Chinese Tense and the three body problem

[Steve James]

Sometimes a brief summation piques the interest more than a recommendation.

[everything]

almost at the end (on e7), and it's been incredibly, ludicrously ... boring. the acting is good. the plot is meh. the pacing is ... AWFUL.

but trying to get through it, since the reviews of both productions and the book are good.

[vadaga]

I can never understand the mentality of people who say “how do you have time to listen to something that’s 2 hours long???”

Like, the stop button was invented years ago….

You don’t have to listen to it all in one go…

I listen to long podcasts in small parts while making dinner or doing the washing up….

2x speed is my friend... I dont have 2 hours to listen to a podcast but 1 hour focus can be a good way to get a fair bit of info

[origami_itto]

I can never understand the mentality of people who say “how do you have time to listen to something that’s 2 hours long???”

Like, the stop button was invented years ago….

You don’t have to listen to it all in one go…

I listen to long podcasts in small parts while making dinner or doing the washing up….

2x speed is my friend... I dont have 2 hours to listen to a podcast but 1 hour focus can be a good way to get a fair bit of info

My wife does that, jeesh, I can't stand the way it sounds. Have to pay so much attention may as well be reading.
Talking is just slow and annoying for the most part.

[vadaga]

agreed, it is more like reading than listening to the radio. The problem with the podcasts I feel like is that they talk so slowly to pad out the runtime... I would normally put the speed on between 1.5-2x speed. Funnily enough I never used to have such issues listening to talk radio for hours a day.

[origami_itto]

The professional talk radio folks go to broadcasting school and study how to get and keep attention when they deliver information. When they would get a dry specialist or run short on content they knew how to keep it going.They get paid based on how listenable they are. With podcasts, you don't necessarily get the same professionalism. You might get great information but the host isn't necessarily an entertainer in any way.

[everything]

managed to get to the end, and oof. that was WAY too slow just to kind of finish "act 1". like forcing yourself to rewatch Dune, part 1, which is basically all set up. but worse.

but in the end, it's a sort of nice ending. what a waste of 8 hours, though. 5x. speed woulda been nice. or maybe just read a plot summary in 5 minutes is good enough.

[origami_itto]

Don't watch the Chinese version, it's 30 hours and doesn't get as far in the story. Goes into a lot more detail though

[everything]

ok thanks for the short review / heads up

[Giles]

managed to get to the end, and oof. that was WAY too slow just to kind of finish "act 1". like forcing yourself to rewatch Dune, part 1, which is basically all set up. but worse.

but in the end, it's a sort of nice ending. what a waste of 8 hours, though. 5x. speed woulda been nice. or maybe just read a plot summary in 5 minutes is good enough.

Sometimes personal tastes simply diverge, no right or wrong. I'd always respect your opinions, you've definitely got your head screwed on right (as we Brits say). But for my part I never felt the 3 Body Problem series drag. And coincidentally a few days ago I rewatched Dune Part 1 (with my wife, who hadn't seen it before) and this time too I was fully on board from start to finish.

Full disclosure: I'm also a big fan of Tarkovsky's films (or most of them at least), so maybe I'm a hopeless case anyway .

[origami_itto]

ok thanks for the short review / heads up

There is a LOT MORE story though. It ends with the galaxy getting flattened.

[everything]

managed to get to the end, and oof. that was WAY too slow just to kind of finish "act 1". like forcing yourself to rewatch Dune, part 1, which is basically all set up. but worse.

but in the end, it's a sort of nice ending. what a waste of 8 hours, though. 5x. speed woulda been nice. or maybe just read a plot summary in 5 minutes is good enough.

Sometimes personal tastes simply diverge, no right or wrong. I'd always respect your opinions, you've definitely got your head screwed on right (as we Brits say). But for my part I never felt the 3 Body Problem series drag. And coincidentally a few days ago I rewatched Dune Part 1 (with my wife, who hadn't seen it before) and this time too I was fully on board from start to finish.

Full disclosure: I'm also a big fan of Tarkovsky's films (or most of them at least), so maybe I'm a hopeless case anyway .

how do you feel about "2001"? or "Interstellar"?

[Giles]

How do you feel about "2001"? or "Interstellar"?

I love "2001", zero boredom at first viewing and on repeats.
I quite liked "Interstellar" but I felt it dragged sometimes.
If a film, or any work of art (sorry for using that term ), is able to create its own special world, its own kind of atmosphere and internal logic and feeling that resonates with me, then for me this is just as much part of the 'entertainment' as the explicit plot, action, characters, twists and developments etc. For me this can apply to the mediums of film/TV, music, poetry and visual arts.
I like "Erazerhead" for its particular mix of "world" and "action", for instance. And when it comes to Surrealist painting I much prefer René Magritte to Salvador Dali.
But I love "Terminator 2" and "Dumb & Dumber" before you think I'm a total culture snob.
-- OK, I am a culture snog and my final comment is a fail...

[everything]

lol I understand that "2001" must be incredibly influential but oof i couldn't stand it. i understand why people like "interstellar" but also couldn't stand it.

arguably, within sci-fi, "The Thing" does super slow pacing at masterpiece level. "The Last of Us" series did it quite well. I guess I thought "3 Body Problem" would be at least half as good as "Last of Us" based on the reviews.

yes I love "Terminator 2" and non-snob movies as well!