What are you watching? (television thread)

Griffith

With the streak of a tear, Like morning dew
IncantatioN said:
I remember being in college when they began airing Seinfeld, Curb Your Enthusiasm on a specific channel, forget the name, oh! and they also aired The Sopranos. But yeah, I never understood why Seinfeld was so popular. I watched upto season 6 or 7 (can't remember) and everyone around me at the time thought it was the shit, the best comedy series on television. I also didn't find Curb Your Enthusiasm funny.

Am I the only one?

:isidro: :magni:

...

Hah HA! He's just kidding everbody, we worked this out as a joke offline! As you were now. Heeey, did anyone catch the latest exploitative scene from Game of Thrones!?

(Incantatiin, follow my lead and I'll get you out of this in one piece! Also, Arrested Development is overrated... RUN!!)
 

Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
Griffith said:

Thanks for posting that man, was great.

IncantatioN said:
Am I the only one?

Yes.
 
Griffith said:
Haha, isn't that perfect, though? "You know--I just thought of something. I'll be fine."

Yep.

Griffith said:
Jay appeared a couple of times in the highlight reel and they used the photograph I posted above when they cut to a commercial break. I heard there were talks for each of them to appear on the other's show near the end of each but it could just never be worked out. It's too bad considering how many times Leno appeared on his show before (when he and Dave were killer btw and had a natural chemistry) it would have blown the roof off. Though, probably appropriate it didn't happen for all the right and wrong reasons (don't want to distract from the other's farewell, don't want to seemingly bow to the other either, and... it just wouldn't be the same).

I did see the picture when they cut to commercial, but I guess I was expecting something else, something more. A snipe or a joke perhaps? It's old news but I was kind of expecting a joke about taking back the show from Colbert soon or something. Though I think what you said about them not appearing on each other's show also applies to them not taking a shot at Leno. It was the right way to go.

Griffith said:
Mine as well, and here's a great write up on that list, the last show, and Letterman's legacy here:

http://theconcourse.deadspin.com/jokes-from-david-lettermans-final-top-10-list-ranked-1705961620

Good stuff! Thanks!

Griffith said:
Conan just didn't work as the King of Mainstream Late Night, like Letterman he's much more effective as a subversive misfit and I'm glad he's still thriving on social media, because I'll likely never watch another late night show again.

I like Conan and for a time I did follow a bit of what he did on TBS, but it's been a while. On the other hand I quite enjoyed some of his Serious Jibber-Jabber episodes. It's still Conan but it's good to see another side of him.

Griffith said:
Part of me wishes he did get the Late Show though, but Colbert does truly seem like someone that could do something completely different. I have no idea what to expect.

I honestly have no expectations whatsoever. I don't quite see what he can do to revamp the format, though I'd like to see him do it.

Griffith said:

More goodies! :ubik: I don't think I can watch them today but I'll definitely check them out.
 

Oburi

All praise Grail
I still watch Seinfeld regularly. It's one of the only sitcoms I like. Having recently set up my HBOGO! I started to rewatch some of the old Curb seasons I hadn't seen in a while (the ones I hadn't already seen a dozen or so times) and it's as funny as ever. I hope to god he does one more at least.

The real reason I came to this thread is because as I mentioned, I recently set up HBOGO which means I can go back and watch some series I missed out on. This includes The Wire. I caught a few episodes during it's original run but I was too young at the time to really grasp the storyline. Now that I've gone back to the beginning I can confidently say I'm loving this show. Still on season 1 but it's one of those shows that's easy to binge on because you just want to see what happens next. The television equivalent of a "page turner". I think there's some other fans of the show here :guts:
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
So last night I saw the first episode of BBC's adaptation of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. And... whew, I was relieved. Surprisingly, it's really good! :ubik:

I've read the book many times, and listened to the audio book many more, so if anyone was going to be a tough sell for this adaptation, it'd be me. But it won me over, making me feel the same feelings the book gave me in a few scenes -- possibly because the dialogue is almost completely the same. It's pretty amazing how much Childermass sounds exactly like I imagined. So, I consider it a pretty huge success, considering the obstacles I had to enjoying this.

While some changes did bother me (one BIG one which I'll elaborate on), others are perfectly understandable. The dry humor was stripped of many scenes, because I imagine it couldn't be conveyed well. A lot of the "jokes" in the book rely on internal dialogue.

I'll spoiler tag this, but I don't really think it's necessary:

Among the changes that bothered me, the actor for Norrell comes across as far too assertive for who he's meant to be portraying. Anyone familiar with the books will spot this the moment he takes the screen. it feels a bit like the actor taking liberties for a more compelling on-screen performance, when really the person he's supposed to be portraying is like a banker or librarian. However, he does nail some of the nuance of his character -- namely that he's not only a recluse, he's something of an autistic; socially inept. Both incapable of reading people's social cues and effectively communicating with them. These are mostly comical traits, but it also grounds his character.

And the big one: they've made a bold change to the fairy, to the extent that it may as well be a different character altogether. If you added up the character traits of the book's fairy, you'd get arrogant, conceited, proud, jovial and of course cheerful to the point of sinister. A guy who would just as soon laugh at you as wipe you from the face of the earth. The show's fairy doesn't carry any of those traits. While he is indeed otherworldly, he just comes across as a boomy-voiced bad guy. No more personality nuance, or cheery and politely evil demeanor. Apparently just a straight-up villain. At the least, it'll be interesting to see how they carry that moving forward in certain scenes, since it's by far the biggest change to the fundamentals.

This is unfortunate, because of all the elements of the book, I've always felt his character would be the most interesting to see on-screen, because he's so animated and delightfully evil. Now he's just a dry, boring, evil guy with crazy hair.

Example from the book:
“How long is a life?” he asked. The gentleman with the thistle-down hair spread his hands in a gesture of the utmost candour.
“How long would you like?”.

From the show:
“How long is a life?”
The gentleman asks dead-pan, not looking at Norrell at all: “How long would you like?”

Anyway, I hope it does well, if anything for the author. She deserves it.

Oburi said:
The real reason I came to this thread is because as I mentioned, I recently set up HBOGO which means I can go back and watch some series I missed out on. This includes The Wire. ... I think there's some other fans of the show here :guts:

Yeah, I've probably mentioned it on the podcast just about every time we talk about TV shows :griffnotevil:
 
Walter said:
So last night I saw the first episode of BBC's adaptation of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. And... whew, I was relieved. Surprisingly, it's really good! :ubik:

Woohoo! I'm glad you liked it. I also watched the first episode yesterday and I liked it too. I can't say it blew me away but it certainly caught my attention enough to continue watching. It also made me want to read the book again a bit more than I already wanted to. I particularly liked the scene in the church; the special effects were not outstanding, but I thought the scene was done sufficiently well for the quality of the effects to not matter that much. I also liked Vinculus, in particular his scene with Childermass. By the way, what did you think of Childermass? I must confess that unfortunately I don't remember him all that well, so I'm curious to know what you think of his portrayal.
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
I thought Childernass was spot on. Possibly a bit too young and handsome for what I had originally envisioned. But, the same could be said of Walter Pole, who is about 20 years younger than he's described in the book.
 
Walter said:
So last night I saw the first episode of BBC's adaptation of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. And... whew, I was relieved. Surprisingly, it's really good! :ubik:

Haven't read the book but I liked episode 1. Not sure about spoiler, so I'll just put stuff in it -
the whole premise of magic being something that wasn't performed in hundreds of years and yet there was someone who wants to make a difference was interesting. And what I really liked was that the magic performed through the episode isn't bombastic/ in your face/ let's make the biggest explosion to convince you sort of stuff. It was subtle and
characters feel like they'd belong to that sort of story setting. The acting's top notch, unforced. Good engrossing dialog and interplay between Mr Norrell and Childermass or even the
bad spirit.

Walter said:
And the big one: they've made a bold change to the fairy, to the extent that it may as well be a different character altogether. If you added up the character traits of the book's fairy, you'd get arrogant, conceited, proud, jovial and of course cheerful to the point of sinister. A guy who would just as soon laugh at you as wipe you from the face of the earth. The show's fairy doesn't carry any of those traits. While he is indeed otherworldly, he just comes across as a boomy-voiced bad guy. No more personality nuance, or cheery and politely evil demeanor. Apparently just a straight-up villain. At the least, it'll be interesting to see how they carry that moving forward in certain scenes, since it's by far the biggest change to the fundamentals.

This is unfortunate, because of all the elements of the book, I've always felt his character would be the most interesting to see on-screen, because he's so animated and delightfully evil. Now he's just a dry, boring, evil guy with crazy hair.

I was going to say I dug the bad fella but damn, after reading what he's supposed to be like, I like the book version a lot more! Now I can't get what his portrayal's supposed to be like outta my head haha. He's bad business, dangerous and cunning.

The dialog's rich, pretty organic and I couldn't follow some of it. After the episode I realized I'd left the volume too low and watched it again.

My favorite part of the episode was
Norrell at the party leading up to the scene where the street magician does the card trick on Childermass.

Notice episode 2 is out, so I'll watch it tomorrow.
 
Well tomorrow starts Hannibal's 3rd season just a reminder for those who watch it and a recommendation for those who don't :ubik:
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
Woof, I'm sorry to say that these past two episodes of JS & Mr.N have been pretty weak.

It's fulfilling the fears I had with some of the adaptation's elements that I was initially content to overlook or forgive. Namely, how they're portraying the fairy and Lady Pole. They're clearly angling his storyline to draw in more female viewers by making his interest in them unambiguously sexual in nature. This seems an odd diversion, considering the book was written by a woman. He's supposed to be driven by possession of something beautiful. But the way they're portraying it is basically that it's SCANDALOUS that he's pursuing these women, instead of merely horrifying.

Speaking of beauty, what's with the casting of Lady Pole? She's supposed to be one of the most beautiful people in not only the world, but also in all of Faerie. And no offense to the person they chose, but she just doesn't match the character's description -- at all. She's merely a plain, fussy young woman. At least they've stripped those descriptors from the script.
 
...Hannibal has been cancelled by NBC

NBC's 'Hannibal' Canceled After Three Seasons - The Hollywood Reporter
Hannibal - Cancelled by NBC | Spoilers
NBC cancels Hannibal. Long live Hannibal?
NBC cancels Hannibal · Newswire · The A.V. Club

...You know what if no premium channel or streaming service picks this show up I'll settle for the 4 seasons we will have been given.

maVzXlo.gif
 
VengeanceQuest982 said:
...Hannibal has been cancelled by NBC

:judo:

I just watched the first episode of season three and throughout the episode I was reflecting on how gorgeous and good the show is, only to learn about the cancellation today. A real bummer. I hope it gets picked up somewhere else.
 
Speaking of Hannibal, they better get their act together this season and move the plot forward. Episode 2 was plain boring while 1 and 3 were decent and yet, nowhere as good or tense as Season 1. I love the soundtrack and the overall atmosphere, rich characters but they're just milking it now.
 
IncantatioN said:
Speaking of Hannibal, they better get their act together this season and move the plot forward. Episode 2 was plain boring while 1 and 3 were decent and yet, nowhere as good or tense as Season 1. I love the soundtrack and the overall atmosphere, rich characters but they're just milking it now.

The rest, of the 1st 1/2 of the season looks to be as you put it "getting its act together" beginning with Thursday Nights episode. That having been said I quite liked the 1st 3 hours of the season so far.
The 1st hour was a reflection on Hannibal Lector & Dr. Bedelia Du Maurier relationship past and present as well as an informative perspective of when Hannibal views what he does as Cannibalism. The 2nd was centered around Will's grief over the death of Abigail Hobbs and his forgiving Hannibal not for what he did but for what was in his nature to do. That episode also introduced us to Rinaldo Pazzi who has his own history with Hannibal. While episode 3 not only covered Lector's origin but it also set Will on the path of chasing after Hannibal as an equal and not as an apprentice chasing after their master it also had the return of Jack Crawford whose only reason for being in Europe is to bring Will home.

...So yes while some would say that not much happened in the initial episodes they were however very informative and that is just as important I would think.
 
So Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is over. I thought it was a solid show all in all. In terms of adapting the book the show did fall short, as clearly pointed out by Walter, but I think that for all its shortcomings the show did manage to get other aspects right. Would viewers be better off reading the book than watching the show? Most likely, but in my opinion the same can be said of most adaptations. On the other hand, I know a few people that are not big on reading that can now take a look into the world of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, and I think that what they'd be getting out of it is enough to make them appreciate it. Who knows, perhaps the show will get more readers for the book. I myself just started reading the book a second time after reading it several years ago.
 
Speaking of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, I marathoned the last 4 episodes last night and it was a bit intoxicating, in the sense, I couldn't put it down without knowing how it would end and when the end came, it was a satisfying one. Does the series end where the book does or there's more? I haven't read the book and enjoyed watching it a lot, recommending it to people around me. Spoiler -
Especially enjoyed watching a maniacal Strange post the death of his wife, he's so convincing and the synergetic dynamic between him and Norrell in the penultimate episode was pretty cool.
Picked up the book a few weeks ago when I read praise for it by Walter and Aaz and will get to reading it next month.
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
I've had a really busy past three weeks (hence no podcast in a while), so I'm behind on a number of things, including the JS&MrN show. I think I stopped at ep 4 or 5, and it was already diverging quite a bit. Haven't really liked a single change they've made so far (
Strange storming into Norrell's house was kind of the last straw for my interest level. Extremely out of character, particularly given their demeanor to each other in the book. All the true animosity is from Drawlight/Lascelles
). I wholeheartedly recommend the book to anyone interested in more, but with the caveat that it's really NOT for everyone.
 

Griffith

With the streak of a tear, Like morning dew
Re: What are you watching [soon]? (television thread)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLlMTn_Jzok
 

Griffith

With the streak of a tear, Like morning dew
IncantatioN said:
That cast list is bonkers. Looked it up and there's a movie too?! Late to the party but I'm getting on it.

Oh yeah, grab some beers, enjoy a new way, and realize just how weird and funny it is that they're doing this at all. It's like in the alternate reality where Wet Hot American Summer is a real 80's teen movie they're all happy to do this because it's all they've got... except it's the polar opposite.


In a somewhat similar vein, the real fun to come out of comic-con:

https://youtu.be/unnLg1TPCYM

Looks a lot more vital than you'd expect. Love just how head on and far they took some of the old jokes, and one in particular.
 

Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
Griffith said:
In a somewhat similar vein, the real fun to come out of comic-con:

https://youtu.be/unnLg1TPCYM

Looks a lot more vital than you'd expect. Love just how head on and far they took some of the old jokes, and one in particular.

I was never too big of an Evil Dead fan, but this is the first trailer I saw out of Comic-Con and it did feel pretty good all things considered. I think this'll be a worthy entry into the series.
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
Griffith said:
In a somewhat similar vein, the real fun to come out of comic-con:

https://youtu.be/unnLg1TPCYM

Looks a lot more vital than you'd expect. Love just how head on and far they took some of the old jokes, and one in particular.

I've never been quite as over-the-moon for Evil Dead as most of my generation is, but I thought this trailer was pretty funny. Looks good, even though it's StarZ :griffnotevil:
 

Griffith

With the streak of a tear, Like morning dew
Anyone else check out Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp? It started promisingly enough, but sort of lost focus in the middle and just meandered through to the end. I think there was enough material for a fun follow up film in there, but there was also a lot of underwhelming filler and even at its best it never quiet took it as high(er and higher) as the original. On that note, while Meloni is fantastic at all times, Gene was criminally underrepresented; that they didn't have anything more to say with/about him was a pretty telling indictment to me.


Also, my wife and I are watching The Sopranos (she's never seen it), are now about halfway through season 2, and HOLY SHIT the contrast with wannabes like True Detective 2 (which we were honestly bummed to watch in lieu of another Sopranos episode). I forgot how good this show was when it still had it's fastball. Even knowing that beforehand it impresses. Season 1 alone was better than anything I've seen lately. The novelistic approach to its overlapping themes and subtle delivery of them in a straightforward and easy to understand presentation makes even modern boutique television look like contrived, paint-by-numbers garbage by comparison. I'm sure I'll change my tune as we get to seasons 6a/b (
gutsbarf.gif
), but right now I'm partying with Tony like a TV critic from 1999.
 
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