Wild_Kat208
I've always loved science fiction. I grew up loving shows like Star Trek, Twilight Zone, Quantan Leap...but tend to be more of a movie lover- Soylent Green, Dark City, Things to Come. I haven't had a TV for the past six or seven years, so for a show to catch my attention enough for me to watch it religiously, it really needs to sparkle.Defiance is, in my opinion, a fantastic show, but I see why it struggles. I don't think it is really a science fiction show, which probably hurts the fan ratings compared to other shows in the SyFy network. It really plays more like a western than anything else, like The Wild Bunch, but in the future.I see other users criticizing the special effects, animation, and the horribly tacky cliché scenes- the deus ex ma china saving the characters at the last second- and I have to say I agree for the most part. There is tackiness, there are many clichés, and the animation at times is goofy. However, I think it is well written and very often clever. There is a lot of originality in the writing. (E.g. their own original swear words). The show has a few of these little quirks in the script that stay consistent throughout the series and give it individuality. -----------VERY MINOR SPOILER----------------- At times, I have been upset when some of the main characters were killed off, but I think the story wouldn't be as believable otherwise, since it takes place in a rough, post apocalyptic type of world. Also, I think it also makes it easier for the viewer to accept new characters. That is harder to do, I think, with the same cast lasting multiple seasons before someone is killed off and replaced.I love SF, but not so much as a fantasy genre, but rather as an element of setting in a story. Consider, for example, renowned twentieth century American author, Kurt Vonnegut. Few literary scholars would classify him as SF, but almost all of his most-widely read novels have major science fiction themes in the plot (i.e. Slaughter-House Five, Cat's Cradle), utilized in a way which poignantly expresses the nature of humanity in addition to Vonnegut's ever-witty and darkly comedic humanist ideals. That's kinda similar to how I feel about Defiance, in terms of classification. It plays out like a western more than anything, but the science fiction element gives it a cool edginess. I like the time frame it is set in, just far enough into the future so that Amanda and Nolan are about the age I will be in the year 2046. It gives the audience something familiar on which the main human characters are based, and something new, in which human and non-human characters alike have been versed, but the humans are the ones who initially spell it out for us as far as catching us up the past few decades, post alien arrival.-------VERY MINOR SPOILERS IN REGARD TO CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT ------- I also appreciate that the obvious main character, Nolan, doesn't have to story continuously centered around him. in fact, I think the play time of each character's story has a very god balance, with the Tarrs emerging as the characters we observe more consistently throughout the series. Clever, since they entangle themselves either by choice or not with every other character in the show somehow. Also, Datek and Stahma are well matched, and they offer us as much humor as they do heartache. We can't help but love them, despite their transgressions or their loftiness. Every blow and screw up they endure serves to make them more easy to relate to, and we see them grow and learn from their mistakes, and struggle to change their behavior. Even though their natures dictate certain behavioral patterns, we see them react differently as they try to change and better themselves.------------------As far as clichés and deus ex machines are concerned, I'm hard-pressed to think of a series that has never employed them. Any that didn't I imagine didn't run very long. For this series though, I expect a bit of cheesiness from time to time. The lessons and morals Defiance offers are universal. I really think this show is pulled off very well in general, and I believe the special effects would be way better if they had a bigger budget to work with. For three seasons so far, Defiance has kept me engaged in its plot and still holds as much intrigue as it did when it first got its hooks in me. I really hope it gets renewed for a fourth season, because so far it has been an energetic and entertaining tale, reliable more often than not, and I see a lot of potential for more of the story to build on that foundation. And also because I love the character of Doc Yewl. What would we do without anymore of that dry, pragmatic humor?My apologies for any run on sentences or grammatical issues. Please don't let that weigh in on your opinion of this show.
gca_36
I watched all three seasons of Defiance and I liked all of them. The story is nothing we haven't seen before, but so what? Meanwhile it is difficult to make up new stories, because there are no real new stories. So in the end, it's all in the delivery, the fun of the retelling. And having said that, I think Defiance did a good job with the retelling.In my opinion the created characters were quite interesting. OK, at first all appeared to be too much cliché, but the writers still managed to add an extraordinary twist to almost all of them and to their story. Each character was well developed and multi-layered. They were not one dimensional, all good or all bad, but did portray positive and negative traits. In a way the show reminded me a bit of Farscape (no wonder since Rockne S. O'Bannon was the creator of this show, too). A lot of effort was put into the portrayal of the various cultures with their own music, rituals, prayers, languages, religions, prejudices, and personality tendencies. Another similarity to Farsacpe is, that Defiance too is a show about values. Love can overcome differences and cooperation produces better results than confrontation. That was the main reason why it was fun for me to watch the show.
tone_e2000
It's amazing how many of the people who rated Defiance badly never got beyond the first episode.Defiance, like many shows, is one that rewards perseverance. Judging it based purely on one episode is ridiculous, because the story needs time to develop. Also, complaints about lack of backstory are unfounded. There is plenty of allusion to the past in the dialogue, but clearly some people can't pick up such subtle hints and would prefer a more on-the-nose flashback sequence (something for which other shows are criticised, so you can't please everyone).Obviously, Defiance isn't perfect, and it's not for everyone, but if you do choose to give it a go, I'd recommend watching at least four episodes before deciding you don't like it.
