Rewatched 3x08 out of context

Blew my mind.

And I'm not fanboying here, it was objectively a better television.

• Location variety and panning shots gave a feeling of almost a feature film. The helicopter shots over the landscape looked magnificent.
• Sound design and music by Paul Haslinger (of Resident Evil and Underworld and Tangerine Dream fame, whom Hans Zimmer himself helped to move to USA when he was a young composer, but that's beside the point) were much more intense and elevated meaning of scenes. For example, when Nick was digging out the skull, that could easily have been a mundane scene if it wasn't highlighted by the weight of the sound design. And don't let me start on the ending montage!
• Characters had stakes in the story on a personal level, and it made it very easy to relate to them. The weight of the situation was felt in interactions. Characters didn't have time to turn to demagogy, but had to face the truth at hand, or be dead.
• There was a true conflict between grey sides with their own principles and reasons why they were right, while main characters were caught up in all that and had to make their own choices.
• The Strand scenes could be a stand alone short movie on their own. Not to mention it was the most extensive "exploration" of the wider TWD universe than it was ever done before or after.

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So now comparing it to the current Fear, it's obvious that they need:

• Have a real stakes story where one cannot hide behind mythical "good" values. So far they could have afforded to do "good", because there was no one to kill them. They need to add something to test these values, put them under pressure again. Our characters believing in good doesn't mean much without their values tested. Original Fear characters have gone through hardships before, and there is a big opportunity to have them wake up from slumber again when Morgan is no longer able to protect them with his preaching.
• Introduce variety of settings. Looks like they partially going to do that in S5B. More variety breaks monotony, makes the show look more interesting.
• Have more intense and present sound design and music. Entire scenes can be salvaged by correct music choice. Put Morgan's speech on top of a pulsing thriller music and you can turn him into a maniac.

Sorry, wanted to type it out while it was fresh in my mind.

Submitted July 24, 2019 at 10:40PM by skylynx4 https://ift.tt/2LF67tQ