I think Hyemew and Milowent have very valid points here. I'm not only saying that simply because we discussed exactly these concerns at great length elsewhere before, let me explain.
Sure, there is a lot of nostalgia, maybe even a tinge of elitism, among the LG15 fans of the early days. So let me get this out of the equation right away. The early episodes were special, each one was almost a self-contained short-story on its own. Think 'Poor Pluto', there is overt PSW that frames the actual story of the episode, which is about teenage isolation, alienation and cruelty. You can watch this on its own and it has individual merit, completely without the need to know anything at all about the girl, the series or any kind of plot at all.
So, this is my first point, the earlier material had individual merit to each episode providing self-contained enjoyment of the clip. Hardly anything we are seeing now shares this format, nor could you watch current episodes on their own and derive any kind of meaning from them, without knowing about the plot. Most clips these days hasten from plot point to plot point at, what at least seems to me, an increasingly breathlessnes to ... yeah, to what?
Secondly, regarding mythology. No satisfying mythology, nor story even needs to be epic in proportion to be enjoyable. Quite the opposite, in fact. I think that the all-encompassing world conspiracy, the clichéd man-in-black, helicopters, and operatives in every police station, hospital, bar & grill and shoe parlor is a ridiculous cop-out and idea-drought on part of the creative team. Why? Because you do not need to rationalise and dramatise anymore. If you need an explanation, you simply take out your pre-fab evil order and can explain away anything in your mythology.
The early material had good mythology material, the order was mysterious and tantalising, it simply did not need to be globe-encompassing to be good story-material. One poster mentioned that stories need to have conflict to be effective. Very true. However, you overlook how that conflict is implemented in truly enduring stories, namely through *characters*. You reflect the conflict through the character, by the challenge to the person how it affects and changes them, how they maybe overcome it, or are ground to dust by it. Early LG15 was highly character-focused. We got to know an overtly innocent, but never naive and fairly complex, even eerily charming teenage girl caught up into a situation that seemed subtly menacing and foreboding. Excellent stuff that! Just the right mixture of creepiness and goofyness.
Now, at least to me, there seems to be hardly any character focus or reflection of the show's conflicts. I cannot even pinpoint the characters anymore. They've just become playing pieces in reaction to this plot swing or that. The subtle development of the earlier material was at some point almost completely abandoned for the grande master scheme, and it left its protagonists behind. I cannot with full certainty state where this happened, but milowent's suggestion of it being the time of them hitting the road is cutting it fairly close. Suddenly, things went into an overdrive that has not really been digested by the characters nor the audience (or at least the few members of the audience I frequently discuss this with). And that is precisely the point I disconnected with the show. I do not care about the Order really, I care about the characters and what it does to them! Think about that for a moment please. Can you truly say what the characters feelings are at this point? They've become wildly moving targets.
So, when Hyemew suggests downscaling I do not think he asks for the current LG15 to be completly dismantled and stuffed back into Bree's bedroom. I think what would tremendously improve the appeal of the show would be to take a step back from the global conspiracy and all its clichéd manifestions and zoom back in on the players.
What's done been done. Which, I suppose holds true for recent events and the show's progression alike. I only wish LG15 could re-invent itself, and the creative team looked at examples of when their craft and format had been its most effective and then try to integrate that with their overal visions of plot and mythology.
I do not need a daily 2 minute hollow fix of the Breeniverse as much as I would enjoy being told some more self-contained individually meaningful drama at a mellower pace.
I also strongly feel that the canonisation and integration of the ARG, or maybe only this particular ARG, into the show was a regrettable step. Not so much because of the actions of individual persons that made a mockery of it, but really only because it even further alienated people from the show. It could have run in parallel, maybe subtly intersecting, but always fully optional to the core drama.
I think I died a little death, when I had to listen to Bree saying, 'I am at one of OpAphid's
camps'. Really, subtle doesn't do it these days, does it? What's next? Battlestar Gemmatica pulling into geo-syncronal orbit, to prepare the landing of the Squirrels over LA?
So, my final point, something that does not grow dies? Thanks for reading Nietzsche and misquoting him
I think if you want longevity in a drama, you should
evolve not spontaneaoulsy mutate, which is how the show feels to me currently.
So, I also vote for stepping back a little and focusing on the powerful, rather than the plentiful. Well, either that, or Bree wakes up from a disturbed slumber and finds Daniel in the shower gleefully whistling asking her if she had a bad dream.
