The Continental: From the World of John Wick (1 Viewer)

[Walter Kittel]

On September 22nd a three part limited series will premiere on Peacock.

Trailer:



Looks promising.

- Walter.

 

[DaveF]

Anyone know if I need to watch JW4 before this? I haven't gotten to the fourth movie yet, but I might be able to watch the series before I get to the movie.

 

[Walter Kittel]

Anyone know if I need to watch JW4 before this? I haven't gotten to the fourth movie yet, but I might be able to watch the series before I get to the movie.

Hard to say for certain without viewing the upcoming series. Having seen JW4 ( which you should watch because it is awesome ) there is the potential for a spoiler involving one or two plot elements of JW4 ( in terms of precedent in the JW universe) - but it seems very unlikely. Given the time period, I would say that it is safe to go into the series without having seen the last film in the series.

- Walter.

 

[jayembee]

Anyone know if I need to watch JW4 before this? I haven't gotten to the fourth movie yet, but I might be able to watch the series before I get to the movie.

Funny you should ask. I finally got around to watching JW4 last night, and one of the extras on it was a preview clip from The Continental (the clip is pretty much the entire stairwell shoot-out that the above trailer shows bits of, starting around the 45s mark).

I agree with Walter. JW4 makes a few off-hand references to the past, but it's hard to say whether any of them refer to events in the series. I am, however, curious about whether any of the Black men in the trailer are a young Bowery King -- at least any of the Black men who aren't the one identified as a young Charon.

 

[Tino]

Anyone know if I need to watch JW4 before this? I haven't gotten to the fourth movie yet, but I might be able to watch the series before I get to the movie.

Need to? Probably not. Recommended? Absolutely

 

[DaveF]

I've got JW4 UHD coming tomorrow so I'll hopefully be able to watch it in the next few months, then I can watch the new TV series.

 

[DaveF]

After three hours of John Wick 4 murder ballet, my appetite for creative deaths sans character development is satisified. Contintental is no longer on my immediate list of to-watch shows. Maybe next year when new shows are scarce, I’ll be ready for it.

 

[Walter Kittel]

I viewed episode one earlier today and overall enjoyed it. While it does show some budgetary limitations in a few sequences, it is creatively shot and introduces the viewer to a rather large canvas of characters and situations. It moves at a pretty good pace and the opening action sequence recalls the close quarter gun play that is a staple of the Wick franchise.

Mel Gibson is the largest name associated with the production, but he is strictly in a supporting role. His performance was okay and some scenes worked a bit better than others. Colin Woodel plays Winston Scott and is the principal performer in a rather large ensemble cast. He carries his scenes fairly well.

In terms of the cast, I like the diverse, multi-ethnic cast as it makes the universe of The Continental feel like a real space. I almost always enjoy productions depicting the '70s and this is no exception. It does a pretty good job of channeling the New York of the 1970s. Helping recreate the era is a rather large and notable soundtrack featuring many recognizable songs from the period. ( I sort of feel like a decent percentage of the budget went to song rights. )

The first episode deftly juggles its action sequences along with plot and character development. There were a few times in episode one where the action zigged when I thought it would zag, which I appreciate. Considering that it is only three episodes of 90 minutes each, I feel like it won't wear out its welcome. Looking forward to episode two next Friday.

- Walter.

 

[Walter Kittel]

Out of curiosity, I did a google search on the Continental Soundtrack. The attached link describes the music (in chronological order), but contains spoilers for episode one:

The Continental Soundtrack Guide: Every Song & When It Plays

The Continental’s soundtrack is full to the brim.

screenrant.com

The list (for those wishing to avoid content spoilers) is recreated below:

I Feel Love - Donna Summer
Samba Pa Ti - Santana
Strange - The Wire
Chicken Strut - The Meters
If You Leave Me Now - Chicago
Crimson and Clover - Tommy James & The Shondells
Dirt - The Stooges
La Grange - ZZ Top
Roundabout - Yes
Yes Sir, I Can Boogie - Baccara
The Boss - James Brown
Daddy Cool - Boney M.
Children of the Grave - Black Sabbath

The run times for the songs vary from scene to scene with fairly brief interludes in some parts and more extensive play lengths in others. It is a fairly diverse set of songs for the episode and certainly added to the atmosphere of the show.

- Walter.

 

[Keith Cobby]

My wife and I watched 10 minutes and both agreed it's a dud.

 

[Jeff Cooper]

Well sure, that certainly seems an ample amount of time to make an informed decision.

 

[AlexF]

Ended up finally having time to watch this series this past weekend.

It started a bit slow and confused, but picked itself up pretty decently along the way.

Overall, for me, not a dud, a fair bit of fun, some memorable characters (both "good" and "bad"), some good amusing bits, fun (and totally unbelievable fight scenes -- so fitting with the John Wick feel), and an absolutely spectacular soundtrack.

I'd watch it again, and would watch a second series if they made one (90m, 80m, 100m for the three episodes btw, and they didn't feel that long).

 

[jayembee]

I figured that I'd wait for all three episodes to release, and then binge them all. But between the release of the first and second episodes, Comcast decided to stop offering Peacock free -- even the ad-supported tier -- for Comcast subbers, and I have yet to see enough content on the platform to justify adding another pay-for streamer. This is despite Peacock having streamed Mrs. Davis, one of my most favorite TV series of the last several years.

I can only hope that eventually The Continental (which title keeps making me run the Astaire/Rogers tune of that title through my mind) makes it's unlikely way to disc release.

 

[GlennC]

I have watched all three episodes and agree that after a slow start it was pretty good. It seems like a cross between Boardwalk Empire, Gotham TV series and obviously John Wick.

I really liked Ayomide Adegun who was very well cast.

The Continental always makes me think too of the Irving Berlin song and Fred and Ginger.