“Station Eleven” – HBO Max Miniseries

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by bmoregnr, Jan 14, 2022.

  1. EddieMann

    EddieMann I used to be a king...

    Location:
    Geneva, IL. USA.
    A lot of connections in this article I didn’t spot originally. I’ve started watching a second time with my loving and tolerant wife (watched it by myself initially), I hope she sticks with it. This was a show that had me many times sitting up and leaning towards the set so as not to miss anything.
    The comparisons to The Leftovers are appropriate too. Another series that had me in rapt attention throughout.
    Saturday, with one episode to go, we drove into Chicago for the day. A restaurant we ended up in for dinner had one other couple in it which seemed oddly appropriate to me. Couldn’t wait to get home to finish off the series.
     
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  2. JohnG

    JohnG PROG now in Dolby ATMOS!

    Location:
    Long Island NY
    My wife really likes it so that’s a good thing. Great story and acting.
     
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  3. bmoregnr

    bmoregnr Forum Rezident Thread Starter

    Location:
    1060 W. Addison
    I rarely go through a second viewing of a show but doing so in this one so far is really satisfying. You can now better appreciate how the bread crumbs are all laid out and threaded together in service of the themes of loss, healing, leaving, returning, aloneness and family.
     
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  4. Scotian

    Scotian Amnesia Hazed

    I agree. I got lost a couple times & read a couple of those episode recap & explained articles. I think I might enjoy it more the second time although I still really liked it. It kind of reminded me of Cloud Atlas, the way it was structured.
     
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  5. JohnG

    JohnG PROG now in Dolby ATMOS!

    Location:
    Long Island NY
    We finished last night and it does leave a lot of questions about the characters like what was up with Tyler the Prophet? He starts as a bad guy, gets stabbed but doesn't die, then we find out he has murderous intentions using small kids, then later he reunites with his mother and seems to change his ways. Complicated character and he is just one, all of them leave questions on motives and character development.

    My favorite episode was the one at the airport just as the virus hits the world. The one with Miranda stuck in Malaysia was also nerve wracking.

    Overall we loved it.
     
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  6. bmoregnr

    bmoregnr Forum Rezident Thread Starter

    Location:
    1060 W. Addison
    Tyler stated when he was laid up stabbed he lost control of the story, that Haley told another story that the mines erased the past... that was Pingtree. It does not excuse that he might have had similar plans for them at The Museum of Civilization, but it at least seems to show he had more redemption potential in him... or that it represents how cults can spin out of control. It was telling when Cody told Kirsten "they like it when things sound like they're from the Prophecy" to me highlighting the brainwashing characteristics of that particular Undersea. He was a damaged dude.

    I am through Ep 6 of a second viewing and looking forward to my favorite 7 - Goodbye My Damaged Home.
     
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  7. Kevin j

    Kevin j The 5th 99

    Location:
    Seattle Area
    i haven't read the book, but tyler was not a good guy in it. he was a rapist.
     
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  8. Lonson

    Lonson I'm in the kitchen with the Tombstone Blues

    I watched the first episode and part of the second but got stalled by life and a few other series. I'll get back to it. . . was intriguing but obviously not compelling or I'd have gotten further. On the horizon for a resumed watching soon. Glad to see so much interest in it here.
     
  9. JohnG

    JohnG PROG now in Dolby ATMOS!

    Location:
    Long Island NY
    There are two episodes coming up that are great, the airport one and the Escape From Malaysia one.

    I didn’t really love the final episode, I thought it would be more cathartic.

    And I understand the book is very different from this mini series. I guess they felt they needed to reign in the mayhem of the book conserving Tyler.
     
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  10. I enjoyed the first 2 episodes and will stick with it to the end. I was worried about the quality going into this, because of the writer's connection to The Leftovers, a series I strongly disliked.
     
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  11. curbach

    curbach Some guy on the internet

    Location:
    The ATX
    Just finished the series last night and enjoyed it very much, but the Tyler storyline is very problematic.

    The entire Traveling Symphony had to have known he used children as suicide bombers to kill the David Cross character and no one seemed to care? Kirsten saw no need to tell Tyler’s mother that he was a murderous psychopath, and instead helped to reconcile them? He clearly had plans in motion to use children with stolen mines to destroy the airport and that just kind of dissolved without mention. And why did Alex give Tyler the knife? She had clearly expressed a desire to remain at the airport. How would aiding in the assassination of the airport leader help that goal?
    Maybe I missed stuff and should rewatch :magoo: Anyway, it was a good story with lots to enjoy despite my misgivings re the Tyler arc.
     
  12. bmoregnr

    bmoregnr Forum Rezident Thread Starter

    Location:
    1060 W. Addison
    Yes I agree with all of that as well, and none of his arc gets any better on a second viewing. Part of the problem seems to me is they were not as careful with his arc as the other arcs. It is possible Haley was being Haley when she had the mine at the airport; meaning her splinter group was doing something different with the story, and Tyler again had no such plans. I can only assume no kids were used in the bombing of this control tower… but maybe it would have been nice to know that for sure. I assume his handheld was a detonator where no kids were required; and the kids only came after they saw the signal.

    As for Alex it seems she, in a very post-apocalyptic teenager vibe, never seems to know what she wants whenever she does anything. In the end she went with Tyler, so maybe she felt giving him the knife would allow him to destroy the Before and remain at the airport creating a new community. It’s also quite probable to me that when she told Kirsten she was staying, it was more to hurt, or break away from, Kirsten than any logical decision.

    Every time you dig into the Alex story it feels like you are making excuses, and it does seem from hearing about the book he is a monster, so maybe they tried to keep some of that and just ended up in no man’s land on the court. But yes I agree plenty of well-founded misgivings is the consensus.
     
  13. Juan Matus

    Juan Matus Reformed Audiophile

    I also watched the first two and so far I like it. It's different in a good way. The only issue I have it's hard not to see Kirsten as Cameron from Halt and Catch Fire.
     
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  14. bmoregnr

    bmoregnr Forum Rezident Thread Starter

    Location:
    1060 W. Addison
    I’ve finished my second full viewing with certainly some episodes or scenes, 7,10 especially more than that. I don’t have an official count but I’d say there are a solid 30 or so connections or Easter eggs in there I either read about or picked up. Maybe not a reason for many to want to rewatch but it really added to my experience with it.
     
  15. EddieMann

    EddieMann I used to be a king...

    Location:
    Geneva, IL. USA.
    Can you elaborate on that a bit? Easter eggs that connect to what?
     
  16. bmoregnr

    bmoregnr Forum Rezident Thread Starter

    Location:
    1060 W. Addison
    It’s tough to list out IMO because it comes in different forms, reinforcement in the flashbacks sometimes; point/counterpart between characters, Hamlet connections, Shakespeare references, Doctor Eleven sightings, that Clark had Miranda’s Banana in his sitting area in the Airport, the Edmund Fitzgerald is referenced and when Clark lies down on the lake styled rug in the airport atrium his head is placed where it sank. Rose and Alex. Along with some drivel I logged the things I missed on the first viewing, and I didn’t bother to mention the dozen or so other big ones already discovered in the subreddit. It’s here at your own risk, but there are other good one in the subreddit. https://www.reddit.com/r/StationEle...urce=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf
     
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  17. nojmplease

    nojmplease Host, You Can't Unhear This

    Location:
    New York, NY
    Finally finished this - wow. To anyone who is on the fence after watching the first few episodes, I'd strongly urge you to finish the show. It really picked up with Episode 5, and was absolutely spectacular through the finale. This is top-tier television. All of the minor quibbles I had while watching some episodes (e.g. Tyler's characterization) came into clarity once I noticed and absorbed details that I had initially missed. It's a dense presentation, and the jumping around in time makes it even more challenging.

    I can't recall the last time I've seen a show deal so satisfyingly with the concepts of trauma, loss, resolution, art, family, humanity and love - and have enough respect for its audience's intelligence to not spell everything out in plain detail. And with a killer soundtrack, to boot.
     
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  18. robertawillisjr

    robertawillisjr Music Lover

    Location:
    Hampton, VA
    Fascinating. The ending was a bit pat but the series works well at keeping one engaged and thoughtful. :righton::righton:
     
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  19. David Egan

    David Egan Forum Resident

    Location:
    Oakland CA
    With Mackenzie Davis you have charisma along with one of the most expressive faces on the screen. All the performances kept me glued even while I wasn't clear on a few things. Second viewing inevitable.
     
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  20. Bill Hart

    Bill Hart Forum Resident

    Location:
    Austin
    It was by turns stunning and boring, riveting and too drawn out and ultimately, not worth the candle. The first episode was brilliant and the acting was, if not consistently stellar, worthy of note. I actually enjoyed the protagonist as a young girl more than her adult version. Jeevan was to me, the most interesting character. Because this didn't grip me the way some dramas do, I'm not sure I could recommend it to others.
     
  21. Plinko

    Plinko Senior Member

    I guess I am halfway through. Enjoying it. Currently watching the “F**ck Jerry Mercer” episode. Great stuff!
     
  22. I tried to watch this. I hated it. Watched three episodes.
     

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