Didn’t watch it yet, as I’m only 2 episodes in and Idon’t want to taint my first view too much.
But from what I’ve seen of the show, I understand how they reach this conclusion. And Jessie Gender usually has quite a good grasp on these things.
Edit: Kind reminder that this post is for sharing/discussing the video, not for dunking on the Netflix adaptation.
Edit2: Watched it now. Spoilers for the first 2 episodes and light spoilers for the rest of the live action show, season 1.
The show is mediocre at best. They gave Aang zero passionate lines and just had him wax on about his responsibility and how he has to help people and how he failed. Katara is weak and boring in this, yet learns water bending enough to become a master entirely off screen and by herself. She’s just another Mary Sue. There’s literally no chemistry between Team Avatar.
I think overall what’s wrong with the series is that the writing is so bad. Dialogue is bad, pacing is bad, and the timeline for events is bad. And they’re trying to straddle this line between a shot-for-shot remake and their own version of the story that it all comes off as messy and unfocused.
I’m disappointed that I restarted my Netflix subscription for it based on an IGN review that said it was good.
It seems like show was not trying to be memorable like animated show. I still remember when I watched Aang chasing Momo and accidentally seeing Gyatso’s skeleton. It felt like a punch in the gut. From what I understand, the Netflix show doesn’t do it like that.
Yeah, way too often does it feel like they are going “now this important moment happens, then this important moment happens” in their scripts without a good way between those. That’s better in some episodes than in others, maybe some individual directors were able to make more out of that than others.
So, you haven’t watched it. Yet here you are.
How could there be any if they don’t ever interact?
Also, the series has enough plot holes that I don’t think it makes sense at all if you didn’t watch the cartoon. And yeah, it’s bad.
I had this exact thought after I finished episode 4 (my current place). While I am impressed by the technical aspects of the show, the pacing and exposition is poor and depends entirely on the audience already knowing what’s happening in order keep up. And that’s entirely putting aside specific plot issues.
There’s simultaneously too much and too little happening. The Bumi, Mechanist, and Jet stories are happening at the same time (too much) but separately, instead of one at a time, and Team Avatar experiencing them together (too little team development).
There was hardly any chemistry in One Piece as well. That stuff can’t just manifest out of thing air. It takes time.