TV news and views

[PhoenixDark]

Really enjoyed this miniseries. Some outstanding acting and some of the best on-location shots of New York I've seen in film/tv recently.

[D3RANG3D]

[Polident]

Both new seasons of House of Dragon and The Boys are a bit of a slog.

Lately I’ve been waiting for shows to end their season before watching. These are the only two I’m keeping up with week to week. The formula is hard to ignore. No spoilers, a couple times now House of Dragon drags episode out to end with a “shocking” event and the first chunk of the next episode is people standing around sad and mourning.

[Nintex]

[DavidCroquet]

Both new seasons of House of Dragon and The Boys are a bit of a slog.

Lately I’ve been waiting for shows to end their season before watching. These are the only two I’m keeping up with week to week. The formula is hard to ignore. No spoilers, a couple times now House of Dragon drags episode out to end with a “shocking” event and the first chunk of the next episode is people standing around sad and mourning.

I'm with you on HotD. I was vibing with it for the first few episodes, but--even rationally understanding that things are happening--it feels like I've rewatched the same episode 3 times now.

I also wonder how the showrunners didn't notice that one half of the participants of the conflict have the charisma of a tree stump. Every time the scene switches to Dragonstone I have to sigh.

[benji]

[chronovore]

This is the consistent problem with large, johnny-come-lately partners being great at the thing that made them money: they're always looking at the next quarter, /maybe/ the next year. 

Committing to invading others' successful model isn't something that can be done in a year, two, or even 5 or 6 years. Committing and pushing through is the only thing which will succeed. Giving up after producing award-winning entertainment is the craziest damned thing. 

If they want to own the space, they shouldn't waver.

[benji]

They stupidly thought "streaming" was a new industry rather than just a distribution change for an existing long-running one.

Netflix has been the company that's seemingly known this and the others haven't, I assume because their business started as literally distributing physical media. Something which none of the other companies ever had experience with since they paid other people to do it or didn't do it at all.

Apple's overbite is funnier because they're one of the first companies with how they sold TV/movies through iTunes and Jobs absolutely understood the bargain he was getting.

[killamajig]

They stupidly thought "streaming" was a new industry rather than just a distribution change for an existing long-running one.

Netflix has been the company that's seemingly known this and the others haven't, I assume because their business started as literally distributing physical media. Something which none of the other companies ever had experience with since they paid other people to do it or didn't do it at all.

Apple's overbite is funnier because they're one of the first companies with how they sold TV/movies through iTunes and Jobs absolutely understood the bargain he was getting.

Unfortunately for streamers I'm one of those people that doesn't like to start a TV show when I think it's going to get canceled in the first season. And if there's a bunch of people like me, it's a self-fulfilling prophecy. 

*In infomercial voice* "There's got to be a better way!!!"

[Besticus Maximus]

I've been watching Presumed Innocent. A fairly on the nose apple show. Jake Gyllenhall is two dimensional lawyer sort who makes bad decisions and gets stressed about it. He has a best friend who is a good actor and a wife who is a bad actor with whom he has no chemistry. Everyone keeps going on about how beautiful she is but she's just kinda alright? He's having an affair with his colleague! Who is also constantly called beautiful but is kind of alright. Anyway, Jake Gyllenhal is very stressed and continues to make bad decisions while the only good actor in the show gives lectures to him about being a good lawyer guy in the middle of his own case. The bad guy is a big sweaty greasy fella, who looks like he stinks and has murdered five people. But he's just Jake's rival! Who wants to get him because Jake is a cool lawyer guy who fucks. That's pretty much the whole show.

[Polident]

Both new seasons of House of Dragon and The Boys are a bit of a slog.

Lately I’ve been waiting for shows to end their season before watching. These are the only two I’m keeping up with week to week. The formula is hard to ignore. No spoilers, a couple times now House of Dragon drags episode out to end with a “shocking” event and the first chunk of the next episode is people standing around sad and mourning.

I'm with you on HotD. I was vibing with it for the first few episodes, but--even rationally understanding that things are happening--it feels like I've rewatched the same episode 3 times now.

I also wonder how the showrunners didn't notice that one half of the participants of the conflict have the charisma of a tree stump. Every time the scene switches to Dragonstone I have to sigh.

What I’m now learning is the showrunners changed this season, or at least Miguel Sapochnik left.

Next week is the season finale and it’s felt like spinning wheels. Daemon is having a vision quest again this week. Oh boy.

[D3RANG3D]

[Potato]

Great use of Disarm in that trailer.

Still not interested in anything Terminator after T2

[Eric Cartman]

Speaking of showrunners spinning the wheels, I have to say I'm very disappointed in The Bear Season 3; I'm all for character moments and decompression, but literally three Things Of Importance happen all season - a character is pregnant, a review is written of the restaurant, and a character has to sign a contract - of which only one actually gets fucking resolved when they have a baby.
I'll follow where someone is going if I trust they know where that is, but when you spend a quarter of your runtime on a cold open that is a documentary about magicians that eventually reveals itself to be something a character is watching on TV, or endless montages of instagram food reels, I think its all getting a little self indulgent.

[Polident]

House of Dragon's seconds season is an impressive fumble. First season did a good job recovering after GoT's final season. Whether it's a writing strike situation or dragging it out to get more seasons in, they managed to make 3 to 4 episodes worth of story into 8.

[D3RANG3D]

[D3RANG3D]

Binged Terminator 0, and it's actually pretty good...I'd give it a 7/10 it's nowhere near the first two movies but is easily better than the newer media if you ask me.

Spoiler:  (click to show)(click to hide)

The animation on the first episode is pretty damn good, it was pretty uneven after that, and the fights/gun battles were kind of awkward.

Spoiler:  (click to show)(click to hide)

 They also did the thing where there are no lazer guns in the future like the newer terminator movies. 

[Tycoon Padre]

Wife has been watching The Stand miniseries from a few years back. Travesty that Ezra Miller didn't get an Emmy nom for this performance, what a gem.

Spoiler:  (click to show)(click to hide)

This is the actual editing/audio from the episode, by the way

[D3RANG3D]

[Potato]

Yeah, nah.

[Potato]

Anyone watched the first episode?

Looks like it has potential

[Cauliflower Of Love]

Rewatching breaking bad second ep toward the end, and cranston's performance of " this asshole is gonna disintegrate the bathtub" is amazing.

Cause he shows that he knows it's a person but he're more worried about that cleanup.

[Eric Cartman]

Anyone watched the first episode?

Looks like it has potential

I had zero interest until I realised it was an Armando Ianucci show,

Spoiler:  (click to show)(click to hide)

so I have patial interest because his last HBO deal was Avenue 5 which ended up being a Space force out of Red Dwarf in the scifi comedy scale and I think to do this sort of thing you have to really care about the source of the satire, which I'm not sure he does.

[chronovore]

I'm surveying different procedurals to find something to watch with my wife. White Collar is cute, fun, and maybe one rung higher for mental engagement than The A-Team. It's the kind of mismatched buddy stuff I like, similar to Person of Interest, which I loved. 

Friends recommended Miss Fisher's Mysteries, but the 1920s flapper in Australia vibe isn't working for my better half.

BONES seems like it ran for a good bit, and I have NO IDEA WHY. It is mind-numbingly dumb. 

We've currently settled on Will Trent, a Georgia Bureau of Investigation agent working with other broken people to try and do good. The two leads are compelling. There is much less chihuahua in it than the poster art and opening scene imply. It's got some heart, even if many mysteries are simple. Hoping it finds its rhythm. 

I wish one of the Japanese services had Banshee.

[Snoopy]

Ludwig is the one you want. It's very enjoyable.

[Eric Cartman]

I'd also recommend Elsbeth (the latest installment in The Good Wife / The Good Fight Cinematic Universe) as basically Columbo and not shy about it (one of the cops in an episode makes a quip along the lines of 'i'm not a fan of your make friends with the murderer until you can trip them up into a confession style, but it seems to work' ) and High Potential (not to be condused with Promising Young Woman, which is also great but a very different kettle of fish) which is basically Monk except instead of OCD she's a single mom

[chronovore]

I DEFINITELY want to watch that. 
Unfortunately, a British accent is beyond my wife's listening comprehension range, so I'll be enjoying it alone. Or maybe set up appointment with my local friend from Yorkshire.