What TV Shows Are You Watching? 8: Streaming Is the New Cable

[Valka D'Ur]

There's a sale on STARZ and I'm trying to decide if it's worth a month or two. They have a handful of movies that I'd like to see, but so far there don't seem to be a lot of series that grab me. Is Outlander any good? American Gods? Minx? Any other STARZ shows I should look up? They don't make it easy to browse their selection before subscribing.

Outlander is excellent in my opinion, though I will admit to not knowing enough about the history of the Battle of Culloden to know if it's historically accurate. The series can be considered a historical adventure that includes a romance that reaches across an approximately 250-year span of time.

I've read some of the novels (they're huge), and seen... I think the first 3 seasons? I left off after the action shifted to North America, since I had to nuke my Netflix account due to hacking. Some day I'll probably just get the DVD set from Amazon, since this series is worth a rewatch.

Note that there are some major differences between the novels and the TV series in some aspects (I won't say what they are, due to spoilers).

Fun fact: This series grew out of Diana Gabaldon's fannish crush on Jamie McCrimmon, one of the main characters on Doctor Who back in the '60s. Jamie was one of the Second Doctor's companions, and when he left the show, Jamie was returned to Scotland in the same year he left, his time with the Doctor wiped from his memory.

Gabaldon wanted the actor who played Jamie McCrimmon to star in the TV adaptation of Outlander, and he was interested... but of course by that time he was too old to be convincing as Jamie Fraser. He later guest-starred in one of the episodes.

Wikipedia informs me that a prequel series about Jamie's parents has been approved, and Outlander will stop after the end of the 8th season.

 

[thetrooper]

Anyone watched/watching The Swarm?

Measly 5.5 at IMDB, so not sure if I wanna waste my time.

 

[GoodEnoughForMe]

I Think You Should Leave, season 3. More and more people are saying it’s the best show.

 

[EgonSpengler]

Defiant Jazz and Baby Goats.

Episode 1.

Something I didn't notice the first time is that when Mark is walking down the corridor, he reaches into his pocket, pulls out a crumpled-up piece of paper, and throws it into the trash without looking at it.

A handshake will be made available on request.

 

[EgonSpengler]

Class of '09

I really don't know what this show is doing or where it's going. It's the fifth episode and I still don't know what the story is. I know what the premise is - FBI agents vs. the rogue AI they created - but I knew that in the first episode.

I noticed for the first time last night that Jake McDornan is in this show. I like Jake McDornan. Has he been there this entire time? Did I notice him before and completely forget? He's not such a well-known face that he wouldn't play a supporting character, but he wouldn't play an extra. And he was in a few scenes last night with the rest of the main cast, that really made it seem like he was a part of the main cast, and yet he's played no part in anything. I'm not sure he's even had any lines. Did they film entire scenes with him, and then decide to cut all of them? Like, did they decide to cut an entire subplot that featured his character? Is his presence in these scenes with the whole group just a lingering artifact from when his character was a part of the main cast?

Totally weird. Not good-weird, like Legion or Severance, just WTH-are-they-doing-weird.

 

[Kyriakos]

Nothing much, waiting for the inevitable fiasco that season 2 of Severance will be ^^

 

[EgonSpengler]

The Diplomat is making me laugh.

"She knows she's not CIA, right? I mean, it all happened pretty fast, maybe nobody told her."

---

"Are you speaking?"
"No, the Prime Minister is."
"Oh. Great."
"Yeah. Wordsmith."

---

And there is so much swearing in this show.

 

[EgonSpengler]

Padma's leaving!

Deadline, 2 June 2023 - "Padma Lakshmi Exiting ‘Top Chef’ After 17 Years"

Bravo will need to cook up a new host of Top Chef now that Padma Lakshmi has revealed she is leaving.

Lakshmi, who also exec produces the show, said that she is leaving the cooking show after its 20th season, which is known as Top Chef: World All-Stars. The show, which has its season finale on June 8, has already been renewed for season 21.

17 years is a lot, I guess. Still, I don't envy whoever they get to replace her.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Padma's leaving!

Deadline, 2 June 2023 - "Padma Lakshmi Exiting ‘Top Chef’ After 17 Years"



17 years is a lot, I guess. Still, I don't envy whoever they get to replace her.

*Whew* For a moment I thought you meant CFC's resident Basset Hound (long-time admin who we hardly ever see anymore other than once in a blue moon in Site Feedback; his username is based on a character from Gordon Dickson's Dorsai novels).


As for my own viewing... I'm currently halfway through Season 4 of a Merlin rewatch. I've got fanfic ideas and need to make sure they mesh with canon and where it would make sense to deviate from canon.

 

[EgonSpengler]

I absolutely blazed through The Diplomat over the weekend. I went through it so fast, I might have to watch it again. My #1 series of the year, so far.

 

[lymond]

As I continue my sojourn with Disney +, I came across a series I did not even know existed. Loki from 2021. Season 2 will be coming out this year. I still have the final episode to go. I've been rewatching some of the Marvel movies/shows using the timeline order menu, and this series comes right after Endgame. I was a bit puzzled at the beginning of Loki due to this timeline. It starts with an actual scene from the first Avengers movie. I could not get my head around it until later in the episode everything makes perfect sense. The series isn't really a "super-hero" thing but more of a unique time-travel fantasy.

Loki is really very very good. I'd go so far as to say it may be the best Marvel/Disney thing produced. It also has a bit of a romance for Loki which is just so perfectly suited to who he is . Stay for the closing credits for the music, which is great throughout the show.

Also, earlier I watched the Hawkeye series which appeared to be a one-time thing to close out his story and introduce his replacement (Hailie Steinfield). Did not know that one existed either. It was good and follows a bit from the Black Widow movie, which was just ok but one may want to watch that first.

 

[Arakhor]

Loki was a middling show. It had plenty of good points, but they were rather generously spaced across six episodes. Plus, the reveal of Loki being bisexual was a blink-and-you-miss-it moment, making it a rather cowardly way to establish Loki as queer.

 

[lymond]

Well, that means different things to different folks but for Disney, it was a baby step..ha. Most of the Gods and heroes from myth were bisexual or queer in some way anyway, it was not surprising at all nor pertinent to the story. I found the actual "romance" far more pertinent to who Loki is - it would have been fine either way on the gender. For me, the show was 100% outstanding.

 

[EgonSpengler]

As I continue my sojourn with Disney +, I came across a series I did not even know existed. Loki from 2021. Season 2 will be coming out this year. I still have the final episode to go. I've been rewatching some of the Marvel movies/shows using the timeline order menu, and this series comes right after Endgame. I was a bit puzzled at the beginning of Loki due to this timeline. It starts with an actual scene from the first Avengers movie. I could not get my head around it until later in the episode everything makes perfect sense. The series isn't really a "super-hero" thing but more of a unique time-travel fantasy.

Loki is really very very good. I'd go so far as to say it may be the best Marvel/Disney thing produced. It also has a bit of a romance for Loki which is just so perfectly suited to who he is . Stay for the closing credits for the music, which is great throughout the show.

Also, earlier I watched the Hawkeye series which appeared to be a one-time thing to close out his story and introduce his replacement (Hailie Steinfield). Did not know that one existed either. It was good and follows a bit from the Black Widow movie, which was just ok but one may want to watch that first.

I never fully bought into Loki and Sylvie. They felt more like siblings to me. I know they were going for the bickering rom-com couple (I always think of Moonlighting, but of course that trope is much older than that - Loki & Sylvie are more It Happened One Night than Moonlighting, now that I think about it) and they did an okay job with that, but it wasn't the part of the show that made me sit up and pay attention. And, yeah, I got the "Loki is a narcissist" joke. But for me, the heart of that show was Loki and Mobius, not Loki and Sylvie. I never in a million years would have expected the chemistry between Hiddleston and Wilson. There was a little bit of a Sherlock-and-HolmesDr. Watson thing, which I'm a sucker for, combined with a little bit of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, with the Holmes character being a little bit daffy. I also wouldn't have expected Owen Wilson to play The Straight Man so well; when I heard that Hiddleston's Loki was being paired with Owen Wilson, I guess I assumed Wilson would be the Comic and Hiddleston would be The Straight Man. The supporting cast was all great. Another bit of genius casting from the MCU: Richard E. Grant as a grumpy, "Classic Loki."

Also, if you mean Loki is your favorite Disney+ Marvel series, and you aren't including the movies or the Netflix or Fox/FX series, then okay. I think Loki and WandaVision were "1a and 1b" for me, but if you made me choose one to rewatch, as a tie-breaker, I'd definitely pick Loki. It gave (more than) a wink and a nod to one of my favorite film directors, Terry Gilliam.

 

[lymond]

I’d spoiler that first bit, Egon

 

[Arakhor]

I really enjoyed Wandavision, but I'm not sure how well it bear up under repeat viewing.

 

[EgonSpengler]

I’d spoiler that first bit, Egon

I'm not sure which bit you mean. I don't think anything there is a plot spoiler. Insofar as the entire post is an "experience spoiler", I guess I'm not worried about talking about a show from 2 years ago.

I really enjoyed Wandavision, but I'm not sure how well it bear up under repeat viewing.

Yeah, same.

 

[lymond]

Well, the whole first paragraph is spoilery in many ways, but folks vary greatly on what that means. If I'd not see it yet, I would be disappointed. Yep, some great cameos there and some nice subtle Marvel references scattered throughout

Wanda is next on my list. I am following timeline order, though I skipped a movie here and there that I'd seen recently elsewhere. The timeline order menu in the Disney app is pretty cool.

Yeah, I pretty much mean all Marvel stuff, and I loved the Daredevil stuff (please bring it back, Disney! or a movie). Loki, for me, is just such a unique experience and well-produced. Love the retro tech stuff too.

Spoiler :

and, yep, you hit the nail on the head with the narcissist....exactly my point on the "romance"...just perfect for Loki given who he is

It gave (more than) a wink and a nod to one of my favorite film directors, Terry Gilliam.

aah...interesting point that I'd not thought of....indeed a fan of all things Gilliam

 

[Smellincoffee]

Getting further into SNL season 3. Watched Hugh Hefner sing a song thanking heaven for 'little girls'. What a world-class creep and sleazeball. Was glad to get to the next episode with a host (Charles Grodin) whose schtick was being absentminded. Very much a palate cleanser from Lechner.

 

[EgonSpengler]

Well, the whole first paragraph is spoilery in many ways, but folks vary greatly on what that means. If I'd not see it yet, I would be disappointed. Yep, some great cameos there and some nice subtle Marvel references scattered throughout

Wanda is next on my list. I am following timeline order, though I skipped a movie here and there that I'd seen recently elsewhere. The timeline order menu in the Disney app is pretty cool.

Yeah, I pretty much mean all Marvel stuff, and I loved the Daredevil stuff (please bring it back, Disney! or a movie). Loki, for me, is just such a unique experience and well-produced. Love the retro tech stuff too.

Spoiler :

and, yep, you hit the nail on the head with the narcissist....exactly my point on the "romance"...just perfect for Loki given who he is

aah...interesting point that I'd not thought of....indeed a fan of all things Gilliam

Don't let us old cranks dissuade you, WandaVision is great, at least the first time. It's also a prerequisite for Agatha: Coven of Chaos, which was due to premier this year before the writers' strike crashed the system. I was only middlin' on Agatha until I saw that Aubrey Plaza is going to be in it. Fans of The Diplomat may take note that Ali Ahn is also going to be in Agatha.

If you haven't watched Captain Marvel yet, that's going to be a crucial prereq for Secret Invasion, which premieres in just a few weeks and looks very promising (and it's already "in the can", so it's not being delayed by the strike).

Captain Marvel, WandaVision and Ms. Marvel will all be prereqs for the feature film The Marvels later this Summer, but I have no sense of whether that movie is going to be any good. The MCU has been stinkin' up the place lately, so The Marvels may be a wait-for-streaming.

Disney+ will be releasing Daredevil: Born Again sometime next year. Production's been halted by the WGA strike. Charlie Cox, Vincent D'Onofrio and Jon Bernthal are confirmed to be returning, but Elden Hensen and Deborah Ann Woll are thus far absent from the cast list. Sandrine Holt will be replacing Ayelet Zurer as Vanessa. Cox has had 2 appearances in the MCU since the Netflix series ended, one of which strongly hinted that all of the Netflix series may have taken place in a branching timeline That hasn't been confirmed, so we'll have to see. One person, I forget who, said Born Again will be a de facto 4th season of the series, but I'm skeptical; I think it's going to be a full reboot.

The first season of Legion, which isn't MCU but is Marvel-adjacent, is one of my all-time favorites. Not just all-time superhero; all-time, period. It was an FX series, and should be on Hulu (in the US, at any rate - it shouldn't need to be said that I can't vouch for any series being on any service in any other country, but some people get touchy).