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Reviews
Walker (2021)
Poorly Conceived and Executed Reboot: Shaky 2 Stars
I noticed that many of the reviewers of this show are either Jared Padalecki and "Supernatural" fans, or they're fans of the original "Walker" series featuring Chuck Norris. Both groups seem to have issues with this reboot. I only ever saw a handful of episodes from "Supernatural" and from the original "Walker", so this review stems from a reasonably neutral vantage point.
That being said, my family and I (13 y.o.-65+ y.o.) agree with many of the complaints from the other reviewers. We waited for several episodes to air and then watched the first 3 in a row. Some of the main words bandied about after watching these 3 episodes are "trite", "shallow", "boring", "rushed", "tedious", etcetera. Personally, I think weak writing is the main cause of all these problems.
It is clear from the start what the writers want the audience to feel, but the way they try and create this feeling is inept. It's forced, artificial, sanctimonious, and rushed. It gives the show all the depth of a bad "Tweet".
On top of this, almost none of the characters are very sympathetic or likeable. Walker's daughter is particularly annoying. Some of the acting is less than stellar, but, then again. there is only so much even the finest actors can do with weak material.
Most reviewers mentioned mumbling and overly loud and weirdly placed music as being problems. They are right. We all have good hearing, but we had the closed captioning on in order to try and understand most of the dialogue.
By the end of the third episode, my family decided this show is forgettable and not worth our time. Let's face it, the original "Walker" could be cheesy, and Chuck Norris is not a name that immediately pops into someone's head when thinking of Oscar-worthy performers. However, the original "Walker" was the fun kind of cheesy, and the role suited Norris. Also, overall, the writing was better in the original series.
Do yourself a favor and skip this mess of a reboot. The only positive thing I can say about it is even though it is REALLY bad, it is still better than that painfully stupid "MacGyver" reboot.
Stargate: Atlantis (2004)
I Really Wanted To Like It, But...
I enjoy several syfy series; including, the original "Stargate". I never had the opportunity to watch this series when it first aired. Recently, I was finally able to give it a try. I watched all of the episodes in the first 2 seasons, and I watched the first 3 episodes in season 3, but, finally, I had to raise the white flag.
I like the concept of the series. I like most of the characters and many of the actors. In my opinion, the writing lets this series down. If I had to use one word to summarize my main complaint with this series, it would be "haphazard". As I watched this series, I felt like there was only a loose general idea where the writers/creators wanted to take it, and that they didn't agree with one another as to how they wanted it to develop. This was reflected in a couple of different ways. For instance, some episodes seem to completely contradict one another logically, plot-wise, etcetera. A bigger issue for me though came to character consistency. I expect characters to evolve over the course of a series, but the writers frequently had some of them making 90-180 degree personality changes too abruptly. It's jarring and illogical.
The writers, also, made a huge mistake with the Dr. Rodney McKay character. He is too relentlessly unlikable. Once in a blue moon the writers tried to humanize him- to help us empathize with his obvious lack of social skills, but their efforts are weak and infrequent. He becomes irritating to the point where it is completely off-putting.
After watching the 3rd episode of season 3, I decided to read all the plot summaries of the remaining episodes. After doing so, I decided my fears of encountering the same type of plot holes and problems I'd endured up to S3,E3 outweighed my desire to see what happens to the characters I do like.
I wanted this show to be a bit of intelligent, fun, and interesting escapism. Instead, I found it an aggravating waste of my time.