What are you binge watching? | Page 57 | The Boneyard

What are you binge watching?

Anyone else watching Shogun? I am enjoying it enough that I may read the book. James Cavell isn't Mitchner, but his books are meaty. This story seems worth the investment in time.

(I've read Taipan and Noble House, I probably should read Whirlwind as well.)
 
CL82 said:
Anyone else watching Shogun? I am enjoying it enough that I may read the book. James Cavell isn't Mitchner, but his books are meaty. This story seems worth the investment in time.

(I've read Taipan and Noble House, I probably should read Whirlwind as well.)
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I think I would rather read the book.
 
CL82 said:
I have to say, not knowing the material, it's been good so far.
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I thought it started off good but has been weakening as it progressed.

Rule 1 is the book is always better.
 
HuskyHawk said:
Ella Purnell is adorable and then some as the young vault dweller.
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I first saw her around 10 years ago in "Wildlike" and thought she was great. I've followed her career, but she's gotten a disappointingly small number of decent roles in the intervening years.
 
Slowly working my way through "The Gentlemen." Each episode finding themselves in some over the top predicament is starting to wear a bit thin. Freddie is a terrible character and needs to get offed. Jimmy has suddenly turned full idiot too. Can't believe that after his first big screw up they didn't have a babysitter assigned to him, but he was right back to screwing up in the next episode, getting played again by the same little minx. Maybe they are keeping tabs on him and it just wasn't revealed in this ep? Mind numbingly dumb if they aren't, for an organization that usually appears to be very detailed oriented.
 
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ZooCougar said:
Started out great. Like really great. But then the last Episode and a half happened and it shrunk back down into mediocre territory.

Hopefully it rebounds in the second season.
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I thought it started out really (too) fast, skipping around the huge wasteland world too conveniently. The last three episodes are very important for world building and backstory. The action does slow down considerably, but only to connect the dots a bit.

I do think an argument can be made they shoved the Vault 4/Cultist of Flame in there rather clumsily.

Overall I am very impressed with the execution of the MCM vibe, and faithfullness to the game in both sight and sound.
 
I binged "Baby Reindeer" (Netflix) over the past couple of days, without having read anything about it, other than it was promoted as a "dark comedy".

"Dark" doesn't even begin to describe it. I imagine it's going to win a bunch of awards for being one of the most disturbing series to ever appear on TV. But unlike the dark and disturbing comedy "Poor Things", there aren't many actual laughs to be had here. Instead, it's just one depraved character after another, including the protagonist. Reviews have alluded to viewers "having pity" for the lead's plight, but other than a later love interest (Teri) and the lead's parents, there are no characters here I found worthy of sympathy, and other than the three characters just named above, I couldn't find myself empathizing with anyone. They are all broken people, but IMHO, of their own doing moreso than mental cases who needed help only to find the system failed them. What I view as "lack of personal responsibility" is what seems to drive the plot.

Given it's based on a true story of the writer/lead's life, that the guy is being hailed in media as "brave" and "honest" confounds me. To me, this is a guy who made a series of bad decisions, each one with enough warning lights and sirens screaming "G-T-F-O", but he decided to stay. And that decision affected everyone around him. I don't think one should get awards for that. YMMV.
 
For me "The Gentlemen" really picked up at Ep. 5 and I blasted my way thru the rest of the season. Theo James and Kaya Scodelario were good as the two leads. Having actors like Vinnie Jones, Ray Winstone and Joely Richardson as more minor characters really brought it home.



I guess you can't call people gypsies anymore, now they are known as Travelers. Well this gang of Travelers wasn't nearly as interesting as Brad Pitt and company from "Snatch." Richie tried to revisit the same territory but didn't strike gold this time.
 
CL82 said:
Anyone else watching Shogun? I am enjoying it enough that I may read the book. James Cavell isn't Mitchner, but his books are meaty. This story seems worth the investment in time.

(I've read Taipan and Noble House, I probably should read Whirlwind as well.)
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I’m down with Shogun. Great acting and an enjoyable series. I give it a solid B
 
storrsroars said:
Don't know if I missed it somehow, but haven't seen any posts on 3 Body Problem, which I found surprising given the number of sci-fi nerds here. I started it yesterday and got sucked in right away. I'm now starting Ep6 (of 8) and it's holding together, albeit with some slow, dry spots. Never really paid attention to Eiza Gonzalez before, but dayum. SFX is top notch, especially in the Panama Canal scenes. I'm not a big sci-fi fan, but I do like really intelligent discussions on science and the physics discussions here, whether based in fact or total fiction, and compelling. Also really enjoying Benedict Wong in the slovenly cop role and Liam Cunningham as a total trying to defend Earth.
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Lion - OK I’m taking the dive. Thanks.
 
NEforceUConn said:
I’m down with Shogun. Great acting and an enjoyable series. I give it a solid B
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absolutely terrific show ... enjoyed it immensely!

I researched the historical counterparts to the main characters as the series progressed. Really fascinating. Especially the Lady Mariko character.
 
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NEforceUConn said:
I’m down with Shogun. Great acting and an enjoyable series. I give it a solid B
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I really wanted more than just the 10 episodes but that was the end of the book. My understanding is that they are considering doing Taipan which would be terrific.
 
Baby Reindeer - My God. When my wife gets creeped, that's saying something. She is a horror nut and doesn't get squeemish, but here, tho not a horror show, she was weirded out. As I was, too.

Richard Gadd wrote and excellently stars in this psychological trip. @87Xfer and @storrsroars did well to describe this show.

So many W T F moments. It like to going on an excursion for three months. So much to unpack.
 
storrsroars said:
Don't know if I missed it somehow, but haven't seen any posts on 3 Body Problem, which I found surprising given the number of sci-fi nerds here. I started it yesterday and got sucked in right away. I'm now starting Ep6 (of 8) and it's holding together, albeit with some slow, dry spots. Never really paid attention to Eiza Gonzalez before, but dayum. SFX is top notch, especially in the Panama Canal scenes. I'm not a big sci-fi fan, but I do like really intelligent discussions on science and the physics discussions here, whether based in fact or total fiction, and compelling. Also really enjoying Benedict Wong in the slovenly cop role and Liam Cunningham as a total trying to defend Earth.
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I'm enjoying 3 Body Problem, and have 2 more episodes left. Just wondering if Dr Who appears in his magic phone box?
 
Sugar on Apple TV. 5 of 8 episodes released, so far so good. Modern noir style series with Colin Farrell
 
storrsroars said:
Don't know if I missed it somehow, but haven't seen any posts on 3 Body Problem, which I found surprising given the number of sci-fi nerds here. I started it yesterday and got sucked in right away. I'm now starting Ep6 (of 8) and it's holding together, albeit with some slow, dry spots. Never really paid attention to Eiza Gonzalez before, but dayum. SFX is top notch, especially in the Panama Canal scenes. I'm not a big sci-fi fan, but I do like really intelligent discussions on science and the physics discussions here, whether based in fact or total fiction, and compelling. Also really enjoying Benedict Wong in the slovenly cop role and Liam Cunningham as a total trying to defend Earth.
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I started the book the other night.
 
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Thought it might be interesting for posters to list their 3 favorite streaming tv series, so as to provide some clue as to how they rate shows. Here’s mine:

Luther
Justified
Hanna

Honorable mention to GOT
 
NEforceUConn said:
Thought it might be interesting for posters to list their 3 favorite streaming tv series, so as to provide some clue as to how they rate shows. Here’s mine:

Luther
Justified
Hanna

Honorable mention to GOT
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Not sure I get the assignment. If we're talking true streaming, that would be something that wasn't already aired on cable, no?

Off top of my head, I'm just going to go with a handful where I distinctly recall being sad that they ended. Not sure I can really make a differentiation between 1 and 6.
Money Heist
Stranger Things
Ozark
Slow Horses
The Bear
Mindhunter
 
storrsroars said:
Not sure I get the assignment. If we're talking true streaming, that would be something that wasn't already aired on cable, no?

Off top of my head, I'm just going to go with a handful where I distinctly recall being sad that they ended. Not sure I can really make a differentiation between 1 and 6.
Money Heist
Stranger Things
Ozark
Slow Horses
The Bear
Mindhunter
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I’m referring to a series that can be watched today regardless where it originated from, eg Suits.

Ozark a great one.
 
NEforceUConn said:
I’m referring to a series that can be watched today regardless where it originated from, eg Suits.

Ozark a great one.
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That's now basically every series ever made.

Anyway, binged "Man In Full" (Netflix) over last couple days. Have the book but never got far into it, so nice to have it condensed into a six-part series. Jeff Daniels (Charlie Croker) is the lead and does a credible job as the corporate Atlanta version of John Dutton. There are a lot of Yellowstone similarities in his story arc, especially of the BSD variety. But for me, it was the subplot of Roger White, Croker's right hand man and legal fixer taking the case of an employee who was arrested form assaulting a cop that I thought was the more dramatic and "human" story. Diane Lane is Croker's ex and object of desire of a mid-level lawyer who's trying to nail Croker, and is way out of Lane's league, making this part of the proceedings a bit unbelievable. But his boss, played by Bill Camp does a great job trying to out-alpha Croker in numerous conference room scenes. I found the ending a bit too contrived, several actors fairly wasted (e.g. Sarah Jones), and some stereotypes a bit too stereotypical, but overall, I found it pretty decent. It moved along quickly and wasn't all that difficult to follow the numerous subplots.
 
storrsroars said:
That's now basically every series ever made.

Anyway, binged "Man In Full" (Netflix) over last couple days. Have the book but never got far into it, so nice to have it condensed into a six-part series. Jeff Daniels (Charlie Croker) is the lead and does a credible job as the corporate Atlanta version of John Dutton. There are a lot of Yellowstone similarities in his story arc, especially of the BSD variety. But for me, it was the subplot of Roger White, Croker's right hand man and legal fixer taking the case of an employee who was arrested form assaulting a cop that I thought was the more dramatic and "human" story. Diane Lane is Croker's ex and object of desire of a mid-level lawyer who's trying to nail Croker, and is way out of Lane's league, making this part of the proceedings a bit unbelievable. But his boss, played by Bill Camp does a great job trying to out-alpha Croker in numerous conference room scenes. I found the ending a bit too contrived, several actors fairly wasted (e.g. Sarah Jones), and some stereotypes a bit too stereotypical, but overall, I found it pretty decent. It moved along quickly and wasn't all that difficult to follow the numerous subplots.
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I have been travelling so I have not seen the series, but I have read the book. The book has a lot of the same problems that you laid out, and it sounds like they tried to correct some of the weirder plot lines in the book, but were unsuccessful.

Tom Wolfe was better a better non-fiction writer than he was a fiction writer. His novel "The Bonfire of the Vanities" is legendary for some of its descriptions of the era (Wolfe coined "Masters of the Universe"), but the plot had issues that reviewers ignored because the writing was so good. But when it came to making a movie out of it, the movie sucked despite a monster cast because plot matters so much on the big screen. I was surprised Netflix, or anyone, was going to make a limited series out of "Man in Full" because it is basically the Bonfire of the Vanities, set in Atlanta. The descriptions are interesting and Wolfe breathed a lot of life into the characters, but the plot had serious problems.
 
nelsonmuntz said:
I have been travelling so I have not seen the series, but I have read the book. The book has a lot of the same problems that you laid out, and it sounds like they tried to correct some of the weirder plot lines in the book, but were unsuccessful.

Tom Wolfe was better a better non-fiction writer than he was a fiction writer. His novel "The Bonfire of the Vanities" is legendary for some of its descriptions of the era (Wolfe coined "Masters of the Universe"), but the plot had issues that reviewers ignored because the writing was so good. But when it came to making a movie out of it, the movie sucked despite a monster cast because plot matters so much on the big screen. I was surprised Netflix, or anyone, was going to make a limited series out of "Man in Full" because it is basically the Bonfire of the Vanities, set in Atlanta. The descriptions are interesting and Wolfe breathed a lot of life into the characters, but the plot had serious problems.
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The reason Bonfires sucked as a movie had nothing to do with the plot of the book which was great.

First, every character in the movie was miscast. They wanted to use big stars, so they ignored everything about the characters, they were all A-list actors but none of them fit their characters. None of them was natural.

Second, the real story of the book was it's setting. The fall of New York. The trial is just a device to show you a civilization going to pieces. This is a brilliant novel, perfectly of its time, written beautifully with insight and humor.
 
.-.
storrsroars said:
I binged "Baby Reindeer" (Netflix) over the past couple of days, without having read anything about it, other than it was promoted as a "dark comedy".

"Dark" doesn't even begin to describe it. I imagine it's going to win a bunch of awards for being one of the most disturbing series to ever appear on TV. But unlike the dark and disturbing comedy "Poor Things", there aren't many actual laughs to be had here. Instead, it's just one depraved character after another, including the protagonist. Reviews have alluded to viewers "having pity" for the lead's plight, but other than a later love interest (Teri) and the lead's parents, there are no characters here I found worthy of sympathy, and other than the three characters just named above, I couldn't find myself empathizing with anyone. They are all broken people, but IMHO, of their own doing moreso than mental cases who needed help only to find the system failed them. What I view as "lack of personal responsibility" is what seems to drive the plot.

Given it's based on a true story of the writer/lead's life, that the guy is being hailed in media as "brave" and "honest" confounds me. To me, this is a guy who made a series of bad decisions, each one with enough warning lights and sirens screaming "G-T-F-O", but he decided to stay. And that decision affected everyone around him. I don't think one should get awards for that. YMMV.
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I watched the first 2 episodes last night and don't know what to think. I found it annoying that the stalker acted the way she did and that he basically let her. Based on comments here and from others, I assume it escalates (tremendously) from here but the first 2 episodes were meh.
 
Under the bridge on Hulu has been great. Also got sucked back into watching Band of Brothers again.
 
Finished Fallout last week, loved it. Time to dust off Fallout 3 and New Vegas and venture back out into the wasteland.
 
I spent some time with Mindhunter. It is pretty interesting for a crime show with virtually no action. Only 19 shows so it's not a huge investment of time. It's been around for a while but if you don't know, it's about the guys who invented profiling for the FBI. The best thing about the show is the casting. The job they did finding look alikes for the serial killers is pretty amazing.
 
Palatine said:
I spent some time with Mindhunter. It is pretty interesting for a crime show with virtually no action. Only 19 shows so it's not a huge investment of time. It's been around for a while but if you don't know, it's about the guys who invented profiling for the FBI. The best thing about the show is the casting. The job they did finding look alikes for the serial killers is pretty amazing.
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You're just now getting to this? This is one of the shows people are most pissed was never renewed.
 
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