Author
august
Member
Topic: Not ashamed to say I loved Cleo 2525
posted January 25, 2000 02:56 PM
OK, I'll grant that it was way too short. By cramming an hour's worth of action and plot into under a half hour, everything got
glossed over too quickly. (Someone even timed it, and apparently "Jack" got 34 minutes, and "Cleo" got much less.)
And I will grant that the Bailey effect, while good, was too fuzzy. They are on such a tight deadline as far as special effects for a 30-minute show, that it looked like some of the hazier, less-substantial CGI images in "Hercules" in the last few seasons. The
design was pretty cool - the machine parts moved in very organic way. But it sorta seemed almost to be a hologram.
BUT. I just can't buy that anyone could say that the acting wasn't good. I mean, sure the dialogue wasn't Shakespeare, but it
wasn't intended to be. Jennifer Sky seemed dingy and scared and confused and a bit of a wise-ass. OK, that's how the character
was written, so she did a good acting job. And even when scared, she managed to be comic at the same time, which is necessary for a show like this. Vickie Pratt was tough and laconic, Gina Torres was strong and assertive, and basically that's all they had time to be. I think the acting was fine.
The script, with an extra 30 minutes of exposition, would have been fine too. I mean, sure it was influenced by The Terminator.
But so what - that movie was influenced by a hundred other movies and novels. This reminded me very much of the sci-fi (not
Darkover) novels of Andre Norton - "Star Man's Son" comes to mind, and many other that I haven't read in 20 years.
Many of the "little" touches - like the blasting of the Sistine Chapel ceiling to get to the upper earth, and the resigned, sardonic attitude they have to robots, were excellent. Cleo's simple line "You guys aren't into windows much are you?" led to some really good exposition about the whole society.
And the action - talk about non-stop! I swear, that were more roller-coaster plunges, quick-cutting blaster battles, and cool
looking stuff in the background than in all 4 Star Wars movies combined. Just the Spider-Man-style swinging around alone is
enough to make it awesome in my book. That part *really* was done well.
Because of the very quick editing, I'll concede it did have a Saturday Morning, "Isis" feel to it. So hey - if necessary, air it on
Saturday morning where it will rule. It would get more of a viewership than 1:00 AM as it did here!
I really wish they would flesh this out to an hour (ditto for "Jack.") The things they can tackle - robots, mutants, human-robot
sex, time travel, what the Baileys really are and where they came from, exploring the levels of the subterranean world, who the
Resistance is, what that "Voice" is, how mankind fled underground, etc. - that's enough for a whole season right there!
Say it loud - I love "Cleopatra 2525" and I'm proud!
Cyrene's Child
Member
posted January 25, 2000 05:28 PM
And I'm not ashamed to say I totally agree with you, august. All for one and one for all, right?
undead soldier
Member
posted January 26, 2000 11:26 PM
i loved Cleo 2525! and i just wanted to point out that where i live it does come on Sat morning and t fits in perfectly with super
hero cartoons and sleeping in. I can't imagine it coming on at any other time.
Shirley
Member
posted January 27, 2000 07:37 AM
Well August, if you liked it then I will have to give Cleo another chance. Especially if they figure out how to program Mauser.
quote:
Because of the very quick editing, I'll concede it did have a Saturday Morning, "Isis" feel to it.
Actually I was reminded of the cheesiness of this other 1970's live-action Saturday kids show, Shazam. Remember that? This teen named Billy Batson drove around the country in a Winnebago with his mentor, this old white-haired dude named, appropriately enough, "Mentor." LOL (He would actually introduce the old guy to people as Mentor, not "this-is-my-mentor.") Anyway, Billy could turn into an adult superhero, Shazam, who got his powers from a group of Greek and Roman gods (Zeus, Achilles, Mercury, and one or more others). It's nothing like Cleo at all, just had a similar cheesy feel to the action sequences, I thought.
Shirley
august
Member
posted January 27, 2000 03:38 PM
Oh, sure I remember Shazam! The hero he turned into was actually named Captain Marvel. There was a comic book revival of the character in the '70's, which led to the TV show, but he had originated in the '40's, as Fawcett Comics' (I think) version of
Superman. There was at least one very well-done Saturday morning serial from that era, with a lot of Indiana Jones-style
skullduggery, when Billy found the ancient mystic who gave him his powers. If I'm not mistaken, "Shazam" was an acronym - he
had the powers of Samson, Hercules, Atlas, Zeus, Apollo, and Mercury. It was right around then that I was getting heavily into
mythology, because there was a Hercules comic book as well, plus a local TV station was re-running old Italian muscleman movies under the title "the Mighty Sons of Hercules."
ah, memories......
But good point. Cleo reminds us both of cheesy comic book-style 70's shows, but I always liked those! You gotta remember, when
those shows were on, Sam, Rob, Bruce, Josh and co. were no doubt glued to their TV sets, nudging each other and saying:
"Hey - when we grow up, let's do a show like Isis, except let's show a lot more cleavage!"
"Yeah, Josh, that would be cool. Huh huh huh heh heh heh...."
"Hey butt-munch - tell your little brother to stop hanging around with us!"
;-)
jmatrixrenegade
New Member
posted January 27, 2000 11:58 PM
I liked the show too. Jack of All Trades was a tad stupid and Bruce Campbell seemed to be a bit tired of playing his usual wise-ass current day in past times schtick. Cleopatra was better because of the new faces alone. It was a bit silly but fun and I got into the story too. I shall also admit the babe factor was a plus too (I'm not ashamed in that it was so blatantly put out there). The shortness of the show didn't hurt either -- harder to fill an hour with good stuff on a consistent basis.
-jm
Shirley
Member
posted January 28, 2000 04:49 AM
quote:
"Hey - when we grow up, let's do a show like Isis, except let's show a lot more cleavage!"
"Yeah, Josh, that would be cool. Huh huh huh heh heh heh...."
"Hey butt-munch - tell your little brother to stop hanging around with us!"
ROTFL!
OK, just for that I promise I will try very hard to keep an open mind as I watch the next Cleo episode!
mem112771
New Member
posted January 30, 2000 06:14 AM
I luved it too. I am glad to see that tv is moving past the same old scifi that it has been turing out for so long. Dont get me wrong
I like all scifi but show seems to push the limits of network television.
Hathor
Member
posted January 30, 2000 10:04 AM
Now we can learn somthing about the characters! Yeah! I watch both Cleo and Jack and IMHO, they are both getting better.
C-25 has got some really good potential. I think the villian in last night's ep was really pretty good. Interesting to think that the
main people don't know there are "others like them"--and will Kregan(right spelling?) be back?? Hey,if they trust Cleo with an
instrument to do surgery, why not give her something to defend herself with?? Oh well, just rambling!
Hathor
keibatsu
New Member
posted January 30, 2000 01:21 PM
okay, where to start?
the show was broadcast in my area for the first time (that i am aware) today. it was good, but it wasn't great. it's got potential,
but it just didn't sit right with me.
i agree that it should've been an hour-long episode. the actresses were outstanding. but finding no better analogy, i'll have to
resort to the "ham sandwich" one. the show needs "more meat, less cheese". the corny one-liners by the title character were one
thing (and they would've been better had they actually been right - i.e. the dirty harry reference), but those action scenes?
come on! are they stage actresses or tv? too much extra motion (esp. when they were firing their guns - reminded me of playing
"cops & robbers" when i was 7). the special effects were excellent, but i think they focused too much attention on them - "great
special effects does not a tv show make". the camera work was outstanding, but who was running the switch? and one last thing:
what was the deal with all that screaming?? was i the only one that got a headache?
everybody reading this is probably thinking that i'm bashing this show. quite the contrary, actually. i thought it was a good show,
and i look forward to future episodes.
IP: Logged
august
Member
posted February 01, 2000 10:51 PM
Consciously bumping this one up to the top.
SPOILERS FOR SECOND EPISODE!
J
E
N
N
I
F
E
R
S
K
Y
I
S
H
O
T
!
Yeah yeah yeah, so her scream is annoying. Was anyone reminded of Bill and Ted, in their "Bogus Journey," falling endlessly and
screaming, then stopping, taking a breath, looking around, and starting to scream again?
OK, so Creegan looked like The Joker, and his "lair" was very obviously on a soundstage. It reminded me of sets from both the old
Batman TV series, and the interors for "The Time Bandits," an early Terry Gilliam film.
But how about that Joel Tobeck? Apart from the make-up, he was really sinister. I was majorly impressed.
And how about that excuse for Sarge to be in a firefight in her undies? Yeaaah, bay-bee!
Still way too much blasting, still minimal plot development, and I'm not so sure about the necessity of Cleo wearing a garter belt,
and the repeated shots of her pink panties, but hey - it didn't diminish my enjoyment of the show! The camera work and action
scenes are like what Raimi, Becker + Co. would have shot at age 19 had they A) been handed a multi-million dollar budget, and B)
been majorly tripping on acid at the time. But I *swear* I haven't been on the edge of my seat like I was for this one since Xena
and Callisto did the ladder fight four years ago! I swear I thought they were going to get blown away by Creegans' goons! And
even the hand grabbing Cleo at the beginning was effective!
I'm assuming at some point in the future they will explain how Sarge and Hel can trade shots w/ the enemy w/o getting blasted
themselves. I'm guessing a Star Trek-style shield system, in which the shields are dropped for a fraction of a second in order for
them to fire at the other person. And repeated hits to their shields ultimately cause the shileds to weaken. And this is new rebel
shield technology that gives them an edge in battle.
[This message has been edited by august (edited February 01, 2000).]
IP: Logged
buckshot
New Member
posted February 04, 2000 04:28 PM
i love cleopatra 2525 and i love sarge!!!!
IP: Logged
august
Member
posted February 05, 2000 01:42 PM
Bump!
(but not with no big fat woman...)
IP: Logged
box
Member
posted February 05, 2000 02:18 PM
At first I thought it totally sucked to have the show chopped off at only 24 minutes. But now, I can see why it works. There are
so many things left to be explored in the episodes.
What history is there between Hel and Creegan... How did Sarge become the way she is... Who are the other followers of the
Voice... Who is the Voice... Yada, yada, yada...
****... The suspense is killing me...
I have sooooo many theories in my head...
IP: Logged
box
Member
posted February 06, 2000 02:22 AM
OH MAN, THIS SHOW IS SOOOO FREAKING HILARIOUS!!!
i was totally laughing my ass off wathcing flying lessons...
hahahahaha...
cleopatra herself is getting to be cool now to me... oh, man... hahahhahahaha....
IP: Logged
august
Member
posted February 06, 2000 09:31 PM
Just had an interesting notion on the Baileys - i.e. the name.
"bailie" = obsolete form of "bailiff" = "an overseer of an estate, a steward, an official who assists a sheriff, and who has the power
to execute writs, processes and arrests."
In other words, etymologically, a "bailey" might be a guardian of whatever overlord race, computer or alien, that rules the surface
world.
IP: Logged
box
Member
posted February 07, 2000 02:57 AM
oooooooooooooh, august, THAT IS A GOOD ONE!!!!!
hey, i didn't think of that...
very cool... very coool....
IP: Logged
august
Member
posted February 07, 2000 12:39 PM
Box - say, Box as in the Raymond St. Jacques-voiced robot in Logan's Run?
IP: Logged
buckshot
New Member
posted February 07, 2000 08:36 PM
it should be 1 hour long.
IP: Logged
Mr. Future
New Member
posted February 07, 2000 09:14 PM
Well august I totally agree with you! Cleo should be on saturdays! And it should be an hour long! I think it is too good of a show
to just put into a half an hour. It's not like it's a sitcome or anything! OH and another thing.. to everyone who said Jennifer Sky's
acting was bad........ I think she did good...the charachter is supposed to be all shy and stuff. And Jennifer played her part well!
SO STOP HATIN ON CLEO!
IP: Logged
box
Member
posted February 08, 2000 06:22 AM
august, wow, you are very deeep....
unfortunately, i am very shallow.
box, as in a cardboard box.
woohoo...
cool new costumes coming up next week, eh?
other interesting note regarding sarge... notice how her costume has changed in every single episode? in quest for firepower her
top had big huge teardrops with a more angled look than a curved sports bra look. also, the lines on her pants in the back were
pretty wide relative to the smaller lines in the front. but in the preview that had been on the web site, it was smaller. also, the
net on the arm was on the left side. i saw a promo picture of vicky where it is on the right arm. plus, the black net is thicker than
in some of the other pictures. plus, the silver lining is wider and shows more black sometimes. also, in flying lessons, the back
ofher belt seemed different as far as the studs go.
useless things i notice because i'm a big vicky pratt fan...
