Emerald City II

Foreword: I haven't seen the original episodes in sometime, which I prefer for watching edits and I also didn't review the changes (log) ahead of watching, which I also prefer. I looked at the edit list back when I downloaded the edit, but I like to not know what I'm walking into; I don't watch an edit for a few months or more after downloading it.

What I liked: It was nice to see a stream lined story arch just focused on a few characters.

What I didn't: I missed some of the details of what was happening around the characters. The pacing was a little slow, and then it would jump, and just felt a little off for those reasons.

Overall: I'm not sure I'd see this version over the original but it has its ups. I am not trying to trash your work, but I was a big fan of the originals and this version seemed to take away some of the original magic and the layers the show had. I would often want to watch another episode once one ended, but I felt like I wanted to watch something else by the time I was half way through. It just wasn't for me I guess.

Extra: Keep up the good work, and I think the formula you have might benefit in an episode format rather than a movie format.

When Adabisi asked me if he could make a sequel to my Oz edit I was relieved. I was happy that someone else wanted to take the reins. I had considered continuing Beecher's story with a sequel however, I was thinking only using season 2 (which SPOILER ALERT does not end with Beecher on top) so I was hesitant to do it.

I watched the workprint for Emerald City 2 and I really enjoyed it. The start of the edit is a bit abrupt but the way Emerald City ends made it difficult to bridge the gap. Adabisi said this was going to be a fast-paced roller coaster ride. And overall I think he achieved his goal.

The only downside was that eventually (and pretty much inevitably) it started to feel episodic towards the second half. Adabisi fit in many plots from Season 2 and 3 into his edit and it may have been slightly overambitious. But I'm happy he dove right in and made this edit.

Overall the editing was good. The video quality was decent and the story while sometimes episodic it was still a great distillation of Beecher's journey in Oz.

I'm proud to place this edit on my shelf next to my Emerald City edit and this will be my go to film when I don't feel like sifting through the stories of the other characters in seasons 1 and 2.

Great job Adabisi...but you shouldn't have stolen my watch ;)

This was a really nice edit. The only familiarity I have with Oz is Gatos' edit, so this was a nice "clean" viewing for me as a sequel.

Overall I really enjoyed it. It couldn't help feeling episodic at times but it wasn't off-putting. The biggest flaw in the narrative was Keller's story seemed really unbalanced and I didn't quite believe his constant 180s in character. Since I haven't watched my DVDs yet for the show I don't know if this was due to Adabisi's cutting or he was a shitty character in the show.

A/V quality was what it was. Editing was good. A worthy sequel to, but not as great as, Emerald City: An Oz Fanedit.