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We're a few episodes in, but I don't see anyone talking about the 8-episode series from BBC America known as... [Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency! Yes, the character created by intragalactic hitchhiker guidebook editor-in-chief Douglas Adams has been dropped into a new story. And that's an important distinction: this is a new story, not in any way an adaptation of either of the books. (I'm not counting the Salmon of Doubt.) And, as is often the case when Adams' characters make the leap from one medium to another, his backstory has apparently changed. The series is set in America, in the Pacific Northwest. I'm pretty sure it's in either Seattle or Portland. Starring:
There are a lot of things going on in this show. The first episode alone reveals several plot threads featuring different character sets that seem mostly disparate, but very quickly, odd connections begin to reveal themselves. It doesn't take too long for things to take a decidedly Adams-ish turn; there are some fun science fiction elements that come into play as the episodes go on. This started a few weeks ago. Is anyone else watching it?
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Nov 8, 2016 18:19
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| # ¿ Apr 28, 2024 01:18 |
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I'm enjoying everything about Bart, actually. At first, I was 100% she was just some monster (well, not a literal monster (and yes, that distinction must be made)), but in a few episodes, it just starts to seem like she's just as much a victim of her nigh immortality and casual compulsions to kill everything in sight as her actual murder victims are. When the car breaks down, she doesn't sweat it, because she knows it won't stop her for long--not because she's optimistic and resourceful, but because the universe won't let her fail at her deadly... uhm... mission? I really like her. She's a wonderful counterpoint to Dirk, and the twisted things she says as she's warming up to her kidnapping victim... if she weren't perpetually covered in blood, it'd make you go, "awwwww."
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Nov 9, 2016 01:54
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One thing they're keeping from the original book is a time machine. (That's not a spoiler; it was said outright early in the first episode.) I'm curious to see how they work it in. I loved the presentation in the first book; it was very Douglas Adams to have a time machine that's... just, so not a time machine, complete with a landline phone that only works when the room-machine is in another time.
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Nov 12, 2016 04:18
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Another thing I like about this show is every time they reveal some insane thing, like the woman in the dog's body or, just the other night, a first-person view of the body-switching process and how they're going around doing all this stuff, they still leave enough questions to make you keep watching. Hell, there's more questions. I mean, now I know that there's a contraption that swaps people's spirits into different bodies, and that's horrific enough--I mean, seeing that guy suddenly viewing the world from the mouse's POV makes these people seem extra-dangerous, and it really conveys the helplessness the victim must feel. But now I'm more curious than ever... why are they doing this? Sure, it's great fun, and it can extend your life I guess, but they seem to have a much bigger plan in the works, and the more that's revealed about these people, their history, and their abilities, the more I'm left wondering, "Why? What is your end game?"
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Nov 14, 2016 16:59
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We got a little more insight to the Rowdy 3, but what really got me was the kitten. Years ago, under the influence of drugs and alcohol, the guys in the band I was in at the time began to share our wisdom. And I had a really Jack Handey moment: "If you ever start beating a man with an angry cat, don't stop, because it might turn on you." It's way funnier if you're drunk and high. But man, that little kitten. poo poo. Shame about Detective Eyebrows, though. I love how the building is called the Animal Transfer Center, because that's what it is. Question: has anyone else noticed that Dirk's jacket changes inexplicably? It started as yellow, went to light green, and is now blue, IIRC. I wonder if that'll play into the overall story arc.
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Nov 20, 2016 06:47
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MachuPikacchu posted:Cinnamon. Oh man. I can't believe I haven't been talking about Corporal Dip Schitt. I don't know who's playing him, but he's doing a good job. He's like the brains version of Rudy: he has the heart of a fearless ultra-Delta-Force supersoldier, but he has the mind of a 10 year old boy who only plays video games. His commander's infinite patience with this living ball of stupid is fun to watch.
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Nov 21, 2016 06:42
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I think another thing that helps is that not only does he freely admit that he doesn't really know what's going on, just that it's all connected. He even laments the fact that this "ability" he has it totally beyond his control. It's so far beyond his abilities to even mitigate it that he's very much a victim of whatever magic he seems to posses. Long ago, he resigned himself to this kind of life, fluttering around at the universe's whim, making connections to otherwise disparate people and events that will probably never benefit him personally. If you think about it, it's possible that his goofy, aloof demeanor is as much a defense mechanism as anything else. Contrast how his general demeanor is to how Bart behaves when she's not casually (or really stylishly) killing people. It's unlikely that she had as happy a childhood as Dirk did, but that stuff notwithstanding, she's blunt, direct, brutally honest, and has complete faith in her purpose and the universe's purpose with her. She doesn't try to deceive because she believes (and for good reasons, so far) that it doesn't matter if those around her know who she is and what she's about to do. She's also a victim of her abilities--it's just that she doesn't see it quite that way, while Dirk sometimes appears to.
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Nov 24, 2016 17:51
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OK... because of misplaced trust, a bunch of stuff happens. The big bad guy has Dirk and Todd captured, on their knees, and at gunpoint. This is the point in any show like this where the big bad either starts monologuing, revealing his super-secret plan, making evil demands, or some combination of the three. Instead, he goes into a frenzy, asking a series of questions about why these people have been fiddling around in his plans to become the new Sovereign Soul or whatever, and it finally becomes clear that his entire story arc is wholly independent of Dirk and Todd's... except for the random points at which those arcs inexplicably became connected. Aaron is literally just minding his own business, doing his own thing. All he wants is to take over a cult, and he has no clue why these two people are seemingly accidentally messing up his plans by doing annoying things like stealing his dog and setting his house on fire. And being in two places at once and a bunch of other stuff. That scene was so amazing. Almost as amazing as what happened when the holistic assassin finally had a conversation with Dirk. If you can call it that. I think Bart has a little cult of her own starting up. I'm loving this show. It's a pity it's all about to end, but like someone mentioned, this show likes to dole out answers on a regular basis. I think that has allowed the plot to develop into the insanely complicated thing that it is. Many other shows would hold off on any answers, keeping it mysterious for the sake of being mysterious, and then dumping a bunch of 'splaining in the last few moments. This has been well paced.
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Nov 27, 2016 07:05
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Slamhound posted:Yeah, Lux's meltdown was beautiful. And I thought wounded Bart in the elevator was surprisingly affecting, something you don't generally get from the Remorseless Killer character. Both were great inversions of their respective tropes. I actually felt really bad for Bart. From the beginning of the sequence where she finds Dirk, through the chase scene, and then to her injury, Fiona Dourif puts on an amazing performance. You can really see that Bart's entire universe is shattering. The only thing that makes sense to her, the rock on which her entire bizarre existence is founded upon, has suddenly stopped working properly. It's like if you took a breath and all of the sudden, nitrogen and oxygen were poisonous to you. She's not angry or frustrated that she couldn't kill Dirk, or that he seemed as charmed in his survival as she is when danger comes her way. She's confused at first, then deathly afraid. And Ken is going to help her, as that news report regarding the last guy Bart killed has pushed him over the edge. I can't wait to see how this all wraps up. But making me sympathize with a chaotic assassin is a pretty impressive accomplishment.
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Nov 27, 2016 20:45
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I was re-watching some scenes from the last episode and I just noticed something. Well I noticed it at first, but the following exchange was so amazing that I forgot about it. Dirk runs up that spiral staircase in an effort to escape the maniac chasing him down and shooting at him. But, he reaches the top, and realizes that this staircase, for no apparent reason, simply ends. It doesn't lead to anywhere. It just goes up and then stops with a plexiglass wall. Dirk's reaction is very much in the vein of British humor: instead of freaking out and jumping, or immediately starting to work out an escape, he does what I hope I do if I'm ever in that situation. He asks why. Why does that staircase end there? Why would anybody build such a staircase knowing that it would go up only to abruptly end for no reason? Why is that staircase?
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Nov 28, 2016 23:05
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For those of you who want to see what that rant looks like all written out... Gordon/Lux: I've been waiting for you two for a long time.... What is going on? Who are you guys? Did Patrick Spring hire you? If not, then what are you? Are you detectives? No, because you're a... you're a bellhop, you were at the hotel! And you! You're who? What, the FBI? No? Then how does the FBI figure into this? Who shot Ned? How did you know that Farah Black was going to be in that apartment? I mean, what kind of crazy coincidence is that? Where's the kitten? And where's my dog? Why did you burn down my house? Who has my dog right now? Is it the police? Do the police have my dog? Who beat up Ed and Zed? Was it your guys? Other guys? How many different sets of guys are in this situation? How does Patrick Spring be in two places at the same time? Dirk: Nahgh... nuts. Todd: W-we... we don't... sorry, I guess... I, like, can answer four of those questions totally, if I'm being honest.
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Nov 30, 2016 06:41
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I didn't even realize that. Wow, that's pretty drat crazy! Rusty could pull that monologue off expertly. And, Monarch could say "Aw, Nuts" with Gary chiming in that he could answer four of those questions. It also works if the Monarch asks the questions, Brock says "Nuts," and Doc says that he an answer four of those questions.
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Nov 30, 2016 14:33
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We got a whole lot of answers tonight, including the answer to "Why did Rimmer ask how Patrick Spring could be in two places at the same time?" My favorite line, probably, is... "I got it all right!?!""
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Dec 4, 2016 04:54
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KilGrey posted:Can you do the bridge scene too? This and that one had me in stitches. It loses some impact in text because of the frequent changes in who is speaking, but... DIRK: Is that the woman? TODD: I don’t know her. DIRK: But that is a woman. TODD: What are you even talking about? RIMMER: (to the woman) Get on your knees. (to DIRK and TODD) Give me the dog, or I kill her. DIRK: Give us the her, or we’ll throw the dog off the bridge. TODD: What? DIRK: I’m bluffing. But, if he shoots her, throw the dog off the bridge. RIMMER: Why did you attack us? DIRK: We didn’t! How do you know who we are? RIMMER: We don’t! Where’s the kitten? TODD: What kitten? DIRK: Who’s that woman? RIMMER: You don’t know her?! DIRK: Do you?! RIMMER: Why did you burn my house down? DIRK: I burnt your house down?! TODD: Where’s Lydia? RIMMER: She’s… not here. Bring me the dog! DIRK: Why do you want it? RIMMER: Why did you take it?! TODD: We don’t know! RIMMER: Why did you kill Patrick Spring? TODD: We didn’t! DIRK: Did you? RIMMER: Just just… just bring me the dog! TODD: What do we do? DIRK: I-I don’t know. RIMMER: I’ll kill her! I swear! TODD: (steps forward) Let the woman go. RIMMER: No, no, no, no, no, she stays with us. TODD: That’s wasn’t the deal! RIMMER: There’s no deal!! DIRK: Oh poo poo, he’s right! RIMMER: Bring me the dog! (Todd walks to the side of the bridge, holding the dog over it.) RIMMER: Whoa! What are you doing, what are you doing? TODD: Let the woman go, or I drop it! Just let her go, now! RIMMER: You are… poking the bear, my friend! We will burn the soul out of your body for all you’ve done to us! TODD: What are you even talking about? What did we do to you? RIMMER: Don’t drop my dog! TODD: Let her go now, or I’ll drop it, I swear to God! Let her go!! RIMMER: No, no no no no no…. FEMALE VOICE: No! Help me! TODD: (screams) RIMMER: (screams)
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Dec 5, 2016 09:06
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| # ¿ Apr 28, 2024 01:18 |
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WhiteHowler posted:I feel kind of bad for those army guys who have "cornered" Bart. Her smile was nice to see. Things are about to start making sense to her again. I do love that they brought out a small army, complete with tank, to meet her. It'll only make their inevitable, Rube-Goldberg-Machine-like deaths that much more enjoyable. Hell, I loved everything about her in this episode, especially when she decided to go ahead and find out where those last two bullets go. I'm also glad to see that Very Erectus, a.k.a. Lt. Dip Schitt, wasn't stupid like a fox. He is just stupid as a stupid. Stupid is as he does. He's not so dumb he's brilliant--he's so dumb, he's ignert. The best thing, though, is that they didn't draw out the important elements of this episode--getting Lydia back into her body and taking care of Rimmer. That was all taken care of, and those loose ends all tied up, by about the halfway point of the episode. That left more time for the end of the episode to develop. Can't wait for next season.
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Dec 11, 2016 23:38
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