Doing Da Vinci

[The Master of Tarquin Hill]

I'm Pissed.

Nothing but scripted "reality" bullshit.

A genius deserves better.

 

[Bisz]

Its so-so. I still watch it when I see it on but it could be a lot better.

 

[McCoy]

Never heard of this. What's the premise?

 

[Christopher]

^A team of engineers builds devices that Leonardo Da Vinci designed and tests whether they actually work. Or something like that. I haven't managed to catch the show yet, due to a mix of schedule conflicts and forgetfulness, but I've been curious about it.

 

[McCoy]

Hm. Yes it does sound interesting. I'll look for it on my local schedule.

 

[Professor Zoom]

I watched the episode where the build the cannon...and I think I'm done...I kinda hated the people in the build team. I'm not interested in their personal conflicts with each other. I'm not there for them, I'm there to watch something designed by Da Vinci being built.

It makes me realize what Mythbusters would have been with a different cast...not as fun.

 

[Christopher]

^Yeah... I've been underwhelmed by Discovery's two previous attempts to copy Mythbusters, first Smash Lab and then Prototype This, because in both cases, the casts just weren't very interesting. It sounds like this time they're trying to punch it up by putting some dramatic tension into it, but for something like this, having a charismatic and likeable team is more important.

Still, I'd like to check the show out at least once. Maybe I'll tape it tonight -- it's on opposite Castle.

 

[Christopher]

Okay, I taped it, and I ended up fast-forwarding through the bulk of it. I agree with the complaints above. This is a waste of a good premise. When I first heard of this show, I was expecting something that would use these construction projects to explore the science and engineering of Leonardo's work, the technologies that were available at the time, the historical and cultural context in which it was developed, the personal experiences and travails of Leonardo the man, etc. Instead it's just getting a bunch of builders together, tossing a project at them, and taping their petty bickering as they build it using modern equipment. Why squander such a great idea as building Leonardo's designs if you're not going to focus on the designs themselves and their historical context? What a waste. And the cast is a mix of unpleasant people and boring people. The only one I liked was the Leonardo scholar, and he was barely in the episode.

 

[The Master of Tarquin Hill]

Okay, I taped it, and I ended up fast-forwarding through the bulk of it. I agree with the complaints above. This is a waste of a good premise. When I first heard of this show, I was expecting something that would use these construction projects to explore the science and engineering of Leonardo's work, the technologies that were available at the time, the historical and cultural context in which it was developed, the personal experiences and travails of Leonardo the man, etc. Instead it's just getting a bunch of builders together, tossing a project at them, and taping their petty bickering as they build it using modern equipment. Why squander such a great idea as building Leonardo's designs if you're not going to focus on the designs themselves and their historical context? What a waste. And the cast is a mix of unpleasant people and boring people. The only one I liked was the Leonardo scholar, and he was barely in the episode.

QFT

I wish Jamie and Adam were tackling Da Vinci's designs.

Oh well

 

[Christopher]

I wish Jamie and Adam were tackling Da Vinci's designs.

Hey, that would be cool. The Mythbusters premise is wearing a bit thin lately -- the ratio of interesting myths to "let's test some YouTube video or lame fan suggestion that lets us blow something up" has plummeted -- so maybe what's needed is for the MB cast and production team to apply their talents to a new premise. And testing Leonardo's designs would've been a good premise. Certainly the MB cast and crew would've done a better job discussing the history, science, engineering, etc. behind Leonardo's designs, as they did with the Archimedes "death ray."

 

[Kirby]

Okay, I taped it, and I ended up fast-forwarding through the bulk of it.

Agreed. I recorded three episodes before watching it. If you absolutely have to watch this show, the best way is to watch the first 5 minutes to set up what they're doing, and then the last 10 minutes to see how it worked. Everything in the middle is just a b.s. waste of time. That said, those three that I recorded are the only ones that I'll watch. This show sucks on many levels.