Topic: The TV Show Thread

Star Wars: The Bad Batch is off to a superb start. It had a tricky job to do, introducing itself to newcomers whilst simultaneously acting as a continuation of The Clone Wars. As a result, it was always gonna have to be a little basic to begin with (and it's true, the first episode is basically a 70-minute version of the trailers we've already seen) but I was hooked throughout. Some parts still surprised me, and the fan service was there for those who'd recognise it whilst never becoming overwrought or egregious. So excited that we get the second episode on Friday, before it becomes a weekly show.

@RogerRoger, I'm looking forward to it, but will be working my way through the entirety of the Clone Wars first, so probably won't get to it until later this year at the earliest.

@RR529 I admire your restraint, but I think you're making the right call. As always, these things are enjoyable on a base level, but wider knowledge and understanding only adds to the experience.

Best of luck with your endeavour, and May the 4th be with you!

Is it Wrong to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? (HiDive via VRV) - Anime set in a fantasy world where human adventures obtain blessings from the gods (who've decended to Earth to live amongst humanity in exchange for most of their divine abilities) in order to fight monsters, it follows the adventures of young Bell Crenel, a soft hearted adventurer who wants to be a hero and is the only member of the Familia of the goddess Hestia (a Familia being a group of humans blessed by the same god or goddess, a guild of sorts).

Based on the name I assumed it was going to be fanservicy schlock, and while it does feature some (as well as harem tropes), it's actually much tamer in that regard than I imagined it to be, and it ended up being a genuinely good fantasy series. The animation has a general high quality to it with some of the key fights having absolutely beautiful choreography, it has great character growth, can get surprisingly dark, and the politics/rivalries between the various Familia that were starting to be explored more in the second season were really interesting. I wasn't at first too big on the idea that the world essentially operates as a video game dungeon crawler (without being a video game), but the character arcs ended up being so good that I ultimately didn't care.

I only watched the first two seasons with their accompanying OVAs (light hearted affairs which are a bit heavier on the fanservice), but I know there's a third season, a spin-off, & a movie as well, so it's definitely a series I'll be returning to.

The Falcon & Winter Soldier (Disney+) - Following the events of Avengers: Endgame, it follows the titular pair as they get involved in a plot set forth by a group of international anti-government "terrorists", and it must be decided who (if anyone) should be next to take up the sheild of Captain America.

It's not revelatory, but solid enough. There are a handful of great action scenes, the narrative works in some topical elements and works in a grey area where they expect the viewer to ask which side is really in the just? It kind of falls apart late into the final episode though, where the writers either assume they didn't get their themes through well enough (or that the audience wouldn't understand them) and have they key character blatantly preach the themes they were trying to get at.

Sam's Captain America look is really cool though, so I'm interested in seeing where he pops up next.

Been perma-smiling like an idiot ever since I watched today's episode of The Bad Batch. There wasn't much in the way of action or plot twists. It was just... nice, y'know? A warm and fuzzy episode, and perfectly placed to keep me caring about these characters. I also like how they're seamlessly integrating tons of background details in a totally natural, non-overwhelming kinda way (for example, we learn the origin of the "chain codes" introduced in The Mandalorian). This might just be my favourite Star Wars.

I'm watching something called Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency - a Netflix original, I think. Elijah Wood is in it.
It makes absolutely no sense and I'm digging it, lol.

@Voltan Ooooh, I really liked that. Still didn't make much sense by the end, but I enjoyed the ride.

@JohnnyShoulder It's random AF and I'm into it.

@Voltan Oh weird, I didn’t know they made another Dirk Gently series. I know Stephen Mangan did one over here. It’s based on Douglas Adams books!

@nessisonett I’ll be honest, I’ve never heard of it before.

@nessisonett Ah, that is where why the name rang a very quiet bell far off in the distance!

Kiddy Grade (Funimation) - Early 00's sci-fi anime that follows the exploits of Eclair & Lumiere, a pair of secret agents for the G.O.T.T. (Galactic Organization of Trade & Tariffs) who are sent out to settle disputes between planets, stifle violent uprisings, tackle organized crime syndicates, and all that good stuff. Eclair has superhuman strength & a multipurpose weapon disguised as lipstick (can be used as a whip/rope or an explosive agent), while Lumiere has the ability to naturally interface/hack into computer systems & carries weaponized wine bottles (hey, it's anime).

It's okay, but nothing spectacular. The first half of the series is probably it's high point, as while it's more episodic in nature (with only the occasional hint at something deeper) it's fun enough, however when it's revealed that the government organization they work for isn't as noble as first believed (surprise, surprise) & the pair finds themselves on the outs, the show can't seem to pick a lane & introduces some huge dynamic shifting twist every other episode that refocuses who the big bad is (and other smaller twists just for the heck of it, such as a surprise parentage twist in the second to last episode that has absolutely no bearing on the narrative) & involves clones, shape shifters, & new bodies for old characters just to make things seem deeper than they really are. It ultimately comes down to a huge space battle with a massive Macross style starship/giant robot hybrid where a bunch of characters pull off a bunch of fancy contrived abilities that aren't really explained, but it's a fun watch. Probably my favorite part of the show were the "commercial bumpers" that anime tend to have in the middle of the episode, in this case artwork of the characters in various different anime stylings that changed every episode.

No idea how Funimation labeled it as merely TV-PG though. It has (very light) fanservice throughout (including one random instance of nudity about halfway through) & it can get very bloody at times.

No time for another Returnal run so I figured I'd check out Jupiter's Legacy. Starts pretty good.

I just realized it's been 10 years since the Smallville finale

I feel old as hell. Tom Welling was basically my generation's Superman even if he didn't put on the costume for virtually the entire show

The Underground Railroad on Prime Video. Pretty amazing show as I was locked into it all weekend. Easily the best show on any streaming service atm

@JohnnyShoulder @Voltan @nessisonett I only just saw the posts about Dirk Gently. The tv series has almost nothing to do with the books other than the titular character and the general premise of his “detective skills”.

I enjoyed the first series but never watched the second. The books are gloriously bonkers too (as you’d expect from Douglas Adams).

@Thrillho I watched both seasons now and thought the 2nd one wasn't as good as the 1st (but still fine)

Star Wars: the Cone Wars season 2 (Disney+).

Pretty solid, about the same quality wise as season 1, though I noticed there was less erratic continuity jumping around (there was still some, but it seemed more willing to commit to full 3-4 episode long arcs). Oh, and after being a pretty common side character in season 1, it looks like they've already jettisoned Jar Jar, lol (he may have had one appearance, but I may be thinking of a season 1 episode).

@RR529 Don't worry, Jar Jar will be back.

Started rewatching Angel since it hit Disney+. Forgot how perfect ‘late night TV’ it was!