Terminator-215 "Desert Cantos" - Discuss/Grade <SPOILERS> - Page 8

nx1701g · February 25 2009, 05:03 AM

^ Not necessarily.

BUT

Also looks like the Megan Fox cameo may not happen now. She broke up with BAG.

LutherSloan · February 25 2009, 06:10 AM

Who was Megan Fox going to play? Some new character from the future?

nx1701g · February 25 2009, 06:32 AM

^ It was a cameo that was joked about. It wasn't really going to happen.

Sxottlan · February 26 2009, 10:49 AM

This was just terrible.

What had been the only cool scene from the week before suddenly turns into the mopey plot for this episode. The writing is just getting bad. The script treated an A/C & heating business like a coal mine (complete with its own town!). It's such a huge business it occupied one whole warehouse... in the middle of no where!

And oh yeah, there's some dead cows somewhere. And a candlelight vigil in the middle of the day.

The guest stars this week.. were just weak. I loved how the one widow pretty much acknowledged she was a plot contrivance rather a character ("I told you everything!"). Yeah, because otherwise how would we know what was going on? The other girl was just obnoxious.

The production itself is just getting shoddy. The opening drive is some back country lane to a suddenly clean back lot town. Along with the bad guest of the week, it feels like I'm watching some bad 1980's action show.

Guy Gardener · February 26 2009, 11:39 PM

Well I still think favourably about Picket Fences and it's wierd to see that kid so huge now days.

Tim · February 27 2009, 12:26 AM

Sxottlan wrote:

This was just terrible.

What had been the only cool scene from the week before suddenly turns into the mopey plot for this episode. The writing is just getting bad. The script treated an A/C & heating business like a coal mine (complete with its own town!). It's such a huge business it occupied one whole warehouse... in the middle of no where!

And oh yeah, there's some dead cows somewhere. And a candlelight vigil in the middle of the day.

The guest stars this week.. were just weak. I loved how the one widow pretty much acknowledged she was a plot contrivance rather a character ("I told you everything!"). Yeah, because otherwise how would we know what was going on? The other girl was just obnoxious.

The production itself is just getting shoddy. The opening drive is some back country lane to a suddenly clean back lot town. Along with the bad guest of the week, it feels like I'm watching some bad 1980's action show.

Yep. One episode you didn't like and obviously the show must be going down the tubes from every aspect of production. Oh no!

nx1701g · February 27 2009, 07:39 AM

Sxottlan wrote:

What had been the only cool scene from the week before suddenly turns into the mopey plot for this episode. The writing is just getting bad. The script treated an A/C & heating business like a coal mine (complete with its own town!). It's such a huge business it occupied one whole warehouse... in the middle of no where!

To be fair there are still businesses that are set up like this to an extent where the people who work there live in the same neighborhoods and - from time to time - the company owns their house and they rent it from them. My Uncle used to work in Silicon Valley and they had a little community where their employees could live and work from somewhat like this in this episode (and yes they had their own police force).

Sxottlan · February 27 2009, 10:51 AM

Tim M wrote:

Yep. One episode you didn't like and obviously the show must be going down the tubes from every aspect of production. Oh no!

The show's scripts have always been a little messy. They've been just good enough to ignore the semi-cheap production values. But when the stories get this dull, the other problems stand out even more.

Wouter2 · February 27 2009, 07:53 PM

I don't share the negative vibes about this episode, or the show. It was a little slow, but I like a slow episode from time to time, and I liked this one a bit better than "The Good wound", actually, partly because the Connors were working together. Weaver again was the best part of it, I liked the way she was contrasted with Sarah. Weaver tries to connect with Savannah, whose parents she killed (and she seems to do more than strictly necessary for her cover), while Sarah does something similar with the widow of the guy she shot. I also liked the twist at the end, with Zoe's father becoming a wild card. I'm not even 100% sure if the factory was Weaver's all along, or not, though it is likely as she seems to have found it quickly.

It strikes me that TSCC has very few real fans, with that I mean people who are fan of the show the way it is. Many other viewers seem to be fans of Summer Glau or of the Terminator movies or of action movies/series in general, but the slower, perhaps more subtle style of TSCC seems to have few fans. A pity, I really like TSCC (I thought "Desert Cantos", slow as it was, easily beats BSG's "Deadlock", which seemed like a bad daytime soap in comparison, in quality - talk about "messy" writing, on BSG lately). That's not to say I don't like more adrenaline pumping episodes or major revelations, but loads of that clearly are coming up in the last 6 episodes. The next episode will be the last slower, Sarah focused one, apparently. Maybe Friedman made a mistake by having so many slower episodes after one another, though I generally like his style. It just isn't accepted by the viewing public, it seems.

nx1701g · February 27 2009, 10:44 PM

^ When people hear the name Terminator they have a very strict definition of what they expect to see. It's based on an action movie franchise and they expect the TV show to be the same. TSCC is more like BSG in many respects based on the buildup of the series.

Wouter2 · February 28 2009, 12:01 AM

That's the problem, I think. The Terminator name leads people to certain expectations, but a season-spanning TV series (with a limited budget, compared especially to blockbusters like T2) cannot be the same. I agree, TSCC is more like BSG (and is actually better at doing what BSG likes to do IMO, especially when contrasting how interesting TSCC's cyborgs are compared to BSG's Cylons), but BSG seems to get praise for pretty much anything it does, while the same people who praise TSCC only seem to view it as a subpar action series. IMO this series is sold short, perhaps because of the association with the namle, at least by the Nielsens and in general on online forums.

What would James Cameron think about TSCC? I hope he likes it. Has he ever said anything about TSCC or T4?

nx1701g · February 28 2009, 03:06 AM

Wouter2 wrote:

What would James Cameron think about TSCC? I hope he likes it. Has he ever said anything about TSCC or T4?

Cameron hasn't commented on TSCC

He said that he refuses to give Salvation his blessing. He has seen the CGI less completed film though.

View Poll Results: Grade 215 "Desert Cantos"
"I'll be back." (Excellent)	3	7.14%
"Come with me if you want to live." (Above Average)	17	40.48%
"Thank you for explaining." (Average)	14	33.33%
"Hasta la vista, Baby." (Below Average)	6	14.29%
"You are terminated." (Poor)	2	4.76%
Voters: 42. You may not vote on this poll

February 25 2009, 05:03 AM	#106
nx1701g Admiral Location: Aboard the Executor...	Re: Terminator-215 "Desert Cantos" - Discuss/Grade <SPOILERS> ^ Not necessarily. The Jesse scenes take place in the Future War while she's on a mission aboard the Jimmy Carter. BUT Next week's episode (Ourselves Alone) involves Riley fearing Cameron knows the truth about her. Though it also has Cameron going back into Terminator mode. Also looks like the Megan Fox cameo may not happen now. She broke up with BAG. __________________ Star Trek: The Continuing Voyages RPG - Recruiting New Players! The Terminator Chronicles - The Sarah Connor Chronicles Continue! Not Dead Yet. Last edited by nx1701g; February 25 2009 at 05:29 AM.

February 25 2009, 06:10 AM	#107
LutherSloan Fleet Captain Location: Doing the Federation's dirty work	Re: Terminator-215 "Desert Cantos" - Discuss/Grade <SPOILERS> Who was Megan Fox going to play? Some new character from the future? __________________ Deputy Director, Section 31 Expand Medicare for All!!

February 25 2009, 06:32 AM	#108
nx1701g Admiral Location: Aboard the Executor...	Re: Terminator-215 "Desert Cantos" - Discuss/Grade <SPOILERS> ^ It was a cameo that was joked about. It wasn't really going to happen. __________________ Star Trek: The Continuing Voyages RPG - Recruiting New Players! The Terminator Chronicles - The Sarah Connor Chronicles Continue! Not Dead Yet.

February 26 2009, 10:49 AM	#109
Sxottlan Commodore Location: Stealing Lu Bu's Horse	Re: Terminator-215 "Desert Cantos" - Discuss/Grade <SPOILERS> This was just terrible. What had been the only cool scene from the week before suddenly turns into the mopey plot for this episode. The writing is just getting bad. The script treated an A/C & heating business like a coal mine (complete with its own town!). It's such a huge business it occupied one whole warehouse... in the middle of no where! And oh yeah, there's some dead cows somewhere. And a candlelight vigil in the middle of the day. The guest stars this week.. were just weak. I loved how the one widow pretty much acknowledged she was a plot contrivance rather a character ("I told you everything!"). Yeah, because otherwise how would we know what was going on? The other girl was just obnoxious. The production itself is just getting shoddy. The opening drive is some back country lane to a suddenly clean back lot town. Along with the bad guest of the week, it feels like I'm watching some bad 1980's action show. __________________ Out of 4 stars: The Folded World: *1/2 The Weight of Worlds: ** Devil's Bargain: ***

STAR TREK

CSI

ABOUT US

February 26 2009, 11:39 PM	#110
Guy Gardener Admiral Location: In the lap of squalor I assure you.	Re: Terminator-215 "Desert Cantos" - Discuss/Grade <SPOILERS> Well I still think favourably about Picket Fences and it's wierd to see that kid so huge now days. __________________ "Glitter is the herpes of arts and craft." Troy Yingst. My Life as Liz

February 27 2009, 07:53 PM	#114
Wouter2 Captain Location: Belgium	Re: Terminator-215 "Desert Cantos" - Discuss/Grade <SPOILERS> I don't share the negative vibes about this episode, or the show. It was a little slow, but I like a slow episode from time to time, and I liked this one a bit better than "The Good wound", actually, partly because the Connors were working together. Weaver again was the best part of it, I liked the way she was contrasted with Sarah. Weaver tries to connect with Savannah, whose parents she killed (and she seems to do more than strictly necessary for her cover), while Sarah does something similar with the widow of the guy she shot. I also liked the twist at the end, with Zoe's father becoming a wild card. I'm not even 100% sure if the factory was Weaver's all along, or not, though it is likely as she seems to have found it quickly. It strikes me that TSCC has very few real fans, with that I mean people who are fan of the show the way it is. Many other viewers seem to be fans of Summer Glau or of the Terminator movies or of action movies/series in general, but the slower, perhaps more subtle style of TSCC seems to have few fans. A pity, I really like TSCC (I thought "Desert Cantos", slow as it was, easily beats BSG's "Deadlock", which seemed like a bad daytime soap in comparison, in quality - talk about "messy" writing, on BSG lately). That's not to say I don't like more adrenaline pumping episodes or major revelations, but loads of that clearly are coming up in the last 6 episodes. The next episode will be the last slower, Sarah focused one, apparently. Maybe Friedman made a mistake by having so many slower episodes after one another, though I generally like his style. It just isn't accepted by the viewing public, it seems. Last edited by Wouter2; February 27 2009 at 11:56 PM.

February 27 2009, 10:44 PM	#115
nx1701g Admiral Location: Aboard the Executor...	Re: Terminator-215 "Desert Cantos" - Discuss/Grade <SPOILERS> ^ When people hear the name Terminator they have a very strict definition of what they expect to see. It's based on an action movie franchise and they expect the TV show to be the same. TSCC is more like BSG in many respects based on the buildup of the series. __________________ Star Trek: The Continuing Voyages RPG - Recruiting New Players! The Terminator Chronicles - The Sarah Connor Chronicles Continue! Not Dead Yet.

February 28 2009, 12:01 AM	#116
Wouter2 Captain Location: Belgium	Re: Terminator-215 "Desert Cantos" - Discuss/Grade <SPOILERS> That's the problem, I think. The Terminator name leads people to certain expectations, but a season-spanning TV series (with a limited budget, compared especially to blockbusters like T2) cannot be the same. I agree, TSCC is more like BSG (and is actually better at doing what BSG likes to do IMO, especially when contrasting how interesting TSCC's cyborgs are compared to BSG's Cylons), but BSG seems to get praise for pretty much anything it does, while the same people who praise TSCC only seem to view it as a subpar action series. IMO this series is sold short, perhaps because of the association with the namle, at least by the Nielsens and in general on online forums. What would James Cameron think about TSCC? I hope he likes it. Has he ever said anything about TSCC or T4?