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1. Niece and I have bonded over "Boys Over Flowers" (the Korean romance-dramedy currently streaming on Netflix). She just finished it - and texted that she loves it so much. And I have three episodes to go (had to take a break when I visited my parents - although did watch an episode and a half when they went to midnight mass). It's adorable - and rather funny in places, with a kind central character and an overwhelming theme of kindness. A working class heroine fights a bunch of lonely rich boy bullies at an elitist high school -- and they eventually fall in love with her and she changes their lives. Also learned a lot about Korea and their culture through the dramedy. And that I don't want to visit Korea.
Also this may well be the only series that I've actively shipped against the story thread. I want Jan-Di and Ji-Hoon together -- even though I know that it is going to be Jan-Di and Jun-Pyo. It's the trope -- star-crossed Pride and Prejudice trope. (Which by the way isn't realistic. In reality? She'd end up with Ji-Hoon.)
2. Entertainment Weekly is now appearing to come out monthly -- so they probably should change the title? Although the "weekly" is barely visible on the cover, so it may not matter?
Two things that it posted that may be interesting to folks on my correspondence list and/or subscribe?
A. TV Shows ending in 2020
* 13 Reasons Why (although why anyone would want to watch this, I don't know. I found the first three episodes of the first season to be depressing, painful, and torturous. Why do I want to see the worst in humanity? After 2016 - I could turn on the national news or pick up a newspaper for that.)
* The 100 (ditto -- I did make it through four seasons before I gave up though.)
* Arrow (ditto -- made it through three seasons before I gave up.)
* Blindspot (ditto)
* BoJack Horseman (the appeal was lost on me. Anime has ruined me in regards to animation. So too has the Triplets of Belleview. As to why? See Dear White People.)
* Claws (eh -- Wales loves this, didn't work for me.)
* Corporate
* Criminal Minds (see 13 Reasons Why.)
* Dear White People (couldn't get into it -- also Netflix, which has decided not to do any series that is more than 30-40 episodes long, if at all possible, because from various studies it appears subscribers won't watch anything that is longer.)
* Empire (see 13 Reasons Why. Also the fact that they went with drugs dealing and guns, which is so cliche and somewhat racist for shows about African-American musicians. I was into it until they introduced the whole drug cartel bit -- which was in the second episode. I hate stories about drug dealing.)
* Fresh off the boat
* Future Man
* Glow (again Netflix.)
* The Good Place (last air date is Jan 30th by the way)
* Homeland (this is still on?)
* How to Get Away With Murder (ditto)
* Lucifer (damn. I think it deserved another season at least -- but again, Netflix. (And yeah I know Fox cancelled it first, mainly because Warner Brothers series.)
* Marvel Agents of Sheild (this is still on?)
* Modern Family (ditto)
* Power
* The Ranch
* Schitt's Creek
* Strike Back
* Supernatural (well, Grey's beats Supernatural as longest drama series. Hee.)
* Vikings (still on?)
* Will & Grace (the reboot thingy apparently only worked for The Connors?)
B. Premieres/Finales in January
* Doctor Who Season Premiere - New Year's Day 1/1/2020 on BBC America at 8PM
* Zoey's Playlist (a coder, Jane Levy, can hear people's thoughts expressed as songs. Premiers - 1/7 at 10 PM on NBC
* 9-1-1 Lone Star premiers 1/19 at 10 PM on FOX (this one has Rob Lowe and Liv Taylor but is by Falchuck, Murphy and Minear...who have redone the procedural in a delightful way.)
* Star Trek Picard Premiers on CBS All Access on 1/23
* Arrow has its series finale on 1/28 at 9PM CW
* The Good Place has its series finale on 1/30 at 8:30 PM on NBC.
* BoJack Horseman has it's series final on 1/31 on Netflix.
3. So the decade otherwise known as the 2010s are winding down...along with 2019, so everyone is posting best of lists..or rather the bored television, film, book, theater and music critics are -- in a half-hearted attempt to get everyone to sample their favorites and ignore their ...well, dislikes.
The problem with this sort of accounting of best and worst -- is when it comes to culture? It's terribly subjective and people often see things in stories or cultural items that are well specific to themselves. I can't really provide a list of favorites, mainly because during the 2010s things pop-culture wise sort of blurred together. There was so much of it -- much of which I loved -- and I have subsequently forgotten. Some I have remembered, even if I disliked it. Also, unless it hit me on a deep personal level -- enough to inspire posts, I won't remember it.
OR inspired someone else enough to write multiple posts.
So, below is a list of memorable television series as opposed to series that are necessarily favorites or best/worst. Also in an attempt to be somewhat objective, I'm going to try to explain what worked and what didn't.
* Game of Thrones.
Probably worth mentioning that I read the books, and finished them long before the fifth season aired. I was reading the third book during the first season. And finished the next two books during the second and third seasons.
The books in some respects are easier if you don't like the Starks (and I really didn't. The only one I liked was Ayra...and she even got on my nerves at times). Mainly because there are so many other points of view that the Starks are a bit lost in the wash.
That is also the problem with the books -- it's more of a series of interlocking serialized stories about 1000 different characters than one central group of characters. And Martin just kept adding new ones. He'd kill off about five and add about ten. And he's not nice to his characters. The books are also easier for the squeamish or those like myself who would prefer not to watch people being graphically tortured and/or raped on screen. Let alone brutally murdered. They don't just kill folks in Game, they burn them alive, skin them, and chop off their heads.
All in techno-color. It becomes wearing after a while, particularly during a negative news cycle.
The books don't do that. We don't see Theon being tortured, we see the aftermath. The little girl with the Grey-scale is not burned alive in the books. Sansa Stark is not raped by the Ramsey Snow. (Another woman is that we are less invested in and we see it more through Theon's gaze and most of it is off-page.) Also, as my niece put it once -- it's easier to read graphic violence than watch it.
That said, in some respects the television series is more gratifying. People meet up faster. OR at least they meet up -- they don't at all in the books. And it's far more focused. Also, it becomes clear by the fifth book that Martin wrote himself into a corner and didn't know how to get out. The series attempts to correct that, but ...well, depending on one's point of view, with mixed results. I honestly don't see Martin finishing this series before he dies despite all claims to the contrary. Most readers gave up around 2016.
Enuf on the books. I only bring that up, because it definitely colored how I viewed the television series.
Whether or not you loved the television series most likely has a lot to do with how you felt about Danerys, Jamie Lasseter, Jon Snow and the Starks. If you were TEAM#Stark all the way, and loved Jon Snow, Bran, Sansa, and Arya -- then you probably loved this series all the way through with a few quibbles here and there. Most of the people I've talked to or read that loved Jon Snow or found the character relatable, messiah like, christ-like, classical hero, what have you -- loved the series and thought it was brilliant. Those who were either ambivalent or disliked or despised the character and saw him as little more than yet another cliche white male pathetic hero -- did not like how the series played out, and kind of wish the writers let him stay dead in roughly the end of the third or fourth season. Also if you loved Danerys -- you might want to skip the last season, just saying.
See? It's very subjective. That's why I don't bother discussing it with people any longer.
From a purely technical perspective -- the last season is filled with bad editing and film production errors. I don't know why anyone would nominate it for an Emmy let alone give it one. The battle sequences were either difficult to see or made no sense. The plot had holes that you could drive a couple of dragons through. Although the books had issues with plotting too -- Martin is not the best plotter on the planet. Logistics? Which they paid such close attention to in the early seasons were thrown out the window in favor of rushing the story. No longer did it take two-three months (at least two-episodes in the series) to get from the Wall to King's Landing. Now, you could get there with two shakes of a dragon's tail. I'd not have cared if they hadn't made such a huge point of how hard and long it was, particularly during winter in previous seasons. If it was this easy, why hadn't Ayra found her brother sooner? Or for that matter her family prior to the Red Wedding? You can't change the rules of your verse in the final chapters -- it discredits what came before. (Granted some people don't care. Various co-workers didn't. They hand-waved it. I only care if it's been pre-established, because when it changes, it jars me out of the story.)
We also had weird editing errors like errant Starbucks coffee cups ending up in scenes.
At any rate, the ending did in many ways ruin the series for me, for all the reasons related above. I was not a Stark fan, preferred various other characters who got short shrift and/or stories were rushed in favor of the Starks. And I read the books.
* The Good Place - started out rather well. I was impressed by it. And when it stuck to the whimisical philosophical wit -- it was nigh-on brilliant. But alas, it's a Michael Schur comedy, which means we have to have the bad-sex jokes, insult humor,
and recycled work-place humor that got old with The Office. Honestly, if they could have stuck with the philosophical jokes and developed the characters more -- I'd have adored this thing. But alas, they didn't. Oh well, the vast majority of viewers clearly wanted the opposite.
* Good Omens -- a whimiscal joy-ride through metaphysical history with Tennant (Fallen Angel/Demon Crawly) and Sheen (Arch-Angel/Arizaphale) by way of Neil Gaiman and Prachett. This works well if you are a fan of either Prachett or Gaiman, best to skip if you aren't. Also, it helps, if you love Sheen and Tennant, and have a wry sense of humor. Personally? I still think the credit sequence is by far the best that I've ever seen. It's beautifully done. I could watch that all day. Also, there are some very funny bits here.
It is better than the book in some respects -- the book wandered a lot more than the series does -- also Gaiman adds a sequence in the series that provides some back-story for Crawly and Arizaphale that wasn't in the book and is by far my favorite episode. I think it is the second or third episode? But it was brilliant and the whole series is worth the effort for that episode alone.
Again, if you aren't a Neil Gaiman fan and don't appreciate his wry metaphysical wit, best to skip. But if you are -- watch it now. It's still streaming on Amazon.
* Killing Eve - finally, we have a thriller that focuses on two women, and the female actresses give stellar performances. It's about a MI5 profiler who becomes obsessed with a female assassin, and an assassin who becomes equally obsessed with the profiler. Sort of like the premise of the series Hannibal but with women, except not as gory and with more humor. It's a bit of a game changer, because usually it's man/man, man/woman, seldom is it woman/woman. And the main characters or the power characters in this are all women -- another rarity. Airs on AMC/BBC America
* His Dark Materials -- a series that focuses on a female protagonist in a mythical setting, solving a problem and in a series of adventures. Also the male protagonist is a POC. The writing it good. It's a smart and close adaptation of the source material with spot-on casting. Streaming on HBO Now. Also BBC.
* The Expanse -- finally a political space opera with diversified casting, and an innovative take on aliens. Also an adaptation of a series of books. Smartly written, gripping, with some powerful female characters. Streaming on Amazon.
* The Crown - possibly the best historical that I've seen to date. Spanning 1940s-1960s with two separate casts, it captures a day in the life of Britain's current Royal Family, providing the viewer with a bird's eye view of what it would be like to be Queen of England or a member of her family -- neither of which is an enviable position to be in. Realistic and astonishingly accurate in its portrayal, it is also charmingly empathetic and complex. The performances and production, along with the writing remains stellar throughout.
Airing on Netflix.
*Barry and The Kominsky Method -- two series about an instructor of acting arts. In one, Barry, a hitman takes acting classes in a failed attempt to change careers. Instead of quitting the hitman gig, it slowly leaks into his other life. Part satire, part witty character drama -- it's an excellent character study and has a few episodes that had me laughing my ass off. The Kominsky Method is also about an an acting instructor, this round played by Michael Douglas, who weirdly shares a lot in common with Henry Wrinkler's instructor in Barry -- except Douglas is better off, and not plagued by a hitman so much as an enlarged prostrate and cancer issues. It's a hilarious take on the trauma of getting old. As Alan Arkin puts it - "life is pain", yet it can also be quite funny.
Airing on HBO and Netflix respectfully.
I'm sure there are others. But I'm tired and am stopping now.
Also this may well be the only series that I've actively shipped against the story thread. I want Jan-Di and Ji-Hoon together -- even though I know that it is going to be Jan-Di and Jun-Pyo. It's the trope -- star-crossed Pride and Prejudice trope. (Which by the way isn't realistic. In reality? She'd end up with Ji-Hoon.)
2. Entertainment Weekly is now appearing to come out monthly -- so they probably should change the title? Although the "weekly" is barely visible on the cover, so it may not matter?
Two things that it posted that may be interesting to folks on my correspondence list and/or subscribe?
A. TV Shows ending in 2020
* 13 Reasons Why (although why anyone would want to watch this, I don't know. I found the first three episodes of the first season to be depressing, painful, and torturous. Why do I want to see the worst in humanity? After 2016 - I could turn on the national news or pick up a newspaper for that.)
* The 100 (ditto -- I did make it through four seasons before I gave up though.)
* Arrow (ditto -- made it through three seasons before I gave up.)
* Blindspot (ditto)
* BoJack Horseman (the appeal was lost on me. Anime has ruined me in regards to animation. So too has the Triplets of Belleview. As to why? See Dear White People.)
* Claws (eh -- Wales loves this, didn't work for me.)
* Corporate
* Criminal Minds (see 13 Reasons Why.)
* Dear White People (couldn't get into it -- also Netflix, which has decided not to do any series that is more than 30-40 episodes long, if at all possible, because from various studies it appears subscribers won't watch anything that is longer.)
* Empire (see 13 Reasons Why. Also the fact that they went with drugs dealing and guns, which is so cliche and somewhat racist for shows about African-American musicians. I was into it until they introduced the whole drug cartel bit -- which was in the second episode. I hate stories about drug dealing.)
* Fresh off the boat
* Future Man
* Glow (again Netflix.)
* The Good Place (last air date is Jan 30th by the way)
* Homeland (this is still on?)
* How to Get Away With Murder (ditto)
* Lucifer (damn. I think it deserved another season at least -- but again, Netflix. (And yeah I know Fox cancelled it first, mainly because Warner Brothers series.)
* Marvel Agents of Sheild (this is still on?)
* Modern Family (ditto)
* Power
* The Ranch
* Schitt's Creek
* Strike Back
* Supernatural (well, Grey's beats Supernatural as longest drama series. Hee.)
* Vikings (still on?)
* Will & Grace (the reboot thingy apparently only worked for The Connors?)
B. Premieres/Finales in January
* Doctor Who Season Premiere - New Year's Day 1/1/2020 on BBC America at 8PM
* Zoey's Playlist (a coder, Jane Levy, can hear people's thoughts expressed as songs. Premiers - 1/7 at 10 PM on NBC
* 9-1-1 Lone Star premiers 1/19 at 10 PM on FOX (this one has Rob Lowe and Liv Taylor but is by Falchuck, Murphy and Minear...who have redone the procedural in a delightful way.)
* Star Trek Picard Premiers on CBS All Access on 1/23
* Arrow has its series finale on 1/28 at 9PM CW
* The Good Place has its series finale on 1/30 at 8:30 PM on NBC.
* BoJack Horseman has it's series final on 1/31 on Netflix.
3. So the decade otherwise known as the 2010s are winding down...along with 2019, so everyone is posting best of lists..or rather the bored television, film, book, theater and music critics are -- in a half-hearted attempt to get everyone to sample their favorites and ignore their ...well, dislikes.
The problem with this sort of accounting of best and worst -- is when it comes to culture? It's terribly subjective and people often see things in stories or cultural items that are well specific to themselves. I can't really provide a list of favorites, mainly because during the 2010s things pop-culture wise sort of blurred together. There was so much of it -- much of which I loved -- and I have subsequently forgotten. Some I have remembered, even if I disliked it. Also, unless it hit me on a deep personal level -- enough to inspire posts, I won't remember it.
OR inspired someone else enough to write multiple posts.
So, below is a list of memorable television series as opposed to series that are necessarily favorites or best/worst. Also in an attempt to be somewhat objective, I'm going to try to explain what worked and what didn't.
* Game of Thrones.
Probably worth mentioning that I read the books, and finished them long before the fifth season aired. I was reading the third book during the first season. And finished the next two books during the second and third seasons.
The books in some respects are easier if you don't like the Starks (and I really didn't. The only one I liked was Ayra...and she even got on my nerves at times). Mainly because there are so many other points of view that the Starks are a bit lost in the wash.
That is also the problem with the books -- it's more of a series of interlocking serialized stories about 1000 different characters than one central group of characters. And Martin just kept adding new ones. He'd kill off about five and add about ten. And he's not nice to his characters. The books are also easier for the squeamish or those like myself who would prefer not to watch people being graphically tortured and/or raped on screen. Let alone brutally murdered. They don't just kill folks in Game, they burn them alive, skin them, and chop off their heads.
All in techno-color. It becomes wearing after a while, particularly during a negative news cycle.
The books don't do that. We don't see Theon being tortured, we see the aftermath. The little girl with the Grey-scale is not burned alive in the books. Sansa Stark is not raped by the Ramsey Snow. (Another woman is that we are less invested in and we see it more through Theon's gaze and most of it is off-page.) Also, as my niece put it once -- it's easier to read graphic violence than watch it.
That said, in some respects the television series is more gratifying. People meet up faster. OR at least they meet up -- they don't at all in the books. And it's far more focused. Also, it becomes clear by the fifth book that Martin wrote himself into a corner and didn't know how to get out. The series attempts to correct that, but ...well, depending on one's point of view, with mixed results. I honestly don't see Martin finishing this series before he dies despite all claims to the contrary. Most readers gave up around 2016.
Enuf on the books. I only bring that up, because it definitely colored how I viewed the television series.
Whether or not you loved the television series most likely has a lot to do with how you felt about Danerys, Jamie Lasseter, Jon Snow and the Starks. If you were TEAM#Stark all the way, and loved Jon Snow, Bran, Sansa, and Arya -- then you probably loved this series all the way through with a few quibbles here and there. Most of the people I've talked to or read that loved Jon Snow or found the character relatable, messiah like, christ-like, classical hero, what have you -- loved the series and thought it was brilliant. Those who were either ambivalent or disliked or despised the character and saw him as little more than yet another cliche white male pathetic hero -- did not like how the series played out, and kind of wish the writers let him stay dead in roughly the end of the third or fourth season. Also if you loved Danerys -- you might want to skip the last season, just saying.
See? It's very subjective. That's why I don't bother discussing it with people any longer.
From a purely technical perspective -- the last season is filled with bad editing and film production errors. I don't know why anyone would nominate it for an Emmy let alone give it one. The battle sequences were either difficult to see or made no sense. The plot had holes that you could drive a couple of dragons through. Although the books had issues with plotting too -- Martin is not the best plotter on the planet. Logistics? Which they paid such close attention to in the early seasons were thrown out the window in favor of rushing the story. No longer did it take two-three months (at least two-episodes in the series) to get from the Wall to King's Landing. Now, you could get there with two shakes of a dragon's tail. I'd not have cared if they hadn't made such a huge point of how hard and long it was, particularly during winter in previous seasons. If it was this easy, why hadn't Ayra found her brother sooner? Or for that matter her family prior to the Red Wedding? You can't change the rules of your verse in the final chapters -- it discredits what came before. (Granted some people don't care. Various co-workers didn't. They hand-waved it. I only care if it's been pre-established, because when it changes, it jars me out of the story.)
We also had weird editing errors like errant Starbucks coffee cups ending up in scenes.
At any rate, the ending did in many ways ruin the series for me, for all the reasons related above. I was not a Stark fan, preferred various other characters who got short shrift and/or stories were rushed in favor of the Starks. And I read the books.
* The Good Place - started out rather well. I was impressed by it. And when it stuck to the whimisical philosophical wit -- it was nigh-on brilliant. But alas, it's a Michael Schur comedy, which means we have to have the bad-sex jokes, insult humor,
and recycled work-place humor that got old with The Office. Honestly, if they could have stuck with the philosophical jokes and developed the characters more -- I'd have adored this thing. But alas, they didn't. Oh well, the vast majority of viewers clearly wanted the opposite.
* Good Omens -- a whimiscal joy-ride through metaphysical history with Tennant (Fallen Angel/Demon Crawly) and Sheen (Arch-Angel/Arizaphale) by way of Neil Gaiman and Prachett. This works well if you are a fan of either Prachett or Gaiman, best to skip if you aren't. Also, it helps, if you love Sheen and Tennant, and have a wry sense of humor. Personally? I still think the credit sequence is by far the best that I've ever seen. It's beautifully done. I could watch that all day. Also, there are some very funny bits here.
It is better than the book in some respects -- the book wandered a lot more than the series does -- also Gaiman adds a sequence in the series that provides some back-story for Crawly and Arizaphale that wasn't in the book and is by far my favorite episode. I think it is the second or third episode? But it was brilliant and the whole series is worth the effort for that episode alone.
Again, if you aren't a Neil Gaiman fan and don't appreciate his wry metaphysical wit, best to skip. But if you are -- watch it now. It's still streaming on Amazon.
* Killing Eve - finally, we have a thriller that focuses on two women, and the female actresses give stellar performances. It's about a MI5 profiler who becomes obsessed with a female assassin, and an assassin who becomes equally obsessed with the profiler. Sort of like the premise of the series Hannibal but with women, except not as gory and with more humor. It's a bit of a game changer, because usually it's man/man, man/woman, seldom is it woman/woman. And the main characters or the power characters in this are all women -- another rarity. Airs on AMC/BBC America
* His Dark Materials -- a series that focuses on a female protagonist in a mythical setting, solving a problem and in a series of adventures. Also the male protagonist is a POC. The writing it good. It's a smart and close adaptation of the source material with spot-on casting. Streaming on HBO Now. Also BBC.
* The Expanse -- finally a political space opera with diversified casting, and an innovative take on aliens. Also an adaptation of a series of books. Smartly written, gripping, with some powerful female characters. Streaming on Amazon.
* The Crown - possibly the best historical that I've seen to date. Spanning 1940s-1960s with two separate casts, it captures a day in the life of Britain's current Royal Family, providing the viewer with a bird's eye view of what it would be like to be Queen of England or a member of her family -- neither of which is an enviable position to be in. Realistic and astonishingly accurate in its portrayal, it is also charmingly empathetic and complex. The performances and production, along with the writing remains stellar throughout.
Airing on Netflix.
*Barry and The Kominsky Method -- two series about an instructor of acting arts. In one, Barry, a hitman takes acting classes in a failed attempt to change careers. Instead of quitting the hitman gig, it slowly leaks into his other life. Part satire, part witty character drama -- it's an excellent character study and has a few episodes that had me laughing my ass off. The Kominsky Method is also about an an acting instructor, this round played by Michael Douglas, who weirdly shares a lot in common with Henry Wrinkler's instructor in Barry -- except Douglas is better off, and not plagued by a hitman so much as an enlarged prostrate and cancer issues. It's a hilarious take on the trauma of getting old. As Alan Arkin puts it - "life is pain", yet it can also be quite funny.
Airing on HBO and Netflix respectfully.
I'm sure there are others. But I'm tired and am stopping now.
no subject
How to Get Away With Murder: I'm right there with you in surprise that it's still been on air. (I got through exactly one episode of that show.)
Agents of SHIELD: I've gotten through all of the seasons so far. It's much better as a binge-watch than a weekly series--less time to pick apart all the ways in which the narrative is a complete mess. I don't particularly recommend it, but I don't NOT recommend it... it's very subjective. Season four is my absolute favorite by a longshot, though. Worth watching, if you're going to bother with any of it. New seasons go to Hulu, but eventually make their way to Netflix.
The Good Place seasons one and two were brilliant. I still enjoy it, but the moments I love are spaced further apart.
I'm going to delve into The Expanse season four soon. Probably next week, as I have company this week.
no subject
Marvel Agents of Shield -- I gave up on and came back to in the first season, because I read that they had an interesting twist. I stuck with it until somewhere through the third season. I think part of the problem was -- there were too many other series I was watching and it got lost in the shuffle, also, every time I watched it -- my attention would wander and I'd have to rewind. It just stopped holding my attention for some reason.
Had the same experience you did with How to Get Away with Murder -- I did manage to make it through about five episodes though before I finally gave up. I just did not care.
I just finished His Dark Materials on HBO, and am wavering between Mrs. Maizel and The Crown. I don't know...I also just finished a rather good Korean teen romantic drama -- and I want more. LOL!
no subject
Heh. In Australia we have Women’s Weekly, which comes out monthly, and Women’s Day, which comes out weekly.
no subject
Are you okay with all of the wild fires in Australia? Been thinking of you since I heard about them.
no subject
no subject