Constantine (The Series)

Ladyxkaa

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constantine =3 "possible spoilers"

is it me, or was the first episode just BADASS? they did him right, really. I like this show better than the keanu reeves movie, MUCH better, in fact.
 

Ladyxkaa

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I know very little about the comics of Constantine, but what I DO know, is I like it. I have a copy of the movie, but I don't like it. mom does though. I prefer the comic issue we have and this new show =3
 

CrastersBabies

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I enjoyed the promise of it and will see what happens in episode 2. It felt way way WAYYYYYY too fast paced for me. Not "fast pace" in a good way.

I got whiplash watching this. The female lead is just suddenly 100% okay with all the witchy stuff. No pushing back. No real/authentic questioning of anything. Just, "Okay, I'm on board. Let's go."

There was too much packed into this episode. It felt like, "And then.. and then... and then..." It gave me no time to settle into any of the characters. Can a thing be TOO "in media res?" I mean, it was all rushing around so fast.

The good thing is that I really like the main actor and I want to see what happens. But holy cow . . . slow down.
 

MttStrn

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I thought the first episode was just perfect. Everything I wanted. And Gotham could take a lesson from them on how to do subtle foreshadowing.
 

rugcat

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I got whiplash watching this. The female lead is just suddenly 100% okay with all the witchy stuff. No pushing back. No real/authentic questioning of anything. Just, "Okay, I'm on board. Let's go."
The female lead, Lucy Griffiths was unceremoniously dumped after one episode.

Show's producers gave the old "we decided to go in a different direction"
line.

Replacing her as the main female character will be Angélica Celaya, playing Zed.

http://m.hollywoodreporter.com/entry/view/id/386126

I think that was a good decision. Not that her acting was bad but the character as written was weak -- poorly conceived and poorly written, and I believe would have dragged the show considerably.
 

CrastersBabies

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Yeah, I agree, Rugcat. I thought she did well, but yep . . . extremely poor characterization. I kind of wondered what was going on when I watched the "This Season on Constantine" and didn't see that actress.
 

bearilou

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Well, that was... confusing. Are you supposed to have read the comics to understand what was going on?

From where it appears they are taking him from the comics? No.

Since they've already changed up a few major aspects of his canon, I suspect we're going to see a right angle departure from the comics for the main thrust of the series, with the path sometimes dipping back in to pick up a thread, jerk it out of it's original context and surroundings, transplanting it into America, Americanizing it and then moving on.
 

CrastersBabies

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I haven't read the comics, but got what was going on. But it moved quickly. I'm sure I missed a LOT.
 

RichardGarfinkle

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It seemed a sort of typical Hellblazer stand alone thing. So far Zed's a bit of a cypher with useful powers. I had one big problem with the episode: the resolution depends on an offensive stereotype of Romani.
 

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Did they make his hair more orange? I thought it was blond last week.

It was less light blond/dark roots. I thought it was an improvement...

I had one big problem with the episode:

I noticed that too. It's the sort of thing that makes me sad they're playing Constantine as more of an action hero than a clever guy. They could have made some she's got witchy powers! connection in a more clever way.

Since someone pointed it out in this thread, I was aware of it last night. Yes, the pacing could dial down by a few notches. I like this character and this world, and I'd like to actually have them do/talk about things, not just run cut from one location to another.

I like Zed more. I was waiting most of the ep for her to be kickass though. Papa Midnight next episode though! I hope that turns out well.
 

bearilou

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I had one big problem with the episode:

I did, too.

I was glad to see they kept him as a smoker. I know they won't show him actually smoking onscreen but they showed the 'evidence' of him being a smoker. The smoking issue is a huge part of Constantine's canon.
 

elinor

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Not bad. Nice to see so many locations here in Atlanta (including, if I'm not mistaken, the Krog Street Tunnel).

Was that Dr. Fate's helmet? I know technically they exist in the same fictional universe, but it's odd to think that John Constantine could theoretically take I-85 out of Atlanta and visit Metropolis.

I generally find demons, spirits, magic, God, etc., to be pretty boring, so a show with a supernatural premise has to have good storytelling and characters to keep me interested.

They filmed in The Vortex last month, so looking forward to seeing that. I don't think they did any shots of outside though. I DID see a smoke machine however. So whatever they filmed should be a good scene...
 

angeluscado

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I've only seen the movie, and I enjoyed it. I saw that it was going to be made into a show and I went "ooh, that looks like it could be fun".

I just caught the first episode On Demand (missed the premiere date) and I thought it was pretty neat. I'll probably put it on my perma-record list starting next week.

I don't have high expectations (I never do) and I always end up pleasantly surprised. I'll be keeping an eye on it.
 

dragonjax

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Finally saw the first ep, and I was underwhelmed. Oh, the lead actor is spot on, but overall just...eh, I don't know. Maybe all my years of watching Supernatural have worked against me here. I don't know.

Willing to keep going, because I used to adore Hellblazer.

Will try the second ep later.

Very glad they canned the Liv character; I found her both annoying and unbelievable. Good lord, I wanted to let the demon just take her and call it a day.