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Post #1422105

Author
EddieDean
Parent topic
The Clone Wars: Refocused [COMPLETE] + Subtitles for season one!
Link to post in topic
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/1422105/action/topic#1422105
Date created
4-Apr-2021, 7:56 PM

Yeah, I’m generally going for simple.

Since the original version of TCW was such an anthology show, and of such inconsistent quality, you never knew what a given episode was going to be about (from a HUGE range), nor whether or not the elements in those episodes were going to be incredible or awful. So as much as I can, I want my show to be a show you can trust. Because when you expect to be frustrated, you’ll be anxious and hesitant and it’ll shape your perception of what you’re consuming.

That’s why getting all of the presentation elements right was important to me - because I want this show to be bold and confident and aware of its strengths, because that will help shape the users’ mindset and make their enjoyment higher because they’ll be wired to expect enjoyment. And an element of that is using the titles and the opening text to really direct the audience to where the quality is, or to enhance the point of a given episode: “THIS is the element to be focusing on today”, and highlighting the key theme or most valuable element from that episode. Even though it’s a small thing, it’s still something that could be useful, and I’ll take those few percent.

For example: Senate Spy is not a strong episode. It certainly doesn’t deliver on the “spy” angle. A valid objection to it is that it’s got prequel B-tier villains and it’s basically the story of Padmé being pimped out by the Jedi council to a smug, rich creep, to which Anakin acts petty and controlling. Not good. But if we call it ‘…Geonosis’ in a Geonosis trilogy, then people will (1) expect that it’s act one/setup and not expect huge things, (2) anticipate the return of a familiar element which is clearly about to be explored further, (3) get curious about the Geonosis angle, pay more attention to Poggle when he appears, get more value out of the secret meeting, care more about the poisoning, treat Clovis as a bit more important than a one-off foil, etc etc.

It’s subtle, but it’s not got a zero value. And doing little things like this can make the show feel more consistent in tone, consistent in quality, and ultimately a little more trustworthy.

In fact I might have just convinced myself to rename the couple of ones I left as they were.