As a massive fan of Guillermo Del Toro's first Pacific Rim who was then let down by the disappointing sequel Pacific Rim Uprising, I quite enjoyed The Black. It is a solid step back into the world of Pacific Rim.
The Black is refreshingly told from a civilian's perspective. So far, we have only seen stories from the military's perspective. The writers do keep the stakes high and the characters consistently disadvantaged to keep the story interesting. Civilians simply do not have the same resources as the military and that naturally freshens things up story-wise. The situation feels less Top Gun and much more Mad Max with a touch of A Quiet Place. The dramatic moments the characters spent out of the Jaegar were equally enjoyable as when they were piloting the Jaegar brawling with the Kaiju.
Taylor and Hayley, the main characters, are teenagers and are angsty. Normally that would be annoying. However, the writers rightfully take advantage of this by having them convincingly make mistakes as any teenager would in these overwhelmingly epic situations, which have real consequences. Even though it is about giant robot fighting giant monsters, the overall approach in how the story deals with its character is realistic and grounded.
What's gone from Pacific Rim: The Black is the sensation of scale. What was fascinating and mindblowing about seeing the first Pacific Rim in theaters was Guillermo Del Toro's sheer commitment to selling how hulkingly huge the Jaegars and the Kaiju were in every frame. It was nail-biting how slow the Jaegars moved and you could feel every gear inside the Jaegar straining to make it through the fight. Every punch mattered. Every punch that landed felt like a World Cup championship victory.
This sense of scale was completely missing in the disappointing sequel Pacific Rim Uprising and it comes and goes throughout The Black, where the Jaegars occasionally move with the dexterity of Olympic gymnasts, but in other moments, that sense of scale and weight is there and that sense of awe comes back, even if it's half the time. I wish this was more consistent throughout the show. There's real cinematic magic when that works and it just raises all the hairs on my arms.
My quibbles aside, the fights are still pretty darn fun. They are well choreographed and rightfully build on details from the Pacific Rim films. There are some exhilarating action moments that will make fans cheer. I particularly enjoyed how the writers further explore the Drift and like the first Pacific Rim, uses it effectively as a story device to develop the relationships between the Jaegar pilots and intensifies the battles.
The first season for The Black does end abruptly, as if a producer came in andlopped off half of the show with a machete and deemed a mid-season cliffhanger as the new shortened season finale. When it happened, it had me doing a triple take going, "Wait, what? That was over?"
Regardless, I do intend to watch the second season to see what happens. The show was better than expected and it did win me over.
Overall, I'd recommend The Black to Pacific Rim fans. Fans who enjoyed the first film and was let down by the second and still have unfinished business in this universe are keen to enjoy this show.
