DarthDementous

Just going to leave this here

That image of Lars is terrifying

I've heard snippets of Marc's new Thrawn voice and it does sound really good, in preparation for Ahsoka I'll probably finally get around to checking out the new Thrawn novels

I'm actually really enthused by those 6 minutes of uninterrupted footage, the action felt really good and had that nice scrappy feel I associate with Indiana Jones. Seems like at least for the action they've nailed the tone

I saw the Rebels version of Thrawn first, liked him, then listened to the audiobooks of the original Thrawn Trilogy and loved that version of Thrawn to the point the one in Rebels now seems a bit inferior in comparison. That seemed to mostly be a result of where his character fit into that show though, and as the seeming big bad of Ahsoka he may be closer to the version in the original Thrawn Trilogy than Rebels. Definitely going to miss that deep, commanding but suave performance of Marc Thompson though.

Where's the lie?

No, I do not think if something was not adapted from medium A to medium B, that fans of medium B would suddenly become fans of medium A Harry Potter did wonders for the popularity of books as a whole, but movie popularity in general is still on another level No idea what you mean by 'the movies were kind of a quick shot', they were made because there was existing interest. It is very common for adaptions of series to be made whilst new entries are still coming out, hell this was even the case for the anime film Akira which ended up influencing the subsequent manga. With Harry Potter in particular, there was an understandable desire to start film production quite soon owing to the limitations of the aging of the regular cast and to also start syncing up with the book releases for cross-marketing appeal

They really did just end up making Din Djarin racist for this episode, especially jarring given those kinds of traits he shed as a result of his positive experiences with droids. I get there's a lingering resentment for the specific kind of droids that killed his family but it comes off as childish, especially because he deliberately disparages all droids in the episode

What did they…what did they influence?! An entire generation. That was their Star Wars. Media that appeals to said generation is chockablock full of Harry Potter references, hell even god damn political discussion with that generation is full of Harry Potter references to the point it’s a common mocking refrain. A lot of those people are film-only fans too.

The problem is, that’s not what the show presents itself as, otherwise it wouldn’t feel so off and uncanny to me This is currently a substitute for the movies, this is meant to be blockbuster Star Wars for a wide target audience and so must carry those expectations. That includes…a coherent script and characters you can be invested in, at the bare minimum, as well as world class visuals of which this show is certainly not consistently delivering

Might be sacrilege but I’ve always seen him at his peak as the John Williams of TV insofar as similar musical sensibilities at times, weaving a wide tapestry of incredibly resonant themes, creating bombastic but coherent action music, and being quite adept at scoring different moods and genres So yes please, Murray Gold in full orchestral mode would be an amazing pick for a Harry Potter TV show As someone pretty familiar with the games there has been a few composers who are very worthy to continue the musical legacy. Jeremy Soule is sadly no longer an option thanks to controversy, but James Hannigan would be a worthy successor. I ended up enjoying his scores to the Order of the Phoenix and Half Blood Prince games more than the movies, definitely closer to Williams’ sensibilities as well

Yeah, I apologise. I wouldn’t have taken that well myself even if I was in a good mood. Easy to forget there’s just some poor human also trying to do their best in the world on the other side Had a number of other instances where my complete lack of tact worked counter to my intentions so I’m going to endeavour to be more patient and understanding in the future, because ultimately that’s the better way to get people to listen

I guess for me the issue is that I can’t really focus on what is positive about the episodes because even the surface level stuff is starting to feel like a misfire I think my tolerance for nostalgia and reference is at an all time low because so many properties lately have been beating that drum, that when there isn’t at least anything else to grab onto it becomes something wholly undesirable At any rate, I appreciate that you understand where I’m coming from and admire you didn’t get super defensive even when I was very harsh and blunt. I love Star Wars because I know the potential the universe has for storytelling, and to repeatedly see it squandered is quite a frustrating experience. Ultimately I want Lucasfilm to be encouraged to make more things like Andor, and it’s hard to not see The Mandalorian as an obstacle in that regard

No, I won't. Because this attitude of just accepting the bare minimum or even praising it is exactly part of why the show is the way it is, otherwise I wouldn't care at all. People rail on negative appraisals with no substance yet positive appraisals with no substance seem to get a free pass. Pretty much all of your breakdowns have been 'it was great, I liked it when the thing happened because the thing happened, but this one thing was weird' and I'm just sitting there every week trying to bite my tongue but this episode just broke me. I am very sick of people giving this show a pass, "it was great that Lloyd's character was a separatist that really believed in what Dooku did" is something the character literally just exposited about themselves word for word, only to later regret their entire philosophy because the ruling lady said 'don't you think you should forgive us?'. This is what I mean by low standards, in what world would this be considered adequate let alone great character development in any other piece of media?

Yeah...no. I'm seriously starting to question if you even have standards at this point if you've thought pretty much every episode of this season has been great. This one especially, complimenting the directing when this is the flattest and most visually unappealing episode of the show yet is beyond the pail at this point. I was shocked when the 'directed by Bryce Dallas Howard' credit came up, that was like watching a Robert Rodriguez directed episode, right down to the dodgy effects. Night and day comparison to Dallas Howard's episode in the Book of Boba Fett.

I did, I love musical continuity like that

Alrighty then. I have no idea what you are hearing

Hah, had no idea. Star Wars alumni always find their way back in surprising ways

Michelle Ang (Omega) and Temuera Morrison (original voice of the clones and Jango Fett), and the actress who plays the female clone scientist are from New Zealand and have native accents EDIT: Emerie Karr is voiced by Keisha Castle Hughes who was born in Australia but still a New Zealander, which means she is very likely using her native accent in the show which is distinctly New Zealander Dee Bradley Baker (current voice of the clones) is an American trying to put on a New Zealand accent but it sounds absolutely terrible and more akin to something like an Australian one. That’s where the inconsistency is

New Zealander*

It’ll likely feature one, there’s already plausible theories that Luthen is an ex-Jedi, but I don’t expect the focus to shift to them and nor should it. If Luthen is a Jedi then that’s already a much more nuanced and more human take on a Jedi character than previous, barring the OT

Interesting experiment but a very bad idea, a lot is set of foundational stuff is set up in those first three episodes that pays off later

Disagree, it’s all in the execution. Mandalorians are perfectly capable of carrying a whole show but almost nothing about this version of them makes any sense and is incredibly meandering. So when it cuts to something that has already been established as significant by other media, Order 66, it’s like a jolt out of the stupor the episode has put you in. Case and point, Obi Wan Kenobi focused entirely on the Jedi and was terrible

Good episode, this show is genuinely good when it focuses on the struggles of the Clones in a post Order 66 world, I like the idea of some of them banding together to form a network to get other dispossessed clones out of danger. Definitely feel the dread for the inevitable reveal of what Hemlock's experiments with the Clones are going to be. Also tone was very on point, felt very moody and dire, helped by some absolutely gorgeous gothic establishing shots of the Advanced Science bases Yeah seems like Bad Batch is going to take the fight to the Empire, likely to avoid even more damage to Pabu which is a good call. Although I can still very much sense tragedy in the future towards their plans of living an idyllic life on Pabu, as Andor shows the Empire reaches every planet eventually, even if it's a beach resort planet Also was wondering why Mount Tantiss was so familiar, that’s where the Emperor’s Spa’arti cloning cylinders were in Heir to the Empire. Seems like a sensible allusion to the old canon

That was very bad. Ahmed Best had some cool moments as Cellareq, that's about it. The more we see of the Covert the worse they get I swear...