On Sun, Mar 22, 2009 at 4:32 PM, David Bruggeman <[email protected]> wrote:
> I am still catching up with the last season of BSG (five episodes to go), > but have felt that what subtlety the show had has been lost in Season 4. To > be fair, I've never been a big fan, but appreciated what they were doing, > given the lack of substantive alternatives in the genre. It seems as though > the show suffered from the kind of story resolution challenges J. Michael > Straczynski had when it wasn't clear whether his 5 year plan for Babylon 5 > would get a fifth year. But instead of a rushed half-season because the end > date was uncertain, we have an anvillicious full season (and an episode > chock-full of exposition that should have been spread out over several) when > the end date was known. > > Well, it certainly looks like I might skip the Sci-Fi channel now until the > next batch of Eureka episodes in the summer. Now that I've got BBC America, > I don't have to wait as long for the Doctor to hop the Atlantic. > > David > Actually, I do believe that Doctor Who will continue to first air on what will be SyFy then will re-premiere on BBC America. > > ------------------------------ > *From:* PGage <[email protected]> > ** > > > http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-battlestar20-2009mar20,0,4379589.story > > http://www.salon.com/ent/tv/feature/2009/03/21/battlestar_galactica/index.html > > http://www.televisionwithoutpity.com/show/battlestar_galactica/daybreak_part_ii.php?grade=3 > > The Times Reviewer loved the BG finale, TWoP's Jacob, who has been > such a big booster and transcendent exegete of the show for so long, > "hated it". The Salon reviewer is in between, but not exactly, and > leans more towards Jacob than the Times. > > I am closest to the Salon reviewer, but more on the LAT side than > Jacob's. I thought there were a lot of very good moments in the > finale, but Jacob is right that it was marred by overly preachy and > uncharacteristically tidy dialogue and plotting. All of which is to > say this is yet one more sign of Chase Syndrome, in which TV auteurs > of a certain pedigree seem determined not to take it in the shorts > like Chase did by clinging to his artistic vision and frustrating long > suffering fans who want all the t's crossed (if not every i dotted). I > thought The Shield suffered a little bit from this disease, and BG did > even more. I guess in three years we will find out exactly how every > cast member of Mad Men spent the 1990s, and which of their children > went to work for the Obama administration. I loved the Sopranos > finale, but I may yet damn Chase if it means that no other daring show > will have the balls to go out on its own terms for the next decade. > > We know these days it is impossible for any television show to > maintain critical support past one or two honeymoon seasons. BG was > not perfect, but I never stopped really liking it. Even its weakest > season would be seen as breathtaking if it were the only season we had > to go on. I like how the show took risks, and reinvented itself (in > many other TV hands we would have had 5 years of space battles and > staying just one jump ahead of the Cylons). And for a sci fi show on a > syfy network that presumably is aimed at young geeky men, this show > was dominated by the loves and crisis of its more mature cast > (Admiral, President, XO and his wife). Even the beautiful younger > stars were played as adults, and there was a much appreciated absence > of sustained teen heartthrobs, angst and intrigue - which made room > for the neuroses, immaturities, flaws and wounds of the older > characters to get full play. This was a great television program, with > often great writing and almost always great acting. Well done. > > > > > -- +++++++++++++++ Joe Coughlin Happy Accidents http://inturnaround.vox.com --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ TV or Not TV .... Smart (TV) People on Ice! You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TV or Not TV" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/tvornottv?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
