Continuum (UK)

Discussion in 'Science Fiction & Fantasy' started by MacLeod, Sep 18, 2012.

  1. Guy Gardener

    Guy Gardener Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    What I said was in reference to Judge Deaths comments about Jennifer.

    There are a number of polite reasons I could have accidentally ignored what Kegg said about Lexa up to and including that it took me an hour to write my post because I was putting the garbage out or dealing with telemarketers and never actually saw kegg's post because it didn't exist when I began typing.

    I can tell the difference between Jennifer Spence and Lexa Doig.
     
  2. Starkers

    Starkers Admiral Admiral

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    That's the one :)
     
  3. Kegg

    Kegg Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    So, Episode 3.

    Speaking of actors I recognized, Hiro Kanagawa! He plays Doctor Gibson in this episode, the guy Keira grills on the sperm donor patients. I knew him as Cyrus Xander from Caprica. That actors from other Canadian-shot sci-fi shows appear is gonna be inevitable, obviously, but he's the first one I actually remember having been in the BSGverse.

    As for the episode itself, the series seems to kind of set up a rather obvious connection between Alex's family life and the general story, since his stepfather is anti-corporatist (ah, resentment of a stepfather, there's a novel idea). The series also invests a fair bit this episode in the conflict among the Liber8, but honestly since we barely know these people - at this point the smarmy Kellogg is probably the best defined - it doesn't carry a lot of weight. I spent more time making sure I knew who was who then actually connecting to any of it.

    Still this is another solid episode. The action scene at the end was good, the use of future tech wizardry by both criminals and cops enlivens the whole procedural stuff, and so on. Looking forward to where we're going next, why not.
     
  4. Mr. Laser Beam

    Mr. Laser Beam Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Geez. :wtf: If it's like that, why would anyone have children at all?
     
  5. Guy Gardener

    Guy Gardener Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    How often do you think about the interest wracking up on your student loan?

    Or your mortgage?

    it's the government not the mob.

    Nothing bad happens.

    Besides debt is an asset your creditors can borrow against.
     
  6. Starkers

    Starkers Admiral Admiral

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    Ep 3 was so/so, I think the fight at the end made it for me. At the moment it still seems a little bland, but hopefully once they expand on the shades of gret between Keira and Liber8 this will improve.
     
  7. Guy Gardener

    Guy Gardener Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    It gets better. Not much better, but better.

    Besides, 2 more weeks and you're at the half way mark.

    You've come too far to give up now.
     
  8. Starkers

    Starkers Admiral Admiral

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    Ah I forgot it was only 10 episodes...

    don't get me wrong, I enjoy it, I could just see me drifting away if it doesn't grab me a little more.
     
  9. Kegg

    Kegg Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    I agree Judge that it's not that great, but right now it has its crap together a lot more then let's say Falling Skies. Given the relative paucity of sci-fi shows on TV that interest me, I figure I'm in for at least this season.

    ...but probably also season two.
     
    Last edited: Oct 15, 2012
  10. The Wormhole

    The Wormhole Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Honestly, Continuum is a bit of a drag until the last three episodes or so. By then they actually start developing the story arcs and move the storylines forward.
     
  11. Mr. Laser Beam

    Mr. Laser Beam Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Those who have it probably think of it every damn day.


    Now that's something I *do* have and I *do* think of every day.

    In this case, looks like those two are the same...
     
  12. Kegg

    Kegg Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    So... episode 6.

    Yeah I dropped off commenting, I kept meaning to come here every week and then feeling rather bereft of anything interesting to say (although given his name and his connection to a Buddhist temple anyone get the impression Kagame was meant to be Asian at some point?), but this episode tried to mess around with the ideas of corporate responsibility, exploitation of regular citizens, and the role of the police as basically unwillingly or not propping up the corporate position.

    It's not at all a subtle episode - the conversation Keira has with a colleague back in the future read like a collection of MAJOR THEMATIC BEATS - and I'm sure there are those who'd have a problem with the show's characterisation of the Occupy movement as a bunch of harmless annoyances easily manipulated into supporting the show's villains. Kind of what to have it both ways - revolution is wrong, corporations are also wrong, so the people who are right are, apparently, the cops who become socially aware.

    You know you see the basic outline of this story take place in nine billion dystopia sci-fi stories. A cop who discovers that the system is screwed and then throws away their badge. Continuum feels like it's halfway that, but then emphasizes how malevolent the anti-corporatist lot are so it becoems halfway something else. I'm not sure if that's an attempt at even-handedness, because if it's an attempt to muddy the moral waters by trying to present these issues in a challenging way I don't think it particularly works.

    Although Julian could use with a punch in the face.
     
  13. Kegg

    Kegg Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    So, the first season is now over in the UK. Some thoughts.

    First about the series generally.

    Continuum understood the basics of the weekly police procedural element, and executed it competently enough. It was a little fuzzier on developing Liber8's members either as characters or how their general agenda is supposed to be working. The show was pretty good in getting a handle on Kiera Cameron as the stoic cop and her odd relationship with the nerdy, nebbish youth Alec. The basic idea was sound and I was never that annoyed or bored - it's not great, but it was consistently okay and a pretty fun watch. I'm definitely onboard for next year.

    And now some thoughts on the big reveals in the final episode:

    A wealthy corporatist, one of the key people in the quasi-dystopian future of 2077, is responsible for the entire plan executed by Liber8, the supposed nemeses of that corporate culture, in 2012. This includes the death of the only person who totally knew what was going on, who kills himself with a bit of poetic license (death on the day of his birth) which in terms of controlling the plan does not make a lot of sense.

    Why would Kagame agree to do what Alec says? Alec's goals and his must therefore be basically the same - and given that Kagame consults with Julian for advice, the implication is the goal must be something that Liber8 wants (so he hasn't betrayed, or thinks he hasn't betrayed, his principles).

    This is the kind of mystery that could collapse into nothingness and make the show an incoherent mess. Indeed, since Continuum's writing usually doesn't reach above adequate, I'm not completely convinced that they'll have a satisfying answer - but they might, and if they do, well, it could take the show to interesting places. The series has been hinting at Alec from the future's involvement in these events since the first episode, so this plot point does seem to be executed with some subtelty and confidence.
     
    Last edited: Nov 30, 2012
  14. st.barthgirl

    st.barthgirl Lieutenant Red Shirt

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    Fyi... Continuum can be accessed online at couchtuner... streaming, no commercials. Homeland, Dexter, and Walking Dead on there, too. i've seen comments from some viewers in france so i'm guessing it'll work in england...

    i watched a marathon when i discovered it.. it was nice to have all of season one online/on demand/free/no commercials. it's not superb, but i'm a glutton for Cyberpunk.
     
    Last edited: Nov 30, 2012
  15. Relayer1

    Relayer1 Admiral Admiral

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    I am about halfway through it and need the space on my Virgin box. Keep toying with giving up on it (I did with Grimm and haven't regretted it) but I don't know...its a bit low rent isn't it ?
     
  16. Kegg

    Kegg Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    That might be so but the series has just finished broadcasting on Syfy's UK affiliate, which is what this thread was originally about.

    It is. I mean I'd say Continuum is one of the weakest TV series I've seen this year, but I've seen so few sci-fi shows - pretty much just Falling Skies, which I would not call better than Continuum.
     
  17. The Wormhole

    The Wormhole Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Falling Skies is certainly overrated. Continuum might not be the best show on television (far from it, in fact) but it held my interest a lot longer than Falling Skies did.
     
  18. Guy Gardener

    Guy Gardener Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Virgin box? I can figure out what that is from context, but box in many countries (also) means vagina, so whoever named the virgin box the virgin box is either hilarious or an ignorant boring fuddy duddy.
     
    Last edited: Dec 1, 2012
  19. st.barthgirl

    st.barthgirl Lieutenant Red Shirt

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    didn't want to go there... i'm impressed you did, tho:beer:
     
  20. BigFoot

    BigFoot Admiral Admiral

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    ^ He always goes there. ;)