Does any tv series / book saga / movie saga achieve B5's plot structure? - Page 3

squish · May 22nd 09, 19:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by babylonfan

Would "Jericho" count as pre-planned? The writers sure seemed to know where they where going. Had it not been aborted I think Firefly would count as well, after seeing Serenity I do get the impression of long term planning.

what was Jericho about again? I heard the name once I've never seen it

babylonfan · May 23rd 09, 09:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by squish

what was Jericho about again? I heard the name once I've never seen it

The mayor cities of the USA are hit by two dozen or so nuclear explosions. USA falls into chaos while the town of Jericho is trying to make ends meet.

Alluveal · May 25th 09, 21:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by babylonfan

Would "Jericho" count as pre-planned? The writers sure seemed to know where they where going. Had it not been aborted I think Firefly would count as well, after seeing Serenity I do get the impression of long term planning.

I think a lot of shows were offed before they were able to reach their full potential (shows that had planning.) Firefly comes to mind, as does Carnivale.

I've heard good things from friends (who love B5) about Avatar. I'm just wary because I loathe anime and find most of it so incredibly dumbed-down and horribly acted. Could be wrong about this one.

KoshFan · May 26th 09, 00:07

Although, in the case of Carnivale, I was glad that it got axed when it did.

Firefly... ah, Firefly would have flown high indeed, had it lived.

vacantlook · May 26th 09, 06:37

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alluveal

I've heard good things from friends (who love B5) about Avatar. I'm just wary because I loathe anime and find most of it so incredibly dumbed-down and horribly acted. Could be wrong about this one.

As someone who super-totally loves Avatar The Last Airbender, I have to say if you think it's like anime, you're wrong.

First, Avatar is not anime. It's an American (Nickelodeon) produced cartoon that's only visually inspired by anime. I agree with you: I've tried watching various anime, but the plots are unbelievably boring. I guess maybe it's just something different culturally between Japan and America or something. The plot of Avatar is for American audiences; the show's co-creators/co-executive producers are American themselves, and, while like jms or Joss Whedon, they didn't write every word of the show, they were definitely the ones in control.

The voice acting for Avatar is really good too. I'll admit it: there were several moments in the show that got me to tear up some. Over the past year or so, I've gotten my best friend into watching Avatar. She's told me that she thinks it's so good that she forgets that it's animated and not real people when she watches it.

The plot is definitely not dumbed down. Avatar won a Peabody this year for how realistic, yet still kid-friendly, it depicts the complexities and struggles of war. Over the course of the show, they tackle things like war, the impact of death of one's parents, having an abusive father, trust, betrayal, redemption, forgiveness, and conflict between idealism and realism (i.e. can one remain a non-violent pacifist when the whole world is desperately looking to you to kill a tyrant to end a war; and the way they resolve that moral conflict is very satisfying, in my opinion).

Jade Jaguar · May 27th 09, 03:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by KoshFan

Although, in the case of Carnivale, I was glad that it got axed when it did.

I can't agree with you there. Carnivale was great, and showing no signs of fading. If it had had another couple of years, it might have matched B5 for long-arc drama.

KoshFan · May 27th 09, 04:20

Carnivale was indeed great, which is why I'm happy it ended the way it did; I heard rumors about what they were going to do in Season 3, and if they'd gone through with it, it would have ruined it for me. Or at least I would have been much less impressed.

ALeafOnTheWind · May 28th 09, 03:31

Jeremiah was pretty good in this regard. Alas, another show not given a chance to have a full run.

B5_Obsessed · May 31st 09, 15:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by GKarsEye

But Twin Peaks wasn't planned out from the beginning, I'm pretty sure it was mostly made up as it went along. I even don't think they decided who murdered Laura Palmer in the beginning. I mean sure they knew it was "bob" but who he inhabited and the details were probably not decided.

I remember reading the Lynch didn't even want to reveal the murderer until the end of the series.

From Wikipedia: (I sort of knew the story, but why write what you can copy?)

The impetus for the series Twin Peaks was the mystery of who killed Laura Palmer. When production began on the pilot, series creators David Lynch and Mark Frost had decided that the murderer would be revealed as Leland Palmer, Laura's father. During the filming of a scene in the pilot taking place in Laura's room, Frank Silva, a set dresser, accidentally trapped himself in the room prior to filming by inadvertently moving a dresser in front of the door. Lynch had an image of Silva stuck in the room and thought that it could fit into the series somewhere, and told Silva that he would like for him to be in the series. Lynch had Silva crouch at the foot of Laura's bed and look through the bars of the footboard, as if he were "trapped" behind them, and filmed it, then had Silva leave the room and filmed the empty room; after reviewing the footage, Lynch liked the presence that Silva brought to the scene and decided that he would put him somewhere in the series.

Later that day, a scene was being filmed in which Laura Palmer's mother experiences a vision which frightens her; at the time, the script did not indicate what Mrs Palmer had seen to frighten her. Lynch was pleased with how the scene turned out, but a crew member informed him that it would have to be re-shot, because a mirror in the scene had inadvertently picked up someone's reflection. When Lynch asked who it was, the crew member replied that it had been Silva. Lynch considered this a "happy accident," and decided at that point that the unnamed character to be played by Silva would be revealed as Laura Palmer's true killer

B5_Obsessed · May 31st 09, 15:58

For older fans of anime, lets not forget Starblazers aka Space Battleship Yamato.

Produced in Japan from 1974-1980, it was first broadcast in the United States in 1979. Significantly, it was the first popular English-translated anime that had an over-arching plot and storyline that required the episodes to be shown in order. Even while being toned down a bit by editing, it also dealt with much more mature themes than any other productions being aimed at the same target audience at the time. As a result, it paved the way for the introduction and popularity of future arc-based, plot-driven anime translations.