Tales from the LOOP - Amazon Prime

POSTED BY: AURaptor
UPDATED: Tuesday, May 5, 2020 04:28
VIEWED: 5647
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AURAPTOR

Tuesday, April 14, 2020 2:52 AM

Trying to like this, but it's just not happening. Story basically is a Eureka type town where work centers on something called ' The Loop '. A super advanced sciency community where strange forces and curious machines are found intertwined w/ this small community.

The problem I'm having ( 3 eps into it so far ) is that there's some decent scenarios they're trying to set up, but they just aren't selling it. Primarily, it's BORING! The stories are convoluted and frankly don't make sense.

" Hey, lets do this really stupid thing and tell no one ! "
" Umm, ok. I'm game "
Plan goes horribly wrong
" Hey, let's keep doing this, because... "
" Umm, sure, why not. I guess. "

Everything fun and exciting and smart that was Eureka, this show isn't.

MALICIOUS

Sunday, April 19, 2020 3:59 AM

I watched the first episode the other night. It was okay. Literally a few minutes ago (like 6 or 7) I was contemplating watching ep2 and just couldn't make myself do it...I may watch it later or may not. But seeing your post made me realize, it just didn't grab my imagination. I don't expect every show to be like Firefly or Supernatural, but it could at least TRY, you know?

Mal-licious

AURAPTOR

Sunday, April 19, 2020 5:23 AM

Visually it's intriguing. I like the odd sciency objects which appear out of the landscape randomly, and the Stranger Things sort of vibe it's giving, but 3 eps in and I'm still looking for any substance to these characters.

Yeah, Ep. 1 was kinda interesting, but it felt as a Twilight Zone one off, and not the start of a series I'd like to come back to, again and again.

see Expanse, The Boys, Firefly?

AURAPTOR

Sunday, April 19, 2020 11:08 AM

Ok, in for a penny, in for a pound. Might as well plow through and finish this stuff.

I've come to the conclusion that since there's only 8 eps, character development isn't a priority. It's just one short story after another, from a different but sorta kinda related point of view from the other eps.

Small town, so we see a few folks over and over again. But in the next ep, we'll see the world from their point of view, and not just as a brief encounter, like from the earlier ep.

This is Eureka meets Black Mirror. But less intense, not much of any ' horror '. Just long, sullen pauses, followed by a interesting science scene, and then more sullen pauses.

AURAPTOR

Monday, April 20, 2020 7:48 AM

My god, this is THE most plodding, depressing , joyless series I've encountered in my life. Maybe since 6 Feet Under, from what I can remember …

Every single male on this show is a true beta. Indecisive, timid, lacking any sort of a backbone or drive to … not a single one! And the women aren't portrayed any better.

Long dopey silences followed by shoulder shrugs and blank stares. Every single " problem " in this series so far could have been avoided or fixed if someone simply had the stones or 1/2 a brain to SAY SOMETHING!!!! . It's infuriatingly BAD and lazy writing.

Select to view spoiler:

One episode, the father of the boy who swapped minds w/ his friend and then ended up a vegetable, is trying to keep his family together. One subplot is that the breaker box in the house keeps tripping, and eventually gives out. His solution? Buy a AT-AT robot, which is called a ' junker ' to act as some sort of home defense. Only there's no A.I. w/ this robot. It's totally manually operated. Which means he has to stand at attention, with that AT-AT thingy next to him, in plain view of the entire neighborhood. So the junker , which probably cost him several 1000 grand, was HIS response to trying to protect his home. Instead , for that much money, he could have fixed the breaker box, installed motion activated flood lights, changed the locks... and even possibly gotten a decent home security system and a freaking gun too!

And that's just ONE substory from ONE episode! It's all like this!!

6IXSTRINGJACK

Tuesday, April 21, 2020 8:31 AM

Sounds terrible.

Unless you're going full Anthology like Black Mirror, character development is always the number one priority. Even in a show like Black Mirror they usually do a pretty good job with character development in the short amount of time they have, but the story itself is always the main character.

Eureka was a great show, but that was because you immediately connected with the well written and acted characters. Obviously, Firefly had that in spades too.

Make a list of your top 10 most loved and top 10 most hated shows, and 9 out of 10 on both lists will be where they are because of the character development. Maybe 10 out of 10. If you don't care about the characters, you just don't care at all.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

6IXSTRINGJACK

Tuesday, April 21, 2020 10:20 PM

Oh, and funny you mention stupid behavior by characters ruining a show too. Shows (like Eureka) can look past this because you like the characters and the town and despite all the bad stuff happening you actually want to be there.

But what happens when you make a show about a bad situation with characters who have zero charisma and also make really stupid choices?

FanboyFlicks' Mark has the answer to that:

It's unfortunate they did such a bad job writing characters for this show too. In the right hands I think the premise could have made a great series.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

AURAPTOR

Wednesday, April 22, 2020 6:40 AM

Never heard of this one, but it looks like a decent premise that's been shot to hell because of bad, lazy writing.

Just like Game of Thrones, West World, Dr. Who, Star Trek Picard, Star Trek Discovery, Tales from the Loop, etc...

6IXSTRINGJACK

Thursday, April 23, 2020 9:46 AM

Game of Thrones wasn't ruined like a lot of the others that you mentioned though, was it? I didn't get a sense from talk that it went woke. It was just a terrible final season is all, right?

It doesn't sound like I-Land was a woke problem either. It would be more in the same category as Tales from the Loop.

We probably shouldn't lump them all together in the same heap. There's a huge difference between lazy writing with bad characters and flat out destroying a show with an agenda.

:)

To me, the saddest part about I-Land is that Kate Bosworth got old.

Not going to say she was the most beautiful girl in Hollywood, but there aren't many that topped her.

Those eyes are awesome.

"Facts" online will say that 6 out of every 1,000 people have it hetrochromia, but there's no real stats on the startling difference that she's got. One in a million maybe?

Do Right, Be Right. :)

AURAPTOR

Friday, April 24, 2020 3:59 AM

First of all, yes, GoT was ruined. Undeniably. Among THE worst collapses of a series in the history of T.V. viewing. Dave and Dan had no clue what they were doing, and when George stopped holding their hands and telling them what to do next, ( because he hasn't finished the books, and likely never will ) they were on their own. And it showed.

Secondly, I never said anything about Tales from the Loop being destroyed because of it going woke. As I said - It's just bad. Lazy writing. Poor plots and characters who make ridiculous choices.

Just like we saw in I-land.

And those other shows, the list of woke disasters, they all suffered from lazy writing as well. That's what happens when you're trying to insert an agenda into a story which had already been established and there's simply no rhyme or reason for there to be gender swaps, race swaps, deconstructing of canon or the dressing down of well known male characters ( Luke Skywalker, Jean Luc Picard, T-800, or Dr. Who ) simply as a means to elevate some fraking Mary Sue character.

** And as for Kate... I can't say I am familiar w/ her work. None of the shows ring a bell for me. I guess maybe I've heard the name, but she's never really been on my radar. Nothing against her, mind you, she's nice enough looking, but I got nothing.

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