#st vfx

[henrysglock]

the way the hair/makeup/vfx team is just. bonkers fuckin yonkers.

[aemiron-main]

So, does anyone want to try and tell me again that things like Henry’s changing bloodstains and the moving and changing bodies during NINA are just background stand-ins for the kids/should be written off as a production error?

They’ve got 3D scans of the kids, meaning they made 3D models of them. Meaning that it’s easy for them to change the positions/sizes of their bodies and intentionally mess with them & that the changes such as the kids turning into adults can’t be written off as using stand-ins for the kids because they have 3D models of them and therefore, no need for standins (especially not fully adult standins who dont even have their eyes gouged out, which is what makes the standin claim so absurd in the first place):

They make quite a lot of 3D models- every single vecna victim has a full 3D model that’s used during their death scene:

This is not Grace Van Dien with a bit of CGI layered onto her:

Instead, it’s is a full 3D model and hair and clothes simulation of Grace:

Even Henry is a full 3D model when he gets sent to superhell. This is NOT Jamie Bower:

It's a 3D model of him:

They’ve also got a 3D model of the rainbow room:

You’re going to tell me that they 3D modelled Henry’s fucking internal organs that we dont even SEE just so that it wouldn’t feel empty when the light ripped through him, but they’re not capable of making sure that blood doesn’t just ~appear~ on his face between shots?

And not capable of making sure that the blood is the same on all his jumpsuits (and they’re also not just randomly going to make multiple jumpsuits??):

We also have even more confirmation of what I talked about with the makeup team having pre-set blood patterns for every single lab kid’s bloody eyes and painstakingly replicating them:

Which means that when that eye blood deviates from that pattern, it’s intentional, especially when it coincides with the children TURNING INTO ADULTS, and again, the “oh they’re just stand-ins for child actors” is such BS because they had the kids lay there already and im sure that theyre MORE than capable of replicating the eye blood on their supposed stand-ins, but they didn’t:

The production error allegations regarding the dead kids’ moving/changing bodies, Henry/Edward’s changing blood splatters, and the changing blood splatters on the walls and floors of the Rainbow Room can hopefully be laid to rest. They can EASILY and INTENTIONALLY change and move those kids and their eye blood when they have 3D models of them, and they can EASILY change the stains etc on the walls and floors when they have a 3D model of the rainbow room.

Even the cracks (which change at the same times as the bloodstains and dead kids) are VFX:

They aren't doing these things accidentally. It's all intentional. So, ✨film students✨ speak now or forever hold your peace. I've been trying to tell you guys that this stuff is intentional, and now I'm giving you even MORE evidence, and so far, all people have brought forth to refute any of my evidence is "well im a film student and I don't agree" and "idk i don't think it's that deep".

[stra-tek]

Wanna see unused TOS VFX footage, in HD? Have a look here. Crazy how much was recorded but never used

[bugsbenefit]

the fact that all the extra casting calls have fitting dates starting on the 5th, oh we're so close. filming could either start right after new years on the 5th or the week after. not later than the 16th because that's already an announced filming date on the extra listing. and the first day of filming is when they release the table read videos/teasers to hype production up

table read content in about a week and the table placement has always aligned with in season groupings so that'll be interesting to see. probably the first real clue we'll get to which people will have the most to do with each other in the season

[magnorious]

Review: I Plunge to My Death; Percy Jackson Ep. 4

TL;DR: They turned a pit-stop into a main event and troubles ensued.

The consequences of shoving half the book into the first two episodes? Episode 4. Baby Percy is, again, adorable, no complaints. The opening scene, Kronos’ slithery voice – we are right back in the thick of it, until we’re not. Best part of the episode is easily the first 4 minutes and it does not recover, I am sorry.

Echidna gets a ridiculous amount of screen time, monologuing on and on and on… On the train, no less, not in the Arch.

Adaptations are allowed to be their own thing, but they are *adaptations* first. The choices that were made in the source material were made for a reason. If the book was bad, no one would have read it, and money wouldn’t be spent turning it into a TV show.

So, in the book, Echidna had a couple pages, and Percy was completely alone confronting her. She showed up, revealed herself, got a one-liner or two in, kicked his butt, and then he fell – end of scene. It was a whirlwind of chaos and incredibly efficient without being spoonfed “I am a monster” until they get the picture.

The purpose of this beat in the story came from Percy’s experience in the river and then St. Louis is behind them – it’s a pitstop, not a centerpiece. Echidna has no thematic connection to any of the characters like Medusa, she doesn’t need to overstay her welcome.

If you didn’t read the book, the episode is fine. The writing is okay, the acting, the VFX. They do retain the family of centaurs and establish Grover being a Searcher for Pan.

It’s not bad! It’s puzzling. The changes are puzzling.

All the filler – Echidna’s monologue, Athena’s temple, Annabeth being unnecessarily rude to Grover, Percy getting poisoned – they don’t feel like the same meaningful changes that were made to extend Medusa’s scenes. They feel like they exist to fill an entire episode before the next big set piece that has to wait until episode 5. The pacing has been thrown completely off balance.

Which wouldn’t have happened if they didn’t rush ten chapters of content.

Because they knew exactly how long the chimera fight would be – about 45 seconds, beat for beat, exactly as it was written. Echidna is just not important in the grand scheme of the story. They still have to fill an entire episode now, so what do they do?

They double back on the character development and the growing friendship established in episode 3 when they all start arguing over Athena for… reasons? In Athena’s temple, Annabeth’s suggestion for Percy to reach out to his dad there would be mighty offensive to the goddess. She calls herself out, saying she knows she’s forcing herself to believe Athena cares about her, the way it was written just makes her look selfish and rude.

There Grover is, all upset about the monument filled with paintings of humans over-hunting buffalo and Annabeth’s response is basically “get over it”. Doesn’t matter if she regrets it once he’s gone, she doesn’t apologize to him and she still believes what she said.

Percy doesn’t need to be poisoned to lose hard to Echidna and the chimera. He’s at his full strength and still panics and botches the fight. He already doubts that his dad cares about him.

The episode does recover its footing somewhat (after padding the runtime) by finally getting him alone in the last 8 minutes. Percy cements his disdain for his dad and how little he feels appreciated, respected, or even noticed by the gods – enough to decide he’ll fight and probably lose alone because he doesn’t matter to the gods anyway. Once he’s in the river, the nereid shows up, tells him to breathe, that Poseidon’s proud, and… cut to black. There's no wonder at his new abilities, no fascination, no "maybe being a demigod is a little bit cool, wow," and no consideration that his dad does care, even a little bit.

The only book change for the better? Percy choosing to go at it alone instead of ending up alone by accident.

I hate to come down so hard on this episode but pacing is critical. The beginning of the book feels slow because there’s a lot of internal monologue, a lot of introspection, lots of breaks between action, and several time skips – Percy spends a couple days at camp before going on his quest and packs a lot of character building moments into it – and they rushed through it all.

St. Louis was already rushed in the book, and this is where they decided to throw in all the filler to slow it down? Writers, if you wanted to pad the runtime, include Gladiola the Poodle giving them directions. Include chapter 14 – the entirety of which is spent in the river establishing new powers and getting told about the gift in Santa Monica, and exacerbating the problem of Percy being mistaken for a terrorist. Ares can still wait and no one would complain.

It’s not the acting, from anyone. It’s not the directing, either. Everyone who worked on this show: The actors, the editors, the set designers, costume department, makeup department, VFX, foley, props, music and sound design, and everyone in between – you all did fantastic and your work is recognized and appreciated.

It’s the big picture that just did not come together this time.

I really, truly, wanted to enjoy this episode coming off the high that was Episode 3 and I’m just left confused once again at all the choices that were made. Just because the bar for greatness was two feet into the topsoil from the first adaptation doesn’t mean it gets to skate by on “well it’s better than what we got before”.

[chirpsythismorning]

I’m not going to get my hopes up, but if Netflix has to have an answer by October, when do you think filming will start then?

Hypothetically if the strike is over in Netflix's case by Oct or in general for all the studios, filming for ST would start up shortly after that. They've been ready to start filming since June, so they're pretty much just in limbo waiting rn.

There might be some cast members in the middle of something when the strike ends, so that doesn't mean every single cast member will take a flight to Georgia and be there the day after the strike to start filming. It will happen in waves, where some who are available at that time will get all their arrangements in order and make the plan to start filming while others might need a few weeks to get everything in order.

Sometimes filming happens out of order, especially with scenes that are really time consuming for VFX in post production, but still I do think that the priority will be either those scenes or scenes from the first few episodes. Those episodes are the most fleshed out script wise and they're also the episodes we're going to see sooner than the later ones. In the case they decide to split it into two volumes again, having those earlier episodes finished sooner than later allows them to then be able to edit them sooner and have them complete for releasing. So if the premiere period rolls around, and they're still behind on some parts of Vol 2, they'd be prepared to release Vol 1, with extra time to focus on the rest. Pretty much the same thing happened for S4, where Vol 1 premiered in late May and then they were still editing Vol 2 in time for it's early July release.

If the strike is officially over and all filming in the industry amongst these studios has been green-lit to return, let's say October 1st, then it's likely by mid October they would be starting filming again. Or if it was mid October that the strike ended, then maybe filming would be starting by the end of the month. If it's late October, then probably early November for filming to start. The transition won't take months, at most a couple of weeks.

Again, they were ready to start filming in June and they don't necessarily need every single actor to have their schedule free in order to start. They just need actors who have scenes alone or with other actors who are also available who they also happen to have scenes with in order to start filming. It is unlikely that whatever schedule they had planned originally for the cast back in June will be identical post-strike, as that will all presumably shift to accommodate everyones new schedules at that time of the year and going forward.

This is all a hypothatical scenario. Regardless of if the strike ends in October or September or god forbid January, which is when the Emmy's are being postponed until, Filming for ST5 would take a matter of a couple of weeks to set up and begin, and would then continue for the next 12 months following, give or take.

[finalgirlwillbyers]

If the ''news'' are true, it looks like ST's filming will be wrapped up soon, I think in a couple of months (4-5 months). Looks like we could get the new season in mid or late 2025 after the editing/VFX is complete, but if they decide to do volumes again then I wonder if vol2 could come out at the beginning of 2026.

I figured it would be late Q4 2025, November or December, given Netflix's behavior during the writers strike. Post production is gonna be long. Anyways, I heard there may be some shooting in February of next year (based on casting calls).

We're probably getting volumes again. You better pray it's only two rather than three. At three volumes, people should just hack Netflix /j...unless?

[my-mt-heart]

I understand that Carol should be in the same locations as Daryl. But at the same time Melissa was seen in another location. Or am I wrong? Norman was St. Michel, and Melissa (according to eyewitnesses) in another place. That's what I meant about why she should go to France. At the same time, I will not doubt Melissa's decision. it's just weird for me to drag out Caryl's reunion. As Stan Carol, I'm glad we're getting more of her screen time. Perhaps even equally with Daryl. As it should have been originally

The cost of all that VFX would be insane on top of what must already be an inflated budget, so logistically shooting Carol’s arc makes the most sense. Narratively, it also makes the most sense since we can assume she’s looking for Daryl and probably retracing his steps.

Dragging out the reunion is going to be frustrating no matter how much their hands might have been tied. We were promised a Caryl show, with Caryl together, so that’s where most people’s expectations are set and honestly, where they should stay. Like I keep saying, they’ll hopefully find ways to still deliver Caryl the way we want them to. Melissa absolutely deserves the screen time like the leading lady she is ❤️

[pentacentric]

nine people I would like to know better

tagged by @fre3zerbride and @blacknidstang

Last song: Ø by Lorn

Favorite color: (fully aware this probably sounds pretentious) i have an obsessive and deeply complicated relationship with color to the point it's a sickness almost and i could never pick a favorite because it's all about the tint and shade and mood and intent and setting and the rest of the palette and that said, i have been feeling acid yellow recently

Currently watching: dead ringers (watch this it's so), scavengers reign (the worldbuilding! the creature design! the moebius-ishness of the art style!), invasion (i'm kinda meh on this one but i'll see it through), st lower decks, x-files rewatch (s2), and of course the eternal spn rewatch that never fully dies

Last movie/tv show: evil dead 2

Spicy/savory/sweet: spicy, savory

Current obsession(s): learning vfx in adobe ae, researching climate change for an ecological horror graphic novel i'm writing (has not been great for my depression), ketamine (rx, has been great for my depression), over-editing my stupid massive spn fic that has been on hiatus for over a year so i can start posting again without shame (this is dumb i know but i don't know how to stop), folklore (eternal), sam winchester (eternal), my cat (eternal)

Last thing you googled: gothic heroine (looking for inspiration for some sam art i'm thinking about)

tagging (no worries if you've been tagged already/don't wanna): @sammichgirl @nameslikeguns @fallenfar @fandom-hoarder @quietwingsinthesky @midnightsilver @femsammy

[thecrofttomb]

Tomb Raider I-III Remastered: Update 1.03

The development team at Aspyr rolled out the second major update to Tomb Raider I-III Remastered, which should already be live across all platforms worldwide. The patch addresses some of the community's most reported issues, including a missing outfit, bugged achievements/trophies, outdated and missing textures, and various bugs, among others.

Take a look at the patch notes below for a detailed list of changes.

General

Epic Games Store build now launches in fullscreen mode on initial launch rather than windowed mode

Lara's character now disappears when the camera gets too close instead of clipping through her head

Fixed an issue where Steam achievements would sometimes have the wrong descriptions

The action indicator will no longer display if Lara is unable to interact with an object

Achievement "Ready to Raid" (TRII) now unlocks when completing the proper conditions

Achievement "Exaggerated Threat" (TRI) now only unlocks when completing the proper conditions

Achievement "Gifts of Wonderland" (TRI) now unlocks when completing the proper conditions

The default Photo Mode pose where Lara is not holding a weapon is now consistent between SD and HD modes

Improved translation in various languages

Dynamic lighting now corresponds more accurately to the original games

Bloody T-Rex Lara outfit now available in Photo Mode

New Photo Mode poses

Lara's hair no longer expands/contracts in HD mode

Addressed graphical issues on many doors where the textures would flash rapidly

Improved rain, fire and smoke effects

Tomb Raider I

Windows are now properly transparent in the Natla's Mines level

Toned down the red mist effect in the cutscene with Natla placing the Scion in the Atlantis level

Lara can now destroy the Scion with all weapons

Updated lightning effects in Thor's room in the St. Francis' Folly level

Updated missing textures in the Lost Valley level

The flare control option is no longer greyed out in the menu

Updated skybox of Lara's Home

Tomb Raider II

Added a special outfit for the Nightmare in Vegas level

Updated spiderweb textures in HD mode

Lara now properly grabs ledges when running off and holding the grab button

Resolved missing muzzle flashes in cutscenes

Resolved camera twitching when Lara approaches the ledge in the Living Quarters level

Updated incorrect textures on the walls in The Deck level

Resolved a small gap between some textures in The Great Wall level

Lights in HD mode now flicker correctly in the Wreck of the Maria Doria level

Wall textures now match SD and HD modes in the Wreck of the Maria Doria level

Resolved small gaps in between some textures in the Venice level

Gondolas are now breakable regardless of the positioning of the other boat

Proper chimney textures are now present in HD mode in the Bartoli's Hideout level

Graphical overhaul of all Maria Doria levels

The opera dome is now visible from the outside in the Opera House level

Updated skyboxes of Lara's Home, Tibetan Foothills and Barkhang Monastery levels

Missing waterfall added in the Temple of Xian level

Music tracks no longer repeat

Tomb Raider III

Updated quicksand to have VFX in HD mode

Foliage textures updated to be more transparent

When Lara collects her items back in High Security Compound, all the items now appear in the preview display when you pick them up

3D models of Meteorite Artifacts were not transparent in HD mode

Updated hard-to-spot platforms in HD mode in the Lost City of Tinnos level

Updated missing textures in the Lost City of Tinnos level

Black water texture is no longer visible in the Lost City of Tinnos and Madubu Gorge levels

Updated lighting in caves in the Madubu Gorge level

It’s now more clear that some walls are climbable in HD Mode in the Madubu Gorge level

Updated lighting in HD Mode in the RX-Tech Mines level

Resolved missing textures in HD Mode in the RX-Tech Mines level

Crevice is clearly visible in the ice wall in HD mode in the RX-Tech Mines level

The arrow on the sign now turns off when using the railroad switcher in the RX-Tech Mines level

Resolved several gaps in textures in the Nevada Desert level

Environments from other rooms are no longer visible in sections of the Nevada Desert level

Lara no longer dies when jumping near a wall of spikes in the Willard's Lair level

Environments from other rooms are no longer visible in sections of the Shakespeare Cliff level

Willard is now holding the elevator remote in the cutscene after completing the Antarctica level

Resolved missing textures in the Area 51 level

Character models no longer disappear during the cutscene in the Aldwych level

The radar texture does not disappear anymore when viewed from certain angles in the High Security Compound level

The vent hole in the hut roof is now transparent in the Coastal Village level

Sparkling mutagen now looks brighter in HD mode in the Sleeping with the Fishes level

Lighting overhaul of the Lud's Gate and Aldwych levels

Chandeliers updated to better match the original model in Lara's Home

Graphical overhaul of the The Lost Artefact levels

Added a skybox in the Lud's Gate level

Updated skyboxes of Highland Fling, Willard's Lair and It's a Madhouse! levels

Tomb Raider I-III Remastered: Starring Lara Croft is available on Nintendo Switch, PC via Epic Games Store, GOG and Steam, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S.

[henrysglock]

You Can Respawn Fabric, but You Can't Respawn Your Hair? Makes Sense.

I absolutely hate watching this scene because it makes me cringe to hell and back (and that's probably intentional, Stav mentioned to me a while back that it mimics Dr. Manhattan's transformation scene). So like. Give me a little love on this one because it was TORTURE for me. I didn't mean to go so in-depth here but...the details just keep coming.

I love/hate how fucked up this man's jumpsuits are.

So this guy clearly starts out as Jamie (we've all seen the BTS of him in the harness for this part).

But by the end, he's transformed completely into someone who looks distinctly like Brenner, as I've said both here and here.

However...the singe pattern just straight up changes. This is not the last time we see a singe pattern completely change. He respawns fabric by the right sleeve, too. This is also not the last time this happens.

And all while he gets a handsome-Squidward style facial reconstruction...

...Until he doesn't?

The next time we see him, we're back in Jamie-face territory.

And, of course, here's the other time the singe pattern has changed. We also have some more respawned fabric (like I mentioned earlier). The shape of both holes, shoulder and left-chest has changed entirely.

It's not the same scorching.

(We've also added a brand new random singe on the right arm. Which, before you say "oh he's probably been down there a while/maybe he burnt it one the planet"...there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of fire on the planet. Maybe he got zapped more on the way down or something, I don't want to misattribute anything.)

Either way, the scorches, the fabric, and...yes, once again: the blood spatters.

In the Dimenson X Pattern, notice those two distinct dots under the scorch?

Not present in the Zapping Scene Pattern.

And it shows up in the big spray too, specifically near the buttons and the shape of the big drips:

But the blood pattern throughout the zapping scene seems to stay consistent, even if the scorching doesn't.

So at the very least we can conclude that: whoever reached out the the Shadow Monster and whoever we're told became Vecna are likely two different people.

Which, with Dimension X having this sort of planar mirroring...I don't think it's too massive of a stretch to say something weird is going on in a pair.

Especially when earlier I spoke here and here about having 2 of each interdimensional event (or lack thereof in the gateless version).

We see 2 dematerialization events based on the orientation of the shards, and we know from ST1 that dematerialization yoinks you into the Blue UD. We don't know where the dematerialization may have lead us here.

We know that the gate leads to Dimension X, since we visually follow Bren-Hen-Ward through the gate and into Dimension-X. Two Gates.

And then the no-gate timeline (timelines? there are at least 2 blood-free Bren-Hen-Wards).

And of course. As per usual with this godawful episode. His cheek and ear blood straight up disappear (not to mention his ears and eye socket shapes changing completely).

Either it got scorched off at some point when this side is facing away from us, or there's something else going on. I'm putting a pin in this one. I don't have the brain space for it right now.

Before anyone comes in with production error talk, I'd like to remind us all:

As we've discussed before, we know how particular they are about both blood spatters (Em has talked endlessly about this particular subject)...and they're the same way about scorches:

So whoever they are, those two Dimension-X guys aren't the same guy.

[aemiron-main]

I dont think Mike's monologue in s4 is a lie, its not really framed as one and while there's like. A few contradictions they're such weird "lies" to write in the first place, this is the same season where they straight up forgot wills birthday so I think it's just awkward writing if anything.

Ok 👍Why are you here in my inbox anon 😭😭😭 Like obviously i disagree with all of this including the idea that they simply forgot will’s birthday but i’m gonna be honest man if you want to argue with people about byler vs mileven or bi mike vs gay mike or whether mike’s monologue was a lie rn then honestly you’d be better off in someone else’s inbox because i don’t have the energy for that today and also i’m neck deep lost in the creel analysis sauce these days 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏 like anon i promise i am not your guy thats going to spend time arguing with about this, i wrote the phrase “Predator-Paralleled Brenner Sr Demogorgon/Doppelganger Creature” at least 6 times in my drafts today, i have far more pressing matters than arguing about mike’s monologue .

Now if you want to talk to me about the implications of the rodeo vfx ST bts video having the demogorgon pose like the predator from predator then we can do that!!!

[fearsmagazine]

AS WE KNOW IT - Review

DISTRIBUTOR: Buffalo 8

SYNOPSIS: “Set in Los Angeles in the late 1990s, struggling writer James Bishop grapples with the emotional shrapnel of a recent breakup with his longtime girlfriend, Emily. As James holds up in his Hollywood Hills home with writer's block, his eccentric best friend Bruce shows up with bad news. The city has plunged into chaos by an unusual zombie outbreak, courtesy of tainted soy milk, wreaking havoc on James' semi-charmed kinda life. With the streets of Los Angeles swarming with the undead, James, Bruce, and Emily come together to barricade themselves in the house while reconciling their personal struggles. And occasionally, letting in the only food delivery service still operating, Abracadabra.” -Press Release

REVIEW: Josh Monkarsh’s film feels like a play as James’ home is the main setting and much of the story unfolds in the living room, kitchen and bedroom. The limited locations add to the feel of a 90’s sitcom, from “Seinfeld,” to “Friends” and the late 90’s “Freaks & Geeks.” Clearly these characters are in their mid to late 20’s but their lack of maturity make them seem much younger.

Monkarsh, DePaolo and Francis’s script is jam packed with 90’s references and bits and gags that rely on period as well. One of the jokes between James and Bruce is their love of “Waterworld,” which they watch on a laserdisc (yes, I still have a player and a collection of laserdiscs). It is clearly a love letter to that period of time when life was simpler and complicated in different ways before the advent of the smartphone, tablets and laptops. The absurdity of the zombie plague being caused by tainted soy milk takes a back seat to the relationship between the three characters, and Rory, the delivery person who happens to be an old acquaintance of Bruce, makes for a nice distraction.

The film has a rather dry pacing, and even Bruce’s chaotic moments come at a slower pace. There is an overall malaise that you would expect from the zombies. Somehow it all works and becomes engaging. Each actor brings elements to their performances that make for likable and sympathetic characters, even Bruce. It’s a great ensemble cast, but I have to say actor Danny Mondello creates this memorable character that could have easily been cliched but comes off fresh and memorable, like an early Joe Pesci performance. Actor Chris Parnell received a nice amount of screen time, with an additional scene during the credits, and it would have been nice to see a bit more of Pam Grier.

I enjoyed the cinematography, costumes and production designs that captured the period. The editing sustained my viewing engagement. The zombie make up and designs are simple and effective, as well as the special effects, with nothing too gorey. I liked Michl Britsch’s score. It enhanced the comedic tones of the film and added slightly more energy to the film.

AS WE KNOW IT is a relationship comedy set against the backdrop of a zombie outbreak taking place in Los Angeles. The film is kind of a 90’s American slacker reworking of “Shaun of the Dead,” with a tone similar to Jim Jarmusch’s “The Dead Don't Die,” but without some of the film’s more bizarre moments. A fun and mildly funny trip down memory lane with some likable characters who take center stage over the zombies. Monkarsh does a nice job with the material but given his film credits to date I’m not sure when and if will see Monkarsh venturing into the horror genre again soon.

CAST: Mike Castle, Oliver Cooper, Taylor Blackwell, Chris Parnell, Pam Grier, and Danny Mondello. CREW: Director/Screenplay/Producer - Josh Monkarsh; Screenplay - Brandon DePaolo & Christopher Francis; Producers - Daniel Cummings, K. Asher Levin & Joshua Fruehling; Cinematographer - Stephen St. Peter; Score - Michl Britsch; Editors - Yvonne Valdez & Rebecca Weigold; Production Designer - Lorus Allen; Costume Designer - Zoe Poledouris-Roche; Special Effects - John McConnell; VFX Supervisor - Kevin Vanhook. OFFICIAL: https://asweknowitmovie.com/ FACEBOOK: N.A. TWITTER: N.A. TRAILER: https://youtu.be/-0U1pgXaygk?si=MqlxM792N7xDsdPX RELEASE DATE: Nov. 10th New York City, Chicago, Seattle; Nov. 15th Los Angeles; Nov. 17th Boston; Dec. 1st Calabasas.

**Until we can all head back into the theaters our “COVID Reel Value” will be similar to how you rate a film on digital platforms - 👍 (Like), 👌 (It’s just okay), or 👎 (Dislike)

Reviewed by Joseph B Mauceri

[episodicnostalgia]

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, 101 (Jan. 3, 1993) - "Emissary"

The Breakdown

Captain Benjamin Sisko takes a commission as commander of Starbase Deep Space Nine, in order to aid the Bajorans as they rebuild their civilization following their revolution against, and liberation from, the Cardassian empire.  The only problem is the Bajoran gods (aka ‘The prophets’) are apparently totally real, and also a race of nonlinear alien beings who live inside a wormhole which leads to the far-off Gamma Quadrant.

You see, upon making contact with them, Sisko becomes the chosen Emissary to the Prophets, which accidentally makes him an important religious figure to the Bajoran people. Oopsie! But I think it’s safe to say such a minor thing won’t become much of a complication further down the line.

Sisko doesn't have much time to deal with all that mysticism and superstition stuff right now though, since DS9 has suddenly become super important to the federation and the Bajorans due to it's proximity to the wormhole. Surely this an exciting opportunity for new discoveries, and certainly won't lead to an all-out war with a dangerous new enemy.

The Verdict

For all the clunky dialogue and stilted performances (consistent with most ST pilots) you’ve got to admire just how ambitious ‘Emissary’ is. Unlike other Trek premieres, which tend to be more adventure oriented, this one spends a lot more time on world building, politics, and backstory; it’s evident the show runners were building towards something from the start (even if they hadn’t entirely figured out what that ‘something’ was).

The latter half of the episode is where things get weird, and honestly I’m here for it. The prophets/wormhole-aliens are a pretty solid concept, which leads to some mostly-smart writing, that admittedly gets a bit too proud of how clever it’s being. All said, I prefer it when a show unapologetically takes a swing at an original idea, and while there are some misses here, ‘Emissary’ manages to avoid striking out; which is appropriate considering show’s use of baseball both in this and future episodes.

Had this been DS9’s only episode I would perhaps hold it to greater scrutiny, but thankfully that wasn’t the case. Also, knowing where the show ends up, I have to admire how much the series finale owes to this weird little pilot.

3 stars (out of 5)

Additional Observations

Sisko has no chill. At one point he's shown an interactive-vision/memory of his first meet-cute with Jennifer (his dead wife), courtesy of a mystical bajoran orb (which puts him on the path to making contact with the wormhole aliens/prophets). Based on the interaction we're shown he’s lucky Jennifer didn’t drop kick him when they first met. Give her some personal space dude.

CROSSOVER/CAMEO: Sisko clearly needs trauma counselling, but maybe Starfleet should have known better than to send the embodiment of his wife’s killer to brief him. That exchange between Sisko and Picard was TENSE.  That being said, surely Sisko must realize Picard was violated and stripped of his will during his time with the Borg, right?  Perhaps Starfleet should invest in better compassionate education on the subject, considering that some people still hold Jean Luc responsible for Wolf 359 (a big-deal space battle, if you didn’t know) in the most recent season of ‘Picard’.

Gul Dukat is a great villain and overall character.  Some of the actors take a number of episodes (and even seasons) to grow into their characters, but even as a guest-star Marc Alaimo nails his performance right from the beginning.  Not too over the top, but charismatic as hell.

Having the Wormhole Aliens communicate through Sisko’s memories and thoughts is a clever way of recycling the cast and saving on additional prosthetic makeup or VFX; this method also effectively sets them apart from the typical humanoid species, making them more unique, and highlighting their importance to the series.

DS9’s design really is iconic and that opening score slaps.  In fact, this is probably my favourite Star Trek opening theme.

Lol. It’s nice that Picard honours Sisko’s desire to stay on the station, but he REALLY doesn’t seem fond of the commander. This marks the last time these two characters will interact on screen, and I like to imagine that was an intentional choice by both men, even though it was probably just that Patrick Stewart was too busy/expensive for a return appearance.

[that-thing-that-feeling]

Maybe I am feeling like the world is cursed with the pandemic and strikes, thus it adds to my frustration with ST recently, but do you ever think that the show has made things harder than they need to be? People say the show has grown in complexity so we have to be patient with the wait but I am not sure I agree with that. Do they really need all this CGI and vfx? Spending time having to cast new characters? Idk. I know it's been worthwhile for mainstream appeal but I feel like we lose these beautiful characters from the early days.

The strikes are so, so necessary; the more that comes out about how these studios have been treating people like garbage the more shocking it is just how bad it’s been.

As for ST, yeah I mean I def think it’s lost it’s attn to characters and small scale character based story telling.

[chirpsythismorning]

I feel like I missed something from today - was there news released that made everyone think a 2025 release date is more likely?

@kittykat940 posted this. It's from a casting call for extras in Atlanta. This is official as they do drop publicly right around the time filming starts bc they need background extras in the area to film on a moments notice. They are always public, though really hard to find. You have to have the right links to get to them bc there are scams out there and they only want people that are actually genuinely inquiring to find them for major productions like this.

Filming for s5 from June 2023-June 2024 (exactly 1 year), means that post-production wont officially be in swing until July 2024. While they will definitely be trying to get a good chunk of post-production done while filming s5 (esp time consuming VFX), they still need to be able to mostly focus on filming while they are literally filming. They also might even be writing parts of the last episodes while just starting to film the first episodes. It's a lot!

The bulk of editing and quality control-esque final touches is saved for the long phase afterwards, when they can actually focus on post-production full-time. Also note, post-production includes making trailers and planning for promotion which is directly tied to the Duffers vision... meaning it requires more than just an intern behind the official ST instagram. They have to dedicate time to not just editing, but also focusing on critical reception and how they can plan to make their decisions around that as well. A lot of thought goes into all of this.

Post-production, completely separate from filming will probably take at least 7 months, though it could be more. Working conditions and quality are also big factors (arguably the biggest). And then there's Netflix who probably has somewhat of a say, since they are always planning their releases around each other. Netflix is probably willing to wait as long as the Duffers want as well bc they need to keep the hype of this show as long as they can. Which means if the Duffers were hypothetically negotiating for a little bit more time, I don't really think Netflix would put up much of a fight.

Overall they are giving themselves a lot of time early on with this approach, so that is a good sign they are trying to be ahead of the curve, at least right now I feel that way. And I do imagine they will have the ability to get a lot of post-production done for early s5 as swiftly as they can. But I don't think they'll want to rush too much, IF they don't have to.

Like best case scenario within this scenario, I think they could have a 2024 release, but it would have to be two volumes with the first in 24' an the second in 25', so that they still have time to continue post-production for vol 2, similar to s4 while vol 1 was premiering. Otherwise 2 volumes isn't technically confirmed for s5, so I would say best case scenario separate from that, they manage to finish 90ish% of post-production by Jan 2025 (7 months) and they will have to rush with like the last 10ish% bc they're human.

And I think that could land them on a March release comfortably, assuming everything goes as planned.

I don't think Summer 2025 is necessary with how much time they're giving themselves overall, but it would be naive to say that unforeseen circumstances couldn't make that a reality. I'm personally choosing to hope early 2025.