I watched it Thursday evening and I haven't had the time until now to write about it. And now that I have the time, I don't know that I have the words.
I can say that it got under my skin and into my brain. But I can't seem to find a way to express anything beyond that when I try to describe exactly how it affected me. So instead I'll just dump all the random things that have been swirling through my head.
Yes, the first part felt rushed, because it was. More so because it seems that rather than trying to spread 22 hours over four they squeezed 20 into two in order to let the last two be more normally paced. This unquestionably damaged the first half, but I think on whole it was the right decision.
To the writers' credit though, almost nothing felt forced or artificial or done in the name of expediency rather than as part of the plan that had existed all along. The two exceptions were making Sikozu a Scarran spy, which did feel like an insufficiently motivated plot convenience (I almost wonder if making Noranti the spy would have worked better) and the proximity of the Luxon ship (they said something to the effect that they were tracking the Emperor's ship, but was there any previous mention of hostilities between the Luxons and Scarrans?)
But the real problem with part one wasn't that it was packed full of plot to the bursting point, it was that there was almost no time for those wonderful little character moments that were so much a part of the show. Fortunately these were restored in part 2. Rygel's "Yes" to Chiana. The way John's voice cracks on "I'm going to miss you, man." Pilot's cool "so you plan to start with me, then?" I could go on because it's the bits like this that really stick with me.
The Armageddon sequence was perfect and exactly, *exactly* where the series has been building. And the 2001 sequence was sublime.
I had sort of been assuming that the region(s) of space in which the series takes place were in a different galaxy, but it seems that's not the case. I wonder if John knew that Earth would be one of the worlds consumed if the wormhole went galactic. I wonder, at that point, if it would have made any difference.
Some mention, however brief, of Zhaan would have been nice.
John's "it all starts with family" was nicely multi-layered, as the series does start with John's Dad and Crais' brother.
As for the very end... well, the problem is that I very definitely don't want children, and so endings centered on familial bliss don't really resonate with me the way they probably resonate with most people. I can intellectually appreciate what John and Aeryn are feeling, but I can't feel it myself. I would personally have preferred a group shot, something akin to the end of Through the Looking Glass.
no subject
I can say that it got under my skin and into my brain. But I can't seem to find a way to express anything beyond that when I try to describe exactly how it affected me. So instead I'll just dump all the random things that have been swirling through my head.
Yes, the first part felt rushed, because it was. More so because it seems that rather than trying to spread 22 hours over four they squeezed 20 into two in order to let the last two be more normally paced. This unquestionably damaged the first half, but I think on whole it was the right decision.
To the writers' credit though, almost nothing felt forced or artificial or done in the name of expediency rather than as part of the plan that had existed all along. The two exceptions were making Sikozu a Scarran spy, which did feel like an insufficiently motivated plot convenience (I almost wonder if making Noranti the spy would have worked better) and the proximity of the Luxon ship (they said something to the effect that they were tracking the Emperor's ship, but was there any previous mention of hostilities between the Luxons and Scarrans?)
But the real problem with part one wasn't that it was packed full of plot to the bursting point, it was that there was almost no time for those wonderful little character moments that were so much a part of the show. Fortunately these were restored in part 2. Rygel's "Yes" to Chiana. The way John's voice cracks on "I'm going to miss you, man." Pilot's cool "so you plan to start with me, then?" I could go on because it's the bits like this that really stick with me.
The Armageddon sequence was perfect and exactly, *exactly* where the series has been building. And the 2001 sequence was sublime.
I had sort of been assuming that the region(s) of space in which the series takes place were in a different galaxy, but it seems that's not the case. I wonder if John knew that Earth would be one of the worlds consumed if the wormhole went galactic. I wonder, at that point, if it would have made any difference.
Some mention, however brief, of Zhaan would have been nice.
John's "it all starts with family" was nicely multi-layered, as the series does start with John's Dad and Crais' brother.
As for the very end... well, the problem is that I very definitely don't want children, and so endings centered on familial bliss don't really resonate with me the way they probably resonate with most people. I can intellectually appreciate what John and Aeryn are feeling, but I can't feel it myself. I would personally have preferred a group shot, something akin to the end of Through the Looking Glass.
Overall I'm satisfied. And I want more.