Oz Rewatch: S1E1 The Routine
Jul. 13th, 2018 12:42 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
vanillalimeAs I mentioned at ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
oz_rapsheet, I decided to re-watch the first episode of Oz, The Routine, prior to listening to the first episode of the new podcast about the show. Oddly, even though I’ve watched several Oz episodes and/or particular scenes multiple times, I’ve never done a true re-watch of the series from start to finish, which I’d like to do now (as slow-going as it might be).
*****
Actually, TRUE CONFESSION TIME, if I’m being completely honest, I’ve... never... really... (*cough*)... properly... watched Season 6 at all.
I know, I KNOW! I hear your gasps of disbelief!
I mean, I’ve watched all of Beecher’s and Keller’s S6 scenes, and a few other things here and there, mostly while looking for good screencaps to use atoz_daily. But I’ve never watched a full S6 episode and certainly not all eight. I’ve never even watched all of Exeunt Omnes, although obviously over the course of time I learned how everything goes down.
I had every intention of watching Season 6 when I originally watched the show and finished Season 5. I was aware of what was going to happen to Beecher and Keller at the end of the series (I was spoiled with regards to their storyline before I watched a single scene of the show), and I was fully prepared for that.
BUT after I finished Season 5, I watched the special feature "Preview of Season 6" that was part of the S5 DVD set (I watched the show the first time by renting the DVDs from my local video store). AND I COULDN’T BELIEVE WHAT IT SHOWED. It was only a couple of minutes long, but it spoiled SO many things. I found out that not only did Keller die, but Harrison, and Said, and Leo, and many more. I was, like, literally traumatized and felt no desire at that point to watch all of that happen. I returned the S5 DVDs to the store and figured maybe someday I’d get around to renting S6, but then that just never happened.
But now, 6 years later (SIX? what?!), I think I’m at a point where I can handle it. Maybe. Heh.
*****
Anyway, back to The Routine… it is EXCELLENT, especially for a first/pilot episode where so much time needs to be spent introducing characters and establishing storylines.
I took notes throughout the episode, and here are my stream-of-consciousness thoughts:
— Oh, hey, it’s Tom getting his tattoo. I didn’t know for the longest time that was him, or that it was real, and I remember wondering why they weren’t putting the tat on some young, hot, muscular dude’s arm, LOL.
— Wow these credits are long! They’re like 2 minutes! But I enjoy the intro, and I can’t imagine watching an episode without watching it first.
— Re: Hill’s narrations: I run hot and cold on these. Sometimes I love them, sometimes I don’t, and how I feel doesn’t seem to depend on what he was saying or what the message is. I think it has more to do with what my mood is at the time.
— LeeEEEEEEEEeeeeee!!!!
— and, oh Lord, those horrible, dorky glasses he wears
— nice headband, Miguel!
— Lee hurting his finger! If you ever listened to the DVD commentary for this ep, Lee talks about banging his hands hard against the bars and suffering permanent nerve damage to his index finger. He literally has no feeling in it. In this 1997 profile of Tom Fontana, the filming of this scene had just taken place, and the author mentions that Tom took Lee to the emergency room and they spent the night there. ♥ (I am such a sucker for stories about Tom & Lee’s friendship.)
— It’s funny how I instantly recognize all the quotes I assembled to use as prompts for last year’s Oziversary Fest.
— So, Diane tells the new inmates that they’re expected to exercise regularly? Where? The basketball court, I guess? The fact that Oz apparently did not have any outdoor rec time is one of those little things that has always bugged me.
— LOL at Beecher and his "MCI calling card." I remember MCI! Funny how Tom decided to call heroin "tits" because he didn’t want to date the show with current street slang, yet here the show is dated anyway by things like the mention of a long-ago, extinct telecommunications company.
— I LOVE Poet/muMs.
— Argghhh. Stupid McManus. Why would he put Beecher in with Adebisi! Does he not see that that might, maybe, just potentially, result in some Negative Consequences?!
— Golly gee, Vern seems like a swell guy!
— I’d forgotten that Goodson Truman was Said’s pre-Muslim name. That’s actually a pretty cool name.
— Ah, yessss, Badass Said! I love his arrogance. This is the Said I loved. Not the one from later seasons who keeps telling Toby that he needs to stay away from Keller.
— LOVE Nino, LOVE Groves
— Hmmm, they make a big deal of banning cigarettes and yet everybody is sitting around smoking out in the open? Continuity error?
— YAY, Ryan, the manliest of men! What’s up with the red underwear? And why did you have to take your pants off for your mugshot, anyway? (Showing off those legs, I bet!)
— I am so bad at identifying ethnicities. I really believed Jon Seda was Italian.
— Dino put up a really good fight against the hacks in the shower (and what was Billie Keene thinking?).
— Dr. Nathan! (Speaking of ethnicities, I originally thought Gloria I was a light-skinned African-American woman. It was only in a scene from a later season when she started speaking Spanish with Rita Moreno that I clued in.)
— The insect-under-the-glass metaphor was brilliant.
— Ooh, Dino is so close to McManus that almost looks like he’s about to kiss him! Where is all the Dino/McManus slash?
— Dino’s turmoil and guilt is amazing to watch. He’s on self-destruct, indeed.
— Heh, Rita has an exaggerated accent (Brooklyn?) here that she didn't bother to keep in future episodes.
— LOL at Ryan popping up over the bathroom stall at Dino. I bet that’s not the first time he’s done something that. ;)
— "Lasagna-boy"? Sounds like Tom was running out of ideas for ethnic slurs.
— That shot of the lit match dropping was great. Such amazing filmmaking here.
In Conclusion
Episode rating: 10/10
Lee rating: 10/10
Lee’s hair rating: 6/10 (a little too conservative for my taste)
oz_rapsheet, I decided to re-watch the first episode of Oz, The Routine, prior to listening to the first episode of the new podcast about the show. Oddly, even though I’ve watched several Oz episodes and/or particular scenes multiple times, I’ve never done a true re-watch of the series from start to finish, which I’d like to do now (as slow-going as it might be).*****
Actually, TRUE CONFESSION TIME, if I’m being completely honest, I’ve... never... really... (*cough*)... properly... watched Season 6 at all.
I know, I KNOW! I hear your gasps of disbelief!
I mean, I’ve watched all of Beecher’s and Keller’s S6 scenes, and a few other things here and there, mostly while looking for good screencaps to use at
oz_daily. But I’ve never watched a full S6 episode and certainly not all eight. I’ve never even watched all of Exeunt Omnes, although obviously over the course of time I learned how everything goes down.I had every intention of watching Season 6 when I originally watched the show and finished Season 5. I was aware of what was going to happen to Beecher and Keller at the end of the series (I was spoiled with regards to their storyline before I watched a single scene of the show), and I was fully prepared for that.
BUT after I finished Season 5, I watched the special feature "Preview of Season 6" that was part of the S5 DVD set (I watched the show the first time by renting the DVDs from my local video store). AND I COULDN’T BELIEVE WHAT IT SHOWED. It was only a couple of minutes long, but it spoiled SO many things. I found out that not only did Keller die, but Harrison, and Said, and Leo, and many more. I was, like, literally traumatized and felt no desire at that point to watch all of that happen. I returned the S5 DVDs to the store and figured maybe someday I’d get around to renting S6, but then that just never happened.
But now, 6 years later (SIX? what?!), I think I’m at a point where I can handle it. Maybe. Heh.
*****
Anyway, back to The Routine… it is EXCELLENT, especially for a first/pilot episode where so much time needs to be spent introducing characters and establishing storylines.
I took notes throughout the episode, and here are my stream-of-consciousness thoughts:
— Oh, hey, it’s Tom getting his tattoo. I didn’t know for the longest time that was him, or that it was real, and I remember wondering why they weren’t putting the tat on some young, hot, muscular dude’s arm, LOL.
— Wow these credits are long! They’re like 2 minutes! But I enjoy the intro, and I can’t imagine watching an episode without watching it first.
— Re: Hill’s narrations: I run hot and cold on these. Sometimes I love them, sometimes I don’t, and how I feel doesn’t seem to depend on what he was saying or what the message is. I think it has more to do with what my mood is at the time.
— LeeEEEEEEEEeeeeee!!!!
— and, oh Lord, those horrible, dorky glasses he wears
— nice headband, Miguel!
— Lee hurting his finger! If you ever listened to the DVD commentary for this ep, Lee talks about banging his hands hard against the bars and suffering permanent nerve damage to his index finger. He literally has no feeling in it. In this 1997 profile of Tom Fontana, the filming of this scene had just taken place, and the author mentions that Tom took Lee to the emergency room and they spent the night there. ♥ (I am such a sucker for stories about Tom & Lee’s friendship.)
— It’s funny how I instantly recognize all the quotes I assembled to use as prompts for last year’s Oziversary Fest.
— So, Diane tells the new inmates that they’re expected to exercise regularly? Where? The basketball court, I guess? The fact that Oz apparently did not have any outdoor rec time is one of those little things that has always bugged me.
— LOL at Beecher and his "MCI calling card." I remember MCI! Funny how Tom decided to call heroin "tits" because he didn’t want to date the show with current street slang, yet here the show is dated anyway by things like the mention of a long-ago, extinct telecommunications company.
— I LOVE Poet/muMs.
— Argghhh. Stupid McManus. Why would he put Beecher in with Adebisi! Does he not see that that might, maybe, just potentially, result in some Negative Consequences?!
— Golly gee, Vern seems like a swell guy!
— I’d forgotten that Goodson Truman was Said’s pre-Muslim name. That’s actually a pretty cool name.
— Ah, yessss, Badass Said! I love his arrogance. This is the Said I loved. Not the one from later seasons who keeps telling Toby that he needs to stay away from Keller.
— LOVE Nino, LOVE Groves
— Hmmm, they make a big deal of banning cigarettes and yet everybody is sitting around smoking out in the open? Continuity error?
— YAY, Ryan, the manliest of men! What’s up with the red underwear? And why did you have to take your pants off for your mugshot, anyway? (Showing off those legs, I bet!)
— I am so bad at identifying ethnicities. I really believed Jon Seda was Italian.
— Dino put up a really good fight against the hacks in the shower (and what was Billie Keene thinking?).
— Dr. Nathan! (Speaking of ethnicities, I originally thought Gloria I was a light-skinned African-American woman. It was only in a scene from a later season when she started speaking Spanish with Rita Moreno that I clued in.)
— The insect-under-the-glass metaphor was brilliant.
— Ooh, Dino is so close to McManus that almost looks like he’s about to kiss him! Where is all the Dino/McManus slash?
— Dino’s turmoil and guilt is amazing to watch. He’s on self-destruct, indeed.
— Heh, Rita has an exaggerated accent (Brooklyn?) here that she didn't bother to keep in future episodes.
— LOL at Ryan popping up over the bathroom stall at Dino. I bet that’s not the first time he’s done something that. ;)
— "Lasagna-boy"? Sounds like Tom was running out of ideas for ethnic slurs.
— That shot of the lit match dropping was great. Such amazing filmmaking here.
In Conclusion
Episode rating: 10/10
Lee rating: 10/10
Lee’s hair rating: 6/10 (a little too conservative for my taste)
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-13 06:13 pm (UTC)You know, it never occurred to me why Ryan was in his underwear for his mug shot. lol Those red bloomers took all my attention!
(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-14 07:37 pm (UTC)there was just so much going on that I didn't particularly care about.
Me too. I guess if I had cared as much about the other characters as I did B/K, I would have been more inclined to watch to see what happened with them. But Burr Redding and Arif and Guerra just didn't hold the same degree of interest to me.
Those red bloomers took all my attention!
For good reason! ;D
(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-16 02:48 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-13 08:44 pm (UTC)It's a strong opening ep for sure.
(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-14 07:40 pm (UTC)That's the one that really hurts. ;D
(Seriously, I liked Omar! His heart was in the right place! People just needed to give him a chance!)
(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-13 09:23 pm (UTC)I figured Ryan was in his red panties because they're all wearing civvies when they get there (wrong, Fontana!) & they have to strip down at some point before entering the cells part of the prison, but, that doesn't fully make sense either... why are they in their street clothes for one, no one literally goes directly to maximum sec prison -- OH, I remember. Okay so Alvarez and Beecher are going directly to Em City but O'Reily isn't. So he has to strip off a bit to get into his Unit B outfit. ...right?
I enjoy the intro a lot too. Even just the first few seconds, with the DUN dun dun dun dun dun dun DUN DUN DUN DUN and then that yell. Yep. That's my jam. ;)
(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-13 11:55 pm (UTC)That was such a visceral moment - hearing that meant the week, or the months, of anticipation were about to end.
Here we go, mother fuckers!!
(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-14 07:41 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-16 02:46 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-14 08:10 pm (UTC)Also: DONALD GROVES and NINO SCHIBETTA are two of the best characters in the entire show, and they appear only in Season 1.
I have a close Twitter friend who's a huge Meloni fan who's never watched the first season of Oz, and I tried to convince her that she HAD to watch it, but alas, she didn't listen to me.
Now I want to know what happened to the clothes they were wearing when they arrived at Oz. Where is Beecher's suit? Where is Miguel's plaid flannel shirt? WHERE IS HIS HEADBAND?
(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-14 08:37 pm (UTC)Maybe they gave Beecher back his suit when he got paroled. Didn't Cyril wear a bandanna now and again? Maybe it belonged to Miguel!! *conspiracy*
(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-13 11:02 pm (UTC)DO NOT BE PUTTING IDEAS LIKE THIS IN MY HEAD!!!!
*makes note*
It's on the agenda.
(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-14 07:46 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-15 02:55 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-14 04:54 am (UTC)Because if I watch it, that means it's all over.
The buses leaving at the end get me every time.
I may join you in the rewatch later. If I start now, I usually bow out by episode 4. I really need to watch seasons 4b, 5, & 6.
(no subject)
Date: 2018-07-14 07:56 pm (UTC)At my pace, that may not be until Christmas time. I hope you can wait that long. ;)
I might be better at accepting the end now, because it's possible that it might not have really been the end if those Season 7 rumors are true. Unfortunately, we'll just never know what happened next (unless I magically find a bootleg copy of those episodes somewhere).
Hi :)
Date: 2018-08-16 06:03 pm (UTC)I plan to rewatch the whole show sometime, but I'm not sure I'll get to it by the end of this year :( (due to all kinds of circumstances...)
Beecher not only looks horrible, he behaves horrible...
Re: Hi :)
Date: 2018-08-18 03:27 pm (UTC)Well, obviously, I'm going really slow (Real Life is busy!). It probably wouldn't take much to catch up with me. I was hoping to do one episode a week, and even that schedule is looking ambitious! But it's fun regardless. :)
(no subject)
Date: 2019-10-08 11:26 am (UTC)Beecher and Adebisi together - I guess every combination would have negative consequences for Beecher. At least with someone strong he might stay alive.
The non-smoking thing, Said's felony, Dino's death - a lot of fire in this great episode (most favorite character - Said [but also many others])
(no subject)
Date: 2019-10-20 05:09 pm (UTC)This first episode was soooo good. A lot of shows start strong like this and then fade, but Oz kept its quality going (well, maybe until the aging pills storyline, anyway... :D)