La brea

Discussion in 'Science Fiction & Fantasy' started by crookeddy, Oct 1, 2021.

  1. crookeddy

    crookeddy Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Anyone watching this show on NBC? Terrible reviews but a very, very solid 6.37 million for debut episode...
     
    Last edited: Oct 1, 2021
  2. FreezeC77

    FreezeC77 Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    I thought the writing and some of the acting performances were not the best. I have to admit though the 'twist', well 'twist' from what I expected from the previews made me a teensy bit more interested in the rest of the show, but I'll put that in spoilers for people who haven't watched ep 1.

    BTW. The CGI in the show was really REALLY bad for 2021.

    as for that 'twist'
    I was actually expecting a hollow earth premise that they fell into. Instead it seems like a time travel to probably like at least 10,000 or more years ago since the bird they recovered went extinct 10,000 to 12,000 years ago.

    The idea that a maybe 8 foot rock that was above the soil 10,000 years ago with a bloody handprint would still be above that same spot with a faint hand-print after being exposed to the elements and changes from earthquakes and mudslides and all seemed like a stretch.

    There is a famous skeleton discovered on Santa Rosa Island off the coast of California which were carbon dated to about 13,000 years ago so it would be interesting if they had something involving that in the 'past' of the show.
     
  3. Mr. Adventure

    Mr. Adventure Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    I tuned in, it’s exactly what I expected, it’s that type of event show you only seem to see from the old broadcast networks. It’s like What if...the people from an Old Navy ad fell into otherworld event? See V, Terra Nova, etc. The problem is it’s quickly forgotten ten minutes after watching.
     
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  4. FreezeC77

    FreezeC77 Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Terra Nova was a lot better than what I watched in the first ep of La Brea... but the thing that dragged it down was the stupid teenagers (which I guess you can also say about V) and likely will be an issue with La Brea as well. Although the adult leads were all done pretty poor as well.

    I thought Jason O'Mara and Stephen Lang were pretty good in Terra Nova.

    They also really didn't need to invent conspiracies and other **** with Terra Nova. Isn't the premise of time travelling back tens of millions of years to found a colony and just being ABOUT THAT interesting enough?
     
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  5. Asbo Zaprudder

    Asbo Zaprudder Admiral Admiral

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    Not very good? Such a tarrible pity.
     
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  6. Cyrus

    Cyrus Vice Admiral Admiral

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    I skipped this one. Not interested in seeing my city fall in a sink hole.

    Why is the show called La Brea? We have a La Brea street here and a city name Brea. Is it related to those or maybe the La Brea Tar pits?
     
  7. captainkirk

    captainkirk Commodore Commodore

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    I suspect I'll be kinder towards it than most, partly because we paleo-nerds have been so starved of good live-action material, and partly because I came up with a similar idea once.

    It was okay. Some of the dialog was rough and cliche. The VFX weren't amazing but considering they were trying to do building destruction and creatures on a broadcast TV budget and schedule, I'll give them a pass. The only real facepalm moment I had was the ring being found just below the surface by the rock. If that was still there, then presumably all the cars and building rubble would still remain and you think it would have been found when LA was being built.

    I know it's going to be canceled after one season, but I'll keep watching. For the creatures if nothing else.
     
  8. Asbo Zaprudder

    Asbo Zaprudder Admiral Admiral

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    La brea is Spanish for "tar" I believe. I'm imagining this is a Lost wannabe, although I haven't seen it and most likely never will.
     
  9. crookeddy

    crookeddy Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    It's named for the street and the tar pits.

    I thought the effects were fine. The issue was the dialog, acting, and locations. The past looks like a city park...

    Do cable shows now have a higher budget than broadcast? I don't think I've seen crap like this on cable for a while. Used to be the other way around...
     
  10. Mike Farley

    Mike Farley Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    I used to live right behind the Tar Pits. I'd tune into the first episode if I could see my old apartment fall into a sink hole.
     
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  11. JirinPanthosa

    JirinPanthosa Admiral Admiral

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    Terra Nova had a decent premise and just failed to produce interesting characters.
     
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  12. captainkirk

    captainkirk Commodore Commodore

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    I feel like if it had been able to continue, it would have gotten more interesting. By the finale when they had a carnotaurus rampaging through an exploding time-travel building it had become what I wanted from the show, it just took too long to get there.

    It was the same with Primeval: New World. I loved the UK series but found the Canadian spinoff quite uninteresting for the first half of the season. Then suddenly it got really good after everyone had stopped watching.
     
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  13. JirinPanthosa

    JirinPanthosa Admiral Admiral

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    I thought they were trying to be Lost but didn’t understand what about Lost was compelling.
     
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  14. crookeddy

    crookeddy Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    This describes almost every network sci Fi show in recent memory.
     
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  15. JD

    JD Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    I enjoyed it, nothing amazing, but the premise and characters were interesting enough to get me to come back.
    Yes. Cable and streaming are seen as more prestigious these days, so they tend to get bigger budgets.
     
  16. wayoung

    wayoung Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    I haven't watched a network SciFi/drama in years I don't think... Figured I'd throw this on to see what it was.

    Holy. Shit. Is this what network tv is nowadays? This thing seemed like it should be a sydnicated show from the 90's airing in a block with Sliders and The Lost World.

    Except it's missing the fun those shows had.

    Reminds me of Fox's Terra Nova from a decade ago, with worse SFX somehow.
     
  17. Phoenix219

    Phoenix219 Commodore Commodore

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    I was expecting the same thing -
    especially considering the mirrored title splash - i was actually hoping for an even more unique take on hollow earth, the concave earth, where gravity flips and the inside world is inverted, where the sky/sun is the Earth's core, and the ground is the inner crust. And, I mean, they fell down in a big hole through the crust.... where else would they go? Expectations.... dashed.

    Never thought I would be tired of
    time travel stories
    but I had actually gotten my hopes up for something different, and it seems to be more of the same.

    That said, I'm still watching....
     
  18. Starbreaker

    Starbreaker Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Every promo I've seen just showed a vague sinkhole and then a vague jungle scene. Deliberately hiding all your footage means that you know your show sucks but it's too late not to air it.
     
  19. publiusr

    publiusr Admiral Admiral

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    The Farmer’s Market and CBS studios are nearby, yes?
     
  20. Mike Farley

    Mike Farley Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Yup. And The Grove. My (gigantic) apartment complex, Park La Brea, was right in between.