What's on TV now?

Diana Hignutt

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helen55

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First episode of Watchmen last night. Seems solid enough setting up an interesting story. Assume it's a continuation of the comic not the movie due to the squid rain.
 

telford

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I've been convinced to see Castle Rock season 2. After season 1, that I bearly survived, I wasn't going to watch this show anymore. Oh well, never say never.
 

Brightdreamer

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Right now, the only active show I'm watching is NBC's The Good Place (enjoying the final season so far.) I'm also watching the defunct Dark Matter on Netflix; solid entertainment, another victim of SyFy's overeager axe.

As of this weekend, I'll be enjoying (or hope to be) S3 of Netflix's The Dragon Prince. And in mid-December, I will be binging S4 of The Expanse on Prime.
 

Diana Hignutt

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Rick and Morty Season 4's first two episodes were particularly strong.
 

Brightdreamer

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I finished Season 3 of The Dragon Prince on Netflix. Still an excellent fantasy series, with spectacular animation and designs and great characters who grow and change. The final episode could function as a finale if they're not picked up for a fourth season, but there's just enough of a hook for more (Netflix has made no official announcement, but they have a way of axing shows, even popular shows, after their third year.) Highly recommended; just because it's family friendly doesn't mean that it can only be enjoyed by the underage crowd.

For those interested in such things, I just saw a pre-order link somewhere for the Art of The Dragon Prince book, due out in July. I'll have to sock away some Xmas money for that, as the art definitely deserves a tribute book. (And, yes, I love the dragons...)
 
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Velcro

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Has anyone watched "Carnival Row" on Amazon Prime? I wasn't sure I'd like it but after watching the first three episodes I'm hooked. Although (and this may be a bit of a spoiler) I get the feeling Orlando Bloom's character is not the greatest of detectives...
 

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Giri/Haji, a recent BBC drama about yakuza & gangsters, set in Tokyo and London with a heavily Japanese cast speaking Japanese. On Netflix. I've watched the first 3 episodes so far (of 8). Intriguing, twisty, violent, emotional. So far I'm loving it. But I fear that characters I've gotten attached to are not going to get a happily-ever-after when the final credits roll.
 

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Just realized I never got a chance to post my response to S4 of The Expanse. In a word: great! Amazon took what SyFy started and kicked the whole thing up to a higher level. The FX were always excellent, but were just that much better, and I'm still waiting for them to release the soundtrack, which took the familiar and gave it just a little tweak. The pacing was a little different, as they didn't have to write for commercial breaks and could have episodes run a little long or short depending on the story (instead of being dictated by a timeslot), but I enjoyed it. And, of course, they did an excellent job adapting the story while making it its own thing. Great stuff, some powerful moments and some fun moments and some excellent dialog and just everything I love about The Expanse. Am looking forward to the fifth season, and hoping they get to do the full book run. (Amazon certainly pulled out all the stops on advertising in a way SyFy never dreamed of.)

And I just finished Season 2 of Altered Carbon on Netflix. The story takes up thirty years after the end of the first season, and moves the action from Bay City on Earth to Harlan's World, where Takeshi Kovacs was born and forged into what he is today. A little weaker than the first season, but some of that is because it's the middle installment of a trilogy (if they're paralleling the books, though they changed quite a bit from the first volume and I'm assuming they did the same here.) Can't get into too many details without spoilers, but it's less an exploration of the amorality of the immortal "Meth" class - how the creation of stack technology essentially eliminated one of the core features of being human - and more about the origins of stacks, stolen tech from the extinct race known as the Elders... and about how the Protectorate itself was founded on bloodshed and lies. The eight episodes parallel the first season, down to some of the beats, but generally avoid being strictly derivative or repetitious. Once in a while the story and dialog borders on melodrama, but it is ultimately a noir story, and some broody melodrama is baked into the genre DNA. It ends with a twist I didn't quite see coming, and an interesting tweak to the overall story that sets up what should be a great third/final season if Netflix greenlights it; unlike the first season, which could've rested on its own save one little hook, this one leaves more threads dangling that almost demand resolution. One thing I did miss was the soundtrack selections from the first season, which added some nice grit and emotion. Overall, though, a very enjoyable, if still dark and violent, story. (And Poe just breaks your heart... not really a spoiler at this point to say the AI assistant comes back this year.)
 

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Technically not on tv *now* as it premieres in April, but I just saw the promo for Vagrant Queen and I'm really excited.

March 27, according to the ads.

I'm probably going to try it: looks promising, though I can see it being one of those shows that takes a while to find its feet (or that falls flat on its face trying.)

Also, I'm a little gunshy about going in on another SyFy show, they of the overeager cancellation axe... but, still, could be very fun if they pull it off.
 

Kjbartolotta

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March 27, according to the ads.

I'm probably going to try it: looks promising, though I can see it being one of those shows that takes a while to find its feet (or that falls flat on its face trying.)

Also, I'm a little gunshy about going in on another SyFy show, they of the overeager cancellation axe... but, still, could be very fun if they pull it off.

Gonna be cautiously optimistic here, but I'm sure I'm not the only one catching those Farscape vibes. :)
 

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Gonna be cautiously optimistic here, but I'm sure I'm not the only one catching those Farscape vibes. :)

Farscape, with a touch of Firefly (though the latter I know of through cultural osmosis), maybe a dash of Dark Matter...

Three shows that each got knives in the back.

But every once in a while you get an Expanse success story, where the show gains enough focused momentum to thrive beyond SyFy (or at least a Farscape "wrap-up movie instead of a final season")... so worth taking a look-see.
 

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Anyone keeping up on the last season of Better Call Saul right now? I'm getting really anxious about Kim and her perfect ponytail.
 

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Anyone else catch the Vagrant Queen premiere on SYFY last night?

I haven't seen a pilot episode that wobbly in about 20 years, TBH... just didn't seem to know what kind of show it wanted to be, what level of comedy it was aiming for (ditto on drama), how the characters were supposed to interact... There were definite glimmers of potential, and I enjoyed the lead (character and actress both), but the overall lack of chemistry and often-clunky dialog were disappointing. (I'm also going to get very, very tired of those second-stringers, the monarchal loyalists, chasing 'em down.) They couldn't even quite settle on an FX tone; parts were deliberately bad, trying to evoke the feel of the old B-grade SF movies, while others were much smoother. The whole thing just felt like a bunch of mismatched parts or even misaligned drafts.

I'll give it another episode or two to see if it finds its footing, but overall I was underwhelmed.
 

Kjbartolotta

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Anyone else catch the Vagrant Queen premiere on SYFY last night?

I haven't seen a pilot episode that wobbly in about 20 years, TBH... just didn't seem to know what kind of show it wanted to be, what level of comedy it was aiming for (ditto on drama), how the characters were supposed to interact... There were definite glimmers of potential, and I enjoyed the lead (character and actress both), but the overall lack of chemistry and often-clunky dialog were disappointing. (I'm also going to get very, very tired of those second-stringers, the monarchal loyalists, chasing 'em down.) They couldn't even quite settle on an FX tone; parts were deliberately bad, trying to evoke the feel of the old B-grade SF movies, while others were much smoother. The whole thing just felt like a bunch of mismatched parts or even misaligned drafts.

I'll give it another episode or two to see if it finds its footing, but overall I was underwhelmed.

Gah, that's too bad. Welp, if I can sit through seven (and counting) episodes of the clunkiness that is Picard, I think I can handle it.

BTW, Picard is neither the epic return to ST form I was hoping for nor does it torpedo the franchise in the ways I was worried about. Kind of just middling, but I'm enjoying it for what it is.
 

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Gah, that's too bad. Welp, if I can sit through seven (and counting) episodes of the clunkiness that is Picard, I think I can handle it.

BTW, Picard is neither the epic return to ST form I was hoping for nor does it torpedo the franchise in the ways I was worried about. Kind of just middling, but I'm enjoying it for what it is.

In some ways, Vagrant Queen reminded me of the Oblivion movies: there are some nice ideas and you can see what they were trying to do, but it just doesn't quite cohese like it should and the humor tends to miss more than it hits. (Though VQ is less low-budget, of course...) I have definitely seen worse - but I've also seen better...

And I haven't yet seen anything about Picard that tempts me to pay for CBS All-Access, but then I'm kinda burnt out on Star Trek. (Really liked NextGen in the day for all that it ages poorly, though DS9 overstayed its welcome IMHO and Voyager fizzled... tired of the universe after that.)
 

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And I haven't yet seen anything about Picard that tempts me to pay for CBS All-Access

There's a free trial promotion going on right now, I can guarantee you All Access is getting cancelled by the end of the week. Overall, Picard's got the feel of the TNG movies; cheesy, sentimental, not bad but nothing quite gels the way it should. But it has Romulans.
 
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benbenberi

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I've had a lot of soothing comfort TV on lately. Binged Father Brown (leaving Netflix after tomorrow). Also re-watching Death in Paradise. So pretty, and it always ends well.

I've also started watching The Umbrella Academy. Which is intriguing, and well-made, and the opposite of soothing comfort so I'm definitely NOT bingeing it. But pleased to note there will be a 2nd season later this year.
 

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Binged Father Brown (leaving Netflix after tomorrow).

So the question becomes then, how many can I watch before tomorrow? Maybe if I get multiple TVs and set them up to all play at once...
 
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Marissa D

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Of course your bunny likes Poirot! He's always fussing with his whiskers, she probably thinks he's part rabbit.

Very true! Our first bun adored the English National Opera production of The Mikado (the one with Eric Idle as Koko) and always used to go sit in the "sweet spot" of the stereo speakers whenever we'd play the DVD. We thought he might have liked Poo-Bah, as they were very alike in personality.
 

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And I finally cleared S1 of Netflix's Lost in Space. It will likely never be a classic, but it's solid, enjoyable family adventure. Dr. Smith is a true sociopath, a survivor with an instinct for saying the right thing to the right person at the right time to buy another few minutes of freedom, another chance at escape... yes, you come to hate her, but she's not the sort with a long-term scheme or plan, and she's lied so much she's even convinced herself she's the victim and just needs one more clean break to become a hero. (Parker Posey does a great turn here.) There's a little melodrama and sometimes character decisions are driven by the plot more than intelligence, but I found it fun for what it was. I'll be watching the second season soon, though I may take a break to try something else.