Thanks, Admiral, that's awesome! I'm really glad you enjoyed it! And yes, I have been blessed with an excellent composer. So now you have four more episodes to watch! (And you must get in touch with me someday about the script I sent you! )
Holy moly, Man! How long is that reading list!?! Take some time and watch the rest of "Posthuman" before you crack the next phase of your reading list! Cheers.
I just found this thread today. The first episode was very nicely done and I'll be watching the rest of the series as time permits. It set up an intriguing premise and was presented in a somewhat surreal, artsy format reminiscent of the 60s. I like the use of black and white. I didn't find the train scene overly long at all-- in fact, I like that the audience is assumed to have an attention span. There's not much to complain about. The dialogue was a bit klunky on occasion ("made new ground" instead of "broke new ground," for example), but mostly well done. I had a problem hearing some of the dialogue at times, but that may be my system. I'm not sure. Are you planning on releasing this on DVD when it's complete?
Thanks so much for your thoughts, RJDiogenes! We definitely hope to one day put together a DVD package, when all is said and done. We have tons of behind the scenes footage and other material of that sort, and I would love to put together a documentary of how this whole thing came together over the years. So far it's just an idea and a plan, we haven't gotten into the stages of figuring out the reality of that yet and whether it's financially feasible. Hopefully people will express an interest! Cheers,
@T'Baio...the reading list is quite long actually. Slowly knocking things off one at a time, but I assure you I'll get around to the script...eventually
I'll buy it. I love supporting independent creators. I watched the second episode today. I'm still having trouble with the audio, but I liked it. An entire six-minute episode dedicated to establishing a character-- nice going.
Wow...that's amazing, thank you for that support! One DVD sold! We have had issues with sound from time to time, being a no-budget production. And since the series has been shot out of order, sometimes you have an episode with good sound, sometimes not...but we have mostly solved the problem. I am really happy you appreciate the character establishment, though! It's nice to see it's liked when some people say "you can't have a web episode longer than three minutes...no one will pay attention!" Ugh...I hate hearing that. If that's true, maybe the web format isn't for me. I'm really happy to hear you're enjoying it, RJDiogenes. I hope you continue to!
I hope you've continued to enjoy the episodes RJDiogenes! I was away this week camping in the backcountry of Canada's north, so I was unable to post the debut of our penultimate episode of the first season! Episode 1.06 - "Strange Bedfellows" I hope you guys enjoy it! This coming Friday is our season finale! Cheers!
I've been watching but I'm behind and I keep forgeting to come back and comment. It's a solid show, though. Keep it going!
I did watch episode 3, but haven't had a chance to watch any more-- well, I did yesterday, but I was feeling kind of down and didn't do much. There's a long weekend coming up, so I should be able to get caught up.
Thanks for watching, guys! Our season finale is now up and live...please check it out! Episode 1.07 - "Kiss & Tell" We're really looking forward to hearing what people think of the season, the way it was constructed, and whether they're looking forward to a 2nd season. It is mostly in the can, we just have a few eps to shoot and some post-production, but it won't be too long a wait! We hope you liked the first, and look forward to the 2nd season! Cheers!
Okay, I'm all caught up. Overall, aside from the intermittent problems with the sound, I thought it was really nice. It's real SF, the kind you're not likely to ever see on TV or in movies-- ideas, characters and dialogue instead of SFX, explosions and one liners. Honestly, it's better watching it straight through than serialized, but that's true of just about any novel that was originally serialized. I'm looking forward to season 2 and do encourage you to self-publish it on DVD when you've got enough material.
Wow...calling it "real SF" is such a compliment RJDiogenes, thank you. Definitely what we're going for...ideas and characters instead of technological flash. Thanks so much for your thoughts. Back to working on pre-production for season two!
I'm looking forward to it. And you don't have to type out RJDiogenes all the time-- RJ or RJD is fine.
So, I just finished Season 1. This was a slightly odd experience because I remember watching some of these episodes, such as "Strain Theory", when T'Baio first started independently airing these episodes before the show got picked up by The SFN. However, because it had been some time since I've seen those episodes, I felt like it was necessary to start from "the beginning", so to speak, and so I started with the very "first" episode, "The Origin of Dorthy Ascher", and worked my way up to the Season Finale, "Kiss & Tell". The biggest difference I noticed was the addition of series composer Andrew Haughton, who has replaced Nine Inch Nails and composed original music for all of the episodes. It was a little jarring at first, but after some time I got accustom to it. Haughton does a good job at emulating Trent Reznor's style without outright duplicating it, so his music works on multiple levels while also creating a distinctive musical style for the series. A major thing I had noticed, besides the music, was how the story was structured thematically with the new order of episodes. When T'Baio first started airing Posthuman, he started out with "Strain Theory", and a lot of Porter's past and his relationship with Gina was left a mystery, something I assumed we would learn later on throughout the series, as well as the revelation of the memes and so on and so forth. In a way, I almost like that approach more, because we gradually learned things about Porter and the past through subtle hints and clues, but the way this particular season is structured, we learn about the world (as well as Porter and Gina's relationship) early on, removing the mystery and mystique of the older approach. However, at the same time, I can't really complain, because T'Baio has cast some excellent actors in the lead roles. Jason Martorino is fantastic as Charles Porter. He exhibits all of the characteristic traits you would expect in a leading man, and then some. He has the charisma and the vulnerability to pull off Porter effectively. He's instantly likable, which helps, too. Sara Mitich, who plays Gina, adds sophistication, wit and a cool charm to her character. Most of all, though, Martorino and Mitich have fantastic chemistry together. The "Promises" trilogy is basically an exploration of the Porter/Gina relationship and we learn about them and their dynamic whilst set against the background of this great sci-fi backdrop. Like all great sci-fi, Posthuman has a very human core, and while I think structurally it might give away too much too soon (at least in the context of the mythology and the later episodes), it's difficult to complain when you have actors who have so much chemistry and are so entertaining to watch. T'Baio does a splendid job at exploring who they are as people while also exploring the scientific and philosophical underpinnings of his intriguing sci-fi premise. Porter and Gina's relationship is really at the heart of Posthuman, and I hope to see more of her in Season 2. Other than that, besides the re-structuring of episodes, the only other big complaint I have is the way "Kiss & Tell" was redone. In the original version of the episode, we had this great pulsating chase with awesome Nine Inch Nails music pounding throughout the episode. In the new version, that pulsating music is replaced with something a bit too soft and ambient for my tastes. The on-set audio has also been (for the most part) completely removed, taking away any tension during the actual chase (which makes up the entirety of the episode for the most part). I understand the addition of new music, but I have to say that I preferred the original version of this episode much more. It's a minor quibble, but something that bothered me nevertheless. Overall, though, Posthuman is a very good science-fiction web series that delves into the psychological and philosophical underpinnings of its premise in a way that most contemporary sci-fi shows just ignore. It's smart, sharply written, with tremendous performances from its two leads. I definitely can't wait for Season 2, and since I've seen some episodes that I think were omitted from this most recent re-structuring, I think I have a fairly strong idea of where the next season is headed, but regardless, I'm still excited.
I apologize for just getting around to responding now, JA and RJ. But thanks for all the thoughts and compliments and comments. And thanks for your in-depth review, JA...I'm really flattered. I'm glad you liked Andrew's music. I've never worked with a composer, and I was so attached to the music I had originally used from Nine Inch Nails' "Ghost I-IV" album, even so far as planning and writing to the songs before ever shooting, and then of course editing to them. Andrew did a great job of retaining that "pop-futuristic-industrial" kind of feel, while also making the music his own. I adore the themes he came up with, and love his music for Episode 1.04 - "Promises." That score reminds me of Vangelis' Blade Runner music. As for your thoughts regarding Porter and Gina's relationship formerly being told in flashback and not quite liking as much as now how it's front loaded...I can assure the "flashback" will return in the 2nd season. There's quite a large revelation I have planned in the 2nd last episode in a flashback to show what happened to Porter and Gina. As a matter of fact, JA himself may have a hand in that. (An announcement just made today...if you'd like to elaborate JacksonArcher? ) Thank you everyone for your thoughts! Season 2 will be here soon enough!
Oh, yeah. I'll be joining the writing team for Season 2. I'm really excited and flattered at the opportunity. Like I mentioned before, Posthuman is a tremendous show, representing the best in science-fiction. I'm really excited to be given the opportunity to contribute to such a great show. I grew up with science-fiction, which I'm sure isn't all that surprising coming from a fan of Star Trek, but I can't wait to play in T'Baio's world. It should be great.