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Hmmm…. I watched 769 last night and found it a little lacking. Ive really been enjoying the 4th Season but this has got to be my least favourite episode. It came across as a bit of a mess (reminded me of Fluffdaddy) and seemed to have no clear storyline. Its almost as if the writers were making it up as they went along. Hopefully the next episode will pick things up a bit and we will cut down on the out and out sillyiness and get back to some decent strories with humour.
Spoilers
I agree that this season has had problems with continuity. But I personally think you’re smoking the same whacky tabacy that Saddy had before watching 769
, it was a classic imo. The stud lineup scene; Bunny plays Truth or Dare with Xev and Stan!; Kai puts his ‘handy wrist gadget’ through Prince; among other things. The only thing I didnt like was the scene where Bunny pulls the gun on Stan and Xev. It was a bit too long. And I immediatly said in my head when she did it “She cant shoot them sheesh” so it was really funny when Prince assumed the same thing.Plus Priest has a replay of Series 3 when he thinks Prince is dead and shouts
Now I will rule this Planet!
Im pretty sure he said the same thing after he killed Prince in series 3. Plus Bunny is so classic, she has been so funny and cute this season especially that half-hearted laugh when Priest says the above.
Just my opinions, I really liked it.
Ive liked the previous two “wacky” episodes (Midsummers Nightmare and Bad Carrott) but 769 just came across a bit “amateurish”. The script was poor in places, the story silly and half-baked and some of the direction and camera work seemed a bit shoddy. I think they had the genesis of a good idea but as with Fluffdaddy they just didnt pull it off.
In a generally great season 4 this was one of the lowpoints.Anyone know what the next episode is like? more in the style of midsummers nightmare/bad carrott/769 or more like Vlad/Magic Baby?
I thought it was okay. It wasn’t the greatest episode of the season, but it wasn’t abysmal in the least. While there wasn’t a lot of plot to get in the way of the wacky antics, there were a few touches that I did like quite a lot. For one thing, I’m a big fan of the “2-headed monster” movie. The Thing with 2 Heads, The Incredible 2-Headed Transplant, these are among my favorite things. So, to see this relatively obscure sub-genre of exploitation flick get referenced on LEXX was a bit of a treat for me (not that strange an occurence this season, actually…”P4X” is a direct homage to the Women In Prison flick, while “Walpurgis Night” and “Vlad” take on the Hammer horror films from the late 50’s through the early-to-mid 70’s…this season has been referencing broad genres of films more often, while earlier episodes often tweaked individual films instead).
I don’t think that the episode really *did* much, as far as adding to the overall plot, but I don’t think it was meant to. It’s a pleasant diversion, and it shows the whole existentialist/nihilistic mess that is LEXX rather well. A situation is introduced (the crew and Prince both want the key, and don’t know where it is), a lot of stuff happens in order to rectify the situation (in this case, Prince attempting to gain control of the key via 790), bad things take place and we end up basically right back where we were to begin with (no one knows where the key is, and it’s back with a Moth Breeder) except that this time more people are dead and everything’s just a little worse than it was to begin with (Prince is dead, and everyone should have learned by now that this is *never* a good thing). If that basic scenario isn’t LEXX in a nutshell, I don’t know what is.
–Aleck
[ 12-02-2002: Message edited by: Aleck ]
I think one of the main problems was it suffered from a similar problem to “Fluffdaddy”. The way the characters act toward each others and their motivations seem to have suddenly changed from the previous episode. Its as if “Bad Carrott” hadnt happened. The whole point they went to the Lexx was to escape from the Earth and the Carrotts and now they just say “okay, lets go back to earth”. It was just a bit of a mess. Shame, cos the last few episodes have been a good run of entertainment.
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Originally posted by JumpingJedi:
I think one of the main problems was it suffered from a similar problem to “Fluffdaddy”. The way the characters act toward each others and their motivations seem to have suddenly changed from the previous episode. Its as if “Bad Carrott” hadnt happened. The whole point they went to the Lexx was to escape from the Earth and the Carrotts and now they just say “okay, lets go back to earth”. It was just a bit of a mess. Shame, cos the last few episodes have been a good run of entertainment.
Well, I think that there wasn’t *that* much motivational diversion going on. I mean, nobody really *wanted* to go back to Earth (and, really, aren’t the only ones who go back 790, Prince and Priest? Kai starts to go, but doesn’t make it all the way, and the rest of the cast stays LEXX-bound). The Prince/Priest/790 trip was *necessary* as far as getting the key and fulfilling 790’s part of the deal, but I don’t think that it was something that either Prince or Priest was looking forward to.
But you’re right. It doesn’t really fit well after “Bad Carrot,” but having one-off episodes like this and fitting them into an overall story arc has *always* been difficult for the Beans and this has plagued them from the beginning. “Eating Pattern,” good though it is, throws off the whole storyline that the previous 2 entries established. “Woz” is *completely* misplaced, coming as it does between “Patches in the Sky” and “The Web/The Net.” It’s like Mantrid never existed in that episode. It’s just *there*. There’s “Garden,” which, though I like, just doesn’t fit. While “769” may not live up to those standards, quality-wise, it’s just more evidence that the Beans have a hard time sustaining a narrative while introducing more lightweight, “non-mythology” (to use an X-Files reference) episodes.
–Aleck
Yes, 769 was not one of the best shows of S4. The ending was enchanting though, what with Prince dissapearing in a slow moving flash of light, etc. The plot seemed stupid. I am beginning to wish for 790 to get reprogrammed to fall for Stan, then we’d see something new. I hope the other’s leave him on the Lexx for the next 3 episodes. Listen to me, I am talking as if they are alive. I must sound crazy. 769 was also one of the shortest episodes, coming in at 43 and a half minutes, including credits!
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I also liked Xev’s reference to Lafftrak when she’s tied up on the bridge.
I missed that – what was it?
I caught the Lafftrak reference too.
Prince: Any last words?
Xev: Not for you!
Same lines as when Xev was about to be executed in Lafftrak, just acted out a lil differently
I found all the scenes concearning 769 boring and on the whole, unfunny. It was retreading too much ground from 791. I am starting to find 790 slightly annoying and its nothing to do with his sexulality. I just wish he’d calm down a bit. Also, the whole set up in The Key, where it took nearly a whole episode to get key from Stan; has been ruined by S4 moments where characters are brought the height of sexual ecstasy in a matter of seconds. I liked the Prince vs. Kai and the crew moments in this episode. I also liked Xev’s reference to Lafftrak when she’s tied up on the bridge.
[ 12-02-2002: Message edited by: Mercury ]
Being in TV production
and having the chance to stand around and watch talent in different situations on different projects, I found “769” enjoyable, though probably for different reasons than most. I got quite a kick out of watching the actors during certain scenes. The next time you have the chance to watch this episode, concentrate on the actor playing the mothbreeder part of 769. I’m sure you all know he’s the same guy who’s been playing that breeder ever since receiving the key(and appearing in almost every episode since). I can’t imagine they got some of his stuff from “769” in one take. There is no way. The scene where 769 is rubbing up Kia laying in the cryochamber, rubbing up himself, then rubbing Kia again, with at least a fourway dialogue going on…I mean, that actor did a wonderful job getting into the part, which I assume can be described as a horny zombie.
I took the entire episode as utterly goofy. When I tell people about the show I say its either very thrilling or very goofy. This was goofy.
As for continuity…well, Lexx has always been a bit choppy and that can simply be explained: they’re an international show. They write one script and then edit it for production for different nations. The US versions obviously suffer. Now, a better crew might be able to pull it off, but when you cut down content, the story is always hurt. That’s why no one should ever see a movie for the first time on TV. They hack those suckers up for no other reason than to fit nicely into 14 or 16 commercial blocks.
Like everyone else, this episode felt like filler, except for the end, which actually jump starts the season story arc a bit. I can’t remember what episode comes next, but lets hope its a great one!
[ 13-02-2002: Message edited by: Holt Worth ]
[ 13-02-2002: Message edited by: Holt Worth ]
Of Midsummer, Bad Carrot, and 769, I actually enjoyed 769 most!
Now, granted, parts of it were sillier than I liked. The whole 790-getting-huge-weiner-attached-and-mothbreeder-acting-goofy was fairly gross.
On the other hand, I’ve always liked the Bunny character. There are very few “innocents” in the Lexx universe, and it was nice to see a story somewhat focused on her. I actually enjoyed the whole scene where she threatens the crew, and anguishes over whether or not to shoot them. I thought she actually MIGHT do it, because of her seemingly almost blind loyalty to Priest in S4. I was glad she didn’t.
I also thought it was nice to see that her love for Priest is NOT unconditional after all. When she thought he had killed the crew, she was actually ready to drop him. I’ll be interested to see if her character develops any further in the rest of the series. Character growth is, after all, a rare thing in Lexx.
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