The Librarians

[acappellasaurus]

So brief question - do I need to have seen the previous three movies to start this series? I am not super interested in spending the time watching what sounds like fairly bad TV movies, and would like to just start right in on the new series with my kids.

 

[Skywalker]

Not really, no.

 

[May 20]

No, you really don't. But, the movies really aren't that bad, esp. for something to watch with the kids. They would be good Christmas break family time viewing.

 

[intrinsical]

You don't have to watch the movies. However it has to be said that the TV show is a direct continuation of the movie. The first two episodes acts as a transition from the movie's characters and story to the TV show's characters and story.

 

[Christopher]

"And the Horns of a Dilemma" was really quite good. An excellent first outing for the core team without Noah Wyle to overshadow them, with lots of good character interplay and team buiding. A very clever story, too, with some imaginative twists on the Labyrinth myth and some cool problem-solving by the team. And it still feels like there's a bit of a Doctor Who vibe even without Flynn around -- in the scene where the team was in the alley coming up with their clever plan to get back into the labyrinth, Joseph LoDuca's score went into an upbeat heroic motif that reminded me of "I Am the Doctor" and similar Murray Gold cues.

The ending does bug me a bit, though, since there's still an angry Minotaur on the loose. Tricia Helfer may have been using it to murder people, but at least it was contained. Apparently now it's just free to roam the streets of Boston, which doesn't sound like that much of an improvement. I wish they'd had a line about "Oh, the Minotaur will go back to its native dimension now" or something.

All in all, I'm really liking this show. Now that Syfy is apparently committing itself to doing more gritty dramatic stuff in the Galactica/Defiance vein, I'm glad that TNT has given us something to fill the Eureka/Warehouse 13 niche, which I find a lot more entertaining.

 

[intrinsical]

Its the first true outing of the Librarianettes, and overall I liked it. Although I'm not sure Cassandra should be spouting so many math and physics jargon words. Most of the audience may not have even heard of Einstein-Rosen Bridges, Demihepteracts or Mersenne Primes.

 

[Christopher]

^The general audience may not know the difference between a demihepteract and an isolytic verdion discombobulatrix, but they both serve to show that the characters are smart, which is what's needed. And for those of us who do know the difference, it's a lovely Easter egg to show that the writers are smart and know what they're talking about.

Besides, Cassandra did append "It's a wormhole!" after she mentioned the Bridge. Not to mention that both Thor and Interstellar used the term "Einstein-Rosen Bridge" interchangeably with "wormhole," so I daresay a large portion of the genre-TV audience is familiar with the term by now. (Sliders also called them "Einstein-Rosen-Podolsky Bridges," which is kind of a hodgepodge of the E-R Bridge and the EPR Paradox in quantum mechanics.)

 

[Lonemagpie]

Just watched the first two episodes of The Librarians yesterday and it was good fun. A bit shaky, with dubious fights and worse swordplay, but it was only the beginning, so it should do well. Noah Wyle I swear was playing the Doctor this time out. Overall, it doesn't fill the Leverage-shaped hole in my life, but I think it will definitely fill the Warehouse 13-shaped hole!

 

[Christopher]

I also like what Christian Kane is doing with his performance here. He still sounds like Christian Kane, sure, but he's playing a more open and relaxed character than Elliot Spencer on Leverage, so he has an interestingly different delivery.

 

[Lonemagpie]

I also like what Christian Kane is doing with his performance here. He still sounds like Christian Kane, sure, but he's playing a more open and relaxed character than Elliot Spencer on Leverage, so he has an interestingly different delivery.

I like that they haven't just cast him as another Elliot.

 

[Greg Cox]

I like the whole magic door business. Honestly, Warehouse 13 needed one of those. One of my few quibbles with WH13 was the way Peter and Myka and the gang were able to zip all around the world in the space of a commercial break--despite the fact that the very first episode made it clear that the Warehouse was in the middle of nowhere and you have to drive for hours on dusty dirt roads to reach it . . .

 

[Christopher]

Except that the magic door poses the same problems as the transporter, in that you have to concoct excuses for why it can't get the characters out of trouble on a routine basis. They've built that in to some extent, but they teetered on the edge of "too easy" with the way they were able to connect the door directly to the labyrinth.

 

[Greg Cox]

Except that the magic door poses the same problems as the transporter, in that you have to concoct excuses for why it can't get the characters out of trouble on a routine basis. They've built that in to some extent, but they teetered on the edge of "too easy" with the way they were able to connect the door directly to the labyrinth.

Well, they made a point of saying that they can't usually do that, and that they're lucky if they just get the right city, but, yeah, the question is how they use it in the future. And how often they fudge things for the sake of the plot.

If it were me, I'd make it clear that it was good for getting the characters quickly from, say, Portland to Boston, but had definite limitations to keep it from becoming a too easy "get out of jail free" card.

Which I believe is the intent . . . .

 

[Christopher]

^Yeah, but they have to be careful. Letting them connect the magic door to the labyrinth at all, even with the caveats they offered, sets a risky precedent.

 

[DWF]

I like the whole magic door business. Honestly, Warehouse 13 needed one of those. One of my few quibbles with WH13 was the way Peter and Myka and the gang were able to zip all around the world in the space of a commercial break--despite the fact that the very first episode made it clear that the Warehouse was in the middle of nowhere and you have to drive for hours on dusty dirt roads to reach it . . .

Scully and Mulder were able to fly around the world at the drop of a hat. On TV and in movies there's never a cancelled flight, they never lose your luggage and your plane is never stuck on the tarmack.

 

[RJDiogenes]

Well, that was pretty good. Some nice character work, along with an interesting plot, and the Boston setting all made me happy. And I love the jumper-cable powered Einsten-Rosen bridge that can connect to any doorway in the world (although that last part may limit things a bit). The only thing I didn't like too much was the idea of the labyrinth as a "concept" that followed them into the real world and the Minotaur turning into a human tough guy. I thought the real Minotaur was pretty cool. And it seems like he's still out there somewhere, roaming the streets of Boston. Of course, in his human form, he'd be right at home in Southie.

 

[Dr. Funkenstein]

If it were me, I'd make it clear that it was good for getting the characters quickly from, say, Portland to Boston, but had definite limitations to keep it from becoming a too easy "get out of jail free" card.

Which I believe is the intent . . . .

Which they obliterated in their first episode featuring it even if it is something they said they couldn't easily do. They still did it. Say hello to the Transporter 2.0.

 

[JD]

I also really enjoyed the second episode. The stuff with the labyrinth and the Minotaur was a fun twist on the mythology, and I also got a kick out of seeing Tricia Helfer pop up here.
I do have to agree that their magic door could make things a little to easy, but I want to give the writers/producers the benefit of the doubt there.
There's another new episode tonight, but sadly I have to work so I won't be able to watch it live. I'll either catch it on a reairing or online.
Is anybody else who uses tablet apps having any trouble with the TNT one?

 

[Guy Gardener]

"THERE'SAMRSCLAWSIII!!!!???"



It's amazing what revs my engine.

 

[Admiral2]

Bruce Campbell as Santa. That was great! A fun episode all the way through.

I may have to watch more of this...