I like the setting and characters a lot. The show is a little weak and the jokes fall flat sometimes, but it is still good. I don’t find the jokes offensive.
Do we know when the next batch is coming? I gather that this was a “half-season” so I hope it’s not a whole year.
I do hope that Elfo isn’t permanently dead.
I’m working through the 3rd episode, and it feels kind of like…they forgot to write jokes.
I don’t mean that in a shade-y way. I think that it’s clear that Groening is trying to do something more dramatic and serial-ized, more like a movie, but I think that they don’t really know how. One of the things about Futurama and the Simpsons that’s notable is the sheer density of jokes. The story moves quickly, dialog moves quickly, and they tried to jam as many jokes as possible into 22 minutes. This show has extended periods of quiet, but they aren’t dramatic, theyre just periods where nothing is happening.
Here, it feels like they really suffered without the constraints of the network sitcom. I think having the freedom to take as much time as they want and try to tell a long form story at the same time really combine into them losing track of what they’re doing.
The soundscape of the show is just weirdly…quiet and kind of boring. Even when somebody is talking, it feels like there’s too much time in between lines, like nobody is responding to one another, and they’re just recorded in different rooms.
If this was a little catchier, it could be Netflix’s mission statement. “Freeing creators to make worse art” or something. There are very few things Netflix has produced that this doesn’t apply to, in my opinion.
Yeah, it’s definitely a thing with Netflix.
While I can’t think of an example off the top of my head, I feel like some of the hour-long dramas on streaming services have benefited from the looser time constraints. Some stories want 40 minutes instead of 50, and that little bit of wiggle room helps sometimes.
Comedies, however, really seem to benefit from the time limitations, and so suffer on Netflix. Even a lack of commercial breaks hurts them, since writers know how to handle those breaks for maximum impact (cliffhangers, big jokes, repeating stuff for impact on return, etc), and so removing them just leads to a feeling of monotony.
That was the thing that struck me the most. It wasn’t quite as bad, but it really reminded me of terribad films like Birdemic or anything made by Neil Breen, where the stiltedness of the delivery is so distracting. Very odd, given that Groening obviously has experience and so I assume does the production staff on this.
Despite the first season delivery, I am looking forward for the 2th season. Maybe the whole become more than the parts.
I thought the last three episodes were pretty strong, and I’m also down for more. Have they announced when that will happen?
Watched two episodes a week and a half ago. Loved the Mothersbaugh score. The rest I could do without.
I think I’ve watched three episodes now, and I’m not entirely sure I want to keep watching until I get to the good ones.
You could say I’ve been disenchanted with the experience.
More like “nGroan”
Or nGroen(ing)
I have a crush on Bean, and really like the voice actor for Elfo. (Lucy is fine too.)
The only character I really don’t like is the King. Which is shocking considering how awesome Bender and Jake (the dog) are.
Same. They seemed to be doing his accent as a shtick, and frankly it got tiring pretty quickly. The rest are great.
The first episode left me a bit cold, but I’m glad I stuck with this. It’s not super funny (though “Little Siezures Poison Shop” did get a good laugh out of me) but it’s fun and enjoyable enough.
Picked up for 20 more episodes.
Matt Groening series we’re talking about here
Yay!
But this series seems more expensive to produce. (The art is way more detailed.) I would like 20 seasons, but it may be unlikely.
Shocko! That bit got me good.