TV shows you watch [R]

Discussion in 'Chelsea Off Topic Threads' started by yasik19, Jan 15, 2007.

  1. Kerry Dixon's Boots

    Staff Member

    Jun 6, 2006
    77 degrees
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    England
    Will give it a shot but can't imagine it being even half as good as the original. Francis Urquhart was an amazing bastard.

    As for whether I generally think the British versions of things are better, well, you may very well think that. I couldn't possibly comment ;)
     
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  2. Naughtius Maximus

    Jul 10, 2001
    Shropshire
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    England
    [​IMG]
     
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  3. Kerry Dixon's Boots

    Staff Member

    Jun 6, 2006
    77 degrees
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    England
    That's because you are cultured good sir. I have a passion for the classics and FU certainly qualifies :)
     
  4. Yaroni

    Yaroni Member

    Aug 31, 2007
    Tel Aviv
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Israel
    im gonna try to get into Legit which is a new series on FX, i have no idea what its about, but its Jim Jefferies show and Jim Jeffereies is a fantastic comedian.
     
  5. Bruckner283

    Bruckner283 Member+

    Apr 25, 2006
    Lake Of The Coheeries
    Finished the Netflix series and watched the first BBC series. On the whole I would have to say the Netflix series is superior. Some of the BBC series was cringe-worthy/laughable. The call me daddy bits, Urquhart donning a wig like he was Clouseau and fooling everyone and an 80 year old man lifting/throwing not very waif-ish dame over the side of a building. That being said I would replace Richardson and Spacey in a heartbeat. There is a lurking malevolence in Richardson which is lacking in Spacey. Richardson could narrate The Screwtape Letters and be utterly believable. Spacey....not so much.

    Really excited The Walking Dead is back and it was back with a bang. Not sure I will watch the b&w episodes though.
     
  6. Kerry Dixon's Boots

    Staff Member

    Jun 6, 2006
    77 degrees
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    England
    Production values being what they are, I'd expect the newer version to be cleaner/crisper (and it was) but I felt it lacked the soul of the original. Some parts were a little hammy, but much of it was subtle.

    Not sure if you're a Dr Who fan but similar sort of thing applies. The newer ones are superior tv and yet I would take Tom baker every day of the week and twice on Sunday. As with the doc, HoC is all about FU and that sinister portrayal carries the day.

    Bit of trivia for you though. In the book, it was FU who jumped off the house of commons, rather than him dumping Mattie storin off so yeah, that didn't quite work but it was a tv invention so they could add two more series. Rule as always, books are better. FWIW, he was in his early 50s but I get your point :). The call me daddy bits were straight out of repressed British middle class suburbia and can see how this may have jarred (again given how fu looked so much older than the new fu).

    Can't wait to see how he new FU ascends to the presidency!
     
  7. Naughtius Maximus

    Jul 10, 2001
    Shropshire
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    England
    The point about some of the older TV shows is they're sometimes MEANT to be rather 'hammy', (for want of a better word). They're often rather stylised and overplayed by design. When comments are made to camera as asides, it's not an accident or oversight, It's not that they thought, 'Ah, screw it.. that'll do. The punters won't know the difference'.

    Don't forget, a lot of the actors from British TV shows in the past were originally stage actors.

    More importantly, the fella that adapted the books for TV is Andrew Davies, the creator of the equally 'arty, and, at times, surreal 'A very Peculiar Practice', during the early Thatcher years. It's nominally about a university as it struggles to cope with cutbacks during a recession, (Thatcher's first, as opposed to her second). But, in fact, it's an allegory about how society functions and how people's true selves are revealed when they're put under pressure.

    Personally I think that was better than HoC and by some distance.

    YMMV :)

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Very_Peculiar_Practice



    Notice the nuns just before the 1 minute mark. In this one they're fishing but, in the various episodes, they can also be seen stealing milk from doorsteps, throwing frisbees, etc. etc.
     
  8. yasik19

    yasik19 Moderator
    Staff Member

    Chelsea
    Ukraine
    Oct 21, 2004
    Daly City
    Finished 5 seasons of True Blood. I can't believe I kept watching. It's just so stupid, you kind of get hooked on it.
     
  9. Yaroni

    Yaroni Member

    Aug 31, 2007
    Tel Aviv
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Israel
    thats what everyone around me keeps saying, but tbh i couldnt deal with the massive stupidy
     
  10. Bruckner283

    Bruckner283 Member+

    Apr 25, 2006
    Lake Of The Coheeries
    As a watcher/enjoyer of I, Claudius and The Six Wives Of Henry VIII I am well aware of BBC "production values." I thought in the BBC version the writing and acting (sans Richardson) was sub par especially in comparison to the Netflix version. Of course this will all go down to taste/personal preference. De gustibus non est disputandum and such.....

    I am on the fence at the moment with Who. I, personally, feel that Moffat is killing the series. Not sure how many more times I can stomach an alien invasion being quelled by Ms Pond embracing her inner child or the Doctor thwarting a villain by thoughts of his mother. By now I am surprised teh show isnt entitled Hallmark Cards Presents Dr. Who. Mr Baker is a little bit before my time but I am torn who is my favorite Dr. I really liked Eccleston. He is/was the Daniel Craig of Who's. Not the prettiest actor to play but one of the best actors to do so. When he had to pull out the mad/angry "I Am The Destroyer Of Worlds" Doctor out of his acting cap it was believable. Tennant could kindve do it and Smith not at all. My favorite episodes though are Tennant episodes (The Girl In The Fireplace, The Silence In The Library, The Waters Of Mars etc.) Eccleston in some Tennant episodes makes for a great thought experiment/daydream! Moffat should just do Sherlock and be done with it!

    Mostly agreed that the books are invariably better then the movie but there are exceptions (though I never read any of the Dobbs books. Have you and would you recommend them?). The Shawshank Redemption is an all-time top 5 movie for me. The novella/short story it was based on was horrible. Funny the only book I have liked of Kings was his guide to writing. Another exception was Somewhere In Time. Great and underrated movie but the book was horribly written (my crush for Jane Seymour from that movie will never die!)
     
  11. Cris 09

    Cris 09 Trololololo

    Nov 30, 2004
    Westfalenstadion
    Club:
    Borussia Dortmund
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    The Americans and The Following. Great stuff!
     
  12. Blueallthru

    Blueallthru Member+

    Chelsea
    United States
    May 15, 2012
    The Interwebz
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    I've recorded all of The Americans episodes, but haven't started watching yet. Really looking forward to it. Good to hear that you approve.
     
  13. Miguel Alvarez

    May 12, 2006
    Just finished watching the Wire last night. Easily one of my favourite show out there ever made.

    Thing is, now that i'm done watching the Wire, I need another show. Skimmed a bit through this thread and the only viable option seems to be "The West Wing". Any fans of the show?
     
  14. Naughtius Maximus

    Jul 10, 2001
    Shropshire
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    England
    If anyone has access to British TV and wants to do themselves a favour they could do a lot worse than catch a complete re-run of the 1976 version of the BBC's 'I, Claudius', starting on BBC4, 19th March, 10PM.

    http://www.tvguide.co.uk/detail.asp?id=150959357

    http://www.tvguide.co.uk/episodeguide.asp?title=I, Claudius

    Based on Robert Graves 1930's novel of the same name, and it's 'sequel', 'Claudius the God'.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I,_Claudius_(TV_series)

    This is the beginning of the first episode...



    It starts off rather slowly for most modern viewers, (AKA, those with the ability to concentrate of a goldfish ;) :D), but it really rewards perseverance.

    Here's part of a later episode with the REAL star of the series, (IMHO, anyway), Sian Phillips.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siân_Phillips



    and the one following...



    Although John Hurt catches the eye as well. Hard to believe he had an alien bursting through his chest a few years afterwards, isn't it.

    Certainly when compared to the 'sword and sandals' drivel that passes for historical fiction now, the series is light years ahead.
     
  15. Yaroni

    Yaroni Member

    Aug 31, 2007
    Tel Aviv
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Israel
    wire level:

    sopranos
    breaking bad
    mad men
    game of thrones
    boardwalk empire (so good)
    oz

    all amazing really
     
  16. Miguel Alvarez

    May 12, 2006
    Great suggestions, have watched everyone of them outside of OZ though.

    Can't wait for GoT's, Storm of Swords, new season. Read all the books a while back which I can highly recommend.
     
  17. drjman

    drjman Member+

    Jul 28, 2010
    Southern California
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    West Wing is one of my favorites. Sorkin's new series "Newsroom" on HBO is awesome as well. Not sure its out anywhere yet besides HBO Go.
    A taster:

    A few other series I've recently enjoyed...

    Spooks (BBC)
    Wallander (UK) (Branagh is top notch, I have his ringtone on my phone, lol)
    Americans
    Derek (will be on netflix in the summer in the US)
    Sherlock (BBC)
    Southland
    The Hour (BBC)
    Zen (BBC)

    and others already mentioned. The Wire is a hard act to follow.
     
  18. drjman

    drjman Member+

    Jul 28, 2010
    Southern California
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I'm currently watching these:

    Continuum (canadian)
    GoT
    Borgias
    Americans (season just ended)
    Falling Skies
    Newsroom
    Boardwalk Empire
    Breaking Bad
    Downton (the most addicting and most boring show on the planet)
    Homeland (should have added this to the above, you need to stop everything you are doing and watch this show)
     
  19. okocha1

    okocha1 Member+

    Nov 25, 2004
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    The Americans (Season 1 just finished and I plan to buy the DVD)
    Breaking Bad (Starting up soon)
    Luther
    Justified
    Boardwalk (recently purchased Season 3)
    Peep Show (favorite comedy)

     
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  20. fernb8

    fernb8 Member+
    Staff Member

    Aug 12, 2002
    caught the debut of The Bridge the other night

    looks decent and hope it delivers on what it seems to have to offer
     
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  21. okocha1

    okocha1 Member+

    Nov 25, 2004
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    FX and AMC are really pushing the likes of Showtime and HBO nowadays.
     
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  22. fernb8

    fernb8 Member+
    Staff Member

    Aug 12, 2002
    agreed

    American Horror Story was quite impressive and the programming seems to be really pressing the pay channels
     
  23. Naughtius Maximus

    Jul 10, 2001
    Shropshire
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    England
    What is it with you fellas where shows, (particularly science fiction ones which, being a bit of a nerd, I like), KEEP getting cancelled. I mean, some of them aren't very good but it doesn't seem to make any difference... some of the worst ones are kept going whilst another, (also not very good), one gets cancelled.

    Don't they THINK about whether the thing is worth putting on in the first place?

    Bloody annoying, tbh :mad:
     
  24. Walter3000

    Walter3000 Member+

    Apr 8, 2004
    gainesville, Florida
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Haven't seen Peep show, enjoyed Breaking Bad for awhile, but now I do not really look forward to it, just no characters I really enjoy rooting for.
     
  25. Walter3000

    Walter3000 Member+

    Apr 8, 2004
    gainesville, Florida
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Want to check this out but the ad campaign was off putting
     

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