Topic: The TV Show Thread

@XandertheWise - The guiltiest of guilty pleasures! I caught this during the pandemic, and I have never watched anything so entertainingly dreadful in my entire life.

So utterly more-ish, but absolutely batsh*t bonkers! The shows really begins to go off the rails around seasons 2-3.... but actually becomes more addictive as a result!

Some of the writing is just so cracked out.... it is like someone took the very worst parts of One Tree Hill, Glee, Scream and The Twilight Zone - then stuck it in a blender and hoped for the best. The result being truly terrible, but utterly addictive.

I still hate myself for having enjoyed this show so much - Lord forgive me, I know not what I do.... lol

@CJD87 yeah Riverdale is just weird especially with the last half of season 2 with Betty and Cheryl

But i like the show anyway . Ill watch season 3 and then stop watching it hopefully. I need to catch up on another guilty pleasure dumb show that i really enjoyed which was Gilmore Girls when it was on the WB/CW years ago

also, you can pretty much do a drinking game when Jughead's dad keep saying "Boy" or when Cheryl does her usual thing on the show

While Iam not a huge fan of Tv-shows I have for the last couple of days somewhat enjoyed watching a few a few episods of Scooby-Doo on HBOMax. I think it decently funny and makes me a bit nostligic. While Anime was popular a few years ago not to many I know are that interested in cartoons these days (the same can also been said about games)..

Riverdale season 2 was pretty good but dumb at the same time.

Jughead's dad kept saying "Boy" all the time. Plus Cheryl being even more weird and clingy and Archie being a dimwit also

So TLoU episode 6 was, uh... something. Think I'm pretty much hanging on out of morbid curiosity now. All the things I've just been overlooking are really piling up. Disappointing but hey, maybe it's for some people and there's always the game so, win win.

@zupertramp I thought this week’s episode was middling. It was effective enough and I liked the interactions of Joel and Ellie, which is where the show is stirring my nostalgia for the game the most. The interactions of the of the other characters, namely Tommy, just didn’t feel right. Something is off about Tommy and Joel’s relationship. Still, I’m enjoying it nonetheless.

@Kidfried I’m pleased that you’ve really harmonized so well with the show and it seems like the act of playing Part I in close proximity has enhanced the experience for both the game and the show. After reading much or your and others’ praise I think it’s a matter of ‘when’ and not ‘if’ I play the Part I Remake eventually.

With all the years that have passed since my one and only playthrough of the game, I’m sketchy on the details of the smaller plot points. The memories start to come back when I see some of these details in the show, but it’s strange which parts I remember and which I don’t. The diary for example I had forgotten that was in the game. But the heated conversation with Joel and Ellie sounded like an almost word-for-word re-creation from what I remember.

And some of the memories are dim and enhanced with a glossy overcoat, like our brains tend to do. We remember more how things made us feel, rather than the granular detail of what was said and done. At least I do. So that’s where I just seemed to recall Tommy and Joel’s relationship different, but I think I’m misremembering what it actually was.

I believe you’ve not played Part II (if that aforementioned faulty memory of mine serves) so what’s your plans there? Are you going to wait for the next TV season in hopes it has an accurate reflection of the game and have a similar side-by-side comparison experience, or will you jump straight over to the next game? I’m very curious how you’ll receive Part II.

@Th3solution I've fairly recently played Part 1 as well, as I'm definitely one of the "suckers" who bought it at launch, and I highly recommend it especially if it's been awhile. For me it hadn't been that long, having replayed it both right before the release of Part 2 (which I love just as much even if it's a more complicated love) and right after. I've played it A LOT lol.

And I don't think you're misremembering Joel and Tommy's relationship. In the game they're essentially estranged family members (definitely can relate there) who reunite because the circumstances necessitate it. And it shows in their first one on one interaction that almost turns into a fish fights between brothers (also, relatable). Also it's been years since they've seen each other in the game, in the show only 3-4 months I believe, having just been back in Boston together I presume. Some of that has actually been a little muddled and hard to follow in the show so someone can please correct me if I'm wrong.

Anyway, none of those changes are bad per se. I just still think some things worked better in the game. And I think they've drastically changed Joel's personality, or at least have decided to show him dealing with grief in a different way. Conversely, some aspects have definitely been reworked to the series' benefit but unfortunately, for my money, the bad is currently outweighing the good.

And as far as TWD comparisons go, I will admit TLoU has not hit the lows that show did thus far but at the same time it definitely hasn't come anywhere near the highs imo. And TWD definitely came out swinging for what it's worth.

@zupertramp I quite enjoyed the first few seasons of TWD. I can’t remember where finally dropped off… somewhere around season 3 or 4. It was still pretty engaging, but I was falling further and further behind and as they kept dropping new seasons with no end in sight I lost interest from a narrative standpoint, as I prefer stories that have a clear direction with a conclusion in mind. I’m not sure if TWD finished with any solid finality. I guess this past season was supposed to be the last…? I’m not sure. But in fairness, TV shows will commonly fall victim to the “milk it for all its worth” approach rather than a true established creative and artistic vision for the series to end on a high note. So TWD isn’t alone in it’s meandering pace.

@Kidfried That’s wise to have tried as much as possible to separate your Part II playthrough from the general uproar. Having played it for the first time about 1 year ago I felt I had mostly avoided any influence from the heated discourse on the game. But it’s hard not to have some subconscious bias, given the overt visibility of Naughty Dog and the franchise. And unfortunately as the TV show and Part I remake have ramped up the public consciousness of Part II, there is much of the that opinionated schism about it resurfacing.

As a fan of Part II, I completely respect the honest and logical alternate views and opinions about it, but I don’t care for the socio-political issues that have been levied at its expense. Thankfully most of that has died down and the detractors now are more reasonable in their disapproval of Part II and do so sensibly.

Either way, I know you and I often concur on most games, so I anticipate you getting along really well with Part II, especially reading how much you are currently enjoying Part I. However, I could be totally wrong. So whenever you do play it, go in completely blind and with no preconceived expectations! 😄

Eureka 7 (Blu-Ray)

I first watched this years ago on Adult Swim & it absolutely captivates me everytime I watch it (I binged all 50 episodes in 2 weeks, lol). Really has to be one of my favorite romance stories in anime, and what's not to love about giant robots? Has some of the best pieces of OP music ever as well (especially OPs 2 & 4).

Trailer:

OP2:

OP4:

@Th3solution I dropped off somewhere around season 7 then went back and watched them all start to finish after the series finale. I'm sure the showrunners might call what happened finality but I sure wouldn't. Now there's like 3 planned spinoffs that I know of. On top of the other 2 already. Talk about milking it. I get it, it's popular but have some artistic integrity for crying out loud.

Anyway, there are some really powerful moments in that serious, most in the beginning but also sprinkled sparingly throughout so idk, kinda feel like on the whole it's worth it for those moments. I think the show really suffered after the loss of Frank Darabont, not only because he seemed to get what in the comics made for great TV but also because you got the impression certain characters got written off after his departure because idk politics. And it's always a shame when off-screen nonsense dictates storytelling. Definitely was a kick in the teeth when someone in particular got written off way later in the series for basically this reason.

Anyway I'm rambling. I will say I think somehow AMC seemed to manage a darker tone than TLoU which is surprising considering TWD is basic cable and HBO has like Euphoria and GoT, monuments to excess. Idk, I'd have preferred a grittier and darker adaptation of a game that's frankly pretty grim.

@zupertramp
Like @Kidfried said, the source material was inherently much darker in tone. Plus just because some of HBO's series push the envelope doesn't mean that all of them have to. Also a little fun note; several of AMC's shows were originally pitched with HBO in mind such as Mad Men and yes, The Walking Dead. HBO turned down Walking Dead because they believed the material would be too violent for their target audiences. Yes HBO, the same network who aired Game of Thrones just a year after Walking Dead premiered which is just as violent lol.

@LN78 I've not watched it since it was first one but think I read that it was almost one shot but there's a bit where it goes over a wall where they switched camera but it was still all done in one take.

Maybe playing the games alongside the Last of Us TV show was a mistake, I think episode 6 is probably a fine piece of television in a vacuum, but man I just watched this so confused by why they made so many changes that didn't really alter anything in any meaningful way. Like I'd rather a shot for shot remake than changes for the sake of changes.

I also think that that really powerful scene between Joel and Ellie, 'You are not my daughter...' is just wasted here. Firstly, they weirdly changed the dialogue which doesn't enhance anything it just makes it sound like someone is recounting the scene they saw ages ago from memory but also because of how the TV show is paced, so much of what Joel and Ellie had been through by that point in the game has never made it to the TV show, so this scene just feels sorta weird.

They've also made pretty massive alterations to Joel's characterisation too, maybe as some sort of pre-emptive brace for when they need to start adapting Part 2, but as a show I am watching right now, this version of Joel is a seriously lesser version of the one in the games.

It is a show as the performances are fine, I think Ramsey and Pascal have pretty good chemistry, but this is starting to feel more like a trailer for the game rather than a real show.

@LN78 It was the first time I really became aware of the idea of a continuous shot before and it is amazing to see it come off like that. It must also be great for the actors to be a part of too, so long as there aren’t too many takes!

I was trying to think of other examples last night and came up with Charlie Work from IASIP which has a fantastic sequence (I ended up watching the episode again last night after thinking about it).

And then the penultimate, and for me best, episode of The Bear is all one shot and must have taken some serious effort. If you’ve not seen it, the series is worth watching just for that episode in my opinion.

@Thrillho
Mr Robot had an entire episode edited to look like one take. And it was a wild one too, transitions to aerial shots, switching perspectives, etc. Plus it all served a serious story telling purpose as the events of that episode were pure chaos and that helped exemplify it. Theres cuts of course and some elements of it that could clearly only have been pulled off with CGI but it can be very difficult to determine where all the cuts are specifically. All in all I am baffled more people don't talk about Mr Robot. That show was a masterpiece from start to finish.

@PegasusActual93 Oh yes, that episode of Mr Robot was mind blowing. I know a few people that started it but didn't stick with it for various reasons.

@JohnnyShoulder
Shame for them, not only is it one of the most impressively shot and edited shows I have ever seen but it is one of the few pieces of recent media I have seen that actually has meaningful social commentary about modern society instead of pretending it's deep when it's not.