kellygirl
Nov 1, 2004 @ 12:13 PM
----------------------------------------------------------------
I had to pause the tivo so many times this week for squealing, laughing, and gasping. Really, it's not enough that we get Lex handcuffed to a bed, they're just handing us so many delicious treats. Ruby sure has got the best little HoYay house in Liberty. Actually, I was really wishing that when Lex came on to her saying how much fun they could have if she uncuffed him that she would've told him - no wait, shown him - just how much fun she could have with him with the cuffs on. And just how long has Lex been at Ruby's anyway? How come no one is wondering where he went?

And you people are insinuating that Mouse and Sammy... LALALA. Can't hear you. Seriously, what is she, 8? And he's 13/14? Ewwww doesn't even begin to cover it.

I continue to enjoy petty emotional Amber. Though my disgust with Jay tips me on the side of him not deserving her, she wants him and that's good enough for me. I know lots of people like and have sympathy for Trudy but I don't. With all her shrieking and acting like her head's about to explode, she's been needing a good slapping.

I still think Java's pushing her luck. And if she plans on using Ellie as a "secret weapon" then shouldn't she be making her think she hated the Mallrats rather than trying to rekindle her affection for Jack?

dreago
Nov 7, 2004 @ 06:14 PM
----------------------------------------------------------------
  Well it's nice to see the boys bonding.

So, at first when I watched the two eps. I was massively annoyed. Everyone was acting as if Ram was trying to redeem himself or something. Pity abounded. It made me really annoyed. Here's a guy who's killed people, tortured other, seperated families, etc....but hey, he's a cripple and was dumped in a trash heap FOR A DAY so let's all have a heart.

Now, I'm not saying we need to kill Ram, but come on, enough with the sympathy. Lex isn't the bad guy and it is annoying to have him treated that way. Just whe I was running here to write a long rant, I had an idea. What if Lex is supposed to be torn down so he can build himself up something new! I remember when Amber first took control. She met a lot of resistance -- in the form of Lex. It is probably a good thing for Lex, who has great leadership potential, to feel what it is like to be in the right and yet have everyone else act like tools. He needs to learn how to act and persuade without realying on physical strength and bullying and seduction.

I feel sorry for Ruby. I can't quite figure out how Slade got under her skin, but it's obvious now that Slade is totally going to screw her over. Oh well, maybe Lex will give her some lexual healing.

I began to feel just a tiniest moment of uncomfortability when the three guys were discussing Ebony. They did it two seperate times and towards the end I was like, "o.k., is there going to be some massive circle jerk now? I get it! Ebony is teh sex, o.k., moving ON...."

I honestly love the Ellie twist. I couldn't figure out how Java was going to pull it off. I thought maybe Java would fill her full of expectations and then the minute the Mall Rats would dissapoint Ellie, Java would suggest revenge or something. The bomb was brilliant.

And the best part of the whole episode was being proved right. Crazy evil always beats Evil Genius. Java is ahead in my book and Mega just fucked up big time.

kellygirl
Nov 8, 2004 @ 09:54 AM
----------------------------------------------------------------
  Caution - unpopular opinion ahead. I'm not really liking having a full hour every week. It just feels like we're moving through things too fast without enough buildup and tension. Maybe it's the fault of the writing/acting and it would be the same even if we still only had thirty minutes per week. Because as much as I'm enjoying the personal interactions and relationships, I'm just not feeling the story arc.

Everyone keeps saying how they're right back to where they started in the post-Virus chaos but I'm not scared. It's "Zoot" and the Locos all over again, I should be scared! The Mallrats don't even seem particularly scared - more like annoyed. And neither Mega nor Java, even together, can bring the attraction/repulsion/fear the way that Ram could.

There are many little things that seem just a bit off this season. As much as I enjoy seeing Amber in a romantic dilemma, I can't buy her being quite so flouncy and pouty. Neither can I buy the whole 'we shouldn't bother Salene after all she's been through' business. Frankly, the goings-on in Liberty are much more interesting though, even there, I'm confused about Slade. When he first showed at Ruby's and even the way they interact now, this seems to be the first time they've encountered each other. Yet, Slade seems to be well-known enough that it takes just a word from him for people to acquiese to him.

I do hope the story arc has a few more twists and turns to it. In the meantime, I'll just keep yelling at the tv and trying to will things to happen. *Ruby, you will kiss Lex. Kiss him. Kiss him!*

dreago
Nov 9, 2004 @ 01:57 AM  
----------------------------------------------------------------
I'd like to remind you that even in the half hour format the writers were always acting as if important elements were happening off screen, in between episodes. It is my biggest pet peeve about this show. Remember how last year we were always going...wait...did we miss something?

As for Amber being pouty and flouncy? Remember the Sasha aftermath? I believe it. She never gets a nice thing just for herself so when she happens on it for a moment and it gets taken away she has no coping skills. Like a toddler she gets. Besides, eventually she always does the right thing. In this case, it is discomforting to watch but jay is being a giant dork. You know the guy loves you, you know he doesn't truly love your friend, you know he's being a chickenshit and you know you are annoyingly in love with him despite yourself. And you know he won't deny it. I wouldn't get pouty and flouncy...I might get homocidal though.

I am so on the Ruby/Lex ship it is almost painful. Slade's personality lately has been annoying me. It's a little too perfect. He's rapidly becoming a Gary Sue. I agree with you on that. But as for the Mallrats- they have reason to be annoyed and not frightened. They know the truth. They know that the people are being duped. That the people are using emotion over heads. That they don't want to know the truth. I think of it like the Bush election, honestly. ;)

under the el
Nov 14, 2004 @ 01:07 AM
----------------------------------------------------------------
I think of it like the Bush election, honestly. ;)

Wait til Mega puts the "safe zone" in place, and makes the people within it wear bar code tattoos, for their own safety., which can be compared to a scarier, more exaggerated version of our current administration.

Yeah, I'm getting tired of the end credits theme song, too, but Tribe Spirit, in its entirety, is a gorgeous song, IMO.

roosterboy
Nov 14, 2004 @ 04:32 AM
----------------------------------------------------------------
  You know what really bugs me, even more than Gel does? Why the fuck is Jay still wearing a Techno uniform and the forehead insignia?

Siva got rid of it when she left the Technos, why didn't Jay? Especially since he was on the run from them towards the end of S4. And I'm sure the Ecos probably didn't like it too much during the brief period when he and Ebony were with them.

I can't express how much this bugs me.

dreago
Nov 14, 2004 @ 01:33 PM  
----------------------------------------------------------------
Once again, the writers of Tribe leap forward with characters as if they are new to the scene. Case in point:

1)Ram displaying sensitivity when he notices Ruby feels scared for Slade when Lex tells her Slade is still out there. The hell? That's not right.

2)Ellie has her memory back ... I think. It's just not clear. I mean, it is clear, but it's not clear how she got to that point. How would she know that Gel was after Lex. Ellie wasn't there! Arrgh! Someone call the continuity police.

3)Ebony being like, sure! I'll believe random stranger coming through the window!

Oh well, plot was furthered along. Gotta tell you, I'm more excited for Lex to take his knowledge to the Mall Rats. For Amber to be a real leader again. And I'd like a tiny mention of Tai-San again.

kellygirl
Nov 15, 2004 @ 09:46 AM
----------------------------------------------------------------
  Well it's not like Slade is a total stranger to Ebony. She did, after all, attempt to make him a slave to her inner circle. Hee. That is never going to be not funny. Besides, their encounter fuels my Ebony/Slade ship so it's difficult for me to complain.

I'm very very tired of Trudy. It's like every single day that she has some sort of confrontation with Jay about Amber and he says he wants to stay with her and they hug and everthing's swell. But then the next day she's back with "I know you want to be with her and I'm not going to stand in your way." Here's a little tip for you Trudy, most guys find that kind of incessant neediness rather off-putting. Then again, this is Jay with his hero complex so it may be right up his alley.

I'm finding it very interesting that here we are not even halfway through the season and we've seen every spoilery scene from the credits. I'm hoping for some big surprises coming up. I'm hoping that soon we don't have quite such a split in the action between the City and Liberty. Right now, despite a few forays into the city, what goes on in Liberty seems so isolated from the rest of the show. It was helpful for establishing characters and character growth but it's time for more interaction with more people.

zillahgirl
Nov 25, 2004 @ 09:43 PM
----------------------------------------------------------------
She did, after all, attempt to make him a slave to her inner circle. Hee. That is never going to be not funny.

No--it's not. And it's made all the better for me knowing that he ran away from it to take a gift to his Ram.

Hee.

kellygirl
Nov 29, 2004 @ 09:51 AM
----------------------------------------------------------------
  So, I'm wondering... is it just that people aren't/can't watch this season, the discussions are happening somewhere else, or is everyone finding this season uncompelling? Because it's very quiet around here. I do agree that things have been uneven in series 5, but I found myself thinking about the lastest episodes while getting ready for bed at night/work in the morning, so I'm still hooked.

You can imagine how excited I am that Ebony is living up to my wishes for her. Every time she sweetly threatened Java with Zoot's blessing, I was cackling with glee. The one question I have is about the "manual override." Was that just because she didn't drink her sleepy potion and was awake or was it Ram's intervention since he now seems to have some sort of access to what's going on in the city.

I just don't get Ruby. Why does she seem so hung up on Slade? And why does she keep dropping his name to keep people in line like she's a mom warning her kid that she'll tell daddy. Obviously she can take care of herself, I don't see why she needs help from him.

It's nice to see we're back to gratuitous male shirtlessness. And it's equal opportunity at that, forget the buff and tanned guys, we get Ram and Darryl. And to continue with the superficial - who else noticed Ellie's shoes? I can't think of any other girl who's worn sandals - usually they're in big clunky boots. I kept wondering if she'd changed out of them to go follow May because they're not very practical. Also, the rampant sex between her and Jack is really starting to embarrass me.

roosterboy
Nov 29, 2004 @ 12:34 PM  
----------------------------------------------------------------
Also, the rampant sex between her and Jack is really starting to embarrass me.

I think it's absolutely hysterical, mostly because Ellie seems so gung-ho and Jack just seems kinda confused by the whole thing.

Keeping in mind that the only other Tribe I've seen is S4, this one seems to be moving at a glacial pace and I'm finding it frustrating, even with the two eps a week. Actually, this is a complaint I had last season too, that the Mall Rats just never seem motivated to do anything. They know somethings wrong in the city but they spend episode after episode complaining about things and never doing much to fix them until the final episodes. And the writing draws everything out. Mouse wants to join the Ecos, but it'll probably take her 10 eps to even get to their camp, then another 4 for Hawk to get off his ass and agree to let her join. Arrrggh! I can't imagine what it must be like to see these episodes only one a week. Thank god when I started watching S4 WAM! was showing them every day.

dreago
Nov 29, 2004 @ 09:50 PM  
----------------------------------------------------------------
I have got to say WORD to everything Kell says and not just cause we share a brain. Especially about Ruby. I hated it when she said she was going to get Slade. And I also hate that Ram was pseudo!flirting with her. Good god, please don't make Ruby a Mary Sue like Slade is.

I am loving Ebony's arc. I liked her crazy and I like her getting in the know. And I'm really impressed by Siva. Yay! So far her acting hasn't made me want to kill her. Or stab myself. She's gotten much better. Or have my standards gotten lower?

Lex continues to please me. I don't know why Caleb Ross wants to revert Lex to a baddie again, when this Lex is so interesting. Lex is truly the common man. Has to be pushed a bit to be good, but not pushed so much that he is your boring old anti-hero, not a baddie, not super smart, or even super tough. He's got his charm, which is often questionable, and his street smarts. He makes good and bad decisions but he's growing up despite himself. I look forward to seeing him among the Mall Rats. I wonder if he is pushed to his role as the dissenter because the Mall Rats need him to be that guy or if he regresses with them just cause he doesn't play well with others.

Thank god Amber is finally getting on the clue train. I could NOT believe she went ahead with the bar coding. I blame stupid Jay. When Amber and Ebony meet, I hope Amber tells Ebs that it was TRUDY who got the guy. TRUDY! That should show them both that Jay is a dork.

Roosterboy I agree with you on the pacing issue. Although these last episodes have moved the plot along nicely, I have to admit that the pacing on this show has been off. I remember in S4--the resistance plot was perculating nicely and then suddenly we had NOTHING untill the finale. It was the most frustrating thing in the world.

under the el
Nov 29, 2004 @ 11:04 PM
----------------------------------------------------------------
Thank god Amber is finally getting on the clue train. I could NOT believe she went ahead with the bar coding. I blame stupid Jay.

Couldn't believe it either, or that the other Mall Rats didn't put up much of a fight. Didn't think she'd appreciate being put in a corner like that by Jay. And this is who she ends up with! Argh.

kellygirl
Nov 30, 2004 @ 09:18 AM
  ----------------------------------------------------------------
When Amber and Ebony meet, I hope Amber tells Ebs that it was TRUDY who got the guy. TRUDY! That should show them both that Jay is a dork.

Wow, I had totally forgotten about the whole romance angle (triangle?quadrangle?). Now I'm even more anxious to see the Amber/Ebony meeting. Too bad we have to wait until Dec 10th for the next new episode.