Game of Thrones

Are the writers lazy or just bad?

Before I say anything, I have to mention that this universe that George R. R. Martin built has a special place in my heart as I'm sure it does for many people across the globe. I was introduced to this world through the HBO series and like a lot of you, I  read the books cause I wanted to fully engross  myself in its world and lore. 

Game of Thrones is HBO's crowning jewel and let's not forget HBO's had shows with greater critical success in 'The Wire', 'The Sopranos' , 'Six Feet Under' and 'Deadwood'. It has been synonymous among the television audience with quality and it's deserved that title. But despite all that success, it has never had a show as successful commercially as Weiss and Benioff's political drama set within a medieval time period and fantastical backdrop. 

This tale about families fighting for power, while ignoring the larger concerns would go on to capture the world's imagination unlike any television series before it. Season 7 would embark on a big change for the television series as the writers decided they'd trim down the last two seasons to 7 and 6 episodes each from the established 10 episodes. They did however, extend the running time for a select few episodes. Now, I'm strongly of the opinion that this backfired.

This trimming down of episodes could have been ignored if it didn't threaten the fabric of what captured everyone's imagination in the first place. In its 6 seasons prior to Season 7, Westeros and Essos the two primary continents that have been introduced to the audience had been fully realised and it was an affront to the show's audience to have characters travel from A to B within a matter of seconds. This was especially the case in episodes 5-7.

Another failing that was symptomatic of the curtailed season was that the inter personal relationships between characters didn't get the time to completely mature. This was specially the case with the two of the indispensable characters of the show. Now, I'm aware that Danaerys and Jon are the personification of Ice and Fire but there was a significant shift in pacing to get the two of them  to move the show forward. Kit Harrington and Emilia Clarke are the two stars of this show and play their characters to the best of their ability but it's well known that they aren't the most talented bunch in a show filled with superlative acting talent. In previous seasons the exceptional supporting cast was carrying them along but it looked like the roles were reversed in this season and not for the better.

I will briefly scratch the other reservation I had from this season. I have to start with the Sansa and Arya plot in the north. I think most would agree that this was just a means to an end and was the laziest plot in a season which was crammed with lazy side plots. The constant use of deux ex-machina ( god saves the day ) , which was the anti-thesis of what made this show so beloved was really disheartening . A series that had gained its reputation on gritty realism was now selling itself short. It felt  cheap and undervalued its audience's intelligence.

I won't blame the writers for the handling of the 'White Walkers' because  'Hardhome' and 'The Door' are my two of my favourite episodes of the series and it was always going to be a task to find a fitting conclusion to the threat from the North. The 'Night King' is such an enigma and it's why we fear them. It's the cliche that we fear what we don't know and in this season the 'White Walkers' seemed far to familiar. I can only hope that the writers can pull a rabbit out of the hat for the final season with regards to this arch. 

In their defence, they have been brilliant adaptors. They didn't ask for this. It's not easy to come up with your interpretation of how the series would end but I still believe they could have done a better job of it. I am very much looking forward to their future projects and I'm glad they've accepted the as of now untitled 'Star Wars' project. 

Having said all that I'll be up; early in the morning , to catch the final chapter of the series here in the Indian subcontinent before anyone can spoil it for me. 

This series  has given me and so many others their favourite television moments to date so I don't want to go too hard on it. I don't have high hopes from a critical standpoint but I'll be a little empty when it's all finally over. It'll definitely be a long winter in the world of television but we can dream of spring. 

Westworld

 Swim too deep and you'll drown.

Much was expected from Season 2 of the HBO Drama. We often praise any form of expression, whether it be a television show, a film, a book or a video game when it takes its time to move onto the next installment instead of rushing in, be it for annual revenue or due to pressure from the top (The Assassins Creed franchise and the Song of Ice and Fire book series being the two extremes). And so, with great acclaim in it’s first season and having garnered a reasonably large fan base, there were murmurs that maybe this could be HBO’s successor to Game of Thrones; a commercial and critical juggernaut the likes of which have never been seen on the small screen. 

I think it’s fair to say that Westworld could never live up to the commercial success of Game of Thrones quite simply because the plot itself was too convoluted for the everyday consumer to keep up with. Well, you could say fantasy and historical fiction aren’t necessarily cash cows either so that’s no defense. Another defense would be that; ‘LOST’,
one of the biggest critical and commercial successes of the 20^th century was a show more labyrinthine than even Westworld. The point here is that Westworld was rather unfairly seen as the show that could fill the vacuum of both of these iconic television shows,that is when Game of Thrones pulls down the curtain next year.

Why these comparisons took place in the first place, you 

might ask. Well, it helps when you have an ensemble cast lead by legendary actor, Anthony Hopkins and the ever impressive Ed Harris. Thandie Newton and Evan Rachel Wood had also made a big comeback; and television has often kick started a path for many actors to go back onto the big screen.

Now moving onto the second season itself, there was always a fear that the first season was almost as good as it could be despite it’s complicated structure which included a non-linear narrative and numerous time periods. They had to tread carefully and I’m afraid they failed to live up to the expectations. Another show in recent times that fell short in this very manner was Sam Esmail’s Mr. Robot which also had a stellar first season. Strong arguments had been made against a second season for both Westworld and Mr. Robot and it would seem that those arguments were unfortunately vindicated in both cases.

Despite, showcasing the larger world, lots of biblical symbology for those who love to find a reason to put on their tin foil hats , and the excellent performances from the ensemble; it was a shame that I had to force myself to watch some of the episodes because of what I’d grown to expect from Season 1. What was the point of Shogun world? Was HBO just trying to showcase its financial muscle? And what was the point of the ‘William’/’Man in black’ arch, which had already come full circle in Season 1. I couldn’t end this piece without mentioning Ramin Djawadi, who yet again has proven himself to be ‘The outstanding composer’ for the small screen. He’s phenomenal yet again and I hope I can hear him live someday.  

When they did answer some of the questions, they didn’t do it with the conviction that we’d grown to expect from Season 1. It seems as is the case with many shows/ movie series that Westworld drowned itself in it’s own hype a bit like the hosts do at the end of episode 1.

Maniac

Fukunaga's fantasy. 

Cary Fukunaga is no stranger to the mini-series format. His 2014 mini-series True Detective won him a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if more of the same was to be expected with his latest series. I must state before I continue any further that ‘Maniac’ is a love letter to many films that have come before it and I’ll be making references frequently to these films in the review.

Owen Milgrim portrayed by Jonah Hill is what you’d get if you combined Fredo Corleone and Edward Norton’s character from Fight Club. Like Fredo, Owen is the least impressive member of  a wealthy family. He suffers from schizophrenia and makes a living independently, much to the bewilderment of his family. To make matters worse he has to stand trial and defend his brother Jed from accusations of sexual harassment, someone he despises.

The other lead is Emma Stone’s Annie Landsberg who is troubled by her past and brimming with guilt to this day cause of her broken relationships with her mother and sister. Much like Edward Norton and Helena Bonham Carter’s characters in Fight Club, Annie and Owen find themselves entangled by fate in a web of surreal adventures when they offer themselves to a pharmaceutical trial which can repair any mental illness and even heart break. This is where the fight club comparisons stop and the comparisons to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless mind begin.

For the movie buff, Maniac has everything from the 80s time period, a dystopian setting and mesmerizing visuals in the post Kubrick world. The lab itself wouldn’t look out of place in a Wes Anderson film. It even has episodes dedicated to beloved film genres such as high fantasy, extra-terrestrial sci fi, 40s heist and 80s trash comedy. Yet, it somehow fails to capture the heart of Gondry and Kaufmann’s Eternal Sunshine nor does it have the strong under lying message that Fincher’s Fight Club offered. 

Justin Theroux, Sally Field and Sonoya Mizuno are all fantastic as the dysfunctional family/team behind the pharmaceutical trial. They are as good a supporting cast as you will find in an ensemble yet there is nothing new that Maniac offers in this dark comedy side plot that Eternal Sunshine hadn’t already done 14 years back. You can't help but think that Hill and Stone; who have come a long way since working together on Superbad; now household names, had fairly good performances wasted on Fukunaga's fantasy. 

Fukunaga clearly wants to pay homage to films but unfortunately that’s all Maniac feels like and nothing more. It's an ambitious project and  I feel Fukunaga will never have worked on a more enjoyable project. He's dropped everything he loves into one basket and he wouldn't care  what went inside cause he was just having so much fun. Even the infamous scene from ‘The Graduate’ is used here but instead of celebrating another homage to a classic, you’re left thinking, “Oh, of course they couldn’t leave that out.”

For all of my reservations, I have no doubt that audiences will binge it up like Annie does with the  pills, "This is it,this is the last one." I can’t help but feel Netflix yet again opts for quantity over quality with it's content.