Topic: The TV Show Thread

@graymamba While i didn't think much on it when I saw s1, now that you mention it, I agree. Still, I liked the season quite a bit overall. Of Sheridan's output, I've seen the first season of this, Yellowstone and Landman and I must say I liked the latter the best. Looking forward to catching up with more Yellowstone and the second season of Lioness, though

@Th3solution I will say this: There is a lot of lore and factions and characters to keep track of and I will readily admit that I was muttering "now, who was that, again?" to myself every now and then when watching, but I never felt that the show lost me. Even if I maybe wasn't 100% sure about who everybody was at every moment, I had no trouble following what was going on and feeling engaged with it. I've never read the novels either, btw.

@JohnnyShoulder I know, right? Powerful stuff, IMO

Cheers, @graymamba 👍

@Th3solution @FuriousMachine
Ooh, err. I didn't know it came with extreme studying requirements, however 😅 honestly, I've been really bad at getting in to any shows this last year, so now I'm pondering whether Wheel of Time is going to be the one to start with if it is quite factiony. I've just finished the Hussite Trilogy audiobooks and the amount of names and locations in that is next level, so jumping into a tv show similar has me a little concerned 😬

I'm now thinking is all I've watched on tv this last year Game of Thrones (rewatch) and Andor? (Rewatch) 😅 Ring's of Power was maybe within the year. There must have been other shows. And if not, why the heck did I keep paying for Sky(Now) and Disney Plus 🤦‍♂️

@FuriousMachine still to start Landman, really looking forward to it though… don’t think Sheridan has made anything I don’t like yet. And with the amount that he’s knocked out lately, that’s quite the batting-average.

@Ravix @Th3solution hopefully I haven’t put the both of you off Wheel of Time too much with my ramblings of a lack of required exposition. While I stand by it… I honestly think it’s worth the initial struggle to get the rewards of season 2 and 3 in particular. The missus, who had no experience with the books at all is absolutely blown away by the show. And as massive a Thrones fan as she is… this last season has tipped the balance in the favour of WoT for her.

@graymamba yeah, not put off overall, just maybe at the moment when I'm in the habit of watching fewer shows and know I've got to get on TLoU and Andor soon, and Shogun, dammit 😅

A bit of high fantasy in Autumn though, I'll try and remember it for then. I will probably check out some trailers to get a feel of the show though, and if the Celtics end up losing in the NBA Playoffs that will free up that time for a show or two in the next few weeks, so who knows.

@graymamba Hope you like it! Billy Bob Thornton is that show's ace in the hole and he has some lines that are truly cracking. So glad there's a second season on the way!

@Ravix TLoU, Andor, Shogun and Wheel of Time is a spectacularly strong line-up

@Jimmer-jammer Me and @FuriousMachine have both seen it and left very brief thoughts on it on the previous page. It is a strong start indeed. I've been impressed with most of the performances, in particular the scene in the last episode when Joel was with the psychiatrist. Had me right in the feels!

@graymamba I’m glad you resurrected WoT into my memory banks because after season 1 I had written it off as a failure. A friend of mine who’s a fan of the books and of all things high fantasy had said it was a ‘meh’ adaptation. Other reviews around the web confirmed a lukewarm reception so I honestly didn’t know the show was still going strong. Since the consensus here for season 2 & 3 is quite strong then I’ll keep it in mind for when the mood hits. I am a little concerned about the length of the series. If the show follows the books, it’s going to take a long time to get through. I think there’s what, 12 books?

Amazon have quietly put together some winners. I’ve been trying Fallout (even though I’ve never played the games) and it’s decent. I actually enjoyed Rings of Power, but haven’t got around to season 2. If I add WoT to the mix then Amazon might push up the ranks from my least watched service to my most!

@Th3solution yeah I honestly think that even if amazon are able to tell the whole Wheel of Time narrative, that’s quite it won’t be a season for book correlation through out. I think there were actually 14 or 15 books in the end… around 3 or 4 of them written by Brandon Sanderson after Robert Jordan’s death. And as much as I’d welcome that many seasons, it’s probably not readable for any number of reasons. I’d imagine that they’d have to tell multiple books narratives within specific seasons… maybe upping the episode count from 8 - 12 or something like that.

I actually never read them all myself. I think I’d just finished book 9 when I started a new job and moved into a new property… and it got put on the back-burner and never picked back up. I’d kinda resigned myself to returning to it when I eventually retire, so this show getting made was a nice surprise for sure. I can’t put into words how nice it is to be able to share it with the missus too, as reading the books was such a solitary pursuit.

If/when you do give it a go, I’ll be super interested to hear your thoughts on how you navigate the dense world-building and lore. It was a lot to take in in the books to be fair! 😅

@Jimmer-jammer Yeah, kept it short and vague as it would take very little to give away the direction this season is going, I think. Wanted to give more people the chance to see it before getting into the meat of it. You're definitely putting words to my own thoughts regarding the production quality of the show; there were scenes that were Hollywood blockbuster levels of good!

@JohnnyShoulder I loved seeing Catherine O'Hara in that role, she is so freaking amazing! And it is a true testament to her skill there that, for once, I didn't for a second expect her to yell "KEVIN!" (which I've typically done whenever I've seen her in anything )

@FuriousMachine
My wife who never played the games was not prepared for last nights TLOU episode bro now she's been raging about how much she hates you know who ever since 🤣

@Th3solution Rings of Power season two is overall a lot better than season one, I found. Especially one specific storyline that develops throughout. And maybe even another that also develops musically well. I think if you didn't mind or even enjoyed season one there's a lot of good to be found in two that makes it even more enjoyable.

And I quite like how stupid (and Welsh) a certain stupid (Welsh) elf is, even if some people don't like her character, I think they can cover for that by how she pronounces things so don't you don't care how stupid she is being 😁

@FuriousMachine it is indeed. I'm avoiding most Andor S2 reviews and trailers to try and just throw myself into the unexpected after the tone of one of the trailers I half saw kind of felt a bit too 'Disney' but a review popped up on my feed and it has me incredibly positive and excited, based on the review title alone putting to rest the trailer tone. So I'm leaving it at that (it's out some point today/tomorrow I think. And a 3 episode drop)

@graymamba I don’t know if I have read and Jordan, but I really like Sanderson. I’ve read a lot of his stuff — Mistborn was great, although I didn’t ever get around to the second era collection. And the Stormlight Archive also was fantastic until I dropped off at Oathbringer. My book backlog was engulfed by my gaming backlog and my TV backlog. 😂

I’ll drop impressions if I get around to WoT show, or to the books for that matter. I think I have at least the first one on my bookshelf. 😅

@Ravix Good to know. I’ve forgotten most of season 1 by now. But I did really like it. I know many Tolkien purists were offended by the show, but I thought it was quite good and my understanding is that much of the content came from those supplemental books about Middle Earth that he and his progeny wrote.

@FuriousMachine Since we’re filtering and culling my TV backlog… as you’re the self-proclaimed last living fan of the MCU 😜, what’s your opinion on the following Disney+ Marvel shows —
Echo, Secret Invasion, Agatha All Along, X-Men ‘97, What If?, and the Daredevil/DD Born Again, Punisher, Jessica Jones, Defenders, Luke Cage, Iron Fist quagmire.
Are there one, or two, or three of those shows that are actually worth watching? I think that list is pretty much all the Marvel shows I haven’t seen (not including a few of the movies too, but I’ll keep it to the TV shows for thread integrity purposes). I don’t feel particularly compelled to watch any of them. Maybe Daredevil, but I couldn’t make it through the first season before and I’m worried I’ll fizzle out again.

@Th3solution I know i'm not the resident Marvel afficionado, but i've definitely watched my fair share over the years. Did you see WandaVision? I quite liked that a few years ago, maybe the the best of all the movie spin offs? It was also like they fleshed out that certain segment in Saints Row 4 haha you'll know what I mean if you know the bit I mean. It's a classic trope done well and it tied in to one or two of the bigger movies. Worth a watch if you haven't seen it.

Jessica Jones had real potential and dealt with some pretty mature themes like mental health, addiction, abuse, but the fact it's part of this extended New York quad or even Quintrilogy of other hero shows I think they backed themselves in to a corner by having all of that going on after. Tie-ins to less interesting shows diluting everything for everyone and for me it was too much to bother keeping up with that whole NY universe 😬 I'd highly recommend the first season though for those well done matute aspects, and for David Tennant's character.

The extended NY thing was probably why I couldn't keep up with Daredevil too. I lasted maybe 2 seasons. I can't remember how much courtroom drama it included, but perhaps not enough for me. It could of been out at a similar time to when Better Call Saul was out too, and when there's something far superior it's sometimes hard to enjoy the usual decent to pretty good shows when something outstanding makes everything pale in comparison.

@PegasusActual93 hehehe, an understandable reaction. I think they missed an opportunity doing it this way, but it's been executed to perfection, so I'm not complaining.

@Ravix <harumph> Just checked Disney+ and they proudly stated "S2 coming April 25th". WTF?! Three days after it everyone else gets it? Annoying... they probably do it to have time making Norwegian (and other Scandinavian) subtitles. I get it, though. While I don't need subs (well, I do, because of reduced hearing, but I use English subs anyway), I guess I would be pi$$ed off if I was someone who didn't speak English and it was there but I couldn't watch it. Probably generates a few angry support emails.

@Th3solution Of the ones you mention and based on the fact that you didn't love Daredevil s1, I think maybe Jessica Jones s1 is the only one I would wholly recommend. I thought that was really good. I also liked Echo, so if you saw Hawkeye (I assume you did, as it wasn't on your list), you may be familiar with the backstory for that one (though I think it stands well enough on its own).

X-Men animated came out when I was in my early twenties and I never watched it, so I have not seen X-Men 97 either. I've tried to get into the original series awaiting the new one, but it just didn't gel for me. I think that is one where your enjoyment may be tied closely to how fond memories you have of the original.

Circling back to the Netflix shows, I liked them all to some degree, but I felt, outside of casting, they were mostly wasted opportunities, the first season of JJ being the exception. Even the derided Iron Fist had its moments, mainly because of Jessica Henwick and Simone Missick delivering excellent versions of Colleen Wing and Misty Knight, AKA "The Daughters of the Dragon". They were my favourite part of the entire Netflix mess. Their Punisher proved that Bernthal is an awesome Frank Castle, but I the show they put him in lacked something I can't quite put my finger on. So, I would also hold off on Born Again until you've given Netflix DD another go and maybe checked out the other seasons and shows, should you decide to do so. I don't think you'll like Born Again much better than Netflix Daredevil, so you're not missing much if you still don't like Netflix DD, but should you develop a liking for the latter, then Born Again will be a better experience having seen the other seasons anyway (I would also add a Punisher watch, should that be the case... Bernthal is a really good Punisher)

Agatha All Along was fine, but I didn't love it. Kathryn Hahn is a treasure and the cast is great, but it felt very disjointed to me. What If...? was a very mixed bag and I would give it a miss unless you're really into the Multiverse angle (to be fair, What If...? is probably the place they come closest to doing it right, IMO, but they are too dependant on the MCU movies for it to really spread its wings)

Those are my long-winded thoughts on the list you provided. Worth adding that one of the things that soured me on the Netflix shows a bit was that I wished they would embrace the source material more and not shy away from the fact that they were adapting costumed crimefighters from comic books. They seemed almost ashamed of the source material at times. So if you prefer your superheroes deconstructed, gritty and realistic, this may actually hit the spot

Whatever you go for, I hope you have a good time with it