Athene
Rise for the Shadow Queen
- Location
- Dream of The 90s
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Yeah it feels like it but I wasn't able to find it so it's weird. D:
Project Ludovico
- Thread starter Athene
- Start date
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- Tags
- athenemas film media movie review
Athene
Rise for the Shadow Queen
- Location
- Dream of The 90s
- Pronouns
- She/Her
I have reviews in the pipe that were going to hit on Saturday but then MST3K happened.
I'm not going to go all Serious McHemingwayface like I tend to do, I'm going to be hella informal here. Serious Face reviews will resume after this, and will be way better than this mess.
The Return of MST3K is a personal moment for me somewhere between the Second Coming of Christ and the Second Coming of Orson Welles. Holy shit, I never thought this would happen. I mean, I made due any way I could. I own all of The Film Crew, I've bought a ton of Rifftrax, I riff everything compulsively. Its a storied member of the pantheon of the things I can point to as good moments I had as a kid that also had a huge effect on me. It changed how I interact with fiction and has been what has gotten me into writing, as inauspicious as that has been. Without MST3K I couldn't point to a book on a shelf in the store and go "I die in that one twice.".
Good times.
The flip side however, is that sometimes Dead is Better. The Simpsons should have ended on its downslope rather than becoming a zombie, I Want To Believe makes me viscerally angry, and the second season of Human Target that made me wish Fox had just cancelled it so I could talk about how awesome it would be if it got a second season. There's of course also Crystal Skull, the gold standard of "You know, maybe they should have stopped". A New MST3K sounded amazing but I always felt that Mike Nelson as the head writer was really a large part of the soul of the project. New Cast? Celebrity Guest Stars? EHHHHHHHHHHHHH.
But I gave it a whirl and found my faith was pretty well rewarded! Its apparently not everyone's cup of tea but I love what they have going on here.
Kinga Forrester and TV's Son of TV's Frank (AKA Max) have rebooted the show in the hopes of mining it for wealth in addition to the scientific value of exposing people to bad movies. For science, right Dissmech? From her Moon 13 base on the dark side of the moon, she kidnaps pilot Jonah Heston and sends him to the SoL. There she makes him to do invention exchanges and watch the movies pumped up on Liquid Video. The technology is incapable of storing stock footage, so Jonah is forced to reinact the intro every week on pain of cattle prod.
As a whole, the show really feels like a hybrid between the various eras while carving out its own niche. The host segments tend to be pretty great and them having Patton Oswalt as Max fills me with joy alone. There tends to be far more singing segments but that's a plus because that was always fun. There's a rough plot arc and direct continuity through every episode. I'll admit that I preferred the full segments of the SciFi era but props are Joel's baby. Not a complaint, just a preference.
BUT WHAT ABOUT THE RIFFING?
The Riffing is great. The first thing you'll notice if you've memorized all the previous experiments is that the pacing has been tightened substantially. Riffs come way faster, at a real rapid fire pace. The comedy landscape really changed in the intervening 15 years but the originals are languid by modern standards. I'm honestly glad they didn't try to ape the originals completely, because comedy is an evolving art. There are still call backs to classic experiments but they're not afraid to do their own thing. That is absolutely key to the success of any remake. Mixing familiarity with the new, rather than resting on the past. See: Fury Road.
And its funny as fuck.
Part of that is a really great cross section of movies that were begging to be riffed. Its generally a pretty amazing collection, with Cry Wilderness being a surprisingly batshit movie. Moira Note: I've seen half the movies they riff before this, send help. But the riffing stands on its own and is enjoyable. It's hard to review comedy but we were laughing pretty solidly the whole way through all the episodes we binged. It warmed my cynical Gen Xer born two years too late soul.
It's not yet at the level of the most classic original episodes but its important to remember the original had to grow into itself. MST3K only really caught its stride in the 3rd season with Cave Dwellers and this is an impressive debut. Especially for a show rebooting one of the all time classics ages after it was cancelled. Given a few seasons, they'll probably be running at full speed and hopefully producing instant classics.
PS: I still like Mike Era the best.
PPS: Jerry Seinfeld cameoing on MST3K is so bizarre, its almost a Microsoft ad. The guy was making more per episode than they had as a budget for most of their run.
PPPS: Reviews with some sort of actual quality will resume.
I'm not going to go all Serious McHemingwayface like I tend to do, I'm going to be hella informal here. Serious Face reviews will resume after this, and will be way better than this mess.
The Return of MST3K is a personal moment for me somewhere between the Second Coming of Christ and the Second Coming of Orson Welles. Holy shit, I never thought this would happen. I mean, I made due any way I could. I own all of The Film Crew, I've bought a ton of Rifftrax, I riff everything compulsively. Its a storied member of the pantheon of the things I can point to as good moments I had as a kid that also had a huge effect on me. It changed how I interact with fiction and has been what has gotten me into writing, as inauspicious as that has been. Without MST3K I couldn't point to a book on a shelf in the store and go "I die in that one twice.".
Good times.
The flip side however, is that sometimes Dead is Better. The Simpsons should have ended on its downslope rather than becoming a zombie, I Want To Believe makes me viscerally angry, and the second season of Human Target that made me wish Fox had just cancelled it so I could talk about how awesome it would be if it got a second season. There's of course also Crystal Skull, the gold standard of "You know, maybe they should have stopped". A New MST3K sounded amazing but I always felt that Mike Nelson as the head writer was really a large part of the soul of the project. New Cast? Celebrity Guest Stars? EHHHHHHHHHHHHH.
But I gave it a whirl and found my faith was pretty well rewarded! Its apparently not everyone's cup of tea but I love what they have going on here.
Kinga Forrester and TV's Son of TV's Frank (AKA Max) have rebooted the show in the hopes of mining it for wealth in addition to the scientific value of exposing people to bad movies. For science, right Dissmech? From her Moon 13 base on the dark side of the moon, she kidnaps pilot Jonah Heston and sends him to the SoL. There she makes him to do invention exchanges and watch the movies pumped up on Liquid Video. The technology is incapable of storing stock footage, so Jonah is forced to reinact the intro every week on pain of cattle prod.
As a whole, the show really feels like a hybrid between the various eras while carving out its own niche. The host segments tend to be pretty great and them having Patton Oswalt as Max fills me with joy alone. There tends to be far more singing segments but that's a plus because that was always fun. There's a rough plot arc and direct continuity through every episode. I'll admit that I preferred the full segments of the SciFi era but props are Joel's baby. Not a complaint, just a preference.
BUT WHAT ABOUT THE RIFFING?
The Riffing is great. The first thing you'll notice if you've memorized all the previous experiments is that the pacing has been tightened substantially. Riffs come way faster, at a real rapid fire pace. The comedy landscape really changed in the intervening 15 years but the originals are languid by modern standards. I'm honestly glad they didn't try to ape the originals completely, because comedy is an evolving art. There are still call backs to classic experiments but they're not afraid to do their own thing. That is absolutely key to the success of any remake. Mixing familiarity with the new, rather than resting on the past. See: Fury Road.
And its funny as fuck.
Part of that is a really great cross section of movies that were begging to be riffed. Its generally a pretty amazing collection, with Cry Wilderness being a surprisingly batshit movie. Moira Note: I've seen half the movies they riff before this, send help. But the riffing stands on its own and is enjoyable. It's hard to review comedy but we were laughing pretty solidly the whole way through all the episodes we binged. It warmed my cynical Gen Xer born two years too late soul.
It's not yet at the level of the most classic original episodes but its important to remember the original had to grow into itself. MST3K only really caught its stride in the 3rd season with Cave Dwellers and this is an impressive debut. Especially for a show rebooting one of the all time classics ages after it was cancelled. Given a few seasons, they'll probably be running at full speed and hopefully producing instant classics.
PS: I still like Mike Era the best.
PPS: Jerry Seinfeld cameoing on MST3K is so bizarre, its almost a Microsoft ad. The guy was making more per episode than they had as a budget for most of their run.
PPPS: Reviews with some sort of actual quality will resume.
- Location
- National Capital Region, USA
grommile
nasty-minded old cynic
- Location
- NERV-Mercia
- Pronouns
- Traditional/Animate
That was a great entry! It was from the heart.
Athene
Rise for the Shadow Queen
- Location
- Dream of The 90s
- Pronouns
- She/Her
The very flow of time itself is not a given in some episodes. Things are all over the place. Nothing is clear and nothing should be taken for granted.
It's definitely my favorite Superhero TV show and its also bug fuck nuts.
The very style of the show can change. One moment its a tight thriller, the next its a Bollywood crowd dance. Then its a Bond Intro. This show is not predictable. In fact one of the climaxes is a battle played in full as a silent film, complete with dialogue cards and a kickass version of Bolero to go with it.
Do you like trippy, well written shows with awesome production values? Do you want to be kept actually off guard by a show? Do you want a Superhero show that pushes some envelopes? Do you appreciate shows that do things new? Do you want to wash the taste of Iron Fist out of your mouth and learn to love again?
Did you know that we're living in the Golden Age of Television? We have more shows of better quality debuting all the time than we have ever had in the history of TV. Part of that is the increasing popularity of short form TV shows in the US. No longer does every idea have to be stretched for 22 episodes a season, especially on streaming services. Release 8 amazing episodes and then work on the next season.
Legion only clocks in at 8 episodes but the first episode alone is one of the best hours of TV I've ever watched. It's definitely my favorite Superhero TV show and its also bug fuck nuts.
Legion is about David Haller, committed to the Clockworks mental hospital due to his schizophrenia. It causes him to hear voices and see things that aren't real. Or does it? Everyone is real interested in him all of a sudden. That amazing woman who showed up and became his girlfriend. The guy holding him hostage on a military base. The mutants at Summerland that want to rescue him for their war. And his good buddy Lenny is there, like always. Even when he dies. So is that strange malevolent shape in his memories or the Worlds Angriest Boy in the World. People start telling him that he's not insane, he's actually the most powerful Mutant ever born. Then they travel inside his mind and it becomes less clear. It could be both. It's definitely my favorite Superhero TV show and its also bug fuck nuts.
The very flow of time itself is not a given in some episodes. Things are all over the place. Nothing is clear and nothing should be taken for granted.
The first episode is the most non linear of course, but it establishes what you should expect for the rest of the show. What year does the show take place? We don't know. It can be anything from the sixties to tomorrow. Props don't stay consistent. One second that car is a 60s model, the next its a 2010s model. Women in pillbox hats sitting on mod furniture show real estate on an iPod. Characters can change appearance between scenes. The very flow of time itself is not a given in some episodes. Things are all over the place.
The very style of the show can change. One moment its a tight thriller, the next its a Bollywood crowd dance. Then its a Bond Intro. This show is not predictable. In fact one of the climaxes is a battle played in full as a silent film, complete with dialogue cards and a kickass version of Bolero to go with it.
This extends to the plotting. Let met tell you a great moment on a personal level: A person that we were once supposed to hate based on his actions is humanized. How? By showing that he has a loving husband and adopted child. Do you know how amazing that is? A character being gay as a positive trait to undercut our initial assumptions about him. Could you ask for better proof of how even at their darkest things are getting better?
Nobody is the villain of their own story except for people who are pure fucking evil like the actual hidden villain of the piece. Even then, they have so much style that I loved every second they're on screen. Are they a malevolent cancer that seeks utter dominion over the entire human race? Sure, but like, could we just hang some time? Or not, but still, you have to love that style! But other than them and Creeper McBristlehead, it turns out that the villains aren't so villainous and the heroes should tone it down a bit.
Still though, not only do they bring excellent cinematography to the show but tight casting and characterization as well. I'm not going to spoil things because half the fun of this show is the discovery. I can tell you just generalities. Syd and David have an amazing relationship. She can't touch people with bare skin and can't stand touching people even with a barrier. So they devise all sorts of ways to have physical conflict that respects her needs. They hold hands by each grabbing an end of cloth, they put a thick pillow inbetween each other in bed, and they rest their heads against opposing sides of a corner. David is perfectly willing to respect her and her needs. Not just because of the fact that body swapping with him is like handing a newbie a bazooka.
Do you like trippy, well written shows with awesome production values? Do you want to be kept actually off guard by a show? Do you want a Superhero show that pushes some envelopes? Do you appreciate shows that do things new? Do you want to wash the taste of Iron Fist out of your mouth and learn to love again?
Legion is your show.
"You ever make soup? Cut up the meat, vegetables, add broth, cook it for a couple hours. You ever try to unmake soup?"
It's definitely my favorite Superhero TV show and its also bug fuck nuts.
The very style of the show can change. One moment its a tight thriller, the next its a Bollywood crowd dance. Then its a Bond Intro. This show is not predictable. In fact one of the climaxes is a battle played in full as a silent film, complete with dialogue cards and a kickass version of Bolero to go with it.
Do you like trippy, well written shows with awesome production values? Do you want to be kept actually off guard by a show? Do you want a Superhero show that pushes some envelopes? Do you appreciate shows that do things new? Do you want to wash the taste of Iron Fist out of your mouth and learn to love again?
Did you know that we're living in the Golden Age of Television? We have more shows of better quality debuting all the time than we have ever had in the history of TV. Part of that is the increasing popularity of short form TV shows in the US. No longer does every idea have to be stretched for 22 episodes a season, especially on streaming services. Release 8 amazing episodes and then work on the next season.
Legion only clocks in at 8 episodes but the first episode alone is one of the best hours of TV I've ever watched. It's definitely my favorite Superhero TV show and its also bug fuck nuts.
Legion is about David Haller, committed to the Clockworks mental hospital due to his schizophrenia. It causes him to hear voices and see things that aren't real. Or does it? Everyone is real interested in him all of a sudden. That amazing woman who showed up and became his girlfriend. The guy holding him hostage on a military base. The mutants at Summerland that want to rescue him for their war. And his good buddy Lenny is there, like always. Even when he dies. So is that strange malevolent shape in his memories or the Worlds Angriest Boy in the World. People start telling him that he's not insane, he's actually the most powerful Mutant ever born. Then they travel inside his mind and it becomes less clear. It could be both. It's definitely my favorite Superhero TV show and its also bug fuck nuts.
The very flow of time itself is not a given in some episodes. Things are all over the place. Nothing is clear and nothing should be taken for granted.
The first episode is the most non linear of course, but it establishes what you should expect for the rest of the show. What year does the show take place? We don't know. It can be anything from the sixties to tomorrow. Props don't stay consistent. One second that car is a 60s model, the next its a 2010s model. Women in pillbox hats sitting on mod furniture show real estate on an iPod. Characters can change appearance between scenes. The very flow of time itself is not a given in some episodes. Things are all over the place.
The very style of the show can change. One moment its a tight thriller, the next its a Bollywood crowd dance. Then its a Bond Intro. This show is not predictable. In fact one of the climaxes is a battle played in full as a silent film, complete with dialogue cards and a kickass version of Bolero to go with it.
This extends to the plotting. Let met tell you a great moment on a personal level: A person that we were once supposed to hate based on his actions is humanized. How? By showing that he has a loving husband and adopted child. Do you know how amazing that is? A character being gay as a positive trait to undercut our initial assumptions about him. Could you ask for better proof of how even at their darkest things are getting better?
Nobody is the villain of their own story except for people who are pure fucking evil like the actual hidden villain of the piece. Even then, they have so much style that I loved every second they're on screen. Are they a malevolent cancer that seeks utter dominion over the entire human race? Sure, but like, could we just hang some time? Or not, but still, you have to love that style! But other than them and Creeper McBristlehead, it turns out that the villains aren't so villainous and the heroes should tone it down a bit.
Still though, not only do they bring excellent cinematography to the show but tight casting and characterization as well. I'm not going to spoil things because half the fun of this show is the discovery. I can tell you just generalities. Syd and David have an amazing relationship. She can't touch people with bare skin and can't stand touching people even with a barrier. So they devise all sorts of ways to have physical conflict that respects her needs. They hold hands by each grabbing an end of cloth, they put a thick pillow inbetween each other in bed, and they rest their heads against opposing sides of a corner. David is perfectly willing to respect her and her needs. Not just because of the fact that body swapping with him is like handing a newbie a bazooka.
Do you like trippy, well written shows with awesome production values? Do you want to be kept actually off guard by a show? Do you want a Superhero show that pushes some envelopes? Do you appreciate shows that do things new? Do you want to wash the taste of Iron Fist out of your mouth and learn to love again?
Legion is your show.
"You ever make soup? Cut up the meat, vegetables, add broth, cook it for a couple hours. You ever try to unmake soup?"
- Location
- National Capital Region, USA
Grin_Reaper
Shadow Cabal Space Pirate
- Location
- Space Battleship Pennsylvania
Sufficient Juice
A steady supply of vitamins
- Location
- The carbohydrates
Claudette Savagely
Ball of flies
- Location
- (and made of) Parts Unknown
Is it a Legion-specific joke that you repeat parts of yo-*is shot*
Athene
Rise for the Shadow Queen
- Location
- Dream of The 90s
- Pronouns
- She/Her
It all seriousness it is. Legion does return to scenes frequently but they have a purpose or we get to see more and more and more of them. The show at one point pseudo loops back on itself in an amazing way. I was also try to add some confusion to it as a self demonstrating tribute to the shows surreal feel.
Like, I could talk endlessly about this show. It has a great understanding of a number of mental issues and even subverts the old "Haha, you're not actually crazy" superhero thing.
The Shadow King parasite has been a part of him since he was a baby. Its shaped his entire life and he's going to have to deal with that. There is no reset button even if he probably doesn't have Schizophrenia no matter how much everyone tells him thats possible. His acceptance of it and ability to finally deal with all his shit allows him to use his /vast/ power to force a cease fire between Division 3 and Summerland, since there are more dangerous things out there. It helps that the interrogator is actually a genuinely heroic character on the wrong side.
Also, the Shadow King identifies male as themselves but has no problems using Lenny as their primary form and using feminine pronouns. Also they're awesome as Lenny.
Also, the Shadow King identifies male as themselves but has no problems using Lenny as their primary form and using feminine pronouns. Also they're awesome as Lenny.
- Pronouns
- He/Him
I still maintain Cry Wilderness is not actually a movie but a collection of animal videos spliced together by a boy on PCP.
Athene
Rise for the Shadow Queen
- Location
- Dream of The 90s
- Pronouns
- She/Her
That's about right.
Sufficient Juice
A steady supply of vitamins
- Location
- The carbohydrates
Aight, then. I first thought you goofed up a draft.
What's next, really?
Who knew Aubrey Plaza could do creepy so well?
I've got a couple of suggestions: first, since you've clearly enjoyed Legion, I would suggest you get yourself viewing Fargo, the show and the movie as soon as fucking possible. Noah Hawley, the creator of Legion, well, he wouldn't have gotten that without Fargo. And considering what you said about Drive, it would be right up your alley.
I've got a couple of suggestions: first, since you've clearly enjoyed Legion, I would suggest you get yourself viewing Fargo, the show and the movie as soon as fucking possible. Noah Hawley, the creator of Legion, well, he wouldn't have gotten that without Fargo. And considering what you said about Drive, it would be right up your alley.
- Location
- National Capital Region, USA
Sorry if that review was too weird or short, wanted to do something in the spirit of it.
white_rabbit
Shadow Cabal Berserker
Athene, what are your thoughts on the following?
Alien Nation
Return of the Living Dead
Firefox
Blue Thunder
Labyrinth
Legend
The Dark Crystal
Ravenous
Athene
Rise for the Shadow Queen
- Location
- Dream of The 90s
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Its been forever since I've seen it and I remember being bored by the TV show as a kid, I should rewatch it sometime.
Send more Paramedics!
YOU MUST THINK IN RUSSIAN.
I love it! Its probably my favorite jet fighter too, it still looks wicked today.
I vaguely recall seeing it but the most I recall is Julie Kavner describing this as being what happens when Marge Simpson passes gas in the DVD commentary for Homer Badman.
I actually had a tie in book! I love it.
Especially uh, David Bowie in all his...glory? >.>
Tom Cruise is my favorite Link.
Its been too long since I've seen it, I really need to rewatch it.
Its been a long time but I remember liking it? I need to rewatch it some time.