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Post by rberman on Jul 12, 2020 14:28:47 GMT -5
I've always been leery of those 7-8 season relational dramas that mainly consist of people getting mad at each other and making amends in all the different permutations possible. The illusion of change.
But if anybody had a "five episodes per season that actually tell a coherent through-story" guide to shows like Smallville, Flash, or Arrow, I might give them a try. I've had good luck with showing selected episodes of ST:TOS and ST:TNG to newbies in that fashion, skipping all the filler. B5 can be trimmed down by removing 3/4 of season 1, 1/3 of season 2, very little of seasons 3-4, and then watching the series finale.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 12, 2020 14:29:26 GMT -5
If TV seasons have an expiration date before they become redundant, lose quality, or run out of ideas, shouldn't that apply to comic book series too?
-M
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Post by Icctrombone on Jul 12, 2020 14:51:29 GMT -5
It’s like any medium, If the last movie or show or book made a profit, you will produce another one.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jul 12, 2020 15:21:31 GMT -5
Smallville wasn't really anticipated to last more than about 5 seasons, if it got past the 5th; and, you can kind of tell, as they did a lot of revamping. I bailed after the pilot, but a co-worker got me to give it another try, after a few seasons, by lending me the dvds. 2 is still a bit weak, at the start, but improves quickly and 3 was solid. I enjoyed many elements through 5. I did think, given the ages of the actors, they needed to wrap up and move into the adult world; but, they were so focused on marketing teen action/drama that they were stuck int hat cycle. I liked the offering of elements of the DC universe; but, preferred that on the Justice League cartoon, which had much better writing and could do the powers better.
Arrow has never really grabbed me, completely. The flashback storylines were always more interesting than the present storylines and I was beyond sick of darkly lit superhero tv shows and movies, with muted colors and "real world" focus. these are people who put on costumes to punch criminals; just run with it. That's why I think marvel eventually succeeded, more or less, since they embraced that aspect more (except the SHIELD tv series, which bores the heck out of me). The Arrowverse got better about that (especially with the Flash); but, it is all so teen-oriented I can't really get into it. I watched a bunch with the grandkids, when they were last here; but, it was a lot of 10 good minutes out of 50, for my tastes.
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 9,568
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Post by Confessor on Jul 12, 2020 16:47:19 GMT -5
For what it's worth, I thought Smallville was awful. Wooden acting, boring plots, boring characters, and the sort of excruciating, toe-curlingly bad script writing that only American TV teen dramas seem to be able to achieve. Yeah...I wasn't a fan.
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Post by junkmonkey on Jul 12, 2020 19:24:48 GMT -5
For a Golden, Silver, or very early Bronze Age comic, or a Near Mint one, I wouldn't do it. For mid-grade Bronze or newer, especially those in the VG to Fine range that after 35 to 45 years still guide for the approximate cost of a new modern comic fresh off the stands, I have done it for binding purposes and will do it again.
Yup! Me too. Nothing fancy. Just stitch and glue them together and a piece of stiffer paper round the lot as a cover so I can write on the spine. Sometimes If I'm feeling creative I'll print an arty cover up - but most of the time I just write on the plain paper spine with a Sharpie.
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Post by berkley on Jul 12, 2020 19:41:40 GMT -5
I couldn't get into Smallville at all - not surprisingly, since I don't like Superman or the supporting cast (Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, etc) in the first place. But even apart from that, the writing was such a 10th-rate, watered down Joss Whedon/Buffy the Vampire Slayer imitation it wasn't even funny.
I did think Laura Vandervoort was pretty amazing as Supergirl, though: not just because she was attractive - most Hollywood starlets have at least that much going on - but because she brought something extra, a sense of alien-ness that suited the part of an extra-terrestrial heroine. I would have kept watching if she had had a more prominent part in the show. They never seemed to figure out quite what to do with her, though.
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Post by tarkintino on Jul 12, 2020 19:48:18 GMT -5
Smallville was just part of a long-lasting issue with adapting anything related to the Superman universe, where most films and TV series were just poor with very few exceptions.
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Post by brutalis on Jul 12, 2020 19:49:22 GMT -5
Preferred Lois and Clark as my live action Superman tv show. Superfriends Superman in cartoon form. DC Comics Presents was my go to for comic book Superman entertainment.
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Post by Batflunkie on Jul 12, 2020 19:59:36 GMT -5
Preferred Lois and Clark as my live action Superman tv show Again, not big into Superman, but I remember Lois and Clark being rather good. Never really watched the animated adaptation, Superman TAS, from the same decade I'm afraid
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Post by brutalis on Jul 12, 2020 20:05:03 GMT -5
Preferred Lois and Clark as my live action Superman tv show Again, not big into Superman, but I remember Lois and Clark being rather good. Never really watched the animated adaptation, Superman TAS, from the same decade I'm afraid Superman TAS from the Timmverse is actually very good. And utilizes KIRBY concepts quite splendidly showing that the King is eternal.
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Post by wildfire2099 on Jul 12, 2020 20:33:10 GMT -5
I really wanted to like Smallville, but after like the 15th episode of freak of week in season 1, I gave up. Especially since every episode suddenly 5 new classmates that Clark new well sprung up... how big IS SMALLville, anyway?
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Post by codystarbuck on Jul 12, 2020 20:36:23 GMT -5
Again, not big into Superman, but I remember Lois and Clark being rather good. Never really watched the animated adaptation, Superman TAS, from the same decade I'm afraid Superman TAS from the Timmverse is actually very good. And utilizes KIRBY concepts quite splendidly showing that the King is eternal. It had a shaky start, though. The first block of episodes struggled to find the right tone for things and story quality varies quite a bit. Once they saw the Kirby stuff was working and started recognizing the elements that audiences liked and held up well, they started to really gel. The two-part "Apokalips Now" is just a thing of beauty and a true tribute to the memory and talent of Jack Kirby, both in the character of Dan Turpin, who was altered to look like Kirby, to just fully capturing his themes, especially the metaphor for Fascism and the willingness of just one person to stand in defiance as being able to inspire others to do the same. It's no surprise it was written by Mark Evanier, in some of his best work.
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Post by Icctrombone on Jul 12, 2020 20:40:55 GMT -5
Guy's, I feel betrayed. Smallville was just great. I can't believe that there's so many people on this forum that didn't like it.
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Post by brutalis on Jul 12, 2020 20:45:39 GMT -5
Guy's, I feel betrayed. Smallville was just great. I can't believe that there's so many people on this forum that didn't like it. I enjoyed it enough to follow through to the end. There were some really good shows but more of lesser value. Lots to like in the characterization and actors chosen for the roles but as said they dragged out the idea of Clark over Superman far too long. And we should have received a finale that actually showed Clark taking the Siperman role & strutting the costume. Not a quick lousy CGI too small to appreciate.
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