Mr. Robot (USA)

Totally agree ..... it gets my vote as show of the year up to now ... such a massive improvement on Season 2.
 
Agree the last two episodes especially this weeks "kill process" have been really great. Rami Malek was tremendous, especially in the confrontation with angela at the start of the episode. The intensity of his performance was amazing and some of the best acting I have seen on TV for a while. These 2 episodes have come close to matching the series 1 pilot "hellofriend.mov" which in my opinion is the best single TV episode I have ever seen,in any TV series.

I have enjoyed a lot of other episodes as well, though some of season 2 wasn't great and dragged a bit,as did a couple of the episodes early in season 3 when it drifted too far from the core story. For me, Mr Robot's biggest problem is matching the quality of "hellofriend.mov" which promised so much early on, very rare for pilot. Some of the later season 1 episodes came close, and now we are getting there again in season 3 which is great to see.
 
See for me, season 2 was rather large improvement over season 1. Such a criminally underrated season.

If the plot progress is the most important aspect to you then I guess I can understand the frustration of season 2, but for me, it hit the right notes in terms of the tone, performances, creativity and character development. Those four elements are individually as important as plot goes, perhaps maybe even more so. Season 2 had all of that and since it's in the TV medium, I feel it had the time and length to justify detouring from the plotting a bit.

It's also worth pointing out that we are approximately half way through the entire series run, and a new interview with Esmail has confirmed that. Esmail had always planned Mr Robot to be 5 seasons (though he did flirt with the idea of pulling it all of in 4). He also said in an interview that the end of this last episode would have been the mid point in the feature film version of Mr Robot he had
penned before turning it into a series.
 
Yeah, if the character based stuff is your thing then season 2 was pretty good, and I do enjoy that stuff myself. That is what makes Mr Robot special compared to other TV shows. However the thing I enjoy most is the hacking / technology aspect of it and for large parts of season 2 Elliot wasn't near a keyboard which was a major issue for me. The Lack of Martin Wallstrom for most of the season was also to its detriment compared to S1 as Tyrell is a terrific character played very well. I am glad he is back for season 3.
 
Yeah, if the character based stuff is your thing then season 2 was pretty good, and I do enjoy that stuff myself. That is what makes Mr Robot special compared to other TV shows. However the thing I enjoy most is the hacking / technology aspect of it and for large parts of season 2 Elliot wasn't near a keyboard which was a major issue for me. The Lack of Martin Wallstrom for most of the season was also to its detriment compared to S1 as Tyrell is a terrific character played very well. I am glad he is back for season 3.

That's fair enough, I suppose. There was definitely less hacking in season 2, true, and Tyrell's presence was definitely missed, but it sort of allowed Joanna to step up to the plate and fill those shoes and I found the character to be as unpredictable and unnerving. But yes, Wallstrom is an excellent actor and he was definitely missed for most of season 2.

If there is any complaint I have about season 3 so far is that the title cards, which have often been great, have been slightly lacking recently.
 
Agree the last two episodes especially this weeks "kill process" have been really great. Rami Malek was tremendous, especially in the confrontation with angela at the start of the episode. The intensity of his performance was amazing and some of the best acting I have seen on TV for a while. These 2 episodes have come close to matching the series 1 pilot "hellofriend.mov" which in my opinion is the best single TV episode I have ever seen,in any TV series.

I have enjoyed a lot of other episodes as well, though some of season 2 wasn't great and dragged a bit,as did a couple of the episodes early in season 3 when it drifted too far from the core story. For me, Mr Robot's biggest problem is matching the quality of "hellofriend.mov" which promised so much early on, very rare for pilot. Some of the later season 1 episodes came close, and now we are getting there again in season 3 which is great to see.

Hmmmm ... not quite sure about that ... the last 2 episodes in s3 were stronger than anything in s1 imho.

However your best episodes on TV selection is indeed an interesting thought : For me :

BB ... the last one (Felina) .... incredible. but then again the last 3 were utterly brilliant 10/10.
The Wire : The Stringer Bell kill in series 3 ... just wow.
The Sopranos ... too many to mention ... but surely the episode when Paulie and Chris get lost in the forest.
Gomorrah ... The episode where Gini goes from a pathetic fat loser to literally the coolest TV character ever who has spawned a million Gini Mohicans.
 
I know my opinion on the season 1 pilot is controversial, as you would think later season episodes would be better once you have got to know the characters, story arc etc. However what I love so much about hellofriend.mov is how it immediately gives you a great understanding of what the show is about, who the characters are, and the great potential for future episodes. I felt more excited about Mr Robot after seeing that episode than any other series I have seen. I have never watched a pilot of any other show (even great shows) and felt as drawn in as with this one. Babylon 5 was kind of like that, but I wasn't a great fan of Michael O'Hare in the lead role . The good thing about Mr Robot is that is has just about met my expectations after that first episode especially the way season 3 is turning out.
 
Great thread but maybe a tad skewed for moi because of all the memories of the series .... one thing I am of a strong opinion now is that movies from 'movie only' studios are doomed .... there is becoming no place for them ... the headlines this weekend about Gomorrah is the final proof ... people will now 'massively' go and watch the first few episodes (of admittedly one of the top 5 greatest shows ever made) of a TV series at a cinema over anything that the movie studios can come up with.
 
No argument there, all the innovation and most of the great acting are happening in TV recently. I have enjoyed the netflix marvel tv series much more than the movies and that looks set to continue with the punisher. I think a lot of it is due to how huge movie budgets are now, none of the studios are willing to take even the slightest risk in case they lose money so everything is sequels or remakes.
 
I've just finished Season 1, so not really reading what's above - yet!

I have to say I was very impressed overall. A good story, and great characters drove the season along.

I was disappointed with the
very obvious Fight Club nod in regards to Christian Slater. I guessed this very early on, and was just waiting for the reveal.
Perhaps we were meant to know, and it was done on purpose, but either way I would have liked it handled a little differently.

I thought it was a very good commentary as well on the society in which we now live. Dominated by a virtual world that is really anything but a world, but in reality just a small bubble we trap ourselves in. Social media and the like controlling what we see and hear, numbing our senses, and restricting our freedoms.

But that is talk for another thread!

Gonna box off a few other shows before I start Season 2. Looking forward to seeing where it heads.
 
What a devastating conclusion to episode 7 ): Really upsetting yet so inevitable. Esmail is on the top of his game and it'll be interesting to see what the fall out will be in the next 3 episodes.
 
Think episode 8 might have been shot on 35mm! Certainly looks like it! I know they went anamorphic but the texture was also very different.

Mr Robot again switching tone, keeping us off balance. It's a unique episode, not necessarily the best of the season, but a very different experience. It's one that you can tell felt very personal to Esmail, like even more so than usual. It's also a love letter to cinema, in many regards. Well, pre 00s cinema, at least :D
 
Whoa, that was the most exciting season finale of Mr Robot to date. Mr Robot has always struggled on how to end it's seasons, but 3rd time is the charm, as they say. Riveting stuff, and I am hyped for season 4 next year.
 
Whoa, that was the most exciting season finale of Mr Robot to date. Mr Robot has always struggled on how to end it's seasons, but 3rd time is the charm, as they say. Riveting stuff, and I am hyped for season 4 next year.

That may have been the best 45 minutes of tv I have ever seen! I was so engrossed it made me forget how bad my new tv is!
Just gutted now because I didn't realise it was the season finale.
 
So looking forward to cracking on with Season's 2 and 3 - before 4! Just need to box off a few other shows first, got far too many on the go!

Some really good stuff on Amazon. Gives Netflix and Sky now a run for their money.
 
I watched season 1 back in the day and enjoyed it, S2 by ep 3 wasn’t doing it for me.
Might give it a second chance, must be doing well ratings wise to get another season.
 
I watched season 1 back in the day and enjoyed it, S2 by ep 3 wasn’t doing it for me.
Might give it a second chance, must be doing well ratings wise to get another season.

There is simply no other show like it. It's really a show made by a television auteur. Season 3 will be more your thing if you liked season 1. But I still think that season 2 was a masterpiece.
 
I'm half way through season 3 and just watched episode 5. :eek: Wow, just wow. I clicked after a few minutes that the camera hadn't cut yet, but I didn't expect it to last the entire episode! I know they probably used clever television trickery and it wasn't all one continuous shot, but it was superbly done. Sometimes I wonder if this is the greatest tv show of our time, and it doesn't even have the budget GoT or Westworld has.
 
I'm half way through season 3 and just watched episode 5. :eek: Wow, just wow. I clicked after a few minutes that the camera hadn't cut yet, but I didn't expect it to last the entire episode! I know they probably used clever television trickery and it wasn't all one continuous shot, but it was superbly done. Sometimes I wonder if this is the greatest tv show of our time, and it doesn't even have the budget GoT or Westworld has.

Now if that’s not a paragraph that’s going to get me back into this...:)
 
I'm half way through season 3 and just watched episode 5. :eek: Wow, just wow. I clicked after a few minutes that the camera hadn't cut yet, but I didn't expect it to last the entire episode! I know they probably used clever television trickery and it wasn't all one continuous shot, but it was superbly done. Sometimes I wonder if this is the greatest tv show of our time, and it doesn't even have the budget GoT or Westworld has.

It's a hell of an episode, and unlike anything I had seen done on telly before, technique wise. Esmail's a super ambitious guy.

That said, I think I preferred the style of episode 6 over episode 5, which is almost the complete opposite in technique, but as gripping and exciting. Multiple dimensional storytelling has always been fun to me.

Both those other shows you mention don't hold a candle to Mr Robot, especially the former. Though I did enjoy Westworld for what it was.
 
Not sure what sort of mood I was in when I binned this during season 2 after 4 eps.
After reading above I started on ep 5, now on 10, brilliant stuff.
If this season is weaker than season 3 - happy days !
 
Not sure what sort of mood I was in when I binned this during season 2 after 4 eps.
After reading above I started on ep 5, now on 10, brilliant stuff.
If this season is weaker than season 3 - happy days !

Glad to hear that you are back into it, mate. I'm a broken record now, but I genuinely believe that season 2 is a misunderstood masterpiece. Most people will consider season 3 a better season simply because it's much more of a thriller and features more plot and stuff, and it does those things extremely well, as you would expect, but season 2 is going to be very difficult to top for me. My feeling is you'll love season 3 more than season 2 in the end, though.

I do think that season 3 is much better than season 1 though.
 
Glad to hear that you are back into it, mate. I'm a broken record now, but I genuinely believe that season 2 is a misunderstood masterpiece. Most people will consider season 3 a better season simply because it's much more of a thriller and features more plot and stuff, and it does those things extremely well, as you would expect, but season 2 is going to be very difficult to top for me. My feeling is you'll love season 3 more than season 2 in the end, though.

I do think that season 3 is much better than season 1 though.
The direction is superb, you have to question everything you see.
While all the cast are great, Rami is outstanding, always knew he would go on to great things after seeing him in HBO's The Pacific.
 

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