S01.E02: Tranpose

[Meredith Quill]

Quote

A discovery in the woods gives two teenaged boys an opportunity to step outside their lives.

 

[LittleIggy]

Wow, that was sad.

[marinw]

8 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

Wow, that was sad.

That it was.  The slow, melancholy pace of the show is a good set-up for stories like this.

[LittleIggy]

I wonder if Jakob really is in that forlorn robot.

5 hours ago, marinw said:

That it was.  The slow, melancholy pace of the show is a good set-up for stories like this.

The music and the visuals are amazing.

[CarpeFelis]

So what’s the deal with working at the Loop? Early in the episode it was mentioned that Jakob had good grades and thus was being recruited to work there after graduation. But this is an experimental physics lab! Why would they be recruiting kids straight from high school? Do they provide college for free?

I so wanted Jakob to go have a talk with his father, explain what happened, and prove it by having him ask questions only Jakob would know the answers to. But no, he jumps straight to going back in the sphere. Now he lives on forever as a robot and has to watch Danny (some friend he was!) grow old in his body. Danny, meanwhile, seemed to take quite a while to realize the enormity of what he’d done. (How, for example, did he think he was going to manage working at the Loop when he was not as smart as Jakob?)

Moral of this story: teenagers are self-centered idiots. Oh, wait, this is something we already knew.

[HerkyJerky]

I did like the twist that it wasn't the "nerdy" kid in the "stud's" body that wanted to stay there.  It was the other way around.

[iMonrey]

Whoa, that was some dark Black Mirror shit right there. I didn't understand what happened to Jakob until the very end. And I kept wondering what the deal was with that giant robot we've seen in the woods in this and the previous episode. So I guess when you get into the sphere, whoever or whatever is closest to you trades bodies with you. Which raises the question, what if some forest creature were walking by? What if there was some insect crawling around, or flying around? The Fly, anyone?

And yeah, I wanted Jakob to try to convince his father they had switched bodies. It might be easier than he thought, considering his father's father is who created the Loop in the first place. Also, in Danny's body he's arguably physically stronger than in his own, he could have just dragged Danny down to the sphere and made them switch.

[tennisgurl]

Well, that sure took a dark turn. That was like some Black Mirror stuff, especially if that really is poor Jakob as the sad looking robot. It also puts the first episode into a new perspective. So that wasn't even Jakob we met when little Loretta arrived? It was actually his best friend who stole his body and will certainly have to give back his Best Friend title? Also was the robot we saw wondering in the woods, that was still Jakob just lurking around? I suppose the ball just swapped anyone with what happened to be around, you know maybe the Loop should be more careful where it sticks its stuff? 

The moody atmosphere is really working for this show, and I thought that the sort of "grass is always greener" stuff was quite interesting. Danny and Jakob both felt trapped in their lives and being forced onto a path that they arent sure they want, but now have totally different lives, but in the worst way possible. It seems like it didn't really hit Danny that he had done something terrible to his friend until near the end, and by the time he realized the enormity of what he had done, it was too late. 

I so wanted Jakob to tell his dad the truth about what happened. His parents work at the Loop, they would probably understand and could have maybe figured something out, and made Danny give Jakob his body back. Of course, the other theme of the episode could have been "teens make bad choices without thinking of the consequences." 

What is this thing you call a "hobby"? 

Edited April 10, 2020 by tennisgurl

[Ranger Bob]

So very melancholy.  A recurring theme so far.  

An interesting examination of the consequences of our actions.  

[iMonrey]

20 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

So that wasn't even Jakob we met when little Loretta arrived?

No, that was still Jakob. These episodes seem to be playing out in chronological order. The first story was about Jakob's little brother. We saw Jakob briefly but then he got his own story in the second episode. We met May in this episode - again briefly - and then she got her own story in the third episode. I expect the stories to progress in a similar fashion. We meet someone tangentially and then they get their own story in the next episode.

[Concerned]

Roger Ebert invented the term idiot plot for stories like this. The boys could just explain the situation to their parents and either been forced to change back or be recognized as different people. The story revolves around keeping their transformation a secret, but why? Everybody knows they live atop the loop and likely expect supernatural. Jakob as a robot was a good twist, plot wise and visually.

[momo]

If they somehow switch back, Danny will go back into his life-support body and be ok b/c now there'll be a "there" there?

I can't watch these too late at night or I just fall asleep, even though I like this series!

[Anela]

On 4/3/2020 at 10:52 PM, LittleIggy said:

Wow, that was sad.

It was. It was too much for me tonight. I only started to watch, because I read an article last month, that said it was what was needed, with everything going on. Something about the magic of it. 

I mean, I like it. That was just a bit heavy. 

[LittleIggy]

2 minutes ago, Anela said:

It was. It was too much for me tonight. I only started to watch, because I read an article last month, that said it was what was needed, with everything going on. Something about the magic of it. 

I mean, I like it. That was just a bit heavy. 

It’s a fantastic series, but I wouldn’t call it a “feel good” show. It’s thought-provoking which is always good.