What TV Shows are you watching? ι', a perfect I.

[Kyriakos]

Kidman and Adjani would look perfectly fine today without invasive cosmetic surgery; that's fairly easy to tell. They are also both still naturally pale skinned, which reduces wrinkles with age. Nature and genes gave both these women heart-shaped feminine jawlines and cheekbones; for some reason they were both convinced to get implants or injections anyway, giving them that permanently bloated masculine jaw akin to late actor Robert Z'Dar. I'm overexaggerating of course, but you get the idea.

It's not easy to give up on great looks, even if it leads to worse (Substance)
Isn't Pamela facial-surgery-free? She looks very nice too, at 57.

 

[Kyriakos]

Do all crime shows have to be formulaic/lame?
It's pretty difficult to finish watching Defending Jacob, and at least I hope this doesn't have a second season.
It's simplistic and boring. Only good actor in the set is JK Simmons - who plays only a small part - and the kid is beyond insufferable and unconvincing (but that at least primarily is still the writers' fault).

 

[lymond]

It was a limited series and based off a book. I kinda liked it.

 

[Kyriakos]

Well I am still 2 eps from the end, but regardless of whether there is a tired twist or not, it will be very bad imo

 

[Voidwalkin]

Do all crime shows have to be formulaic/lame?
It's pretty difficult to finish watching Defending Jacob, and at least I hope this doesn't have a second season.
It's simplistic and boring. Only good actor in the set is JK Simmons - who plays only a small part - and the kid is beyond insufferable and unconvincing (but that at least primarily is still the writers' fault).

The Wire is an all timer

 

[Kyriakos]

I now watched the final episode (of Defending Jacob). Come on, the police can't be so superstupid in any made-up world. I also really doubt the justice system works like that at all.
As for the absolute end, it may well be the most useless convolution I've ever seen.

The Wire is an all timer

We are all Greeks here.

 

[warpus]

I just finished watching all of Mad Men. Years ago I watched the first 2 seasons or so of this show, but neve ended up finishing it. This time around I made it all the way from the very first episode to the very last.

The first 5 seasons were rock solid, but I gotta say season 6 started feeling sort of sloggy(?), like they were running out of stories to tell.. but then 30-40% into season 7 things picked up big time and the show got super interesting again. By the end it seems that most of the characters got a good sendoff and appropriate end to that part of their stories..

I have feeling that this whole show was as much about Peggy as it was about Don.. and I mean there's Joan and all the other main characters, but it feels like there's a deeper meaning there with respect to Don.. and Peggy basically feels like a minor yang to his yin. Her story seems easier to unravel from a "7 seasons and what does it all mean?" standpoint.. Don's seems more complex, and maybe all there is to it the things that you naturally feel as you watch the last episode.. In the end it felt like he came to terms with many aspects of his life, and that felt good from a point of view you might get from the audience's side of things.. but I am not so convinced that he is finished making the same mistakes he was making throughout the show. He isn't a changed person - he understands himself better, but he's the same guy with the same internal drives and wants. I like where the show put him at the end there, but it's almost tempting to infer that he's reached some sort of enlightened future. I think he's lead to a realization about some parts of his life and a light shining towards his path forward, but if we looked at him 3 years down the road, I bet he'd be back to some of those same vices.. although I admit he might be more careful about them, like in the earlier parts of the show.

Overall a brilliant show and I wish we got to get to see what happened to some of the characters after the fact.. but on the other hand, it's great there were no spinoff shows about that either..

I also started watching the original TOS Star Trek. Years ago I started watching season 1, but didn't get crazy far. This time around I'm watching the remastered version, which (I've got to say) is a masterful upgrade. You can see the spores on Spock's skin, like he's standing right there in front of you. The more modern Enterprise shots are a nice addition too. The remastered version is easier to sit back and take in, compared to the original version, which I think I seem to remember watching in black and white? I've been a lot more engaged either way.. and I've got to say.. DAMN there's a lot of screaming on this show so far

 

[Takhisis]

Sort-of catching up on The Rookie. It's ever-more-Hollywood and yet it remains watchable.

btw (halfway through season 5) I'm seeing some of Fillion's old crewmates show up over time, like Molly Quinn. For all we know, one day Stana Katić might guest-star as a crime fiction writer who becomes an unbearable ride-along for Officer Nolan. One can only hope.

 

[Clubber Lang]

Mr. McMahon chronicles the rise and fall of Vince McMahon, controversial businessman and co-founder of WWE. From his transformation of the WWE from a small, regional business into a global entertainment powerhouse to the explosive sexual misconduct allegations that led to his eventual resignation, this six-episode series offers a deep dive into McMahon’s life and his enduring franchise. Culled from over 200 hours of interviews with McMahon himself (prior to his resignation), his family members, business associates and some of the most iconic names in wrestling history, as well as the journalists who uncovered McMahon’s allegations — filmmaker Chris Smith (Tiger King) and executive producer Bill Simmons (30 for 30) present an unflinching, no-holds-barred look at one of the most enigmatic figures in sports entertainment.

 

[Clubber Lang]

Voidwalkin said:


The Wire is an all timer


We are all Greeks here.

 

[Clubber Lang]

I also started watching the original TOS Star Trek. Years ago I started watching season 1, but didn't get crazy far. This time around I'm watching the remastered version, which (I've got to say) is a masterful upgrade. You can see the spores on Spock's skin, like he's standing right there in front of you. The more modern Enterprise shots are a nice addition too. The remastered version is easier to sit back and take in, compared to the original version, which I think I seem to remember watching in black and white? I've been a lot more engaged either way.. and I've got to say.. DAMN there's a lot of screaming on this show so far

So they polished up and added graphics on 'The Remasters', sounds good.

 

[EgonSpengler]

I also started watching the original TOS Star Trek. Years ago I started watching season 1, but didn't get crazy far. This time around I'm watching the remastered version, which (I've got to say) is a masterful upgrade. You can see the spores on Spock's skin, like he's standing right there in front of you. The more modern Enterprise shots are a nice addition too. The remastered version is easier to sit back and take in, compared to the original version, which I think I seem to remember watching in black and white? I've been a lot more engaged either way.. and I've got to say.. DAMN there's a lot of screaming on this show so far

Spores?

Sort-of catching up on The Rookie. It's ever-more-Hollywood and yet it remains watchable.

btw (halfway through season 5) I'm seeing some of Fillion's old crewmates show up over time, like Molly Quinn. For all we know, one day Stana Katić might guest-star as a crime fiction writer who becomes an unbearable ride-along for Officer Nolan. One can only hope.

Matthew Glave and Molly Quinn were great together. I would watch a whole show with just those two characters. In fact, there are a bunch of spinoff possibilities for that series that I would watch. I would watch Sara Rue and Alan Tudyk play their characters in another show. Or Pete Davidson and Meg DeLacy. Or Melissa O'Neil could get a spinoff where she goes undercover for a long time. There was a moment when James and Wesley were talking about working together, and I thought that could've been a fine premise for a spinoff, but I think that moment may have passed. I guess the question with all of these is whether those actors could carry a show, but I bet they could, if it was done well. Instead we got The Rookie: Feds, which didn't feature any of the great supporting characters who've appeared in the show, and which was essentially unwatchable. [Frickin'] Hollywood, man. Even when they get something right, they don't know how they did it or why people liked it. Sometimes I think Hollywood is "a billion monkeys on a billion typewriters", just banging away. I know it's harder than it appears to be - making it look easy is part of what they do - but, dang, sometimes I just want to slap them.

 

[EgonSpengler]

 

[lymond]

Nice! Two good shows return!

 

[warpus]

Spores?

Pores, spores, close enough

 

[Kyriakos]

But will it really be "better late than never"?

 

[lymond]

As I watch the new season of The Old Man on Hulu with The Dude, I'm going back and rewatching the first season - and I've already completed much of the first. The new season basically picks up in proximity to the ending of the first and has primarily been set in Afghanistan. I'm enjoying it and now more attuned or accepting, whatever ya wanna call it, with how the first season closed.

My rewatch of the first season though has been especially enjoyable. The excellence of the first half or so of that season was confirmed. However, as I progress towards the finale of the first season, having grown acclimated to the result and now where TOM is heading, I think the whole season really was great. It's more complex and deeper than I originally perceived, maybe almost a bit too convoluted. Of note is Amy Brenneman's performance which is just outstanding. (I've not seen Amy's character so far in Season 2 which makes sense given the setting, but based on the thumbnails I believe her character will appear at some point. But I think the focus of the story this season will be in Afghanistan.) Also of note is how interesting it is to watch Angela's (Alia Shawkat) acclimation to her new climate. (One may notice a striking change in Alia's appearance in Season Two and my first instinct was that she had to be pregnant during filming. A quick Google search indeed confirmed that she gave birth to a son last year)

 

[EgonSpengler]

Pretty good trailer. I like the rising tension. Hey, a scenic Old West-lookin' town in Winter, like something off a postcard. Joel in therapy. Ellie learning to play guitar. Some new, attractive young people. I guess everything works out for everybody and they all live happily ever after..?

Of course, the only thing MAX needs to do to get me to watch this is tell me what day it's on. I thought I read that it was expected in February, but everything just says 2025 now. Either I'm misremembering, or they pulled the specific month from their press releases. I'm assuming this season is based, at least loosely, on The Last of Us, Part II (2020). I haven't played either of the games. I'm sure it doesn't need to be said that anyone posting untagged spoilers of that game, either in this thread or in the games thread, will be pilloried in the town square.

 

[EgonSpengler]

As I watch the new season of The Old Man on Hulu with The Dude, I'm going back and rewatching the first season - and I've already completed much of the first. The new season basically picks up in proximity to the ending of the first and has primarily been set in Afghanistan. I'm enjoying it and now more attuned or accepting, whatever ya wanna call it, with how the first season closed.

My rewatch of the first season though has been especially enjoyable. The excellence of the first half or so of that season was confirmed. However, as I progress towards the finale of the first season, having grown acclimated to the result and now where TOM is heading, I think the whole season really was great. It's more complex and deeper than I originally perceived, maybe almost a bit too convoluted. Of note is Amy Brenneman's performance which is just outstanding. (I've not seen Amy's character so far in Season 2 which makes sense given the setting, but based on the thumbnails I believe her character will appear at some point. But I think the focus of the story this season will be in Afghanistan.) Also of note is how interesting it is to watch Angela's (Alia Shawkat) acclimation to her new climate. (One may notice a striking change in Alia's appearance in Season Two and my first instinct was that she had to be pregnant during filming. A quick Google search indeed confirmed that she gave birth to a son last year)

I found episode 3 to be a bit interminable. Really spinning its wheels. I haven't watched episode 4 yet. I do see Amy Brenneman in the thumbnail image of the episode recap that I'm not reading, so that's good news. I loved her in the first season.

I did think Shawkat's pregnancy was super-evident. I've always just accepted as axiomatic that if an actress is pregnant and the character isn't, the show needs to accommodate that and work to cover it. At first I thought the show did a really poor job covering for her, but after a little while I realized I didn't care. All of those television series that used to bend themselves into pretzels hiding an actress' pregnancy maybe don't need to worry about it so much. Sometimes they went so far hiding an actress' pregnancy that it became incredibly obvious they were hiding her pregnancy (I think once or twice I learned that an actress I liked was expecting because the show she was in was standing on its head trying to hide her). Maybe going forward they can just let these women act and ask the audience to roll with it. Shawkat's pregnancy was apparent, but I got over it pretty quickly, and I found it didn't really take me out of it.

 

[EvaDK]

Of course, the only thing MAX needs to do to get me to watch this is tell me what day it's on. I thought I read that it was expected in February, but everything just says 2025 now.

It's 100% coming out in 2025. Don't remember where I read it, but it was confirmed.