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aegandor
Reviews
Shôgun (2024)
Very dissapointing
There's not much to say about this show other than that the 9/10 review can only be seen as a joke.
There are a couple of great episodes, the first two in fact. The show just collapses after that. Nothing really happens. There is no plot. No character development. The dialogues don't lead anywhere or have any purpose. Shogun isn't good as a character drama, or a pseudo-historical epic or even a soap opera.
Even from a visual perspective it's dull and grey, and the camera has a weird blur and depth of field that's overdone.
When all's said and done this show is just extremely unmemorable and badly made.
Gwimul (2021)
2 in 1 Thriller-Detective show
If there's one thing that needs to be said about Beyond Evil is that is the most perfect example of how lots of 16 episode Korean shows are too long for their own good with the last half not being up to scratch.
In no other show is this more prominent than here. The first half is a legit masterpiece. A psychological thriller about hunting a serial killer filled with great and realistic twists, fantastic acting (especially from the lead Shin Ha-kyun who gives the performance his life), music, atmosphere, tension. It did not surprise me after reading about the show to learn that it was inspired by Memories of Murder, a must-watch K-movie. This is the Korean True Detective but in some ways even better.
Unfortunately the second half is totally different. To call it a second season or wholy different show would not be an overstatement. Its twists are far too many, all of them predictable and implausible, its characterization lacking, its pacing terrible. Even the actors start going through the motions of a plot that is essentially over at this point but doesn't know it.
So all in all I would definitely suggest watching this, just for the first 7-8 episodes and if you don't mind the huge drop in quality, by all means watch it to the end.
The Mandalorian (2019)
A solid, formulaic Star Wars adventure
The Mandalorian follow the adventures of the titular character, a gunslinger of few words, as he becomes the adoptive parent of the famous "baby yoda", a force sensitive child.
There is an overarching plot about the Empire chasing baby Yoda, but most of the episodes are self-contained stories. I find that approach quite refreshing and enjoyable in an era where every show is trying to be the next Breaking Bad or GOT.
Some of the stories are well written with likeable characters and straightforward plots. But most of them are, to put it simply, subpar. Shows like Hercules, Person of Interest, the animated Clone Wars and many others do a much better job with this format, the stories, the characters etc
Which brings us to the score. The current 8.7 can only be seen as a joke and a travesty, the result of unfettered fanboyism, shilling and objectivity thrown down the drain. In terms of characters, plot, pacing, writing, suspense, action, acting etc there is nothing at all great in the Mandalorian, let alone masterful.
If you are a SW fan I would reccomned this show as a few hours of innocent fun, nostalgia and a beautiful sweeping soundtrack.
If not, I cannot really reccommend it, as there are much better shows out there regardless of the genre.
Carnivàle (2003)
Not just a tv show...
Ah Carnivale...Even classifying it is difficult. It is not your standard action packed story-driven show, neither is it some pretentious boring drama with a social message.
It doesn't try to entertain the viewer, neither does it try to teach them something.
It's only purpose seems to be immersing into it's world without promising anything.
Simply put i would describe it a collage of events that take place in a pseudohistorical time period, focusing on a group of weird but fascinating characters, with the emphasis being on the music,setting and atmosphere rather than on the usual superficial aspects of most shows.
This is perhaps Carnivale's main achievement...you don't know what you're going to watch in the next episode, there is no pattern or motiff that the show settles in unlike anything else i've ever watched.
Hell, i'm going to close this review by saying that Carnivale is a tv show in name only. It doesn't follow the usual tv conventions or even the usual storrytelling conventions. For me it is an artistic achievement, a masterpiece, and that's a word i rarely use, if ever.