an old pair of shoes. He's not histrionic; not even much more than marginally demonstrative. Just like in the prequels. There isn't an entirely new mode of acting Ewan has suddenly discovered or is applying here. It's basically the same bland Obi-Wan. And I don't meant that in a negative way. Obi-Wan is a very controlled character, with only hints of colouration or extenuation about him. He's about as pure, as hardy, as resilient as the Tatooine sand. Or the twin suns. Even when he doesn't feel he's much of anything. Ewan still allows the character and his calm ways to guide his choices. He doesn't overact or introduce needless mannerisms. In fact, on Daiyu, in the second episode, his growing frustration with Leia is very well-conveyed with similar understatement. He's a bit irritated, then a tiny bit more irritated, until he isn't -- until he realises how much Leia has in common with her mother. And I love the sense of guilt and reticence (to surrender himself to complete apathy) we see Obi-Wan quietly carrying around the whole time. Like when he realises he's been harsh about Leia's broken droid and kneels down to ask her about it in a soft voice. Or the way he unleashes violence. Not because he wants to, but because he has to.
Speaking of which: I loved when Obi-Wan got into his first tussle (in that prison lab place) and he was crying out in pain with every strike of his hand and appearing shocked about it. Or when he got pulled against the wall and thumped. There was something quite disturbing and human about the way he was shown to be corporeal, vulnerable, and out of touch, far from the cocky badass chasing Grievous, or the resigned Jedi Master starkly confronting Anakin on Mustafar.
In these two episodes -- and, I guess, the show entire -- we see "Ben" gradually rediscovering, in a series of continuous transformations, how to be "Obi-Wan" once more. The cumulative effect is more harrowing and captivating than it sounds in words. Or, to put it as pithily as Obi-Wan does in ROTS: "Not to worry -- we are still flying half a ship." I liked the prequel nods here, too, such as when that Jedi on Tatooine wants Obi-Wan to be Obi-Wan again, and "Ben" tells the poor bastard to bury his saber in the sand and "let it go". Let. Her. Go. As small or maybe too-cute a callback as that is, it neatly gives some insight into how Jedi can fall from grace in subtle ways. Not with a whimper, not with a bang. Some of 'em just let Jedi philosophy serve as salve for their pain. After all, what is more Jedi than letting go of the past and freeing oneself of all attachments? You can see how this version of Obi-Wan has quietly deceived himself these long years. And then, as mentioned earlier, the harsh consequences of Obi-Wan turning his back on a Jedi brother. Another brother he condemns to death.
I also liked that fake/impostor Jedi on Daiyu. Clever idea. But then he actually turns himself into a hero. Nice little arc for such a small, inconsequential character. Brilliant, actually. It's definitely a sort of "TV" moment. Can't imagine anything like that occurring in the feature films. But what made it really amazing was just how quirky that guy was. Star Wars needs to have more eccentrics. Eccentrics make the world go round. The absolute best moment, which kinda legitimated the entire series for me, was when Obi-Wan said the guy's name and he lit up and said (words to the effect): "OMG! You remembered my name!" That was so perfect. So Obi-Wan. I think I decided at that moment this series is offering an intelligent portrayal of Obi-Wan and what being a Jedi is all about. It's the little moments that make or break a situation, ultimately. The Force is in the details.
Yeah, I kinda liked how this show handled things.
But the really big and delightful surprise here, however, came in the form of a pint-sized Force sensitive child called Leia Organa. Damn, did they cast a wonderful actress for Leia and write her a wonderful part! I absolutely loved child Leia. She's just perfect in this. Maybe her sass is a little on the Disney side of things, but hey, what did I tell you (in my best Robert De Niro voice)? This is Disney Star Wars. Full of contemporary shadings and light touches that you're meant to notice almost immediately and not spot merely on your 10th or 50th viewing. I was only saying to Arch Duke last night: "Yeah, Leia's in this, I think. But maybe they cut her scenes out, who knows?" Ha!!! She's only the star of the entire show (so far). I lost track of how many scenes she's in, but she's not a mere cameo appearance, that's for sure. Her droid companion was cute, too. Again, in more of a Disney/Pixar-ish way, but that's okay. As long as Disney are putting out quality entertainment and actually trying.
Alderaan, by the way, looked incredible. Like Leia and her bond with Bail, and then Obi-Wan, seeing Alderaan and the way they depicted it totally stole my heart. I have tears in my eyes just thinking about it. Definitely my favourite planet so far. Holy crap! Glad I didn't read many spoilers. Giving Obi-Wan a mission to rescue Leia, even if it's an echo of her imploring Obi-Wan to help her in ANH, just knocked me for six. Excellent. I guess it now makes sense why she speaks to Obi-Wan in such a gentle, yearnful tone at the end of the message that R2 plays back. She starts off being an incorrigible, defiant child when they meet in the second episode, but you can already detect a strong bond forming when they escape Daiyu at the end. Even if Leia might be a MacGuffin and not in the series much more, what they've done so far is fantastic, just because of how unexpected it is. Unexpected, yet ideal. Yeah, in my head canon, Obi-Wan probably never left Tatooine, much less saw Leia again, but isn't this a treat? The whole show needs to be taken that way, I think.
As for Daiyu, if we're covering the planets, for a second? Daiyu was fun. Although it felt a bit cramped and not quite as busy/noisy as I expected it to be. More like a series of soundstages. Not a huge knock. On a technical level, the whole thing was very well executed. The new ILM "StageCraft" technology is just wonderful. I just expected Daiyu to be a little more volatile, rambunctious, heaving. It was actually starting to feel a little drab until the rooftop sequence. While short, that was very intense and visually terrific. And finally: Some of the real "Obi-Wan" shows up when he uses the Force to steady Leia's fall. It was kinda telegraphed, but I like how Leia basically forced Obi-Wan to "out" himself -- and at a very precarious moment, with Reva on the hunt, closing in. So let's count out the main environments in these two episodes (felt more like one episode cut into two pieces) so far: Tatooine, Alderaan, Daiyu. Would you look at that? Three planets. Like a Star Wars movie. Tatooine, I guess, was more bland than the other two. I mean, there were no eye-watering desert mesas, no gleaming salt flats, or anything like that. But it wasn't shown poorly, either. I liked that steam-punk transport that Obi-Wan kept riding back home. What was with that, by the way? You basically had the same sequence shown three times? Only slightly varied. I guess I'll have to watch again for the subtle differences as Obi-Wan starts to change with each ride home. Star Wars and threes, eh?
I feel like I should say more about Tatooine, but I can't think what. Oh, I know: The cinematography. Yes, well, again, stop me if you've heard this already: It's not Lucas, it's Disney Star Wars. But that ain't a bad thing here. One thing I really appreciated was the more film-like nature of the image on the Disney+ stream. In all the trailers and pre-release material, to pick an example, there's this shot of Obi-Wan leading his kaadu/camel-thing across a marketplace. It's in the finished product, but it looks less digital. In all the YouTube copies I've seen, the sky is always washed out: a total sheet of white. But in the streaming version, I could see a haze of dust in the foreground and cloud detail in the background. You're just not getting the proper experience when you watch YouTube clips. Fine detail is easily blown out, leading to a bright, garish image that isn't very appealing to the eye. Thus, on Disney+, the cinematography landed better for me. Maybe it helps that I cut the lights and tried to get a cinematic feeling going. In any case, the miniseries looks really nice -- for a streaming thing, anyway. In fact, there are some impressive examples of facial lighting on Obi-Wan, in particular, when he's in his cave-home. Ewan has probably never been lit better as Obi-Wan (or "Ben") than here. His eyes are very striking up-close, too. And that's important, since the series seems to rely on them to carry off important character beats. In fact, a bold bit of cinematography occurs near the end, when Obi-Wan is hiding from Reva and she tells him that Anakin is still alive. Ewan's reaction sells it. Series director Deborah Chow is sensitive enough to just let the camera remain trained on Obi-Wan's face. His eyes are a tapestry of emotion. But what makes it even more stark is that there is no dramatic, high-key lighting on Obi-Wan in that moment. That exact shot is actually rather murky. The biggest revelation of the series (in a way), and done in a very murky, muggy shot! But it really works.
In fact, there was a very artistic quality to Reva pursuing Obi-Wan all the way into that cargo area. The cargo area is appropriately dingy. Spacious, yet claustrophic and threatening. It's the perfect place for Obi-Wan to hear this devastating (if oddly hopeful) news. Like he has come to the end of the world or something. The rest of the series would therefore constitute his real awakening as he grapples with this blinding truth. Poor Obi-Wan. Man, he looks so stung and beaten down at the end. But the episodes themselves aren't grim. Well, not oppressively grim, anyway. The tone is pretty well-managed. There isn't even a great deal of action. But the episodes aren't wanting for action, either. It's there. It's just in short bursts. No grand cinematic/operatic action stagings yet. Maybe this is how it will continue. Feels alright by me. Also: Joy of joys! The action is visually coherent. Blunt. Concise. But pleasingly shot and edited. You won't mistake it for saga movie action, but I don't think that's the intention. They don't have the budget and it isn't what these television series are meant to be too concerned with. Then again, you have to have some spectacle, some kinetic digression. It's Star Wars. I suppose the nagging question with all these products is: When does Star Wars cease being Star Wars?
Then there's the Inquisitors to talk about. I should have seen it coming, but I was shocked when Reva gutted her boss, The Grand Inquisitor, like a fish. If that's the end of him, then all I can say is I'm gonna miss Rupert Friend. I seriously expected him to be in it more. But he could still be, right? I guess it's reminiscent of Anakin giving Dooku the chop at the start of ROTS. Hey! You can't do that to Christopher Lee. He's like the best actor in the franchise. Oh, well. A bit of shock value has its place, even in Star Wars. And the dude was asking for it. Although don't tell me that Reva isn't a psycho. Man, she has to be the nastiest villain Star Wars has ever had. Oh, I know. There are plenty of contenders. But I've never seen a character this callous, this ambitious before. Cold, excessive, gloating. Although you also feel a tinge of sympathy for her when The Grand One runs her down and basically calls her sewage. He might as well have used the n-word. And in typical privileged white male style, he goes to claim her prize: her achievement (yes: shades of Krennic being fucked over by Tarkin, too). In Sith style, I guess she knew at that moment she had to eliminate him. Those Inquisitors would probably have been better off adopting the Sith "Rule of Two". Can't do much with a lightsaber thrust through your abdominal region, can you, Oh, Grand One?
The one concern I have with Reva is: What's her backstory? Why is she so personally obsessed with capturing Obi-Wan? If the other Inquisitors basically consider Obi-Wan a lost cause, why does she have so much certainty that he's out there; what is her reason for so single-mindedly going on the hunt for Obi-Wan, baiting him with Leia, and being willing to kill her superior(s) in her dogged pursuit of Kenobi? It's too big of a piece to leave unexplained. But then, there are four more episodes, aren't there?
Now I'll segue onto a few negatives:
- Ewan said that each of these episodes would be roughly an hour long. ERRRGH (buzzer sound)!!! Thanks for playing. Your answer was incorrect. The first episode was 55-ish minutes, but that runtime includes a four-minute prequel recap at the start, and then around four minutes of blue-title credits at the end, plus another four minutes of additional credits (which I wasn't sure the purpose of). So the first episode is 45 minutes long in reality. The second episode clocked in at around 30 minutes minus a brief recap of the previous episode and end credits. That's like an hour-and-fifteen of storytelling so far. Are the episodes going to vary in length? If the average runtime ends up being around 40 minutes, then 40 x 6 = 240 minutes. Four hours. Not bad, I suppose. That's still like two feature films soldered together. But not quite the sprawling, six-hour storytelling clinic I was hoping for.
- Two episodes when it should have been one. Look, it was all done really well, but this could honestly have been a single 75-minute episode or something. Or maybe 90 minutes. And then have the other episodes all be around 45 minutes long, so you kick off with a near-feature-length premiere (a true "double-episode"), and then wind down into the main series. I mean, structurally, it kinda worked: Obi-Wan leaves Tatooine at the end of the first episode, then he goes to Daiyu to rescue Leia for the second (and leaves Daiyu with Leia at the end of that episode). Cool. But it's quite lopsided and it left the Daiyu episode feeling a bit short. I guess we'll have to see how the other episodes "break" the story content and whether some of them aren't a bit longer.
- The somewhat mechanical storytelling. Now, as I've said, the episodes were engaging. I had a fun time watching these. But I'm not sure how much repeat value they have. There isn't too much of a light, offbeat touch. Most of the storytelling ends up being a basic A-B-C thing. This happens, then this happens, then this happens. Unfortunately, these episodes do feel, well: episodic. Sort of TV-like and patchy. Lightweight next to the grand operatic stylings of the main movies. Not that I was expecting the same sort of grandeur or quality. But there's this sense of being on something of a monorail. Not a great deal of "mood" scenes or lightweight, incidental moments. Certainly the pacing is good and reasonably naturalistic or competent for the format. But you start to miss the heterogeneous power of the cinematic medium. In TV world, things are often more Procrustean and "made to order". This series hasn't really liberated itself from those constraints. I felt them often over the course of these two episodes.
- Some confusion pertaining to Obi-Wan's appearance. Is Obi-Wan meant to be recognisable to the galaxy or not? I couldn't quite get a handle on it, since his image is pasted over Daiyu, but on Tatooine, although a bit bedraggled, he is barely concealing himself from the Inquisitors, and the moment they leave, he walks into the middle of the square to thank Owen for not shopping him to them with other people present. Huh? So nobody on Tatooine sees that distinctive Ewan McGregor face and beard and says, "We have a Jedi amongst us. One of the most wanted." Maybe I missed something obvious here, but it felt like Obi-Wan was being a tad careless (for no particular story-motivated reason). Or was it that nobody really did remember Obi-Wan's face on Daiyu, until they are shown it and told to be on the lookout? Maybe I just answered my own question.
- Bail going to Tatooine. Yeah, minor. But how did he end up there? You know what: It doesn't matter. It's just a little jarring to see him stood right there in Obi-Wan's random cave dwellings. Was he even in disguise? I can't even remember now. I seem to recall him wearing standard Bail Organa clothes. Weird.
- Frozen titles. This is a minor one, too, but the end titles were so strange. Is this how Disney does all the Star Wars TV stuff? I don't mind them emulating the movie credits format of the saga films, but at least do it properly. So the first few titles with the actor names are fine. But then, when the longer credits come up, they are just static title cards (and so small you can barely read them). WTH? That's a really odd choice and it amounts to shitting on all the other people involved. I think you just press a button on a computer, these days, et voila: scrolling credits. C'mon, guys.
- Using actual prequel footage for both a pre-show recap montage and a dream/nightmare sequence of Obi-Wan's. Just kidding! This was fucking awesome. Had to end on a positive. They used that footage so well! Especially for Obi-Wan's nightmare. It was great for a Disney series to be making such an explicit, unapologetic link to the prequels. Joygasm. If anything, you know, it was strangely meta. Like they were saying: "Yeah, we know this isn't actually the prequels, but can't you pretend Obi-Wan has been tossed out of the cinematic dimension and landed in the strange world of Star Wars television? And that our television thing is better than all the other television things?"
- Okay, one more positive and then I'm done: The music. It was very well done. I think I will have to revisit this series a few times just for the music. How fantastic that they got John Williams to come back and record a new theme for Obi-Wan. His own theme, at last! And did I detect a hint of Rey's theme in Obi-Wan's? Do you realise how much sense that makes? Obi-Wan speaks to Rey in TFA and TROS and there was some talk of making Rey the granddaughter of Obi-Wan before they settled on Palpatine. In the words of Finn: "This could be big, Artoo." I would love for them to touch on that connection in this series. Like the way Obi-Wan speaks about Padme with Leia before they escape Daiyu. Very touching. I definitely enjoyed watching these episodes. The most "Star Wars" thing to me since, since... TROS? Well, okay: Since Lucas sold. Big statement, but maybe.
Now, you know, I really need to go back and watch "The Clone Wars"...
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Post by Cryogenic on May 28, 2022 3:10:32 GMT
BTW... (I guess I won't be going to sleep now)... While I tried to pay homage to you guys' posts in my own review/blitzkrieg of thoughts, I also feel like quoting them directly. So here goes: Halfway through the first episode, and I have to say I'm not feeling it. Hate to be negative, but that's my honest first impression. I still have an episode and a half to go, so it could still turn good. I have a bad feeling about this though, especially the reception it will get in many circles. I could barely sleep last night waiting for this, so it's not like I went in wanting to hate it. Mixed feelings.  I will admit the show has a somewhat clunking, prosaic quality about it in some ways (I think I tried to cover that in my "negatives"). Not entirely sure how to feel about it. Maybe I am too drunk on having just seen it. It was honestly exhilarating to be watching a new Star Wars thing, especially one that builds on the prequels and puts a prequel character at its centre. This show is intense. It doesn't feel like anything Disney has done. It feels like Star Wars. We're in prequel territory. I actually felt scared watching this show. Reva is terrifying in a way Kylo wasn't. Young Leia is perfectly written. I think she's hilarious. I even think I got the impression of Lucas dialogue. I like the Hellraiser guy. Also, Flea is in Star Wars. Reva was really mean and brutal. She adds a lot of menace to the whole show. That her brutality is backed up by Vader (or she at least seems to think it is) makes her even more dangerous. I like the fact that this show can be watched by kids, but it pushes the boundaries. I'll take your word for it that it doesn't feel like other Disney material, being familiar, as I am, with only the Sequel Trilogy. This show felt more like Disney's take on the prequels than the ST, that's for sure. Seeing Obi-Wan's reaction to that clone veteran on Daiyu really brought that home. Giving it another go, but my first impressions were I pretty much liked the opening recap and Obi-Wan's nightmare. It's quite an experience going from the intro recapping the mythic heights of the prequels to the more "down to earth" tone of the series itself. Well put. The series is trying to give itself the imprimatur of the prequels, which is all but impossible. Still, it's a very nice touch. Yep. Although I like all the actors, Jimmy Smits is a total win as Bail Organa. As good as he was in ROTS, he's all that and more here. Not really seeing the plastic look. At this time of writing, I can't think of anything negative to say about the production design. The show straight-up looked fantastic, to me, start to finish. My only critique is the one I made already about Daiyu lacking a bit of busyness and scale. Perhaps it struck me as a thing because I had just been watching clips of "Batman Forever", which has an amazing representation of Gotham City. Daiyu is a little bland (but still good) in comparison. The Obi-Wan-conversing-with-a-Jawa thing also struck me as a little odd. Although this seems to be a Jawa he has befriended, echoing his friendship with the shady Dexter Jettster in AOTC. It's quite a funny little scene, too. Obi-Wan giving Luke the skyhopper toy makes sense. It's what a Jedi following in the footsteps of Qui-Gon would do: Encourage a gifted boy to reach for the stars. It actually makes the end of ROTJ (where a skyhopper flies over Tatooine) a bit deeper. Obi-Wan basically gives Luke a very shrewd and tactical gift. I'll add that Owen has to come across as having a reasonable weariness of Obi-Wan, so Obi-Wan trying to open Luke's mind that "there's more to life than farming", with such a simple, mind-raising gift, gives Owen good reason to be pissed. He sees exactly what Obi-Wan is up to. - I think they nailed Alderaan. Many effects were pretty unconvincing for these days' standards, but that can also be said about many scenes on Tatooine. "The Volume" might make it feel like Star Wars for Ewan, but it's no Tunesia. Agree with Seeker of the Whills about the fake-looking cave. Alderaan looked gorgeous. Exactly how I always imagined it should look. I was welling up at how beautiful and perfect they made it. Seriously, as much as I liked seeing it in ROTS, this was a whole different level of perfection. I didn't find anything unconvincing. Pretty much every effect was as polished and convincing as I could have wanted it to be. There were worse-looking effects in "The Last Jedi" (fathier destruction scene on Canto Bight, poor lighting on Luke when he battles Kylo against obvious bluescreen on Crait). For a television series, I think this looked extremely good. It's George. We don't have him cultivating the plants anymore. His loss is very palpable. It's a whole different crew now. I also think maybe these creatives get too much in the habit of making everything line up and creating little gags instead of thinking in more grandiose terms. But hey, I'd rather watch this than "Star Trek: Discovery", so there's that. |
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Post by stampidhd280pro on May 28, 2022 3:14:42 GMT
There's a lot of TFA in the first Episode. The Obi-Wan and Rey themes both have this sober, humble, bittersweet blessedness. The everyday commute reminds of Joker, actually. As does the mood of it. The hopelessness, the music is always there reminding you how he feels. Ewan and Joaquin both acting mostly from the face. Ewan has been a veteran at playing aged heroes now, with having played Danny in Dr Sleep. And before that he returned as a Jedi in The Men Who Stare At Goats. It's almost like Ewan was born into this role, and plays it so casually, that it fits the character. He isn't guided by passion to play these roles, it just so happens that he does his duty, to the point that his destiny becomes his life.
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Post by Cryogenic on May 28, 2022 3:27:17 GMT
There's a lot of TFA in the first Episode. The Obi-Wan and Rey themes both have this sober, humble, bittersweet blessedness. Nice. I didn't mean to insinuate that TFA is a pile of horse manure. I mean, it sorta is, but it still has things going for it, and I don't see a problem with the Obi-Wan series paying homage and building connections to it. Lovely description of Obi-Wan and Rey's themes. Hmm, funny you make that link. Deborah Chow recently said the series deliberately has a lot in common with "Joker" and "Logan". You have such a good reading here. If people find the first half of the first episode boring or repetitive, that's kinda the point. I like how it trusts the audience to engage with Obi-Wan's sense of hopelessness. Wow, right. In a way, this role called to him and he couldn't refuse. This series is tapping into a special energy that Ewan has. If you think about it, his glum understatement is sort of the opposite of Rey's energetic, quick-to-anger persona in TFA. And their characters are both stuck on sand planets living banal lives to begin with. This series is kind of the yin to the ST's yang. |
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Post by Ingram on May 28, 2022 11:59:20 GMT
TV things happened. -Some Lame Shit 8. Hey, kids, remember when the Prequels weren't heightened B-serial romanticism but a Youtube fan-made montage cut together with bland Audiomachine trailer music? Why, no, but thank you, show, for giving me something I didn't want. Speaking of which...
3. The attack on the Jedi temple. Yep, that totally serviced the narrative... informed the main character in some new meaningful way... okay, it wasn't needed but it wasn't pointless, right?... okay, it was pretty much pointless but at least it wasn't gratuitous... was pointless and gratuitous. b) Also, I'm sorry, were those padawans doing tai chi? No. Just no.
That's stupid. 17. The entire Part II episode given over to second-rate John Wick style art-direction.
51/2. The world-building as a whole. I can't really call this one "lame" outright. It's just, I dunno. Enraptured I was not. Rather, I kept thinking more about the industry, how production values have become so economical across the board but also streamlined in the same respect. I observed money well-spent, and nodded like a dad balancing his checkbook.
5. Disney Princess kid-Leia *reaches for flame shield*
a) The plodding slog trudged the lumber through the bog. This whole thing coulda been, eh, 60-minutes. I don't need to see Obi-Wan being listless. I already know he's listless. The very idea of seclusion on Tatooine + the gap between trilogies completes its own fully effective expression of Obi-Wan being listless. Obi-Wan walking out of the desert and right into the rescue plot would have abbreviated everything just fine. Nearly every other scene in general runs its length plus the amount of time that allows me to go microwave a burrito. Even with a mere six-episode capacity is this thing suffering from all the trademarks of long-form narrative television that everyone keeps telling me I'm supposed to think is all great and "sophisticated" and stuff.
Σ. The score: it's my understanding that John Williams is in there, somewhere...? Because all I heard was monotonous filler-music.
-Some Things that Should have Bothered Me but Didn't
π. Moses Ingram's performance as Reva -- and Reva herself in writing -- comes off maladroit and, frankly, just kinda silly. And I'm almost more than okay with that; still pending, lets say for now.
I also find her fetching. Totally unrelated.
12. Obi-Wan chasing kid-Leia through the streets along with the rooftop chase/shoot-out. There's some oddly clumsy direction going there, as if Chow didn't quite know how to edit the stunt limitations of a child actress into something more intense in its staging; and that bit with her falling from a wire only to be saved by Obi-Wan was plain awkward in the cuts and composite work. I was perhaps most entertained with this sequence, in a sincerely good way.
IX. The dinosaur-looking bounty hunter from the Super Mario Bros. movie.
46. Rupert Friend as Grand Inquisitor Agent Smith. -Stuff I Liked
Okay, I'll talk to you guys later.
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Post by darkspine10 on May 28, 2022 15:43:56 GMT
Cryogenic, regarding the credits on the other SW shows, both Mandalorian and Book of Boba Fett use a montage of concept art paintings over the first half of their credits, before a more standard text on black background sees them out. It's actually a really great choice to highlight the design work behind the major setpieces. Bad Batch, like the previous animated shows does just go with the 'blue on black' though. I posted some thoughts on the first two episodes on the JCF yesterday, but here they are for anyone interested: In general I'm kinda mixed. There were some things I liked, some things I'm not so keen on, some will probably need further episodes to be developed more. A cautious optimism, since most of the stuff I recall from the trailers was in these early episodes (though I only watched the first teaser way back when), so there's probably more interesting surprises to come. Rest of my thoughts are a bit rambly, but here goes. First off, you know what was really nice actually: seeing some legit Prequel flashbacks in a new Star Wars project. Straight up showing old footage, I don't think they've ever done that before, so I get a kick out of the fact it was the PT that got to be the one featured  Though, the comparison did make the difference stand out a bit. There was an odd 'earthiness' to much of the first episode that felt a little lacking to me, a little cheap. Even Book of Boba Fett felt a bit more alien and out there. Maybe I'm just tired of boring woods and Tatooine Things did feel a bit more interesting in the second episode at least, the planet felt like it was out of Clone Wars or Bad Batch, in a good way. I wish there were more aliens front and centre, it felt too human dominated (even the Inquisitors looked too mundane). Joel Edgerton's performance as Owen was great, he really captured the older Owen's voice from ANH. The unexpected return of Jimmy Smits was nice too, and seeing some more of Alderann. Leia was neat to see, I like how naively proactive she is, if you catch my drift. Feels like the right characterisation for her at this point, an interesting mix of her older self and young Anakin (with a dash of Padme as Obi-Wan himself pointed out). Though, the fact she knows Obi-Wan so well makes her hologram message in ANH feel odd, I always got the impression she hadn't met him face to face before. Still, looking forward to seeing how they handle all the Vader stuff, that's probably where all the meaty stuff lies. Oh, and a surprise Temeura cameo as an old Clone was wonderful. I wonder if Cody will show up at some point? Would seem an odd waste of potential if not, since you have all the right actors and time period for some interesting drama. That and expanding on Vader's Castle from Rogue One are the two things I'm most hoping for.
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