I've been reading the other "positive"reviews and while they do praise the series as being "fun, innovative, etc.," they never mention any specifics. What made this series fun? the plot? characters? why? what about them? Just because some dude was in "Arrested Development" doesn't make it good. Jason Bateman was in "Arrested Development," and he was in "The Switch," look how that turned out... The reviews are so broad and general that it could be applied to anything.
In an effort to add some scholastic criticism, I will try and dissect the pilot episode in the series. Now, I'm not doing this to just bash the series, I'm trying to take a holistic approach, just like any critic would.
Now, lets get to it...
The Pilot starts off with a first person POV of the supposed Ninja entering some type of house. Then before the title appears, a fake rubber spider suddenly swings down onto his hands. Funny? could be. But the timing of the cut is so off that it seems like an after thought.
Afterwards, we fade to a man sitting on a black chair facing a computer. The camera tracks in (in slow motion...why??) before we cut onto a medium shot of the back of the chair. Then a POV shot of the computer screen is shown. The man is typing away on his computer diary writing about god knows what. The editing and framing of this sequence is so choppy that the voice over and the images conflict, thus eliminating beats that could have been funny.
Now, the last two paragraphs just surmises the first minute of the pilot. Imagine having to sit through the rest. As mentioned in an earlier review, the director breaks the 180 degree line constantly. That "technique" would be fine if there was clear purpose (ex. Ozu's 'Tokyo Story'),but there seems to not be any. And maybe it's not fair to compare this amateur web series to a Japanese classic, but if there is no intention, then what's the point? was it supposed to be funny? because again, it falls flat.
Someone mentions that the characters are very original and distinct, but I really can't see why that is. Sean Michale Affable plays a mentally challenged man? really!?? I suppose that's different. Everyone else pretty much says generic lines and are just caricatures.
Of course, this web-series may be aiming at a different audience, but it just bugs me how mismarketed it is. Using over sensationalized headlines like "highly acclaimed" and "original." Really? where did they get that from? In general, I think you should skip this. There are better web-series out there that's actually made not just to make a quick buck and get tons of sponsors. Not everyone in this industry is that fame hungry.
For the filmmakers/creators, please do some quality control... otherwise, just admit the series' flaws instead of over promoting it as something that is "highly acclaimed" and "groundbreaking."
In an effort to add some scholastic criticism, I will try and dissect the pilot episode in the series. Now, I'm not doing this to just bash the series, I'm trying to take a holistic approach, just like any critic would.
Now, lets get to it...
The Pilot starts off with a first person POV of the supposed Ninja entering some type of house. Then before the title appears, a fake rubber spider suddenly swings down onto his hands. Funny? could be. But the timing of the cut is so off that it seems like an after thought.
Afterwards, we fade to a man sitting on a black chair facing a computer. The camera tracks in (in slow motion...why??) before we cut onto a medium shot of the back of the chair. Then a POV shot of the computer screen is shown. The man is typing away on his computer diary writing about god knows what. The editing and framing of this sequence is so choppy that the voice over and the images conflict, thus eliminating beats that could have been funny.
Now, the last two paragraphs just surmises the first minute of the pilot. Imagine having to sit through the rest. As mentioned in an earlier review, the director breaks the 180 degree line constantly. That "technique" would be fine if there was clear purpose (ex. Ozu's 'Tokyo Story'),but there seems to not be any. And maybe it's not fair to compare this amateur web series to a Japanese classic, but if there is no intention, then what's the point? was it supposed to be funny? because again, it falls flat.
Someone mentions that the characters are very original and distinct, but I really can't see why that is. Sean Michale Affable plays a mentally challenged man? really!?? I suppose that's different. Everyone else pretty much says generic lines and are just caricatures.
Of course, this web-series may be aiming at a different audience, but it just bugs me how mismarketed it is. Using over sensationalized headlines like "highly acclaimed" and "original." Really? where did they get that from? In general, I think you should skip this. There are better web-series out there that's actually made not just to make a quick buck and get tons of sponsors. Not everyone in this industry is that fame hungry.
For the filmmakers/creators, please do some quality control... otherwise, just admit the series' flaws instead of over promoting it as something that is "highly acclaimed" and "groundbreaking."
