Random EPICness

Caprica!

I’ve started watching the short-lived Battlestar Galactica prequel Caprica and so far I’m really liking it. I stayed up until 6am yesterday (well today, I guess) as I couldn’t stop watching one episode after another. I’m about halfway into the season now.

Caprica is set 58 years before the events of Battlestar Galactica. It follows the story of how the first Cylons (robots) were created before they rebelled and had humans on the run.

The main characters include Joseph Adama (the father of the awesome William Adama whom I mentioned in my BSG Epic TV Series post as my favorite character), Daniel Graystone (rich and successful company man who is working on the first Cylon) and Zoe Graystone (pictured in the banner above, hothothot), who becomes the first artificial intelligence (let’s just keep it at that to prevent spoilers).

A few opinions about this show:

• This show is VERY different from BSG. The style and the content are different. There’s nothing “spacey” about this show. Where BSG had epic space battles, Caprica is set entirely on the planet, well, Caprica. BSG is set in a post-apocalyptic world where things are looking bleak and humanity struggling to survive while in Caprica, humanity is at its peak and thriving from an abundance of technology but they live sinful lives, worshiping false Gods and living their lives as if there are no consequences.
• It may be nothing like BSG but I get BSG fanboy chills whenever I hear BSG music being used, especially that sad theme I posted a while ago. By the way, am I crazy does that music sorta sound like the Titanic theme? Plus both were used as themes for ships (Titanic and the Battlestar Galactica). Or maybe I’m just crazy.
• There’s a lot of religious overtones. I think this has divided/will divide BSG fans. When BSG started taking a religious route towards the end of the series, there were a lot of people who didn’t like all those “religious crap” in a sci-fi series. But I didn’t mind, in fact I liked it.
• The show may be set on Caprica but there’s also another world that’s dominantly used throughout the show. It’s the “V-World” or the Virtual World. Think of it as the Matrix. You can put on this “Holoband” and get transported into a virtual world where the possibilities are limitless. It’s pretty neat and makes the show more interesting.
• The show’s intro kicks ass! This is probably my favorite TV series intro. The 4400 intro had an awesome song, the BSG intro which displays the dwindling number of survivors for each episode is unique and the Fringe intro is cool looking but I love this Caprica intro the most. The worst TV show intro? Lost… if a white “LOST” text slowly spinning and zooming in on top of a black background can count as an intro that is.

So far, I’m finding this show better than I expected. I guess I didn’t have very high expectations when I heard how it’s very different from BSG or when it got canceled after less than a season. But I’m finding this show addictive and interesting enough to continue watching it. It may not be up to the standards of Battlestar Galactica but then BSG is a very tough act to follow.

Brief Thoughts on New (and old) TV Series

I realize I haven’t written any proper posts in a while and my “EPIC TV Series posts” have been on hiatus FOREVER. But I shall get back to them! Soon… Hopefully.

Anyways, here are my brief thoughts on new and old TV series I’ve been watching lately.

Fringe: I watched a few episodes a while back but I didn’t really get into it until towards the end of season 1. I’m not a big fan of shows that has one mystery/case per episode and then solves that mystery/case by the end of the episode with not much continuity between them. I kinda like shows like Lost more where every episode is important and advances the main plot a little.

But Fringe started to do just that as the series progressed with each new episode a direct continuation of the previous one. I’m really loving it now. I’m really loving the current season especially. I really like the idea of the parallel universes and love the way it’s used/depicted in this show. 

The Event: The show’s about… er…. SMALL SPOILER ALERT!… aliens. Don’t worry, if you haven’t seen the show, that’s not a big spoiler since you find out in the 2nd or 3rd episode. But it surprised me to find out that the main focus of the show are the “non-humans” who are living among us. The synopsis mentioned about some plane crash and a missing girl and some “government conspiracy.” Had no idea that meant aliens. Don’t get me wrong. Aliens are awesome and I don’t mind a single bit but when the show was being touted as the next Lost, I expected something different. The show is like a combination of The 4400 and Flash Forward. Others say it’s like Lost and 24. I have no clue. For me, it should not be compared with Lost. It’s just not at that level (story, characters, acting, EPICNESS scale, addictiveness, etc.).

So far I like it, but not sure if I love it yet. It’s fast-paced and action packed most of the episodes so far. It’s quite exciting sometimes and seems to be getting better with each episode but I feel like this series need to step it up a notch or it might be facing the axe sooner or later.

The Walking Dead: Highly anticipated AMC series before it aired and now it’s attracting a lot of viewers and high praise. Now, THIS is a great show. Great acting and a slow paced but interesting survival story. I love zombie films, especially those that focus on the survival tale. I mean, sure movies like Resident Evil where hot chicks are blasting off zombie brains with sub machine guns in slow motion are fun but I like zombie movies like I Am Legend and 28 Days/Week Later more which focus on the tale of the survival of the human race more than the action.

Only one minor gripe with these zombie films though… Why don’t they ever refer to the zombies as… zombies?? It’s always “the dead” or “the walkers” or something else. Aren’t they aware of the term “zombies”?

Actually another minor gripe with The Walking Dead, why did the guy have to wake up in a hospital? It’s been done already, most noticeably in 28 Days Later. Resident Evil also did it in the first movie.

And 6 episodes for the first season is not enough! I need more Walking Dead!

Dexter: This is one of the few non sci-fi shows I watch (I guess Walking Dead is kinda sci-fi-ish? Zombies are science fiction, right? Or is the zombie apocalypse inevitable?). Anyway, this is one of the most consistently good series I’ve watched. There are no dull episodes and even though 5 seasons are done, the 5th season was as good, if not better than the first four. Maybe the 4th season was the best though. Hard to rank them. I really loved this season although I have to say I was a bit disappointed with the season finale. But I guess nothing can top the shocking and awesome 4th season finale. Looking forward to the next season. This is an awesome show.

Warehouse 13: Popular SyFy series about a secret government agency dealing with finding mysterious and dangerous “artifacts”. Expect a lot of low-budget cheesy visual effects! I’m not really fond of the two main actors/characters either, although they’re growing on me. Overall it’s one of those fun and “light” sci-fi shows I watch just to pass my time.

Castle: I have to admit I just started watching it because Nathan Fillion is in it.  It’s a funny crime solving show. Not much to else say about it. Nathan’s character is funny as usual and the actress who plays Kate Beckett is quite hot. Nathan Fillion likes to put in Firefly references every now and then as a treat for Firefly fans. Like that episode where he spoke Chinese and said he learnt it from “a TV show he used to love.” Or that Halloween episode where he dressed up as a “space cowboy” (a.k.a. Malcom Reynolds from Firefly). That guy is awesome.

Glee: Don’t judge me! Honestly, this season is quite boring for me. I think the freshness is kinda gone from Glee. Not as interesting anymore.

Shows on my to-watch list:

Caprica: BSG prequel that got canceled. Heard it’s not really that good (hence the cancellation) but it’s BSG-related so I gotta watch it. 

Stargate Universe: Wasn’t planning to watch it but it got canceled recently so I might give it a shot. I know, it’s weird that I want to watch TV shows after they get canceled but my reason is that once I’m done watching all episodes, I don’t have to bother following it week after week. Besides, I can watch all the episodes on my own time. I won’t get let down either if the episode is bad since I didn’t have to wait a whole week for it. I watched BSG and The 4400 long after they got canceled and those two are in my top 3 favorite series of all time. OF ALL TIME!! (Ok, that’s enough Kanye).

The Cape: Summer Glau’s in it. ‘nuff said. I’ve been suffering from Summer Glau withdrawal symptoms.

I’m also looking forward for the return of V.

Ok, well, this wasn’t as brief as I thought it would be. I guess I’m incapable of writing anything brief.

EPIC TV Series Post: LOST

This is a much delayed post but yup, it’s time for another EPIC TV Series post! This week, it’s about probably the most popular TV drama series of the decade, LOST (note, LOST is usually spelled in caps to convey its EPICness).

Series run: 2004-2010

Status: As we all know, ended after 6 seasons

No. Of Seasons: 6

Synopsis:

It’s kinda hard to sum up Lost in a few sentences but it’s about the lives of a bunch of survivors of a plane crash on a mysterious crazy weird island. Later on, they meet other people and crazy stuff keeps happening on the island. Actually, I think I summed it up quite well. Just know that if you’ve never watched Lost and think it’s just a tale of plane crash survivors trying to get rescued, you’ve only guessed 1/6th of the story.

What I Love About This Show:

• A big cast of memorable characters. For me, the characters are the most important part of the show. Locke, Sawyer, Hurley, Ben Linus… The show is filled with great characters. And great acting too.
• Lots of depth to the story. This is not a series for people interested in a light sci-fi show. You really have to think a lot.
• Great music, especially for those emotional/sad scenes. Never really liked the trumpet/horn sound during those dramatic moments though.
• A ridiculously strong and loyal fan base. It amazes me how many people are still discussing about the show, arguing about the plot points. And there are so many fan sites and dedicated blogs to Lost.
• Highly addictive. Those cliff hanger endings and the mysteries will keep you hooked.
• It has the best pilot episode ever. I have yet to see a better pilot for a TV series. It was intense, explosive and highly entertaining right from the start.
• Really smart storytelling. Flash backs, flash forwards, oh my!
• Never ending mysteries. Lost is full of them! You’ll never get bored of the show.

What I Didn’t Like About This Show:

• Never ending mysteries (again). Yes, I just mentioned that this is what I love about the series but sometimes it’s TOO MUCH. The lack of answers to the mysteries is a running joke for Lost fans. We all have to deal with it. Just watch this CollegeHumor video.
• The writers sometimes just make stuff up. I know it’s hard to plan and write ahead for 6 seasons but there are so many things the writers obviously decided to make up as show went on. Lost is very good in creating mysteries but is really bad at giving answers. For me, a lot of things just don’t add up after they reveal the mysteries. This and the point below bug me the most about Lost.
• “I just… know”/ “It’s my destiny” / “Because we have to.” You have no idea how many times I’ve tore my hair out whenever I hear a character like Locke say something along these lines. They know what’s going on but they aren’t telling! Explain, dammit! This is one of the reasons I didn’t like fan favorite Mr. Eko. A lot of Lost fans like him but he’s just a frustrating character, doing things by himself and not sharing what he knows with others.

Overall:

Basically, you’re missing out on the most EPIC and popular sci-fi TV series of the decade if you haven’t watched Lost. For me, I started watching it from the beginning only after season 5 was well underway. So what did I think of it?

First of all, I must say that I don’t feel like a “Lostie” enough. Why? Because there are gazillion more fans out there who can analyze and argue about a tiny little plot point for pages on Lost fan forums and blogs. They really love its mysteries. But I don’t like to think too much. It’s ridiculous how much depth this series has. I’ll never understand all the references and mysteries of Lost but it was an awesome ride.

The first two seasons are highly entertaining and addictive and my favorite seasons of Lost, mainly because they were down–to-earth with only a hint of the supernatural. The 3rd season was frustrating for me. I think it’s the first time I started to realize how few answers Lost provides. And then season 4 started to include more supernatural stuff but it was a lot more interesting than season 3. And then season 5 happened. CRAZY (with capital letters) would be a good word to sum up the season. It was just so confusing and totally broke loose from reality. Time traveling, nose bleeds, walking dead people… Most of the time I had no idea what was going on. It was a TOTALLY different show from the one I started watching. Season 6 continued the craziness but tried to wrap things up as much as possible. But don’t get me wrong, despite all the craziness, it was still a very addictive show and very interesting throughout all six seasons. And like I mentioned, the characters are what makes the show.

I know the most loyal Lost fans love the show for its mysteries and openness to interpretation but I loved the series a lot more during its first 2 seasons when it was more grounded in reality and was a show about survival and not about, well, time travelling to the 70’s. My main gripe with the series though, as I have mentioned, is how it FRUSTRATES me so much because of the answers (or lack of). The pieces to the puzzle just don’t fit sometimes.

I consider Lost as my 2nd favorite series of all time, after Batlestar Galactica. BSG also got crazy and weird after a couple of seasons, but unlike Lost, the writers seemed to have a plan and the answers provided were very satisfying for me.

All in all, it’s a highly recommended show, but just keep an open mind and be patient if you do watch it!

So that’s it. The next of these EPIC TV Series posts will be about the short-lived but critically acclaimed and well-beloved Firefly. Up next week (maybe).

My previous posts: The 4400, Heroes, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Battlestar Galactica.

EPIC TV Series Post: The 4400

The EPIC TV Series posts now continue with another great sci-fi series: The 4400.

Series run: 2004-2007

Status: Cancelled after 4 seasons. Cliffhanger(-ish) ending.

No. Of Seasons: 4 (only 45 episodes though)

Synopsis (with the help of Wikipedia):

A mysterious ball of white light descends on earth and out of that light exactly 4400 people appear out of nowhere. The 4400 (pronounced “forty-four hundred”) are as confused and surprised as all the people on earth watching the event unfold. Each of the 4400 had disappeared at various times starting from 1946 in a beam of white light. None of the 4400 has aged from the time of their disappearance. Confused and disoriented, they remember nothing between the time of their disappearance and their return. And what’s more interesting is that some of them have started to develop special abilities…

What I Love About This Show:

• It’s well written and has little or no plot holes. The powers are never too powerful to cause plot holes (unlike Heroes). And for those characters that are somewhat powerful, they aren’t reluctant to use their powers (again unlike Heroes).
• It got better and more interesting with each season. Some people might disagree but I thought each new season was better than the last. For me, the 4th season was the most engaging and my favorite.
• Lots of unique characters. The show features a large cast and each character has an interesting mini story of his or her own built into the main plot.
• The title song is kick-ass. I still use it as my alarm ringtone. The rest of the soundtrack is not bad either.
• The show evolved and the scope got bigger and bigger as the series progressed. The 4400 “problem” got more and more complex and slowly grew into a global issue as the seasons went by. It’s brilliant how the show expertly chronicles the rise of the tension between the 4400 and the “normal” humans.

What I Didn’t Like About This Show:

• A few major plot points left unexplained. This really isn’t the fault of the show though since it was canceled.
• The “ripple effect” seemed to be forgotten after the first or second season. Without spoiling a lot, the “ripple effect” was used to explain how the 4400 returnees affected the course of the future. But that was soon forgotten.
• A few “filler” episodes, especially in the 3rd season.

Overall:

I really love this series. I rate it as one of my top 3 favorite series of all time—My favorite after Battlestar Galactica and Lost. It’s really a shame that this brilliant show got canceled.

I can’t help but compare it to Heroes. I actually started watching this long after it got canceled. By the time I started watching The 4400, I was already a big fan of Heroes. But I kept hearing comparisons between the two shows so I decided to check it out myself. And my final verdict? Heroes is bigger, cooler, more stylish, more fun and has more memorable characters but The 4400 has a more interesting and smarter plot. And in the end, it’s the story that matters. So taking all seasons into account, I enojoyed The 4400 more than Heroes.

So all in all, I highly recommend this series if you’re into sci-fi dramas. It’s an awesome series. I don’t know why it got canceled. I blame the Writers’ Strike (as always). There are only 5 episodes for the first season, check them out! XD

Next up on these EPIC TV Series posts: without doubt the most popular sci-fi TV series of this decade… LOST.

My previous posts: Heroes, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Battlestar Galactica

EPIC TV Series Posts

Since this blog seems to have no activity whatsoever, I’ve decided to write a series of (EPIC) blog posts about my favorite TV series (serial dramas only, not sit-coms or reality shows). I figured, since I love watching TV series and love talking about them and sharing with others, why not blog about it? And that’s what I’m gonna do for the next few weeks (hopefully).

For the next couple of weeks, I will blog about a TV series I like. Most All of them are sci-fi and no longer on air. There’ll be Heroes, Lost, Firefly, Dollhouse, T:SCC, V and so on. I’ll start with the sci-fi series first.

Why am I doing this? Because I’m a TV series addict and hopefully I can enlighten any readers about these shows I love. Plus it’s a good exercise in writing for me. Plus i’m jobless and bored.

And remember, it’s never too late to start watching a TV series no matter how old it is. In fact I usually like to watch shows no longer on air so that I don’t have to bother watching them week after week.

To start things off, my next post (tomorrow) will be about my “new” favorite TV series, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA.