What are you binge watching?

[ZooCougar]

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.

Damn. I read that book ages ago. Not bad.

 

[gwhuskyfan]

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.

I'm two episodes in and can't tell if I like it enough to keep watching. Feel like it's been back and forth for me

 

[nelsonmuntz]

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.

I have read Bonfire 3 or 4 times, and even know people that were at Salomon Brothers and spoke with Wolfe when he was researching the book. Wikipedia says he spent a day at Salomon, but he was actually researching the bond desk for weeks and based the big bond deal in the book on a transaction that actually happened. I love the book, but the plot has problems and is almost superfluous to the characters in the story.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

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.

I am enjoying it through 4 episodes binged last night, but my review before watching it still holds. There are interesting characters that I care about, but the plot is starting to come apart. The core story about an arrogant oligarch's life unwinding against the backdrop of racial unrest and idiotic banks in the New South is interesting. I also think spending 20-30 minutes of screen time on a character in a prison is odd, and this arc, while meaningfully different in the book, was weird in the book too. The end of the book was a train wreck, so I hope Kelley does something different.

The acting is pretty good overall despite some complicated characters, Lane, Pelphry and Harper stand out. Daniels is OK as an actor, but he is not right for this role.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

The ending of A Man in Full was ridiculous, but still a significant improvement over the book’s ending. Overall, I enjoyed it. B+

 

[ZooCougar]

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.

The movie sucked because the movie sucked. It had nothing to do with the base material.

Wolfe is a bad fiction writer!?! Come on.

If you went back in time and saw Jimi Hendrix play guitar you would probably swear that you’ve seen better.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Anybody watch "Daybreak" (2019) on Netflix? Over the top high school cliches meets Road Warrior, post apocalyptic in sunny So Cal. 3 eps in, fairly entertaining. Some nods to Ferris Bueller, they even got Matthew Broderick to play the school principal. There was some kind of nuke that was also a bio weapon I guess? Most adults died, the few who didn't turned into zombie type things. Kids survived, stayed with their cliques with the dial turned up to 11. Our hero was new to school so didn't have a clique, except for his dreamy girlfriend who he is desperately looking for.

 

[ZooCougar]

Dark Matter

Oh joy. Yet another show/movie about multiverses! Schrodinger’s Cat? That poor thing thing has been getting worn out by the folks at Apple.

The good news is that unlike Constellation the plot actually moved forward in the first two episodes. So maybe this show won’t complete suck.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Anybody watch "Daybreak" (2019) on Netflix? Over the top high school cliches meets Road Warrior, post apocalyptic in sunny So Cal. 3 eps in, fairly entertaining. Some nods to Ferris Bueller, they even got Matthew Broderick to play the school principal. There was some kind of nuke that was also a bio weapon I guess? Most adults died, the few who didn't turned into zombie type things. Kids survived, stayed with their cliques with the dial turned up to 11. Our hero was new to school so didn't have a clique, except for his dreamy girlfriend who he is desperately looking for.

I'm about 3/4 of the way thru now (10 episodes; cancelled after 1 season in typical Netflix style). Pretty into it. A few characters I find tiresome or irritating, but some others make up for it. Ms. Crumble the science teacher turned into a semi-zombie but still partly human has an interesting arc. There's the youngest of the Alyn Lind sisters playing a character that I think they're at least partially modeling after Chloe Grace Moretz from Kick-A**. How many Alyn Lind's are there anyway? I think 3. One of the other sisters popped up in a cameo most of the way thru the series. And I realized why I find the main character's love interest so appealing--Sophie Simnett is giving me younger Imogen Poots' vibes. Matthew Broderick is good too. And the main guy played by Colin Ford has the every man thing going for him. Just looked him up on imdb, he's got a ton of credits under his belt already. He was Matt Damon's kid in "We Bought a Zoo," I absolutely did not recognize him as the same person.

 

[AreBee1969]

I finished Franklin last night. As a history geek I enjoyed the storyline but went back an forth on Douglas' performance. Eddie Marsen in his wig was a Grampa Munster clone and was in the unenviable position of playing John Adams after Paul Giamatti. For all you old-timers like me, the series was directed by Timothy van Patten, AKA Salami from the White Shadow. I give it a 7 out of 10.

 

[Bomber36]

I finished Franklin last night. As a history geek I enjoyed the storyline but went back a forth on Douglas' performance. Eddie Marsen in his wig was a Grampa Munster clone and was in the unenviable position of playing John Adams after Paul Giamatti. For all you old-timers like me, the series was directed by Timothy van Patten, AKA Salami from the White Shadow. I give it a 7 out of 10.

Marsan’s Adams was actually comical to watch. All I could think about was I wished Giamatti had reprised his role. Enjoyed the series though.

 

[CajunHusky]

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

Slow Horses has not ended .... according to Wikipedia there are still two more seasons, 4 and 5, yet to come out

 

[HuskyHawk]

Dark Matter

Oh joy. Yet another show/movie about multiverses! Schrodinger’s Cat? That poor thing thing has been getting worn out by the folks at Apple.

The good news is that unlike Constellation the plot actually moved forward in the first two episodes. So maybe this show won’t complete suck.

I'm debating whether to even continue Constellation, because the pacing is just glacial. Is there even a point to this? They have to give you something.

I agree the multi-verse thing is overdone, but at least Dark Matter has been interesting. They aren't trying to keep the story from you and make you guess what the story actually is.

 

[Palatine]

A Gentleman in Moscow (2024). It is an interesting way to look at the communist revolution without ever stepping outside of an upscale hotel. The oppression of the soviet people is the unnamed main character of the 8 episodes. It hovers over every scene. We see 40 years pass through the eyes of a disposed gentleman count who is a prisoner in a gilded cage. People come and go. Soviet oppression marches on.

Scotsman Ewan McGregor is the Russian Count Rostov and he does his usual fine turn. The acting is very good only rarely given way to stereotypes. Cinematography, directing, editing, sound is all very good as well. The story does hit some slowdowns but overall maintains pace and delivers a few surprises. It is probably impossible to do these long term pieces without some formula to fall back on. But this is a thoughtful and unique take on a interesting subject done well.

 

[ZooCougar]

Outer Range is back. Brilliant show.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Outer Range is back. Brilliant show.

Saw that. Excited for it.

 

[Bomber36]

Outer Range is back. Brilliant show.

I’ll have to give that one a shot. Glad to hear a recommendation here.

 

[Rich]

The movie sucked because the movie sucked. It had nothing to do with the base material.

Wolfe is a bad fiction writer!?! Come on.

If you went back in time and saw Jimi Hendrix play guitar you would probably swear that you’ve seen better.

Tom Wolfe was one of the best meta fiction writers of the 20th century, hands down I will brook no argument.

'The Electric Kool Aid Acid Test' remains one of my favorite books of all time.

 

[ZooCougar]

I’ll have to give that one a shot. Glad to hear a recommendation here.

It’s like what Yellowstone thinks it is, with Twin Peaks, X Files and maybe Wind River mixed into one.

The narrative is sewn together well, basically with things happening all in the past but actually the future.

 

[storrsroars]

Saw that. Excited for it.

Seems like ages since the last episode... long enough where I'm probably gonna need a refresher because about all I remember is the hole and the girl.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Seems like ages since the last episode... long enough where I'm probably gonna need a refresher because about all I remember is the hole and the girl.

Yeah, I’m watching it right now and there’s a lot to remember. Probably should have read a recap.

 

[UCan3]

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.

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.

Just FYI, the show explains all of this (episode 1 / 2) so that makes it makes sense - disturbing series. You were a couple episodes short from it coming together.

IMO likely the best thing since Breaking Bad / BC Saul. Wild unpredictable turns with incredible acting — this is why it is nearly 100% Rotten Tomatoes.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

The movie sucked because the movie sucked. It had nothing to do with the base material.

Wolfe is a bad fiction writer!?! Come on.

If you went back in time and saw Jimi Hendrix play guitar you would probably swear that you’ve seen better.

Either you didn't read Bonfire or you are trolling me, because I am 100% certain you would hate the end of the book.

 

[ZooCougar]

Either you didn't read Bonfire or you are trolling me, because I am 100% certain you would hate the end of the book.

I haven’t read it in years. I don’t recall disliking any of the three Wolfe books I read.

 

[HuskyHawk]

We decided to rewatch Outer Range season 1 to make sure the nuances of season 2 make sense. I can see things I missed already.

 

[meyers7]

Fallout. Prime. Started it last night and love it so far. They absolutely nailed it with the look, the feel, the costumes, the music. Ella Purnell is adorable and then some as the young vault dweller. Aaron Moten is solid as member of the Knights of the Brotherhood. Walton Groggins kills it as a Hollywood cowboy actor who mutates into a ghoul and is the Gunslinger. The attention to detail and the visuals are just stunning. I don't know how good the story will be and in some ways it doesn't matter. It's too much fun anyway.

Tried Fallout last night with the wife. Couldn't make it through the first episode. Made absolutely no sense. About half way through wife asks "are you as bored as I am?". "More." And off it went. (and my wife has watched some really boring shows, but this one....ugh)

 

[Rich]

Tried Fallout last night with the wife. Couldn't make it through the first episode. Made absolutely no sense. About half way through wife asks "are you as bored as I am?". "More." And off it went. (and my wife has watched some really boring shows, but this one....ugh)

IMO most of the Amazon stuff is pretty brutal-the exception was 'Homecoming'. If we're talking dedicated streamers I'd go

Apple
MAX
Hulu (but only FX proprietary)
Netflix-they've gotten a lot better
----------------
Paramount+ although I refuse to watch anything that has Taylor Sheridan's fingerprints aside from 'Tulsa King'. Mostly for the Showtime stuff.
------------
Amazon, but only if you're desperate. They're like the WalMart of scripted television.

 

[ZooCougar]

I thought the end was what we would call “woke” today, and preachy even in the late 80’s. I can just imagine how you would feel about it if you read it again.

I looked it up to refresh. The ending is just ‘80s Walk Street absurdity, It fits with all the crazy characters that were in the headlines back then, Sharpton, Trump, Goetz, Imus, Stern, the ‘86 Mets…

Wolfe has a way of capturing different places, the people and the environment.

He nailed the new south in “A Man in Full”. And even in one of his weakest novels “I Am Charlotte Simmons” he nailed the elite southern college experience.

I actually read A Man in Full at night on a cot in Iraq in 2003. I was pretty easily entertained. I even read two Dune prequels which are critically panned. So the bar was pretty low.

 

[Rich]

I looked it up to refresh. The ending is just ‘80s Walk Street absurdity, It fits with all the crazy characters that were in the headlines back then, Sharpton, Trump, Goetz, Imus, Stern, the ‘86 Mets…

Wolfe has a way of capturing different places, the people and the environment.

He nailed the new south in “A Man in Full”. And even in one of his weakest novels “I Am Charlotte Simmons” he nailed the elite southern college experience.

I actually read A Man in Full at night on a cot in Iraq in 2003. I was pretty easily entertained. I even read two Dune prequels which are critically panned. So the bar was pretty low.

I read Bonfire when I was 12. It inspired me to work on the Street (that and Liars Poker). Best decision of my life. I owe Wolfe a lot.

 

[Waquoit]

Paramount+

FYI, my annual subscription is coming due so I was checking my credit cards for any offers as I've seen them in the past. The only decent one was from Amex offering $11.99 off for 3 months. So I cancel my annual subscription and I get a "Hate to see you go, how about 50% off?" I say sure, so now it's $4 a month. So if you get it, don't reup without cancelling first. It's worth it to me for the soccer alone.