Odine Posted February 20 Share Posted February 20 What a narrative cluster fuck. Seriously, I watched this with my wife and we were laughing at the end at how bad it was. It felt like it was written by kids who are doing imaginative role play and making it up as they go along...("but then this happens" "nah but I had a secret weapon and that protects me plus one" etc..) Jodie Foster has some acting chops, but neither her skill or the nice cinematography can save this dumpster self-immolation Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobbes Posted February 20 Share Posted February 20 Season 1 is one of my favorite shows ever. I have seen it probably a dozen times. I actually rewatched it twice while watching this season. I was so pumped for this show. Jodie Foster is one of my favorite actresses of all time and I love love love the setting. As far as this season, I thought it was okay. It seems like we are in pretty much agreement. Pros: I thought the acting was great across the board. I love Jodie Foster and it was also nice seeing Sol Star (John Hawkes) from Deadwood--another one of my favorite shows ever. I loved the setting and mood. I thought the old woman that dated Travis was super fun. Great cinematography. I was skeptical of Kali Reis but I thought she was amazing! I thought the premise was great! Cons: The plot. I thought it was an interesting premise and E 1 and 2 were both fairly strong. But E3-5 nothing happened. I hated the ending. They stumble on a secret lab and somehow can look at the paperwork just laying around and from that figured out what was going on? You would think that by prosecuting the killers they would blow the lid off the whole mine operation. Now it will still be hidden. I am 100% fine with non-closure. I don't think every little thing has to be tied up in a nice little box at the end. However, there were too many things that were brought up that didn't advance the plot...Liz's Tinder (why lie and say it was ff--we got that she slept around already), all of the futile connections to S1 (why repeat that spiral--what connection did Clark have to it)? What did Kayla throw our Peter--when he is working a mass murder?? A killer is on the loose in a small town and you are going after the only person that is actually doing detective work? I get she doesn't like his and Danvers relationship--but now is the time you are picking to throw him out?Why did those townspeople go crazy in the hospital? It's not like he was abusive or manipulative. Honestly, I think it would have been better if they just called it Night Country and didn't try to shoehorn in True Detective. Finally, my biggest irk was the whole Twist and Shout thing. I watch with subtitles and that song was played in most of the episodes. Anyhow--my prediction for the entire show was the town was having mass hallucinations due to the mine's pollution. The scientists discovered this and were going to expose the mine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tank Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 I loved this season. Best since the first. It’s been hilarious to watch the pretentious as hell douche bag who created it melt down over the ratings this season has pulled in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobbes Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 9 hours ago, Tank said: I loved this season. Best since the first. It’s been hilarious to watch the pretentious as hell douche bag who created it melt down over the ratings this season has pulled in. I agree about watching Nic's meltdown. Did he forget he also wrote S2? I liked the premose and setting more than S3, but S3 had better writing and conclusion. Both had excellent acting. So to me they are pretty equivalent. I don't think S2 is as bad as most people think, but it's bad when you have to look up episodes to figure out what you just watched. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odine Posted February 21 Author Share Posted February 21 I only watched S01 and it was (and still is) one of the greatest bits of television ever. Its better than the Wire. Watched an episode of S02 and saw they done fucked it up. Never watched another till this Night Country season. I liked the first episode, and the atmosphere of the whole season. But I felt like the plot was just treading water the whole time and literally nothing happend until the final episode where everything happens and they shat the bed so to speak. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tank Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 S1, for me, set the tone by saying this was a show about three things: 1. Police who have been broken by their jobs, forced to reconcile how what's RIGHT isn't always what is LEGAL, and vice versa. 2. A strange and horrific murder case that seems to edge into the occult 3. A present tense frame story that looks back at a previous time as the case is re-examined. As an anthology, I knew it was going to be a different case and cast each season, but it seemed like those were the core ideas everything would be built around. And that wasn't just my assumption, I have a copy of Pizzilato's pitch and it says future seasons would always be about a pair of investigators that are set against each other, but have to work together on a case that spans over a long time period. So when the second season came out and was just a very by the numbers corrupt cop in LA storyline, I was disappointed. I wanted it to be rural, I wanted a hit of the occult. I wanted more of the things I liked. Aside the shoot out episode and the one where Rachel McAdams goes undercover at the sex party, the tension was flat as hell. Season three seemed to return to the form of season one, but it was so boring I never finished it. And I watched it during lockdown when I had nothing to do BUT watch TV shows. Season four is a return on all fronts, though I suppose the present-day investigation looking back only comes into play in the last episode. I don't think it was flat at all, I think each episode advanced the case in interesting ways, and the ending-- which still hints at something supernatural but also gives a logical conclusion, worked great. I do think they left one too many thing unanswered for (the tongue) and it did feel rushed that both Annie as well as Danvers/Navarro could spend five minutes in the under-ice lab and instantly have all the answers, but beyond that, I was very happy and did not think the bed was shattededed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobbes Posted February 22 Share Posted February 22 3 hours ago, Odine said: I only watched S01 and it was (and still is) one of the greatest bits of television ever. Its better than the Wire. Watched an episode of S02 and saw they done fucked it up. Never watched another till this Night Country season. I liked the first episode, and the atmosphere of the whole season. But I felt like the plot was just treading water the whole time and literally nothing happend until the final episode where everything happens and they shat the bed so to speak. Watch S3. It is legit really good. From what you have said, I think you would like it. 2 hours ago, Tank said: S1, for me, set the tone by saying this was a show about three things: 1. Police who have been broken by their jobs, forced to reconcile how what's RIGHT isn't always what is LEGAL, and vice versa. 2. A strange and horrific murder case that seems to edge into the occult 3. A present tense frame story that looks back at a previous time as the case is re-examined. As an anthology, I knew it was going to be a different case and cast each season, but it seemed like those were the core ideas everything would be built around. And that wasn't just my assumption, I have a copy of Pizzilato's pitch and it says future seasons would always be about a pair of investigators that are set against each other, but have to work together on a case that spans over a long time period. So when the second season came out and was just a very by the numbers corrupt cop in LA storyline, I was disappointed. I wanted it to be rural, I wanted a hit of the occult. I wanted more of the things I liked. Aside the shoot out episode and the one where Rachel McAdams goes undercover at the sex party, the tension was flat as hell. Season three seemed to return to the form of season one, but it was so boring I never finished it. And I watched it during lockdown when I had nothing to do BUT watch TV shows. Season four is a return on all fronts, though I suppose the present-day investigation looking back only comes into play in the last episode. I don't think it was flat at all, I think each episode advanced the case in interesting ways, and the ending-- which still hints at something supernatural but also gives a logical conclusion, worked great. I do think they left one too many thing unanswered for (the tongue) and it did feel rushed that both Annie as well as Danvers/Navarro could spend five minutes in the under-ice lab and instantly have all the answers, but beyond that, I was very happy and did not think the bed was shattededed. It is interesting you said that about S2, because Nic said it was supposed to be occulty and have more interesting dynamics between the detectives, but HBO wanted a script so he didn't have time to flesh out what he needed. I agree with you about the return to S1 form. I thought it did a nice job. But I agree with Odine that nothing really happened and then everything was rushed. I think the last episode could have actually been 2-3 episodes on its own. You say the tongue, but I assumed Hank put it there so the detectives would automatically assume the same person was connected with both crimes and taking focus off the mine. But you say it is a return to form, I know I just said I agreed and they did a nice job, but I am kind of changing my mind. They pushed it too much--wtf is the connection to the spiral and what is the connection to Twist and Shout? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tank Posted February 22 Share Posted February 22 Also, for the record-- Nic Pizzolato is a narcissist piece of shit. He was caught plagiarizing from Alan Moore in season one, and deflected by saying the only problems with S1 was that he didn't have enough control over Cary Fukinawa, who directed the whole season, even though Nic never directed a thing in hid life. In season 2, Nic blames all the short comings on the fact HBO pressed him for time. He had a writer's room against his will and blamed the fact he couldn't write every single episode himself for the uneven quality. In season 3, he was given full control, wrote every episode, and split directing duties himself with a guy he hand-picked. And the result-- lowest ratings ever. Combine that with how he is combative and throws everyone he can under the bus, HBO fires him. Now, he's drifted into weirdo butthurt creep style shit-posting on social media, retweeting every incel that complains about the men in S4 being inept. He will repost any article or review (often from amateurs) that shit on the show... all the while still collecting paychecks as EP/Creator. The guy is capable of great work, but his ego and being a piece of shit far outweigh that fact. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobbes Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 Looks like HBO renewed it Issas vision. As I mentioned, I loved the direction Issa took. Hopefully she will be given a bigger budget and can properly flesh out the story a bit more. Odds on Matt or Woody returning? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zathras Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 On 2/21/2024 at 1:08 PM, Odine said: I only watched S01 and it was (and still is) one of the greatest bits of television ever. Its better than the Wire. The Wire is waaaayyy overrated. Sopranos, Sons of Anarchy, Dexter, Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, Boardwalk Empire, and Rome are just a few examples of shows that totally blow it out of the water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odine Posted February 23 Author Share Posted February 23 Sopranos was legit amazing, hard disagree about sons of anarchy though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zathras Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 No accounting for taste but I respectfully disagree! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Ray Kenobi Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 I liked this recent season a lot, but there's a lot holding me back from saying that I loved it. The biggest problem for me is that it can't decide if it wants to be its own thing or be True Detective. There's a lot of little beats that tries to tell the viewer that it's going to be the polar opposite of Season One, but it still simultaneously makes a ton of fanservice callbacks that ultimately lead to nothing. The plot is pretty cool and is a great mystery, but there's a lot of little complications that make for a lot of little plotholes. For example, the tongue on the floor still makes no sense as there's no real (or at least clearly explained) motivation for anyone to have done that. It's almost as if someone decided that would make for a great hook in the first episode, but they never really got around to fully expanding on that for the story as a whole. This whole thing feels like HBO wanted to fill a date with an IP and they rushed a creator to get them something on that pre-determined date. Another script draft could have really pushed this from good to great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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