Gotham: The Series

[jfung79]

Where is this general web-soap thread that was mentioned? Is there a thread for Wed-Locked? I haven't seen Gotham yet but I plan to. Audio is a problem with Wed-Locked too.

[YRBB]

Hmmm, I definitely share in the confusion... I mean, we didn't really get to see anything... and, on top of that, that horrible gay guy... I have to say, though, the ending was intriguing.

[jfung79]

OK, watched it, and I liked it! They need to turn down the volume on the music but otherwise it was cool!

I liked the establishing of Michael Park's character having a daughter and someone threatening him, and his mother (?) not wanting him to see someone. I laughed at Martha Byrne giving herself a grand diva-ish first shot, but it was effective. I thought the gay guy was funny. I didn't think he was stereotypical or offensive.

The female friend character was meh so far, but I look forward to finding out more. We need to find out the names of these characters.

Then the cliffhanger ... Oooh, what's their connection?

[Darn]

Rich white people with problems at a cocktail party. How forward thinking.

[marceline]

I agree with the other criticisms especially the audio. Please, please fix the levels by the next episode or no one will be around for the third. And yes needs to be longer.

Pluses:

Martha Byrne can certainly work it.

Yay for the product placement. I'm glad to see she was able to get Nicole Miller and the Diamond Exchange. Stuff like that actually makes the lead character look like a wealthy socialite. Nice way to work their connections.

Bottom line, this is an experiment and I'm in it. I wish them the best.

[jimmyk311]

So far, based on what I read on other boards, people have mixed reviews about the episode. Of course, it's the first episode, but this whole "hiring friends" phenom is pity.

I think these web series need to be more music video driven storytelling than anything.

Overall, the production model look like a big budget '70's porn flick.

[EricMontreal22]

In the 70s porn was briefly trying for mainstream acceptance and trust me, I've seen many a 70sporn film with a better look and budget than Gotham

[WorldTurner]

Melanie Smith, Former Emily from ATWT has been added to the cast. http://www.welovesoaps.net/2009/12/melanie-smith-returns-to-soaps-joins.html

Martha said they reworked some of the material once Melanie was added to suit her. She also said overtime the episodes will continue to get longer.

[JaneAusten]

Dreadfull sorry. Are these Websoaps even trying to appeal to more than the audience they already had. I don't honestly care about Martha Byrne I'd just like to watch something half entertaining. This wasn't it.

[Meldus]

What I realized is that web soaps with former soap stars will end up being what they think "soaps" should look like. For instance, Gotham will pretty much be a more updated version of ATWT with some Lipstick Jungle thrown in.

Venice will be a vehicle for gay girls, a la L-Word with soap stars.

Wedlocked,pretty much is a light hearted version of both of the actors real life (recently married) lives.

And the list goes on.....

What I won't expect is innovative or edgy storytelling or diversity from any of the major web soaps/series. Which is why I will probably continue to tune in elsewhere.

[bellcurve]

Obviously, they should have developed a pilot, understood their mistakes and what was happening and then went ahead and shot a full season, edited everything together and then ran each episode back-to-back. This every other Monday is gonna make the show fall off the map with soap viewers.

Really?! Then that's not a webseries...that's a pilot or a short indie film that's been broken into segments. And that's so annoying.

Serials are known as such because, yes, there's a continuing story, but each episode should be self contained and have it's own beginning, middle, and end.

I didn't think Gotham was all that bad on a technical standpoint, but if the goal is to show that you can do it better than a daytime soap, then you've got to up the stakes on all levels, including technical. But for me, the story is more important than everything else. And there wasn't any here.

The Taster's Choice commercials had more story than Gotham and they were minute long clips every two-three months.

[Vee]

Gotham was not exactly stellar but as I said in the Venice thread, at least it attempted, in its backwards, drunken way, to follow one old Irna Phillips rule of mini-radio soap - exposition and characterization under severe time constraint. That's what Gotham tried to do with MP in the car. Venice didn't bother introducing anyone. The vibe was "here's Otalia, here's Galen Gering, go."

They should've saved the Michael Park intro for later, though. Fact is I watched that first episode for Martha Byrne, and if your show is written and starring a grande dame of soaps, you need to have her in the pilot front and center for three to five minutes straight.

[Vee]

I take back any compliments I may have given. Episode 2 was absolutely dreadful. Lisa Brown wrote this? Really? It's like they wrote a 60-minute episode, then decided to try and cram all of that script's story beats into under five minutes instead of doing what websoaps apparently hate to do: Accommodating for the length. Kissing in front of a crowd for no reason? The music? The sound? The slow motion? Martha looks high, too.

[DRW50]

I haven't watched yet. How was Maeve Kinkead?

[Vee]

Maeve Kinkead was Vanessa, basically. She had to stand up there and make it look good while, in some sort of truncated display of soapy plotting, Martha Byrne turns away from the crowd of people to stare at the floor in the middle of Maeve's speech. Maeve was fine. Everyone and everything else was not.