Agent Carter

[tecolote]

I watched the finale again.Did anyone notice the Flying Wing in Stark's hangar(I didn't until the second time?) That is the restored N9MB,which is in flyable condition. It ,the two P51s and the Corsair came from the Planes of Fame organisation per their Facebook page. Having a Flying Wing is certainly a Stark touch.

Regards,

Tecolote

 

[DecoDame]

Oops, forgot to come by and share my 2c after the finale. Though, essentially, I agree with Doctor Strange's assessment. It felt it was a little bloated with plot and a little anti-climatic after the previous week's well paced offering - literally anti-climatic as the Big Bang didn't happen at all after some feverish talking down (and some Peggy talks to Cap/Howard in a plane parallel).

As soon as Dottie was shown splat on the pavement, I suspected she would pull a Jason and mysteriously disappear. Not unhappy about that (okay, was loudly rooting for it).

Zola appearance was interesting. Was jail where Hydra-plotting was born? It's nicely positioned, because Agent Carter now has a further plot to flesh out there if they get the go ahead, yet we can safely extrapolate from here to Winter Soldier in our own heads if we never get another episode too. So a cliffhanger that doesn't hang us up too much.

I liked that they kept Thompson's ego intact, that he would take the credit, even with his broadened perspective. Anything else would be wildly out of character and too pat.

All in all, I enjoyed the series so very much and will have my fingers crossed for more. Will definitely buy the DVD too (hoping there are lots of extras).

 

[Doctor Strange]

A little off topic, but I've always wanted to point this out:

The climactic scene in Captain America: The First Avenger where Peggy's on the radio with Steve as the plane is going down (and by extension, the equivalent scene in this episode) is clearly an homage to the opening sequence in the brilliant 1946 British film A Matter of Life and Death (originally released in the US as Stairway To Heaven).

In that film, David Niven is an RAF pilot whose bomber is shot-up and burning, the rest of the crew is dead, and they're somewhere over the fogged-in English Channel, rapidly losing altitude. An American volunteer radio operator played by Kim Hunter gets Niven's radio transmission and they talk until the plane goes down. (*) Hunter's tearful performance, her uniform and hair, and the shots/staging of the radio room are all referenced in the Cap film scene.





( * But Niven ends up alive on the beach because his heavenly conductor misses him in the fog! He finds Hunter and they fall in love, which leads to the film's climactic heavenly trial to determine if he should be granted extra life. Yeah, it's another one of those late-40s "angel" films made in response to the postwar mass grief... but a masterpiece far beyond all the rest of that particular subgenre, except for It's A Wonderful Life.)

Anyway, if you'd like to spend some more quality time in1946, I heartily recommend A Matter of Life and Death!

 

[DecoDame]

Wow, Doctor - again, had no idea. The shots of Hunter are deja vu (or should be the other way around). Thanks for sharing that. Will definitely check out that movie.

 

[tecolote]

Thanks, Doctor, for that info.

Did anyone else get a chuckle out of Stark forgetting Dottie's name throughout the episode?

regards,

Tecolote

 

[Doctor Strange]

My pleasure! I never miss a chance to recommend the films of Powell & Pressburger (aka "The Archers")!

A British director & writer/producer team whose partnership lasted from the thirties into the fifties, their work is marked by unique, unbridled creativity, stunning photography and production design, and great writing and acting. Their best films - from their peak run in the forties - are masterpieces: A Matter of Life and Death, The Red Shoes, Black Narcissus, I Know Where I'm Going!, The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp. Many of their "lesser" films are great - Forty-Ninth Parallel, A Canterbury Tale, Tales of Hoffmann - and even their "weakest" films are really interesting.

It's a real shame that Powell & Pressburger's amazing films are mostly known only to hardcore film buffs nowadays. Only The Red Shoes, and to a lesser extent, Black Narcissus, show up on TCM or PBS with any regularity. All their films are worth seeking out!

 

[Doctor Strange]

DVR ALERT!

The film I posted about above just last week, A Matter of Life and Death, is running this afternoon on TCM! It starts at 12:15PM Eastern

Turner Classic Movies comes through yet again!

 

[Fading Fast]

Doctor and Deco - great comments and great info.

My only small comments are

Regarding your Dottie splat on the pavement (or was it the wing) mention is that Peggy violated the first rule of killing off a TV or movie antagonist - always, always, always make sure they are dead / never, never, never assume so.

I'm pretty new to this comic book genre and am open to learning and accepting its beyond-the-normal world parameters, but there still have to be parameters for the stories to have real logic and consistency; hence, I'm willing to give Dr. Zola and his powers some latitude, but at some point, they need to defined those out and not just used them as a protean deus ex machina every time they need to advance the story.

And "A Matter of Life an Death" is an excellent movie as, as noted by Doctor, so many of those British films of that time were. I am not as knowledgable as you are, but IMHO, the Brits were knocking the ball out of the park with their films in the '40s - mid-'60s (many by Ealing Studios are incredible). "Went the Day Well," "Damn Busters," "Brief Encounter" "The Third Man" and "Trio" and "Quartet" (the last two are a series of W.Somerset Maugham short stories) are - off the top of my head - some of my favorites.

Hope "Agent Carter" is coming back.

 

[Doctor Strange]

Zola's still an ordinary human (apart from being a scientific genius) in 1946. He doesn't get uploaded until much later on. BTW, in the original Kirby conception, he's more of a TV set inside an android body than just a ghost in the machine:



Agreed that there are many great British films from the forties and fifties. I like the Ealing comedies a lot, but I like the astonishing, unrelenting creativity of the Powell & Pressburger films even more. A Matter of Life and Death is one of my all-time favorite films. (A phrase I use very infrequently, since unlike most folks I don't generally don't make lists of favorites... Maybe when you're young making favorites lists makes sense, but I'm 60 and I've got hundreds of favorites in every genre and medium, and I'm finding more all the time.)

 

[Fading Fast]

Zola's still an ordinary human (apart from being a scientific genius) in 1946. He doesn't get uploaded until much later on. BTW, in the original Kirby conception, he's more of a TV set inside an android body than just a ghost in the machine:

View attachment 25453

Agreed that there are many great British films from the forties and fifties. I like the Ealing comedies a lot, but I like the astonishing, unrelenting creativity of the Powell & Pressburger films even more. A Matter of Life and Death is one of my all-time favorite films. (A phrase I use very infrequently, since unlike most folks I don't generally don't make lists of favorites... Maybe when you're young making favorites lists makes sense, but I'm 60 and I've got hundreds of favorites in every genre and medium, and I'm finding more all the time.)

I don't usually, either, except when its part of a social situation, "what are your three favorite books," etc., but definitely near the top of my list is a very British feeling film - 1950s, black and white, David Niven and Wendy Hiller have large rolls in it, written by Terence Rattigan (British playwright), set in small British coastal town - but surprisingly a UA production - "Separate Tables." I think about several of those characters regularly and restrict my watching of the movie so that I don't burn it out.

 

[Doctor Strange]

That's a great flick.

And during that period of the fifties, US-based independent producing companies like UA frequently were involved in "packaging" productions made outside Hollywood. It was the start of the modern assemble-a-package-for-a-particular-film method of making films (as opposed the old studio system, where a standing army of factory artisans cranked out a new film every week like clockwork.)

 

[Hat Dandy]

The ratings for the finale were not spectacular. In fact, it's the lowest yet. I'm a little surprised at those numbers.

 

[Worf]

"A Matter of Life and Death" is a wonderful expression... but my faves are:

"Run for your life" - Because usually something was coming to kill or eat you... or both.

"It's everyman for himself boys... and Devil take the hindmost" - I've also heard the "Devil" part used in the above as well.

Worf

 

[DecoDame]

The ratings for the finale were not spectacular. In fact, it's the lowest yet. I'm a little surprised at those numbers.

*sigh* Ratings very much need to be overhauled to reflect newer media. I don't even have cable anymore I watch on-line or with Netflix. So many kids don't even own a TV.

I was chosen to be a Nielson family just a few years ago, and the questionaire was so outdated, even I laughed (no spring chix here) and wrote them back and said "Get with it or perish" and "No, thanks, it would be a waste of both our time".

 

[Hat Dandy]

*sigh* Ratings very much need to be overhauled to reflect newer media. I don't even have cable anymore I watch on-line or with Netflix. So many kids don't even own a TV.

I was chosen to be a Nielson family just a few years ago, and the questionaire was so outdated, even I laughed (no spring chix here) and wrote them back and said "Get with it or perish" and "No, thanks, it would be a waste of both our time".

True, but technology (i.e., PVR) and newer media often tends to allow individuals to skip commercials, which pays for the shows. Further, most shows can be downloaded for free without commercials. TV shows are primarly a commercial endeavor and if it doesn't sell product or allow for merchandizing, then I expect it will get the axe. Licensing shows for streaming can be expensive and content providers want to be sure it attracts enough persistent viewers to cover such costs.

Here's a question then. How much would you pay per episode would to watch Agent Carter?

 

[Fading Fast]

True, but technology (i.e., PVR) and newer media often tends to allow individuals to skip commercials, which pays for the shows. Further, most shows can be downloaded for free without commercials. TV shows are primarly a commercial endeavor and if it doesn't sell product or allow for merchandizing, then I expect it will get the axe. Licensing shows for streaming can be expensive and content providers want to be sure it attracts enough persistent viewers to cover such costs.

Here's a question then. How much would you pay per episode would to watch Agent Carter?

The economics of TVs shows seems to be all over the map. Growing up, the model was simple: TV shows were free to the viewer and paid for by the advertiser and the viewer had no choice but to sit through the commercials.

Then, cable brought about pay-TV and on some channels - like HBO - shows ran without commercials.

Now we have all sorts of iterations - commercials, no commercials, streaming but with / without commercials, Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc. And it seems that if a show goes the traditional TV commercial route, they produce a lot of shows a years (but not always) and the shows without commercials tend to have short seasons (which seems odd to me as it would seem the start up costs - assembling everyone, getting the sets up and running, etc. - would argue for a lower marginal cost per episode in a longer season - but clearly that is not what is happening).

As you imply, in some way, the show - the investors, actors, support crews, etc. - must be paid for, but it seems that the model is in flux and whether we - the viewer - will pay directly via some sort of fee or by viewing advertising seems very unsettled.

 

[Hat Dandy]

As you imply, in some way, the show - the investors, actors, support crews, etc. - must be paid for, but it seems that the model is in flux and whether we - the viewer - will pay directly via some sort of fee or by viewing advertising seems very unsettled.

I believe you are correct in your analysis. Although many criticize the Nielsen rating model, it's the one that is accepted for the moment. No one likes the situation and even Nielson understands its limitations but in lieu of a better approach, ratings are still the prime determinate of success or failure of shows. There is some movement towards incorporating alternate viewing patterns. Nielsen has adapted their systems to include streaming/downloaded shows and factors in PVRs as well as on demand content providers such as Netflix and Hulu. For now, we'll have to wait and see as the content providers experiment with monetization models.

 

[Doctor Strange]

Great news!

Agent Carter has been renewed for a second season!

No word yet on whether it's another 8-episode run, or a full 13- or 22-episode season.

Either way, I'm thrilled. Until yesterday, it was looking much more likely that Agent Carter wouldn't return and an Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. spinoff built around Bobby "Mockingbird" Morse would be Marvel/ABC's preferred plan. But apparently that spinoff has been abandoned! Yay! More Peggy Carter!

 

[Frunobulax]

That's great news, Doctor! I'd still like the Mockingbird spinoff, though. And I'm OK with a short series run, again. I think an 8 episode arc gives us a tighter, more coherent story and better writing.

 

[Doctor Strange]

Entertainment Weekly is reporting that they've heard another 8-episode mini-run is "likely".

Considering the heat that Marvel's been taking over not having a Black Widow movie in the pipeline - they do have a planned Carol Danvers Captain Marvel film, but not for a couple of years - it's a very smart move to be able to point to Agent Carter and say, "See - we have the first female-fronted superhero TV series on today's entertainment scene!" And of course, Carter's a character who's now had extensive exposure across the Marvel Cinematic Universe: both Captain America feature films, her own mini, cameos in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Age of Ultron... and apparently she will also appear in a 1960s flashback in this summer's Ant-Man. Peggy's become an important "connective tissue" character, providing the kind of continuity us comics geeks can't get enough of... largely because Hayley Atwell has such charisma in the role.

And it's been noticed - here she is at number 15 in a list of the 50 best Marvel Cinematic Universe characters!

http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplayl...ers-of-the-marvel-cinematic-universe-20150428