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Thread: Altered Carbon season 2
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2020-03-02, 04:14 AM (ISO 8601)
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Altered Carbon season 2
Season 2 of Altered Carbon has been up for a few days on Netflix. Like the first season, I find it quite enjoyable. It's still got a feel somewhere between transhuman Scottish space opera and 90's post-cyberpunk. This season does have some noir elements, but I'd say those were stronger in the first season.
I could nitpick and complain about details. But the fact remains that there's not much live-action on screen these days in this category, and this does a pretty good job at filling that gap. So, I'll leave my nit-picking till later in this thread if a discussion picks up.
The actors and characters, both new and returning, are quite good, in my opinion. It was nice seeing Simone Missick in this (She played Misty Knight in Luke Cage and other Netflix Marvel series.) Anthony Mackie was great as Takeshi Kovacs.
And i was very happy to seeSpoilerChris Conner return as Poe. Dina Shihabi was wonderful as Dig 301 as well. The two AIs played off of each other in a very entertaining and emotionally satisfying manner, IMO.
That's what I've got without major late-season spoilers. Overall, I solidly recommend both seasons to anyone who enjoys science fiction. What do you all think of this season?
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2020-03-02, 04:22 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
After the first series annoyed me by fundementally changing the stance of the Quellists and Kovacs (I don't mind them de-antiheroing him, but I find 'eternal life is bad bad bad' to be overplayed compared to the books 'you know if we live forever we could eat the rich with a poached egg and hollandaise sauce'), pretty much the only way this series could get me to watch it would be to flash forward fifty to a hundred years (I forget how much) adapt Broken Angels.
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2020-03-02, 04:34 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
The changes to the Quellists were annoying. But then, the book didn't entirely click with me either. How are the later books and Season 2? I like the setting, but does the actual story get any better? Because
SpoilerMegarich guy kills prostitute and tries to cover it up
Is the most boring overused noir plot ever.Resident Vancian Apologist
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2020-03-02, 04:40 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
The books tell unconnected stories in different systems, I think Woken Furies might be on Harlan's world, haven't read it. Book 2, Broken Angels, is about everybody trying to reach an alien MacGuffin in the middle of a war for
funand profit, including Takeshi abandoning his side early on to chase after it.
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2020-03-02, 09:12 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
Yea the show is sort of off on it’s own tangent, but I think I like the show a bit more. Rereading the books in anticipation I realized they were just a tad bit lol so edgy side and I like Tak more in the series. Even if I dislike the backstory changes to what the Envoys were. It feels a bit like they skipped the second book straight to adapting something more along the third, but I’m only two episodes in on this season so far.
Last edited by Dragonus45; 2020-03-02 at 09:12 AM.
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2020-03-02, 06:10 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
Season 2 was solid. More, below.
SpoilerPoe + Lizzie scenes were heartwarming.
A lot less full frontal stuff, which I'm pretty okay with them dropping, to be honest.
The function of ONI and coils probably could have been explained better.
Season 1 was very noir. Season 2, far less so.
I liked seeing something of the elders.
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2020-03-02, 09:46 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
My main problem with it is that you're effectively watching a completely different show.
Kovacs is portrayed as a COMPLETELY different character than he was in Season 1. Motivations, characterization, and general attitude he's completely different and unrecognizable.
Then the plot is a confused mess at the start. Season 1 had a fairly clear plot arc - Kovacs was taken off ice and we're being introduced to the universe through the eyes of somebody that hasn't been awake for 250 years. But there was always a clear goal running throughout. Investigate the murder of Bancroft, and solve side plots as they come up. Who actually killed him? Who knows what happened but isn't talking? Who sent Dimi to get Kovacs? These are all good questions, but the core plot is still running throughout keeping us on track.
Season 2? 3 episodes in and you have still only a vague idea of what the hell is going on. OK so this guy wanted Kovacs to protect him. Oops he's dead..... and Kovacs just doesn't care. They tried to make a big deal out of the reveal that Evil Protectorate Enforcer was Jaeger but it was so pathetically obvious and cliche from the start it falls completely flat. He's supposed to be this bigshot in the Protectorate but he has no actual authority to do anything. Quell has been missing for hundreds of years and Kovacs has been searching for her for 30 years, and she suddenly appears.... killing some random people in bars? Evil Governor Lady just goes around being evil with no actual indication of a plan or motive for most of the season. You have literally NO IDEA what her goals are for over half the season.
It's just a confused mess with no idea what is actually going on.
Add that to the fact that the supporting cast was replaced by characters/actors of significantly lower quality. The actress who plays Quell just can't hold a candle to Martha Higareda as an actress. Elliot was replaced by Tough Bounty Hunter Woman who doesn't really GET character development other than being Tough Bounty Hunter Woman. She's not a character she's a walking cliche. Like seriously I can't even remember her actual name in the show.
So to sum up, we have a generally less talented team of actors trying to execute a confused mess of a plot. Season 1 was superior in pretty much every aspect.Last edited by Olinser; 2020-03-02 at 09:47 PM.
Artist of my Avatar: http://www.deviantart.com/art/Rakrakrak-272771299ALL HAIL THE GREAT RAK!!
I use the same name in every game I ever play or forum I join (except the pretender on PSN that forced me to be RealOlinser). If you see an Olinser in a game or on a website, there's a high chance it's me, feel free to shoot me a message.
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2020-03-04, 07:51 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
To be honest, I thought the first season was OK, but it's had a bit of an Attack on Titan problem for me.
That's to say, the creator of the work's antics (which we obviously don't need to go into here) killed my interest in S2.Hi, I'm back, I guess. ^_^I cosplay and stream LPs of single player games on Twitch! Mon, Wed & Fri; currently playing: Nier: Replicant (Mon/Wed) and The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons (Thurs or Fri)
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2020-03-04, 08:07 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
Thanks to Linklele for my new avatar!
If i had superpowers. I would go to conventions dressed as myself, and see if i got complimented on my authenticity.
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2020-03-05, 08:12 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
After a certain popular children's author came out in support of someone who unsuccessfully tried to sue for the right to discriminate against transgender people, Richard Morgan, the author cosigned what she said. Then went on a lengthy twitter rant trying the use the philosophy of his work to justify it.
Hi, I'm back, I guess. ^_^I cosplay and stream LPs of single player games on Twitch! Mon, Wed & Fri; currently playing: Nier: Replicant (Mon/Wed) and The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons (Thurs or Fri)
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2020-03-05, 09:12 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
Thanks to Linklele for my new avatar!
If i had superpowers. I would go to conventions dressed as myself, and see if i got complimented on my authenticity.
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2020-03-05, 09:23 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
Seems kinda silly to not support the show because of this, considering he was merely a consultant for it. You're punishing a whole different set of people for his transgressions. The second season isn't anything at all like the second novel and only vaguely similar to the third.
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2020-03-05, 12:30 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Jul 2010
Re: Altered Carbon season 2
I'm still hoping that this thread will have at least several people who actually watch season 2 and then discuss what they've seen. Since the thread is about season 2, not season 1, or the books, or the author. Mentioning those in passing is one thing, but please don't derail the thread into post-after-post that aren't about what's in season 2.
Last edited by gomipile; 2020-03-05 at 12:31 PM.
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2020-03-05, 12:39 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
Last edited by BisectedBrioche; 2020-03-05 at 12:42 PM.
Hi, I'm back, I guess. ^_^I cosplay and stream LPs of single player games on Twitch! Mon, Wed & Fri; currently playing: Nier: Replicant (Mon/Wed) and The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons (Thurs or Fri)
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2020-03-05, 12:40 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
Thanks to Linklele for my new avatar!
If i had superpowers. I would go to conventions dressed as myself, and see if i got complimented on my authenticity.
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2020-03-05, 02:02 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Jul 2010
Re: Altered Carbon season 2
I would like the bulk of this thread to be discussing season 2. If anyone wants to discuss those things in service of discussing what they've seen in season 2, that would be fine. But if they want to discuss those things instead of and to the exclusion of discussing season 2, I'd prefer they start their own thread with an appropriate title for that.
I'd like to come back to this thread sometime and see that there are people I can discuss season 2 with based on us all having watched it. There is a reason I titled the thread referring to season 2, and not just a general title of "Altered Carbon."
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2020-03-05, 03:32 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
Unfortunately that's not really how threads or people work, it's very rare for a work of fiction and it's associates to have multiple threads. Honestly the read in getting right now is that people are more interested in discussing things other than series two.
Anyway, question for everybody who's seen it, does series 2 continue the trend of taking elements of the world building and making it even darker than it was originally? The world of the original books wasn't a dystopia, there were problems but it wasn't to the level of 'the main character's employee watches married couples fight to the death while they screw over their children'.
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2020-03-05, 07:41 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
That's the problem. There's basically zero world building going on. You're on a completely different world with a completely different set of characters but everything is functionally the same.
You don't get any kind of actual world building until LATE in the season.
SpoilerWhen they finally bring out the Elders.
By then its a hurried mess of a wrap up of the so-called plot.
As I said, this whole thing feels like a team of less talented actors (with the exception of Anthony Mackie) executing a plot by less talented writers. It felt like they were TRYING to play up this 'mystery' angle and just failing miserably.
Artist of my Avatar: http://www.deviantart.com/art/Rakrakrak-272771299ALL HAIL THE GREAT RAK!!
I use the same name in every game I ever play or forum I join (except the pretender on PSN that forced me to be RealOlinser). If you see an Olinser in a game or on a website, there's a high chance it's me, feel free to shoot me a message.
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2020-03-05, 11:21 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: Altered Carbon season 2
About half way through the season now, I feel like my prediction that adapting the plot of the books being borderline impossible has borne out and while they are capable of making an interesting one in the setting they aren't quite as able to make anything as compelling as the books were, for all their other flaws.
Thanks to Linklele for my new avatar!
If i had superpowers. I would go to conventions dressed as myself, and see if i got complimented on my authenticity.