[TV] Sense8

[Voidism]

I saw that there's no thread about this new series. So, here we go!

A Netflix series:

A group of people around the world are suddenly linked mentally, and must find a way to survive being hunted by those who see them as a threat to the world's order.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2431438/

My opinion, only being a few episodes in... it was (very) 'slow' at first, but is getting more intense further in. The stories are interesting and the quality of the show is high. The style feels fresh imo. I recommend watching at least 3-4 episodes to get a feeling for the show. Also, there's a bit of transgender and sexuality issues in the show so if you're not mature enough to see two dudes or dudettes kissing and having sex this show is probably not for you. I think the IMDB grade reflects this rather than the quality of the show (which deserves an 8.5 from what I've seen).

[Svifnymr]

A friend had told me it was very slow, but I only maybe halfway into the first episode before giving up. Too many characters, but I could manage. Netflix lists it as LGBT, so I guess it's a focus of the series, but doesn't bother me.

But damnit, I hate heavy accents in foreign countries. They're in Japan, speak Japanese (with subtitles), not heavily accented english! Sure, if you're in America, speaking to an english person, than sure. So yeah, not the series for me.

[ravenmoon]

lol..very slow?

this is freaking amazing... it is so well done. i am rather startled how well it captures soooo much. I'm on episode 2, and I haven't slept since I started watching this. The supernatural stuff hasn't even started yet, they are setting up the detailed background of all the characters and it is really really well done all fronts. I'm rather amazed.

This would be tough to beat.

[Deleted]

I binged through it in one go and all I can saw is: I want boar noaw

but I have to admit Svifnymr is right it would have made more sense when people in Iceland, Germany, Korea spoke their language and get subtitled
(especially seeing that the german actors HAD actually some german wich got subtitled?!? why not all?)

I love the characters, I love the stories, I love the switch technique and I hope they get at least all 5 planned seasons!

[Acidbaron]

It is explained in the series why it appears that they all speak english (not directly but if you can read between the lines you know why it's the case). So that didn't bother me too much also making it multiple languages would have meant going for a smaller market.

As for the show being a bit slow, it's all about character development and the base story in this first season it seems so that doesn't bother me too much does mean netflix is gambling on this becoming a serie of a few seasons.

I was happy to see the whole gay thing didn't get overplayed since first reading about it, i had worries that this was a show more about putting forward social issues rather than presenting an interesting story, glad to see i was wrong.

[ravenmoon]

It is explained in the series why it appears that they all speak english (not directly but if you can read between the lines you know why it's the case). So that didn't bother me too much also making it multiple languages would have meant going for a smaller market.

As for the show being a bit slow, it's all about character development and the base story in this first season it seems so that doesn't bother me too much does mean netflix is gambling on this becoming a serie of a few seasons.

I was happy to see the whole gay thing didn't get overplayed since first reading about it, i had worries that this was a show more about putting forward social issues rather than presenting an interesting story, glad to see i was wrong.

yep, agreed there.. i hate shows labelled gay cos they normally all about social issues and politisizing and preaching gay to us.. this was nothing like that at all, gay was not the focus, it was just a part of some of the characters.. unusual to see more than one gay couple of characters as main chars, just like it is unusual to see more than one black character too, it just happens to be the background of the characters and it makes them a lot more interesting and the show about what it is, not about gayness or blackness, or liberalist or religious agenda..it just tells a story with a cool thing to it.

[Acidbaron]

yep, agreed there.. i hate shows labelled gay cos they normally all about social issues and politisizing and preaching gay to us.. this was nothing like that at all, gay was not the focus, it was just a part of some of the characters.. unusual to see more than one gay couple of characters as main chars, just like it is unusual to see more than one black character too, it just happens to be the background of the characters and it makes them a lot more interesting and the show about what it is, not about gayness or blackness, or liberalist or religious agenda..it just tells a story with a cool thing to it.

The interesting part is instead of for forcing social issues on us, showing people of a different sexual orientation in normal situations we all encounter as it happens in reality to be a better way too approach this whole social debate what sadly has become so politicized.

Anyway almost done with the TV series and have to say i prefer this method of watching it in one gone or deciding how to watch it over a few days than awaiting like with penny dreadful that often don't even release on the same day or time here leaving me to guess when i can watch the new episode.

All in all another nice addition this month to netflix collection, between is also growing to be an interesting show although i'm not sure how its concept will lend itself to multiple season.

[Nelle]

Seen 5 episodes today, and holy crap this is some terrible shit. Something like this would NEVER have gone past a Pilot episode on a cable network. Imagine if you had to wait 1 week between the episodes, then the series would make even less sense than it do now. So this being on Netflix where you can see it in one go is the only good thing it got going.

Only reason I went past episode 2 was because I felt guilty for already wasting 2 hours, so to hell with it, I might as well continue and hope for it to improve. Boy was I wrong

Sure, the music is great, at some points really really great and some of the visual scenes are nicely made, but this just seems like a TERRIBLE boring and longstretched version of that movie the Wachowski made some years ago, Cloud Atlas, or whatever its name was, even have same "china-actress" and jump-around-in-story theme. The general story is terrible and half the things going on are far too mixed up to keep you really hooked or feel for the involved people.

I get the story, 8 people able to transport around into each others minds and adapt each others abilities to get out of bad situations, as if they are one entity, but honestly I don't see the point of this yet, sure I'm only 5 episodes in, but so far it feels like nothing have happened at all. Some of the 8 characters also seem completely irrelevant.

I had huge respect for the Wachowski 10 years ago and The Matrix is my favorite SciFi of all time. But the stuff they've been spitting out lately is just pure bad.

I'm from Denmark and around here we don't give a shit what way people swing, but honestly 2-3 gay couples seems to overdo it just a bit for my taste. making it seem "forced" if you know what I mean, perhaps to try hit that segment and get more viewers.

[Waynhim]

Just finished binging it and I really enjoyed it, though it was pretty hard getting into.

I've had issues with LGBT-series before, (couldn't handle Oz and 6 feet under), but for some reason the content in this show didn't bother me.

I would say that season 1 is all about laying the foundation for future seasons, some of the main characters are more interesting then others, so it becomes a bit GoT'ish. If you watch it with a spouse you will probably have different favourites though.

Personally I hope it gets renewed. I've been a huge fan of J. Michael Straczynski's storytelling since B5 and I hope he gets the chance to develop the story further.

[endersblade]

Just finished the first episode after reading this post. Absolutely love it. And it has Tuppance Middleton in it! LOVE her!

The LGBT agenda is STRONG in this. Ugh. I have nothing against them, or whatever you're supposed to say that isn't offensive, but good lord, cram it down my throat much? Although I loved the little prancing fairie dudes that gave them the brownies lol. Reminded me of Mardi Gras in New Orleans. Or, the LGBT side of it, which was a hell of a lot more fun. It isn't that I don't think that sort of stuff should be in films. Show gay/lesbian couples, I don't bat an eyelash. But it just feels like they're trying to say "HEY THERE IS LGBT SHIT IN THIS SERIES DEAL WITH IT".

That aside, they really put a lot of depth into the characters, at least in this first episode. And the ending of the first ep, wtf lol. I feel I'm going to blaze through this first season, and really wish there was more. It's very engrossing, and the premise seems really awesome. And the characters seems likable enough.

[Deleted]

I don't know, we watched first episode and were like... nah, not that good. Sometimes you feel like you are willing to check more to see if it gets better... sometimes they turn into amazing shows... like Fringe =) However, I doubt this is as good as Fringe :P

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It is explained in the series why it appears that they all speak english (not directly but if you can read between the lines you know why it's the case). So that didn't bother me too much also making it multiple languages would have meant going for a smaller market.

As for the show being a bit slow, it's all about character development and the base story in this first season it seems so that doesn't bother me too much does mean netflix is gambling on this becoming a serie of a few seasons.

I was happy to see the whole gay thing didn't get overplayed since first reading about it, i had worries that this was a show more about putting forward social issues rather than presenting an interesting story, glad to see i was wrong.

The worst thing is having people from other countries, in their countries, talking english... but with an accent! The accent part is what makes it so bad.

[Svifnymr]

It is explained in the series why it appears that they all speak english (not directly but if you can read between the lines you know why it's the case). So that didn't bother me too much also making it multiple languages would have meant going for a smaller market.

It's one of my pet peeves, granted. In the first Assassins Creed, they specify that the reason everyone is speaking English is because the machine filters it through his experiences. So everyone speaks perfectly fine english. In 2, suddenly everyone speaks with an italian accent and slips into actual italian randomly. So I abandoned the series. Screw them!

So, same thing here, maybe the psychic link means that the characters are all interpreting the others speechs into Thought Speech which sound like english, but then the accents make it even worse. Why wouldn't the Thought Speech be clearer rather than heavily accented? Either way, I may be in the vast minority for letting this bug me, but it's not like I have a need to watch the series and put up with it, I can just skip it.

I was happy to see the whole gay thing didn't get overplayed since first reading about it, i had worries that this was a show more about putting forward social issues rather than presenting an interesting story, glad to see i was wrong.

It really just seemed odd to me because they labeled it "Gay & Lesbian TV Shows" in their description. It doesn't matter to me that there are LGBT characters, but it having that label led me to think it was ABOUT LGBT issues rather than just having folks in it that happened to be such. The trailer showcased a sci-fi adventure (and it is labeled Sci-Fi also, obviously). Hell, they probably just wanted to cross-index it for more coverage.

[ravenmoon]

Love it.. on the last episode now.. this is unbelievable well written.. as a person that is intimately knowledgeable of 4 of the 5 cultures shown and quite knowledgabele about the 5th, man, they see well, I reckon that the writers are all young adults, 35 and under, 40 and under maybe. If older, then they know shit, probably a large team.. I'm gonna have to look into it after, too busy watching.

[Cattleya]

Personally I'm loving the series, but I can understand other people wouldn't. It's very clearly a love-it-or-hate-it series.

On the season finale now, hope it gets more seasons.

[ravenmoon]

this was better and more gripping than Daredevil was, thoroughly entertaining.. they a pulling off better shows than many of the ones on the major networks.

[Kysenia]

hmm Daredevil has me stuck slightly bored at ep3, I'll definitely have to give this a watch.

[Deleted]

hmm Daredevil has me stuck slightly bored at ep3, ...

OT, but have you seen Wilson Fisk (Kingpin) yet? I was underwhelmed by the first couple of episodes, but when he showed up (the main villain), it took off - for me, at least.

this is unbelievable well written... I reckon that the writers are all young adults

It's written by The Wachowskis & J. Michael Straczynski who are 50ish and 60ish respectively. But they are great writers. The Wachowskis wrote the Matrix and adapted Cloud Atlas (massively underrated film, imo) while JMS wrote Babylon 5, which has a great story arc.

[ravenmoon]

Seen 5 episodes today, and holy crap this is some terrible shit. Something like this would NEVER have gone past a Pilot episode on a cable network. Imagine if you had to wait 1 week between the episodes, then the series would make even less sense than it do now. So this being on Netflix where you can see it in one go is the only good thing it got going.

Only reason I went past episode 2 was because I felt guilty for already wasting 2 hours, so to hell with it, I might as well continue and hope for it to improve. Boy was I wrong

Sure, the music is great, at some points really really great and some of the visual scenes are nicely made, but this just seems like a TERRIBLE boring and longstretched version of that movie the Wachowski made some years ago, Cloud Atlas, or whatever its name was, even have same "china-actress" and jump-around-in-story theme. The general story is terrible and half the things going on are far too mixed up to keep you really hooked or feel for the involved people.

Funny the reasons you hate it are the reasons i love it. I thought it was a beautiful balance between the sci-fi stuff and the drama... with the right proportions to appeal to massive audiences...sci-fi series/films far too often go overboard on the geek stuff and dont play a strong drama/human interaction, the individuals and characters are well developed and well written and from the core, and whiles the main theme is centred around this incredible new ability "discovered", it doesn't drwon the show, it is watchable as a drama by anyone not at all interested in the sci-fi stuff.

I get the story, 8 people able to transport around into each others minds and adapt each others abilities to get out of bad situations, as if they are one entity, but honestly I don't see the point of this yet, sure I'm only 5 episodes in, but so far it feels like nothing have happened at all. Some of the 8 characters also seem completely irrelevant.

I had huge respect for the Wachowski 10 years ago and The Matrix is my favorite SciFi of all time. But the stuff they've been spitting out lately is just pure bad.

its the hallmark of aspects of the new age religion which is a blend of humanism, sciencism and occultism - ancient shit repackaged, there are people who actually believe we will develop into something like this perhaps even become what many people call God right now.. it's a twisting of the truth ofc which is readily available with more than sufficient evidence for all who would bother to get off their high horse, humble themselves and look into it so they can see and believe ofc, all of this is total bullshit, but it's great entertainment and very sad that there are people who actually believe in stuff like this.

it does stir the imagination though, but the real truth about your life and our destiny is so much more than this, and Jesus Christ shows that. The point of this is to stir your imagination and present a popular belief system in an emerging world religion.

I'm from Denmark and around here we don't give a shit what way people swing, but honestly 2-3 gay couples seems to overdo it just a bit for my taste. making it seem "forced" if you know what I mean, perhaps to try hit that segment and get more viewers.

I love Danish guys. The gay thing is rather strong, I did comment earlier that it was unusual to see more than one gay couple, but i consider it a credit rather than a bad thing because the focus is not on gay, it just happens that 1 of the sense 8 is gay, and that there are 2 couples. Sadly this is wrongly classed as LGBT.. it shouldn't be, and gay people ought to be offended by this but the activist ones would no doubt be proud, they get offended at so much of the wrong things these days and the stuff they put out is so preachy usually. this is none of that, and i love it. the gay inclusion is totally reminiscent of what you see today and it pictures struggles that make the individuals real without having a focus on that.

you should see it as an individual focus not a theme focus and is the first tV show outside Modern Family that i've seen gay couples involved with and it's not about social or political gay issues. THis is good.

Notice how TV shows also almost never have more than 1 main black character in major non-black themed american projects, also stupid, considering it is American and not say Eastern European or Scandinavian... so this show is a lot more on the ball for it's diversity.

The other startling thing is how well they captured the individual cultures, from Germany, to Kenya, to India, the U.S, and London, although the London side follows an Icelandic rather than a Brit.. but any of you from London like myself, know that is typical of a very multi-cultural London that is full of people from all over the world, and while the natives are still the largest people group, we are less than 50% of the population of the city, something I don't mind at all, cos it makes London like a mini-world for us here who love diversity.

[Icaras]

I'll agree the show starts out slow...I get that they want to develop the characters, but I think the almost total lack of storyline was a mistake. The very slight hint of story from that 1st scene was enough to keep me going and the storyline seems to be picking up a bit now that I'm a few episodes in. In LGBT stuff doesn't bother me at all. Some people roll that way *shrugs*.

I intend to stick with the series, tho if it continues to be mostly aimless character development, I may give up.

To the character talking about cable or whatever: DUR! It's a show made for Netflix, it kind of makes sense to design it in a way knowing the audience can just binge want it if they want it. That's kinda the same reason netflix shows don't tend to have a "NEXT TIME ON!" and "PREVIOUSLY ON!" segment...because they know the viewer are (usually) going to be watching more than just one episode a week.

[ravenmoon]

I'll agree the show starts out slow...I get that they want to develop the characters, but I think the almost total lack of storyline was a mistake. The very slight hint of story from that 1st scene was enough to keep me going and the storyline seems to be picking up a bit now that I'm a few episodes in. In LGBT stuff doesn't bother me at all. Some people roll that way *shrugs*.

I intend to stick with the series, tho if it continues to be mostly aimless character development, I may give up.

To the character talking about cable or whatever: DUR! It's a show made for Netflix, it kind of makes sense to design it in a way knowing the audience can just binge want it if they want it. That's kinda the same reason netflix shows don't tend to have a "NEXT TIME ON!" and "PREVIOUSLY ON!" segment...because they know the viewer are (usually) going to be watching more than just one episode a week.

how can you say there was a lack of storyline? You mean the special abilities stuff wasn't strong enough? I think that's its strength.. there was much storyline.. think of it like wow.. but instead of following the story of 8 races, it follows the story of 8 people. It definitely has a story line, each of those has a life, but they are connected to each other through this main thing of there.

And I love that the show isn't all consuming about the global conspiracy.. i'm tired of that stuff. It's nice, but all the shows do it. From MARVEL to Arrow to Helix ... yes I get it's a scary new global threat or global thing that's happening, but those shows very quickly lose touch with reality and the people because it's all about the new super discvoery or new advancement or new evolution and very quickly it doesn't feel connected to today at all. This doesn't have that. This new thing is happening but it feels very much like our world.

but then, i'm a tv buff, so maybe it's just that i've seen a lot more of this stuff over the last 3-5 years, where iet's pretty much been, study, games and shows for me