Binge worthy TV

[Scepticalscribe]

I have been watching Forged in Fire this week.

I'm not sure that I can even explain its appeal to myself, still less that I - a political analyst, nerd and geek by profession as well as by personal preference - am seeking refuge from politics by losing myself in a show with a sort of Great British Bake-Off format, but dedicated to the crafting of swords and similar weaponry.

 

[Alli]

Yes and ummm, just WT actual F?

That said, it was an excellent show, looking forward to a second season if for no other reason to explain the ending of this one.

Think of Prometheus and Alien: Covenant. The season finale was very much along the lines of Covenant.

 

[Alli]

I’m up to episode 6 of Utopia on Prime. It is compelling. I’m really enjoying it.

And for those of you who may be interested, the final season - 6 - of Schitt$ Creek is finally available on Hulu. Yay!

 

[Arkitect]

Spitting Image is back!

Finally! After too many years of will they won't they…

We joined Britbox just to be able to see the new series. (Frankly, there's nowt else to watch on there.)

The first episode definitely delivered the satire, the viciousness and stiletto sharp evisceration of the original '80s series.

But… but… I did not find it as shocking as I did the original.
We have become so jaded by bizarre behaviour, exposed to non stop "what the fuckery" since then that our guffaws and laughter is less, I dunno, spontaneous? We know our PM Pfeffel the Ovenready is a fool and buffoon ready to sell the country to the highest bidder. We know Trump is an arsehole (oh yes… quite literally) so the shock is not quite the same.

We knew Thatcher was bad and Major a grey man with zero personality. We knew Kinnock was useless and Reagan a doddard. But I don't think we ever doubted that they were humans mostly doing what they felt was best.

Our current crop of politicos and celebs are so vacuous and so unscrupulous in their race to the top of the greasy money/ratings pole that this current SI is just less shocking.

Still, worth a watch and brilliantly done.

 

[Alli]

Still, worth a watch and brilliantly done.

Since we subscribe, will add it to my list! I always enjoyed that.

 

[Edd]

Just finished the first episode of the Comedy Store doc series on Showtime. I found it sometimes riveting, especially a story told by Jimmy Walker about Freddie Prinze which I won’t spoil here. These stories were mostly from the 70s and you’ve probably gotta be at least my age (50) to appreciate them. The next episodes should cover more recent times.

 

[DT]

So some pretty fantastic shows we're watching, not necessarily "binging" ...

Lovecraft Country
The Boys


LC is sublime, just a beautiful essay on race, alienation, the last episode was one of the more frightening things I've seen on TV.

 

[DT]

Also finishing up Cobra Kai S1, it's really fun, very self-aware, lots of meta-commentary on 80s film, and a pretty well constructed narrative on privilege, and when it's only perceived as, and how hard it is to leave behind past damage.

 

[Eric]

So some pretty fantastic shows we're watching, not necessarily "binging" ...

Lovecraft Country
The Boys


LC is sublime, just a beautiful essay on race, alienation, the last episode was one of the more frightening things I've seen on TV.

Just finished up The Boys, I didn't think it could get any better than season one, I was wrong. Along with Raised by Wolves this is one of my favorite shows in years.

I personally like Lovecraft Country but some of the scenes are too much for my wife so we stopped watching but I'll probably pick it back up on my own at some point.

 

[Thomas Veil]

So some pretty fantastic shows we're watching, not necessarily "binging" ...

Lovecraft Country
The Boys


LC is sublime, just a beautiful essay on race, alienation, the last episode was one of the more frightening things I've seen on TV.

I’m finding Lovecraft Country very uneven, but that climactic scene in episode 8 was just awesome.

 

[JayMysteri0]

I LOVED this show. It is honestly despite all the talk about Star Trek, the only reason why I still have CBS All Access
https://www.Twitter or X not allowed/i/web/status/1314854313030823936/

 

[JayMysteri0]

I’m finding Lovecraft Country very uneven, but that climactic scene in episode 8 was just awesome.

I loved every bit so far. The episode in Viet Nam, the Ruby episode, the ending where Tic comes back with the , and 8 have been incredible.

 

[User.45]

I loved every bit so far. The episode in Viet Nam, the Ruby episode, the ending where Tic comes back with the , and 8 have been incredible.

I’m finding Lovecraft Country very uneven, but that climactic scene in episode 8 was just awesome.

Anytime I see the name JJ Abrams my PTSD of his Lost bullshittery surfaces (which my young self was smart enough to call after Season 2 and stopped watching). He consistently riles the audience up, introduces a lot of elements that he never weaves together. Last and only show that could get me fooled was GoT, but never again.
I agree with @Thomas Veil, thus far LC has been very entertaining, but also quite inconsistent. It makes an excellent anthology and I enjoy it like that and as I loved the Korea episode too (and haven't seen the newer ones yet). But again if JJ Abrams is a producer, so I'm skeptical about the plot actually going somewhere.

 

[Thomas Veil]

Yeah, I remember spending a lot of time watching Lost and thinking, Is this actually going anywhere, or are they just yanking us?

On the other end of the scale I remember the original Twin Peaks. To this day David Lynch says that the only reason he resolved the who-killed-Laura-Palmer storyline is because ABC insisted on it. Seems that in the manner you described, the fans were getting frustrated with lots of new questions and weirdness but very few answers. Usually one is loathe to approve of network interference, but in that case I think it was the right move. (And what a resolution it was!)

In the case of Lovecraft, Abrams is not the line producer, so I don't know how much he's actually influencing the story. And I do like what Abrams has done with the "Star Trek" movies. But again, I know what you mean because Lost left a bad taste in my mouth. In fact, when I saw that Damon Lindelof was involved with Watchmen, I was like Oh, no! Luckily Watchmen was a lot better than I expected.

 

[User.45]

In the case of Lovecraft, Abrams is not the line producer, so I don't know how much he's actually influencing the story. And I do like what Abrams has done with the "Star Trek" movies. But again, I know what you mean because Lost left a bad taste in my mouth. In fact, when I saw that Damon Lindelof was involved with Watchmen, I was like Oh, no! Luckily Watchmen was a lot better than I expected.

Because they cut it after 1 season. But I agree, I was surprised to enjoy it.

 

[lizkat]

Bumped into some hilarious clip from a episode of Are You Being Served during a break on Saturday afternoon. Decided to spend part of this evening just exulting in political incorrectness and double entendres by watching a few complete episodes of the series.

 

[JayMysteri0]

Yeah, I remember spending a lot of time watching Lost and thinking, Is this actually going anywhere, or are they just yanking us?

On the other end of the scale I remember the original Twin Peaks. To this day David Lynch says that the only reason he resolved the who-killed-Laura-Palmer storyline is because ABC insisted on it. Seems that in the manner you described, the fans were getting frustrated with lots of new questions and weirdness but very few answers. Usually one is loathe to approve of network interference, but in that case I think it was the right move. (And what a resolution it was!)

In the case of Lovecraft, Abrams is not the line producer, so I don't know how much he's actually influencing the story. And I do like what Abrams has done with the "Star Trek" movies. But again, I know what you mean because Lost left a bad taste in my mouth. In fact, when I saw that Damon Lindelof was involved with Watchmen, I was like Oh, no! Luckily Watchmen was a lot better than I expected.

Exactly! I don't have the most faith involving anything Abrams is related to directly ( if you want a recent example google the comic he's doing with his son - never underestimate nepotism ), in this case though he's a producer. The direction of the show is mainly influenced by the woman who has written all of the episodes or helped write, and directed one. Her investment in the show to me clearly shows, and it's what's earned my faith in it.

 

[Thomas Veil]

Bumped into some hilarious clip from a episode of Are You Being Served during a break on Saturday afternoon. Decided to spend part of this evening just exulting in political incorrectness and double entendres by watching a few complete episodes of the series.

Speaking of British political incorrectness, ever see Vicious? You haven't lived until you've watched Derek Jacobi and Ian McKellen play an elderly gay couple who squabble, well, viciously. McKellen in particular is quite the queen.

 

[Alli]

I loved every bit so far. The episode in Viet Nam, the Ruby episode, the ending where Tic comes back with the , and 8 have been incredible.

Episode 8 makes up for the 3 that came before. The devil twins were marvelous. The choreography was incredible.

Speaking of British political incorrectness, ever see Vicious? You haven't lived until you've watched Derek Jacobi and Ian McKellen play an elderly gay couple who squabble, well, viciously. McKellen in particular is quite the queen.

One of my favorite shows ever! My best friends are this couple.

 

[Chew Toy McCoy]

I LOVED this show. It is honestly despite all the talk about Star Trek, the only reason why I still have CBS All Access
https://www.Twitter or X not allowed/i/web/status/1314854313030823936/

Quibi has new Reno 911 content, same hilarious quality. If you've never heard of it, it's kind of an odd concept. Show episodes are less than 10 minutes long, but they can either be stand alone or have through stories. Like there's full dramatic series on there but again, each episode is less than 10 minutes long. I paid for the commercial free subscription which I think is $8 a month. So basically after each episode there's a break but no actual commercials, just break long enough to buffer the next episode. So far it's only available for iPhone and iPad, but you can airplay to an Apple TV.

Another kind of novel feature is ideally you would watch in landscape view but if you insist on watching in portrait view you get the dreaded vertical video but the camera angle adjusts to keep the important content of the video centered.