OK, look. We can all agree that ID4 is a silly, possibly stupid, movie. But it's fun. And those who gave Resurgence a shot probably thought the same thing. I certainly did. Not to shit on either movie, because they both got belly laughs out of the eight-year-old who constantly lives behind my eyes, but I watched something recently that kind of changed my opinion on the second movie.
First let me tell you about one of the things I honestly enjoyed about Resurgence. In the optimistic world that ID4 left us with, the most idealistic thing ever happens. The world learns from the alien tech and we all benefit from becoming ridiculously scientifically advanced. That's just fucking cool. It also echoes something from another project the creators birthed into the world. Stargate didn't just end with that movie with Russell and Spader. It went on to become several TV shows, and the awesome thing about those series is that they learn from the alien technology and start building their own starships and replicating (no pun intended, probably) weapons, adapting to their newfound needs. That's exactly what happens between ID4 and Resurgence.
But it's bullshit because of something I should have known. Someone as misanthropic as me should really know better.
I watch Ty and That Guy, the show Ty Franck and Wes Chatham do about The Expanse. Ordinarily I don't watch that kind of thing, but these two aren't just anyone. Franck is one half of James S.A. Corey, the author of the book series the TV show is based on, and Chatham is the actor who plays Amos Burton on the show. Plus, you know, I fuckin' love The Expanse. They were discussing ID4, and Franck makes this great observation that the very instant the humans are done celebrating their victory, they would go right back to murdering each other to see who gets to have this neat new alien tech, so they can resume putting their boots on others' throats.
Goddammit, he's right. It also makes me think of Ozymandias in Watchmen. His plan to bring humanity together to face off against an evil alien force that he invented seems like a really good--but also a very psychotic--solution to most of the evils of the world. But it doesn't take into account that humanity, at its heart, is, if I may borrow from Tommy Hobbes, "poor, nasty, brutish and short." (Hey-hey! I used my degree in philosophy for something! It's not been for nothing, after all! Just, you know, next to nothing!)
So yeah. There's no way that ID4 leads to Resurgence. Very few people are Jeff Goldblum. Most are that dictator that he has to put up with to get shit done. And even that says something.
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