MovieChat Forums > Total Recall 2070 (1999) Discussion > This Sunday on 'TR 2070' eps 1-11: Asses...

This Sunday on 'TR 2070' eps 1-11: Assessment

posted 9 years ago by madp
15 replies | jump to latest

No, this is not another episode. I just thought we could have a special place to convey our considerations about the show so far, and also consider future actions. Feel free to add information here anytime.

Here's what I think. We've had shows that were very exciting (e.g., Day Break, Firefly, Journeyman), others that were controversial (The Prisoner, The Middleman, God, the DEvil and Bob) or pure nostalgia (The Time Tunnel, Kolchak, Voyagers!) which left us with deep impressions. Unfortunately, Total Recall 2070 isn't any of these cases. It's basically bland, with glimpses of a good story. But basically if that hasn't surfaced so far, I don't think it ever will. Now I realize that when I first saw this show, I was so overwhelmed by the ambiance, that this made me blind to everything else.

I'm perfectly OK with finishing the season, but I'm worried about our friends who have just joined us and are having a bumpy ride. Chances are someone will always dislike the show we picked, and I know I have to be ready for anything when we start a new thing. In fact, there have only been two or three shows I could find unbearable, and only one made me give up (and come back after it) so far. But first-timers are always a special case.

Well, let's see what the group comes up with next time, as I'm certain the group will pick something very different. I just wish to add that at some point we have considered changing the choosing system, so instead of voting on nominations to choose a new show, each round a member would have the right to choose the show everybody would watch. This would eliminate nominations and voting (a pity, really), but would make sure, at some point, your show would be picked. We may adopt this system next. But, again, I have to emphasize that, as I said, someone will always feel displeased in some degree with the choice we have (or someone has) made.

What do you think? Share your thoughts, please. Any suggestions?

[–] JohnQ1127 9 years ago

I think what's odd about this show is that it's called "Total Recall" yet it really resembles Blade Runner with a mixture of Alien Nation. The whole aspect of "Recall" just seems shoehorned in from time to time. It makes me think that they couldn't get the rights to Blade Runner so they used the Recall name to get some kind of brand identification.

Here's what I like:

*The special effects and the set designs are very good.

*It has a moody film noir feel to it.

*Farve is an interesting character and the actor plays him well.

*David's hot wife.

Here's what I don't like:

*It's a cliched formulaic cop drama. The beats come at the same time every week. There's a tough but fair bald black man as the supervisor. There's the brooding cop who is a maverick with his reserved partner and they have little in common. There's the evil corporation and there's the super smart Asian in the lab.

*For a show about the future there's not much explanation as to what happened in the world or where we are exactly. It's like the show just kind of plops the viewer into the series and doesn't explain much of anything. Other than the baby episode, there wasn't much explanation about their world. Are they in the U.S. or Canada? who knows? Do those countries even still exist in 2070? who knows?

*The show is kind of dull, why isn't there more expose about the future??? What's going on in 2070? What happened to the Earth?

*It's kind of a bland show and the guy who plays David is bland as well.

*They decided to use somewhat working technology for 1999 which looks horribly dated for 2015 let alone 2070. Some of the stuff was obsolete in 2005. I guess it looked pretty good for 1999 but it just looks kind of silly now.

*The clothing looks like it's from the 1990's. Why would people in 2070 still be dressed like that??

*What happened to David's wife? She seemed like she was going to be an important character and her storyline just disappeared.

*There's no overriding story arc for this series other than finding Farve's creator.

*There's nothing that really pulls me into this show that makes me really want to watch it.

*It's extremely dark just in lighting so it's rather drab and dreary.

*It's odd that it was a showtime show because other than a few curse words, it could just be on broadcast tv. I don't really know that much history about this show because it was a Canadian production. Was it intended as a single season show?

*Is the Youtube version a censored version of the original? That might explain the lack of nudity or curse words.

I think we should keep the voting process. Maybe add 3 nominations per person with 5 votes. The extra votes might separate things more.

[–] madp 9 years ago

I have to say I agree with pretty much everything you said about the show. At least 2015 me agrees. 1999 me might have had problems with what you said.

by JohnQ1127 » I think we should keep the voting process. Maybe add 3 nominations per person with 5 votes. The extra votes might separate things more.

Funny you should say that. I remember (I think) dtmuller saying that with two nominations for each member, we got to many eligible shows in the end, and we would have to pick three, say among eight, for instance, and the votes got too much spread. He suggested, in fact, reducing the nominations to one only.

I'm not opposed to the 3-5 (3 nominations, 5 votes) system. As long as the number of votes remains higher than the one of nominations, so you have to vote for someone else's nominations too.

Let's hear from the others.

[–] JohnQ1127 9 years ago

I'm not opposed to the 3-5 (3 nominations, 5 votes) system. As long as the number of votes remains higher than the one of nominations, so you have to vote for someone else's nominations too.

I'm in favor of increasing the votes to 5 because I think that will help separate the nominations. A person could vote strategically yet still support his own nomination.

[–] madp 9 years ago

by JohnQ1127 » I'm in favor of increasing the votes to 5 because I think that will help separate the nominations. A person could vote strategically yet still support his own nomination.

I agree. Three nominations, five votes, though that would complicate the calculations a bit more. Not long ago, when we had just four voters, we got stuck in the UFO x Prisoner '09 tie. With five votes, that was less likely to happen.

But we still have to hear from the others. If nobody says anything, I'll have to assume they don't want to change anything.

Anyway, I'm very glad we are all having this talk. So the group will function more like a well-oiled machine. (Not that the trains will have to depart and arrive on time now...)

[–] michaellevenson1 9 years ago

Agree with JohnQ ,the voting system should stay. Anything else is open to confusion. Voting is fair and everyone accepts it. I like his idea of 3 nominations too. Part of the fun is coming up with new ideas for shows to be nominated so lets keep it.
I'd like a ruling on half length shows,25 -30 minutes long. Are they acceptable for nomination? Would we watch two per week and therefore double the number or episodes allowed 60 instead of 30.
As far as TR2070 is concerned, they should have gone more for the Sci fi end of the spectrum and less cop show. We know the Moon and Mars are utilized,people presumably get there in ships,we could have had crimes on those ships ,mysterious dead bodies on the space shuttle,drug trafficking on the moon, or other goings on, push the boat out , but its been a bit formulaic.

[–] madp 9 years ago

by michaellevenson1 » Agree with JohnQ ,the voting system should stay. Anything else is open to confusion. Voting is fair and everyone accepts it. I like his idea of 3 nominations too. Part of the fun is coming up with new ideas for shows to be nominated so lets keep it.

Well, I'm glad to know newcomers have no problems with the voting system. Yes, I agree, coming up with new ideas for nominations is a lot of fun. I still wish to hear from brimfin and lorkris, though, but the latter has taken a sabbatical and will be away for a while. Anyway, this space will remain open for discussions.

we could have had crimes on those ships ,mysterious dead bodies on the space shuttle,drug trafficking on the moon,

Ha, ha;1 Well, admit you're dying for us to see a show about spirited cops on the moon. Isn't that so?

I'd like a ruling on half length shows,25 -30 minutes long. Are they acceptable for nomination? Would we watch two per week and therefore double the number or episodes allowed 60 instead of 30.

The only time we did a short show was with God, the Devil and Bob (2000), and we treated it like any other show, one a week. It was 13 episodes, and some people might say it was 13 episodes too long!

The thing is, 22-to-30-minute-long episodes still tell a whole story, so there seems to be more happening in a shorter period of time. Now I'm trying to imagine 60 storylines of GtDaB... Oh, my God, NO!!!! The thought is terrifying.

We should be looking for ways to simplify our endeavors, not make them more complicated. Perhaps we could, instead, establish a "vote of confidence" or something in the middle of seasons longer than, say, 15 episodes, in order to decide if we should watch the whole thing. TR 2070 is 22 episodes long and it's already quite a stretch. I imagine if we pick, for instance, UFO, with 26, and end hating it by episode 10...

[–] dtmuller 9 years ago

madp: The only time we did a short show was with God, the Devil and Bob (2000), and we treated it like any other show, one a week. It was 13 episodes, and some people might say it was 13 episodes too long!

Actually, that one was 14 episodes too long.

(Hi guys! )

[–] madp 9 years ago

by dtmuller » (Hi guys!)

Hi. Who are you again? I have a vague recollection... 

New guys, I give you the one and only dtmuller, one of the Ancient ones, our Founding Fathers. (That is, one of the guys who started this whole project.)

What have you been up to?

[–] dtmuller 9 years ago

madp: What have you been up to?

Trying to finish off that project that's had me going crazy. And getting the next one started. And, since they are for the same customer, they saw the improvements we're making on the new project and decided that they want us to retrofit the old project, thereby creating a new new project. In the meantime, we have two additional new projects, and are quoting two more.

Other than that, I've been bored out of my skull.

Ancient TV-wise, I've been watching The World at War. You know, the one about that war that was won by the British and I think maybe some others had something to do with it. But I guess it's something of a counterweight to the stuff we usually get here.

[–] madp 9 years ago

by dtmuller » Ancient TV-wise, I've been watching The World at War. You know, the one about that war that was won by the British and I think maybe some others had something to do with it. But I guess it's something of a counterweight to the stuff we usually get here.

Interesting. Speaking of that war, I'm currently reading the alternate series of novels Worldwar/Second Contact by Harry Turtledove. It's an alternate history science fiction series which deals with the following question: What if Earth were invaded by a superior alien force right in the middle of World War II? Something totally plausible, you know.

[–] brimfin 9 years ago

Sorry for being a little late to the party. I didn't see your post until a couple of hours ago. At work, we've entered into our busy time of the year. Where until recently I was enjoying three day weekends, now it's back to the usual two days. That's why I haven't responded more lately; I haven't had that much time.

Unlike everyone else so far, I'm actually enjoying this show. Usually each episode has something to recommend it, some good dialogue or characterization. And a couple of them have connected with me on an emotional level. The last two parter was probably the weakest episode thus far, but I still gave it a 7. I have no problem with sticking with it to the end. I feel a little bad for madp, who pushed for the show for so long and now doesn't seem happy with it. What was that line from BRIMSTONE ? - "More tears are shed for answered prayers..."

I do agree this show is definitely more like BLADE RUNNER meets ALIEN NATION than the movie TOTAL RECALL. Rekall has come and gone and come back again in the story now. Perhaps this was part of why the show never took off. I think we had SHOWTIME back in 1999, but I don't even remember seeing this advertised. (I guess I'm lucky I caught DEAD LIKE ME - but they did advertise that a lot!)

In fact, there have only been two or three shows I could find unbearable, and only one made me give up (and come back after it) so far. (madp)

Oh, please, you have to tell me what the show you bailed on was.

*It's odd that it was a Showtime show because other than a few curse words, it could just be on broadcast TV. I don't really know that much history about this show because it was a Canadian production. Was it intended as a single season show?

*Is the YouTube version a censored version of the original? That might explain the lack of nudity or curse words. (JohnQ1127)

A lot of times they make two versions of a cable show – one that can be played on broadcast TV sans swearing and nudity. The “clean” version of DEAD LIKE ME aired on SYFY, for instance. Maybe the pilot of TR2070 was uncut, but the rest have been the cleaned-up ones.

As for the voting process, I’m okay with what he have now. True - it took a while before one of my shows got picked (THE PRISONER reboot), but I’ve found all the shows we watched to be interesting. My only real regret is CAPRICA – oh, not that it was a bad show; it wasn’t. In fact, it got better toward the end of the season. The trouble was it got me interested in trying out the newer BATTLESTAR: GALACTICA, and then NETFLIX dumped it when I was only 30 episodes in. I never got the chance to finish it and no one else is running it. (And I won’t buy the DVDs just on principle; I won’t start out watching a freebie and then have to pay to finish it.)

That’s all my thoughts for tonight. I’ll catch you all on the weekend.

[–] madp 9 years ago

by brimfin » Oh, please, you have to tell me what the show you bailed on was.

It was Tales of the Gold Monkey (1982). But now, in retrospect I see that I disliked The Middleman (2008) even more.

I feel a little bad for madp, who pushed for the show for so long and now doesn't seem happy with it. What was that line from BRIMSTONE ? - "More tears are shed for answered prayers..."

Don't feel bad. So far I got the group to see many of my nominations which I really enjoyed: Pushing Daisies, Journeyman, Day Break, Odyssey 5, Brimstone, and some that were OK, namely Planet of the Apes, The Prisoner 2009, Firefly, Caprica. I just wish I hadn't started in the very end of Wonderfalls, because I would have loved to take part in its discussions.

Perhaps my dissatisfaction with TR 2070 is that I had such sweet memories of this show, but I see now that memory betrays me. Besides, I must be reflecting some of the concerns detected in the group and, with new members having joined us and old-timers absent, our situation becomes fragile if this show is not fully enjoyed.

I'm trying to reconcile this with the fact my grades have been quite good, and I realize this concern has been underlying my considerations. I'll try focusing on the show itself and leave the group's concerns aside for the remainder of the season.

[–] michaellevenson1 9 years ago

madp,- your idea for a vote halfway through a lengthy show is something I was going to suggest if UFO ever got picked.I even had a name for it - Re-confirmation vote.
Like Brimfin I'm quite okay seeing Tr2070 to the end. Cop shows are cool for me if they're good ones. About a year ago I had shipped over from the States all twelve series of Hawaii five 0 the Jack Lord version of course, 150 watched 110 to go!

[–] lorkris 9 years ago

Just got back so going to make this short.

1. Hopefully no one ever feels bad because their show turns out not to be what they hoped or remembered it to be. I have shows that I would like to nominate and I am sure if I re-watched them I would cringe. I don't want to feel that I would have to put the effort in to make sure that I would still like the show now. Besides watching bad TV can be fun!

2. Would I finish this show if I just happened upon it on Youtube? Probably not. However, I am enjoying watching it with this group. I agree it would be a good idea to have a vote midway if a show was becoming hard to finish. Hopefully the nominee of the show would not take it badly. I would not say this show has reached that level.

3. I will defer to you all about the voting. I have not seen how the voting works so I may have an opinion at a later date. Whatever works for the group is fine with me.

Did I cover everything? Hope so.

[–] madp 9 years ago

by lorkris » 1. Hopefully no one ever feels bad because their show turns out not to be what they hoped or remembered it to be.

Thanks for understanding. Well, I have been lucky in most shows I've seen and nominated (Journeyman, Pushing Daisies, Odyssey 5...), and TR 2070 may still improve. I'm glad everyone is still on board.

2. Would I finish this show if I just happened upon it on Youtube? Probably not. However, I am enjoying watching it with this group. I agree it would be a good idea to have a vote midway if a show was becoming hard to finish. Hopefully the nominee of the show would not take it badly. I would not say this show has reached that level.

Yes, our exchanges make all the difference. But we shouldn't have a confirmation vote if the show is "unbearable" or something. Who would determine if we had reached that point? But what we can and probably will end up doing is have an assessment and confirmation vote for any show with 16 episodes or higher (considering our ceiling is 30 eps, as a tribute to the Founders' favorite The Time Tunnel).

For miniseries with less than ten episodes, or regular 13-episode cable seasons, no confirmation should be necessary. I mean, it was the original idea behind the group to endure bad TV as well instead of giving up easily. After all, the idea would be to figure out why shows were cancelled, and by choosing cancelled shows, there's usually going to be something wrong with them.

As for the show being on Youtube, don't forget that shows usually *aren't* there, and we can't rely on that. We've just been lucky this time. But so far everybody has always managed to find the show somewhere.

3. I will defer to you all about the voting. I have not seen how the voting works so I may have an opinion at a later date. Whatever works for the group is fine with me.

I see everybody likes the voting, so you can even disregard I suggested a different system.