Review of Twisted Metal- The TV series.

about 1 year ago

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When we see a trailer of either a TV series or a movie we already start to have an idea of what we want to present, without many expectations I gave play to the button I quote from Youtube and I find a very B series premise with vehicles armed to the teeth and destroying criminals outside cities that are now idyllic, with areas dominated by madmen. Although I have never played this original Play Station game with the trailer they managed to sell me on the series.

If you are going to watch this series I ask you to put your mind on autopilot, forget about your neurons, and do not expect a great plot, remember that the series is to pass the time, with a light product with a lot of black humor, but well dosed throughout the series. After watching ten episodes I understood that this is a mixture of Mad Max, The Warriors and The Truman Show with special effects that are not spectacular but that combine very well with what the series tells.

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We are introduced to interesting characters, video game elements, and good performances, but the most interesting story within the series is that of the killer clown and ice cream truck driving comedian Sweet Tooth, (Will Arnett as voice & actor) also generating empathy for some friends in distress, and curiosity as to who Calypso is.

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It's a very absurd but very funny dystopia, with a wide repertoire of weird characters, ( a messiah and as I said before Sweet Tooh in each of his appearances steals the show).

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Raven, (Neve Campbell), is the treacherous director of operations of New San Francisco, who hires John Doe (Anthony Mackie who is a milkman or package carrier), to deliver a package and as a reward promises him citizenship. On his journey he is accompanied by Quiet (Stephanie Beatriz), who wants to take revenge on Agent Stone (Thomas Haden Church) an evil representative of the law using it in a very twisted way.

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They are subjected to torture, robberies, serious damage to his vehicle, bars with fellow murderers (including an ex-girlfriend of John called Bloody Mary) and also meets new enemies on his journey, (especially a sect of madmen commanded by a priest who calls himself The Preacher played by Jason Mantzoukas), although he also makes some friends who help him fight against Stone's forces like some truck drivers and mechanics named Amber Rose and Miranda Watts (LGBTQ+ characters) along with the bloodthirsty madness of Sweet Tooh who destroys everything and anyone who crosses his path with a hair on fire that reminds us of the image of him on the covers of video games.

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Once past so many vicissitudes John returns to New San Francisco, but Raven denies the entry of Quiet, who shoots John to force him to enter the city with his wound. This package John Doe or the milkman brought was just ice cream and the real reason she hires John was to test his driving skills. She wants him to compete in a Calypso tournament, which involves the best drivers in a vehicular competition where the only thing that matters is survival.

In the best Truman Show style John Doe is fooled by the apparent calmness of life, having friends to enjoy a beer with and cook frozen food with, he even gets a date and tries to ride a bicycle. However, he does not adapt to such tranquility and is always thinking about Quiet.

The protagonist decides to leave the place but Raven tries to convince him not to do so by taking him to the house where he was born, being there where memories of his childhood come to his mind but he comments that the boy in the photographs is no longer the same. There Raven reveals her plan to him.

On the other hand Quiet develops in the outskirts of the city as a thief of milkmen (those who transport packages between cities), until it is caught by the Dolls where it seems that one of its leaders is the sister of John Doe.

Something interesting is that we are shown the past of the main characters which justifies many of the actions and crazy things we will see in the series.

The episodes have an approximate duration of half an hour, and it is a recommended series to marathon a weekend. The ending is left open for a second season where the competition itself will be shown. There is a post-credit scene in which a charismatic character that we thought was dead in the confrontation with Agent Stone appears.

A big greeting to the CineTV community and I invite you to watch this series that does not disappoint because it fulfills what it promises in its trailer.