Forgive me for indulging in hyperbole, but I really do feel it's true that Aeon Flux is the greatest television series I've ever seen. I'm curious if others on this board feel this way too and why.

Here are my reasons:

Quirky, philosophical, political, satirical, sexual ... truly a show about, first and foremost, ideas.

No bowing to convention. The lead characters are both lovers and arch enemies. Continuity be damned; Aeon can die in any given instalment. The characters are vaguely human but clearly separated from our species by a few highly fetishized DNA.

And yet, given a somewhat specific dichotomy of characters and settings, the show is more unified than an anthology series. Here there is a solid premise of a world in which these stories take place. The possibilities are endless, but they are always rooted in Peter Chung's slick, stylish and deeply, wonderfully cynical artwork and storytelling.

-- The Vok (spsaunders@hotmail.com), December 10, 2003

Answers

Greatest TV show -- definitely. (Although Mr. Show w. Bob and David was funnier).

But Mr. Chung seemed to have so much freedom to make it as smart, weird, offensive, etc..., as he wanted, that it almost doesn't seem like TV: and I mean that in a good way. I think of TV as being focus- group conceived, special interest-group-censorship-gauntlet-running attempts to distract people while advertisers steal their money, but Aeon Flux felt more like a series of independent movies. What is memory, humanity, etc... Aeon Flux transcended TV.

Peter Chung rocks so hard.

-- Anon (unknownexperimenter@hotmail.com), December 15, 2003.

> But Mr. Chung seemed to have so much freedom to make it as smart, > weird, offensive, etc..., as he wanted, that it almost doesn't seem > like TV: and I mean that in a good way. I think of TV as being > focus-group conceived, special interest-group-censorship-gauntlet- > running attempts to distract people while advertisers steal their > money, but Aeon Flux felt more like a series of independent movies. > What is memory, humanity, etc... Aeon Flux transcended TV.

Ah, the irony is rich, considering that it was the politics of TV that Peter Chung endured while making Aeon Flux that have made him pretty much swear off the medium for good.

I don't know if Aeon Flux faced focus groups, but it certainly faced censorship. Mind you, that in my opinion is what the series truly transcends, for despite the various censored bits scattered throughout (e.g. Aeon waking up in a pool of clayish mud instead of blood), it still holds up remarkably well. Just imagine how much closer to absolute perfection the show would have been were it not for corporate meddling!

That's why I'd love to see a "creator's cut" DVD package, with all those glitches ironed out. Sure, we all know MTV will likely never do it (if they didn't consult Peter for a live-action movie ....), but still, wouldn't it be great?

-- The Vok (spsaunders@hotmail.com), December 15, 2003.

Yes, Aeon was truely great. I think that if the execs had any clue as to all the subtle philosophical issues the episodes raised they would have canned it that much sooner.

It's so obvious that everything on TV sucks. It sucks because the corp execs had to become total backstabbing conformists to get where they are. Then, when faced with creative decisions, they panic, unwilling to take risks.

(and don't forget the lawyers. They're a big part of the problem too).

Ultimately, if all that matters is how much money they make, then they will never make anything great. They will comprimise every rough edge until all they have is a small mound of crap, ie Brittney, the backdoor boys, etc.

It's the edges that make the art stand out from pop.

It's no wonder that Neilsens latest reports say that males from 18 - 35 aren't watching tv. TV sucks ass. It's lame.

All I do with my time is draw and play video games, (but I make my living making commercials for TV - I know how bad it sucks).

I can't wait for a Corporate Exec assination game to come out. I would choke the bastards with their ties. That would be so great!

-- ashley fox (3am@t256.com), December 15, 2003.

"Corporate Exec assination"

Take out the 'i' and you've described the entire entertainment industry.

-- Ashly Kehl (stefburk@metrocast.net), December 15, 2003.

lol, amen to ashly

-- Grant Grismore (ldsguy20@hotmail.com), December 20, 2003.

I wouldn't call it the best series, just because some episodes were incredibly gorgeous and thought provoking, but others seemed uneven and unpolished, or even more like someone trying to imitate Aeon Flux. Not to be a fanboy, but the quality of the show tended to correlate with Chung's involvement (ie, the four episodes on the DVD are hands down, in my opinion the best of the series).

-- Adam Tierney (adamctierney@hotmail.com), January 04, 2004.