penguinnj
Bewildered Beginner
Posts: 4
Likes: 3
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Post by penguinnj on Apr 3, 2018 12:17:07 GMT -5
Loved the Olaf/Jacques Snicker interaction. The hopping over the bar stuff was hilarious and line of the season goes to Olaf with "you never approved of my love life." That was a great line for the book readers
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Post by Violent BUN Fortuna on Apr 3, 2018 14:52:42 GMT -5
Loved the Olaf/Jacques Snicker interaction. The hopping over the bar stuff was hilarious and line of the season goes to Olaf with "you never approved of my love life." That was a great line for the book readers Yes -- all the little nods to themes from the books were great fun, and it's kind of delicious knowing that not everyone will get them yet -- not in a superior sort of way, but because it feels almost like a secret code which only certain people can understand, rather like something from the series itself.
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Post by gliquey on Apr 3, 2018 15:07:31 GMT -5
So overall I'm much happier with this season than with the first: the music; the casting; I was a fan of Olivia's reworked storyline more than Jacquelyn's. Esme is nothing like I picture her in the books (nasty voice; ugly as Olaf; long fingernails), but I think she still works very well. I also might be picturing NPH next time I re-read the books, rather than the previous Olaf I had in my head. I think THH and TCC in particular may sway the views of some people who thought Olaf was too funny and not scary enough in this Netflix adaptation; I think he was much better than Jim Carrey in season 1, and really comes into his own in season 2. One thing I think was a shame is that we didn't get any Carmelita after TAA, but rather than a criticism I think this is a compliment on the strength of her acting, a big surprise as it was not something I was expecting to stand out. She simply must be returning from TSS onwards and I'm hoping she can match her incredible performances from TAA. As for the Quagmires, I wonder what will happen in season 3. In the books, we get constant mentions of them, so even though they only actually appear in 3 books (1 for Quigley), it feels to me like they're a big part of the series from TAA onwards. I am sort of hoping we get something more from Duncan and Isadora in season 3, though - at the very least, we need to see what happens to them with the Great Unknown in TE. Also, notice how the show refers to it as "the V.F.D." which is weird. I noticed this, but if you pull the acronym apart, it does make sense - you'd say (for example) "I'm a member of the volunteer fire department" and not "I'm a member of volunteer fire department". One thing I've been wondering, and it may not really come to anything, is how Fernald's fondness for Sunny in the Netflix version will change The Grim Grotto. I imagine not very much, but in the book it took a while to persuade him to help the Baudelaires, but in the show he obviously likes Sunny quite a bit (albeit in an odd way, considering he's still participating in schemes to ruin her life & steal her fortune), so I wonder if he'll still be so reluctant. Yes, he is a more positive character here. The scene where he wonders about whether to call his sister, deeply affected by what Olivia told him, is another good setup for this storyline. The only thing I'm bummed about is that the season didn't end in a song. Handler insinuated that they were going to try to do that for this season and I'm sad that they couldn't work it out. I'm actually very glad they didn't do this. I think the final shot of the caravan was perfect. I don't know if you remember, but I think a couple of years ago when we were unsure about how the books would be divvied up between the seasons, there were a lot of suggestions which based everything around TCC being the end of a season, because it's such a perfect cliffhanger. I'm not very invested in any of the romantic pairings introduced in this season (except Olaf and Esmé (Osmé? Eslaf?)). Why have I never heard those ship names before? Both are excellent. I think I can see a little of Daniel Handler's fascination with taboos in both of the Baudelaires' TAA love interests: Klaus thinks Isadora looks "Different. Which is good." when disguised as his sister, and Violet will eventually have to deal with her attraction to someone who is identical to someone who's previously shown infatuation with her. Both of those are situations that I could see happen in a novel like Watch Your Mouth, Adverbs or All the Dirty Parts. I didn't get a clear feeling about whether Duncan's feelings for Violet was supposed to be mutual, but even if it isn't - especially if it isn't - I think it lends weight to Violet's question in TE about which triplet called out her name. Your analysis is compelling me to reconsider my dislike of the Quagmire-Baudelaires shippings we saw. I noticed the Klaus/Isadora-Violet taboo in TAA, but thought it unintentional and creepy; the matching Violet/Duncan-Quigley one and the links to other novels by Handler make it more interesting. Other people have said that they think Violet didn't reciprocate Duncan's feelings, but this is not what I thought - I saw a small but significant smile on the face of Violet as she saw "DQ+VB".
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Post by Poe's Coats Host Toast on Apr 4, 2018 14:41:25 GMT -5
Season 2 rated book-by-book, according to my (post-first viewing) opinion:
TAA - 8/10 TEE - 7/10 TVV - 5/10 THH - 10/10 TCC - 9/10
EDITED (April 5) disclaimer: While in most episodes I have issues with Hynes/Weissman's acting, the music, some of the tone, and the characters of Olivia and Jacquelyn (one of them is unnecessary, and the former is boringly flat, considering her screen time), I can say that THH does seem to avoid all of these misgivings of mine, after having re-watched the two episodes.
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Post by Violent BUN Fortuna on Apr 4, 2018 16:38:02 GMT -5
I have to say I've been consistently very, very impressed with Malina Weissman's acting. I thought she was great in season one, but managed to step it up even more in season two. Similarly, I thought Louis Hynes improved greatly this season, and had some really good scenes (Dr. Faustus being particularly funny). I just think it's worth noting because the adult actors get so much praise (and, I think, rightly so), but the children often less so, but really I think they've done very well. Presley Smith, of course, delivers a stellar performance as Sunny.
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gamegenie
Reptile Researcher
Reading the Daily Punctilio
Posts: 19
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Post by gamegenie on Apr 4, 2018 18:58:03 GMT -5
I definitely enjoyed Malina Weissman's southern drawl accent as her 2-headed character Beverly.
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curt
Catastrophic Captain
Wait until the readers of The Daily Punctilio read about THIS!
Posts: 64
Likes: 47
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Post by curt on Apr 5, 2018 9:31:19 GMT -5
I totally agree. In season one the two actors had some delivery issues, however, this season I found them nearly flawless. I was waiting for bum scenes but I got none, I was also impressed with Avi, when I saw Carnelita's actress I was like "Is this a veteran child actor?"The kids were stellar. Not enough is said about NPH, pouring himself in these roles as count Olaf, and none of us expected Lucy to be our dream Esme. The sugarbowl also has some great scenes!
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Post by Violent BUN Fortuna on Apr 5, 2018 10:32:42 GMT -5
The sugarbowl also has some great scenes! Stand-out performance of the series. It really just becomes the sugar bowl, doesn't it? Incredible work.
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Post by gothicarchiesfan on Apr 5, 2018 11:35:14 GMT -5
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gamegenie
Reptile Researcher
Reading the Daily Punctilio
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Post by gamegenie on Apr 5, 2018 12:18:55 GMT -5
I watched season two last night! I loved it a lot, I think it's even better than the first season. Before I hush about it, I do want to say that I felt like the editing in some of the first four or so episodes seemed really tacky and off, and that I didn't think neither Chasing or Schemes nor Welcome to the House of Freaks worked. This disappointed me because I actually felt like That's Not How the Story Goes was fantastic and was king of looking forward to further musical numbers. Olaf's two numbers here just seemed like less funny versions of It's The Count. However, those are both just incredibly minor complaints I have in a sea of praise. While I still don't like it as much as the film score, the soundtrack was much better this season. Someone already mentioned Carmelita and Esme's themes, but I also adored the increasingly loud and violent versions of Olaf's theme, and in general the music wasn't anywhere near as noticeable or cheesy as the first season's soundtrack. I thought the casting was absolutely perfect. Carmelita, Esme, the Freaks, and even one off characters like Babs all felt immediately iconic. Jacques and Olivia were really stand-out, and their expanded roles really helped give this season a good arc. I really felt like this season was more consistent than the last- in the last season, I definitely felt like it had some pretty distant ups and downs. I felt like TMM was the strongest arc last season, and I felt that TWW was the weakest. Here, though? They're all really fantastic and I don't know which is my favorite. Of course, I've seen the first season several times and I've had plenty more opportunity to pick it apart, and I've only seen this new season once. So maybe my opinion will change. For now, though, I'm pretty smitten. I think both seasons equally stand strong. One not better than the other.
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Post by Grace on Apr 5, 2018 16:53:12 GMT -5
I definitely enjoyed Malina Weissman's southern drawl accent as her 2-headed character Beverly. Are you American?
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Post by mizbizsav on Apr 6, 2018 17:19:55 GMT -5
I'm sure there's textual evidence against this, but this season has me forming a new theory that the sugar bowl contains the two poison darts from the opera. The show keeps connecting the two events and it makes me suspicious. Plus the narrative hints that the sugar bowl contains evidence of Olaf's crimes, so how ironic would it be if it actually contained evidence of the Baudelaire parents's crimes? Olaf would want the sugar bowl because it holds proof of the fire-fighting side murdering his parents + exposing this would bring the secretive VFD to light. This would also explain why Beatrice in particular is desperate to have the sugar bowl - it's incriminating. To top it off, the sugar bowl is the perfect inconspicuous place to hide the evidence + the size checks out. Again, there's a lot against this theory, but right now I love being back in this madness-inducing-thanks-to-that-darn-sugar-bowl headspace.
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Post by Mr. Dent on Apr 6, 2018 23:34:26 GMT -5
I agree that the show connects the event and the Bowl often, and that's suspicious, but I feel like Olaf would be more interested in the Sugar Bowl if that were the case. He doesn't seem to care about it at all, not in the way Esme does. That said, totally agree that it just feels right to be in this strange and dizzying place again.
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Post by Dante on Apr 7, 2018 2:54:07 GMT -5
The poison darts are unlikely to be what was intended in the books, but the books essentially rule out everything unless you start assuming that certain characters are just wrong; I'm not relating the TV show's ideas on the subject to what is implied by the text right now. It's true that Olaf shows essentially zero interest in the sugar bowl (and that holds for much of canon, too), but the counter-argument in this case would be that he feels he's already gotten his revenge, or that mere ignominy for the Baudelaire parents wouldn't satisfy him; he doesn't care about the bigger picture of evidence and reputation. The Baudelaire family dead and their fortune in Olaf's hands: That's a more tangible, material revenge, and it seems to me it might appeal to him more. Purely hypothetical at this point, though.
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Post by mizbizsav on Apr 7, 2018 15:44:16 GMT -5
I agree that the show connects the event and the Bowl often, and that's suspicious, but I feel like Olaf would be more interested in the Sugar Bowl if that were the case. He doesn't seem to care about it at all, not in the way Esme does. That said, totally agree that it just feels right to be in this strange and dizzying place again. Very true. Maybe Olaf is not aware of its contents, at least not at first? Maybe he is purposely kept in the dark? The Man With a Beard But No Hair and The Woman With Hair but No Beard could know what the sugar bowl holds, but choose not to tell Olaf because he's so irrational and could botch their plans. Maybe they were going to use the trial at Hotel Denouement to present the sugar bowl and its evidence against the fire-fighting side. Then there's a snag when it comes to Esmé and what she knows. I totally think she's just fixated on the sugar bowl because it was stolen from her and she wants back what's hers - but she'd have to know what's inside and why not tell Olaf? It's fun to work out the kinks, but still there are holes in the theory. As Dante said, assuming all sugar bowl clues from the books as truthful makes it near impossible to come up with a theory that doesn't have a conflicting timeline or counterargument.
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