Sci-Fi!
I really enjoyed Arrival. It's smart and it's got heart, and it lived up to my 'it's as if Uhura got to be the main character' excitement when I saw the trailer after hearing of the buzz. Amy Adams is excellent as a grown-up lady who is competent at her job right at the heart of everything, ably supported by a good cast (Renner has never been so hot playing an occasionally bespectacled theoretical physicist, but I think that says more about me than anything else). It had more substance than the director's Sciario, for me. And it's one of the films that Interstellar was trying to be, but better. Add aliens to your explanation for the head-spinny science, and it's always better.
Also, Humans has been back for a bit, but was up against Poldark, so I've only caught up this week. The Humans Stand Up to Cancer skit was quite funny, mainly for torturing Joe.
Humans 2.1
Niska (NISKA!) went to Berlin (why not Stockholm and reference the show came from Sweden?) and was rude and thus attractive to a German girl (as this is a Channel 4 show) who was rude about Niska seeking advice from dead white men (again, a Channel 4 show). Her advice led to Niska uploading the consciousness upgrade to the network…and nothing happened.
Except of course it did, in Bolivia, to a boy synth, who symbolically ascended from a mine in a very artful shot.
The Hawkins family have moved, there are still tensions between Laura and Joe, and Sophie is either being a tween or pretending to be a synth/waiting for Mia/Anita to return. (If that human boy is meant to be an obstacle to the Leotilda the show seeded last season, I will not be impressed.)
Mia, it turned out, was working as Anita at a no-hoper caff with Gunnar from Nashville - although I knew the actor was English, it might take a little bit of adjusting to ‘Ed’, who seems nice, and Mia seems to like him. Like that. She also likes the sunlight and re-enacting bits of Gladiator.
So with the bob-haired Nottingham synth who attained consciousness, if seems like the upgrade is only affecting a small number of synths (let’s call them special snowflake synths 2.0).
Laura and Joe had a marriage counselling session…with a synth played by Josie Lawrence (this season's Rebecca Front?)
Ed showed off the sweet, but puzzled Gunnar face that was so endearing in Nashville as Mia let the Anita mask slip a little with all the helping.
Have to admit that as soon as bob-cut ‘Hester’ went towards such a dilapidated location, I started assuming the 'we' was Leo, and yes it was, (looking scruffy as ever) and SWEET MAX. Also the Bolivian synth. AS IF the Bolivian model would only speak Spanish while a Nottingham-based synth could understand Spanish also - Max, fine, and Leo not being able to, also fine if it meant Max tweaked him a little. Anyway, of course, someone was following not!Hester, and not!Hester and Radiator were willing to defend themselves with lethal force. But Radiator got downed by a lady sniper (why thank you, show).
Nice tease with the synth feet, because I thought we were going to come across another suddenly sentient synth narrative, and the show’s already introduced a lot of new characters, but we were back to Joe, getting sacked because a synth could do his job (better/on less caffeine). Ouch. His turn to feel redundant because of a synth.
Niska finally learned that her upload hadn’t been a total dud - and thus could escape trying to let Astrid in. So, Leo and Max had been picking up the pieced she’d left strewn around, unknowing - as suggested.
Finally, Carrie-Anne Moss (this season’s William Hurt) as scientist Athena (subtle, show, not), who we learned had created AIs, but was finding it problematic and then got an offer from a short guy/entrepreneur who I think had been on the laptop at the Hawkins’ house and dangled a sentient synth in front of her to get her to work for his company. Was it curiosity or desperation that got her to agree? Anyway, she was cold, well, from my perspective as someone who realised that Artie was sentient, in being willing to take him apart.
Leo didn’t get much out of his prisoner, not surprisingly, but then got into a fight with Mia. Not knowing about the adopted mother stuff, Not!Hester was a bit confuced about their relationship, although Sweet Max tried to be her guide. Mia wanting to find out who she is, is fair enough, although yes, she’s going to give herself away.
(Nobody seems to think that Leo could try passing for human and getting supplies. Heh.)
Mattie was totally searching for Leo and being rude about the human apprentice, as the Hawkins kids tried to deal with the aftermath of season 1, and then Joe dropped the redundancy news. As Laura intimated, he might have told her first.
Niska obviously would think that 4.30 is a perfectly good time to drop in and ask Laura to represent her for killing that man, which wasn’t quite what I thought she was leaving Germany for.
Was I entertained? Just about - the show’s gone international, or certainly bigger, and I wonder if it’s going to keep introducing more newly conscious synths, because we’re mainly invested in the season 1 characters, but it seemed to be managing a nice balance with that and the tensions within the two families, and the ripples of various actions. Also, there does seem to be just a bit more humour, which I felt was missing in the first season.
2.2
Sophie and Niska were reunited, which is always a fun combo. Laura decided not to represent Niska (yeah, yeah).
We had the return of Karen and Pete - and the artificial heart wants what it want, I guess??? I remained bemused by her feelings for Pete for most of the episode. (I too see heartache for Mia and her artificial heart.)
Dr Athena killed Artie, but was kind to her AI and alluded to a personal tragedy so we’re meant to feel sorry for her (uh-huh, well let’s wait what the other snowflake synths make of what she's up to).
Hester proved to be better at torture than Leo (no surprise) as he was feeling guilty for not protecting everyone last season. Sweet Max continues to bring the comedy, while trying to bring the conscience to go along with the consciousness to Hester.
Dr Athena, clearly thinking of V as ‘her’ ‘child’, decided to download V into a new synth, without much regard for either of them.
Mia letting the Anita mask slip with Ed's mother, after it fluttered around Ed - and yes, she could empathise with someone with dementia - is actually touching.
Toby got interested in a ‘synthie’ - ignoring the fact that Sophie is borderline going there.
Mattie brought a very broken Odi ‘back’ and although she laid out her well-meaning plan to get back in touch with ‘Mia and the others’ (why yes, I will read into that) and I love Mattie doing stuff, clever big sister isn’t thinking about all the things that could and will go wrong.
I know I should be worrying about what Milo is up to but I was too busy noticing that Dr Athena and her younger patron have got a very definite chemistry amid the antagonistic vibe. Not sure if the show is seeing the chemistry I’m seeing, mind.
In a late-developing pronoun shift, the Government lawyer called Niska ‘she’.
Ed is not as thick as Gunnar could be. Mia’s line about being children - ouch. But this journey of Mia finding out who she is really warming me to the character. For all the airtime she got last season, it was mainly Mia subsumed by Anita and we didn't get to know her.
Leo, Max and Hester should have agreed to something on their prisoner, and then he might not have ended up dead.
So, this episode brought back more from season 1 - Hobb as well as the other characters I’ve mentioned, gave us Hawkins family stuff and Elster family stuff, while developing the plot a little more. Not bad. So, I hope to watch it live from here on in.
This entry was originally posted at http://shallowness.dreamwidth.org/259979.html.
Also, Humans has been back for a bit, but was up against Poldark, so I've only caught up this week. The Humans Stand Up to Cancer skit was quite funny, mainly for torturing Joe.
Humans 2.1
Niska (NISKA!) went to Berlin (why not Stockholm and reference the show came from Sweden?) and was rude and thus attractive to a German girl (as this is a Channel 4 show) who was rude about Niska seeking advice from dead white men (again, a Channel 4 show). Her advice led to Niska uploading the consciousness upgrade to the network…and nothing happened.
Except of course it did, in Bolivia, to a boy synth, who symbolically ascended from a mine in a very artful shot.
The Hawkins family have moved, there are still tensions between Laura and Joe, and Sophie is either being a tween or pretending to be a synth/waiting for Mia/Anita to return. (If that human boy is meant to be an obstacle to the Leotilda the show seeded last season, I will not be impressed.)
Mia, it turned out, was working as Anita at a no-hoper caff with Gunnar from Nashville - although I knew the actor was English, it might take a little bit of adjusting to ‘Ed’, who seems nice, and Mia seems to like him. Like that. She also likes the sunlight and re-enacting bits of Gladiator.
So with the bob-haired Nottingham synth who attained consciousness, if seems like the upgrade is only affecting a small number of synths (let’s call them special snowflake synths 2.0).
Laura and Joe had a marriage counselling session…with a synth played by Josie Lawrence (this season's Rebecca Front?)
Ed showed off the sweet, but puzzled Gunnar face that was so endearing in Nashville as Mia let the Anita mask slip a little with all the helping.
Have to admit that as soon as bob-cut ‘Hester’ went towards such a dilapidated location, I started assuming the 'we' was Leo, and yes it was, (looking scruffy as ever) and SWEET MAX. Also the Bolivian synth. AS IF the Bolivian model would only speak Spanish while a Nottingham-based synth could understand Spanish also - Max, fine, and Leo not being able to, also fine if it meant Max tweaked him a little. Anyway, of course, someone was following not!Hester, and not!Hester and Radiator were willing to defend themselves with lethal force. But Radiator got downed by a lady sniper (why thank you, show).
Nice tease with the synth feet, because I thought we were going to come across another suddenly sentient synth narrative, and the show’s already introduced a lot of new characters, but we were back to Joe, getting sacked because a synth could do his job (better/on less caffeine). Ouch. His turn to feel redundant because of a synth.
Niska finally learned that her upload hadn’t been a total dud - and thus could escape trying to let Astrid in. So, Leo and Max had been picking up the pieced she’d left strewn around, unknowing - as suggested.
Finally, Carrie-Anne Moss (this season’s William Hurt) as scientist Athena (subtle, show, not), who we learned had created AIs, but was finding it problematic and then got an offer from a short guy/entrepreneur who I think had been on the laptop at the Hawkins’ house and dangled a sentient synth in front of her to get her to work for his company. Was it curiosity or desperation that got her to agree? Anyway, she was cold, well, from my perspective as someone who realised that Artie was sentient, in being willing to take him apart.
Leo didn’t get much out of his prisoner, not surprisingly, but then got into a fight with Mia. Not knowing about the adopted mother stuff, Not!Hester was a bit confuced about their relationship, although Sweet Max tried to be her guide. Mia wanting to find out who she is, is fair enough, although yes, she’s going to give herself away.
(Nobody seems to think that Leo could try passing for human and getting supplies. Heh.)
Mattie was totally searching for Leo and being rude about the human apprentice, as the Hawkins kids tried to deal with the aftermath of season 1, and then Joe dropped the redundancy news. As Laura intimated, he might have told her first.
Niska obviously would think that 4.30 is a perfectly good time to drop in and ask Laura to represent her for killing that man, which wasn’t quite what I thought she was leaving Germany for.
Was I entertained? Just about - the show’s gone international, or certainly bigger, and I wonder if it’s going to keep introducing more newly conscious synths, because we’re mainly invested in the season 1 characters, but it seemed to be managing a nice balance with that and the tensions within the two families, and the ripples of various actions. Also, there does seem to be just a bit more humour, which I felt was missing in the first season.
2.2
Sophie and Niska were reunited, which is always a fun combo. Laura decided not to represent Niska (yeah, yeah).
We had the return of Karen and Pete - and the artificial heart wants what it want, I guess??? I remained bemused by her feelings for Pete for most of the episode. (I too see heartache for Mia and her artificial heart.)
Dr Athena killed Artie, but was kind to her AI and alluded to a personal tragedy so we’re meant to feel sorry for her (uh-huh, well let’s wait what the other snowflake synths make of what she's up to).
Hester proved to be better at torture than Leo (no surprise) as he was feeling guilty for not protecting everyone last season. Sweet Max continues to bring the comedy, while trying to bring the conscience to go along with the consciousness to Hester.
Dr Athena, clearly thinking of V as ‘her’ ‘child’, decided to download V into a new synth, without much regard for either of them.
Mia letting the Anita mask slip with Ed's mother, after it fluttered around Ed - and yes, she could empathise with someone with dementia - is actually touching.
Toby got interested in a ‘synthie’ - ignoring the fact that Sophie is borderline going there.
Mattie brought a very broken Odi ‘back’ and although she laid out her well-meaning plan to get back in touch with ‘Mia and the others’ (why yes, I will read into that) and I love Mattie doing stuff, clever big sister isn’t thinking about all the things that could and will go wrong.
I know I should be worrying about what Milo is up to but I was too busy noticing that Dr Athena and her younger patron have got a very definite chemistry amid the antagonistic vibe. Not sure if the show is seeing the chemistry I’m seeing, mind.
In a late-developing pronoun shift, the Government lawyer called Niska ‘she’.
Ed is not as thick as Gunnar could be. Mia’s line about being children - ouch. But this journey of Mia finding out who she is really warming me to the character. For all the airtime she got last season, it was mainly Mia subsumed by Anita and we didn't get to know her.
Leo, Max and Hester should have agreed to something on their prisoner, and then he might not have ended up dead.
So, this episode brought back more from season 1 - Hobb as well as the other characters I’ve mentioned, gave us Hawkins family stuff and Elster family stuff, while developing the plot a little more. Not bad. So, I hope to watch it live from here on in.
This entry was originally posted at http://shallowness.dreamwidth.org/259979.html.