Carnival Row

I thought it was a beautifully told if simple story... I’ve been reading critics reviews and am wondering why some people even bother if they’re going to compare everything to GoT, and then complain because the show isn’t a perfect season. I think it’s as good a first season as anyone can expect from any show that’s not Battlestar Galactica. The costume design was impeccable, the set design so wonderfully rich, which is impressive considering there is so much grey. Whoever was responsible for the lighting did an amazing job of giving it a complete personality in this narrative. The performances were a little uneven here and there, but what first season has a perfect possession of every character? None, that’s how many. All in all it’s a glorious entry, and I love the way The Fae are presented, and as gritty the allegories are with Nazism and the nascent authoritarianism and white nationalism on the loose in the U.S., I appreciate the tone and structure of the politics and how it’s played out from the top down. I enjoyed this tremendously and am looking forward to more yarn for this story... #CarnivalRow #FaeForever #FaeUnity #FaeOfTheWorldUnite

Much better than expected. Large in scope and ‘world size’, beautiful cinematography, and decent acting. And the romantic elements are actually reigned in at appropriate times, which keeps up the fast pace (well, so far; I am on Episode 3, though tempted to keep binging.) Yes, there are some very obvious allegorical plot devices and links to “current affairs” straight out of the gate, but they’re balanced with the fantasy elements and help flesh out the alternate world. .. P.S. Amazon’s teaser for this wasn’t very good or striking, but the show has turned out to be intriguing. Edit - after finishing the first season, it lacked the anticipated depth I first thought I gleaned. To me, it was more visually appealing than anything else.

okay so lets say that this is a show thats like an adult bedtime story type of thing there is fariys werewolves and all sorts of stuff like that though be warned its entirely for adults only theres plenty of sex and swearing even gore so if your looking for a nice exscape from the rest of the world then defintely try this one out

This one has a straight, linear storyline. There are no hidden agendas, other than one at the very end, maybe because someone else raised the point that I am harping on about. The bad guy is revealed at the very end, and is mostly kept out of the action for the rest of the season, just for the big reveal at the end. But there is no soul in the series. The actors just strut around, uttering their lines and going about their ways. Cara Delevingne should really sit down with someone and learn some acting. Orlando Bloom is his same wooden self. The rest of the actors are never really given a chance to shine. Jared Harris and Indira Verma are examples of wasted talent. I was drawn to this show due to its premise, and the fact that I am a sucker for science-fiction and fantasy. This show could have been so, so much better. Really, just a wasted opportunity.

I'm excited for this show. Waiting :heart:

I watched the first three episodes, and quite frankly this show is a complete mess. It can't decide whether it wants to be a period drama, a detective show, urban fantasy, a war story... The dichotomies between these genres are too big, and the writer makes a crap job of marrying them together. They're not mixed well enough for the flow of the story to be smooth. It's like watching a show with multiple personalities disorder. The dialogue isn't all that great, the timeframe of events is unclear, and there's no spark between the lead couple in the slightest. They have some type of chemistry, but it is definitely not of the romantic kind. Also the pacing is all wrong. There are way too many scenes so unnecessarily long. It made for a very boring watching experience. As for the cast, they're not the best of actors, but they're not the worst either. However, I need Cara to just pick a freking accent and stick to it. I've seen her in interviews and I know that's not what she sounds like, so why have an Irish accent for some scenes and not for others? The accent wasn't necessary in the slightest. So why even add it if you're not gonna be great at it? So pointless. If you wanna watch an Amazon Prime show about a wartime love story with fantasy elements, just go watch The Man in the High Castle. The first season is infinitely better, I promise.

I really like the story, characters, relationships and themes in this show. My only problem: how are the fae not tactically superior to human beings? I mean they can fly! This was my first thought during the opening scene. It made the rest of the story a little hard to swallow for me. I quickly forgave this detail, however, as the show unfolded because it is truly a great story. There are lots of parallels with the politics and prejudices of today's society. I am really enjoying the many backstories, well fleshed out characters as well as Shakespearean, Celtic and steampunk references. It explores colonialism, bigotry, society, love, ambition and has a nice little murder mystery thrown in to boot. Kudos to the writers of this amazing tale!

The opening its so fucking poetic: vitruvian man, aurea ratio, the creation of adam and Darwin evolution...

Initially, I abandoned the series 3/4 of the way through the first episode. Cable and streaming services have fallen into a habit of front loading their series with salacious content and unnecessary nudity to grab an audience rather than relying on their audiences' higher functions to engage with their premise for a story. This definitely did the former. However, three months later, I decided to push past the inauspicious beginning to see if there was anything worthy of attention. I'm pleased to say I found it. Fantasy is a favourite genre of mine and this series has great world building using some archetypes from folk lore. The characters were interesting. I don't agree with the reviews that say Orlando Bloom and Cara Delevingne gave poor performances. I believe that the intensity they brought to their characters was confused with wooden portrayals. These character had internal motivation to be intense. The social commentary is obviously paralleled to prejudices, pitfalls and conflicts of the socio-political climate of our day and our history. No matter whether you agree with the views of the writers, it open a point of comparison. The CGI and ambient effects were captivating. Prague brought all the right architectural undertones to house the series. The mystery was intriguing. The production was well resourced. I give this series a 9 (superb) out of 10 and can't wait for the next season. [Fantasy, Steampunk, Crime, Thriller]

I'm not sure what to think of this. 6/10 overall maybe. The only great episode was E03 which is probably because the city is a kinda boring setting. Other than that this is just race/love stories disguised as a fantasy show. Kinda like Outlander which I also don't like and dropped after three episodes. I don't think I'll bother seeing more seasons.

Overall, I like it. The cast is very hit and miss. Delevingne couldn't act even if her life depended on it. Bloom is a little too old for the part and there is no chemistry between them. Delevingne had always impeccable hair and makeup. She didn't look as a refugee or an impoverished immigrant for one bit. The last episode is full soap opera with some revelations, it was really bad. The music was a nice touch but it lacked the epicness of a Max Richter or a Ramin Djawadi. I thought they didn't explore the universe or second plotlines enough. Because of the focus on a single story, it was very stretched especially with the flashbacks.

- Story 3/5 - Characters 4/5 - Depth 3/5 - Cast 4/5 - Lead female 5/5 - Lead male 3/5 - Artistry 3/5