Members Juliajms Posted December 14, 2014 Members Share Posted December 14, 2014 It really can. At the very least GoT gave us some full frontal male nudity, so it didn't feel like a one way exploitation fest. The show is beautifully shot. I give it that. In fact, I don't even want to see this show fail because I want Netflix Original Series overall to thrive. I looked under the MarcoPolo hashtag on twitter and my rough estimate is 70% like it, to 30% who don't. That's not so bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Vee Posted December 14, 2014 Members Share Posted December 14, 2014 Nor was I saying you haven't seen it or shouldn't speak on it, I just think it's a different question. I personally think its treatment of sexuality and violence speaks more to the derivative nature of a lot of big period imitation dramas post-GOT vs. anything to do with the ethnic background. They could set it anywhere and the formula would be the same. I do think GOT is excellent, but my point is it's spawned many imitators, most of which are far more superficial. I expect Marco Polo is much the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DramatistDreamer Posted December 14, 2014 Members Share Posted December 14, 2014 Wow, so I will really be looking for the landscape and cinematography but I won't be expecting much in the way of story content. Just curious, those of you who saw the Borgias series, which one did you see? I saw the one with Jeremy Irons and I thought it just got increasingly ridiculous. I had to laugh when the youngest child was never mentioned again after Season One. At first I thought it was because he was married off at like 11 years old but then after the middle son was killed and Pope Alexander was lamenting that he only had one son left, I was like "what happened to the little one?!" It seemed that they were content to pretend like the little kid never existed. And I thought ATWT was bad with how they handled the Casey in the attic situation. The show became a chore for me to finish. Part of me was kind of hoping for that rogue Cardinal to break into the Vatican and just sweep them all out. Or maybe the plague. I was also a bit dubious that the Pope, although certainly powerful back then would take such precedence in seemingly every political aspect of not just Vatican City but seemingly every part of the region and parts beyond. Didn't Rome have an Emperor? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ThePrinceOfSunspear Posted December 15, 2014 Members Share Posted December 15, 2014 In terms of the exploitation do you think perhaps it is just an accurate reflection of what was going on at the time of Marco Polo? I mean perhaps it's not just being gratuitous for the sake of being that way.... I'm not trying to make excuses and without seeing it I fully understand that you might be right and you're completely entitled to your POV on it. I am just curious though if it this more a case of representing a period in time versus a company trying to resort to "sex/nudity sells". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members YRBB Posted December 17, 2014 Author Members Share Posted December 17, 2014 Yes, it really can, and is, much worse. But we did have a peak at a random penis during Marco's red sex orgy fantasy/vision thingy. If that counts. LOL SPOILERS FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN'T WATCHED BEYOND EPISODE 7 Episode 8 was a highlight, as far as plot-driven period dramas go. Scenes like Jing Fei's sword dance and subsequent suicide, Marco and Kokachin finally boinking (Marco sure does have a nice ass) and the brilliant way they used Ahmad's progressing wall art to illustrate the battle were winners. Not to mention the great twist at the end when we realize it has all been a trap. "Retreat!" That was wonderful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Juliajms Posted December 17, 2014 Members Share Posted December 17, 2014 Well, that's something anyway. I saw the same one. I agree it was ridiculous, especially for anyone hoping for an accurate historical perspective. I didn't bother with the last season. I just happen to think female characters/actresses got a much fairer shake on The Borgias. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members quartermainefan Posted December 20, 2014 Members Share Posted December 20, 2014 I binged watched the entire series, only I did it in four hours. The series is dull. It wants to be all significant all the time, and the show's recipe for that is somber tones where everyone speaks every utterance as if it had great significance and deep meaning. It was corny because you almost expected someone to say "Ancient Chinese Secret, huh?" and whip out some Calgon. Just because everyone is Chinese (Or Mongol in Kubla's case) doesn't mean they have to intone with mystery and wisdom at all times. As for the basic plot, well, this was too one character centric to be Game Of Thrones. It was more like your typical action series with the hero and a bunch of lesser characters who play support. The action scenes were well done but the Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon blind warrior was a bit OTT. He's blind and yet he is a master warrior? Chalk up another miracle for the exotic secrets of the Orient I guess. It looked great and Marco has some sharp wardrobe. He is the best dressed man in all of the far east, that is for certain. I liked the look of the differently well dressed middle eastern man who sports the Jafar head dress. I FFed huge chunks because it was so repetitive but there are a lot worse TV shows out there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ThePrinceOfSunspear Posted January 10, 2015 Members Share Posted January 10, 2015 Two episodes into this show and it's extremely painful to watch. The acting is so bad. The casting is kinda off. Am I supposed to be in awe or shock of Hundred Eyes? Because I literally laugh out loud every time he comes on screen. It's just a caricature and the dialogue is just so bad. Whole scenes just come and go and I'm like "wait was the point of that?". And then there will times where the characters say things and I'm like "did I miss something" but no nothing has actually transpired on screen to suggest that this should be happening. Sanga is the only remotely real character on the show and in the interest of not spoiling people I won't say anything more about him. But the show doesn't even know how to develop the lead (who comes across wooden and annoying. Plus overbearing and stupid). The fight scene between the Khan and his rebellious brother was just laughable. The slow mo was terrible. I doubt this is going to get any better but I'll give it to Episode 5 since everyone says the first 4 are boring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members YRBB Posted February 28, 2015 Author Members Share Posted February 28, 2015 Finished season 1. Overall, a beautifully produced, extravagant piece of fluff, with few truly great moments and, in general, just entertaining enough to be mindless fun. The final battle was OK but didn't look like an almost-10-million-dollars-per-episode battle. It was exciting seeing Marco face off with Jia Sidao and getting decimated, and it was fun to see Hundred Eyes battle him. A TRUE shame to see Jia Sidao gone. Mei Lin patiently waited for most of the season to do what she could have done the night after her capture. For a woman with such fighting talent, she sure was very docile. The ending twist & cliffhanger was a great surprise, though (although it's so ridiculous that he would put that out there in the open, for anyone to see. He'd be killed in a second)! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DramatistDreamer Posted August 20, 2016 Members Share Posted August 20, 2016 Okay, I decided to give Marco Polo another try (the 1st time I tried to watch, I was very tired and found myself in no mood to deal with the show's pacing) and it's not that bad, TBH. Some of the dialogue is clunky and the early pacing makes it something of a challenge to 'get into' but once you embrace the pretty people in lush landscapes, you can most likely deal. Tom Wu, the actor who plays 100 Eyes is such an elegant actor and martial artist. I haven't seen his featurette but I can see why the show decided to devote one to him. If martial arts movies had the same worldwide popularity now as they did in the 80s when I was a child, this guy would be doing them by the dozens. I actually don't think most of the acting is bad. Some actors are much more proficient than others but I think once I got used to how the show paced each episode (each scene, really), I feel reasonably entertained and when I initially tried to watch last year, I didn't think this was possible. Granted, I'm only on Episode 5 now (1/2 through) so I leave room to change my mind by the end of Season 1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DramatistDreamer Posted August 21, 2016 Members Share Posted August 21, 2016 Well, I finally finished the first season of Marco Polo- by the way, the one reason why I decided to try again with this series is because I saw that Michelle Yeoh is in Season 2, which intrigued me enough to catch up on the series from where I had abandoned it in Season One. The episodes did improve as they went along, less plodding and clunky, especially the episodes closest to the war between the Mongols and the Song dynasty (or what was left of it). Most of the issues of the show could be solved except for one big one. I got the nagging feeling that the series would actually be better without Marco Polo (although having Marco and Jingim be rivals does add to the personal narrative of both characters). Am I the only one who feels this way? Most of the time, I felt like he wasn't even needed, and that he slowed down scenes considerably. It feels like both a writing and an acting issue. I guess I'll watch the featurette on One Hundred Eyes as he is one of the most charismatic characters on the show. If the actor who plays Marco had even a half of Tom Wu's charisma... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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