Scott_N

That infamous 4chan leak does seem to be pretty spot on so far and it also names Sauron:

What the actual fuck? The entire elven race will perish without mithril? And "by spring" to boot! And Numenor is rescuing Middle-earth with three ships and 300 men?

You make a good case and I can live with her single-minded obsession with Sauron. As well as a deep-seated anger fueling that fixation (not that she has to be angry at everyone, at all times though). Galadriel being stupid and simple, however, is where I draw the line.

Maybe this is now a case of you doing the projecting? For a scene you think is so trivial you've spent an inordinate amount of time defending it. Even if you were to concede that scene was silly, it doesn't turn you into a republican, you know.

This seems a pretty astute assessment to me.

OK. I don't do social media so don't really pick up on those things. I just mean that Galadriel should be an enormously impressive character. How old is she here? Several thousand years at least. I expect immense gravitas and wisdom from her and none of that is on offer.

I'm not sure what her gender has to do with it although I suppose you are free to make it about that. Do you think she has the demeanor and likely behavior of a centuries-old being? I think she comes across as astonishingly immature for her age. And I'd say the same if it were a 50-year old human - male or female.

No objections to that, really, but if the show wanted us to believe in this Galadriel, the uber-uber elf, they have made a mistake in the casting. P.S. I don't blame the actress for her centuries-old character behaving like a snubbed teenager all the time; that must be on the showrunners.

I made it through the first episode but it was a struggle. It was humming along OK, neither good nor bad, up until Galadriel sword-skated and single-handedly killed the troll. Why do they have to do this stuff? Do people really like it? Every bit as bad as Legolas snout-skating. I have no problem at all with Galadriel as a commander - she is an intelligent, powerful and capable woman - but do they have to make a warrior superhero of her? Anyhow, then came the Harfoots. So 'cute', so 'adorable'... Made me genocidal. Sweet Mary but what calculated drivel. The romance in the south I assume has only been inserted because it said so in an executive briefing somewhere. Dialog and plot abysmal. Pacing poor. Scenery very pretty. It felt very dumb and very blockbustery.

Exactly. It's a happy ending only in the context of what has come before it. I think it's perfectly in keeping with how the show has developed. The ending Jimmy chose wasn't out of self-interest or his love for Kim. It was out of his (belated) commitment to justice and how, ultimately, he faces up to it without flinching. Here's a good interview on Peter Gould's thoughts on the final episode: https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/better-call-saul-peter-gould-interview-ending-finale-1235341919/

@Ran

I agree. What I did not understand however:

Not really sure what it is about in the end. First half of the season was decent if somewhat underwhelming. It looks good, mostly, and casting worked well in the main. I expected more, something unique* (to be fair those expectations could have been exaggerated in my mind from how the show has been received on here). The second half of the season gets progressively worse. There is no attempt at character development and I am therefore not interested in any of them. Neither like nor dislike them. Episodic storytelling. It feels like I am supposed to take the show very seriously but it does not provide me a reason to do so. Looks like it is very popular with fans of the original work so that is good. Reviews elsewhere appears a bit more mixed. * I appreciate that, when it was originally released, it must have been unique given how inclusive and representative it is.

Hopefully this will be better in the series proper but based on the trailers, the actress that plays Galadriel lacks gravitas. And G would have that regardless of age. If the show is built around her I don't see it working out well.

Them ghosting Peter Jackson is the first positive I've come across on this thread. So yay.

It does look good and I echo your question: Why is Amazon so god damn awful at it?

That mansion is a fleeting thing though, no? We have seen it basically taken apart and carried away. I assume that will be re-visited towards the end, setting us up for the pauper we know from BB.

So poor. DNF.

Though I agree with your statement, I also think it looks, erm, cheap. If that makes any sense. It looks like a video game; none of it looks proper or real since it is so obviously CGI. I wish I could stay away from this thread but like some sad masochist I keep coming back for more punishment.

Yeah, I watch everything with subtitles nowadays. Why they don't want us to hear what their characters are saying is a mystery to me.

I wish it was a real list because it'd be hilarious to see the silliness it'd result in. But I expect it is made-up nonsense cause not a single person involved in modern sport science would look at BMI. A thoroughly pointless and discredited metric other than, perhaps, for diagnosing extremes in gen pop.

Pretty sure that is the most glory hunting thing I've ever read. Then further exacerbated by the presumption of referring to Man City as 'City'. Two middling, non-entities that have been juiced by theft and petro-fascists, respectively.

What do you mean by that, mate? I watched the first season and liked it well enough but not sufficiently so to continue onward. Now I wonder if maybe I should reconsider.

I love Succession and really enjoy Yellowstone even if it is pulpy. 1883, after a first few jumbled episodes, turns into a story about a superhero teenage girl. There is nothing on this earth that you can think of, that she will not turn out to do better than most anyone else. Which is a shame because the actress clearly has presence but the way her character is written is just hopeless. I finished the season mostly because Sam Elliot is in it but I'm not sure he is convinced by it himself. LaMonica Garrett is great though. Tim McGraw passable, Faith Hill is not an actress.

Reading LV's post in full, I caught myself thinking that is a show I'd like to watch. Only to remember I did watch it and it was pretty awful. It looks pretty good, to be fair, and the casting is decent. The characters are not though - simplistic and unconvicing. It takes a very creative approach to history too but I suppose that is inevitable. If you go into it expecting and wanting an undemanding soap it might work better. I thought it would be something more substantial.