The TV thread

[oilpiers]

I really want to like it. i lived in LA metro then, and basically same age as Magic. Lakers/Celtics in the 80's is the pinnacle of NBA history to me. But I can't buy that guy as Magic. He may have charm, but not the same kind Magic had, at all. Even though I am unfamiliar with the actor, he reminds me of Edie Falco playing Hillary. Simply a reprise of Carmela. I got lost in Clive Owen's Bill, among other characters, but when a main character doesn't capture an icon, it makes it very difficult to get into. Like Cuba playing OJ. Worst casting in history. Would love to have seen Duane Johnson play him. I may have bought that.

[chuckrh]

I really want to like it. i lived in LA metro then, and basically same age as Magic. Lakers/Celtics in the 80's is the pinnacle of NBA history to me. But I can't buy that guy as Magic. He may have charm, but not the same kind Magic had, at all. Even though I am unfamiliar with the actor, he reminds me of Edie Falco playing Hillary. Simply a reprise of Carmela. I got lost in Clive Owen's Bill, among other characters, but when a main character doesn't capture an icon, it makes it very difficult to get into. Like Cuba playing OJ. Worst casting in history. Would love to have seen Duane Johnson play him. I may have bought that.

John C Reilly is good though. Jerry West sure doesn't come off well, at least in the first episode.

[oilpiers]

I really want to like it. i lived in LA metro then, and basically same age as Magic. Lakers/Celtics in the 80's is the pinnacle of NBA history to me. But I can't buy that guy as Magic. He may have charm, but not the same kind Magic had, at all. Even though I am unfamiliar with the actor, he reminds me of Edie Falco playing Hillary. Simply a reprise of Carmela. I got lost in Clive Owen's Bill, among other characters, but when a main character doesn't capture an icon, it makes it very difficult to get into. Like Cuba playing OJ. Worst casting in history. Would love to have seen Duane Johnson play him. I may have bought that.

John C Reilly is good though. Jerry West sure doesn't come off well, at least in the first episode.

I totally agree on both points. I had no idea West was perceived as such an asshole. I even googled about it and found nothing to substantiate this characterization. I remember in 1983 when Bowie tickets for Anaheim Stadium were sold at the Forum in a daylong wristband lottery type thing, there were thousands outside in the parking lot. West came out of his office with a briefcase and set it down and looked over the crowd in amazement at the circus. Virtually right in front of me.

[cortez the killer]

First episode was excellent. Looking forward to the 2nd installment tomorrow night.

[oilpiers]

First episode was excellent. Looking forward to the 2nd installment tomorrow night.

I'm looking foreword also. But there are language anachronisms of slang that were not around in 1980. Most obvious example is when Norm Nixon asked Magic how he liked Cali. I couldn't believe it. I never heard that term until around 2000, and only from younger people or people not in California. No way anyone born in the 50's used that term in 1980. Just a pet peeve of mine that should have been better vetted in the script. Cali was a drug cartel in Columbia back then.

[chuckrh]

I'm a bit late on this (don't have Netflix) but it's excellent. I'm a recent convert to F1 (I should get bonus points for getting into it before I saw the show). I've given up on NASCAR. They've ruined that with the rule changes. Indy car has some potential. I hope it continues to come back. I watched the whole Indy 500 when I was in the hospital last year & it was an amazing race. F1 though is just awesome. You get everything in the series. Lot of enjoyable soap opera & politics. Some colorful personalities, too. I'm a fan of Lewis Hamilton. I have set myself a goal of being in good enough health (& having enough money) to go to the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix, Thanksgiving weekend 2023. Evidently they are going to build a track on the Bellagio grounds. That's the rumour anyway. Good series!

[beantownbubba]

Mare of Easttown - Season 1. Very, very good although it could have been 1 to 2 episodes shorter. The depiction of people trapped in lives by forces they don't fully understand is distressingly painful but the hope and optimism, such as it is, is hard and well earned.

[beantownbubba]

I've gotten pretty good at pulling the plug on TV series that just don't work for me. But sometimes I plow through anyway. Just finished The Tourist on HBO. It was pretty bad. I have no idea why I stuck w/ it. The last episode redeemed it a little bit, so there's that, but ultimately I don't really know why I watched. I guess I wanted to know the answers to the show's mysteries <shrug>. It's probably not a blazing insight to say that second hand David Lynch influenced (copied? lol) intentional weirdness is really boring.

[Tequila Cowboy]

Mare of Easttown - Season 1. Very, very good although it could have been 1 to 2 episodes shorter. The depiction of people trapped in lives by forces they don't fully understand is distressingly painful but the hope and optimism, such as it is, is hard and well earned.

We enjoyed it. The performance were uniformly excellent

[Kudzu Guillotine]

First episode was excellent. Looking forward to the 2nd installment tomorrow night.

I'm looking foreword also. But there are language anachronisms of slang that were not around in 1980. Most obvious example is when Norm Nixon asked Magic how he liked Cali. I couldn't believe it. I never heard that term until around 2000, and only from younger people or people not in California. No way anyone born in the 50's used that term in 1980. Just a pet peeve of mine that should have been better vetted in the script. Cali was a drug cartel in Columbia back then.

I first heard it in the LL Cool J song "Going Back to Cali" in 1988. Still, I know what you mean. Sometimes, I think writers incorporate current slang even in period pieces to give them more of a contemporary feel.

[cortez the killer]

Larry Legend time!

[Zip City]

I'm very excited that Better Call Saul is back

[chuckrh]

I'm very excited that Better Call Saul is back

+ 1! I've got it on the DVR & will probably watch later today.

[beantownbubba]

Anatomy of a Scandal on Netflix, produced by David E. Kelley. This show raises two questions: What in the world made me sit through the whole thing, and is this actually the worst big budget major player tv show ever made? The first episode was merely cliched standard tv and offered the possibility that it might get better. By the end of the second episode I should have known. By the fourth episode it was kind of like watching a slow motion train wreck and there were less than 2 hours to go so I figured what the hell just finish it, but how did I let it get so far? It's really hard to describe this much awfulness but I guess it starts and ends with the absolutely nonsensical plot. As we watched the show head towards its biggest twist/reveal my wife and I are both going "no, no, they can't possibly be going there, can they?" But yeah, they were.

[RolanK]

Gary Oldman is great in Slow Horses on Apple TV+. British spy drama/comedy. Currently 5 episodes in and enjoying every minute. Highly recommended.

[beantownbubba]

Gary Oldman is great in Slow Horses on Apple TV+. British spy drama/comedy. Currently 5 episodes in and enjoying every minute. Highly recommended.

Absolutely! Though we still haven’t seen the most recent episode. BTW the books by Mick Herron on which the show is based (and on which I hope they’ll base additional seasons) are equally highly recommended. Gary Oldman might not have been the first person I thought of for the role (don’t know who would have been) but he is perfect.

[chuckrh]

Watching qualifying for the F1 Miami Grand Prix. I started getting into F1 before the Netflix series. They did a nice job with the course in Miami. Fast track but tough. The race tomorrow should be great.

[brettac1]

Watched the Magic Johnson doc series ("They Call Me Magic") on Apple and thought it was really good for the most part. Ran out of steam in the final episode when it turned into an infomercial for Magic Johnson Enterprises.

That said, as someone who devours old NBA content, I generally liked it. Wasn't as awesome as ESPN's "Best of Enemies" series but worth watching. I hope to dig in on Winning Time this weekend or the following.

[brettac1]

Gary Oldman is great in Slow Horses on Apple TV+. British spy drama/comedy. Currently 5 episodes in and enjoying every minute. Highly recommended.

Absolutely! Though we still haven’t seen the most recent episode. BTW the books by Mick Herron on which the show is based (and on which I hope they’ll base additional seasons) are equally highly recommended. Gary Oldman might not have been the first person I thought of for the role (don’t know who would have been) but he is perfect.

I made a note when you mentioned this series in Athens. Headed west in a few weeks and it's on the agenda for vacation viewing. Looks great. In fact, a lot of the Apple originals do. I honestly hadn't opened the app since I caught up on Ted Lasso.

[beantownbubba]

Gary Oldman is great in Slow Horses on Apple TV+. British spy drama/comedy. Currently 5 episodes in and enjoying every minute. Highly recommended.

Absolutely! Though we still haven’t seen the most recent episode. BTW the books by Mick Herron on which the show is based (and on which I hope they’ll base additional seasons) are equally highly recommended. Gary Oldman might not have been the first person I thought of for the role (don’t know who would have been) but he is perfect.

I made a note when you mentioned this series in Athens. Headed west in a few weeks and it's on the agenda for vacation viewing. Looks great. In fact, a lot of the Apple originals do. I honestly hadn't opened the app since I caught up on Ted Lasso.

Speaking of Apple TV, we were late to the first season of The Morning Show, but enjoyed it very much. We were also late to the 2nd season and barely got through the first episode. Really, really bad. Perhaps we'll give it one more shot but there's not a lot of motivation to do so.

[beantownbubba]

Episodes 7 & 8 of Bosch: Legacy were very disappointing and just plain bad. Here's hoping they get it back together for a big finish.

[beantownbubba]

Episodes 7 & 8 of Bosch: Legacy were very disappointing and just plain bad. Here's hoping they get it back together for a big finish.

[brettac1]

The racing on Sunday was across the board good to great, from F1 in Monaco (typically a snoozefest but compelling thanks to the strategy brought on by the rain) all the way through the Indy 500 to one of the best NASCAR races of the year (and the best Coke 600 in several years).

[pearlbeer]

I binged Pistol (HULU) over the past few nights. If you have not heard, it's a biopic of the Sex Pistols. It's a little goofy, but fun and entertaining.

[Swamp]

Other than SNL I've never really followed Norm McDonald but I watched his "Not so Special", well most of it.
I didn't watch the other comedians analyze it. Maybe some other time, but I did enjoy Norms routine.

[scotto]

I binged Pistol (HULU) over the past few nights. If you have not heard, it's a biopic of the Sex Pistols. It's a little goofy, but fun and entertaining.

I'm really liking it, much to my surprise. Especially the little historical (musical and otherwise) bits and pieces tossed in.

[Zip City]

With Better Call Saul and Stranger Things on a break, it’s just Barry and Obi-Wan Kenobi right now. I did go back and watch season four of Fargo (which was great) and I’m halfway through season three of Arrested Development (which I never watched before)

[beantownbubba]

Episodes 7 & 8 of Bosch: Legacy were very disappointing and just plain bad. Here's hoping they get it back together for a big finish.

Episodes 9 & 10 were an improvement, but little did I realize that they were the season ending episodes. I think I would have watched differently if I'd known those were the season enders. There's a big difference between an episode cliff hanger and a season cliff hanger. Oh well.

[brettac1]

I binged Pistol (HULU) over the past few nights. If you have not heard, it's a biopic of the Sex Pistols. It's a little goofy, but fun and entertaining.

I'm really liking it, much to my surprise. Especially the little historical (musical and otherwise) bits and pieces tossed in.

I'm going to check this one out. When I first saw it pop up it seemed like a show that had potential to be great or a total failure.

[beantownbubba]

Today's NYT has a nice retrospective on The Wire twenty years on, focusing on one scene from each season.

Stringer Bell, Omar and Bubbles are among the many indelible characters whose memory is brought back by the article. They just don't make TV like they used to