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Under the Bridge (2024)
Mostly good
Living in Europe, I have never heard of this story before. To be honest, this series is razther good, especially Gladstone's performance, as well as the teenagers actors and actresses.
To me, the main weakness is the main character, Rebecca. She's there, but at the same time, doesn't do much and seems distant. I don't know what's her role and interactions in the book, but in this series, she doesn't stand out much and her backstory is a bit conventional. I regret the artistic/direction that are a bit too bland, and that they didn't tell us what happened to the characters after this event, like it is often told in many series based on real-life events.
Apart from that, this is nicely written and done, and the 90's vibe is present but not too overwhelming. I especially liked the soundtrack.
Fallout (2024)
Faithful to the video game
As an avid Fallout fan since the release of the first game in 1998, I must say that I was quite impressed by the first episode (my review might change as I get deeper into the episodes).
Apart from The Last of Us and Twisted Metal (adapted from Video games), I've been rather disappointed by the recent SF novel adaptations (Silo, Beacon 23, 3 bodies problem), and I was a bit afraid that the tone and the atmosphere weren't truthful to the video games.
Thankfully, the first episode was rather very impressive, the music is exactly what you could expect, and the different characters' arcs are promising.
If you have never heard of Fallout before, you will miss a lot of easter eggs and references, as well as background and lore (what are ghouls, mutants, why are people living in Vaults etc...), but the overall quality and story might still be appealing to you.
I just regret that we didn't get to see a mutant rat and a radscorpion, as a direct reference to the 1st Fallout introduction (but we might see them later).
Dakgangjeong (2024)
Netflix's new systematic way of production
First of all, even the title's translation is wrong, so I'm not gonna write more than that about this series... The Korean title is "dakgangjeong", which are deep fried chicken pieces covered in a sweet and spicy sauce. That has nothing to do with a chicken nugget.... And even in the series, the chicken bits look more like chicken balls rather than dakgangjeong... I was very confused...
That's all about the series, when you can't even get that right, there's no point going any further...
So, Netflix is on a rampage capitalising on Korea, as it has became the new trend.
Recently, there have been tons of webtoon adaptations (Death's game, Pyramid game, A killer paradox, The bequeathed, duty after school etc...), which is just the new lazy and easy way of making a K-series. Webtoons themselves are kind of a lazy way to make a manga.
What I can see in general, is a drop in quality. Years ago, before American streaming companies started mass producing Korean series, I used to think that Korean series were way better than the rest. Unfortunately, this is not the case anymore, and it seems that nowadays, mediocre and second-rate productions for an avid Occidental audience is just the usual.
Avatar: The Last Airbender (2024)
for kids who don't know the animated series
Coming from Netflix, I didn't expect much from this series, and I did well to do so.
First of all, the CGI and visuals are rather great, except a bit too colourful to feel real.
That's almost all the good...
The script and writing, as usual with most of the recent series, are awful, praise the AI and the lazy writers! Don't expect to get paid more if it's the best you can do...
Second, the acting wasn't good at all. As most of the characters are kids or teenagers, it is acceptable, but unfortunately, the bad writing and poor direction didn't help.
But to me, the most frustrating thing came from the fact that the series didn't give me any Asian/Eastern vibe at all. Whether it is the music, environments, costumes, cast, or dialogues... everything almost felt like cultural appropriation but based on stereotypes only, and adapted for an Occidental audience.
Having mixed-race actors didn't help, as they really didn't fit in the costumes. It looked like it was carnival season...
When I watch a series, I want it to feel real, even if it is based on a fantastic/imaginary universe. I don't want it to look like a circus...
What If...?: What If... The Avengers Assembled in 1602? (2023)
lazy overall
Did I miss a few episodes or what?
This season wasn,'t good at all....
I usually blame the writing, but this time, it's not even just that.
The whole season was so boring!
There wasn't any epic moment nor any WOW factor.
The finale building throughout the season was obvious and without any surprise, but contrary to the first season, it was really bad. Each character was introduced in a Hulk way (ie smash the door), without any subtility nor depth. Strange supreme from season 1 had a very deep backstory, and you would usually end up rooting for him and feeling sorry for him.
In season 2, none of the characters are shining or appealing (except maybe for Noir Nebula, but because you could hear her thoughts).
This episode was lacking so much... Some characters appeared here without any explanation. At first, I really had to check if I had missed a few episodes in between.
I'm really feeling bad for Marvel, after The Marvels debacle, its futur really doesn't seem promising...
Bodies (2023)
Know that you could have done better
How can people rate this series so high? Have they never watched or read any time travelling stories before?
The premises and the overall plot are good, but the series lacks on so many other things.
First of all, the production is absolutely not up to this ambitious story. The writing and direction are messy and very boring. To be honest, I found myself using fast-forward quite often in the second half of the series. The screenplay (script and editing mostly) could have been way better, with 4 timelines intertwined like that. On the opposite, this was slow-paced, the editing was so bland and overused and what really put me off was the music. It was absolutely not in phase with the tone nor the action, and really bored me out.
The acting was average, but the main actors and actresses could have done better to be honest. Some second roles were more involved and motivated.
The makeup (especially the ageing makeup) is atrocious and I laughed so loud when I saw some aged characters.
Finally, the last two episodes didn't make sense at all, and there was no consistency. Time travel stories are always difficult to render and make consistent and realistic. With this series, it didn't really add up and it wasn't credible at all.
Also, the very last scene just killed everything that has been built and shown before.
I did force myself to watch it to the end, but many times I was about to give up because of the poor production and screenplay value, the horrendous music and the lack of consistency. To me, it was a pretentious, over-the-top production that didn't really succeed in any aspect. It wants to make you think, but in doing so, you just realise it doesn't make any sense and start noticing the negative details of the series.
Castaway Diva (2023)
Usual K-show
I was expecting something a bit crazier and original. This is a usual teen rom-com with a bit of drama, so after watching the first episode, I will probably give up on this one, this is definitely not for me.
Wait... I realised it's a Netflix production.... So, no wonder this show is all but original. Netflix is currently on a rampage producing Korean shows, that are at best average, but most of the time mediocre.
Studio Dragon is hand-in-hand with Netflix, and most Korean shows in general have dropped in quality (acting, production/editing and writing).
Well, I have to fill my review with many characters, I guess this is to have better-arguments reviews... or not!
Also, and this is the most important point of the first episode, DO NOT EAT raw potatoes!!!! They didn't show her getting sick, vomiting, having stomachache and diarrhoea, but it happens in real life when eating raw potatoes.
Justified: City Primeval (2023)
Unbearable character
Guess what?
Yes, the horrendous character is indeed the daughter.
Sometimes it's just better to use a condom.... Haha!
The character development, actions and dialogues are bad enough, but I think the cast makes it even worse.
I'm 3 episodes in, and tried not to put too much attention to this character, but it really is difficult.
Secondly, if it wasn't enough, the bad guy is also very uninteresting.
He's a lunatic but has no complexity or grey area.
The original Justified was decent, although the characters were sometimes a bit too much for my taste.
With this one, I think I'm gonna lose interest quickly, mostly because most of the characters are annoying at best.
The Lincoln Lawyer: The Rules of Professional Conduct (2023)
Not sure where this is going
The first season was filled with mixed feelings for me. As an avid Connelly's books reader, I was expecting more, especially after seing how they brillantly managed to make a Bosch TV series.
Unfortunately, the writing isn't as good as it was with Bosch. This is especially important when you have multiple characters with a complex background, and when you take story elements from multiple books at once.
But we all know that Netflix isn't really famous for its complex storylines and excellent writing....
This season, episode one, starts on a very cheesy and light tone. I just hope it doesn't stay the same during the whole season, as Mickey Haller (in the books) is more like a tortured, complex, character.
I really didn't like the changes they made with the storylines (because this season is mostly based on 2 books, the Fith witness and the Gods of guilt) so far, introducing key characters in an obvious, straight in the face manner.
What I like with Connelly's books is that they are kind of easy to read (particularly for a non native English speaker) but at the same time, the plot progression, character development and the storyline are so well executed. I know you have to adapt the story for the intended audience and format, but why make unecessary changes?
I absolutely hated Lisa Trammell's introduction and what they did to the character, and the same goes with "Russell Lawson" (this might even goes too far from the books with that one).
Also, they kept mentioning Glory Days, but if she has the same role as the one she has in the book, I fear that they're on the wrong path already....
Fortunately, Bosch legacy season 2 is coming soon (although not as good as the main series, it's far above this series).
The Witcher: Reunion (2023)
A chaotic effort only good for brainless audience
Netfilx's The witcher has never been in my top 10 series, although being fond of The witcher universe (basically, books and video games).
Hanri Cavill was indeed the main reason this show was decent enough. Unfortunately, you can clearly see the after effects of Cahill vs producers/writers conflict.
I don't know all the details, but seing where this show is going, I would tend to support Cahill's view.
I honestly 100% support good writing and I think it must get paid accordingly. But I really hope those Witcher writers are not protesting with the writers guild of America, because they are totally not legitimate!
Basically, the story and the scenes are too chaotic to be appreciated. Most of them seem forced and useless, only there to please the largest audience possible with tons of stylish effects but no depth.
After watching this episode, I felt like going through a field of plot holes, with no major story progress. It's ok to have fillers when they focus on developping characters or side stories.
Here, this is just a pile of scenes put together, but with no substance and no consistency.
What of waste of a franchise... This is my second most frustrated book adaptation after Silo.
Silo: Machines (2023)
Poor writing
As a huge fan of the book series Silo, I was really looking forward to this TV adaptation.
The first two episodes were really decent and I was quite surprised by how good they actually were.
The characters were rather faithful to their book alternate, and the atmosphere was acceptable (in the books, there's a kind of highrise "castes system", with people socially identified depending on their jobs, and it's really well depicted, I felt that it was missing in the tv series).
This episode felt rushed, and not going anywhere. There were too many deviations from the books (I mean, I'm ok with that as long as it makes sense and improves the story) and I really hated how Juliette's character was developped. She was completely different from the books and I just couldn't like her in this episode. To me, that was just some lazy writing, and the person who wrote this episode probably didn't even read the books.
I really hope they get a better writer and stick to the original story and characters.
Why do different when you have a source material that is so exceptional?
The Mandalorian: Chapter 22: Guns for Hire (2023)
Great episode
I don't know why the rating isn't higher (7).
This episode was kind of predictable and much of it was sort of a "filler".
But it was done great, the cameos were nice, it was such a pleasure to see Christopher Lloyd again and Jack Black's character was as usual, cheerful and over the top.
Although the side story was completely unrelated, I think it was adding more to the lore, the city design was beautiful and the droid bar was a good addition.
The chase made me think of Blade Runner, probably due to all those colorful lights and the crowd.
You can see more of the Bo Katan/Din Djarin relationship and their personality/experiences.
I guess lot of people were disappointed by the ending, expecting a final fight between those two.
To me, it's a great way for Din Djarin to get rid of the dark saber, as he has never claimed it nor mastered it. They were both reluctant to fight each other, and this way of resolving the issue made sense to me, I didn't see it as a quick easy lazy writing way to make the story progress.
The Rig (2023)
What a mess that was
The premises were kind of interesting, if not original.
But it quickly went sideways by adding events, catastrophes, emergencies and drama one after another, without giving time to develop characters or atmosphere.
What's the result? A F.... mess of a show, with many inconsistencies. Illogic behaviours, plot holes, loose ends and underdevelopped side stories, without any depth, rationality nor logic.
A big miss! When you want to cover and add too many things, and when you don't know a thing about storytelling or logic!
Halfway through the series, I was just pissed off by the irrational and illogical behaviour of the characters, and the non sensical development of the story.
On a more technical way, the SFX and CGI are awful, you can clearly notice that the exterior scenes were shot in front of a green screen background.
The screenplay and realisation are awful, adding more to the general mess.
The acting was very random. Some scenes were decent, other were just ridiculous. I guess having a bad script and stupid lines didn't help....
All in all, I feel bad for the UK's series quality. I think that Brexit had a long term effect on some brains and messed things up on a whole different level haha! Also, since it's a Prime production, I'm almost sure that it had a negative impact on the series, just like most of the time when a streaming platform starts producing tons of "one shot, poor quality, high incomes" series....
Imawa no Kuni no Arisu: Episode #2.5 (2022)
worst story choices
This review is essentially based on a comparison with the manga.
I can't tell how frustrated and disappointed I am with how they mixed and rushed everything up with the King of spade story...
First of all, Arisu never met Aguni nor Heiya in the forest.
Instead, we are introdusced to a new character called Doudou, a young high school student that Aguni will take on his side and act as a paternal/big brother figure. It is kind of his own redemption after what happened in The Beach.
The King of spade is also way more terrifying in the manga, with plenty of gadgets and tricks, especially a tracker that can tell the position of the players.
Doudou got to meet Heiya after being separated from Aguni (that's when we are introduced to her back story) and those 3 had to fight king of Spade.
I can't believe they skipped such an important character that Doudou is....
Instead, they came up with an "original" game that is not in the manga (the queen of spade game) that doesn't bring anything more to the story or the characters.... What a waste! I really don't understand this choice... (same as the Jack of Heart game which was rushed and didn't developped two important "villain" characters, plus, Chishiya was never supposed to be in this game)...
Imawa no Kuni no Arisu: Episode 8 (2022)
3 or 4 more episodes would have been better
Honestly, when I heard that there would be a second season for alice in borderland, I had mixed feelings. I hate Netflix for giving up on so many series after one season, so I was quite surprised and glad that they would keep going for a second season. But at the same time, having read the manga, I knew that just one season to pack everything that happens in the manga wouldn't be enough.
So, years later (they really took their time....), here we are with the finale season....
It is not bad, especially for people who haven't read the manga.
BUT, if you've read and liked the manga, you'll be disappointed with such a short season. It'd been so much better with twice the episodes.
There's plenty of new characters introduced in the manga, and their arc are quite interesting. Here in the TV series, some are introduced but they don't play the same parts at all and that's quite disappointing... Also, they have drastically changed some parts to fit all in 8 episodes, but in doing so, they've changed the tone and the atmosphere of the manga. The end felt really rushed.
Please, read the manga, it's way, way, way better.
Also, if you like this genre, you can try Gantz and As the Gods will.
Keonekteu (2022)
Disney+.... No wonder it's bellow average
I didn't know this series was produced by Disney, I knew about it after watching it. Well, it makes so much more sense.
Connect is not a bad series. I haven't read the webtoon, but I guess there's more to it than just 6 episodes.
Disney is used to make few episodes series, I don"t know why. But compared to the usual Korean series than have 12-18 episodes, this one feels really rushed and underdevelopped. There's very little things that made sense and the plot, after a strong pilot, got lost in a chaotic writting and screenplay.
Also, I don't understand why you would get Miike (who I find totally overated) to direct it, there are so many great Korean directors....
Even without knowing that Disney was involved, watching Connect, it really felt like it was made out for an Occidental audience, just like Squid game for instance (and it's all but good...).
Please Korea, don't sell your soul and your style to Occidental people and to companies which have absolutely no respect for the series nor the audience.
Echo 3 (2022)
Awful pilot
A pilot is supposed to hook you up and make you want to see more of it.
Story-wise, there's not much going on, it sets up the relationships between the characters and explain their supposed jobs.
There's not much going on, and the plot is not that developped.
Watching the first episode, I had zero empathy nor did I relate to those characters. They're from a rich and wealthy background, have luxurious lives and their petty disputes were over the top.
Also, showing "sex" scenes is a quick and stupid way to make us believe that they're totally in love. There's much to it but I guess the writers and directors were just too lazy.
Zero Dark thirty and The Hurt Locker were two great films, but Kathryn Bigelow played a huge part in these films success. In Echo 3, the direction and screenplay are very bland and to be honest, quite boring.
At the moment, there's plenty of other stuff to watch so I'm just gonna skip this one.
Korea No. 1 (2022)
Not for everyone
If you already know Lee KS and Yu JS from Running Man, then you'll be totally in love with this show. It's so heartwarming to see them both together again.
The addition of Kim YK is really nice (although I'd have been totally fine with Dol So-Min or Song Ji Hyo, but I guess an Athlete was a better choice since their work is quite physical), especially since they totally teased her in running man for being Kwang Soo lookalike! They finally meet!
I like that it's quite simple and not too much on the show off and entertainement side just like Running man is (with all those comments on screen and slow mo).
If you're not used to Korean show and especially Running Man, you might find it difficult to relate or understand their relationship. I strongly suggest that you watch a few Running Man episoddes or compilations before, just to get used to their characters.
I hope they make a second season with more guests, but unfortunately, Netflix policy is more about one shot to make a lot of money and get more customers.
The Peripheral (2022)
Writers these days...
I love Sci-Fi and anticipation stuff, and I was very excited for this tv series, especially since Chloe Grace Moretz plays the main character.
The premises and the background is really interesting. Even the plot and how the story goes is quite interesting. Although, I think they did very little so far with the possibilities and what could it be, ie. An original and ambitious show. So far, it's very linear and conventional.
Unfortunately for such an ambitious story, it is badly supported by a mediocre cinematography and direction. The production itself is really great though.
The worse part is probably the dialogs and script... It's as if they were written by a 12 yo who'd take himself too seriously.
The acting is decent, there are strong main characters, but the supporting characters feel a bit weak and stereotypical, even cliché for some characters.
All in all, this series has an ambitious plot and story, loosely supported by poor writting and bland cinematography. Appart from the premises and the universe, it has nothing original for itself.
Very disappointing. Seems that Hollywood is now filled with egocentric and lazy writers.
Oegye+in 1bu (2022)
Fun to watch but really hard to follow
This movie has a great production value, CGI, SFX, acting etc... Are mostly high quality. It's packed with action and fighting scenes, and the mix of futuristic and ancient/mystical genre is fun.
Although, if you try to make sense of this movie, try to understand it, and if you like characters closure, you're going to get mad....
There is absolutely NO background to anything, whether it be the storyline or the characters (they just appears like that and you don't know sh... about them and then they just stay on screen for an hour but you still don't know who they are and why they're here).
This is really messy and chaotic, but not in a good way. It's like kids who play with action figure and try to make a story of it by adding tons of characters and events from their mind just like that for the fun but without making any sense of it.
Also, I'm not 100% sure the EN subtitles I had were very accurate...
Ridley (2022)
Everything seems off
Despite the fact that I'm a huge fan of UK drama/crime series, and that I really like the actresses and actors in this show, I didn't like it at all.
From the music (some kind of slow jazz noir that would much better fit an urban set up), to the slow-paced shots, the dialogs and behaviours of the characters, it all felt off.
The story and the different crime mysteries are all but interesting.
Ridley's background story could have been a 100% better, leading to a second season... But they decided to rush and tie up loose ends in the last episode...
There's no depth to the characters and their side stories lead to nothing at all, although maybe taking 30% of the series time.
Pros:
- Great actors (desserved by poor writing and background stories)
- Loved the countryside
- great music (but completely out of place)
- Not spammed with woke stuff every minute
Cons:
- Poor writing = bland characters, uninteresting crimes, unusual behaviour.
- Lack of details and depth
- Slow paced but to tell nothing at all.
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (2022)
Missing something
There's everything from Cyberpunk 2077, the lore is there, even the font from the messages.
Unfortunately, Netflix did a huge mistake by giving the production to a mediocre Japanese animation studio.
The design/style is very simple, colorful and childish, doesn't quite fit with the serious and adult vibe from the game. The same style as Dorohedoro would have been great.
The animation is messy and feels as if you'd be playing cyberpunk on 15 fps. Very jolty and rough.
The music doesn't quite give the vibe neither.
The story is... simple, doesn't feel like you're watching a cyberpunk series.
All in all, not a bad series, but I didn't get the vibe from the cyberpunk universe (tabletop game included).
Could have been a 8/10 with a better production quality.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law: The People vs. Emil Blonsky (2022)
Fact: gets worse
My god! I thought this show couldn't get ny worse than what we had in episode 1, but I was terribly Wong (no pun intended).
So, just as I wrote before, breaking the 4th wall is supposed to have a purpose, either it is to develop a character, or to add a humor content.
In She-Hulk, it adds nothing at all, just makes it weird and discomfortable.
Just as in episode 2, nothing really happened, I just feel as if this series is just a huge filler and a feminist poster.
What I found very gross is that this show has been dumping tons of feminist and woman power stuff in a very obvious way and here, in this episode, they just advertise a cliché/gross media figure who doesn't contribute at all in the gender equality/anti male abuse and misconduct/women respect message.
So, I'd just have to assume that everything is just BS and that the writers and creators don't even care or believe in the message they're trying so hard to pass.
My disappointment is as huge as Megan Thee Stallion's behind.
The Midwich Cuckoos (2022)
Average series you can watch or skip
What I liked :
-It took in account the previous work in the story.
-Nice Brexit analogy (a big blond guy and his "kids" cut you out from the rest of the world and convince you through whims, coercion and guilt).
The big let down for me are:
-Awful ending. Instead of showing us slow-mo dramatic "emotional" scenes, maybe just tie up the loose ends and show us a bit more.
-Unrealistic behaviour all through the episodes. I didn't get attached to any of the characters, I just couldn't relate to any of them...
-Horrific haircuts. Do all the UK villages have hairdressers from the 80's?
The Lazarus Project (2022)
Watchable but stil....
I really wanted to enjoy this series, but there were too many flaws that didn't get me hooked.
First of all, the atmosphere is.... absent, some series are so well written and done that they have a specific atmosphere and "touch". But this series is really average and the framing, editing and so are very unoriginal.
The acting is average too, some of the actors seem absent (like George's GF) and some are overdoing it...
The style of this series is rather over the top and pretentious, as if a teenager would have done it. Same goes with the dialogs and plot, which are obvious and predictable. I usually like UK series cause they're more subtil, clever and deep than other series, but not this one.
What really annoyed me was the original idea, which was really great, but it got let down by poor writing, directing and realisation.
There are so many incosistencies and unrealistic things that I couldn't feel involved. Also, the story focus too much on George, who's a selfish id..iot along with his GF. I couldn't believe that the Lazarus Project was a multinationale secret agency that discovered how to time travel... To me, it was just a cheap local agency made of a bunch of d..mb europeans fooling around and focusing more about their personal issues than trying to prevent global worldwide threats. Yeah, that's it, it looked way too cheap from what it was supposed to look and that's what I really disliked.
Hope season is less pretentious and over the top and focus more on the story and the writting.