Review Detail
9.5 11 10
(Updated: August 29, 2012)
Enjoyment
9.0
Dwight Fry Feb 25 2012
I loved this edit! I’m not all that familiar with the source material, but it’s hard to tell this was a fanedit at all. The elements I know were fanedited, were integrated in such an organic manner that seem to belong there from the beginning. I particularly liked how the transitions to the flashbacks were handled, with black and white bits marking the beginning and end of each one, but avoiding the all too easy (and tired) temptation of making them all B&W.
The episode that forms the bulk of the story was well chosen, it’s compelling and has a very Twilight Zone flavor, particularly at the start with the deserted town, the bodies, and the doll. Given that it was the first one in the series, it has that introduction feel that fits nicely with Steve’s backstory. There were two little (fanedited) bits I particularly loved: after Dr. Forbes asks Steve “What’s underneath your shell?” Bob inserts a shot of the bionic arm. That made me smile. The other one is, when in a flashback Steve, recovering from the operation, closes his bionic fist for the first time, the bionic sound effect is inserted and I thought that made the moment very powerful and heroic.
Not all was perfect, though. A couple of things didn’t totally convince me. One was the opening credits sequence, as it’s on a black background and with each of the names staying for a bit too long. It can be off-putting. Maybe I would have used the first half of the first flashback, before the plane starts to fail, as the credits background… My second quibble was with the scene between Goldman and Dr. Wells. Not only I thought it wasn’t narratively needed and included a mention to the villain of the second TV movie that is a non sequitur, but since it’s part of a flashback, how can Steve remember a conversation he didn’t witness?
Technically, this might be the most polished Bionic Bob edit to date. ZERO interlacing issues. I’m not totally sure about the aspect ratio, though: it feels like it should be full 4:3 but is slightly stretched horizontally with slim black bars on the top and bottom. Nothing too distracting, though. And the audio might include the odd pop and crackle, but so do official releases of old TV shows.
The Lost Mission was fun, and better than I expected. Probably because I was fearing Roger Moore quips and you had Steve not utter a single word. But the only thing I thought sucked was the demise of the villain, not even thinking of getting out of the way of the missile and patiently waiting for it against a background of wrinkled paper. But the edit itself was very nice, and could almost be part of the upcoming silent consecution. And, of course, excellent music.
If you make more edits of the show, I will be definitely watching. Keep ‘em coming! 9/10.
I loved this edit! I’m not all that familiar with the source material, but it’s hard to tell this was a fanedit at all. The elements I know were fanedited, were integrated in such an organic manner that seem to belong there from the beginning. I particularly liked how the transitions to the flashbacks were handled, with black and white bits marking the beginning and end of each one, but avoiding the all too easy (and tired) temptation of making them all B&W.
The episode that forms the bulk of the story was well chosen, it’s compelling and has a very Twilight Zone flavor, particularly at the start with the deserted town, the bodies, and the doll. Given that it was the first one in the series, it has that introduction feel that fits nicely with Steve’s backstory. There were two little (fanedited) bits I particularly loved: after Dr. Forbes asks Steve “What’s underneath your shell?” Bob inserts a shot of the bionic arm. That made me smile. The other one is, when in a flashback Steve, recovering from the operation, closes his bionic fist for the first time, the bionic sound effect is inserted and I thought that made the moment very powerful and heroic.
Not all was perfect, though. A couple of things didn’t totally convince me. One was the opening credits sequence, as it’s on a black background and with each of the names staying for a bit too long. It can be off-putting. Maybe I would have used the first half of the first flashback, before the plane starts to fail, as the credits background… My second quibble was with the scene between Goldman and Dr. Wells. Not only I thought it wasn’t narratively needed and included a mention to the villain of the second TV movie that is a non sequitur, but since it’s part of a flashback, how can Steve remember a conversation he didn’t witness?
Technically, this might be the most polished Bionic Bob edit to date. ZERO interlacing issues. I’m not totally sure about the aspect ratio, though: it feels like it should be full 4:3 but is slightly stretched horizontally with slim black bars on the top and bottom. Nothing too distracting, though. And the audio might include the odd pop and crackle, but so do official releases of old TV shows.
The Lost Mission was fun, and better than I expected. Probably because I was fearing Roger Moore quips and you had Steve not utter a single word. But the only thing I thought sucked was the demise of the villain, not even thinking of getting out of the way of the missile and patiently waiting for it against a background of wrinkled paper. But the edit itself was very nice, and could almost be part of the upcoming silent consecution. And, of course, excellent music.
If you make more edits of the show, I will be definitely watching. Keep ‘em coming! 9/10.
D