Like many of you I love Sci-Fi.
But, what can I say about a show we caught this week on Netflix called The Rain. Well, its a Danish Sci-Fi series about a deadly virus thats in the ...rain! Its a great premise and promised much. Or so I thought.
Seldom have I been so incensed by a TV series opener than this. Within the first few minutes I was shouting at the telly 'how can you be so *ing stupid!' Alas, this was only the beginning and after another half an hour I was hoarse from shouting!
Clearly the writers decided that from the off the two main characters would be called Stupid and Moronic. They make Dumb and Dumber look like geniuses! To add a further layer of sheer annoyingness the two main characters are children, one about 6 and the other ... well, a teenager. Enough said!
Why the writing team had to make the youngster and the adolescent quite so lethally imbecilic I cannot fathom. Within minutes people close to them start dying around them and not because of the viral rain. No, its because of their monumentally selfish decisions. I won't expand on who dies just in case you feel the need to torture yourselves with this ordeal.
Trying to understand my anger towards the two children, especially the teenager, I've come to realise that I don't really like them. Teenagers. The girl in the show is portrayed as incompetent and non-resilient, the epitome of the snowflake generation. But my antipathy seems misplaced. I too was a teenager and no doubt just as selfish and irritating to everyone around me back in the 70's. So why this angry am I? I get equally antsy in McDonalds when the entire outlet is staffed by pubescents. There's just something about them.
I wonder if something is going on with Nature here. After all, I am 63 and retired, officially on the scrap heap of Society. Are OAP's and the teenage generation meant to stay apart, to give each other space to do what needs to be done; The Young carrying the torch, the old, like me, passing it on and basically slowly passing away! Never the twain shall meet [unless you're a teenager's parent or teacher/ teaching assistant like I was for my sins].
Yes, I wonder if I'm so peeved by the teenage ineptitude in The Rain because I'm jealous and I want to be an inept teenager again myself?
Evolution theory over, I had to check if I was alone in my outright dislike of this series. After all, I had only watched half of the opening episode and found it so unbearable that I cannot conceive of how there are 3 whole seasons of this dross! Still, this is my personal opinion.
I'm not alone though, thank God. The Rain garners either deep love but mostly intense rage in the many many reviews there are online since it was released in 2020. Some poor souls even watched it all because there was nothing else to do during Lockdown!
Yes, The Rain is the Marmite of Sci-Fi and I for one can't stand the savoury spread. The Missus put me out of my misery and switched to Travellers, a much more enjoyable and altogether more adult effort.
Rant over.
Have you seen The Rain?
My god, have you been on the Stella Artois?!! You really didn't enjoy it did you? Ha ha ha Bill
ReplyDeleteNope. Shame, a great idea. Viral rain.
DeleteI for one am sick of all this post apocalyptic tripe. Science fiction can be intelligent and thought provoking.
ReplyDeleteAll anyone can come up with now is we are all doomed to extinction. It is getting tiresome as heck. Mad Max was fun but enough already.
Sorry, I can't help chuckling. You sound as disgruntled as me Anon. The only difference being I adore Armageddon, the Apocalypse and Disaster movies! Its when they mess 'em up I get mad!
DeleteDon't get me wrong. Mad Max was fun, Blade runner was bleak but intelligent but where are the 2001s of this generation.
DeleteThere is exponentially more sci-fi being produced but it's all explosions and micro second cut scenes anymore. Instantly forgettable.
The same thing with Horror. No suspense, no mood. All blood and gore.
Yep, there's a lot of dross being made. Maybe there's more programs being made generally.
DeleteI feel for you. We are “aging out” and seeing what the world (TV and otherwise) has turned into is very depressing. We watch only vintage programming, from the 80s and earlier. SFZ
ReplyDeleteAging out. I like that. Sounds like slow cooking a gammon or smoking a kipper! ha ha
Delete"I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain?"
ReplyDeleteWell, no. Thankfully you've seen it for me!
Stupid characters really annoy me, too often it's due to lazy script writing, desperately trying to back track from a predetermined outcome.
The later Alien films (Promethius and Covenant) took this to idiotic extremes.
It's hard to empathise with characters who are TOO STUPID TO LIVE!
I enjoyed Prometheus immensely apart from the silly aggressive geologist. Covenant wasn't as important but still very watchable. I suppose iconic franchises like Alien are trapped in a lucrative story arc that must be adhered to Looey. As if I need to say anything to you anyhow, you worked on Covenant!
Delete