Loop

The best of the 'science fiction' bits are in the trailers and promos. If you're in it for the sci fi, don't get your hopes up.

I waited until the end of the series before submitting reviews because episodes should be a part of a whole. This one (Episode 1) was enough to get my attention and keep me going because I naturally expected an arc to develop and the storyline to continue. Um... no.

I started out wanting to care for the girl in the center of this episode. It quickly became clear that I was the only one who felt that way. The writers certainly didn't, nor did the other characters, or even the girl herself. Is this really just a day in the life of these people?

I'm not one of those people who feels every question should be answered, so i'm okay with things left to the imagination. As far as this episode being part of the whole, it certainly was if you consider the overall depressing tone that carries on throughout the series.

This is a village of Stepford families. If the affect got any flatter, no one would have a pulse.

It has a nostalgic feel, like it's set in the 70's or 80's. This does a few things: it appeals to the people who grew up in that time; it adds a mystique for the people who grew up after that time; and it lowers the bar for the science fiction bits one might expect.

But this isn't really a science fiction series. It isn't even a human nature series, because there is very little natural behavior about how any of these people act or react to make then relatable as humans with human issues. It's just people having absurd reactions to absurd situations.

So maybe it should be called Stories from the Absurd instead.

This show is a meditation on the human condition. It requires patience and perhaps a little more life experience than the average television binger. Tales from the Loop is certainly not for everyone. For those who want to relate to characters ripped right from our daily lives but taken from a different perspective, Tales from the Loop will not disappoint. Those looking for the ecstasy of space battles and explosions can watch all the rest of the stuff that Hollywood churns out on the daily.

Ultimately, the sci-fi elements and outstanding conceptual design outweigh the poor attempt at creating a compelling main character or plot.

I really loved this start to the show. It is absolutely beautifully shot with so much eye for asthetics. I also love the score. You can see that Philip Glass is behind this. This is a show that uses the sci-fi undertones to create a narrative that is about human emotions. So people who liked the new Star Wars are wrong here. I just really like the tone of the show, the slowness, the beauty of this. Acting is really good and authentic, it feels real. As the title already says it: it has a setting similar to Stranger Things, has the subtle sci-fi elements that are a part of Interstellar or Arrival and it has the emotional depth of The Leftovers. I do not know what is not to love about this!

Not sure what to rate this episode on the one hand it's visually stunning and a work of art that opening sequence alone when the workers are walking in straight lines is something straight out of a painting!

On the other hand the pacing is very slow. There is very little dialogue and nothing is explained. Which would be fine if it weren't so god damn confusing..! The actors all did a fine job, I really appreciated the attention to detail when it comes to capturing the innocence of the little girl and the frailty of her situation. Normally I would be also fine with it being as abstract as it is except it was trying so incredibly hard to be more intelligent than it actually was. At least it felt like that. I have to say I loved the score from Philip Glass although it seems a little too familiar (sounds an awful lot like Truman Sleeps) and the cinematography is otherworldly.

I just wish they would've had concentrated more on telling a story and less on the sci fi mumbo jumbo. Without giving anything away I think the story would've worked fine without the Sci fi setting.

Still though I'd say it's a solid 7.5 out of 10 it would've been a great feature length movie.