What are you watching? (television thread)

m said:
I'm watching the second season of Real Humans, a show that I really like. I thoroughly recommend it to anybody that has the chance to watch it (it apparently has been sold to about 50 countries)

Cool beans, I'll check this show out in upcoming weeks.

I'm 3 episodes in this new show on SyFy called Helix ...

media-6029277468134632534-Helix_Keyart_2048x1024__640070.jpeg


Seeing the poster in the subway got me to check the show out. The main characters isn't engaging or exciting enough but the premise is cool, decent suspense and the plot has good potential - The series follows a team of scientists from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention who travel to a research facility in the Arctic to investigate a potential outbreak of disease. While there, they find themselves stuck in a life-or-death situation that could decide the future of mankind.

Picking up Doctor Who (2005 to present), True Detective and Masters of Sex.
 
Walter said:
Nearing the end of the second season of House of Cards. This show still sucks.

I was thinking of picking this show up : / guess I'll skip it. A colleague at work loves the show and I think that's one reason why I had not checked it out so far.
 

Johnstantine

Skibbidy Boo Bop
IncantatioN said:
I was thinking of picking this show up : / guess I'll skip it. A colleague at work loves the show and I think that's one reason why I had not checked it out so far.

Why would you skip it, though? Walter is the first person I've heard saying they disliked it. Everyone else has said it's really good.
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
Johnstantine said:
Why would you skip it, though? Walter is the first person I've heard saying they disliked it. Everyone else has said it's really good.
If you're interested, don't skip it. I mean, hell I watched it and I didn't even enjoy it, but it has an undeniably addictive quality to it (you constantly think it's going to get better, but it doesn't...). But I'm not the only person that had big problems with it: http://www.avclub.com/review/house-of-cards-still-deeply-empty-still-occasional-201183

the series still struggles with the foremost issue that bedeviled season one: It’s not about a goddamn thing, other than getting you to keep watching the episodes by keeping the plotting as obvious and easy to understand as possible. What the series has to say about American politics is brain-numbingly basic and devoid of nuance, largely boiling down to the easiest kind of cynicism but then refusing to grow beyond that. (If all politicians in the series’ world need to be more like Frank to get ahead, as it seems to suggest, then it’s a wonder a man as milquetoast as Michel Gill’s President Garrett Walker got as far as local dog catcher.) House Of Cards is a series intent on congratulating the viewer for being suspicious of politicians, but it’s not particularly interested in examining root causes for political corruption—or even the motivations of its protagonist Frank, and why he so covets power. It’s the ultimate binge-watching experience, in that it rewards even the laziness of thought.

This pretty much sums up my problem with it. It is not a smart show, but tries desperately to clothe itself in the trappings of one. Any scrutiny of the writing quickly reveals it to be second-rate. There are times when they overplay their dramatic music cues so much that it's comical. It has a glossy finish, and is mostly well-produced, [generally] well-acted, but it is an utterly hollow experience, with simple characters who aside from Spacey are almost completely devoid of nuance. The character quirks that are touched on are not explored enough to make them interesting. Even at the end of the second season, they remain caricatures.

Beyond that, it's boring even for a political drama. Strong start, strong finish, but the middle 10 episodes or so revolve around Spacey's butt-simple political manuevering and fucking infrastructure intrigue that stretches on for HOURS.
 
Has anyone been watching Black Sails? I think I´ve watched four episodes. I really like the setting and it seems like theres potential. But essentially it lacks something, just not intense enough to fully grab my attention.


Right, I take back what I´ve always said about kid shows being better back in the day. Babysitting my niece the other day we watched this kids show called Sponge Bob Square Pants, and that shit was awesome! :ganishka: Seriously Im even considering buying some collection for her to watch with her, its pretty much the only thing we both enjoy. And naturally we watched the swedish dub so I bet its much funnier in english.

The episodes are like parodies on movie classics and stuff. For instance Jaws (wtf!? :iva:) and Im pretty sure there was a Justice league reference too, thats all I remember now, there was more.
 
I've thoroughly enjoyed the second season of House of Cards, though I agree with Walter that the characters outside of Underwood could use some more meat to them.
I don't see how Underwood becoming president should've been a shock to anyone though, I mean where else was he gonna go?
I really hope they come up with a rival that can challenge and push Underwood next season though. As much fun as it was to see him slither his way to the top, it would do the series some good to have him knocked down a peg or two.
 
Hanma_Baki said:
Has anyone been watching Black Sails?
Was at a Black Sails panel at NYCC by default since they had The Walking Dead panel in the same auditorium. Production values looked big but it didn't grab me enough to make me want to see it whenever it was going to release.

I've watched random Futurama episodes through the years but every episode or a full season, so I'll start watching that soon and season 3 of Louie. Helix picked up from the 5th episode, overall the show is B-Ok.
 

Johnstantine

Skibbidy Boo Bop
Just started watching True Detective. I'm avoiding the other thread due to spoilers though.

I'm one episode in and my god I am so hooked.
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
Johnstantine said:
Just started watching True Detective. I'm avoiding the other thread due to spoilers though.

I'm one episode in and my god I am so hooked.
Better than House of Cards?! :badbone:

Seriously, glad you're enjoying it. And I think we're pretty good at spoiler tagging the thread. But yeah... best to be safe.
 

Johnstantine

Skibbidy Boo Bop
Walter said:
Better than House of Cards?! :badbone:

Seriously, glad you're enjoying it. And I think we're pretty good at spoiler tagging the thread. But yeah... best to be safe.

HoC is on the list, but near the bottom. I'll get to it...eventually. I guess.
 
Season 2 premier of Hannibal.
What an opening showdown! At first I thought it´d ruin it but with a second thought I actually think it actually fits pretty good, and the scene itself was so beautifully done that I pretty much forgot to be critical. Wtf was that pro-wrestling-ish move by Jack though?! Normally I dont think I´d like that but for some reason it looked fucking awesome :ganishka:
This is pretty much my favorite tv show right now, well, coupled with True Dectective I guess. Never watched the whole season promo thing at the end, intentionally of course, but Im really interested to see how this season is gonna be set up.

A pal recommended Under the dome, watched the first episode, cant decide exactly where it lands on the quality meter quite yet, but looks like a fun watch either way, I think Im gonna keep going.

IncantatioN said:
Was at a Black Sails panel at NYCC by default since they had The Walking Dead panel in the same auditorium. Production values looked big but it didn't grab me enough to make me want to see it whenever it was going to release.

Huh cool. Anyway I think I wont watch anymore, after the latest episode Im done waiting for it to get better.

I've watched random Futurama episodes through the years but every episode or a full season, so I'll start watching that soon and season 3 of Louie. Helix picked up from the 5th episode, overall the show is B-Ok.

Man, Futurama is pretty much my all time favorite animated comedy show. Im gonna have to marathon it all again some day.

I imagine you´ll do a littlle review once you´ve watched all but what do you think of Louie this far? And comparing to the Lucky Louie one?

Agree on Helix, it picked up, but Im still not completely satisfied. Like you said, could be the main character/actor.


EDIT:

Second episode of Hannibal. I am loving this show. Say, how much of this is based on the book(/s)?

Finished the first season of Under the Dome, and while its definitely miles away from shows like Hannibal and True Detective in quality (since thats what I´ve watched recently) its got that annoying way of making you keep watching due to intense cliffhanger-ish end scenes. That being said the finale felt a bit lame, I was expecting a more "proper" end in the sense that it should´ve finished this arc. This felt more like a mid-season finale if anything, but as an ending its just a boring stalling.

Still gotta say it kicks the shit out of TWD (I know its different but just in case you might get any apocalypse vibes). Im not terribly excited about a second season. I probably wouldnt have kept watching it weekly, but I had it all in front of me so it just felt convenient to keep going.

Oh yeah and Hank Schrader was definitely a major pull, badass with one epic belly :guts: I dont want him to exit the show, if he does, which Im guessing he will, I probably wont continue.
 
Under The Dome was pretty dismal overall. I couldn't get past the first few episodes.

Hanma_Baki said:
Season 2 premier of Hannibal.
What an opening showdown!
I'm keeping up with Hannibal every week, so far this season's more straight-forward or direct compared to last season and a bit more stylish.
I wish we didn't get to see that opening scene from the season opener. It ruined any element of surprise but I suppose the plot will go beyond what we see?
I haven't read the books and I notice episode titles this season are Japanese cuisine related while last season were French.

I imagine you´ll do a littlle review once you´ve watched all but what do you think of Louie this far? And comparing to the Lucky Louie one?

Finished watching season 3 the other night. Scenarios are real, personal and in the middle of all that humor there are some dark, depressing moments. I may have said it before but I always find myself eating a second dinner at 1 or 2 AM while I catch up on Louie, he makes me want to eat somehow! The show's very consistent. I'm going to look out for tickets to his stand-up show.
 
^
Bah I just cant stand Arrow anymore, stopped a couple of episodes back, but really I pretty much gave up on it right away, think I kept watching cause I wanted to see where they´d go with Slade and the rest of the cameos, but the show is stalling SO BAD and just lethally small teases about the island, man its so frustrating. And all the classic soap-opera relationship drama back and forth BS... I cant take it anymore.

Outside of some Justice League (where I really dig him) I havent got much Green Arrow experience, and even if he's got a more earnest side, I always thought he was gonna be more of a chill kinda wise cracking dude than the super serious zen master we get here.

Btw man, whatta you think of the latest season of Archer? It still fun but I think they've gotten a bit too reliant on the dialogue, which has always been its strength though, but its just not the same spark as before. The Kenny Loggins (K-Log :iva:) episode was nice but the rest feels a bit mediocre compared to previous seasons, maybe we're just spoiled since they indeed were hysterical. Anyway hope it'll pick up.

While on the subject of animation I dont know if I ever mentioned it but I just remembered the other shows you recommended. Like Frisky Dingo, tbh I almost rank that show higher than Archer, man whatta gem! So damn sad they didnt continue it. The X-tacles were great too, I think they had a good thing going there but oh well. Im constantly reminded of the characters and the events with a total shit-eating grin.

Then there was Sealab, definitely not as entertaining, didnt age too well, but it had its moments too, some episodes straight-up weirded even ME out. By the end it was more randomness than humor sadly, but I bet they had one hell of a time creating this show. Bad decision to cut Murphy. The "replacement" (dont remember his name) was great but just not the same without grumpy ol' Murph. Funny thing is IIRC my favorite episode is the very first of the entire show.

Sorry dont remember if you recommended anything else? I've come to rely on your animated comedy taste :serpico:

IncantatioN said:
Under The Dome was pretty dismal overall. I couldn't get past the first few episodes.

Haha yeah in fact I feel pretty cheap :ganishka: I must've been desperate. The whole tv show life style has indeed gotten a bit outta hand for me lately. My standards are getting rusty. There're mutiple shows I've had to quit now cause I was so stubbornly thinking they had potential, like Vikings, Agents of SHIELD, Arrow, Black Sails, even Helix man,
I hated the way they made you think that "one-man-army" Scythe badass was totally gonna fuck up everyone, but ended up being pretty worthless. Not the only contributing factor to stop watching it though.

I'll probably quit Blacklist too, it has a stalling kinda approach with a touch of CSI/CIS? But its at least incorporating the main twist with pretty much each individual episode's plot. Ray feels like a unique kinda badass and that coupled with partly good writing is what makes the show good.

Then theres TWD which I cant keep myself from suffering through no matter what due to the comics. Was the latest one the season finale? I cant describe how lame that last line was. I kinda exploded outta awe when he said that in the comics but this was just laughable even on its own. Its just going through the motions as always, any sense of emotion and atmosphere totally absent. Its just the same over and over. This script must've been pretty easy even if they takes bits and pieces from the comics (and totally misinterpret them!). Character(s) sees zombie(s), character(s) kills said zombie(s). Enter the next underwhelming character (Oh his in the comics! So cool! ...No not really...)

Oh yeah, this isnt really that hard to believe with the relatively recent pop culture vampire hype but they actually made From Dusk til Dawn into a tv show, tried watching it but didnt get through the first episode. Pathetic.

Okay Im done ranting now, sorry folks...


I wish we didn't get to see that opening scene from the season opener. It ruined any element of surprise but I suppose the plot will go beyond what we see?

I agree, and call me naive but ATM Im still hoping there's some ulterior motive for it.

And for some reason I thought they´d keep doing the titles in french, but yeah thats pretty interesting, wonder what they'll do for seasons to come.

After the latest episode I dont like the way they (Jack) focus so much on Hannibal as a potential suspect. I always imagined it being more of a quick conclusion when it'd happen instead of the slowly revealing process we're seeing now, and especially the cannibalism, its cool that Will himself figured it out but for the rest I would've liked that to be more of visually shocking "WTF!?" moment... But Idk Im just nitpicking I guess.

Finished watching season 3 the other night. Scenarios are real, personal and in the middle of all that humor there are some dark, depressing moments. I may have said it before but I always find myself eating a second dinner at 1 or 2 AM while I catch up on Louie, he makes me want to eat somehow! The show's very consistent. I'm going to look out for tickets to his stand-up show.

By season 3 I almost remember it more like "...and in the middle of all that depressing darkness there are some humorous moments." instead :iva: Sometimes you dont know whether to laugh or weep. I dont think I've ever seen the level of awkwardness form the episode where he meets that surfer guy :ganishka:
Haha makes you hungry? Thats hilarious, but in some weird way I think I get it, tbh I pretty much do the same actually.
Lol that totally reminds me of this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxDgQjkARvo and Im pretty sure there're more food-themed ones :ganishka:


Is anyone watching Shameless? Either version? Looks interesting but dont really know what its about...

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DAMN thats a long post :troll:
 

Johnstantine

Skibbidy Boo Bop
Hanma_Baki said:
^
Bah I just cant stand Arrow anymore, stopped a couple of episodes back, but really I pretty much gave up on it right away, think I kept watching cause I wanted to see where they´d go with Slade and the rest of the cameos, but the show is stalling SO BAD and just lethally small teases about the island, man its so frustrating. And all the classic soap-opera relationship drama back and forth BS... I cant take it anymore.

Outside of some Justice League (where I really dig him) I havent got much Green Arrow experience, and even if he's got a more earnest side, I always thought he was gonna be more of a chill kinda wise cracking dude than the super serious zen master we get here.

Btw man, whatta you think of the latest season of Archer? It still fun but I think they've gotten a bit too reliant on the dialogue, which has always been its strength though, but its just not the same spark as before. The Kenny Loggins (K-Log :iva:) episode was nice but the rest feels a bit mediocre compared to previous seasons, maybe we're just spoiled since they indeed were hysterical. Anyway hope it'll pick up.

While on the subject of animation I dont know if I ever mentioned it but I just remembered the other shows you recommended. Like Frisky Dingo, tbh I almost rank that show higher than Archer, man whatta gem! So damn sad they didnt continue it. The X-tacles were great too, I think they had a good thing going there but oh well. Im constantly reminded of the characters and the events with a total shit-eating grin.

Then there was Sealab, definitely not as entertaining, didnt age too well, but it had its moments too, some episodes straight-up weirded even ME out. By the end it was more randomness than humor sadly, but I bet they had one hell of a time creating this show. Bad decision to cut Murphy. The "replacement" (dont remember his name) was great but just not the same without grumpy ol' Murph. Funny thing is IIRC my favorite episode is the very first of the entire show.

Sorry dont remember if you recommended anything else? I've come to rely on your animated comedy taste :serpico:

I don't mind Arrow so far, but I'm only two episodes in. I love Ollie, so hopefully they make him what he should be and not some melodramatic character (like every other character in the series so far). I understand why they're doing it, though. They're targeting a HUGE demographic, so it makes sense.

As for the new season of Archer, it's pretty meh. I agree with you that it's way too dialogue heavy. Seasons 2, 3, and 4 were the best. Adam Reed said that season 6 will go back to the norm, but I think at this point it's just sort of played out. Frisky Dingo is what got me into his stuff, so that will always be my fave of his. Sealab is one of those shows where I can watch maybe 1 episode a year. It just isn't as good as the others.

I can recommend a few other series to watch: Babylon 5 (by far my favorite series ever), the Green Lantern animated series (it lasted one season, but it's a damn good one), Bob's Burgers, Clone Wars (by far some of the absolute best Star Wars material EVER), and True Detective.

If I had to suggest any of those series to watch IMMEDIATELY, it would be True Detective and Clone Wars.

Oh, also, watch Rick and Morty. It's fantastic.
 
Got around episode 1 of the 7th and last season of Mad Men and it doesn't disappoint surprisingly. We kinda get to see where everyone is from where it left off last season and there's a lot of duality and weighty dialog/ foreshadowing going on.
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
IncantatioN said:
Got around episode 1 of the 7th and last season of Mad Men and it doesn't disappoint surprisingly. We kinda get to see where everyone is from where it left off last season and there's a lot of duality and weighty dialog/ foreshadowing going on.

I don't think I'll even bother with the final season. The previous 2 were so disappointing, it basically dove off the cliff in terms of quality. Extending that show was a mistake...
 
I agree. Season 5 was the show's weakest because Don's character took a step back from the ad world to focus on other things, something I felt was what kept the show interesting. We all see less of Roger each time apart from an episode here and there. Season 6 starts just as bad but recovers mid-season because Don went back to work : p
 

Dar_Klink

Last Guardian when? - CyberKlink 20XX before dying
I've been watching a good deal of anime along with some Western live action. The ones that stick out the most are the anime Ping Pong and the HBO show Silicon Valley. Ping Pong is based on a manga by Taiyo Matsumoto about a group of youths playing table tennis. The character development and symbolism is the highlight and the animation is by Masaaki Yuasa, who directed a lot of my favorite anime, Tatami Galaxy, Mind Game, Kaiba, Kemonozume, and the recent Kick Heart. His animation style and Matsumoto's art style fit really well together, it's being simulcasted by Funimation, you might wanna give it a try even if you're not into sports anime/table tennis.

Silicon Valley is by Mike Judge and is about the whole "Start-up" culture of recent years. People rushing to develop apps and become the next big billion dollar company or make money selling it to bigger companies. I'm enjoying it quite a bit, the characters are "nerdy" and make references without it being cringeworthy like in The Big Bang Theory. The story is about a pretty awkward low-level programmer who happens to write a compression algorithm for a mostly useless application that catches the interest of a few big names. So far the writing is really good and the characters are enjoyable, I hope it keeps up the quality.

As for Mike Judge, I really enjoyed King of the Hill, Office Space, and, of course, Beavis and Butthead as a kid, I didn't really enjoy Idiocracy that much.
 
Does anyone like David Lynch's work? I've been watching Twin Peaks and its so bizarre but addicting! I love the unsettling style he uses, especially in the movie Lost Highway. I don't find many traditional horror movies scary, but some of his stuff makes me jump or uneasy. :magni: especially this part in that movie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZowK0NAvig
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
Tama said:
Does anyone like David Lynch's work? I've been watching Twin Peaks and its so bizarre but addicting

I wrote a little on Twin Peaks on the previous page of this thread: http://www.skullknight.net/forum/index.php?topic=11047.msg225184#msg225184
 

Dar_Klink

Last Guardian when? - CyberKlink 20XX before dying
Tama said:
Does anyone like David Lynch's work? I've been watching Twin Peaks and its so bizarre but addicting! I love the unsettling style he uses, especially in the movie Lost Highway. I don't find many traditional horror movies scary, but some of his stuff makes me jump or uneasy. :magni: especially this part in that movie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZowK0NAvig

Well, I'd say what's already been said but its already been said. Personally, this scene scared/unsettled me a lot more than that one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMMX8dkbXEU
Hell, I'm almost having trouble watching it right now knowing it's coming. That,
Laura Palmer's eyes while in the room
at the end of Twin Peaks
the hobo
from Mulholland Drive, and
the superimposed face
in Inland Empire all had a similar effect on me. They were "jump scares" but came at such insanely tense moments that they worked as much more than that. I think if I saw the Inland Empire part out of context I'd just think it looked stupid, but that whole movie was such a creepy build-up that it was intense as hell.
 
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