The TV thread

[RolanK]

This final season of Better Call Saul has been great! Can't wait for the series finale next week.

final episode is titled: "Saul Gone"

They've done as masterful job transitioning back and forth between the show being both a prequel and sequel to Breaking Bad.

It's been great! All six seasons, really. I've enjoyed it as much as BB. I am listening to a weekly podcast that drops every week after the airing of a new episode, hosted by one of the editors, with different actors, writers, directors and other crew members talking through the making of the episodes, discussing different theories etc. Lots of cool "behind the scenes" stuff being revealed there, no spoilers.

[cortez the killer]

final episode is titled: "Saul Gone"

They've done as masterful job transitioning back and forth between the show being both a prequel and sequel to Breaking Bad.

It's been great! All six seasons, really. I've enjoyed it as much as BB. I am listening to a weekly podcast that drops every week after the airing of a new episode, hosted by one of the editors, with different actors, writers, directors and other crew members talking through the making of the episodes, discussing different theories etc. Lots of cool "behind the scenes" stuff being revealed there, no spoilers.

What's the name of the podcast?

[beantownbubba]

I'm thinking that season 1 of The Jury is probably not quite as bad as it seemed while we were watching (we did after all watch the whole season) but even so, it was seriously bad. A flawed concept poorly executed. But as w/ many British crime/legal shows that depict courtroom scenes, so many things are consistently presented as "just the way it is" that I am awfully curious whether the UK legal system allows the kinds of shenanigans regularly depicted. Shenanigans in the US aren't any better and may actually be worse in some ways, but they're different and that makes it hard to believe some of the procedural things we see, like counsel giving opinions, asking leading questions, stating as facts things not in evidence, etc etc. I gather that there's a second season but I doubt we'll be watching it.

The second season of Never Have I Ever is not as good as the first but it's still pretty darn good. Once again, John McEnroe's voiceovers steal the show but the cast is good and endearing and even if each cast member is a somewhat predictable representative of a stereotypical type, they're well within the range of acceptable sitcom characterizations and there is some freshness and enthusiasm in the acting and writing.

We've started the second season of Only Murders in the Building and once again it's not as good as the first. But it's decent enough if you're looking for some lighter fare.

Looking forward to Ken Burns's mini-series on the USA's response to the Holocaust but I'm not sure when I'm actually going to be up for watching it. Anybody here watching it? Thoughts?

[Flea]

Harley Quinn on HBO Max is amazingly, unexpectedly good.

[RolanK]

They've done as masterful job transitioning back and forth between the show being both a prequel and sequel to Breaking Bad.

It's been great! All six seasons, really. I've enjoyed it as much as BB. I am listening to a weekly podcast that drops every week after the airing of a new episode, hosted by one of the editors, with different actors, writers, directors and other crew members talking through the making of the episodes, discussing different theories etc. Lots of cool "behind the scenes" stuff being revealed there, no spoilers.

What's the name of the podcast?

Better Call Saul Insider Podcast

(And sorry for late reply)

[tinnitus photography]

"The Rehearsal" is fucking wild

i have two episodes to go. yeah it's a pretty crazy premise for a show.

[beantownbubba]

Really enjoyed the first several episodes of The Old Man. The last couple were somewhat disappointing but overall not a bad watch. Jeff Bridges is, no surprise, excellent.

[brettac1]

https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/20 ... m_brand=vf

Automatic Michael Shannon Emmy incoming.

[chuckrh]

https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/20 ... m_brand=vf

Automatic Michael Shannon Emmy incoming.

Hope they have a scene with George driving the lawnmower to the bar.

[beantownbubba]

Season 1 of Tehran was pretty intense and absorbing despite having a huge hole right through the middle of it, which was that the main character might have been the worst secret agent ever. If she were a typical Mossad agent, there would be no Israel by this time. I'm 3/4 of the way through season 2 and that hole has basically grown until it's taken over the whole thing. Right now I just want to get it over with because it's just ever more preposterous "perils of pauline" stuff that goes way past suspending disbelief. It's really hard to keep a series going.

[beantownbubba]

Sherwood - The first 2 to 3 episodes were intense, interesting, well done and introduced a number of interesting characters with implicitly interlocking and interesting backstories. The last 2 to 3 episodes simply blew it all up into a pointless mess. Really disappointing.

The Bear - Really enjoyed this and am glad to hear there will be a second season. Not perfect by any means but very enjoyable with mostly well done right sized episodes and only a few boring cliches (as distinct from a few cliches that work).

[beantownbubba]

Karen Pirie - From the Val McDermid novels. We binged the whole thing (Three 1.5 hour shows) in one night. Very good and worth your time but not quite full on WOW.

We started The Capture. Very intense and absorbing but with some serious flaws. Too many minor mistakes that just become annoying after a while and some major "what the heck?!" inexplicable moments in the "let's hide behind the chain saws!" vein. Even so, really enjoying it, hoping for the best and really hoping that what is apparently a convoluted multi level conspiracy becomes at least somewhat understandable before the end. My first take is that it's kind of like Coppola's The Conversation on steroids, which is meant largely as a compliment.

[beantownbubba]

We started The Capture. Very intense and absorbing but with some serious flaws. Too many minor mistakes that just become annoying after a while and some major "what the heck?!" inexplicable moments in the "let's hide behind the chain saws!" vein. Even so, really enjoying it, hoping for the best and really hoping that what is apparently a convoluted multi level conspiracy becomes at least somewhat understandable before the end. My first take is that it's kind of like Coppola's The Conversation on steroids, which is meant largely as a compliment.

Binged the rest last nite. Definitely intense and interesting w/ a mostly satisfying denouement. Being obscure to avoid spoilers, the part of the ending having to do with the mole and what is supposed to happen to him and why is somewhere between incomprehensible, confusing and, if I do understand it correctly, stupid beyond belief, so I hope it's merely incomprehensible. Luckily that only affects a portion of the story/plot. Anyway, definitely worth watching for its general quality, constant intensity and focus on important issues of surveillance and the like.

[Flea]

Finished "The Terror" last night. Kind of disappointing after reading the book. It did not even come close to depicting the dark and cold and despair portrayed by the author

[chuckrh]

Finished "The Terror" last night. Kind of disappointing after reading the book. It did not even come close to depicting the dark and cold and despair portrayed by the author

Agree. As is often the case, the book was better.

[RolanK]

The Bear - Really enjoyed this and am glad to hear there will be a second season. Not perfect by any means but very enjoyable with mostly well done right sized episodes and only a few boring cliches (as distinct from a few cliches that work).

Absolutely. Been enjoying this myself, but not made it all the way through yet. Been into some of Matty Matteson's hilarious stuff on the youtube for quite a while, so nice surprise to see him in this show.

[chuckrh]

Free HBO this weekend. This is really good.

[brettac1]

I have been on a kick of watching old boxing for the past few weeks and watched this series on Showtime and really enjoyed it:

[chuckrh]

suprisingly good

[chuckrh]

[beantownbubba]

The Honourable Woman - this is a highly representative of modern streamed series in one very particular way: I don't quite understand the many series that manage to sustain a certain amount of intensity and interest and keep you coming back while not being very good. This is a perfect example. The story makes very little sense and the ending is anti climactic but there we were, watching 2 episodes per night until we finished it. Shrug.

Hidden Assets was better than that, but still had a disappointing anti-climax apparently for the purpose of baiting a second season (though i don't know that for sure). Worth watching unless you have to have your stories tied up neatly.

[chuckrh]

[chuckrh]

https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/20 ... m_brand=vf

Automatic Michael Shannon Emmy incoming.

Just finished episode 3. You better put Jessica Chastain for an Emmy also. The acting is phenomenal. They even did their own singing rather than ape the records. Good work in the supporting roles, too. Walton Goggins has good sized role. He's one of my faves. Highly recommended.

[beantownbubba]

It's always nice when a show sneaks up on you and surprises in a positive way. That's Janet King, an Aussie legal/crime drama that won't blow you away but will keep u interested and perhaps bingeing for at least the first season (all we've watched so far). For the first time in a very long time we stayed up unconscionabily late and binged the last 4 episodes.

We had to pay to watch My Brilliant Friend, an Italian import but so far (1 season) it's worth it. Kind of depressing but in that good, "arty" way that is worth watching. The 2 leads are great.

The ads for Emily in Paris were enough to clue me in that the series is not for me but I am a bit surprised that it's apparently something of a hit. An article in today's NYT basically asks the question "why am I addicted to this garbage?, so I thought that would be worth reading, and it was. Especially for this sentence:

"what sets Emily apart is that beneath the Bambi-like visage and the sweet ebullience lies a stark void of nothingness." BOOM! Gotta love that.

[beantownbubba]

I enjoyed the first 2 seasons of Jack Ryan but could barely make it through the first episode of the new season and doubt I'll try again. Brutally bad.

OTOH, the first 3 episodes of Slow Horses pretty much lived up to expectations/hopes and I'm looking forward to the rest of that one.

[RolanK]

OTOH, the first 3 episodes of Slow Horses pretty much lived up to expectations/hopes and I'm looking forward to the rest of that one.

I'm through, and I enjoyed it a lot. As good as season 1, maybe even better. Gary Oldman is great in this role. Can almost smell his BO and breath coming through the TV set.

[beantownbubba]

OTOH, the first 3 episodes of Slow Horses pretty much lived up to expectations/hopes and I'm looking forward to the rest of that one.

I'm through, and I enjoyed it a lot. As good as season 1, maybe even better. Gary Oldman is great in this role. Can almost smell his BO and breath coming through the TV set.

Finished it last nite and enjoyed it very much. My wife and I actually had that discussion about which season is better. I voted for 1, she voted for 2, but it was a close call in both cases. On to season 3!!

And though I think I've mentioned it before, I'll say it again: The books by Mick Herron on which the show is based are well worth reading.

[RolanK]

OTOH, the first 3 episodes of Slow Horses pretty much lived up to expectations/hopes and I'm looking forward to the rest of that one.

I'm through, and I enjoyed it a lot. As good as season 1, maybe even better. Gary Oldman is great in this role. Can almost smell his BO and breath coming through the TV set.

Finished it last nite and enjoyed it very much. My wife and I actually had that discussion about which season is better. I voted for 1, she voted for 2, but it was a close call in both cases. On to season 3!!

And though I think I've mentioned it before, I'll say it again: The books by Mick Herron on which the show is based are well worth reading.

I don’t read much crime/spy stuff, but I will check them out.
I read some Le Carré in my mid teens, but was probably too young then to fully appreciate. Was thinking I might go back and give them a second chance.

[305 Engine]

I'm through, and I enjoyed it a lot. As good as season 1, maybe even better. Gary Oldman is great in this role. Can almost smell his BO and breath coming through the TV set.

Finished it last nite and enjoyed it very much. My wife and I actually had that discussion about which season is better. I voted for 1, she voted for 2, but it was a close call in both cases. On to season 3!!

And though I think I've mentioned it before, I'll say it again: The books by Mick Herron on which the show is based are well worth reading.

I don’t read much crime/spy stuff, but I will check them out.
I read some Le Carré in my mid teens, but was probably too young then to fully appreciate. Was thinking I might go back and give them a second chance.

Le Carre can be very hit and miss but when he was good he was excellent. "The Spy Who Came In From the Cold" I'd recommend to anyone.

The BBC tv versions of Tinker, Tailor... and Smileys People with Alec Guinness are some of my favourite tv ever. Very dated, but in a good way. Very slow paced by modern standards but worth sticking with.

[beantownbubba]

Finished it last nite and enjoyed it very much. My wife and I actually had that discussion about which season is better. I voted for 1, she voted for 2, but it was a close call in both cases. On to season 3!!

And though I think I've mentioned it before, I'll say it again: The books by Mick Herron on which the show is based are well worth reading.

I don’t read much crime/spy stuff, but I will check them out.
I read some Le Carré in my mid teens, but was probably too young then to fully appreciate. Was thinking I might go back and give them a second chance.

Le Carre can be very hit and miss but when he was good he was excellent. "The Spy Who Came In From the Cold" I'd recommend to anyone.

The BBC tv versions of Tinker, Tailor... and Smileys People with Alec Guinness are some of my favourite tv ever. Very dated, but in a good way. Very slow paced by modern standards but worth sticking with.

I'm pretty sure I've raved about Le Carre more than once here but some things bear repeating. Not only do I think Le Carre is the best thriller writer ever (occasionally matched, never topped and never in quantity by any single author) I think he's one of the best novelists of the 20th century. Yeah, he's missed on a few but pretty much all of those had enough redeeming qualities to make the read worthwhile. Those BBC shows are some of my favorite (w/ or w/out a "u") tv ever as well.