Flash Gordon Season 1

[Oslo_Ostragoth]

@Love_Rhombus

“I’ve never seen anything like it-a dead body!”

“I think I should eat this pie alone!”

I think I am whooshed.

[Walker_in_Eternity]

@Oslo_Ostragoth

I recall making the comment, at the time, that “Ming the Merciless”, was actually “Ming the Mildly Dyspeptic”. Bear in mind that I had no prior knowledge of the characters - I just thought someone truly merciless would smack the shit out of his snotty daughter.

Having said that, I would love to watch the series again on DVD. Just for the hell of it.

True, I watched the second episode yesterday (I’m a glutton for punishment) and Ming was even wetter in this one. More like a soap villain than an OTT sci fi villain.

Apparently rather than being Emperor of Mongo by conquest or inheritance, he apparently is the only one on the planet who knows how to purify water.

So basically, he’s Emperor of the Universe, because he controls the water supply on one planet. Make no sense at all.

[Walker_in_Eternity]

@GargoyleWB

Looking at the episode list on Wikipedia, I’d say around Episode 10 or so the tone became more enjoyable. Enough so that Mrs G and I both at least wanted to give a second season a try had they renewed it.

But then, it may have just grown on me in the same way that sauerkraut did. “Disgusting…wretched…awful…vomitous…not bad…didn’t suck…can I have some more…man, I’d die for a reuben right now…”

We are finding it much the same, except for the truly terrible Hawkmen episode.

I have to say that the series is growing on me, but like warts, probably not in a good way.

[WarmNPrickly]

@irishman

There is a certain cheesy fun to it, but it is pretty dreadful. It also is a tease show - lots of scantily clad parts, nothing actually occurring.

I had a hobby of watching each episode, then mentally rewriting it to a porno scene. “Who does Flash end up banging this time?”

I assume you meant to say “Flesh”.
As for the actual show, I liked it. I’m sad they never got the chance to develop the way Stargate did. I suppose it would have been better to begin with a blockbuster film and an allstar cast that doesn’t return for the TV series. I’ve seen way worse Stargate episodes.

[Walker_in_Eternity]

Maybe that was one of the problems, perhaps the rifts made it too similar to Stargate.

I think that, budget allowing, it would have been better to have Flash, Zarkov and Dale stranded on Mongo and trying to get back, rather than having a “guest” alien each week on Earth.

[Walker_in_Eternity]

@Walker_in_Eternity

Maybe that was one of the problems, perhaps the rifts made it too similar to Stargate.

I think that, budget allowing, it would have been better to have Flash, Zarkov and Dale stranded on Mongo and trying to get back, rather than having a “guest” alien each week on Earth.

Well, I’ve finished the whole box set now and that’s exactly how it ended. Sadly there will be no season 2.

It has been a strange journey, when I started I hated it, but through perseverance I have grown to quite like it.

Have I lowered my standards or was it not as bad as I first thought?

[WarmNPrickly]

@Walker_in_Eternity

Well, I’ve finished the whole box set now and that’s exactly how it ended. Sadly there will be no season 2.

It has been a strange journey, when I started I hated it, but through perseverance I have grown to quite like it.

Have I lowered my standards or was it not as bad as I first thought?

I think people were holding Flash Gordon to a higher standard than other science fiction shows. Science fiction audiences can be quite fickle I think. Everyone wants to out Comic Book Guy the others.

I’m getting a little sick of the over serialized dramatic crap that has become trendy since BSG. The only reason BSG was watchable, was because it came to a definitive end. The Sarah Connor Chronicles never made that promise, they just kept piling more and more shit on the plot without resolving anything.

[Walker_in_Eternity]

I think you have a point, Flash Gordon was certainly no worse than Farscape or any of the Stargate franchises. In some respects it was better than many SF series, particluallry when it didn’t take itself too seriously or paid homage to earlier series.

For example I loved the episode where Sam Jones, from the movie version, played a character called Crabbe.