Television 3 Body Problem

Jam said:

Depends. Even a lot a book readers are saying some of the streamlining is for the better.

I’m not a fan of the “Oxford five” element of the show, in this global event these five university friends are central to it in their own ways. It was better as separate characters but I get the angle they’re going for adding further connections and emotional weight. But it probably harms it overall.

The general streamlining of the narrative is a net positive though, and bringing forward elements of the second and third books make sense.

The books can often take the long road round and gets lost in itself and the technical aspects of the story. Which sometimes is great and sometimes is painful.

Honestly it’s one of the better hard Sci-Fi book adaptions that manages to be faithful while still changing plenty. It doesn’t feel like change for change sake, or the show runners putting “their” stamp on it - the changes make sense. Even if you don’t like a change you can understand why it was done.

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The Oxford Five are a really bad ensemble. A couple of them bring absolutely nothing to the table. I watched episode 3 tonight. Mostly Copernicus and Francis Bacon, so it was better, but still not great. The main characters by and large are not charismatic, they are not interesting. I don’t care about any of them. I like the Chinese detective, Copernicus is good, everyone else nope.

The feel of the show is off. It feels like it was made for a regular network and to cut to commercials, and does not have the feel of a super “premium” show, or the gold standard of a classic HBO show. It’s shot very conventionally. The in-game stuff looks incredibly shit, which I think is mostly intentional, but some of the CG has been woeful.

Wing Attack Plan R said:

The Oxford Five are a really bad ensemble. A couple of them bring absolutely nothing to the table. I watched episode 3 tonight. Mostly Copernicus and Francis Bacon, so it was better, but still not great. The main characters by and large are not charismatic, they are not interesting. I don’t care about any of them. I like the Chinese detective, Copernicus is good, everyone else nope.

The feel of the show is off. It feels like it was made for a regular network and to cut to commercials, and does not have the feel of a super “premium” show, or the gold standard of a classic HBO show. It’s shot very conventionally. The in-game stuff looks incredibly shit, which I think is mostly intentional, but some of the CG has been woeful.

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Isn’t the detective from Manchester?

Berbasbullet said:

Isn’t the detective from Manchester?

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The smoking Chinese detective. He may be from Manchester, I don’t know.

Is this worth it? I dislike those 2 idiots for ruining GoT's ending and can't be arsed getting sucked into a new series.

Slevs said:

Is this worth it? I dislike those 2 idiots for ruining GoT's ending and can't be arsed getting sucked into a new series.

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So far I would say no. After 3 episodes it’s starting to pick up a little, but I feel like I’m doing work instead of being entertained.

The acting and dialogue are terrible? I gave up halfway through the first episode. None of the characters are likeable.

noodlehair said:

Spoiler

The same for me.

The sci-fi element is also the main strength of the books. From what I've read a lot of the characters in the series aren't even in the books or have been heavily adapted/changed. Also didn't like how they used Mortal Kombat exposition lady to explain the intentions of the aliens. Thought that could have been done better.

The second and third books don't really lend themselves to the way the series focused so much on the characters. Outside of two or three of them. They're very much just a vessel to tell the sci-fi elements of the story (which gets a lot more interesting)...Which is probably why the characters themselves and their problems seemed so pointless.

I enjoyed it more than enough to watch a second series, but the second series will primarily have to be the second book, which will be tricky to get right, and then if they venture into the third book even more so

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Cheers @afrocentricity @Wing Attack Plan R @Jam , I need something new to read and I think this will prompt me to start. I can be quite forgiving of a poor writing style if the story itself is interesting.

Big Andy said:

Spoiler

Do they explain in the books how the futururistic VR headsets that are human made but 150 years ahead of their time? Was it humans or them two flying atoms or whatever they are that can be everywhere all at once?

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Just finished it. Started badly but picked up after the first few episodes. It seemed to shift away from the crappy Oxford 5 dynamic and become a bit more story driven which worked better as the characters aren’t particularly strong or memorable. It took a few turns which I wasn’t expecting, for the better I guess. I’d watch the next season.

First four episodes are an interesting slog. Final four are enjoyably mad.

Started this last night and I'm hooked. I'll most likely finish it tonight. Based on the comments in here, I'm excited to see the last few episodes.

I'm on the third episodes, I don't mind it. You can tell there is a budget and core story there, whether or not D&D will screw it up remains to be seen. A few things I don't like though are the model actress, she can't act very well and I can't take her seriously. Its not even because shes pretty, she just isn't a very good actress, and like others have said, too many of the scientists come across as unlikeable at this point. The asian cop, he's not british right? His accent is outstanding if he isn't. I've never read the books so I don't have any expectations. After how GoT ended I did vow I'd never watch anything D&D again but then I was suckered in by the trailer (I didn't know it was their show until the 2nd episode and I saw the 30 executive producers)

4 episodes in. It's alright. If "Auggie" wasn't in it, it would be a hundred times better. Annoying character.

Edit: Making John Bradley's character a City fan must have been a piss-take on him.

Shane88 said:

4 episodes in. It's alright. If "Auggie" wasn't in it, it would be a hundred times better. Annoying character.

Edit: Making John Bradley's character a City fan must have been a piss-take on him.

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Auggie and Saul both are unbelievably bad. They’re playing it like they are 20, not two PhD scientists who are top in their field.
Benedict Wong is the Asian cop: he’s great. He grew up in Salford, he had better be a Red.
Young Ye Winjie is great too.
the Onion Knight is in this too, hasn’t had a lot to do yet.
John Bradley is uniting Manchester by being called Rooney and having City as his fecking desktop.

atkar83 said:

I'm on the third episodes, I don't mind it. You can tell there is a budget and core story there, whether or not D&D will screw it up remains to be seen. A few things I don't like though are the model actress, she can't act very well and I can't take her seriously. Its not even because shes pretty, she just isn't a very good actress, and like others have said, too many of the scientists come across as unlikeable at this point. The asian cop, he's not british right? His accent is outstanding if he isn't. I've never read the books so I don't have any expectations. After how GoT ended I did vow I'd never watch anything D&D again but then I was suckered in by the trailer (I didn't know it was their show until the 2nd episode and I saw the 30 executive producers)

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Benedict Wong is from Eccles in Manchester

I enjoyed the final episode of the season, but it seemed like 6 and 7 could have been merged into one. The characters they are focusing on arent strong enough imo. They arent intriguing enough, but at the same time I didnt mind Jin overall, or strangely enough, Saul in the final episode, who I found utterly useless and pointless until then.
But it was the other characters away from the main focus friends which was better.

noodlehair said:

I liked the first half of the season. Then after the boat scene and "let us tell you all about our secret evil plan for no reason Mr Bond" moment, the second half it just seems to start going down silly dead end rabbit holes and really not making much sense.

Havent read the source material so maybe it's all building to something in season 2.

Still fairly solid overall

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This is how I felt. I was gripped with the first half, with the intrigue and mystery surrounding the story. The boat scene was insane.
Then the plan was revealed (for no reason,I dont understand the reasoning for this unless its arrogance or playing into the whole 'we cant lie', but if its the latter, again, it was just said with no prompt)

Wing Attack Plan R said:

Auggie and Saul both are unbelievably bad. They’re playing it like they are 20, not two PhD scientists who are top in their field.
Benedict Wong is the Asian cop: he’s great. He grew up in Salford, he had better be a Red.
Young Ye Winjie is great too.
the Onion Knight is in this too, hasn’t had a lot to do yet.
John Bradley is uniting Manchester by being called Rooney and having City as his fecking desktop.

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He is iirc.

Wing Attack Plan R said:

Auggie and Saul both are unbelievably bad. They’re playing it like they are 20, not two PhD scientists who are top in their field.
Benedict Wong is the Asian cop: he’s great. He grew up in Salford, he had better be a Red.
Young Ye Winjie is great too.
the Onion Knight is in this too, hasn’t had a lot to do yet.
John Bradley is uniting Manchester by being called Rooney and having City as his fecking desktop.

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Saul and Auggie are just terrible. Saying that, Saul at least gets a bit better towards the end of the season.

Big Andy said:

Benedict Wong is from Eccles in Manchester

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I guess he's had to fake a Hong Kong accent in everything I've seen him in

Is the Netflix version as good as the Chinese version?

frostbite said:

Is the Netflix version as good as the Chinese version?

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No

Wing Attack Plan R said:

No

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Thanks!

Well, unfortunately I expected that. I found the Chinese version excellent. I haven't watched the Netflix version yet, and I am not sure if I should...

Auggie: “They’re moving us around like… those things with strings.”
Jin: “Puppets.”
Auggie: “Yes, puppets. I always forget that word.”
———
Solicitor: “It’s rather urgent, considering the size of the bequeathment.”
Downing: “Is that a real word?”
Solicitor: “Yes. Yes it is.”
———

a sample of the award-winning writing in episode 5.

noodlehair said:

My main worry with this and it being Netflix + who the producers/directors are is they'll stray further and further from the source material bacause of this.

Not that I thought all the acting was awful but the more relevant they try to make the characters and their pointless in-drama, the more the series is going to have to stray from the actual story, and as we know from GOT that is not a good thing.

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My main worry is that they will think they are too clever to fail. Look at this very realistic and in no way CGI converted oil tanker, and a basketball court set up next to a 100 foot drop off into the sea. The fence is lower than the backboard. It would take all of 5 minutes before a ball went over the side. It’s this kind of carelessness that worries me. Not literally that the kids will lose their basketball, but that the GoT producers think this is an example of how life on an oil tanker would be, and that they are so out of touch with reality/won’t listen to those who work for them.

“Sir, that’s a fecking idiotic depiction of a basketball court.”
Same thing as: “Sir, for 8 years we’ve followed the story of Danaerys, from when she was 13 and given by her brother to a savage. She’s been freeing slaves and breaking chains all over the world, so why in the name of all that is holy would she suddenly lose her shit and burn civilians in King’s Landing? She’s the fecking savior of Westeros!”
D&D: “We know better than you, we’re geniuses!”

Oddly the first thing I thought of when I saw that court was the same, cruise ships have a top to their courts too. But really not a big deal. Nice touch, spot the bottle the guys drinking from on the beach, holy moly.

Personally having read and been blown away by the ideas and breadth of knowledge of the author - and hating what Weiss and Benioff did to GOT - I think they're doing a great job. I could never get my wife to have the least interest in the themes of the books but she's happily enjoying the show w me. These are not easy books to turn into a pop TV show!

Also Wong is perfect, he's exactly how I pictured She. On the other hand, the nanofibers expert is terribly cast, and obviously no idea why Rooney is a character. Bit worried about the she terminator with the creepy smile, no need for that imo.

Anyway, I think it's fine. Not the best thing ever, but good enough.

Beachryan said:

Oddly the first thing I thought of when I saw that court was the same, cruise ships have a top to their courts too. But really not a big deal. Nice touch, spot the bottle the guys drinking from on the beach, holy moly.

Personally having read and been blown away by the ideas and breadth of knowledge of the author - and hating what Weiss and Benioff did to GOT - I think they're doing a great job. I could never get my wife to have the least interest in the themes of the books but she's happily enjoying the show w me. These are not easy books to turn into a pop TV show!

Also Wong is perfect, he's exactly how I pictured She. On the other hand, the nanofibers expert is terribly cast, and obviously no idea why Rooney is a character. Bit worried about the she terminator with the creepy smile, no need for that imo.

Anyway, I think it's fine. Not the best thing ever, but good enough.

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Didn’t the oil scion and his oil tanker not show up until the second book?

And would you say the quality is very Netflix and not HBO?

Always wanted to read the books as I find the premise behind them as terrifying as anything Sci fi has to offer and also quite plausible. 'Quinn's ideas' on YouTube does a great summary of them all.

Just finished the show on Netflix and it was enjoyable but didnt fulfill the potential I think it had. Also some of the casting is odd to say the least.

predator said:

Always wanted to read the books as I find the premise behind them as terrifying as anything Sci fi has to offer and also quite plausible. 'Quinn's ideas' on YouTube does a great summary of them all.

Just finished the show on Netflix and it was enjoyable but didnt fulfill the potential I think it had. Also some of the casting is odd to say the least.

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Quinns good for this stuff... In general though, I found the Netflix show pretty mid

I thought John Bradley was a United fan. What’s up with the City crest when Jack opened his laptop? Is that like an inside joke thing?

Shane88 said:

Edit: Making John Bradley's character a City fan must have been a piss-take on him.

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Ahhh. I came to this thread just to ask this (post above)

TsuWave said:

I thought John Bradley was a United fan. What’s up with the City crest when Jack opened his laptop? Is that like an inside joke thing?

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Money more likely probably. And I'm sure he hated it.

Redplane said:

Money more likely probably. And I'm sure he hated it.

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City are cnutish enough to pay for product placement to "extend their brand reach".

Wing Attack Plan R said:

My main worry is that they will think they are too clever to fail. Look at this very realistic and in no way CGI converted oil tanker, and a basketball court set up next to a 100 foot drop off into the sea. The fence is lower than the backboard. It would take all of 5 minutes before a ball went over the side. It’s this kind of carelessness that worries me. Not literally that the kids will lose their basketball, but that the GoT producers think this is an example of how life on an oil tanker would be, and that they are so out of touch with reality/won’t listen to those who work for them.

“Sir, that’s a fecking idiotic depiction of a basketball court.”
Same thing as: “Sir, for 8 years we’ve followed the story of Danaerys, from when she was 13 and given by her brother to a savage. She’s been freeing slaves and breaking chains all over the world, so why in the name of all that is holy would she suddenly lose her shit and burn civilians in King’s Landing? She’s the fecking savior of Westeros!”
D&D: “We know better than you, we’re geniuses!”

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See I can forgive this sort of thing even though all faor points. To me it's just a way to show families live on the boat.

What I couldn't get on with most was the god awful character and plot exposition, which is written in as if they think everyone watching is too dumb to figure anything out for themselves.

There's a scene in the first episode where Copernicus and the nano fibre lady get chatted up in a bar and respond by reciting their scientific background to some random man, like they're reading out their LinkedIn profile. No one does this and it makes no sense at all. It's just a device to let us know they're scientists, but it's such a painfully dumb way to do it, and also I'm pretty sure we could have figured that out ourselves. Another similar scene in the game where Rooney and Copernicus explain what the 3 body problem is to each other, but as if they are both imbeciles or 7 year olds. It's then explained by the actual plot less than 5 minutes later so what was the point?

Space brain man uses his cancer as a metaphor for the entire plot. Might have been clever if it turns out it was the sophons using it as a way of communicating the trysolaran plan and then Saul figured that out later, but no, it was just the makers of the show trying to prove they are smart.

I think they've tried too hard to make it have a more mainstream appeal but adding in loads of dumb isn't the way to do that. It just makes the show seem off balance as you have very clever Sci fi ideas with a solid story behind them, mixed in with the sort of storytelling methods you'd expect in a Transformers movie. It's then made worse by some of the acting being terrible and some being decent....again this feels all over the place as well. It flits from feeling like a really high end acted and produced show, to feeling like an episode of Dr Who.

Probably all why I can't decide if I love it or hate it. I love the ideas behind it, and the ambition to do them justice. I hate that they are using stupid as a vessel to try and make those ideas more of an entertainment appeal.

Shane88 said:

City are cnutish enough to pay for product placement to "extend their brand reach".

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Yeah they basically bought part of Ted Lasso's content so no surprise if they continue to do it. I'd be very curious about their funnelling of money into the diff media.

Enjoyable stuff this. I’d give it a solid 7.5 out of 10.

Auggie is such a terrible character (and actress) though

noodlehair said:

you have very clever Sci fi ideas with a solid story behind them, mixed in with the sort of storytelling methods you'd expect in a Transformers movie. It's then made worse by some of the acting being terrible and some being decent....again this feels all over the place as well. It flits from feeling like a really high end acted and produced show, to feeling like an episode of Dr Who.

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Yes! I love this summation. Some dialogue is bone-achingly stupid. Auggie is miscast. It reminds me more of “Alias” ( with Jennifer Garner) and I’m just not buying the Onion Knight in this either. The ship in the canal scene has been the only standout scene for me, and Auggie’s reaction to murdering hundreds of people and dozens of children is the same reaction you’d expect to see when someone can’t find a parking space. I’m guessing we are supposed to hate her now and root for the trisolarans?

Wing Attack Plan R said:

Yes! I love this summation. Some dialogue is bone-achingly stupid. Auggie is miscast. It reminds me more of “Alias” ( with Jennifer Garner) and I’m just not buying the Onion Knight in this either. The ship in the canal scene has been the only standout scene for me, and Auggie’s reaction to murdering hundreds of people and dozens of children is the same reaction you’d expect to see when someone can’t find a parking space. I’m guessing we are supposed to hate her now and root for the trisolarans?

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So far nothing I've read this thread makes me feel like this is a must watch or is it the kinda show that may get better as it goes on? feck it its Netflix. How many of their shows get better. For every Ozark or Mindhunter there are 30 crap shows.

Wing Attack Plan R said:

Yes! I love this summation. Some dialogue is bone-achingly stupid. Auggie is miscast. It reminds me more of “Alias” ( with Jennifer Garner) and I’m just not buying the Onion Knight in this either. The ship in the canal scene has been the only standout scene for me, and Auggie’s reaction to murdering hundreds of people and dozens of children is the same reaction you’d expect to see when someone can’t find a parking space. I’m guessing we are supposed to hate her now and root for the trisolarans?

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I dunno if it was the acting or writing or both but I thought she was a terrible character. She acted like a dick and a miserable bitch to everyone all the way through, while the show seemed to portray her as some paragon of morality. Except she was probably the most morally messed up person in the whole thing.

None of her decision making made any sense. She wouldn't continue her work in order to make herself rich or the world a better place, but then was suddenly fine doing it in order to murder 1,000 innocent people (while complaining about it and blaming everyone else...despite being the person who was most responsible).

Or hilariously when she found the game helmet while immorally rummaging around in Jack's bedroom and just chucked it on her head without a thought. Then came running downstairs to lecture him about how irresponsible it is of him to put it on his head without thinking about it.

noodlehair said:

I dunno if it was the acting or writing or both but I thought she was a terrible character. She acted like a dick and a miserable bitch to everyone all the way through, while the show seemed to portray her as some paragon of morality. Except she was probably the most morally messed up person in the whole thing.

None of her decision making made any sense. She wouldn't continue her work in order to make herself rich or the world a better place, but then was suddenly fine doing it in order to murder 1,000 innocent people (while complaining about it and blaming everyone else...despite being the person who was most responsible).

Or hilariously when she found the game helmet while immorally rummaging around in Jack's bedroom and just chucked it on her head without a thought. Then came running downstairs to lecture him about how irresponsible it is of him to put it on his head without thinking about it.

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Seconded!

noodlehair said:

I dunno if it was the acting or writing or both but I thought she was a terrible character. She acted like a dick and a miserable bitch to everyone all the way through, while the show seemed to portray her as some paragon of morality. Except she was probably the most morally messed up person in the whole thing.

None of her decision making made any sense. She wouldn't continue her work in order to make herself rich or the world a better place, but then was suddenly fine doing it in order to murder 1,000 innocent people (while complaining about it and blaming everyone else...despite being the person who was most responsible).

Or hilariously when she found the game helmet while immorally rummaging around in Jack's bedroom and just chucked it on her head without a thought. Then came running downstairs to lecture him about how irresponsible it is of him to put it on his head without thinking about it.

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This part was crazy and funny.