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Those are really great builds but it isn't really "Forged in Fire"
I don't know anything from Tolkien's written work and I think that's actually an advantage. Because of that I don't compare but rather take the show "as is". It's neither the best show I've ever seen nor is it the worst.
I often read in the comments that a lot of the story is condensed. Things are moving to fast, happening at the wrong time or in the wrong context. That's usually how shows work. They pick the important parts and weave them into their scripts. You will never have a show based on written work deliver a 1:1 rendition. It's just not possible to do. From experience I know how protective a fanbase can be when it comes to their beloved franchises. I have no issue if someone voices his displeasure in an argumentative way instead of just calling it "rubbish" or saying "it sucks". There is a simple solution is you don't like it: don't watch ! Any streaming service doesn't care if you like it or not as long as you watch. By not watching you actually show them that you don't like it.
By my own ratings I think season two was not as good as season one but with 7.625 average (which is a full point down) it still is doing more then OK. I do look forward to season three.
As much as I like the show I have to admit it's way too easy for Sauron. Everytime there is a bump in the road that threatens to undermine his plan it's resolved with in the next scene. And it doesn't feel earned. He isn't really cunning. Instead of his masterful manipulation it's more the studipdity of the characters that make it possible. And those who suspect , like Durin, aren't heard.
Good episode but did the Elves ran out of horses ? It's not as if time is not of the essence.
Is this going to be continued or what ?
Give us a proper Behind-the-Scenes doku instead of this staged talk-show with a fake audience.
I never had a problem with the slow pace of this show but this was downright boring. And the writing was lame.
Everything is easy to see through. F.e. you could have written "Annatar changed the stones" in bright letters over the screen and it couldn't have been more obvious what happened. And I "liked" Sauron more while he was Halbrand instead of a J.C. lookalike. And it isn't really masterfull manipulation but rather people doing the opposite of what they think they should do which begs the question if everyone in Middleearth is just stupid.
The Numenor part was also easy to see through. It was basically telegraphed what would happen. And it was boring either way and I really have no interest of seing politicians manipulating and scheming.
Why is Bronwyn dead all of a sudden ? She seemd fine to me at the end of last season. And a little more of an explanation than "oh we thought she was fine but she wasn't" would not have hurt. Never liked Theo and he does nothing to change my mind as it was him who brought the whole pile of sh... upon them but still lashes out at Arondir (who made a dramatic, superheroesque but in the end embarrassing entrance into season two). But we need conflict I guess.
Althought it was obvious Isildur was still alive I found it rather lame to come up with that horror scenario as a shock moment because it was nothing else then that. There was no need do to it that way.
And I don'r really get Celebrimbor's stance. Isn't he reviered as one of the greatest of his trade by his own kind ? It doesn't compute with his attititude to "not be denied greatness this time" (quotet loosely).
All in all it was so far so most un-fantasy like episode of them all.
The production qaulity is still beyond a shimmer of doubt but storywise I didn't like this one too much.
Now I almost wish the Elves had died. They are not wise and clever but rather arrogant and stupid. I was never a fan of the High King and even less now where he basically makes the same mistakes he made in season one.
I think the writing is too convinient here, it was too easy for Sauron to get back on Celebrimbor's good side. I understand he plays on the wishes and weaknesses of it opponents but that went too smooth. Didn't felt earned. And the revelation of Annatar was a bit too thick for my liking.
I'm still not convinced one way or the other the Stranger is Gandalf. He could be someone else entirely although there are clear similarities. And with the introduction of the Dark Wizard (Saruman ?) it would make even more sense.
Isn't it more than a bit hypocrite to throw Galadriel under the bus? All the time she was saying Sauron is still alive and no one believed her. They even claimed him to be dad. Now she's proven he's still alive, it's her fault for being mislead by him. As have many others I might add. And I really don't get Elronds stance. His mistrust in the rings I can understand and it speaks volumes that he is willing to let his kind die for that believe. But after seeing he was wrong, why turn away? Does he still believe that's all Sauron's Design ? Hope we get some light on that.
Halbrand must have be damn sure that Galadirel did not tell anyone who he really is. It's a gamble on his part to go back. Don't think it was nessessary to go back in time to see what happened. What it did do though was showing that after all everyone told the truth. And that at least the form of Halbrand could die as well. Don't think he will, but could. And it would feel wrong if Celebrimbor would deal with him, especially since Galdriel said to them to never do it again.
I'm sure there is a reason they changed the actor for Adar but I'm not yet fond of him. Joseph Mawle was great and put the bar high.
It was still a great start to this season and I'm sure there will be some answers but even more new questions and I'm looking forward to see what happened to the other characters.
This was a solid episode with a good story and a nice twist.
I watched the season twice now and I'm still smacked by the looks of it. On an ultrawide in 4K this looks fabolous.
Many people lamenting that the show moves too slowly. Sure, if you need action, gore, scandal, conclusions, resolutions and fast paced story progression in each and every episode than this isn't your type of show. I, personally, like this. It's not a twisted-to-death story telling that's so common nowadays. Not this type of action packed shows that needs something grand to happen every ten minutes because of peoples short attention span.
No, this needs your attention. Your investment to be willing to let this unfold on it's own pace. Trust that the writing staff knows what they are doing instead of demanding to get to the point already.
Is this true to the Tolkien spirit? That I can't answer because aside from the movies I don't know anything else that is written. And that seems to be an advantage. I've read many complains about how Galadriel is such an unlikeable character. Again, I don't know the books but from what I understand this show depicts a time not really fleshed out before. And maybe her journey here, what she's about to experience, will make her become that character known later. I fully understand her motives, driven by that single mindedness to destroy evil. So determined on that to literally walk over corpses, if nessessary, to get it done.
The season was meant to lay the foundation for what is to come. And I think it was right to take the time to make it as strong as possible.
If you're a fan of the original movies you should definitely watch this. It's a very comprehensive documentary with some behind the scenes footage and interviews with cast and crew that has a lot of interesting info to offer.
So, this is it - the final installment of the classic "Ape" movies. And it's not really a winner. It also isn't Part 2 awful. But just like that it never really took me in. I guess they wanted to show that the future isn't a forgone conclusion. But there are still 1300 years up to the point when Taylor arives so it still could be the same outcome.
Like all the previous prequels this has inconsistencies in terms of the timeline. At the end the custodian of the armory says he's been there for 27 years but you don't see that reflected in the human Kolp who came from that time .And if that MacDonald is the brother of the other one he must have been a child when the nuclear desaster happened. It's also a bit far fetched that so many apes learned to speak in such a short timeframe. Yeah, I know - 70s movies didn't care for that type of things and audiences probably also didn't.
The theme is pretty much reset-repeat. Mankind is evil and out to destroy everything and anything but this time we also have a war mongerer ape in General Aldo. And we see that Apes can be equal to men when push comes to shove.
That battle, or dare I say it - war, was very underwhelming. If each movie had a smaller budget than the one before, there must have been only pennies left. Well, it actually was 1.8m$ according to imdb which is about 13m$ today.For comparison, first one had 5.8m$. Do the math.
After having gone through all five films once again I would make a mental note: if I ever go through them again only watch parts 1, 3 and 4. The rest don't do much for me.
I was somewhat waiting for the Bugaloo to say "Resistance is futile". Otherwise it was just another rather ordinary episode.
I would have given McDowall an Oscar for this - I think he was that good ! What he brings to life through this heavy make up is lifts this movie up.
Now, I've watched the original "Ape" movies more then once. But whereas in the past I never thought really high of the later installments by now I've changed my mind. Don't let the production quality mislead you, the story is well done and presents topics that are still valid.
While it might deviate somewhat from what the first movie established I like the paradox they created. Zira and Cornelius going back through time and given birth to the first intelligent Chimpansee on Earth who will become the leader of the revolution that creates the future they came from. A bit like in Terminator, no ?
Like I said they story is still valid. I don't know why I never noticed it before but there is once more a lot of this Master Race BS going on. The whole structure of the organisation, the look of the uniforms down to the white laces and black boots. That's more then subtle.
I'm not quite sure why this gets such low ratings as the same story in the reboot is rated much higher. So I would guess it's another case of older movies in general getting lower ratings. Probably because of the way they look.
And I don't think that's a fair assesment of the movie itself.
After they literally blew up the Earth in the previous movie you wonder were there might be room for a sequel.
This on starts with a surprise (that is if you hadn't seen it before) as the space ship coming back to Earth is manned by Apes. Here you have to be, once more, a bit lenient. Not once in the previous movies was there any mention of Taylor's ship being salvaged or even studied by the Apes. On the contrary they believed flight was not possible and it's a leap to come to the conclusion they build a fully fledged rocket only a short time later. You also need to buy in that by sheer conincident went back through time to land on Earth in the, then, present.
As I mentioned those story gaps where present in the previous movie, too. But whereas that one never presented a tangible story this one does much better in that regard. I think the idea to do basically a one-eighty was really good. Althought it might also have originated from budgetarry reasons as doing a film in the present was much cheaper.
The story itself is cut in largely two parts. The first is light-hearted, humorous. Althought I have to admit the contrast in how Zira and Cornelius where treaded, as oposed to how Taylor was at first, was a bit too much. It seemed they wanted the humans to look good, even the President was very benevolent towards the Apes. That part actually felt off and I feared for a full comedy to take place.
All that takes a stark turn towards a darker tone when the President's Adviser, a guy by the very German sounding name of Dr Hasslein, takes action. He fears for the dominace of mankind and thinks he can prevent a futrure where men is no longer superior. There is a lot to be interpreted into that but I'll leave it at that.
Anyway, we learn from Cornelius how everything started, something that had been mentioned before but not in such detail. How the Apes rose to dominance. Which only fuels Hasslein's hate and ambition of preventing that from happening. The following hunt results in the tragic finale and you're left with a bad taste in your mouth as once more men is shown as the evil species. Not all of them of course as there are some doing good.
The second half is what propels the movie far above average for me. There is a lot of meaningful dialogue that deals with the thread of how men is working towards his own extinction and it's not hard to buy into that. Sadly, I might add.
In summary this movie is much, much better then the second.
So, the movie already starts on weak footing. It tries to continue a story that, in my view, was closed and finished and needed nothing else. And it does a very weak job in trying to achieve it anyway.
You have to be very lenient from the beginning. The explanation how the second ship got there is already soft and by shear coincidence Brent meets Nova right then and there. The story then just wafts along and you see the budget cut's at each and every corner. Only the top line of actors got the good makeup while every extra just got a non-moving pull-over mask. OK, probably not a big thing on a low resolution 70s movie.
Following a series of Brent and Nova get hunted, captured, escape and get hunted again, we land in the nuked NY. All that was stuff the viewer doesn't need to see because we already know what happened and re-living it with Brent is, well, boring.
We discover a human civilization that is telepathic and praises a nuclear bomb as its God. And I can't help but thinking that this was the age of LSD and how much the writers did consume. Especially seeing the doomsday mass. It comes to a final showdown between Ape and Men that results in the activation of the doomsday bomb and a voice from the Off declares that Earth is destroyed. And my immediate thought is: "Finally !"
Now, to be fair, there are still the theme of how the Ape society mimics contemporary humans. You understand that this movie is aimed at the Vietnam war, you have the student protests f.e.. And the story is born out of the fear that a war like that could become the end of all, which cleary was what people were afraid of. You also see both sides making justifaction for their course of action and it's not difficult to see that both are wrong. There lies a wasted opportunity because all that time this movie favored action and shock moments over substance and story. Well, I'm expecting too much from the era.
Anyway, if you want to watch all the movies, go ahead. But be aware this is a massive drop from the first one. If you are just a casual viewer that liked te first and wants a sequel you better stay away.
I've watched this probably more than half a dozen times already and it never gets boring. It's one of the true classics of science fiction and the story still is relevant.
Personally I think this is much better then it's average score. And even discounting that I'm a huge Neeson Fan it`s a good movie.
It looks generic on the surface but it has a deeper meaning then just a thriller about some men fighting for their lives against a pack of wolfs.
>quote Do something. Do something. You phony prick fraudulent motherfucker. Do something! Come on! Prove it! Fuck faith! Earn it! Show me something real! I need it now. Not later. Now! Show me and I'll believe in you until the day I die. I swear. I'm calling on you. I'm calling on you!
Fuck it. I'll do it myself.
Not a revelation of an episode but for me it was the best one so far this season. A straightforward story and I liked the Star Trek easter eggs.
Slightly better than the premiere. But it was too predictable and in the end pretty useless. There might have been a saving grace had Fry realized what his parents have done to make him feel better. But havimng him watch his friends leave thinking he's a cheater while his mother stands smiling in the background is kind of cruel.
Sorry, but I didn't understand a single thing.
This was a good episode. It was even a good season finale. But as a series finale it was unsatisfactory and left a lot to be desired.
The cancellation came in October 2023 on X with pictures from the final episode included. So by that time filming had wrapped up. And it doesn't feel like an ending that was written, there are too many open threads. I don't believe that's the way it was supposed to end.
While this season was the weakest of the three with a clear trend downwards from the beginning, I'm not satisfied and hopefully there will be another show. Althought it seems highly doubtful to happen.
Calling the fight between Harald and Maniakes epic or even great would be an overstatement but at least the guy got what he deserved. I hope that when Leif finds Magnus it will be a bit more rewarding. Maybe he and Freydis will then deal with their father. Those are the things I'm looking forward to.
The whole Kanute succession, althought it was a really good scene, I still don't care much. I was even thinking there could be another show that deals with that part of the story. But maybe there is one about Leif finding the Golden Land. Ahh, daydreaming. But who knows. I still very much like the trio of Leif, Freydis and Harald. And part of me wishes to see more of them then just one episode.
Timelines are a little confusing. Leif appears in Jomsburg, Kanute has already finished the journey to Kattegat (where Leif is later also), yet it seems only days since Harald got arrested.
I'm far from hating the show but I will admit I liked it more when they were battleing and conquering. At this stage it's kind of a viking soap-opera with backstabbing and manipulation. Which would be OK in general but with just about 90 mins left I think there might be a lot left in the open. I know I mentioned it before but the closer we get to the finale the more urgent that feeling becomes.
Oh, nice twist. That I didn't see coming. The big mountain of flesh played both sides against each other. Although Harald got suckered right into it. But it was a well executed plan.
Not surprised Godwin sides with the young prince. He can influence him a great deal more then he could've King Sweyn.
I think we all know what Erik is up to.
How could I've missed that Leif is looking for what we know as America? I need to adress my history blackouts.
Finaly the whole England/Kanute plot line is pure boredom. Doesn't interest me at all.
Still, so many things to bring to a close and even less time to do so.
For me it was a mistake to split up the characters because it opened up more and more avenues that will be hard to explore to a certain level of satisfaction. I fear it will all be rushed towards the end.
They should've killed Magnus and then we could follow the Jomsvikings on their journey of finding a new home. Now you can safely assume that Magnus will find a way to follow them and it will come to a final showdown. Too predictable.
Leif at this point is a total mystery to me. He's changed his attitude with each episode and you wonder what will come with the next. I found the whole part with the nun rather weak and the tale of a mother suffocating her child in the midst of danger is so old.
I do know that the whole show centers around faith but I have to say that everytime they start talking about God and Christianity I become bored.
Harald is all talk but no action and his little tete-a-tete with the Empress clearly spells trouble. Maybe he will kill the Emperor and deal with the general and then by Emperor himself ? Because one think I don't see: him going back to Norway.
We are halfway through the final season and my drive to go on comes more from what this show was in the past then what it is now,
I'd be lying if I say I'm overly excited about the story but I do want to know how the journey for all will end. That being said, for a show that's coming to an end at the conclusion of this season they are introducing a lot of new stuff. I wonder how they'll manage to bring all that together within the next 5 episodes.
Way more leaning towards drama then action and war. Still seeing this as more build up and establishing the plot lines.
Well, to be honest I don't remember much from season two. Not because it wasn't good but it's too long ago. Doesn't seem to matter much as they are putting this seven years in the future it's kind of a new beginning. And it was OK.
The part I didn't like is the Freydis/Stigr story. Not that I'm against romance in general but it feels constructed and out of character for her. She's very protective of her people, she even explains it to Stigr. But, in walks this stranger, and she instanly seems to fall for him. She even entrusts him for teaching her son. From a writing standpoint I think it's bad, too. You've barely established the character and then you put him with one of the favorites of the show. That instanly makes me suspicious and I dislike him. Maybe that's my sceptical ego, or they are doing it on purpose to mislead the viewer. But I wouldn't be surprised if he turns out to be a foul apple.
Seems to me there also was budget cuts as a lot of the time the scenes felt small. The costumes are OK but the armor really looks rubber-ish. Which it probably is but usually it looks more like metall. Well, if there is an interesting story coming I won't complain. just wanted to take note.
