Television

Alright so I'm watching The Last Man on Earth. It was a good cast - Kristen Schaal and Will Forte really hold it down. I also love all the little guest stars - Jon Hamm getting shot and having a total of like 60 seconds of screen time (and shot by January Jones, at that! love the easter egg) has total George Clooney on South Park vibes.

But for anyone who has watched the show, I am toward the end of S03 and Erica is giving birth and Tandy just wants to be is usual idiot helpful self. Erica says how she misses Phil and Tandy says I know just what to do and goes off. Alright, so he returns with a Phil mask on; but dammit if I was expecting him to show up in blackface.
 
ok i finished The Curse. And while I appreciate how surreal the ending is, its just feels like they upended (literally) the show and changed the tone of it. Not sure how I feel about that. Well, I'm just glad Whitney didn't birth a chicken or something stupid.
 
Our Baby Diaper of God said:
Alright so I'm watching The Last Man on Earth. It was a good cast - Kristen Schaal and Will Forte really hold it down. I also love all the little guest stars - Jon Hamm getting shot and having a total of like 60 seconds of screen time (and shot by January Jones, at that! love the easter egg) has total George Clooney on South Park vibes.

But for anyone who has watched the show, I am toward the end of S03 and Erica is giving birth and Tandy just wants to be is usual idiot helpful self. Erica says how she misses Phil and Tandy says I know just what to do and goes off. Alright, so he returns with a Phil mask on; but dammit if I was expecting him to show up in blackface.
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tvham said:
I'm really enjoying Mr. and Mrs. Smith - two episodes in so far and it's much better than expected!
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Update: I have started it and am really enjoying it too. Just a better vibe and tone than I anticipated. Also seems like some of the Atlanta team worked on it which explains why I’m liking it.
 
Bennnnn said:
Update: I have started it and am really enjoying it too. Just a better vibe and tone than I anticipated. Also seems like some of the Atlanta team worked on it which explains why I’m liking it.
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I finished it today! Needless to say I really enjoyed it. The two leads have great chemistry together.
 
wokeupnew said:
Finished Season 3 of Reservation Dogs last night. What a good fucking show. This season was the best. I loved the little one-off episodes focusing on a minor character for a change. The series finale was perfect but it did feel a little too “series finale-y” at times, that’s my only complaint.
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That show was my favorite show the last few years and I cried a lot during that final season because I was going to have to say goodbye to those characters. I loved it so much.
 
I imagine there might be some fans of the Ringer-verse on here; I've been enjoying Andy Greenwald's podcast miniseries Stick the Landing, in which he and a guest revisit notable series finales. So far they've done Friday Night Lights (never seen it, gotta fix that), Mad Men (I did a rewatch last fall and still mean to bore you all with my impressions!), Girls, and The Office.

The Office is especially fortuitous to hear discussed, as I just started a rewatch, my first time revisiting the series since it ended in the first place. I only sat through half of the first season this time, though with more distance it's even more interesting to me to see, especially in the pilot, how poorly the UK's tone ports to the US. The quiet awkwardness plays strangely, and Steve Carrell just comes across as weird and mean. I especially noticed this time how they try to repeat the UK version's trick of turning up the room tone in the sound mix; it takes the air out of the scenes in a way that fits the gulf between how David Brent sees himself and how he behaves, but only makes Michael Scott even uglier.*

It's really remarkable how the second season leaps out of the gate as a new thing; in my memory it was more a gradual thing (to throw a "it was really 2006, huh" memory at ya, I remember downloading the Dundies episode free on iTunes and watching it on my ipod). They really fine-tune the tone and characters, and it's kind of a miracle how they manage to make Michael ha-ha funny to watch while still failing to be funny on his own terms. Looking forward to this journey, though I don't know how far I'll get past Jim and Pam getting together or Michael leaving, for that matter.

*ETA: I'd like to make clear I don't think the difference between the versions lands on the geography or culture so much as Ricky Gervais is leaning into the worst aspects of himself and the bosses he's had, while Steve Carrell has a sweetness and innocence that makes it painful to see him inflict pain; the Michael Scott character works because he wants family in the workplace, not an audience.
 
Bull Shannon said:
I imagine there might be some fans of the Ringer-verse on here; I've been enjoying Andy Greenwald's podcast miniseries Stick the Landing, in which he and a guest revisit notable series finales. So far they've done Friday Night Lights (never seen it, gotta fix that), Mad Men (I did a rewatch last fall and still mean to bore you all with my impressions!), Girls, and The Office.

The Office is especially fortuitous to hear discussed, as I just started a rewatch, my first time revisiting the series since it ended in the first place. I only sat through half of the first season this time, though with more distance it's even more interesting to me to see, especially in the pilot, how poorly the UK's tone ports to the US. The quiet awkwardness plays strangely, and Steve Carrell just comes across as weird and mean. I especially noticed this time how they try to repeat the UK version's trick of turning up the room tone in the sound mix; it takes the air out of the scenes in a way that fits the gulf between how David Brent sees himself and how he behaves, but only makes Michael Scott even uglier.*

It's really remarkable how the second season leaps out of the gate as a new thing; in my memory it was more a gradual thing (to throw a "it was really 2006, huh" memory at ya, I remember downloading the Dundies episode free on iTunes and watching it on my ipod). They really fine-tune the tone and characters, and it's kind of a miracle how they manage to make Michael ha-ha funny to watch while still failing to be funny on his own terms. Looking forward to this journey, though I don't know how far I'll get past Jim and Pam getting together or Michael leaving, for that matter.

*ETA: I'd like to make clear I don't think the difference between the versions lands on the geography or culture so much as Ricky Gervais is leaning into the worst aspects of himself and the bosses he's had, while Steve Carrell has a sweetness and innocence that makes it painful to see him inflict pain; the Michael Scott character works because he wants family in the workplace, not an audience.
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First, I think it’s okay to not work under pretense of “spoilers” for a 15 year old sitcom.

Second, I am a big fan of The Watch so I have heard Greenwald plugging Stick The Landing over the past month or so but I haven’t checked it out yet.

Regarding The Office a big part of the equation to the shows ultimate success in the US was Steve Carrell. While I think the shows humor developed a good amount between season one and season two I think the main reason it really took off in popularity (though never to the same levels as other Must See TV staples) was The 40 Year Old Virgin’s fairly massive success the summer between season season 1 and season 2.
 
The latest episode of True Detective brought me in a bit more, a couple really great scenes.
But did they really need to do the old the jump scare?
 
ranbalam said:
The latest episode of True Detective brought me in a bit more, a couple really great scenes.
But did they really need to do the old the jump scare?
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Right! but It worked on me. I don’t watch much Horror and I jumped out my seat and I was watching it at like 10:00 AM.

The creator, Issa Lopez comes from the world of horror so this whole season is going to shown through a “horror” lens. Thankfully I feel like it answered some questions regarding whether some of the things were supernatural or projections from people’s minds.
 
I'm doing a rewatch of The Sopranos.

I was watching S03E07 in which Meadow's college dean takes Carmela to lunch to fundraise money. When Carmela tells Tony that they want $50K he says something along the lines of "those jew pricks are holding her hostage". Carmela corrects Tony that the dean is Italian and he responds "jews with better food".

As an Ashkenazi Jew, I am in 100% agreement that our food is trash (I won't throw the other two major divisions of the diaspora - Mizrahis and Sephardic - under the bus 'cause they have some lit food). I will say that we have a few killer dishes (there is a reason matzo ball soup litters diner menus in the northeast), but overall our food is bland and boring.

Anyway, it's been a long time since I'd watched Sopranos (and this is my first full rewatch besides seeing single episodes here and there throughout the years). I will say my lens of Carmela is different this time around. I think I was more sympathetic to her my first watching and all the B.S. she has to put up with from Tony (which she does, no doubt) and just how volatile and inept he is in his relationships. However, I am more critical of her this time. I think I am more tuned into her tacit complicity by enjoying the lifestyle and.....well, I don't know the right words....
If Tony wasn't Tony I would say "shrill" or "nagging" but I also don't sit easy using either of those descriptors. One, I think they are loaded with some misogyny and, two, it would be odd to say that she was nagging him about how many affairs he has, etc. But somewhere adjacent to those description that takes into account both her own flaws but also that she deals with an infinitely more flawed husband.
 
Our Baby Diaper of God said:
I'm doing a rewatch of The Sopranos.

I was watching S03E07 in which Meadow's college dean takes Carmela to lunch to fundraise money. When Carmela tells Tony that they want $50K he says something along the lines of "those jew pricks are holding her hostage". Carmela corrects Tony that the dean is Italian and he responds "jews with better food".

As an Ashkenazi Jew, I am in 100% agreement that our food is trash (I won't throw the other two major divisions of the diaspora - Mizrahis and Sephardic - under the bus 'cause they have some lit food). I will say that we have a few killer dishes (there is a reason matzo ball soup litters diner menus in the northeast), but overall our food is bland and boring.

Anyway, it's been a long time since I'd watched Sopranos (and this is my first full rewatch besides seeing single episodes here and there throughout the years). I will say my lens of Carmela is different this time around. I think I was more sympathetic to her my first watching and all the B.S. she has to put up with from Tony (which she does, no doubt) and just how volatile and inept he is in his relationships. However, I am more critical of her this time. I think I am more tuned into her tacit complicity by enjoying the lifestyle and.....well, I don't know the right words....
If Tony wasn't Tony I would say "shrill" or "nagging" but I also don't sit easy using either of those descriptors. One, I think they are loaded with some misogyny and, two, it would be odd to say that she was nagging him about how many affairs he has, etc. But somewhere adjacent to those description that takes into account both her own flaws but also that she deals with an infinitely more flawed husband.
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I think shrill and nagging are appropriate in this instance. Carmela is very similar to Lorraine Bracco character in Goodfellas. We just get to spend more time with Carmella. She is absolutely complicit but she can sleep at night because she purposely chooses to buries her head in the sand but she knows what Tony is all about. Carmela and Tony are similar in that they both, at times; want out. They want to do what’s “right” but every time they are faced with making a difficult decision they always revert back to who they truly are. They are irredeemable but strive for redemption. A lot of the shrill and nagging on Carmela part is due to projection she feels better about herself by going after him.

Side note: If you want a fantastic companion piece for your rewatch journey I would recommend picking up a copy of this…
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… it’s a wonderfully detailed episode guide.
 
TenderLovingKiller® said:
I think shrill and nagging are appropriate in this instance. Carmela is very similar to Lorraine Bracco character in Goodfellas. We just get to spend more time with Carmella. She is absolutely complicit but she can sleep at night because she purposely chooses to buries her head in the sand but she knows what Tony is all about. Carmela and Tony are similar in that they both, at times; want out. They want to do what’s “right” but every time they are faced with making a difficult decision they always revert back to who they truly are. They are irredeemable but strive for redemption. A lot of the shrill and nagging on Carmela part is due to projection she feels better about herself by going after him.

Side note: If you want a fantastic companion piece for your rewatch journey I would recommend picking up a copy of this…
View attachment 195082
… it’s a wonderfully detailed episode guide.
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Great companion. MZS and AS have another one for Mad Men that's equally essential.
 
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