Minority opinion here, but I'm finding the show's attempts to draw a picture of the cultural war between the U.S. and Russia really clunky, and the dialogue really strident whenever that issue comes up.  It's just this side of "They hate us for our freedoms" (probably a bit more strident in the pilot, with the "The…

@olaf78:disqus : According to imdb Tom Cruise is 5'7"… So you can subtract a few inches from whatever they say.

@olaf78:disqus : According to imdb Tom Cruise is 5'7"… So you can subtract a few inches from whatever they say.

Wouldn't be surprised if it was completely random, either, or at least not an 'official' action.  There's already a group of vigilantes who've publicly announced that they will find and 'bring to justice' the remaining members of Pussy Riot, and you can well imagine what that means.

Wouldn't be surprised if it was completely random, either, or at least not an 'official' action.  There's already a group of vigilantes who've publicly announced that they will find and 'bring to justice' the remaining members of Pussy Riot, and you can well imagine what that means.

Everyone expected they'd receive a fine for and (maybe) probation or a few weeks of jail time.  Then it turned into a bizarre circus where the government prosecutor accused them of being the Antichrist (not an exaggeration) and the regime made them public enemy no.1 in Russia's version of the culture wars while…

Everyone expected they'd receive a fine for and (maybe) probation or a few weeks of jail time.  Then it turned into a bizarre circus where the government prosecutor accused them of being the Antichrist (not an exaggeration) and the regime made them public enemy no.1 in Russia's version of the culture wars while…

Agreed.  The whole thing is a pretty great ride, and I was shocked by how dark they went, by the end.  Unexpected, lovely, and - maybe it's just me, but I found it emotionally more resonant than most of the reviewers seemed to feel.

Agreed.  The whole thing is a pretty great ride, and I was shocked by how dark they went, by the end.  Unexpected, lovely, and - maybe it's just me, but I found it emotionally more resonant than most of the reviewers seemed to feel.

Overall this seems to be getting very similar reviews to Coraline (by RT aggregate, I mean), which is a good sign, given how much Coraline's reputation has only improved with age.  Looking forward to this!

Overall this seems to be getting very similar reviews to Coraline (by RT aggregate, I mean), which is a good sign, given how much Coraline's reputation has only improved with age.  Looking forward to this!

Here's a quick and ugly translation of the lyrics:

Here's a quick and ugly translation of the lyrics:

If I remember correctly, the tribesmen were scarred over because their skin was too light, whereas the advanced civ were all very dark-skinned. Which of course makes the casting ridiculous.

If I remember correctly, the tribesmen were scarred over because their skin was too light, whereas the advanced civ were all very dark-skinned. Which of course makes the casting ridiculous.

Dunno what to tell you. I went into it wanting to love it - I have a thing for experimental fiction, especially when it's linked to genre fiction - but I thought it was a strong framework weakly executed. Best example of what I'm talking about above: the tattoo thing. Surely that rubbed people the wrong way?

Dunno what to tell you. I went into it wanting to love it - I have a thing for experimental fiction, especially when it's linked to genre fiction - but I thought it was a strong framework weakly executed. Best example of what I'm talking about above: the tattoo thing. Surely that rubbed people the wrong way?

It's an odd duck of a sci-fi novel that doesn't quite pull off its main conceit, in part because the author doesn't have the chops and doesn't seem to trust his readers (if you miss the point, he'll be sure to underline it over and over). It's not bad per se, just not very good, either.

It's an odd duck of a sci-fi novel that doesn't quite pull off its main conceit, in part because the author doesn't have the chops and doesn't seem to trust his readers (if you miss the point, he'll be sure to underline it over and over). It's not bad per se, just not very good, either.

It was Ocean who sought them out in the first place (something about him being too serious and appreciating their energy and youth).  And they all seem to get along great, and are really supportive of each other.  So maybe there's more there than what's on the surface, no?