General Open Thread – TV Shows (2)

Home Forums General General Open Thread – TV Shows (2)

This topic contains 1,048 replies, has 73 voices, and was last updated by  Craig 4 years, 1 month ago.

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  • #67155
    winston @winston

    @craig  It is a great show and Sandra Oh is excellent.  Also she is Canadian.

    #67157
    Missy @missy

    @craig

    Have seen it  and really rate it. Still waiting for series two. However, I still feel that Jodie (blimey that name gets around) Comer should have won best actress. she was terrifying.

    Missy

    #67397
    Missy @missy

    Hello all, just a quick visit. This is again about Radio.

    As you know, or should by now, I listen to a lot of stuff on BBC Radio 4 Extra. Today I heard a wonderful play by Al Smith called Life Lines (Omnibus) first dramatised for Radio this year.

    If any of you have been fortunate enough to watch Ambulance UK or Australia this series is the same, with subtle differences. Absolutely superb, especially the story abut a bitch called Nigel – actually all of them are wonderful.

    I urge you to  take some time and listen to this .

    later

    Missy

    #67584
    nerys @nerys

    @craig We just started watching Killing Eve last night, and you’re right. It’s superb!

    Not so great has been Star Trek Discovery, which has had a very uneven second season. It’s like the show can’t make up its mind what it is: pure comic book, trying to pay homage to the series’ canon or soap opera. Every time I got my hopes up that finally the series was finding its way, in the next episode everything would fall apart again.

    And then there was last night’s finale. The “show, don’t tell” mantra seems to be lost on these writers. Way, way too many ‘xplosions, way too much ‘xplaining going on. I agree with this review (which ends on a hopeful note; maybe now that they’re done connecting all the dots, they’ll get around to some actual storytelling).

    #67694
    Mudlark @mudlark

    Has anyone here in the UK been watching the latest from RTD – ‘Years and Years’?  The reviewers – at least those I have read – have been enthusiastic, though there has, been the inevitable carping BTL  -‘ third rate imitation of Black Mirror’, ‘diversity-by-numbers’, ‘BBC left wing agenda’ etc. etc.  But, since I regard the BBC as far less left wing than myself and my own family is diverse to approximately the same degree, I have been enjoying it – a rollicking glimpse of the near future as seen through the eyes and experience of three generations of one family;  blackly pessimistic,  funny and frenetically paced (and with a pretty strong cast, to boot).

     

     

    #67697
    janetteB @janetteb

    @mudlark, written by RTD, has Emma Thompson in it, left wing, (as I would expect from RTD). It is very definitely on my “too watch” list. I have been reading the reviews and it sounds interesting. I am currently writing a story set in “near future” dealing with the impact of climate change and growing income inequality. Was supposed to set in the present but I find I am incapable of writing about the present. It limits the creativity.

    Cheers

    Janette

    #67698
    syzygy @thane16

    @janetteb @mudlark  @nerys

    that sounds good -I don’t know if we have it on Netflix or the ABCiview -Janette you might know too? Are you streaming it on the “ever so fast NBN?”  I mean Davie’s series.

    We love Killing Eve -it dipped in the first 2 new episodes but has exploded upward since. Have you see Harrow, Janette? If you haven’t been bothered  I really wouldn’t it’s trying to be comedy slapstick with dead serious stuff and not working. Lots of people in Brisbane are talking about it but I’m not sure the actor (Gruffid) is doing as well as they think.

    Oh and we saw Dr Foster and Mum was ballistic with excitement. It took about a week then she said “I got it!”

    Typically I said “uhm?”

    And she started babbling about Euros. Sian (who’s real name IS Sian) is in Dr Foster. A funny and odd character. I never picked it 🙁

    @nerys mum said “helloo” and to everyone too.

    Thane (break from tests)

    #67703
    winston @winston

    @mudlark  That sounds worth looking for. Thanks for the tip.  In my opinion , the BBC  does not seem too far left. I know because I am way too far left and people need not fear me  because I am the least threatening person I know.  Anyway diversity is the future.

    @janetteb  Your story sounds interesting and all too plausible as the poor will suffer more from the impacts of climate change. Extreme heat or cold costs more just to live comfortably, food and housing costs keep rising and bad air makes people sick. A great idea for a story.

    #67742

    I imagine many of you have seen the hype surrounding Chernobyl, the HBO/ Sky Atlantic mini-series.

    Every bit of the hype is justified. It is simply the best piece of storytelling you will see this year, or many other years, by an absolute mile. The acting is universally superb and unpretentious. The script is a masterclass in economy in telling a complex tale. The score is simply incredible.

    But it genius, its absolute genius, is that it is told from the point of view of people in the midst of catastrophe, with no smart-arsed benefit-of-hindsight preachiness. And as a consequence, it becomes absolutely pertinent to today’s world.

    Whatever your viewing plans are, rearrange them by fair means or foul.

    #67746
    winston @winston

    @pedant  I have heard about the show and I am glad it is as good as they say. I will have to wait for my library to order it but they are pretty good at getting things if people request them. Thanks for the review.

    #67758
    winston @winston

    I just finished the miniseries Good Omens based on a book by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman with the script by Gaiman and I really enjoyed it. An angel and a demon on earth since the beginning must team up to stop the end. It is a funny ,tongue in cheek story about good versus evil with a great cast including David Tennant , Micheal Sheen, Jack Whitehall and Miranda Richardson. The only thing wrong with it is that it was over too soon.  It is a great summer series.

    #67759
    janetteB @janetteb

    @winston Really looking forward to Good Omens. Have not had time to watch it yet. I am currently ‘discovering” Terry Pratchett and loving his writing. I am currently reading Mort. Good Omens might be a good “pick up” watch after Chernobyl. I am also looking forward to Stranger Things which starts next week. The boys insisted I watch it last year and I was hooked.

    Cheers

    Janette

     

    #67763
    Miapatrick @miapatrick

    @pedant agree, absolutely brilliant. There was, I think, a small element of hindsight, though never smart-arse or preachy, from the opening scene.

    I also have to mention the scene I was absolutely dreading (I’m trying to avoid spoilers even though this is an historical series and it’s something that actually happened – but there is a webpage named for this particular aversion) was handled absolutely sensitively and respectfully.

    I’ve been reading Russian novels recently, especially 19th century, and just listed to a series of lectures on Russian literature, and one thing that struck me was how very Russian a lot of this was – this baseline conflict between the solider and the bureaucrat, with peasants (I don’t mean that word with any disrespect) standing to the side barely touched by anything but interference between them and the land/work creating moments of sadness and bathos.

    #67764
    Miapatrick @miapatrick

    @winston it was good, wasn’t it? Clearly a labour of love from Gaiman to Pratchett.

    @janetteb – my boyfriend and I are near the end of season two re-watch ready for Thursday, quite excited.

    #67768
    winston @winston

    @miapatrick  I watched it and then I waited 3 days and watched it again. So good! @janetteb I watched the first few episodes of Stranger Things while visiting my son and I really liked it but I have to wait for the next visit to watch more or hope my library orders it.

    #67779
    nerys @nerys

    @pedant My husband and I watched Chernobyl a few weeks ago and were absolutely blown away by it. As @miapatrick noted, they never descended into preachiness. And their portrayals of the effects of radiation on the human body were excruciating to watch … but important to see so that we understand the gravity of the situation. There was so much I didn’t know, including certain actions that had to be taken in the Exclusion Zone (to which I think @miapatrick is referring). I thought I wouldn’t be able to watch, but it was handled sensitively enough that I got through it. But it stayed on my mind long after we were done watching.

    I want to read the book on which the series was based, but it’s not available at our local library, so I’ve put a hold on another book that I’ll read in the meantime. I read an article contrasting the book, and the portrayal of certain scenes. There was some dramatization, which of course we should expect. It’s not a documentary, it’s a drama. But I can understand why they took the departures they did. As the article pointed out, a series about people meekly accepting their fate, without protest or complaint, would not be stimulating viewing. It’s a remarkable window into the Russian world, and is richly deserving of all the praise it’s receiving.

    Oh, and @thane16, I’m sorry I’m only just now seeing your post. Please say hello to your mom for me!

    #67781
    Cath Annabel @cathannabel

    Hello all, have been AWOL for a while but prompted to post re a couple of TV things.  First off, Years and Years, highly recommended. Very RTD (in both its virtues and its flaws).  Managed to be funny and heartbreaking and provocative – not perfect by any means (I won’t be too specific about my quibbles for those who haven’t seen it yet) but brilliant performances and quite terrifying in terms of the plausibility of this particular dystopian vision of the future.  Secondly, Series 2 of Trust Me.  The first series starred our JW, and was an enjoyable if not credible hospital based thriller in which she played someone pretending to be a doctor, oddly enough.  Series 2 was denied JW since she had become a real Doctor by then and so was an entirely separate enjoyable if not credible hospital based thriller – but if you watch it, there are some lovely Who nods in the first couple of episodes!  Chernobyl we haven’t seen yet but since everyone we know has recommended it, will have to catch up with it soon!

    #67782
    janetteB @janetteb

    Hi @cathannabel

    @winston watched the first three episodes of Good Omens last night and thoroughly enjoyed them.  Unfortunately however we are also two episodes into the new series of Stranger Things so now is a toss up as to which to watch first.

    there are apparently lots of Dr Who “Easter eggs” in Good Omens. I will have pay more attention as I have yet to spot any.

    there are quite a few good series coming out at the moment but I was disappointed to see that War of the Worlds is not being released until next year. I have been looking forward to it for some time now. Dracula, the series created by Moffat and Gatiss is however due out some time later this year according to IMDB.

    cheers

    Janette

    #67793
    JimTheFish @jimthefish
    Time Lord

    @mudlark @cathannabel @janetteb et al

    I’d heartily add to the Years and Years recommendations. It is very RTD-esque but none the worst for it. It’s also a long overdue BBC foray into drama dealing with contemporary issues rather than desperately trying to avoid them in costume and/or crime drama.

    @pedant

    I’m very much looking forward to Chernobyl once I can figure out a (legal) way to get hold of it. Must also try and check out Good Omens too.

    #67796

    @jimthefish

    It should still be on Now TV, which has a monthly sub, asl long as you remember to cancel it (I used … ahem… other means, because the stench of Murdoch is not that easily removed). DVD/Bluray out later this month (and on order).

    (Also can you look at user dfhghdfg05, who is, to quote the Artic Monkeys, not quite legitimate…

    #67833
    Mudlark @mudlark

    @pedant @miapatrick @cathannabel @jimthefish

    I bought the DVD of Chernobyl on Monday afternoon, watched the five episodes over three evenings and am left stunned. Deftly and concisely constructed almost entirely from the point of view of those involved as it happened, with all the muddle, panic and ignorance, the struggle to cope in the face of official and bureaucratic unwillingness to acknowledge the facts, and the gradual disentangling of the sequence of events and the causes, it more than lived up to the accolades. The opening, with Vasily Legasov’s concluding message, ‘The real danger is that if we hear enough lies, then we no longer recognise the truth at all’ was a punch to the gut. We may not be living under a totalitarian regime with an ideological agenda and an imposed version of what is acceptable reality, but that observation has an obvious and immediate relevance today.

    When it happened I was on an archaeological cruise, on a boat in the Aegean, and the only source of news was a radio news broadcast in the mornings. We weren’t under the radioactive plume as far as our information went, but as far as that information went I knew it was extremely serious and was surprised at how unworried my fellow passengers seemed to be. Even so, it is only after watching this that I realise how near to total catastrophe the disaster came.

    #67843
    Missy @missy

    I ‘d heard of the Chernobyl series.  It hasn’t been shown here yet, and I don’t know if I want to see such a gruelling series. However, I can understand some people might like to see it.

    We  watched yet another film about Lizzie Borden last night. This was the best one so far and the actress Christina Ricci is a dead ringer for Jenna Coleman. I couldn’t work out who she reminded me of until she cocked her head to one side and Bingo!

    Has anyone else seen this?

    Missy

    #67847
    JimTheFish @jimthefish
    Time Lord

    @pedant @mudlark et al

    Cheers for that, @pedant. I plan to dive into Chernobyl soonest. Time is at a premium at the moment as I try to wrangle this damn thesis into shape for final submission. But I’m looking forward to it. (Hope you’re taking care yourself btw)…

    btw, if anyone is looking for something a bit timey-wimey over the summer then I’d heartily recommend Russian Doll too. It’s great. And Natasha Lyonne has just rocketed to the top of my list of potential female Doctors.

    #67848
    Mudlark @mudlark

    @missy

    I can understand some people might like to see it.

    I don’t think ‘like’ is the operative word. Drama as safe and ultimately reassuring entertainment has its place, but sometimes it is a means of confronting us directly with truths we might prefer not to confront, and it is then  that it can be most powerful. Chernobyl does exactly that and almost certainly better than any documentary might have done.

    #67854
    Missy @missy

    @mudlark

    If you were chastising me, albeit gently, you were quite right to. LIKE is the wrong word, how could anyone ‘like’ watching this series? My apologies.

    The worlds is in such turmoil, wars, terrorists, nature, that I refuse to watch anything confronting on TV.

    I retire into fiction.

    Missy

    #67917

    Couple of things:

    Those in the UK with an Amazon Prime subscription (possibly other markets, don’t know) can enjoy Dead Like Me, an absolutely delightful and bittersweet, but sadly short-lived, series from 2003-04 (cancelled for reasons of internal Showtime politics, so no good reason). It is an early Bryan Fuller show and concerns Georgia Lass, and aimless 18-year old drifting through her life until it is unexpectedly terminated by a toilet seat from the de-orbiting Mir space station. At this point she finds herself appointed as a Grim Reaper (not the Grim Reaper), charged with taking the souls of people just before they die and helping them on to whatever comes next. Meanwhile, her family copes with the grief of loss… It is funny, intelligent and kind, and also literate – a joy from beginning to end.

    Harder to find if you are not a US-based Hulu subscriber (or willing to use totallylegitimatedownloads.com) is season 4 of Veronica Mars , which is pretty amazing given that season 3 aired in 2006. In the original series, Kristen Bell played the titular character, a high school student in a town “With no middle class” where the working classes have no real choices, the upper classes have no functional moral compass and her best friend has been murdered. A sort of Nancy Drew through a Raymond Chandler lens. It was Bell’s break out role. When I *cough* acquired it after hearing some buzz, but not having a clue what it was about, I settled down to watch a couple of episode before supper and 10 episodes later it as 2:30am.

    The line that absolutely sold it to me: “You wanna know how I lost my virginity? So would I.”

    There was a reasonably successful fan-funded movie a few years ago, but the new series came somewhat out of the blue when Bell announced it last year. Being on Hulu and therefore free of Network TV restrictions it is able to go full Noir and is everything I would have wanted in a reboot. It picks up about 10 years after the original series, with Veronica now working as a private detective. It also does a thing that made me yelp with joy, because of who it will annoy…but that would be a spoilers. Not essential to have seen the first three series, but the pleasure is much richer when you have.

    Alas it will be a lot harder to find, thanks to it only being on Hulu in the US and no news of international distribution.

    I can think of only a handful of series that have grabbed me the way Veronica Mars did – let’s think…NuWho, obv, Buffy, the first season of Heroes, Red Dwarf, Thirteen Reason Why. Even Leftovers and Rectify were more slow burn.

    Both highly recommended.

    (BTW, Chernobyl is out of DVD/Bluray, @thane16 )

    #67918
    syzygy @thane16

    @jimthefish Years & Years sounds great. @cathannabel:  thank you for that too. We also saw Russian Doll: brill! Jim, Good luck with the thesis. May the calm of the Jedi knights be with you!

    @mudlark @missy

    I think Dr Who was confronting Missy? With Capaldi’s Doc? All the monsters could be a hard lesson in life, the monsters a back-drop, a good portion of the time.  Chernobyl is on our order list having been nudged by not 1, not 2 but 3 close mates. I don’t know very much about Lizzie Borden, Missy: that’s pretty scary though. Are there a few movies out about that part of history, then?  (also, Missy, not sure if I remembered your birthday! Apologies if I have -although it’s good to hear it again. I’m posting, so if I look at the Activity feed I’ll lose post. Don’t want that)

    @pedant  Hang on! -Establish identity-  (dalek voice).

    Where. Is. Pedant. You are not Pedant. Your short posts would indicate a pedant.

    Security question: what did you like about Season 5 of Buffy?

    I’m pretty sure I can GET Veronica Mars, actually (the early series) but it’s pointless being too optimistic until tomorrow, Sunday. 😉  Indeed, Rectify and L’overs the slow burn; but the latter is possibly the best show I’d seen in 5 years, at least. Who and Buffy are in their own space. Forever shalleth it be-ith….

    made me yelp with joy…

    It’s worth it if only to find out where the ‘yelping’ happened.

    #67919
    syzygy @thane16

    @pedant once back at the house & into September I’ll enquire into Amazon Prime Aus.

    Also First Man which was mentioned IS a film? Is it produced by Wyck Godfrey of Twilight Fame and I Robot?

    #67920
    Anonymous @

    Hi. I’m new. Literally joined about two minutes ago and I’m still trying to figure this site out.

    I’m not british so I didn’t grow up on Doctor Who. Sort of a late-bloomer. Anyway I have a question regarding season 9 episode 10. The one where Clara gets killed. Why didn’t Ashildr give Clara one of those white thingies the doctor gave her to keep her alive/immortal? He gave her two and I think she never used the other one. So.. what’s up with that?

     

    #67921

    @aklapa

    The answer to your question is found in this episode (if you click the Forums link at the top you will find a forum/ thread for pretty well every episode – this forum is for non-Who TV).

     

    #67922

    @thane16

    So you are just going to let death by space toilet seat slide, eh? You’re losing your touch!

    First Man is, indeed, a film with Ryan Gosling as Armstrong and the excellent Claire Foy as his wife. I was unaware of Wyck Godfrey, but First Man in some way atones for I, Robot which completely ignored the well defined nature of Asimov’s Robot Universe.

    The only flaw in Buffy S5 is that they keep implying that Ben and Glory are related, but won’t spell it out. Perhaps the writers were stoned.

    #67924
    winston @winston

    @pedant   We loved Dead Like Me and watched it together every week when it first aired here in Canada. Also it was filmed in BC so you can see a bit of beautiful Canada. It is a darkly funny story of a sarcastic bored young women coming to terms with her death. I am lucky to have all the episodes because my son ,who also loved it, tracked it down a few years ago. This will have to go on my “must re watch” list  for the next rainy day.  Anyone who has a chance to see it should give it a go.

    #67925
    winston @winston

    @pedant  There is a movie called Dead Like  Me : Life after Death  made in 2009 that continues the story and wraps up a few loose ends.

    #67928
    syzygy @thane16

    <span style=”font-size: 14.4px;”><span style=”text-align: left; color: #333333; text-transform: none; text-indent: 0px; letter-spacing: normal; font-family: ‘Arimo’,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; word-spacing: 0px; display: inline !important; white-space: normal; orphans: 2; float: none; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent;”>Also it was filmed in BC so you can see a bit of beautiful Canada.</span></span>

    @winston

    But BC stands for British Columbia, yes? 🙂

    @akalpa Welcome to the site, btw. I might have a toddle to that thread @pedant linked to & check it out myself (like doing a little quiz). Considering that series aired some time ago, there’s a lot of space/time stuff that’s fallen into a Black Hole, or behind the couch and also SO many other brilliant shows that I don’t think I would’ve watched if people here hadn’t gently nudged.

    @winston Dead Like Me sounds very familiar. I’m thinking I’ve seen some of it -but not sure exactly how. If it was out in late ’17 or early ’18 on Pay per View -series & film, that could make some sense. If so, why I can’t I remember it? Possibly the same reason as above -the black hole of memory.  😉

    Shows I found complex & devastating, I watched all over again. Not just Leftovers or 13 Reasons Why -the latter had a certain scene now…sort of…….ah (you’ll know if you know) but The OA & Rectify both had me sobbing a little (sobbing, lots).

    @pedant Death by Space Toilet seat from Mir: No, no. I was really very stoned… Or distracted by the possibility of Pedant Dalek -now that would perturb one.  Death by space toilet seat would be a practical way of going.

    I remember you discussing the problems with I, Robot. I had read Asimov as a teenager. And was promptly told by a certain someone to READ MORE (dalek voice). YOU WILL READ. Or be exterminated. The Buffy security question/answer was interesting. Not your favourite ‘thing’ as there was ‘only one flaw’ which wasn’t. So you’ll pass. But by the skin of a dalek’s toilet plunger.

    Also that conversation led to other books & films (short stories & quartets of books) which delved into SciFi.  Then @jimthefish spoke about some of his favourite novels; not necessarily sci-fi. So @pedant (as I’m elder Syzygy with her humour*), I was above average so don’t be mean. Arf. Arf.

    *young Syz played 100 minutes yesterday with a massive fever & now has bronchitis. Karma’s a be-atch

    #67929
    syzygy @thane16

    oops! I didn’t break it! I quoted 15 words from @winston.

    @aklapa -some of that was yours but don’t want to edit for fear of the loss of detail.

    And I am aware of the whole ‘pasting & cutting’ thing @pedant. And thank you for those ideas.  Interesting that when the quote was used by me, the font that appeared was very different. I used Ctrl C and V rather than click and drag

     

    #67930
    winston @winston

    @thane16   Yes BC is British Columbia , a very beautiful part of Canada where @blenkinsopthebrave and my daughter live. Many movies and TV shows are filmed there,mostly in Vancouver.

    We watched Dead Like Me way back when it first aired.I think on Showcase. It also has Mandy Patinkin in it.

    #67934
    syzygy @thane16

    @winston

    that joke died didn’t it? It was the code that did it, huh (scratches ears). You said: “it’s filmed in BC so you can see a bit of beautiful Canada.”

    And I said “but BC stands for British Columbia?”  As in BC IS Beautiful Canada.

    @whisht !!!!!!!!!!! Hey @whisht!!!!!!!!! You said I was funny!  But no-one got the funny (whines).

    I LOVE Mandy Patininikin. I loved the theme song of Chicago Hope. I loved the whole show. 24 years later I buy the entire series and I’m so excited. We all sit down and love it.

    Then we put the 2nd series in and you hardly see him again and it all fell flat.  🙁

    So I swapped to ER.  Which had George Clooney.  What a mork.

    @pedant!!!!!!!!! Was it you who said watch Up in The Air? Anna Kendrick’s in it, I think? I’m 14 minutes in & Clooney gets his typical ‘look.’ We women know the look. Some of us love it. Some of us hate it. He has 3 things to do, pretty much. Like Roger Moore who admitted he had 3 quirks including straightening his tie.  Clooney’s less interesting. Also, I like flying. But not really. The smell, the food, the loos, the stewards. The whole shebang is difficile. But if it’s Anna….& it’s worth it…then so shall it be-ith.

    Syzygy the other.

    #67936
    blenkinsopthebrave @blenkinsopthebrave

    Does art imitate life or does life imitate art? Some of you may have heard of this particular episode of a long forgotten TV show, but many of you will have not. It was made in 1958, it is 22 minutes long, and it is a hoot.

    When it starts you might think: what?? But bear with it…trust me, you will enjoy it.

     

    #67938
    winston @winston

    @thane16   It was funny I just wasn’t paying attention. I was up and posting long after my bedtime and easily confused or maybe it was heat stroke.

    What is a mork ? Although being said about George it is probably good.

    #67939
    Missy @missy

    @thane16 – syzygy   I think Dr Who was confronting Missy? With Capaldi’s Doc? All the monsters could be a hard lesson in life, the monsters a back-drop, a good portion of the time.  Chernobyl is on our order list having been nudged by not 1, not 2 but 3 close mates. I don’t know very much about Lizzie Borden, Missy: that’s pretty scary though. Are there a few movies out about that part of history, then?  (also, Missy, not sure if I remembered your birthday! Apologies if I have -although it’s good to hear it again. I’m posting, so if I look at the Activity feed I’ll lose post. Don’t want that)

    Thing is, the monsters were fictional.  Scary – some of them – but not real. Chernobyl IS real. I’ve seen enough suffering to last me for the rest of my life. Give me fiction every time.

    To be fair, stories such as Lizzie Borden, although true, I find fascinating, and yet recent TV expos about Charles Manson and his moronic family make me shudder.

    Yes, you have just remembered my birthday *grins* I didn’t expect you to. I trust that yours was a good one.

    Cheers,

    Missy

    #67940
    syzygy @thane16

    @winston

    To be fair, I was taking “mork” out for a walk. 🙂 I don’t really know what a mork is, but it suits Clooney. He has this habit of moving his head around and up and down and smiling with no teeth, looking all bashful and then smiling with teeth. It’s this: “i’m trying to be irresistible and totally interested in you, the other character (love interest) and you, the audience.” I don’t know how many times I’ve heard interview panels where they have said to a new actor, in a  debut role, “how amazing is it to be working with George?”

    They usually say “oh, yes, yes, my mom wants a selfie and many photos and a skype and…and…” I don’t know quite why any of that pisses me off? It shouldn’t! I liked ER a lot and think George did a great job; acting all “George.”

    Perhaps it’s the August heat. How are you doing with it? Is it striking you in the same way as the UK? Record highs of 38 or 42 Celsius aint pleasant. Staying completely still definitely helps except we’re not all mannequins Georges.

    🙂  Also, you have a lovely pet to walk. I find pets suffer from the heat terribly here. So many people leave them out during the summer whilst at work with barely a shrub for cover and no water . A bit of a disgrace, really. Aaaand I’m moaning. Also, I’m not on topic here (casting about for TV show topics/tropes) and clearly it’s all about George!

    Siggers the Silly.

    #67941
    janetteB @janetteb

    Never seen “George” in anything but am tempted to give Catch 22 a try. I read the book for first year Eng Lit and enjoyed it.

    Have just watched season three of Last Kingdom and really enjoyed it despite the gratuitous blood letting. Oh for the days when some things were left to the imagination. I liked the way they commented on tolerance and social inclusion, and given that the series is about the creation of an England that consists of three different peoples, it was apt to both then and now. Just because a show is set in the past or future or imagined reality does not mean it has no relevance to the present. Any story worth its ink (or screen space) should say something of relevance to the viewer/reader regardless of when it is set. (Not depicting the vikings as bikie gangs might have improved things however.)

    Cheers

    Janette

     

    #67942

    @thane16

    Up in The Air

    Not me, which given my status as acolyte of the Church of the Blessed Kendrick is a bit of an oversight.

    Compose using the text tab to avoid gubbins.

    Isn’t Mork Mindy’s alien pal?

     

     

     

    #67992
    Roger429 @roger429

    I’m a new member so I would like to make some observations.  I’ve been watching Doctor Who since the 70s and I like the new female Doctor.  She’s great at portraying a time lord.  However, Doctor Who is about travel in space and time; but almost the entire new series was spent on Earth–did the writers forget the Doctor travels the universe?  Some of the previous Doctors endured cost limits that resulted in bad sets, but the story lines were always great, and mostly in outer space, on other planets, and with more action and less talk.  I hope the upcoming series of episodes will have more “space and time” themes, and less humdrum Earth history.  I know special effects cost more, but they make the story lines more awesome and fun to watch.  Could someone with connections to the writers please get them back on track?  I reiterate, the new female Doctor–Jodie Whittaker–is great, and I will certainly be watching the new episodes.  This is not a bash the Doctor or series comment–more of wish for more special effects.

    #68072
    Missy @missy

    Much too late in the series – I fear – we’ve started watching GREEN WING. I dare say most of you have seen this completely mental sitcom.

    Michelle Gomez, as Sue White is wonderful – actually the whole cast is wonderful. It’s surprising that they actually made this programme in a Hospital.

    What do the rest of you think of it?

    Missy

    #68125

    @all

    Another Netflix bit of wonder stuff, prompted by @thane16 the Elder.

    Watch Unbelievable, an 8 part “limited series” (ie only one season, I think) dealing with the Washington and Colorado serial rapes and starting with the truly shocking and infuriating treatment of the first victim, bullied into retracted her complaint.

    What it does brilliantly is let the police procedural format speak for the victims and to damn the incompetents, without melodrama. The three female leads – Toni Collette, Merritt Wever (as the two cops who crack the case) and Kaitlyn Dever as the, doubly-abused first victim, are superb, but the whole show is marked by skilled use of restraint. It occasionally spells out the obvious for the benefit of the hard of learning, but never descends into preachiness.

    UK viewers may recall a 1983 documentary episode called A Complaint of Rape, which exposed the dreadfully inept handling of rape cases by Thames Valley Police. It led to wholesale changes in how sexual offences are handed in the UK. One can only hope that this re-telling has a similar impact.

    It may also prompt recollections of Lindy Chamberlain and Joanna Lees – women who had unjust suspicion thrown on them at least in part because they weren’t hysterical.

    #68210
    winston @winston

    Hello!  today I stopped by my local charity shop for a look around because you never know what you will find there and while looking through the DVDs I found the entire 6th season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer in a boxed set for the amazing low price of a twoney (what Canadians call our 2 dollar coin).Of course I bought it and look forward to watching it sometime over the cold snowy winter. I have not watched this season so all is good. I have only watched a few episodes here and there so it will be good to watch a whole season so I know what you are all talking about. I am hoping I get addicted and have to find the rest of the show to watch so I have a winter hobby.

    #68213
    syzygy @thane16

    @winston !!!! No! Try not to watch Season 6 before seasons 1-5. Otherwise, well, it’s “dark” but yes, incredible. But knowing the characters from the first season is best, imo. I understand they could be expensive? But it could be will be worth it.  Seriously. If you throw yourself into season 6, SO much of the brilliance of it, the new characters (or new-ish) will be a bit lost .

    Also, some have said it’s a depressing season. I don’t agree completely with that but I do have an urge to say that I loved Season 3 for its hope & sheer high school lunacy as the characters have matured & season 5 is SO  spectacular, in story lines & craft, that it’s unbeatable. With anything. OK, maybe House, or Doctor Who, ahem, but, perhaps it beats even those. Almost…

    Love to you & …..try not to watch it, yet. Aim for Season 1 which may scare you as some episodes are considered not ‘as good’ as others in Season 2. But Season One is where Whedon gets his feet wet. But like @pedant I was Buffy’s bitch from the moment it began. The humour, the love between the characters. (Also this is Thane16 typing for mum again).

    #68214
    syzygy @thane16

    unless you have watched seasons 1 to 5 already? And there’s 7 but it really needs 6 to go with….  (Thane16)

    #68217

    @winston

    I’m an with @thane16 – Buffy, if you have never sat and watched it, has a through line (well, two really) that runs across all 7 seasons, with season 5 – imho – the finest single season of serial TV ever made, a perfect collision of character, metaphor, arc and theme. But it was that because each season built upon the one before, with things that happened earlier having consequences many years later. Specifically the major character arc in Season Six had its seeds sown in the 3rd episode of season 1.

    There is hardly a modern show that doesn’t owe a debt to it (including Doctor Who, something RTD has stated) – it was that innovative.

    If you can, treat yourself to the whole lot. You won’t regret it. And as you do, go find Jim’s blogs as we all did a watch-along with Puro and Spawn.

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