Support NeoGAF

[Winterblink]

Directed by the guy who did The Fall??? (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwsYyRc9j4g)

I'll at least give this a chance, even if the trailer looks a bit shabby.

 

[TraBuch]

Tin Man wasn't great but it was watchable which is way more than I can say for SyFy's Peter Pan and Alice in Wonderland miniseries.

 

[berzeli]

Directed by the guy who did Mirror Mirror and Self/less???

Yes.

 

[Zaph]

Watching for Tarsem

His films have always had poor marketing, so hopefully this is the same. There's a 'cheapness' to his photography and costuming that doesn't play well in promos.

 

[berzeli]

Oh and reviews are starting to come in, less than 10 right now, (51 on MC, 50 on RT)

TV Line (D+)

A sexy, gritty reboot of The Wizard of Oz. It sounds like something Jack Donaghy would dream up on 30 Rock, doesn’t it? Yet Emerald City isn’t a 10-second sitcom joke; it’s a 10-hour actual thing that NBC has created.

Boston Globe

“Emerald City,” a labored, humorless attempt to turn “The Wizard of Oz” into a “Game of Thrones”-like epic

Entertainment Weekly (no online review, this is merely here for the quote about acting)

Director Tarsem Singh produces dazzling visuals and an invigorating weirdness in all 10 eps. But the storytelling is too disjointed and the drama is too symbolic. The performances range from spirited to adequate to Dorothy.

But hey, the New York Post liked it (I think, the review is basically just talking about what is in the show)

It makes sense that the brickless “Yellow Road” in “Emerald City” is paved with opium — since this is one trippy adventure.

brickless “Yellow Road” in “Emerald City” is paved with opium

paved with opium

 

[RatskyWatsky]

This one is intended for adults that, if it was a film, it would carry a PG-13 rating. It’s gritty and violent. And also visually spectacular.

Presented without comment.

But hey, the New York Post liked it (I think, the review is basically just talking about what is in the show)

It makes sense that the brickless “Yellow Road” in “Emerald City” is paved with opium — since this is one trippy adventure.

brickless “Yellow Road” in “Emerald City” is paved with opium

paved with opium

PG-13 AS FUCK

 

[Danthrax]

Presented without comment.



PG-13 AS FUCK

It's like someone let video game developers make a TV show, and they're trying to making something that's dark and mature.

 

[Zoe]

To be fair, the opium thing was already hinted at in the original.

 

[Prompto]

Oh and reviews are starting to come in, less than 10 right now, (51 on MC, 50 on RT)

TV Line (D+)

Boston Globe

Entertainment Weekly (no online review, this is merely here for the quote about acting)

But hey, the New York Post liked it (I think, the review is basically just talking about what is in the show)

I'm surprised it's not 0% on rotten tomatoes.

 

[berzeli]

To be fair, the opium thing was already hinted at in the original.

1. This thread is not about fair. It's merely a tool for me to get validation that someone else is seeing this too and it's actually real.
2. Is it? Like I've heard tonnes of interpretations of the yellow brick road ("it represents the gold standard!"), but I can't say that I've ever heard that the yellow paint being opium being presented as a popular theory.

 

[Zoe]

2. Is it? Like I've heard tonnes of interpretations of the yellow brick road ("it represents the gold standard!"), but I can't say that I've ever heard that the yellow paint being opium being presented as a popular theory.

The poppy field: https://www.natureflip.com/blog/walking-in-a-poppy-field-do-we-fall-asleep

 

[berzeli]

The poppy field: https://www.natureflip.com/blog/walking-in-a-poppy-field-do-we-fall-asleep

Oh right. I thought specifically about the road.

 

[MagnaderAlpha]

What's with everything going LotR/GoT? First they had to make Alice in Wonderland about epic war, now Wizard of Oz. What next, "Babes in Toyland: The War of the Wooden Soldiers" where people's heads are being impaled on stakes, and Uncle Barnaby keeps Contrary Mary as slave in his dungeon? A WWII-esque Nutcracker.... oh wait!

Sigh, I'm all for imagination and new ideas, but sometimes.... just sometimes, I'm lead to believe that a certain "few" just should NOT have ideas. Your ideas.... BAD!!!

 

[BajiBoxer]

So, anyone watching this?

 

[What did he mean by this?]

Whoever made this should be publically flogged

 

[BajiBoxer]

Lol @ surveillance video being hand cranked out of a monkey's head.

 

[Zoe]

The CC's for this music actually say "light edgy music" :lol

 

[BajiBoxer]

So the yellow brick road is just lined with opium?

 

[Father_Brain]

Well, this is very, very blatantly trying to be GoT. Yup.

 

[BajiBoxer]

My mom is watching this too. She is visibly angry about this show. "This is NOT OZ!"

 

[BajiBoxer]

Scarcrow is some guy who got tarred and feathered, and crucified like Jesus.

This may be the worst interpretation of OZ I've seen.

 

[BajiBoxer]

Ok, I'm tapping out. Going to go read my statistics textbook.

 

[Zoe]

I'm just here to see how edgy they go with Tip.

 

[Grizzlyjin]

What?! I missed it, oh darn. Guess I'll watch it on demand if I get bored later tonight/tomorrow

 

[Zoe]

Hahahaha

Book spoiler regarding the kids:

Spoiler

husband said immediately, "doesn't look like a boy"

 

[Goro Majima]

Really hate heroin addict Witch of the East

Good god it's such a terrible take

 

[Monocle]

Are there hunks? This is important.

 

[Game Guru]

Are there hunks? This is important.

Tin Man:

What do you think?

 

[PHOENIXZERO]

Okay so she's a nurse who happens to get in a cop car and all that and not actually a cop. Umm, lol at the ending with Tip, Tip was supposed to be a dude before getting "X-Changed"?

I think I'm going to stick around for the train wreck quality of this for the ten episodes it'll get before NBC doesn't pick it up for a second season.

 

[Neidii]

I just watched the first episode with my bf, and damn it's really bad. It's like they're trying extremely hard to be dark and edgy and trying to be the next Game of Thrones. The road couldnt just be yellow. Or made out of bricks. No it's made out of OPIUM! Story moves forward at the speed of light, acting is mostly bad. My fav part is the

Spoiler

hot scarecrow dude with amnesia and Dorothy being like "he's hot, I trust him" and the part where Dorothy was tortured with water for a little bit and then they go "well ok you can go now, you're so banished, here this guy will show you out of our territory" and give her a blanket

It's so bad I'm kinda hooked now, gonna keep watching for the lulz

 

[Monocle]

What do you think?

Oh my, looks like my schedule just opened up.

 

[Grizzlyjin]

I like how shes a nurse but they basically turned her into a cop for the promo material within 10 minutes. Cop car, police jacket, and even a gun.

"Toto is dog in our language." LMAO, why can't the dog just be named Toto? Why does it have to be some weird additional thing.

I fell asleep right after the witch was torturing "Lucas" and Dorothy. Everything about this is so uninspired that it literally made me tired.

 

[Grizzlyjin]

Watching the rest of this now. This isn't even ridiculous enough to riff on like Under the Dome. It's just extremely mediocre. And The visuals aren't that impressive for TV in a post-Hannibal world.

Oh, the Mistress/Witch of the West or whatever looks exactly like a Euro-Goth version of Claire Danes. Even the expressions and acting choices she makes haha

Positives...umm...the cast is pretty diverse for a network show. That's all I got lol. I just feel bad because this show wants to be Game of Thrones level so bad but their budget is "Y'all can have the leftover costumes from the Halloween Store." I hope NBC keeps it around. The Friday slot is gonna be filled with some shitty show about magic & demons, might as well be this so the cast and crew got work.

 

[kevin1025]

The wig was a lie all along!

 

[Yado]

I thought it was OK tbh. I've seen worse.

 

[Linkura]

Vincent D'Onofrio is in full-on dngaf mode. You can tell he hates himself for being in this.

It's bad. Probably will watch more though for laughs. Apparently nurses are now trained in herbal remedies. That witch "funeral" was so cringey. Last few minutes of the episode were absurd.

 

[TraBuch]

Best premiere of the year.

 

[A Serious Man]

I bet D'Onofrio insisted on the beard so people wouldn't recognize him.

 

[PHOENIXZERO]

Best premiere of the year.

I could see NBC saying this before other new shows premiere. They already have the gall to tell us a show is a "hit" before they premiere.

 

[kevin1025]

I bet D'Onofrio insisted on the beard so people wouldn't recognize him.

His Kingpin tough voice isn't fooling anyone!

 

[Ricker]

I enjoyed the premiere enough to keep watching,it had some decent dialogues,loved the sarcastic ''Lions'' part lol...also liked that Witch with the black hair,thought she was awesome.I whish there was a little more action but besides that,I will keep watching for sure,hopefully it stays on par with the premiere.

I bet D'Onofrio insisted on the beard so people wouldn't recognize him.

lol,it took me a few minutes to recognise him,I kept wondering where I saw him and when I go down that path,I just need to find out and it came to me after a while.

 

[Lashley]

So, is it good?

 

[SpaceWolf]

Tik-Tok better show up in this.

 

[Ricker]

So, is it good?

2 Hour Premiere was good,its no GoT or anything but I enjoyed it...regular episode tonight,lets see how it goes...I am intrigued by Lucas.

 

[Parch]

I watched the 2 part premiere. I don't know if I'll stick with it. It's very loosely based on Oz but that's just the hook. Like any other TV show it's going to need better writing and storyline and not just rely on making Wizard of Oz references. That gimmick isn't going to last, so it needs to be more than just a crude version of an overdone franchise.

 

[Linkura]

Why am I watching this it's so bad.

Once again most wtf and worst part of the show is the last scene. Fuckin' Tip.

 

[Taramoor]

The Tip stuff is dumb, but I love Fiona Shaw so hopefully she'll come back. Only a witch can kill a witch, etc.

I didn't like how Scarecrow suddenly got all super-preachy over the gun. Hopefully the gun is not "The Beast Forever" or whatever the hell.

Still like the visuals, and the Elements scene was actually pretty good.

Witch of the West the best part of the show, but there's some good stuff in here to go with all the overly serious stuff.

 

[PHOENIXZERO]

Oh god that gun talk at the end was cringe with whoever wrote that felt like they needed some heavy handed political statement on it. Drunk witch is best witch

lol at the Tip deal at the end.

 

[tearsintherain]

Caught up with all 3 episodes. The dialogue is wretchedly bad but its still fun to watch. Love the cinematography, it has that Tarseem Singh vibe of vibrant colors, big weird natural-ish spaces that are almost paintings popping in all the time.

I don't really understand why any of these characters are doing any of the stuff they are doing but hope the show can finish a season before its cancelled.

 

[Replicant]

Scarecrow:

Cowardly Lion:

Tin Man:

Yesss! Will watch then.