Re: Sense8
I finished this last night and where it works it works really well but there is a lot of this that is just wasted. Perhaps not so much wasted as did not capitalize on the concept. Kala's story basically doesn't involve the sensates at all and barely elevates itself from a normal drama at all, Leito's story barely utilizes the concept until the end and really ends up feeling like a soap opera or (perhaps more appropriately) a telenovela, and Sun's story doesn't find an ending at all. I do like that they're all different, some rely on the other characters for their skills and some more for moral support but some of them do feel like they wasted the opportunity. All the characters had a unique set of skills to bring to the group although there is nothing super unique about them (the hacker, the guy who can shoot, fighter, etc.) although I think they didn't capitalize as well on that as they could have. There were some outstanding moments though, the ensemble singing in episode 4, the alley scene in I think episode 5 or 6, and the scene where Van Damme chases down the thugs stand out, but again the cringeworthy scenes are equally bad, like the one Karamazow noted that was weird. The gay sex oddly enough didn't bother me as much, instead the layout of the scene had be laughing at one point, though yes if it really bothers you you could skip it and not miss anything super important.
The acting was pretty great and the writing was decent even if the story was lacking in places. The action scenes were well choreographed but the fast cuts made it hard to watch such that they felt sloppy. I really wish they had pulled back and cut less.
I enjoyed it but I wouldnt say it anything more than good although the last probably two episodes were pretty fantastic. I do hope that it gets a second season where they can take what worked and focus on that. According to wikipedia the Wachowskis and Straczynski have planned five seasons and have a detailed plan for season two.