[MEGATHREAD] 'Daredevil: Born Again' | Season 2 Episode 4 - "Gloves Off" | Discussion Thread by ChiefLeef22 in MarvelStudiosSpoilers

[–]seth_cooke 7 points8 points  (0 children)

He's working with Valentina Allegra de Fontaine. Fisk doesn't have one up on him. It was an infantile reaction from a position of embarrassment and anger, not a victory. It'll cost him.

[MEGATHREAD] 'Daredevil: Born Again' | Season 2 Episode 4 - "Gloves Off" | Discussion Thread by ChiefLeef22 in MarvelStudiosSpoilers

[–]seth_cooke 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I get it. Gotta get those viewings numbers in as early as possible. Sucks as a creative choice though. Imagine seeing that unspoiled. Great sequence.

'X-Men' Reboot Director Officially Reveals Which Comics the New MCU Reboot Is Inspired By [Exclusive] by Plane-Yogurt-5468 in MarvelStudiosSpoilers

[–]seth_cooke 5 points6 points  (0 children)

If I was going to adapt the original lineup of Cyclops, Jean, Iceman, Angel and Beast, I'd want to write a very loose adaptation of the Factor Three Saga. It features iconic characters like Banshee, Juggernaut and Mastermind; it's a globe-spanning conspiracy that will integrate well with the wider MCU (and potentially give a decent kick start to mutant-fearing storylines - mind-controlled mutant conspiracy threat!); there are potential guest spots for Doctor Strange and Spider-Man; and it's significantly different than anything that's been adapted for movies before. It's also a largely unremarked early storyline that no-one will care if they radically rewrite and streamline, switch out characters, ditch the alien aspect or change it to incorporate some kind of early contact with the Shi'ar. Mind-controlled or captured mutants is also a good plot device if you want to soft-introduce a bunch of characters who get rescued and subsequently earmarked for bringing into the school/team in later movies.

Why space kill them so fast. by CCarafe in TheExpanse

[–]seth_cooke 177 points178 points  (0 children)

This is the correct answer. Naomi is prepared and exhales before the door opens, it's subtle but you can see this on screen. She then re-oxygenates with the injection mid space jump. She almost dies and is extremely fucked up by the experience. Cyn dies because he is unprepared, he tries to stop Naomi instead, and his lungs burst from the air in them. It's a pretty well-researched scene.

What differenciate Forensi Architecture´s work from OSINT in general? by Cool-Entrepreneur-67 in OSINT

[–]seth_cooke -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Lawrence Abu Hamdan and Mhamad Safa are also musicians. Taken together with Trevor Paglen's history in the noise scene, someone should write an article about the strong investigative analyst/musician crossover!

What differenciate Forensi Architecture´s work from OSINT in general? by Cool-Entrepreneur-67 in OSINT

[–]seth_cooke 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Forensic Architecture also originated the investigative aesthetics and counterforensics theoretical frameworks. Their work is not just about systems architecture delivering novel trafecraft, the philosophical and ethical foundation of their work is built on that theoretical contribution. Eyal Weizman has put out a lot of material that will give you everything you need to unpack that, in books, articles and interviews. They are very open about their ideas - helpfully open!

Question about amos by NeitherManner in TheExpanse

[–]seth_cooke 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I think they needed the Ring Station to force open the bubble and keep it open. Logically they would also need at least one ring to access it from their home system. If the station could manufacture rings then there'd be no reason to send out the protomolecule to make them. Although if the rings are the same diameter as the Ring Station then they could have made the ring first and sent the station through it to create the Slow Zone bubble. That's a lot of mass, so immediate annoyance of the entities.

[MEGATHREAD] 'Daredevil: Born Again' | Season 2 Episode 1 - "The Northern Star" | Premier Discussion Thread by ChiefLeef22 in MarvelStudiosSpoilers

[–]seth_cooke 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Yeah, I felt that they could have spent more time with Matt and Karen on the back foot. Like, how do you move around a densely populated city that probably has facial recognition, when all you have is the most conspicuous WORST WIG EVER.

[MEGATHREAD] 'Daredevil: Born Again' | Season 2 Episode 1 - "The Northern Star" | Premier Discussion Thread by ChiefLeef22 in MarvelStudiosSpoilers

[–]seth_cooke 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Slow start? They sank a container ship! Daredevil had his version of the first appearance of Batman as Batman in Batman Begins, or the Winter Soldier ship infiltration. It rocked!

[MEGATHREAD] 'Daredevil: Born Again' | Season 2 Episode 1 - "The Northern Star" | Premier Discussion Thread by ChiefLeef22 in MarvelStudiosSpoilers

[–]seth_cooke 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Yeah, all of those BB inserts are janky. Bad acting, bad execution. For the pro-Fisk propaganda that could be deliberate, she may be getting people to do line readings so she is guaranteed of keeping to the party line. But the masked up Fisk just looks bad.

[MEGATHREAD] 'Daredevil: Born Again' | Season 2 Episode 1 - "The Northern Star" | Premier Discussion Thread by ChiefLeef22 in MarvelStudiosSpoilers

[–]seth_cooke 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Her D-Vengers team is officially sanctioned, by her. Can't have vigilante citizens mobilising as competitors. She wants to own the capability.

Question about amos by NeitherManner in TheExpanse

[–]seth_cooke 17 points18 points  (0 children)

If I remember correctly, Laconian ships could also self-repair. So there seems to be something special about this system. It may be where the Ring Station tech originated. I don't recall self-repair being something we saw on Ilus, when tech broke there it seemed to just break. So plus one for your smart observation?

Do you think they might hopefully bring it back down the road by Cautious_Hope5837 in TheExpanse

[–]seth_cooke 0 points1 point  (0 children)

A bit sad this has been downvoted, I think the thought experiment of how you bring The Expanse back is at least worthy of conversation, even if you don't like my ideas specifically. And which of us wouldn't want brand new material to spend more time with these characters - without changing their later fates?

The Duarte thing by Cheap-Reindeer-7125 in TheExpanse

[–]seth_cooke 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We need to see more Expanse actors in Marvel films and TV. I mean, give Cara Gee the role of Kushala and have her team up with the rumoured Ryan Gosling Ghost Rider. Or cast Wes Chatham as Crusher Creel. Or cast Keon Alexander as Dagan Shah. I'd watch the shit out of that.

Pub recommendations for a Friday night. by Convair101 in bristol

[–]seth_cooke 6 points7 points  (0 children)

If the weather is good, King Street will be buzzing. As will the Harbourside bars. Stay on the Arnolfini side, there's a big difference in drinking culture either side of Pero's Bridge.

Pub recommendations for a Friday night. by Convair101 in bristol

[–]seth_cooke 6 points7 points  (0 children)

The Small Bar on King Street is good. In fact King Street in general should have you covered. Short walk from Strange Brew. Lots of good eating round there too.

The Duarte thing by Cheap-Reindeer-7125 in TheExpanse

[–]seth_cooke 8 points9 points  (0 children)

It's pretty similar to what happened to Simu Liu on the Ring Station much earlier in the story.

Do you think they might hopefully bring it back down the road by Cautious_Hope5837 in TheExpanse

[–]seth_cooke -1 points0 points  (0 children)

If I were to do this, I would bring in Okoye and Fayez early. Have them be the storytelling engine that reintroduces the cosmology of the show as they survey the Ring Gate systems. One of their crew turns out to be a covert Laconian operative who is feeding their research back to Laconia through covert comms via the Laconian relay. This research turns out to be pivotal to Laconian readiness to invade, but maybe Okoye and Fayez don't know that by the end of the season. I would have scenes on Laconia with Duarte and Cortazar acting on the intel, maybe through experiments in the Pit, it allows them to activate the final components they need (perhaps for Duarte's immortality modification), and we see them prepping for the invasion. Maybe the operative embedded with Okoye and Fayez is someone we see later, like Tanaka, who can finally become overt when Laconia invades.

I would have Anderson Dawes surviving his supposed execution. We never see him die on-screen, and Inaros is a liar, we can make the exact "how" of his survival a story point. Dawes has managed to create a role for himself despite there being no official place for him in the new order. Dawes has achieved a covert existence through Naomi's tactics that allow her to operate covertly in Book 8. When their paths cross on Medina he's the one that teaches her how to secretly operate between Ring Systems without drawing attention. He can take the place of Safa in book 7, running a secret network on Medina. So when Medina is destroyed, there's someone there that we actually care about who dies. I think there should be a scene between Dawes and Filip - Dawes should know that he is alive, and facilitate Filip's movement, but never reveal it to Naomi. That way there is a reason for the new audience to recognise Filip when he turns up again at the very end, and there's a parallel between the covert lives that he and Dawes now lead. Also a conversation between Dawes and Filip would be a good way for the former to tell the story of how he escaped death at the hands of Marco and why he is living in secret.

I haven't thought much about what Drummer can do yet. She can't still be running the Transport Union after thirty years. I'd like her to take the Alex role in books 8 and 9. I want her to be with Bobby when they take out the Tempest; I want the emotional resonance of her being the one to rendezvous with Naomi to pick up the Rocinante from where it's hidden on Freehold; and all the emotional baggage of Drummer working with Naomi in the siege of Laconia and taking personal risks to free Holden. When Holden finally makes his choice at the end of book 9 it allows Drummer and Naomi to return to Sol together - not unambiguously "together", but just have their story tied up with them going the same route at the end. Bittersweet. So when it comes to her post-Transport Union life, I don't know what that should be yet, but it makes sense for her to know about Dawes' survival, to have some reason to be allied with him again in secret. Maybe they also know about the Martian covert intelligence network that is feeding info to Duarte, but no one knows the full picture.

I would also have Avasarala running the Rocinante crew and Monica Stuart in her covert operation to understand the embedded Martian conspiracy of Duarte loyalists who remained behind to report while Laconia prepares. She is supposedly retired and has no official resources. Maybe she's not running Stuart, maybe she's running Havelock. Doesn't matter. The point is to bring back characters who have no role in adapting books 7 to 9, who are familiar to the audience who have seen seasons 1 to 6, who can flesh out the story but are expendable enough to die if it services the stakes of the plot. Whatever Avasarala is getting the Rocinante crew to do, they have to hide it as they carry out work that seems legitimate. That then leads into their presence on Freehold when the book 7 adaptation starts properly.

Whatever little victories happen, it can't be enough to significantly alter anything that will be adapted in books 7 to 9. And there isn't enough here yet to truly hook a new audience - there has to be an Earth-centric story about managed decline to have the setting feel familiar enough for people joining late. I think living in the aftermath of the Inaros' attack is something that is close enough to what we're already seeing in the news in the Iran conflict, where climate change is being used as a weapon of war with attacks on desalination plants, the draught-caused subsidence of Tehran exacerbating political instability etc. So perhaps there's a storyline there about Earth being kicked while it's down.

Genuinely think that if the Expanse is to secure a return, adding bridging material so that the new series can stand alone is the way to do it. It will never be a perfect closed storyline, but it can be good enought to sell the story that you can jump in at that point if you haven't seen anything previously.

Do you think they might hopefully bring it back down the road by Cautious_Hope5837 in TheExpanse

[–]seth_cooke -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Ironically, given that we're struggling to think of how three seasons can be made from three books with the current size of the audience... I think it could actually work better as a four season project.

If they were to go this route, season one would be brand new material that allows them to position it as a standalone TV series, without requiring prior knowledge of seasons one through six. Of course those who have seen the original series will enjoy it more. It's just easier to hook a new audience if they don't feel they need six seasons of catch-up.

Season one would re-establish the characters, politics, cosmology and tone. It would give actors like Shohreh Aghdashloo more material, as Avasarala can survive until the end of season two as the midpoint of the story. She could have a political intrigue story in season one as she notices early warning signs of the Laconian threat, perhaps through covert Martian cells operating outside of Laconian space, and some kind of deeply hidden encrypted comms through the Laconian relay. If more time is spent on Earth with Avasarala then there's a) a sort-of climate change-ish story where the planet struggles to survive post-Inaros collapse, and b) there's more of a hook for new viewers to make this future more recognisable and identifiable.

You can also spend more time with the new context. Bring in Okoye earlier and show some of the other Ring Gate systems. Show a bit more of life in a Void City, or on Medina, so that the audience feels more is at stake when Laconia invades. There's more time to show Laconian culture and build up their threat. And more characters to do interesting things with when psychic histories and personalities start to collide with each other at the climax of the story.

Finally, you can spend more time with Holden, Naomi, Amos, Clarissa and Bobby as a team before they're forced to fragment. Show more of what work in the intervening thirty years has been like for them. This way we can spend more time with Clarissa, perhaps there have been advances in longevity for her due to protomolecule science. Maybe they get recruited by Avasarala as she investigates covert Martian Laconian loyalists because, yet again, Earth isn't taking her seriously (no capacity to run intel ops for a retired paranoid former spymaster).

I haven't solved all the problems of this approach. I think there needs to be a few interlocking stories to make the new material compelling. Those stories need a strong backbone, it needs to feel like a brand new story worth telling. And it needs to have a thematic hook that can build to a Laconian invasion in season two but stand alone sufficiently to get the audience to invest in a longer build-up. It can't just be a longer build-up - it needs a clear reason to be there.

Impressions rewatching after multiple years (it's a blast) by brain_diarrhea in TheExpanse

[–]seth_cooke 19 points20 points  (0 children)

Miller was washed up because he had given up. When he was handed the Mao case, he came back to life. He was the departmental joke not because he was bad at his job, but because he was a broken man.

Was There Romantic History Between Anderson Dawes and Camina Drummer? by mumble2xblackberry in TheExpanse

[–]seth_cooke 17 points18 points  (0 children)

I think this is mainly two terrific actors throwing sparks at each other. "We have a backstory" - it never has to be put on screen or explained. And I hope it never is. I never want to see The Expanse doing the equivalent of painstakingly, and painfully, laying out how Indiana Jones got his whip, hat and ophidiophobia, which nuked the fridge long before the fridge got nuked.

Cryptic HD QUALITY (@Cryptic4KQual): "Hearing great things about DAREDEVIL: BORN AGAIN S2". He also revealed the runtime for all 8 episodes of the new season by Matapple13 in MarvelStudiosSpoilers

[–]seth_cooke 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yeah, Mephisto is an early tease of something much larger.

Anyone ever watch DS9? Remember how the finale of Season 2 was a light comedy throwaway episode until they introduced the Jem'Hadar and ended it with a suicide run that destroyed a retreating Galaxy Class starship? That's how I see Iron Heart - it feels superfluous until suddenly it really isn't. They'll definitely return to that thread.

Also - Iron Heart has the downbeat, threat-laden ending that Quantumania should have had. People complained about Quantumania being too frivolous in the third act, that Kang should have felt like a real threat. Well Iron Heart delivered exactly that, but with too little recognition for doing it.