Television The Mandalorian OT - This is the Way

[Kal-El814]

1 minute ago, Spawn_of_Apathy said:

The Hulk would have been a very weird show if he was carrying around a baby across America.

I agree that would have made the show odder, but I don't think that it would have to mean that the show was "going somewhere."

 

Specifically for this show, if LBY is still a toddler at 50, the two of them could be doing their thing for YEARS without LBY aging or Mando getting too old to protect him. Mandalorian wears its Japanese influences on its sleeves and there are plenty of Japanese series that very specifically DO NOT have a destination in mind.

 

Other shows do this, too. The X-Files has ~33% of its episodes dedicated to the mythology... it's just that a season was 20+ hours, not ~5.

[skillzdadirecta]

1 hour ago, CitizenVectron said:

I can't believe this episode didn't even explain why Darth Vader had different suits in ANH and ESB. Totally worthless.

 

 

 

He did???? My Star Wars fan card has officially been revoked 

 

39 minutes ago, Kal-El814 said:

Again I think the only issue here is that we're so used to prestige TV having an "arc." If this is basically going to be The Incredible Hulk but Star Wars I'd be completely fine with that. I just don't think we know that for sure at this point, which is only a problem because there are 3 episodes left this season.

 

 

I think both can be true. The show can have an overarching arc and have a couple "stand alone" episodes too. I think judging the entirety of the season without having seen the whole season is a bit premature. Which is why I think they people who didn't like the last two episodes probably wouldn't have had as strong a reaction to them if the whole series had been released at once. Having to wait a week for an episode only to get one that doesn't move the plot forward at ALL is a tough pill to swallow... except this is how we watched TV for DECADES before binging became a thing  I get their frustration but I also feel like folks need to put things in perspective. Once we see all of the episodes we'll have a better idea how these two episodes fit within the larger narrative.  Also the show is a space western and anyone who's ever seen old western series will recognize the tropes that the show is employing.

[ort]

I think I would be fine with the adventure of the week format if the adventures were better.

 

I'm not really impressed by this show at all.

[CitizenVectron]

10 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

 

He did???? My Star Wars fan card has officially been revoked 

 

lol I think there were minor differences in his chest plate and breathing mask, as well as how his cape was fastened.

[Spawn_of_Apathy]

6 minutes ago, Kal-El814 said:

I agree that would have made the show odder, but I don't think that it would have to mean that the show was "going somewhere."

 

Specifically for this show, if LBY is still a toddler at 50, the two of them could be doing their thing for YEARS without LBY aging or Mando getting too old to protect him. Mandalorian wears its Japanese influences on its sleeves and there are plenty of Japanese series that very specifically DO NOT have a destination in mind.

 

Other shows do this, too. The X-Files has ~33% of its episodes dedicated to the mythology... it's just that a season was 20+ hours, not ~5.

Though in Mandalorian the issue is the guild is still after LBY, and so might those former Empire guys. So the question on everyone’s mind is “why?”  

[skillzdadirecta]

2 minutes ago, Spawn_of_Apathy said:

Though in Mandalorian the issue is the guild is still after LBY, and so might those former Empire guys. So the question on everyone’s mind is “why?”  

The guild is after Mando for breaking their code and after  LBY because they were paid. Their reps are on the line as mercs. Why the former Empire guys want him is the mystery. I think that doctor dude will eventually show up and provide a lot of explanations.

[Kal-El814]

1 minute ago, Spawn_of_Apathy said:

Though in Mandalorian the issue is the guild is still after LBY, and so might those former Empire guys. So the question on everyone’s mind is “why?”  

While I would absolutely enjoy a good answer to that question, I also think we've seen enough in this show / have enough greater Star Wars context that we don't need a definitive one. Herzog's initial interaction with Mando and what Mando overhears later makes it pretty clear they want to clone LBY / get access to his Force powers / something with midichlorians, or barring them having access to that, they want to ensure that NOBODY can get at it.

 

There are other options of course but if they literally never address the topic again I personally think that's fine.

[skillzdadirecta]

1 minute ago, Kal-El814 said:

While I would absolutely enjoy a good answer to that question, I also think we've seen enough in this show / have enough greater Star Wars context that we don't need a definitive one. Herzog's initial interaction with Mando and what Mando overhears later makes it pretty clear they want to clone LBY / get access to his Force powers / something with midichlorians, or barring them having access to that, they want to ensure that NOBODY can get at it.

 

There are other options of course but if they literally never address the topic again I personally think that's fine.

 

I'm guessing that they never mention midichlorians again. At least i HOPE they don't 

[Ghost_MH]

6 minutes ago, Kal-El814 said:

While I would absolutely enjoy a good answer to that question, I also think we've seen enough in this show / have enough greater Star Wars context that we don't need a definitive one. Herzog's initial interaction with Mando and what Mando overhears later makes it pretty clear they want to clone LBY / get access to his Force powers / something with midichlorians, or barring them having access to that, they want to ensure that NOBODY can get at it.

 

There are other options of course but if they literally never address the topic again I personally think that's fine.

 

Yeah, my assumption was that they wanted a new gene base for clone troopers, only all with force powers. That would be why they were OK with the child, dead or alive.

[Spawn_of_Apathy]

18 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

 

I'm guessing that they never mention midichlorians again. At least i HOPE they don't 

They’re still cannon. I’m sure they’ve been mentioned in Clone Wars and I know they have in recent print media. 
 

48 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

The guild is after Mando for breaking their code and after  LBY because they were paid. Their reps are on the line as mercs. Why the former Empire guys want him is the mystery. I think that doctor dude will eventually show up and provide a lot of explanations.

See I’m sure they are after Mando, but also the kid. The assassin was targeting the kid first. So there is still a priority on baby Yoda. and there may no longer be a preference for alive over dead. Resolving this major plot thread LBY and the former Empire guys so what I and I think many others assumed the plot would be, and not just be a dangling thread while random Samurai stuff happens each week. 

[skillzdadirecta]

12 minutes ago, Spawn_of_Apathy said:

They’re still cannon. I’m sure they’ve been mentioned in Clone Wars and I know they have in recent print media. 
 

See I’m sure they are after Mando, but also the kid. The assassin was targeting the kid first. So there is still a priority on baby Yoda. and there may no longer be a preference for alive over dead. Resolving this major plot thread LBY and the former Empire guys so what I and I think many others assumed the plot would be, and not just be a dangling thread while random Samurai stuff happens each week. 

I don't think there ever was a preference for him being alive. That doctor was pushing for him to be brought in alive but I'm pretty sure Lars Von Trier said they could bring him in dead too. The IG Droid was going to kill him on sight.

[Chris-]

23 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

I don't think there ever was a preference for him being alive. That doctor was pushing for him to be brought in alive but I'm pretty sure Lars Von Trier said they could bring him in dead too. The IG Droid was going to kill him on sight.

 

skillz, for fuck's sake!

[legend]

I got a free year of Disney+ so now I'm watching this.

 

I binged all the available episodes yesterday. Overall, I think it's pretty enjoyable. While it is true that the last couple episodes didn't move a larger narrative forward I think they're still important for exposing us to the subworld in which Mando lives. If the show never tells a larger story, I agree that will be disappointing, but I think what they're doing so far is fine.

 

As a point of reference, Supernatural had a lot of monster of the week episodes, but I think the whole 5 season arc was better for having had them. (And obviously they stopped Supernatural after season 5. Nothing was ever aired after that. I can't hear you.)

[skillzdadirecta]

10 minutes ago, Chris- said:

 

skillz, for fuck's sake!

LOL I did it again 

 

5 minutes ago, legend said:

I got a free year of Disney+ so now I'm watching this.

 

I binged all the available episodes yesterday. Overall, I think it's pretty enjoyable. While it is true that the last couple episodes didn't move a larger narrative forward I think they're still important for exposing us to the subworld in which Mando lives. If the show never tells a larger story, I agree that will be disappointing, but I think what they're doing so far is fine.

 

As a point of reference, Supernatural had a lot of monster of the week episodes, but I think the whole 5 season arc was better for having had them. (And obviously they stopped Supernatural after season 5. Nothing was ever aired after that. I can't hear you.)

 

Do you think you would have enjoyed these episodes less if you were watching the show week to week and hadn't binged all 5 at once?

[legend]

4 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

Do you think you would have enjoyed these episodes less if you were watching the show week to week and hadn't binged all 5 at once?

 

I think I would have still enjoyed them the same, but I may have had additional irritation simultaneously if that makes any sense  

[Guest]

I will again say the problem is that episodes like Gunslinger are fine in a 22/24 episode season, but they are wasted in an 8 episode season. Binge or no binge doesn’t change that problem.

[legend]

25 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

I will again say the problem is that episodes like Gunslinger are fine in a 22/24 episode season, but they are wasted in an 8 episode season. Binge or no binge doesn’t change that problem.

 

That's probably fair. 8 episodes is pretty sparse even for other modern day "serial" shows.

[TwinIon]

I feel like this show was really rushed out so they had something for the launch of Disney+. Not that the show is bad, but it doesn't feel like an 8 episode show. It really feels like it would be more at home with a longer season. I wouldn't be surprised if that was the plan, but they couldn't get that much ready before the launch, so they cut season 1 short and will expand it in season 2. I know season 2 is underway, but I haven't seen anything about how long it will be.

[skillzdadirecta]

"Why are Star Wars Fans Not Debating The Mandalorian?"

 

 

This video was made by a guy who seems to think that fans are universally LOVING the Mandalorian and is wondering why it isn't as divisive as pretty much everything else Star Wars... clearly my uniformed friend has NOT visited this thread 

[Bacon]

5 hours ago, skillzdadirecta said:

This video was made by a guy who seems to think that fans are universally LOVING the Mandalorian and is wondering why it isn't as divisive as pretty much everything else Star Wars... clearly my uniformed friend has NOT visited this thread 

Well, TBF, after TLJ, people's reactions to The The Mandalorian could be confused as love. 

[CitizenVectron]

I think most people who are criticizing the recent episodes still agree that the show is good, on the whole. This is different than TLJ, where people online who disliked it often hyperbolically say it is literally the worst movie ever made, worse than TPM or AOTC.

[skillzdadirecta]

14 minutes ago, CitizenVectron said:

I think most people who are criticizing the recent episodes still agree that the show is good, on the whole. This is different than TLJ, where people online who disliked it often hyperbolically say it is literally the worst movie ever made, worse than TPM or AOTC.

 

Are you reading the same posts I am? 

[Bacon]

5 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

Are you reading the same posts I am? 

I mean, on the whole it is good. Like 3 out of 5 are really great. The majority of the show is good. What I fear is that the good won't remain the majority. 

[skillzdadirecta]

2 minutes ago, Bacon said:

I mean, on the whole it is good. Like 3 out of 5 are really great. The majority of the show is good. What I fear is that the good won't remain the majority. 

I wasn't talking about you though  

[Bacon]

Just now, skillzdadirecta said:

I wasn't talking about you though  

[Bacon]

21 minutes ago, CitizenVectron said:

This is different than TLJ, where people online who disliked it often hyperbolically say it is literally the worst movie ever made, worse than TPM or AOTC.

I am making a thread about this but..

 

I do think TLJ is worse than those two movies. I have watched 9 star wars movies (all the eps + solo) over the past few days and I didn't skip through any scenes of any of the movies until TLJ. I don't get how, if you watch all the eps in episodic order, you can think the modern main SW movies are actually good. I have zero desire to ever watch TLJ ever again. There is no hyperbole here. I can't stand it. This was my first rewatch of TLJ, and I thought that maybe it wouldn't be as bad as I remembered, but I hated it even more the second time. 

[CitizenVectron]

27 minutes ago, Bacon said:

I am making a thread about this but..

 

I do think TLJ is worse than those two movies. I have watched 9 star wars movies (all the eps + solo) over the past few days and I didn't skip through any scenes of any of the movies until TLJ. I don't get how, if you watch all the eps in episodic order, you can think the modern main SW movies are actually good. I have zero desire to ever watch TLJ ever again. There is no hyperbole here. I can't stand it. This was my first rewatch of TLJ, and I thought that maybe it wouldn't be as bad as I remembered, but I hated it even more the second time. 

 

Which scenes do you find unwatchable? I don't particularly enjoy the Canto Bight sequences (at least they are short overall), but in my opinion the stuff with Rey, Luke, and Kylo (especially the Throne Room sequences) are some of the best stuff in the entire saga.

[skillzdadirecta]

34 minutes ago, Bacon said:

I am making a thread about this but..

 

I do think TLJ is worse than those two movies. I have watched 9 star wars movies (all the eps + solo) over the past few days and I didn't skip through any scenes of any of the movies until TLJ. I don't get how, if you watch all the eps in episodic order, you can think the modern main SW movies are actually good. I have zero desire to ever watch TLJ ever again. There is no hyperbole here. I can't stand it. This was my first rewatch of TLJ, and I thought that maybe it wouldn't be as bad as I remembered, but I hated it even more the second time. 

 

My young niece just binged all of The Star Wars movies for the first time over thanksgiving weekend and  disagrees. She actually like AOTC but HATED The Phantom Menace. What's objectively true  is that the prequel trilogy has some of the worse written dialogue in the history of ANY movie franchise. Some of that shit if so cringy that you wonder how the movie ever got made in the first place. The . you remember, GEORGE LUCAS. From a filmmaking, craft standpoint, TLJ is arguably the best of the Star Wars movies. I'd rank Rogue One up there pretty highly too except from an editing standpoint I think that movie is a complete mess  But yeah the two modern Star Wars movies aren't bad at all. Even if you don't like where they went with the story or the choices they made, at the very least they have decent dialogue and are competently acted. I don't know if you could say the same about the other six movies... Mark Hamill didn't really learn how to act until Jedi to be COMPLETELY honest 

[Bacon]

1 minute ago, CitizenVectron said:

 

Which scenes do you find unwatchable? I don't particularly enjoy the Canto Bight sequences (at least they are short overall), but in my opinion the stuff with Rey, Luke, and Kylo (especially the Throne Room sequences) are some of the best stuff in the entire saga.

Yeah, the Finn and Rose shit. While I didn't actually skip ahead, often stopped watching without realizing when The Rebels/Resistance scenes played. I don't hate Poe, but I literally couldn't care less about him.  I do like Rey, and Kylo. That is the only thing I like about the TLJ. Kylo I have always liked. I still hate Rey in TFA, but I for some reason don't dislike her in TLJ. Maybe it is because of Kylo, or maybe it is because the rest of movie is the ugly chick Rey brought along to make herself look better. I legit don't know. Maybe it is both, or neither. 

 

Can't stand how they handled Luke. If he didn't die in TLJ I would have not minded so much, but I wanted to see Luke the Master Jedi, not Luke the depressed hermit. When his only display of advanced force mastery is a projection it is just a major letdown. It was impressive, but less impressive because "The Wizard died from using too much mana."

[Ghost_MH]

58 minutes ago, Bacon said:

I mean, on the whole it is good. Like 3 out of 5 are really great. The majority of the show is good. What I fear is that the good won't remain the majority. 

 

I actually think we have 3/5 really great, 1/5 pretty damn good, and just one weak episode. The one weak episode, I think, has messed with folks a bit much and I think that's mostly because of the pacing. If there was some other plot moving episode between episodes 4 and 5, I think episode 5 would get a lot less hate. Hell, if they had just swapped the order of episodes 4 and 5, I think that would have been enough to remedy much of the pacing issues.story-wise.

[Bacon]

21 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

is that the prequel trilogy has some of the worse written dialogue in the history of ANY movie franchise. Some of that shit if so cringy that you wonder how the movie ever got made in the first place.

I have  this written in my thread:

"the only issues I had with the characters and story were the love scenes. They just aren't good and cringe yikes tier I literally browsed Reddit when those scenes came up because I couldn't watch. Legit secondhand embarrassment."

 

21 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

TLJ is arguably the best of the Star Wars movies.

See, this is where I say you are wrong. I think it is the worst. It is only seen as good because it is Star Wars. Watching it reminds me of my BotW rants. People legit think BotW is the best LoZ game and it isn't. I recall saying, if you think BotW is the best Zelda, you just don't like Zelda. That is basically how I feel about the people who think TLJ is the best. Now that is a bit hyperbolic, but probably not as much as you'd think. 

 

Edit: I want to point out that I am almost incapable of consciously noticing bad acting unless it is something really, really, really, fucking bad. Like, The Room tier. You can say Hamill didn't know how to act, but I legit didn't notice anything outstandingly bad. At least not like in the Prequels. The only really bad Luke interactions were when he talking with the emperor. And I don't see that as bad acting, but bad writing. Nothing Palp says should make Luke turn Dark. Just felt off. Like, why is Luke reacting like that?

 

And also, the story is the most important part to me, and TLJ has a shit story minus the Kylo and Rey bits. 

[skillzdadirecta]

5 minutes ago, Bacon said:

I have  this written in my thread:

"the only issues I had with the characters and story were the love scenes. They just aren't good and cringe yikes tier I literally browsed Reddit when those scenes came up because I couldn't watch. Legit secondhand embarrassment."

 

See, this is where I say you are wrong. I think it is the worst. It is only seen as good because it is Star Wars. Watching it reminds me of my BotW rants. People legit think BotW is the best LoZ game and it isn't. I recall saying, if you think BotW is the best Zelda, you just don't like Zelda. That is basically how I feel about the people who think TLJ is the best. Now that is a bit hyperbolic, but probably not as much as you'd think. 

 

One, You cut off how I qualified my statement about TLJ... I said "FROM A CRAFT STANDPOINT, ARGUABLY The TLJ is the best of the Star Wars movies." Context matters and I was being VERY specific as to what I was talking about. I think it is definitely the best looking from a visual standpoint and probably one of the best directed and edited. I even raised Rogue One up there as one of the best from a technical standpoint because while folks know I hate that movie from a story standpoint, It IS a great looking film and is very well made (the story editing is garbage though) From an overall film standpoint, I still believe Empire is the best of the Star Wars movies.

 

Two you can think I'm wrong... that's cool. I think it's very presumptive to say "if you disagree with me then you really don't like Star Wars as much as I do." You're in your twenties right?  I can legit say I've been into Star Wars longer than you've been alive not that it matters.  We disagree on the movie but let's not play the "I'm a bigger fan than you are game." It's pointless 

[Bacon]

11 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

One, You cut off how I qualified my statement about TLJ... I said "FROM A CRAFT STANDPOINT, ARGUABLY The TLJ is the best of the Star Wars movies."

I cut that off because I don't think you were wrong about that so I had nothing to say, but I also took it as you saying, "FROM A CRAFT STANDPOINT, ARGUABLY The TLJ is the best of the Star Wars movies, and is also just the best star wars movie." Not sure if you feel that way, it was was my mistake in assuming that. Like, I'm not really sure why I read it that way. I mean, it is cuz I hate TLJ almost irrationally. 

 

11 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

Two you can think I'm wrong... that's cool. I think it's very presumptive to say "if you disagree with me then you really don't like Star Wars as much as I do."

No, see, I don't think of it like that. I don't think I am that big of a Star Wars fan, but I am a HUGE fan of the universe SW created. 

11 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

"I'm a bigger fan than you are game." It's pointless

I was not trying to play that game at all and it was not intended to come across that way. At least for Star Wars. I totally mean it that way for Zelda tho. 

 

11 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

You're in your twenties right?  I can legit say I've been into Star Wars longer than you've been alive not that it matters

I actually talk about this point.

Quote

Also, I was only 12 with RotS came out. So, most of my first time SW viewing happened before I was even 10. This might be why my opinions are different from older fans.

 

[skillzdadirecta]

3 minutes ago, Bacon said:

I cut that off because I don't think you were wrong about that so I had nothing to say, but I also took it as you saying, "FROM A CRAFT STANDPOINT, ARGUABLY The TLJ is the best of the Star Wars movies, and is also just the best star wars movie." Not sure if you feel that why, it was was my mistake in assuming that. Like, I'm not really sure why I read it that way. I mean, it is cuz I hate TLJ almost irrationally. 

 

No, see, I don't think of it like that. I don't think I am that big of a Star Wars fan, but I am a HUGE fan of the universe SW created. 

I was not trying to play that game at all and it was not intended to come across that way. At least for Star Wars. I totally mean it that way for Zelda tho. 

 

I actually talk about this point.

 

Thanks for clarifying... I have nothing to add about Zelda. I haven't played one since the Ocarina of Time  I DO want to play Breath of the Wild though. And while I do rank Empire as the number best Star Wars film to date, I rank The Last Jedi pretty highly. It's number three in my ranking right behind A New Hope 

[Ghost_MH]

7 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

Thanks for clarifying... I have nothing to add about Zelda. I haven't played one since the Ocarina of Time  I DO want to play Breath of the Wild though. And while I do rank Empire as the number best Star Wars film to date, I rank The Last Jedi pretty highly. It's number three in my ranking right behind A New Hope 

 

That about tracks for me. The best Star Wars is when someone was there to tell Lucas NO and manage the actors. Outside of that, Lucas-free Star Wars is leagues better than free range Lucas.