I've never seen the webcomic on which this is based, but I read good things about it, so thought I'd give the TV show a go.
However, I only made it through the first episode before giving up.
As far as I can tell, the series is about a race of aliens that live on a planet that is pretty much a replica of Earth - so the use of the word 'strange' in the title is probably some sort of hipster-ish attempt at irony.
What's the point, then, of setting the series on an a different world? The central conceit is that the aliens describe everything literally - a plane is a 'flying machine', alcohol is a 'mild poison' etc.
I had two basic problems with this.
First, this was not just *a* joke, it seemed to be the *only* joke. I was already bored of the characters affected way of speaking after about 10 minutes - it's mildly amusing once or twice, but to base a whole series around this one conceit suggests a very optimistic view of your audience's tolerance for light whimsy. How about, you know, some *actual* jokes?
Second, the conceit seemed to be a substitute for properly fleshed out characters and plots. Sure, I only watched one episode, but having all your identikit characters speak in the same way, and with very little in the way of (interesting) personalities, makes even the short running time of the episodes feel long. As for plot, nothing much happened in the one I saw - maybe this was the point, but I see no reason why I should I waste my time indulging someone else's desire to make tedious observations about the banality of everyday existence.
A big yawn.
However, I only made it through the first episode before giving up.
As far as I can tell, the series is about a race of aliens that live on a planet that is pretty much a replica of Earth - so the use of the word 'strange' in the title is probably some sort of hipster-ish attempt at irony.
What's the point, then, of setting the series on an a different world? The central conceit is that the aliens describe everything literally - a plane is a 'flying machine', alcohol is a 'mild poison' etc.
I had two basic problems with this.
First, this was not just *a* joke, it seemed to be the *only* joke. I was already bored of the characters affected way of speaking after about 10 minutes - it's mildly amusing once or twice, but to base a whole series around this one conceit suggests a very optimistic view of your audience's tolerance for light whimsy. How about, you know, some *actual* jokes?
Second, the conceit seemed to be a substitute for properly fleshed out characters and plots. Sure, I only watched one episode, but having all your identikit characters speak in the same way, and with very little in the way of (interesting) personalities, makes even the short running time of the episodes feel long. As for plot, nothing much happened in the one I saw - maybe this was the point, but I see no reason why I should I waste my time indulging someone else's desire to make tedious observations about the banality of everyday existence.
A big yawn.