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LadyPictureShow
Nov 18, 2005

Success!



a lovely king posted:

I believe it's Goodsir and Bridgens at the end of this episode. But this show does suffer a little, especially early on, from identical uniformed white dude syndrome.

It took me a few episodes to get into it because I have this problem to the max. I’m home sick with a nasty cold, so I rewatched the first two episodes again since I had started to nod off anyway.

They really needed to give some characters like, a jaunty neckerchief or facial scars.

I’m 99% sure the carnival thing was invented wholecloth for the show, but out of curiosity was there any evidence that the Franklin expedition people set up parties?

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Ague Proof
Jun 5, 2014

they told me
I was everything

a lovely king posted:

Ah missed that! Thanks! As far as I'm aware that Dr. never appeared prominently? Not like Stanley and McDonald

Dr Peddie is only in the show because he was in the real ship's roster.

UNRULY_HOUSEGUEST
Jul 19, 2006

mea culpa

LadyPictureShow posted:

I’m 99% sure the carnival thing was invented wholecloth for the show, but out of curiosity was there any evidence that the Franklin expedition people set up parties?

Apparently British Naval ships going to the Arctic were supplied with all that masquerade poo poo Fitzjames finds precisely because the sunless winters were so depressing. I think it's pretty plausible that they used them at some point. The level of attention to historical detail, outside of the whole marauding bear spirit thing, is actually really high.

https://www.canadiangeographic.ca/article/terror-recap-episode-6

Toxic Fart Syndrome
Jul 2, 2006

*hits A-THREAD-5*

Only 3.6 Roentgoons per hour ... not great, not terrible.




...the meter only goes to 3.6...

Pork Pro

UNRULY_HOUSEGUEST posted:

Apparently British Naval ships going to the Arctic were supplied with all that masquerade poo poo Fitzjames finds precisely because the sunless winters were so depressing. I think it's pretty plausible that they used them at some point. The level of attention to historical detail, outside of the whole marauding bear spirit thing, is actually really high.

https://www.canadiangeographic.ca/article/terror-recap-episode-6

Oh that's cool stuff!

quote:

Carnivals of the type we saw in tonight’s episode were, historically, a long tradition in the Arctic branch of the Royal Navy’s discovery service. First introduced by William Edward Parry during his ships’ wintering-over on Melville Island in 1819-1820, shipboard theatricals and highjinks had become the standard cure for winter doldrums; as Dr. Stanley explains to a deeply depressed Mr. Collins, “It is a prescription I support for all the men.” Henceforward, expeditions were supplied with costumes, wigs and play-books, with cross-dressing for comic roles among the senior officers a common feature of shipboard burlesques. In addition to plays, masquerades were not unknown, along with Christmas pantomimes, musical soirées, and raucous celebrations of Guy Fawkes Day.

I was wrong! Fitzjames should have been in drag! :monocle:

Ague Proof
Jun 5, 2014

they told me
I was everything
They used to cover their faces with coal to play as 'blackamoors' in masquerades.

The carnival always feels stupid to me even though I know it's plausible. It's a bit more so in the show because the monster hasn't attacked in a while and could have died from its wounds.

LadyPictureShow
Nov 18, 2005

Success!



UNRULY_HOUSEGUEST posted:

Apparently British Naval ships going to the Arctic were supplied with all that masquerade poo poo Fitzjames finds precisely because the sunless winters were so depressing. I think it's pretty plausible that they used them at some point. The level of attention to historical detail, outside of the whole marauding bear spirit thing, is actually really high.

https://www.canadiangeographic.ca/article/terror-recap-episode-6

Oh that’s really interesting. I didn’t know they’d have that stuff on the ship.

BlackJosh
Sep 25, 2007
Thanks for the clarifications on the doctors. I even read the book back in the day, so I should know this, but it's been a few years.

bitchymcjones
Mar 23, 2006

Okay, your wiener, it's disgusting how it's all gnarled, it's like you stuck it in a hornet's nest!

Ague Proof posted:

They used to cover their faces with coal to play as 'blackamoors' in masquerades.

The carnival always feels stupid to me even though I know it's plausible. It's a bit more so in the show because the monster hasn't attacked in a while and could have died from its wounds.

In the book Crozier told a story about being a blackamoor during a masquerade on a different expedition.

alf_pogs
Feb 15, 2012


hey those who've read the book, can you fill me in a bit on the mythology around the tunbaaq? i enjoy how ambiguous the show keeps it, but i'm still curious what lady silence and her father are up to. and what the tongues are all about

Milo and POTUS
Sep 3, 2017

I will not shut up about the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. I talk about them all the time and work them into every conversation I have. I built a shrine in my room for the yellow one who died because sadly no one noticed because she died around 9/11. Wanna see it?
Also couldn't tell all or at least some of these drat white guys apart.

Comrade Koba
Jul 2, 2007

a lovely king posted:

Ah missed that! Thanks! As far as I'm aware that Dr. never appeared prominently? Not like Stanley and McDonald

Yeah, the only scene I can remember him appearing in is in one of the early episodes where all four doctors are gathered in the sick bay.

As someone said already, the reason he’s even mentioned by name is probably that he was the historical surgeon on Erebus.

Comrade Koba
Jul 2, 2007

Was looking up some details about the historical expedition and found this old blog post which features some interesting photographs (well, daguerrotypes) of some of the officers.

Of course, the real-life Harry Goodsir looked like a neckbearded proto-goon:

BlackJosh
Sep 25, 2007

alf_pogs posted:

hey those who've read the book, can you fill me in a bit on the mythology around the tunbaaq? i enjoy how ambiguous the show keeps it, but i'm still curious what lady silence and her father are up to. and what the tongues are all about

So the deal is as I remember it The Tuunbaq was birthed/created can't super remember at the beginning of time and the world and was basically an indestrucible god of death that warred with other gods/spirits of Inuit lore and caused destruction to the worlds of gods and men unstoppably. One of the main gods created a pact with the beast to stop it from wiping out everyone, and the inuit that carry on this pact are the no-tongue shamans who gain the ability to speak to the Tuunbaq. The Tuunbaq gets its lands in the the north and is managed by the the no tongue shamans...once Lady Silence's dad dies it throws the whole system out of order and Lady Silence needs to join the order of the no-tongue shamans in order to get the Tuunbaq back under some sort of control, although as the expedition has entered it's lands and violated it's territory it gets to hunt and feed at will especially without an experienced shaman to speak to it That's just going off what I remember.

BlackJosh fucked around with this message at 09:59 on Apr 25, 2018

Ague Proof
Jun 5, 2014

they told me
I was everything

Comrade Koba posted:

Of course, the real-life Harry Goodsir looked like a neckbearded proto-goon:


The book version starts off much goonier.

1st_Panzer_Div.
May 11, 2005
Grimey Drawer
I wish the bear cgi was a lot better, the show is so good and then a really, really lovely cgi polar bear kinda hurts. It cements it as a xeno-bear a bit too hard as well, polar bears are giant rear end mother fuckers that coulda wrecked poo poo all over, literally over a metric ton in size has been recorded 1850's firearms in the artic would've been pretty ineffective vs a 2000lb bear.

feedmyleg
Dec 25, 2004
I don't mind the occasional mediocre CGI or poor compositing, it makes sense given the budget and I never found it too distracting. But what the gently caress was up with the bear's design? The face is laughable and intimidating in no way. I imagine they wanted something that looked like a cross between a bear and a man? It just looked kinda like, well, :downs:

Oasx
Oct 11, 2006

Freshly Squeezed
The fact that it is murdering people left and right makes it intimidating, the face looked different enough to make it clear that it wasn't actually a bear. I also think the cgi was completely fine.

Basebf555
Feb 29, 2008

The greatest sensual pleasure there is is to know the desires of another!

Fun Shoe
I'm getting bored with the show, to be honest. Hopefully it will spark my interest again once they start off on their long walk.

Just too many random dudes that I don't care about, reminds me of Alien 3.

bloom
Feb 25, 2017

by sebmojo
I watched the series on a 10-year old cheapo 720p flatscreen and even on that I wouldn't describe the bear cgi as "fine". Rewatching it on my monitor in a real resolution was just goddamn hideous.

imho the show would have worked better if they just dropped the supernatural angle entirely. There's plenty of horrific things to draw from in this story without resorting to ghost bears.

Phi230
Feb 2, 2016

by Fluffdaddy
The supernatural is the best part you loser

bloom
Feb 25, 2017

by sebmojo

Phi230 posted:

The supernatural is the best part you loser

Actually it's the worst, you nerd. cretin. moron.

feedmyleg
Dec 25, 2004
Actually I think you'll find that the meeting of the historical and the supernatural is the best part. NITWITS

e: seriously. I love stuffy historical dramas with British folks speaking very tersely to each other, and I love spooky supernatural poo poo. Together? HEAVEN

feedmyleg fucked around with this message at 17:10 on Apr 25, 2018

UNRULY_HOUSEGUEST
Jul 19, 2006

mea culpa
I've got misgivings about giving us a literal on-screen bear monster thing especially on a TV budget, but I think it would be a weaker show dramatically if it were just the expedition stumbling headlong into a catalogue of 19th century ignorances that the audience know better of. I actually like how they're crediting the protagonists with predicting or uncovering the historically documented mistakes they're making as they go along, but mixing in the supernatural dimension to restore the air of mystery and dread for the audience to actually share in.

Hasselblad
Dec 13, 2017

My dumbass opinions are only outweighed by my racism.

No one forgot that I exist to defend violent cops, champion chaining down immigrants, and have trash opinions on cooking.
Only thing that I :psyduck: about the episode was the in-charge doctor acting ho-hum about the obvious lead poisoning and the next moment lighting everything, himself included, on fire. Really escalated quickly. Was watching on a horrible old small TV where everything was too dark. Did pooh bear bite her tongue out? To match her state in the book

LadyPictureShow
Nov 18, 2005

Success!



Hasselblad posted:

Only thing that I :psyduck: about the episode was the in-charge doctor acting ho-hum about the obvious lead poisoning and the next moment lighting everything, himself included, on fire. Really escalated quickly. Was watching on a horrible old small TV where everything was too dark. Did pooh bear bite her tongue out? To match her state in the book

She did it to herself, saying something about Tuunbaq not having a master anymore (or something along those lines).

I was a little confused about the doctor pulling a 180 myself. He seemed pretty ho-hum about the lead poisoning when Goodsir brought it up, then the one patient (the guy with the headaches) asked about his daughter. So I wasn’t sure if he’d gone deranged from lead poisoning/realizing the futility of their situation, or if he just decided euthanasia was the quickest was out and he’d help everyone else whether they wanted it or not.

E: I think it’d be cool if they dramatized other lost expeditions either with or without ‘wooooooo mythical monsters’ like the ‘Arctic Balloon Expedition of 1897’
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/S._A._Andr%E9e's_Arctic_Balloon_Expedition_of_1897

LadyPictureShow fucked around with this message at 19:19 on Apr 25, 2018

bloom
Feb 25, 2017

by sebmojo

LadyPictureShow posted:

She did it to herself, saying something about Tuunbaq not having a master anymore (or something along those lines).

I was a little confused about the doctor pulling a 180 myself. He seemed pretty ho-hum about the lead poisoning when Goodsir brought it up, then the one patient (the guy with the headaches) asked about his daughter. So I wasn’t sure if he’d gone deranged from lead poisoning/realizing the futility of their situation, or if he just decided euthanasia was the quickest was out and he’d help everyone else whether they wanted it or not.

Looking at pictures of loved ones is like the most obvious way to say "this dude is about to die" in film.

Wheat Loaf
Feb 13, 2012

by FactsAreUseless

LadyPictureShow posted:

E: I think it’d be cool if they dramatized other lost expeditions either with or without ‘wooooooo mythical monsters’ like the ‘Arctic Balloon Expedition of 1897’
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/S._A._Andr%E9e's_Arctic_Balloon_Expedition_of_1897

Either Umberto Nobile's attempt to fly a zeppelin to the North Pole (his arch-rival Roald Amundsen vanished while joining the rescue effort) or the trek of the Donner Party would be interesting even without supernatural creatures showing up to eat people (because they did that themselves).

Comrade Koba
Jul 2, 2007

LadyPictureShow posted:

E: I think it’d be cool if they dramatized other lost expeditions either with or without ‘wooooooo mythical monsters’ like the ‘Arctic Balloon Expedition of 1897’
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/S._A._Andr%E9e's_Arctic_Balloon_Expedition_of_1897

It’d sure be a nice change to have a series about the Arctic expedition where the recovered remains of one member show signs of them being...attacked by a polar bear. :v:

LadyPictureShow
Nov 18, 2005

Success!



Comrade Koba posted:

It’d sure be a nice change to have a series about the Arctic expedition where the recovered remains of one member show signs of them being...attacked by a polar bear. :v:

Hahaha, you got me on that point. I said that one because they could do ‘woooooo spooky things when they developed the photographs’. I forgot one of them got eaten by a polar bear.

Also, who thinks it’s a good idea to try and fly a hot air balloon to the arctic?!

Comrade Koba
Jul 2, 2007

LadyPictureShow posted:

Also, who thinks it’s a good idea to try and fly a hot air balloon to the arctic?!

The same kind of idiot who doesn’t even bother to do a single test run of the balloon he’s supposed to fly all the way to the North Pole, presumably.

That expedition was such a dumb shitshow that if they ever do a TV adaptation of it, it should just have an endless loop of Yakety Sax as the soundtrack.

grobbo
May 29, 2014
Ok, I’m now five episodes in after recently reading the book and I have some thoughts:

- The characterisation is fleshed out really well all around. BookCrozier was portrayed as capable and stable in spite of his drinking. The more obviously compromised portrayal here surprised me at first, but it ensured Sir John’s death didn’t seem like such a dead cert, and I suspect it’ll give him a better arc in the long run. Hickey, too, is sympathetically egotistical and wounded where his novel counterpart was mostly just a preening schemer.

- I’m glad they’ve bothered to give Lady Silence emotions, conversational ability, and humanity beyond ‘inscrutable magic foreigner’. It’s easily, gracefully sidestepping the book’s one-dimensional portrayal while keeping to the plot.

- The use of background atmospheric cues to hammer home how bad things are getting is great; just seeing how the snowline has crept closer and closer up towards the deck between scenes did a lot for me.

- Something is off about the attack scenes, unfortunately. The CGI has been mentioned, but I think it’s a combination of creative decisions that just don’t mesh well together. The way the attacks start naturalistically, without violent explosions of noise or musical cues, and with almost comical flailing panic from the human characters. The eerie, offbeat music that does kick in during Blanky’s flight, after a delay. The tendency for characters to be bisected or dismembered neatly by a vague paw swipe. The choice for some of the early, silent stealth attacks to take place on clear days, where we can see the limitations of the set and we *know* there’s nothing hiding in the ice.

I’m keen to see how they build on the horror, but I do agree that strangely, the monster bear isn’t quite pulling its weight here.

canyoneer
Sep 13, 2005


I only have canyoneyes for you
I like the man faced bear. The grotesque appearance adds to the weirdness.

Also, here's one of those virgin/chad memes that I laughed about, which contains spoilers for those who haven't watched past the release schedule
https://i.imgur.com/ogGXRzW.png

Hasselblad
Dec 13, 2017

My dumbass opinions are only outweighed by my racism.

No one forgot that I exist to defend violent cops, champion chaining down immigrants, and have trash opinions on cooking.
Just got done reading the Mr Blanky chapter where he was getting away from the bear.

BAD

rear end

I mean, he did not disappoint in the show version of it, but his inner dialogue in the book is gob-loving hard core.

Hasselblad fucked around with this message at 00:46 on Apr 26, 2018

Caufman
May 7, 2007
The creepiest thing on the show so far was the mask the shaman wore when he appeared to the dying sailor. For a second I thought that it was his face.

etalian
Mar 20, 2006

canyoneer posted:

Also, here's one of those virgin/chad memes that I laughed about, which contains spoilers for those who haven't watched past the release schedule
https://i.imgur.com/ogGXRzW.png

lmao

Ague Proof
Jun 5, 2014

they told me
I was everything

Caufman posted:

The creepiest thing on the show so far was the mask the shaman wore when he appeared to the dying sailor. For a second I thought that it was his face.

Based on this.

Quixotic1
Jul 25, 2007

Comrade Koba posted:

The same kind of idiot who doesn’t even bother to do a single test run of the balloon he’s supposed to fly all the way to the North Pole, presumably.

That expedition was such a dumb shitshow that if they ever do a TV adaptation of it, it should just have an endless loop of Yakety Sax as the soundtrack.

Just read the wiki on it and i would have canceled the expedition mere seconds after take off and realizing that I'm having to drop more than a thousand pounds of sand and supplies immediately to not crash.

Also it seems all failed expeditions have the common theme of overpacking when the expedition inevitably fails and then have to hightail it to safety.

Ialso now want a lost city of Z mini series with supernatural elements, but I'm afraid I'd be like that failed abc show from I think the producers of Lost about a documentary in the amazon.

Caufman
May 7, 2007


Thaaat's terror.

Wooper
Oct 16, 2006

Champion draGoon horse slayer. Making Lancers weep for their horsies since 2011. Viva Dickbutt.
Besides lost expeditions I think there is series potential for some of the not so lost ones. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nansen%27s_Fram_expedition

Several of the Antarctic ones are rife with drama. With returning characters as well.

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Fartbox
Apr 27, 2017
What's happening? Dri fu an only two? what is this?
Is this an avatar? I don't know rm dunk

They could also just make entirely fictional stories

The arctic/snowy nomansland is so good for horror

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