Tron: A Resistência

TRON was a very special movie - combining the earliest efforts of CGI with a storyline that was far too confusing for people of the 80's. It was good; could have been better, but I can't see much to complain. People still remember it three decades after it was made. Very few movies can boast such a claim.

The rest of the franchise has been hit or miss - mostly "miss". TRON 2.0 was a good game, although it was underrated and mostly ignored. TRON: Evolution was a mediocre game with a weak storyline. But TRON: Legacy was the worst of them all - millions of dollars spent on a completely forgettable story with some of the best FX ever made. It was a major disappointment.

Enter TRON: Uprising. I was very intrigued when I saw the teaser trailer on the "Legacy" Blu-Ray - and I was absolutely blown away when I saw the first episodes. This is TRON done right. The animation is nothing short of astonishing - the artistic direction, fluid movements, and incredible set design beat anything that came before on the franchise, and it's quite frankly, the most gorgeous cartoon made for TV I've ever seen. I'd probably not be disappointed if I saw a movie with this kind of quality.

The storyline actually makes sense. What took Disney 1.15 hours to tell during "Legacy", this show tells us in 20 seconds (no exaggeration) - Flynn is nowhere to be found, Clu rules, TRON is missing. That's the way it should have been done in the movies. Each episode is interesting and fills in the details of what happened to the TRON universe during all those years.

Each new episode brings a new surprise - be it story arcs, animation, special effects, music - it's just mind-blowing.

Disney finally did TRON right. It only took them 30 years!

Excellent art direction is one of the hallmarks of this series. Combine that with great writing, exceptional voice acting, compelling score, and a ton of interesting characters and plot twists, and you have a winner.

Plenty of call-backs to both TRON films show that the writers and designers are unafraid to apply their formidable attention to detail. This is a project to be proud of.

Once-again though, Disney has shot themselves in the foot by canceling this series. Yet another critical mistake by Disney management in the last few years.

Disney chose to take the kiddie-route with their new Spider-Man series released earlier this year, making it appeal more to children by adding silliness. I figured there was a good chance they would do the same with Tron Uprising as well.

I've watched three episodes of Uprising so far and I can safely say that they did not take the kiddie route. Actually, it's the total opposite. The show is kind of "dark". It's definitely geared towards teens and adults. The stories are engaging, with just a touch of humor.

Light Cycle battles, Disc wars, Recognizers and everything in between..the action is amazing.

The animation looks incredible, silky smooth, with plenty of detail in the environments. That attention to detail helps to bring this new animated Tron world to life beautifully. I found myself captivated and totally drawn into each episode until the credits rolled.

The sound, wow. Crystal clear audio and sub-woofer-worthy bass that will rumble your walls. If you have a stereo hooked up to your TV, turn it up.

Lastly, the voice talent- All excellent, but especially Elijah Wood. He nails his role, bringing forth a strong, likable main character. And Bruce Boxleitner...need I say more!?

"Tron: Uprising" is a TV Show meant to fill in the gap between the original "Tron", and the sequel "Tron Legacy." It focuses on the rise of Clu's tyrannic regime across the Grid, a virtual world filled with sentient programs. During the beginning of Clu's oppression, a revolution begins to grow, starting with the rogue program, Beck, a simple mechanic who decides to take on the identity of Tron.

From the very first episode, "Tron: Uprising" feels like an energetic mix between the Batman cartoons and "The Legend of Korra," with one of the most creative styles of animation I have seen, and a technologic score and soundtrack that just hums with the sounds of a virtual city. Character designs are mostly angular and artistic, and backgrounds are mostly geometric. The color palette is limited to mostly blues and oranges. The style is simply amazing, and I cannot believe that Disney only approved of a single season.

This show is also not entirely for children. There are adult concepts of forced memory loss, untrustworthy governments, blind devotion, mass genocide of a race, torture, and public execution. And though there is no blood in the show, they manage to get away with a lot of gore by making the "blood" into pixels. Many characters will brutally be crushed into tiny cubes on screen.

"Tron: Uprising" also has great conflict in it, as you are watching other characters reactions to Beck's secret identity of Tron. Some people are glad he is taking action against Clu's Commanders, Paige and Pavel, and the Supreme General Tesler, while others are afraid his actions will result in more oppression to the people of the Grid. For a TV Show that could so easily be a Good Vs. Evil tale, but it gives every character many layers. Good guys will lie and not apologize for certain actions, and bad guys will believe that they are truly doing the right thing for the citizens. Sometimes, main villains even have bad "dreams" of their own defeat. Almost every primary character has an arc that either ends, or would have ended if only another season was approved.

In my opinion, if this series had gone past one season, I believe this could have been the next "Avatar: The Last Airbender." It holds a special place in my heart. Even though this show ended abruptly, the cliff-hanger ending almost feels as if you can interpret what may tragically happen in the future to nearly all of these characters. It is on Disney Plus right now, and I implore you to watch it with an open mind. I would recommend you watch both of the Tron films before this, but in my opinion, it is better than both. This is in my personal top 5 tv shows of all time (though I am a bit biased).

Like STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS animated series succeeded where its feature counterparts, EPISODES 1-3, failed the franchise, TRON: UPRISING surpasses the recent film, TRON: EVOLUTION, in nearly every way. The impressionistic art design is unique and evocative. The voice acting is first rate. The story lines are surprisingly layered for an animated series, and it does a good job of telling a complete story each episode while furthering the serialized plot. And I would be remiss if I didn't mention Daft Punk's original score and some of the best action sequences I've ever seen choreographed. At the time of this review, only 7 episodes of the first season have been aired. I have watched them all twice (being a dweeb, obviously) and look forward to seeing how TRON: UPRISING continues to explore and expand the Tron universe.