The Outpost--new fantasy series
- Thread starter Greg Cox
- Start date
I want to like Falista, and I believe she means well, but she just just gives in to selfish and cruel impulses so easily. The slightest provocation and she goes from "I want to win you over with love" to "Die for being mean to me!" Which just underlines the shallowness of her principles. Ultimately it's all about her own ego -- she's more concerned with buying people's approval than doing good for its own sake.
I couldn't help wondering to what extent the decision to have the Blackbloods almost wiped out was motivated by budgetary or COVID considerations, so they'd only have to hire a handful of extras.
I couldn't help wondering to what extent the decision to have the Blackbloods almost wiped out was motivated by budgetary or COVID considerations, so they'd only have to hire a handful of extras.
Seeing this week's episode, it seems that killing off most of the Blackbloods was mainly about leaving the heroes without the large army they were hoping for to stand against Falista and Two.
You know, it occurred to me last night that Falista being queen and the Blackbloods being killed are both the result of Talon being indecisive and waiting too long to act. That's quite a character flaw in a series lead. Let's hope it inspires her to be more proactive going forward.
Speaking of character flaws, it's disappointing how quickly Falista has gone from an ambiguous, almost sympathetic figure to a raving fanatic ruling through threats and violence. I mean, I get it that she craves approval and is thus deeply invested in the idea of being a chosen agent of the gods, so it's not really out of character, but I liked her better when she had nuance.
The funniest part was Munt and Warlita "trying out the bed."
You know, it occurred to me last night that Falista being queen and the Blackbloods being killed are both the result of Talon being indecisive and waiting too long to act. That's quite a character flaw in a series lead. Let's hope it inspires her to be more proactive going forward.
Speaking of character flaws, it's disappointing how quickly Falista has gone from an ambiguous, almost sympathetic figure to a raving fanatic ruling through threats and violence. I mean, I get it that she craves approval and is thus deeply invested in the idea of being a chosen agent of the gods, so it's not really out of character, but I liked her better when she had nuance.
The funniest part was Munt and Warlita "trying out the bed."
Boy, they're really getting use out of that dungeon set. Seems like pretty much every cast member gets locked up there eventually . . . . 
Seriously, things are moving along nicely. And it is interesting to see how this show really is about "The Outpost," and not just the Adventures of Talon. She barely had a line until well into this ep.
Seriously, things are moving along nicely. And it is interesting to see how this show really is about "The Outpost," and not just the Adventures of Talon. She barely had a line until well into this ep.
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I think that's been the case since at least season 2, where Talon spent much of the season off on side missions in the wilderness while the Game of Thrones-lite royal intrigue played out in the Outpost and the Capital. I think the producers realized early on that, while Jessica Green is a very effective action heroine and a superhumanly beautiful woman, she's not the strongest actor in the ensemble. The emphasis has shifted more toward the breakout characters like Janzo, Tobin, and increasingly Munt.
I think a case can be made that Anand Desai-Barochia (Janzo) is as much the star of the show now as anyone. Indeed, I've noticed in the credits that he's now an associate producer. Since he has no other producing credits, that suggests it's a title given to him to reflect his importance to the production (i.e. they gave him more money and influence to motivate him to stick with the show).
Nobody's had anything to say? Things are ramping up with the "gods" awakening, and with the discovery of thousands more of their species ready to wake up and take over. I wonder how much of this was planned from the beginning, and how much has been reinvented along the way. The show's completely forgotten about the Greyskins that were a major element in season 1, even though protecting against them was originally cited as a primary reason for the Outpost's existence. Also, they said in an earlier season that the Outpost was built on top of an old Blackblood citadel, but they keep revealing more underground chambers that have gone rather far afield from that.
It's now evident that the kinjes contain the captive spirits of the seven "gods," and since Talon's Asterkinj was addressed by Vorta (the main "god" character) as "betrayer," I take that to mean that the "god" called Aster was the one that imprisoned and de-souled the others. Which is getting dangerously close to making Talon yet another Chosen One character, the inheritor of the most crucial power for defeating evil. The show's done a fair job of avoiding that trope up to now.
On the other hand, with the kinjes now being revealed as the souls of living beings and getting reclaimed by their hosts, maybe this is leading up to Talon giving up the Asterkinj, maybe with Aster returning to corporeal form as a separate character. After all, with no more Blackbloods or Lu-Qiri left alive in the Plane of Ashes, there's no longer any real story need for Talon to have the ability to open portals. That would be a good way to separate her from any Chosen One/destiny tropes.
I'm finding the Outpost's security to be conveniently lax of late, with characters almost casually breaking out of prison and sneaking in and out of the gates. But then, they keep throwing their own Gate Marshal in prison, so maybe it's no wonder security is a mess.
It's now evident that the kinjes contain the captive spirits of the seven "gods," and since Talon's Asterkinj was addressed by Vorta (the main "god" character) as "betrayer," I take that to mean that the "god" called Aster was the one that imprisoned and de-souled the others. Which is getting dangerously close to making Talon yet another Chosen One character, the inheritor of the most crucial power for defeating evil. The show's done a fair job of avoiding that trope up to now.
On the other hand, with the kinjes now being revealed as the souls of living beings and getting reclaimed by their hosts, maybe this is leading up to Talon giving up the Asterkinj, maybe with Aster returning to corporeal form as a separate character. After all, with no more Blackbloods or Lu-Qiri left alive in the Plane of Ashes, there's no longer any real story need for Talon to have the ability to open portals. That would be a good way to separate her from any Chosen One/destiny tropes.
I'm finding the Outpost's security to be conveniently lax of late, with characters almost casually breaking out of prison and sneaking in and out of the gates. But then, they keep throwing their own Gate Marshal in prison, so maybe it's no wonder security is a mess.
Tell me about it. Most insecure dungeons ever? Seems like somebody is breaking out of it pretty much every episode. At this point, being tossed into the dungeon is just a temporary inconvenience . . . .
That being said, things are definitely heating up, even as the board is also being cleared in a way: no more Blackbloods in the Plain of Ashes, apparently no more demons. We seem to be switching gears into a whole new storyline.
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Tell me about it. Most insecure dungeons ever? Seems like somebody is breaking out of it pretty much every episode. At this point, being tossed into the dungeon is just a temporary inconvenience . . . .
I'm reminded of the 2006 BBC One Robin Hood TV series. Robin and his Merry Men snuck into Prince John's castle on almost a weekly basis, yet somehow the gate guards never learned to recognize their faces.
Hmm. They fridged Falista. Not the way I was hoping her story would turn out. I mean, narratively it made sense that the option of surrendering the kinjes willingly would turn out to be a lie, and that Falista's blind devotion would not be rewarded. But the problem with death as a character arc resolution is that all too often it isn't really a resolution, just an abrupt cutoff. Falista was an engagingly ambiguous character, sympathetic despite her selfishness and insecurity that did so much harm, and last season she was shown as someone who struggled to do better and make good choices. But this season, she was reduced to one-note fanaticism and her potential path as a character narrowed to a single line that had only one inevitable ending, and the simplicity and one-dimensionality of that was less interesting than how she was written last season, or even initially in this season.
Plus, on a more superficial note, she was really beautiful, so I hate to lose her. This show is certainly not lacking for beautiful women, but Georgia May Foote was my second-favorite in that department after Jessica Green.
Speaking of departed Outpost actresses, the past two episodes were directed by Imogen Waterhouse, who formerly played Gwynn/Queen Rosmund. Nice that they're keeping her involved with the production after killing off her character. Hmm, I wonder if Georgia May Foote is interested in directing...
But to balance things out, one departed actress actually made a surprise return -- Amita Suman as Naya, who basically disappeared between seasons 2 and 3. A bit of a coincidence that she turns out to be involved in an important part of the search for answers about the "Gods"/Masters, but it's nice that they brought her back.
Still making effective use of scenic Serbian locations. I wonder what that monument they used as Dred's reliquary actually is.
So it looks like the lead Master, Vorta, uses her hive-mind kinj to control an army of mass-produced warrior drones. Ironic that someone named "Vorta" is in control of what are basically Jem'Hadar. Or maybe an intentional Deep Space Nine allusion?
Plus, on a more superficial note, she was really beautiful, so I hate to lose her. This show is certainly not lacking for beautiful women, but Georgia May Foote was my second-favorite in that department after Jessica Green.
Speaking of departed Outpost actresses, the past two episodes were directed by Imogen Waterhouse, who formerly played Gwynn/Queen Rosmund. Nice that they're keeping her involved with the production after killing off her character. Hmm, I wonder if Georgia May Foote is interested in directing...
But to balance things out, one departed actress actually made a surprise return -- Amita Suman as Naya, who basically disappeared between seasons 2 and 3. A bit of a coincidence that she turns out to be involved in an important part of the search for answers about the "Gods"/Masters, but it's nice that they brought her back.
Still making effective use of scenic Serbian locations. I wonder what that monument they used as Dred's reliquary actually is.
So it looks like the lead Master, Vorta, uses her hive-mind kinj to control an army of mass-produced warrior drones. Ironic that someone named "Vorta" is in control of what are basically Jem'Hadar. Or maybe an intentional Deep Space Nine allusion?
Wow, they're not easing up on killing main characters. Falista last week, Tobin this week, which I guess absolves them of the "fridging" accusation with Falista. Her death wasn't in service to advancing his arc, because his arc was almost over anyway.
What worries me is that Tobin's interplay with Munt has been a major part of what's allowed the latter to grow in prominence and depth as a character. I wonder what they're going to do with Munt now that he no longer has Tobin to play off of.
I was a bit concerned that they'd come up with a contrived excuse for not destroying the key, so that we'd inevitably end up with the Masters using it. To their credit, they had them actually try to destroy the key (over Janzo's objections) and fail because it's indestructible. Still, it occurred to me weeks ago that the obvious way to keep the key from being used on the Skevicor is to pour cement into the keyhole.
So apparently the Masters move from one parallel universe to another, and they previously lived in what's now the Plane of Ashes. It seems clear that they use up the worlds they inhabit, turning them into wastelands, then move on to the next one. Also, they said that Talon was the child of the betrayer Aster, so I'm guessing Aster mated with a human thousands of years ago and was the progenitor of the Blackbloods. That would explain why the Asterkinj has been passed down among them.
I like the complexity of the situation -- the Masters' army (I think they called them Kavi) are the force that will destroy the world at their bidding, but they're a slave army, the same as all the people Yevalla enthralled, including pretty much every non-kinjed character in the show. Hopefully that can be the basis for finding some common ground, which Janzo is certainly trying to do.
This episode reminded me of Greg's comment a while back about how this is definitely an ensemble show rather than just Talon's show. Talon was hardly in this one, since she spent most of it in captivity. I think a case can be made that Janzo is functionally the lead character of the show now. Indeed, it occurred to me briefly to wonder... given how much prominence Luna has been given this season, and how similar she is to how Talon was at the start of the show, is it possible they're grooming Luna as Talon's replacement? Heck, so many cast members have been killed off in the past year or so that I don't think anyone's guaranteed to stick around -- except Janzo, since Anand Desai-Barochia's an associate producer on the show now.
What worries me is that Tobin's interplay with Munt has been a major part of what's allowed the latter to grow in prominence and depth as a character. I wonder what they're going to do with Munt now that he no longer has Tobin to play off of.
I was a bit concerned that they'd come up with a contrived excuse for not destroying the key, so that we'd inevitably end up with the Masters using it. To their credit, they had them actually try to destroy the key (over Janzo's objections) and fail because it's indestructible. Still, it occurred to me weeks ago that the obvious way to keep the key from being used on the Skevicor is to pour cement into the keyhole.
So apparently the Masters move from one parallel universe to another, and they previously lived in what's now the Plane of Ashes. It seems clear that they use up the worlds they inhabit, turning them into wastelands, then move on to the next one. Also, they said that Talon was the child of the betrayer Aster, so I'm guessing Aster mated with a human thousands of years ago and was the progenitor of the Blackbloods. That would explain why the Asterkinj has been passed down among them.
I like the complexity of the situation -- the Masters' army (I think they called them Kavi) are the force that will destroy the world at their bidding, but they're a slave army, the same as all the people Yevalla enthralled, including pretty much every non-kinjed character in the show. Hopefully that can be the basis for finding some common ground, which Janzo is certainly trying to do.
This episode reminded me of Greg's comment a while back about how this is definitely an ensemble show rather than just Talon's show. Talon was hardly in this one, since she spent most of it in captivity. I think a case can be made that Janzo is functionally the lead character of the show now. Indeed, it occurred to me briefly to wonder... given how much prominence Luna has been given this season, and how similar she is to how Talon was at the start of the show, is it possible they're grooming Luna as Talon's replacement? Heck, so many cast members have been killed off in the past year or so that I don't think anyone's guaranteed to stick around -- except Janzo, since Anand Desai-Barochia's an associate producer on the show now.
On the other hand, I thought the opening sequence on the steps demonstrated why Talon really should be the queen of the Outpost. She quickly assessed the dire situation and made the hard calls about who had to do what, and kept making them as the fluid situation changed: eventually sacrificing herself so that Tobin could escape with the Key, the wounded Luna could be carried off to safety, while judging (accurately) that the Gods would not kill her right away, so she was the one who needed to stay behind and protect the other characters' retreat.
Yeah, that is probably what they're building toward -- Talon eventually accepting the leadership role that she's been getting pushed toward all along. Although I hope they follow through on the hints earlier in the season about Janzo feeling his way toward inventing democracy, with Talon becoming an elected leader rather than a monarch. And now that both her rivals for the throne have crumbled to dust, that kind of leaves the position open, and as you say, she's the best candidate.
It's just that Luna's presence and her similarity to Talon do make me wonder sometimes. Maybe once Talon's moved into a leadership role and spends more time in the throne room (or whatever), they'll need someone to fill the woman-of-action niche. So maybe that's what Luna's being set up for.
Well, this week's episode was a good one, but I think the editing may have been a little wonky when Talon and Zed had their visions of the Masters' memories in their kinjes. They talked about only getting flashes that they couldn't interpret, but it was very obvious to me that Aster fell in love with a human woman and was the father of the child (undoubtedly the first Blackblood) that the other Masters tried to kill. Did they actually want the visions to be clearer to the audience than to the characters? If so, it's an odd choice.
Janzo trying to teach 313 about making choices reminded me of Geordi and Hugh in "I, Borg." Although it turned out rather less well here for the good guys.
It was odd that 313 had the list of seven names in order but only "dialed" four of them. Was there a specific reason he stopped at four, or is this like the way TV and movies in the days of rotary phones would often have a character dial fewer than seven digits to save time, and just hope we didn't count?
Adam Johnson (Munt) continues to be an amazingly good actor. His reactions to learning of Tobin's death were superbly played. He's a classic case of an initially minor character growing into an invaluable part of the show because of the actor's skill and charisma.
Janzo trying to teach 313 about making choices reminded me of Geordi and Hugh in "I, Borg." Although it turned out rather less well here for the good guys.
It was odd that 313 had the list of seven names in order but only "dialed" four of them. Was there a specific reason he stopped at four, or is this like the way TV and movies in the days of rotary phones would often have a character dial fewer than seven digits to save time, and just hope we didn't count?
Adam Johnson (Munt) continues to be an amazingly good actor. His reactions to learning of Tobin's death were superbly played. He's a classic case of an initially minor character growing into an invaluable part of the show because of the actor's skill and charisma.
Yeah, the revealed backstory seemed so obvious that I actually found myself wondering if it was deliberate misdirection and we were being set up for some surprise twist. But then, as you said, if our heroes haven't put the pieces together yet, maybe it wasn't supposed to be that obvious?
It seems to me that reawakening Aster may be the key to stopping the other Masters (hey, Aster the Master!), but how can they do that without Talon dying?
Meanwhile, if the tubes on the Skevicor are the delivery devices for the Navia spores/Gold Kinjes that will enslave all the Kavi into being the Masters' army, then isn't the obvious solution to cut the tubes? Or if they're as indestructible as the key, just pour molten metal or tree sap or something into them.
Meanwhile, if the tubes on the Skevicor are the delivery devices for the Navia spores/Gold Kinjes that will enslave all the Kavi into being the Masters' army, then isn't the obvious solution to cut the tubes? Or if they're as indestructible as the key, just pour molten metal or tree sap or something into them.
Okay. It's official. The Oct 7 episode is now being billed as "the series finale": "The Blackblood Saga Comes to an Exciting Conclusion!"
Posted by Dean Devlin on FB a few minutes ago.
Ohh, that's a shame. It's really been good this past couple of seasons.
Although I guess it's hard to imagine where the story could've gone from this season's events. It does have kind of an endgame feel.