LTTP: Orphan Black -- Where One is Many and Many are One

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Syriel

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Missed this when it aired and just started watching Season 1.

Saw the first episode and thought it started out well, but the second episode kicks it up a notch.

Already found myself rooting for Sarah as she pretends to be "Beth" and digs deeper into the dual mysteries of both Beth's past and the whole deal with the clones.

Massive props to the lead actress as well. Never seen her before and I'm already a fan. The way she plays the different clones has got to be challenging and we've only seen a handful in the first two episodes.

Foster brother is also worth a note. I can see that he's going to be Sarah's anchor throughout the whole series.

Can't wait to learn more and see what happens.

If you haven't yet seen the show, join in and start watching. Hopefully the quality keeps up from here.
 
I marathoned this in about a little over a week in January. Tatiana is a goddess. Her acting is so sooooo good. Quality gets better after ep 2 for sure. S2 introduced a lot of stuff so that's debatable but i enjoyed it.
 
The first season was great, but the second season was really poor to the point where I don't think I'll be turning in next year :-\
 
Saw episodes three and four tonight.

Holy shit at
Helena
. Tatiana Maslany really showing off her acting chops there with
Helena going full on psycho religious avenging angel
on Sarah's ass.

I'll admit, some of the close calls felt a bit contrived, and I'm not sure why they threw in that bit with the confessional call to Art at the end of episode 4, but the twist with Chen was a good piece of info. Honestly, I'm almost surprised that Sarah just doesn't bring Art in on the whole thing. Since he was already covering for Beth's pill addiction, he's got something to hide and she could hold that over him.

The mother/daughter visit was awesome as well. I'm really getting to like the character of Felix. Jordan Gavaris plays him with just the right mix of seriousness and flippancy. Both Felix and Mrs. S. seem incredibly loyal to Sarah in their own ways, and both would do what ever it took to keep Sarah and Kira safe (even if each has different priorities).

I will admit to being a bit disappointed at Sarah quitting the police force. It seems that (just like on Person of Interest) having an inside look at things from within the PD could be incredibly useful for her; in more than one way.
 
Just wrapped my season 1 marathon a few hours ago, kind of heartbreaking that season 2 apparently tanks. :(

I'll still be giving it a shot regardless. Tatiana is the best.
 
Didn't realize this was only 10 episodes and ended up marathoning the rest over the past two nights. Five, six and seven on Wed; eight, nine and ten on Thurs.

Holy crap was that good. I still wish Sarah would have just come clean to Art somewhere along the line because I think he would have helped her out. Then again, if she had, we wouldn't have gotten Art's WTF moment with Allison.

Speaking of Allison, it's pretty cool that my initial gut with her monitor was correct, though I was a little disappointed with how she let things end up with her ex-friend. I mean, I know she's been through the shit, but that was just HARDCORE COLD for her character.

Helena has more depth than I originally thought (figured she would be a throwaway character like the German) and it was cool to see that the Doctor knew about the Sarah/Helena connection all along.

Still not quite sure what to make of Paul, though I think he's leaning towards the side of good rather than bad. As for Mrs. S, the photos seem to hint that she knows more than she's letting on, but I still don't think she's a turncoat or a monitor. If anything, she may have originally absconded with Sarah herself after telling the researchers to screw off.

Season one was seriously good. Can't wait for season two at this point. We need more episodes per season though. 10 episodes a season is just too short.
 
This is one of my favourite shows ever. I live for it.

On the subject of season 2, I really enjoy it. Some of my favourite episodes in the series are in season 2...but so are some of my least favorite. I think season 2 starts getting bad around episode 8. The finale was alright, though. The whole season really made me appreciate Rachel's character.
 
ivysaur12 said:
The first season was great, but the second season was really poor to the point where I don't think I'll be turning in next year :-\
Click to expand...

I didn't see that big of a dip.
Still plenty of schlock, elevated by Tatiana's superb performance and a lot of funny moments.

(EDITED out because OP is still watching S1, better not risk it)
 
UrbanRats said:
I didn't see that big of a dip.
Still plenty of schlock, elevated by Tatiana's superb performance and a lot of funny moments.

(EDITED out because OP is still watching S1, better not risk it)
Click to expand...

Fully finished with S1.

Planning to go through S2 next week.

Don't mind general mentions of S2 as long as there aren't any super blatant story spoilers. That's part of the reason why I've tried to keep some of my S1 comments general as well, so if another new viewer pops in I don't ruin a key plot point.

As far as Tatiana is concerned, you are on point. The woman is downright amazing in how she portrays all of the different characters. There are some actors who only seem to be able to play variations of themselves. Each and every character she plays here is DISTINCTLY different. She's like a human chameleon.

Mannerisms, voice, dress, all of it ends up with characters that stand alone. None of them are "main character playing another."

That said, I do wonder how the show was shot, especially given all the different looks she has to take on.

For example, did they shoot all the scenes with Tatiana as a certain character for all 10 episodes and then go back and shoot all those from another character's perspective? Or was it shot episode-by-episode, with her just changing from day-to-day?
 
Syriel said:
For example, did they shoot all the scenes with Tatiana as a certain character for all 10 episodes and then go back and shoot all those from another character's perspective? Or was it shot episode-by-episode, with her just changing from day-to-day?
Click to expand...
They shoot it like a regular show. One episode at a time. She sometimes has to play multiple characters in one day.
 
Tatiana is fantastic in the show but the writing I find to be subpar and quite a few of the secondary characters have terrible actors, I'll probably eventually watch the 3rd season but I'll look forward more to Tatiana getting better work in films.
 
kirblar said:
S2 exposes that they're making everything up as they go along instead of working from a series bible.
Click to expand...

That sounds mildly disappointing. I had hoped that they were working on a multi-year plan. At least it appeared that way after S1 finished.

I figured that since S1 covered "Sarah discovering the conspiracy" that S2 would be "The search for
Kira
."
 
Started Season 2!

Watched the first three episodes in one sitting.

Highlights:

S2E1 - Sarah is a boss throughout the entire thing. Like what they did here. Everything felt natural, especially the Allison "setup" and her reacting with pepper spray.

S2E2 - The Felix/Allison interaction rocked. I wasn't sure about Allison when she was first introduced, but every time she appears on screen the character grows on me. Whereas Sarah and Cosima are trying to deal with Dyad head on, Allison is simply trying to ignore it. Her efforts are in vain, but she's certainly more than the one note character I expected at the beginning of the series.

S2E3 - Introducing the ex-boyfriend seems like a waste of time. My only real hope here is that he is authentic, and not yet another "red herring" in Sarah's quest.

That's the one risk I see for the series. It seems like everyone she had trusted (except for Felix) seems to have some sort of hidden agenda, and in Episode 3 she pretty much turns her back on Felix.

I understand wanting to have some drama, but the constant turning of people is going to get old pretty quickly. First there was Paul (seemed like he was going to help her long term, then switches to Dyad). Then there was Mrs. S. Then Mrs. S's friends. Then Delphine. I mean seriously. Does anyone have a sense of loyalty here?

There's nothing wrong with a conspiracy show, but the producers need to establish a core group that is 100% trustworthy to each other. If everyone's keeping secrets, it can easily turn into lazy writing.
 
Had a delay in catching up, but managed to see a few more episodes of S2. Not sure why everyone seemed to be down on S2, because so far it's pretty solid.
Though Paul has turned into a total bastard. Fuck Paul.

S2E4 - The religious nuts are confirmed crazy. Art's doing his own thing. Helena has gone from a psycho killer to someone who deserves pity more than scorn. There hasn't been a single person who's been nice to her. She's been screwed over by pretty much everyone she's ever met.

S2E5 - This is the episode where Paul moves beyond redemption. Up to this point I figured he might be trying to play an inside game to help Sarah. Nope. Helena responds well to Sarah's display of empathy. Though she still has her badass streak. She's become my new favorite of all the clones, as it's obvious she does have a moral center (it's just slightly askew from the rest of us). "I fix problem for you."

S2E6 - Felt for both Helena and Sarah here (Helena's crush in the bar was a genuinely sweet moment for her), but it was pretty crap of Sarah to just jump ship. Yeah, I know she called Art for help, but she was Helena's lifeline to sanity. Sarah needs to show loyalty to more than just herself.

As far as the continuing B-plots:

Cal seems to be a convenient place to stash Kira. There hasn't been much to say about him. He seems competent enough, so I expected Sarah to open up a little and ask for his help. Nope. She pretty much just treats him as a convenient babysitter.

Allison's stint in rehab makes sense, but the bit with Sarah's ex and Art's partner doing her own recon kinda feels stuffed in there. Yeah, I know the police aren't going to let the unsolved murders drop, but she just kinda pops up with no real reason.

Felix + Art was boss. Two completely different personalities, but both being treated the same by Sarah. Hopefully they continue to work together.

Cosima's sickness/Leeky's hidden agenda - Good to see that Delphine seems to be becoming loyal to Cosima and isn't a total turncoat like everyone else in Dyad. No surprise that Leeky and Rachel both have their own agendas and couldn't give a shit about what the other wants unless it furthers their own ends.
 
S2E7 - Mixed thoughts on this episode. Sarah needs to learn to trust Cal. Her inability to trust anyone seems like it could be the potential for her big downfall. Then again, that's the same problem that Mrs. S has. If both of them could learn to trust, they could go from playing defense to offense.

The B-story with Allison and Vic comes to a conclusion and, as expected, it was a pretty big waste of time. Though the revelation that Donnie is just an idiot was nicely plotted. The whole time we all thought he was one of Dyad's spies, but instead he was played like everyone else. The sudden rush of guilt and depression as he realized that he was the cause of it all was well portrayed by the actor.

Paul is still a jerk.

Lack of Helena was disappointing.

I really want to see a Helena vs Paul fight. Both have years of training/experience and both are tough as shit. Would be an all out brawl.

Kira is still smart as shit (and compassionate beyond all get out).

Speaking of which, Cosima's sudden turn from opposition to asking for help happened rather quickly. Would have made more sense if that had been allowed to play out for a few episodes rather than just BAM and there it is. Cosima had always been about principles and this made it seem like she suddenly put self-preservation above all else. A little bit of introspection and struggling with the decision would have been appropriate.

One high point of the episode. The ending.

Donnie may be a bumbling idiot, but now he can't bluster his way out.
 
Syriel said:
S2E7 - Mixed thoughts on this episode. Sarah needs to learn to trust Cal. Her inability to trust anyone seems like it could be the potential for her big downfall. Then again, that's the same problem that Mrs. S has. If both of them could learn to trust, they could go from playing defense to offense.

The B-story with Allison and Vic comes to a conclusion and, as expected, it was a pretty big waste of time. Though the revelation that Donnie is just an idiot was nicely plotted. The whole time we all thought he was one of Dyad's spies, but instead he was played like everyone else. The sudden rush of guilt and depression as he realized that he was the cause of it all was well portrayed by the actor.

Paul is still a jerk.

Lack of Helena was disappointing.

I really want to see a Helena vs Paul fight. Both have years of training/experience and both are tough as shit. Would be an all out brawl.

Kira is still smart as shit (and compassionate beyond all get out).

Speaking of which, Cosima's sudden turn from opposition to asking for help happened rather quickly. Would have made more sense if that had been allowed to play out for a few episodes rather than just BAM and there it is. Cosima had always been about principles and this made it seem like she suddenly put self-preservation above all else. A little bit of introspection and struggling with the decision would have been appropriate.

One high point of the episode. The ending.

Donnie may be a bumbling idiot, but now he can't bluster his way out.
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