FX's "Legion"

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by vince, Feb 9, 2017.

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  1. beccabear67

    beccabear67 Musical omnivore.

    Location:
    Victoria, Canada
    He is the only character I (barely) knew of, but really i must've stopped reading around the time of that new Mutants comic, thanks for that cover to hang my hat on Jim B. (that crazy alien warlock guy just before that made a bigger impression). I think one of the last things I bought was that, Moonshadow, Swamp Thing and a couple of X Annuals with Art Adams artwork someone raved to me about (well not counting some Japanese series, Beanworld, Love & Rockets and Bone anyway).

    I thought I recognized some Vancouver, and then I thought I saw some of Victoria in another show called Imposters the same night, kind of trippy!
     
  2. Deesky

    Deesky Forum Resident

  3. thegage

    thegage Forum Currency Nerd

    Really enjoyed the first episode in spit of knowing nothing about the premise. Hopefully it will continue to be engaging, unlike many shows recently which just petered out.

    John K.
     
  4. vince

    vince Stan Ricker's son-in-law Thread Starter

  5. jpelg

    jpelg Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Elm City
    Loved the premiere! But admittedly, it was exhausting to watch, with me trying to pay attention to so many details, afraid of missing something important.

    Hope the creators can keep it all up.
     
  6. JimW

    JimW In the Process of Becoming

    Location:
    Charlottesville VA
    Can you believe there's already a pre-order for a bluray of season 1?!?!?

    Amazon.com: Legion Season 1 (BD+DVD+DHD) [Blu-ray]: Movies & TV

    And with 43 reviews! They usually won't let you post reviews of products before they're released, which makes sense. But, since the pilot was available for free on prime video, they have all these reviews of just that for the season 1 blu.
     
  7. R. Cat Conrad

    R. Cat Conrad Almost Famous

    Location:
    D/FW Metroplex
    Sorry, some spoilers follow in my comments below:

    I thought Sydney Barrett was a kewl reference at first because it was subtle enough that Pink Floyd fans would pick up on it immediately and politely nudge those who might not get the reference right off. But the apparent need to make a point of this irony by later mentioning her name in the shortened androgynous form (i.e., Syd) to drive home the cleverness of that reference was unnecessary. In my estimation, that was one too many bricks in the wall.

    Conversely, I like where the show appears to be headed and the characters are involving (good acting from the principles), but I'll reserve judgment. The visuals are great, but I felt that some of the scenes slowed the story's pacing. The use of classic and not-overused music from The Who & Stones worked well, but the use of gaudy 60's era attire by the sister visiting her brother in an asylum which appeared futuristic in places was a stark contrast, adding unnecessary confusion to a story that requires the audience follow scenes closely to make sense of it all. The what's real vs. what isn't trope can be an effective, but too much back and forth to stretch the plot only stretches the audience.s patience.

    Also, the FX ...while quite good... serviced scenes which I felt would've been more effective if employed a bit more sparingly. Did we need to see a vast military security presence with bullets flying all around, incapable of hitting targets that would embarrass any casual rifle range novice? Great slam bang climax to the episode, ...but really?! The flash followed by burned corpses of security falling into the pool were creepily effective, but the manner of their demise was never disclosed. If the mutants can do that ...and also toss security personnel around like paper dolls..., why even bother with firearms for the rescue?

    If it sounds like I don't like this show, that would be a gross overstatement. I'm perplexed, but intrigued. Right now I'm trying to warm up to it, hoping future episodes will reveal more background while focusing on the Legion's purpose and goals. The characters and evolving relationships are certainly interesting enough to pursue as long as the story doesn't get bogged down in a cycle of capture and rescue themes.

    :cheers:
    Cat
     
    Last edited: Feb 15, 2017
  8. vince

    vince Stan Ricker's son-in-law Thread Starter

    ....and THOMAS DOLBY gets a CHECK!!
    :righton:
     
  9. balzac

    balzac Senior Member

    Just tried the first episode. Interesting that at one point, it inexplicably morphs from 1.78x1 to 2.35x1 aspect ratio.

    I'm intrigued enough to keep going with the second episode (have it DVR'ed but haven't watched yet), but I have mixed feelings so far. I though the first episode was interesting, but the stylized stuff was a bit over the top to me. It eventually struck me as a bit self-indulgent.

    I think there's a place for shows like this, but I just keep thinking about the TV shows I think are the strongest, and how they are so powerful without resorting to most of the "tricks" that "Legion" used. But I'm guessing the stylized bits and slow-mo wankery and all of that may be pulled back a bit in future episodes, so I'll keep on it for now.
     
  10. beccabear67

    beccabear67 Musical omnivore.

    Location:
    Victoria, Canada
    Three episodes in and it is making more sense. It's a unique experience for me as I do remember some of the monsters from the comics I read almost thirty years ago, somewhat of a bonus trippy extra dimension.
     
  11. Deesky

    Deesky Forum Resident

    Don't know nothin' 'bout no comics, but I'm quite enjoying this series. While it can be disorienting at times, I also find a lot of attention to detail which makes more sense as more details are revealed, often reinforcing previously established imagery. Speaking of which, the devil dude reminds me of classic-Who Sontaran!
     
  12. balzac

    balzac Senior Member

    Watched the second and third episodes and it's just not doing as much for me as I would typically hope. It's not bad, but the stylized stuff just seems like overkill to me. I was hoping they would reign it in a little compared to the pilot. I suppose they have, but the thing does seem a bit pretentious still.

    I've read some positive and negative reviews of the show (negative reviews are of course much harder to come by), and some comments from the showrunner, and he comes off as a bit pretentious in at least one comment I saw where he made a pretty blanket statement about the "movie" format in trying to describe why TV shows are essentially better than movies.

    I think one review did mention part of what may throw me off about the show, saying something alone the lines that the show "has a Rubik's cube at its core where there should be a heart."

    I'm having trouble being invested in the characters. The relationship between David and Sydney has far too little context. They "love" each other but we've barely seen them have any sort of relationship. David, even for someone still coming out of the haze of that mental hospital, seems weirdly non-inquisitive about the place they've taken him to. I'm not saying they had to do a Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory big reveal of their compound, but I'd think he'd have a few more questions. While I thought Stevens effectively chewed the scenery in the wonderful and partly campy "The Guest", I'm finding his acting a bit distracting in this new show. He seems to have a few go-to facial expressions that he uses over and over.

    Still, it's compelling enough to continue.
     
  13. Vidiot

    Vidiot Now in 4K HDR!

    Location:
    Hollywood, USA
    I saw that and fell outta my chair.

    I really like the show. Man, is it wacky. I would call it "the Marvel superhero version of Mr. Robot," which I think is not far from the truth. No question, the characters are weird and off-putting, but I think you gotta just jump in and enjoy the ride.
     
  14. vince

    vince Stan Ricker's son-in-law Thread Starter

    This past episode had a few 'dashes' of "Inception" & "The Cell"....
    along with "Mr. Robot".
     
    Vidiot likes this.
  15. balzac

    balzac Senior Member

    They have done it since at least one or two more times (can't remember exactly how many), and one review I read confirmed that they morph the aspect ratio, I guess, just to signify a changing of the tone/suspense/stakes in a given moment.

    It's an interesting idea, though it certainly has the potential to snap a viewer out of being "in" the world of the show.
     
    Vidiot likes this.
  16. dynamicalories

    dynamicalories Forum Resident

    Location:
    Peekskill, NY
    I'm betting the evil thing inside David's mind is the Shadow King.
     
  17. vince

    vince Stan Ricker's son-in-law Thread Starter

    That may be a spoiler.... but, I have no idea what that means!
     
  18. dynamicalories

    dynamicalories Forum Resident

    Location:
    Peekskill, NY
    It's just my guess, based on my knowledge of the X-Universe.
     
  19. Vidiot

    Vidiot Now in 4K HDR!

    Location:
    Hollywood, USA
    I think I used to work for this guy (the demon in the show)...

    [​IMG]
     
  20. Jim B.

    Jim B. Senior Member

    Location:
    UK
    That's what I thought too.
     
  21. Lonson

    Lonson I'm in the kitchen with the Tombstone Blues

    I think this is very well done. Love how Ms Plaza is being used.
     
    vince likes this.
  22. Tree of Life

    Tree of Life Hysteria

    Location:
    Captiva Island, FL
    You know, I'm trying to like this show, really I'm am, but the damn jumping back & forth is really getting tiresome. How long am I going to sit through this before "Legion" finally gets control of his POWER! It's exhausting my eyeballs!
     
  23. Chazro

    Chazro Forum Resident

    Location:
    West Palm Bch, Fl.
    I stopped reading the X- men books decades ago, way before this guy ever showed up. While I keep seeing 'X's' all over the place, besides the old creators being mentioned in the credits, I don't recognize ANY of these characters! Not necessarily a bad thing! His girlfriend seems to have Rogue's powers, if she's the same character I guess they've completely changed her backstory. Anyways, so far it's pretty good, not great, but still very watchable.
     
    vince likes this.
  24. DreadPikathulhu

    DreadPikathulhu Senior Member

    Location:
    Seattle
    I've got New Mutants #26 in my boxes, but I stopped reading about two years later and don't remember anything about the character or the story line (the only thing I remember from that era is the "demon bear" arc). The show is OK and I'm watching, but I find myself getting tired of hour-long SF/Horror dramas - just too much of a time commitment.
     
  25. 93curr

    93curr Senior Member

    So, being in your own astral projection ice cube allows you to have classic first-edition ESP LPs but not a decent turntable? Good to know
     
    beccabear67 likes this.
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