Some Random Thoughts About Television... [R]

Discussion in 'Movies, TV and Music' started by TheSlipperyOne, Oct 15, 2007.

  1. TheJoeGreene

    TheJoeGreene Member+

    Aug 19, 2012
    The Lubbock Texas
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    Finished up season 2 of Slow Horses on Apple+. Gary Oldman is great as the curmudgeonly old MI-5 agent running a cast of misfits relegated to working out of the Slough House due to their screw ups. Jack Lowden and Kristin Scott Thomas are also quite good.

    I enjoyed season 1, probably a 7/10 for me, and season 2 was a step up to more like an 8/10 or maybe even 8.5. It's already renewed for seasons 3 and 4. These are based on the first 4 novels in Mick Herron's Slough House series which has 8 novels and 5 novellas so far. I think I'm going to have to read the books now.
     
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  2. NORML

    NORML Member+

    Aug 9, 2002
    Lake Wobegon, MN
    Club:
    NSC Minnesota Stars
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    United States
    Anyone else giving, The Last of Us a shot? I watched episode one and thought it was great, based on playing the game. So, I really would love to read from anyone who watched episode one and not gamed, let me know.
     
  3. Belgian guy

    Belgian guy Member+

    Club Brugge
    Belgium
    Aug 19, 2002
    Belgium
    Club:
    Club Brugge KV
    I watched it and haven't played the game (PC gamer).
    I would say that I thought it was enjoyable and okay but also not really that different from other post-apocalypse zombie shows I have seen? And I thought that the slavish devotion to clearly attempt to recreate some gameplay sequences is probably to the detriment of the show. Like I'm sure that prologue car ride was impressive in the game but foisting video game level design onto a TV show is probably not the greatest idea.
    But I liked it enough to keep watching and I definitely like the two leads (Pascal & Ramsey) as well as Anna Torv.
     
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  4. QuakeAttack

    QuakeAttack Member+

    Apr 10, 2002
    California - Bay Area
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
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    My oldest son and his girlfriend recommended watching the White Lotus. So, we finally got around to watching Season 1. We only made it through two episodes. I like quirky movies/shows (see Knives Out), but this was a miss for us. We just couldn't latch on to any of the characters. Also, it didn't help that my wife is Hawaiian and they didn't incorporate the local feel into show (Note: It looked like that it was filmed at Waikoloa Village on the Big Island and some different Hilton Properties.
     
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  5. chad

    chad Member+

    Jun 24, 1999
    Manhattan Beach
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    The Last of Us episode three is a triumph in boring television.
     
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  6. NORML

    NORML Member+

    Aug 9, 2002
    Lake Wobegon, MN
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    NSC Minnesota Stars
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    I never would have expected a performance from Nick Offerman that would get me to tear up. What a slow heartfelt episode set in the middle of a series surrounded in violence.
     
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  7. Belgian guy

    Belgian guy Member+

    Club Brugge
    Belgium
    Aug 19, 2002
    Belgium
    Club:
    Club Brugge KV
    It was my favorite episode so far.

    Felt a lot like Station Eleven.
     
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  8. chad

    chad Member+

    Jun 24, 1999
    Manhattan Beach
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Yeah, seems like I'm the odd one out here -- but I really thought it was cliched and sophomoric.

    Shrug.
     
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  9. soccernutter

    soccernutter Moderator
    Staff Member

    Tottenham Hotspur
    Aug 22, 2001
    Near the mountains.
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    Nat'l Team:
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    Yeah, I was there, mostly. It was nice to see a complete, full gay relationship in a series like this that was not promoted nor part of the point of the episode. And that it was in a rather popular show. That said, it was somewhat cliched as a romance/relationship, but not as a gay relationship, which was nice and refreshing.

    The last 5 to 10 minutes were also superb.

    I should also say that I never played the game (didn't even know it was a game).
     
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  10. soccernutter

    soccernutter Moderator
    Staff Member

    Tottenham Hotspur
    Aug 22, 2001
    Near the mountains.
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I'll have to check that out. And that it has McKenzie Davis in it is a plus. She's good in just about everything she does.
     
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  11. Belgian guy

    Belgian guy Member+

    Club Brugge
    Belgium
    Aug 19, 2002
    Belgium
    Club:
    Club Brugge KV
    Very warmly recommended. As is Emily St. John Mandel's book (the source material).
     
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  12. NORML

    NORML Member+

    Aug 9, 2002
    Lake Wobegon, MN
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    NSC Minnesota Stars
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    sorry to miss interpret. what have ya thought of the first two episodes? Also have ya played the game?

    thanks for that, what have ya thought so far?
     
  13. soccernutter

    soccernutter Moderator
    Staff Member

    Tottenham Hotspur
    Aug 22, 2001
    Near the mountains.
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Thanks to Richard Attenborough, I never had to look up what cordyceps were or what they did. It is a great idea for the jump. Beyond that, all I knew is that the series was about a man and a girl, and how they interact and survive. So it was nice to see that it took until the 3rd episode to get there. And explain/show how we got there. To this point, there has been some nice storytelling.

    One of the things I really like about the writing is how the
    Show Spoiler
    daughter's death
    from episode 1 would show up later. It has but there is also very clearly more to come. That more is to come has been telegraphed, but what and how has not.

    Also, zombie shows are not really my thing, and I don't have cable/HBOMax subscription. I just happen to be in a place where I got to see the first 3 episodes, so I'll have to figure out how to see future episodes. Maybe a subscription...
     
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  14. soccernutter

    soccernutter Moderator
    Staff Member

    Tottenham Hotspur
    Aug 22, 2001
    Near the mountains.
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Watched the first 3 episodes...does it get better than episode 3? Cause that is going to rank as one of my favorite/best TV episodes ever.

    E5 - first time I got the "game" aspect of the series, though I can see some of the old games text-based adventure games like Zork. Still, really touching, and well written.
     
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  15. TrickHog

    TrickHog Moderator
    Staff Member

    Oct 14, 2002
    Los Angeles, CA
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    Los Angeles Galaxy
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    Station Eleven is my favorite limited series in like forever. I had read the book many years prior and while I liked the book I LOVED the tv series.
     
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  16. TheJoeGreene

    TheJoeGreene Member+

    Aug 19, 2012
    The Lubbock Texas
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    Hammered through the first 3 seasons of Servant on Apple TV+. Now caught up on season 4 with 3 episodes remaining. It's an M. Night jam, so it could still go off the rails, but so far it's a brilliant mix of weird happenings, religious cults, maybe/maybe not supernatural powers, etc. and the acting is fantastic. Rupert Grint as the alcoholic brother is a standout along with Nell Tiger Free, the nanny who is the centerpiece of the whole show.

    Enjoying The Last of Us so far. I'm not a gamer, so I'm completely unfamiliar with the material and it's got my attention at all times.

    1923 is another one that's a hit for me from Taylor Sheridan. I like 1883 better, but Ford and Mirren are excellent and the various supporting characters are all people I want to see more of.

    Poker Face on Peacock is like a weekly 1 hour popcorn flick and I'm here for it. No real standout episode so far, but I look forward to seeing who the weekly guest appearances are going to be. Judith Light was my favorite of the bunch so far.

    I probably shouldn't, but I like the Night Court reboot. The only true weak part is the female DA, but all the others work. John Larroquette continues to be Dan Fielding to the perfect degree even in his 70s.

    Watching Shrinking, Dear Edward, and Hello Tomorrow! on Apple+ and all 3 work for me.

    Shrinking has some excellent slice of life stuff going on and the Ted McGinley/Christa Miller neighbor combo provides just the right levity.

    Dear Edward is about a kid who is the sole survivor of a plane crash and how he adjusts to the world around him while also exploring how it effects several of the victims families. It lays it on a bit too thick for me at times, but still pretty solid so far.

    Hello Tomorrow! might be my favorite of the new Apple+ shows. It's a really fun futuristic 1950s world with a great little reveal waiting to be made. The lead characters sell time shares for life on the moon and their interplay alone is enough to drive the concept.

    At this point, I'll pretty much just blindly give anything Apple+ does a shot. The "bad" shows I've watched on there have been good.
     
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  17. TheJoeGreene

    TheJoeGreene Member+

    Aug 19, 2012
    The Lubbock Texas
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
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    1923 with a really good set of cliffhangers for the end of season 1. Unlike 1883, they're already set to do a second season and this episode was written like good pro wrestling booking from back in the day where the babyfaces have seemingly insurmountable odds stacked up against them before they finally get their second wind and finally overcome the heels.
     
  18. NORML

    NORML Member+

    Aug 9, 2002
    Lake Wobegon, MN
    Club:
    NSC Minnesota Stars
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    The editing of, 'Drive to Survive' is great. I really believe they weave a story that leads into next season of F1 but creates a reason to go back to season one. You are entering just at the right time.
     
  19. chad

    chad Member+

    Jun 24, 1999
    Manhattan Beach
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Mandalorian was a groan fest.
     
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  20. Ismitje

    Ismitje Super Moderator

    Dec 30, 2000
    The Palouse
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    So, "History of the World Part 2" anyone?
     
  21. TheJoeGreene

    TheJoeGreene Member+

    Aug 19, 2012
    The Lubbock Texas
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    I didn't mind it because it was a short "memba berry" episode. I don't think they needed to do it, despite the two year gap, but the weird tortoisecroc thing was fine and the rest really was just the writers telling us the current situation of whoever would be in the season.

    If they do that again then I might wait until the season is over to give it another shot.
     
  22. TheJoeGreene

    TheJoeGreene Member+

    Aug 19, 2012
    The Lubbock Texas
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    Watched the series finale of Servant. As far as M. Night Shyamalan endings go, it was actually pretty good. Nobody was an alien, the show wrapped up logically, and there was a nice nugget of a cliffhanger that continued the world it took place in without feeling forced.

    Nell Tiger Free was a revelation in this show and she's at least got a future in the thriller/horror realm as an actress.
     
  23. TheJoeGreene

    TheJoeGreene Member+

    Aug 19, 2012
    The Lubbock Texas
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    The Consultant is definitely a television show. I'm not really sure about anything else though. Christoph Waltz was his usual weird and disturbing comedic character. The others were all actors I don't really know but did a fine job. The levels of awkwardness and confusion were used well to forward a plot that seems extremely weird even after the 1st season finale.

    Tony Basgallop was the writer, just like he was for Servant, so I'm guessing it will be a hit and will return with even more weirdness.
     
  24. Aimercat

    Aimercat Member

    Oct 31, 2006
    Chicago
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    The list of shows I watch is like a mile long.

    YOU: damn you joe goldberg. that's all i will say.

    Snowfall.....damn you Leon. I was rooting for you! You should've stayed in Ghana with Wanda! I'm so sick of Gustavo getting used by EVERYONE.

    Wolfpack: it's so bad, but my Buffy loyalty to Sarah Michelle Gellar binds me to everything she does. I think i made a blood pact with her.
     
  25. TheJoeGreene

    TheJoeGreene Member+

    Aug 19, 2012
    The Lubbock Texas
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    Dear Edward has really gone off the rails. 1 episode left, but they've made me wish that most of the characters in the show had been the ones that died in the crash as the inciting incident for the show. It's one thing for things to be messy/gritty, but there are legitimately no more than 3 characters that I don't find completely irredeemable. I'll watch the finale, but if they do a season 2 there's no chance. It's the first show on Apple + that I think is actually not good.
     

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