Random TV Talk IV: We're So Broken Inside

[bono_212]

I loved it pretty much until the second half of the second to last season. Then the show died to me.

 

[cobl04]

I'm rewatching it with Em, I adored it as a teen. Season 1 was largely pretty great, but it's slipping hard in season 2 so far. It is very of its time, that period in the mid to late-00s where woke culture hadn't made its way into everything - and I speak of woke culture with glowing praise in this regard. It is jaw-droppingly sexist, so clearly written by straight white men and only straight white men. The shit House does to Stacy is abhorrent. We just had our first gay character feature, and of course, he has AIDS and his dad hates him. It also punches down, some pretty concerning ways that homeless or lower class people are treated. It treats race with some sensitivity, which is nice, although you can tell it's still all written by white people.

All that said, thoroughly enjoying it.

 

[MrPryck2U]

A funny show that I only discovered last year is Mom. Fucking hilarious. Too bad it ended.

 

[cobl04]

I have been desperate for a Red Dead Redemption TV show or movie, but since none is coming, I've started to look into other options. Heard some great stuff about Yellowstone, and started it last night but in the first 2 mins was like "trucks and bitumen roads did not exist in the late 1800s". Thought about 1883 but it's a Yellowstone prequel I'm told. Been asking around and people kept recommending Deadwood. Finally found it on one of the eight million streaming services (paramount plus) and watched the first ep last night, and it definitely seems like it could scratch that Red Dead itch. The length of the episodes does not appeal to me though, and half the time I felt like I need subtitles.

 

[monkeyskin]

Deadwood is top tier and it finally got a finale movie a couple of years ago. Dialogue takes a while to get used to but is poetic in its profanity.

Definitely recommend not to binge it. Alan Sepinwall has a great recap series on his old blog to read alongside each episode, just steer clear of the comments for spoilers.

 

[cobl04]

Why not binge? I did find that after watching it last night I was quite alert and needing to calm myself down a bit. It's intense.

 

[monkeyskin]

Maybe I’m old fashioned but I never like rushing through TV shows. This is a series where each episode offers enough to satisfy, rather than a Netflix show that stretches a plot thinly over too many episodes. Binging multiple episodes in a sitting always makes the show feel like an amorphous blur in my mind and I’d sooner savour a good show and skip a mediocre show.

You do you of course, but I think Deadwood would make a more lasting impact if you cap it to one episode per day with maybe some more insightful analysis afterwards. I’d recommend this for any of the great dramas (The Sopranos, The Wire, Mad Men, etc). But we all consume media differently, I just hope you enjoy this classic.

 

[cobl04]

Thanks man. Good advice. I definitely doubt I could do more than one a day. And after watching I spent a good hour reading up about the episode and the show and the history and some reviews, didn't realise so much of it was real life.

 

[cobl04]

Woah, Nick Offerman was in it! He plays the brother of the dude Seth/Hicock shoot in episode one. I didn't even recognise him, just saw his name in the credits.

 

[lazarus]

Deadwood is top tier and it finally got a finale movie a couple of years ago. Dialogue takes a while to get used to but is poetic in its profanity.

Definitely recommend not to binge it. Alan Sepinwall has a great recap series on his old blog to read alongside each episode, just steer clear of the comments for spoilers.

Deadwood and Mad Men are two shows that are definitely better digested slowly, taking a couple days at least to process and reflect each chapter.

Breaking Bad on the other hand was designed for binging, as it relies more on plot momentum and suspense.

 

[cobl04]

Three eps in, really enjoying it, although I'm bummed Brom is dead, I was really enjoying his wispy, effete, gullible out-of-town character.

 

[cobl04]

Goddamnit, now the most intriguing character is dead

In cooler news, after watching an episode I went for a drive and my music was on shuffle, and the first song that got played...? Rocky Raccoon. What a match. Have always loved that song.

 

[cobl04]

Here I was thinking Seth Bullock could be someone I could like and then he bashes a Native American to death.

 

[MrPryck2U]

RIP Kirstie Alley. Loved on her on Cheers. A very funny lady.

 

[Hewson]

Sad news.
RIP.

 

[cobl04]

Just finished season one of Deadwood, it's fantastic. The final episode was the best yet. Ian McShane's Al Swearengen is fantastic, I haven't watched that much TV, but one of my favourite characters I've ever seen. Seems this is a dramatisation and the real-life one was much more mean, but McShane is an incredible actor. He's funny, brutal, sweet, emotional, an arsehole, empathetic, gullible, whip-smart, all often in the same episode.

I actually find Timothy Olyphant's Bullock a bit wooden, to be honest. Glad him and Alma got together, though. She is hot.

 

[cobl04]

I just watched 'Something Very Expensive', that is right up there with the most brutal, sickening, upsetting scenes I've ever seen, TV or film. I hope Wolcott is brutally murdered by someone.

 

[cobl04]

On New Year's Eve, I discovered something quite delightful, and I'd be interested to know if others here know of it.

So I went to a friend's place, and her housemate is German. And about 1100pm, she brought up a sketch on YouTube, Dinner for One.

It's a B&W slapstick British sketch from the early 60s, and it is very, very funny.

It matters that she is German because, as she told us, this sketch is immensely popular in Germany on NYE. They show it on TV every half-hour. It's also very popular in some other Central European, Scandinavian and Baltic countries. The sketch was, until recently, almost completely unknown in Britain, despite the fact it is completely in English, with English actors.

I found it to be an absolute delight. It's a very simple sketch, and could be easily understood without knowing English, which I imagine is part of why it's popular. Fantastic use of repetition as the central bit, and it's well-known for the line "the same procedure as every year, James".

I found it super fascinating that this 10-minute, super old sketch I'd never heard of was SO popular in part of the world, and almost unknown in the majority-English-speaking world. Our German friend was delighted to show it to us and share the story behind it.

Anyway, enjoy!

 

[Hewson]

 

[monkeyskin]

2022 sadly saw the end of Better Call Saul, Atlanta, Better Things and more, but 2023 bringing the goods right out the gate with The Last of Us.

I played the game on release and honestly felt the plaudits were overdone. Sub-Metal Gear Solid stealth gameplay and a top tier video game story is still significantly lesser than any medium designed to tell stories. Didn’t bother with #2 but I’m pretty much a Switch only guy now. So while my expectations were initially cool for this adaptation, the growing buzz and early notices did up my expectations.

And they have just been well and truly blown away. Stunning first episode. Hope some of you peeps are also watching and we can smash the already high contribution numbers of ~4 that BCS and House of the Dragon were drawing last year.

 

[cobl04]

When are we getting Red Dead the show!

 

[bono_man2002]

^ Hunt Showdown is getting one. It’s kinda Red Deadish.

The first episode of The Last of Us was great. They really did mail it. I liked how they added a bit extra detail on the setup before the uh, inevitable happened.

Time to replay the game!

 

[monkeyskin]

^ Hunt Showdown is getting one. It’s kinda Red Deadish.

The first episode of The Last of Us was great. They really did mail it. I liked how they added a bit extra detail on the setup before the uh, inevitable happened.

Time to replay the game!

Spoiler

They did a great job setting up Sarah and her relationship with Joel. The game has the advantage of making her the first controllable character to give us a connection to her. The show basically makes her the POV character for the prologue, and when shit was going down I was still hoping she’d survive.

Got pointed out to me that her classmate with the shiny watch was twitching due to early infection, that went straight over my head upon first watch. Looking forward to next week already.

 

[david]

I’m 45 years old and actually finding That 90s Show kind of funny.

 

[cobl04]

It's a funny show, always has been.

Finished season two of Deadwood. It was fantastic. "The Whores Can Come" in particular I found exceptional.

 

[MrPryck2U]

Just watched the first 2 episodes of the new Night Court. Not bad. It's tough to follow the original but I do like seeing John Larroquette back. Dan Fielding was great! Melissa Rauch is good as Harry's daughter, Abby.

 

[david]

I’ve been meaning to watch that (Night Court) next. I binged the entire 10 episode run of That 90s Show yesterday. Definitely feels like a good continuation of That 70s Show. Seeing the old cast just fall into Thierry characters again was great. The new kids definitely took a few episodes to gel.

It’s funny to think that in 1998 when That 70s Show premiered I was 21 and obviously I didn’t grow up in the 70s (I was born in ‘77) but still enjoyed it despite having zero nostalgia for that decade. So I wonder how younger people now might like it and if anyone born in the early 2000s have any type of interest or nostalgia for the 90s.

 

[Hewson]

RIP Cindy Williams.

 

[MrPryck2U]

RIP Cindy Williams.

Ditto.

Is Lenny the last person standing from the cast of Laverne and Shirley?

 

[Hewson]

Yep. Michael McKean is last surviving cast regular.