Television! Teacher, mother, secret lover: The TV Test Thread renewed

[Reply #120 on:]

I just gave "Castle" a chance, and must say: That show go it's moments.

I like the initial, nearly symbolic setup of Beckett as "traditional, serious" cop stories, with Castle basically impersonating the "entertainment aspect", the "let's cut the realism, let's indulge into the realm of revered cliches, let's be entertained and have fun". In fact, I see those characters more as symbols for those aspects of crime stories, instead of actual persons. (I was warned the show would later jump the shark by going for traditional cop series, with Castle/Fillion occasionally walzing in and delvering rather random comic relief. Season 3 and 4 had occasional episode suffering from that, but by now - which is the beginning of season 5 - overall an acceptable level of shark jumping).

I have hardly seen a character more customized for his/her actor than Castle for Fillion. Great, but of course this can make if difficult for other actors/characters to shine. They are usually doing a good job, but occasionally end up looking a tad pale.

My major quarrel is with the crime series aspect. Sometimes, the specator is just bombarded with a collection of random hints, delivered randomly by various characters. "We found the key the murder must have used to enter the appartment" does not get more emphasis than "I'm gonna get a coffee". As if the writers have the characters just read their story ideas aloud.

But - all in all - I might stick to that series for now.

[Reply #121 on:]

I tried with Castle but, as enjoyable as Fillion's presence was, the show was ultimately nothing more than a really formulaic procedural. A wink and a nudge to the audience about whatever cliched tropes you're using this week doesn't change the fact that you're using cliched tropes.

Anyway, the second season of Transparent came out a few days ago, so I'm going to hold off until I finish that before I finalise my "best tv of 2015" list. But I'm fairly certain that BoJack Horseman will be the definitive #1 - nothing has resonated with me as deeply as that fucking show did.

[Reply #122 on:]

But I'm fairly certain that BoJack Horseman will be the definitive #1 - nothing has resonated with me as deeply as that fucking show did.

I haven't seen that much (new) TV this year but I'd probably agree with that choice. Either that or Rick and Morty.

[Reply #123 on:]

I like to do a rundown of my favourite episodes of the year, but we've still got the Peep Show finale and two episodes of Ash vs Evil Dead left before 2016, so I'll just do a show overview:

25. The Last Man on Earth
24. Charlie Brooker's Weekly Wipe
23. Master of None
22. Archer
21. American Dad!
20. W/ Bob and David
19. Orange is the New Black
18. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
17. Girls
16. BoJack Horseman
15. Veep
14. It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
13. Parks and Recreation
12. The Moaning of Life
11. Inside No. 9
10. Community
9. Fargo
8. Jessica Jones
7. South Park
6. This is England '90
5. Silicon Valley
4. Peep Show
3. Ash vs Evil Dead
2. Better Call Saul
1. Rick and Morty

[Reply #124 on:]

Alright, I've put a top 30 together now. Keep in mind that the ordering is based primarily on what resonated with me the strongest as opposed to the actual perceived quality of that show, but anyway, here we go:

1. BoJack Horseman
2. Fargo
3. Nathan for You
4. Mad Men
5. Parks and Recreation
6. Rectify
7. Better Call Saul
8. You're the Worst
9. South Park
10. Rick & Morty
11. Hannibal
12. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia
13. Silicon Valley
14. Veep
15. Banshee
16. Mr. Robot
17. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
18. Master of None
19. Transparent
20. The Last Man on Earth
21. Review
22. Orange is the New Black
23. Inside No. 9
24. Brooklyn Nine-Nine
25. Man Seeking Woman
26. Other Space
27. Orphan Black
28. Bob's Burgers
29. Broad City
30. Togetherness/Casual (too hard to pick between them)

This was a ridiculously fucking good year of television, and it's really hard to narrow it down to even 30 shows without overlooking some really engaging high-quality content.

It's probably also worth mentioning that there are shows I still haven't caught up on (Justified, Homeland, The Affair, etc.) and plenty of highly-acclaimed shows I haven't even gotten around to watching yet (The Leftovers, Sense8, The Americans, etc.). Pretty much the only major disappointments of the year for me were True Detective and Masters of Sex - the truly astounding thing is how many long-running shows here were at the absolute top of their game this year. Just an A+ year of television all around.

[Reply #125 on:]

Well, today I learned that I watch hardly any TV. The only "current" shows I've caught up on this year are Rick and Morty, BoJack Horseman, Daredevil, Jessica Jones and The Walking Dead (come to think of it, that's my order). I've been spending more time catching up on older shows.

[Reply #126 on:]

Wow, you watch a ton of stuff.  I've seen a couple of Rick and Morty eps, and when I get home at night I'll turn on the Simpsons Channel for a bit if they're running any of the older shows.  The only thing I've seen more than 5-6 episodes of is the Smithsonian Channel's Air Disasters forensic show :-/

[Reply #127 on:]

I have watched four shows with new episodes this year, I think. One of them was Mr. Robot. It was really cool, even though it didn't seem particularly interesting at start of first episode. Really good towards the end, though and interesting to see how it'll continue on season 2.

[Reply #128 on:]

Last night I watched the first season of the new Netflix animated series, F is for Family. The trailers made it look fucking awful, but given what a pleasant surprise BoJack Horseman turned out to be, I gave it a chance anyway, and it was actually pretty good. Nowhere near the brilliance of BoJack, of course - if anything, it was a more like an R-rated King of the Hill set in the 70s. But it was consistently funny, had a surprising amount of heart, and I really liked the more laid back character-oriented approach of the show (coupled with its minor serialisation).

Hardly the best show of the year, but for a six episode run, it's easy to get through and well worth checking out. If I were to revise my list, it'd definitely crack the top 30 (then again, I also realised yesterday that I'd neglected to even mention Louie in the list, and while, admittedly, season 5 wasn't its best, the show is still very much deserving of inclusion).

[Reply #129 on:]

I'm glad to hear it. I was looking forward to that show until the trailers dropped and put me off - much like McFarlane's upcoming Bordertown.

In other news, I'm glad I held off doing a top episodes list because the most recent episode of Ash vs Evil Dead, "Ashes to Ashes" was absolutely phenomenal and is currently my favourite episode of anything of the year.

[Reply #130 on:]

In other news, I'm glad I held off doing a top episodes list because the most recent episode of Ash vs Evil Dead, "Ashes to Ashes" was absolutely phenomenal and is currently my favourite episode of anything of the year.

I contemplated to give that series a try.
Judging from your post I assume you consider it recommendable ?

[Reply #131 on:]

Of the small amount of TV I've seen this year, I'd say my favourite individual episode is either "Let's Find Out" from BoJack Horseman, "Total Rickall" from Rick and Morty, or "Spend" from The Walking Dead (Funnily enough, I forgot that the second half of season 5 was this year. All I could really remember was the fairly average season 6).

Also, funnily enough, I found that despite enjoying them both immensely, Daredevil and Jessica Jones don't really have any particular episodes that stand out to me.

[Reply #132 on:]

In other news, I'm glad I held off doing a top episodes list because the most recent episode of Ash vs Evil Dead, "Ashes to Ashes" was absolutely phenomenal and is currently my favourite episode of anything of the year.

I contemplated to give that series a try.
Judging from your post I assume you consider it recommendable ?

Have you seen the Evil Dead Trilogy?

If not, you probably ought to watch that before the series. If so, are you a fan?

If not, then the series won't do anything for you. If you are, it's ludicrous that you aren't already watching it. It's everything a fan could hope for.

Also, funnily enough, I found that despite enjoying them both immensely, Daredevil and Jessica Jones don't really have any particular episodes that stand out to me.

I felt the same way about Jessica Jones, actually. I loved it but no particular episode stands out in my memory.

[Reply #133 on:]

Contrary to what I just said, here's that list I mentioned and it contains a single, stand-out episode of Jessica Jones.

50. It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: "The Gang Goes on Family Fight"
49. South Park: "PC Principal Final Justice"
48. Inside No. 9: "Cold Comfort"
47. Parks and Recreation: "One Last Ride: Part 2"
46. Ash vs Evil Dead: "The Host"
45. Girls: "Ask Me My Name"
44. Silicon Valley: "Bad Money"
43. It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: "The Gang Misses the Boat"
42. Ash vs Evil Dead: "The Killer of Killers"
41. Peep Show: "Are We Going to Be Alright?"
40. Parks and Recreation: "Gryzzlbox"
39. Silicon Valley: "Homicide"
38. Silicon Valley: "Binding Arbitration"
37. Better Call Saul: "Marco"
36. The Venture Bros.: "All This and Gargantua-2"
35. Archer: "Vision Quest"
34. Community: "Intro to Recycled Cinema"
33. Community: "Grifting 101"
32. Rick and Morty: "Big Trouble in Little Sanchez"
31. Jessica Jones: "AKA 1,000 Cuts"
30. South Park: "Stunning and Brave"
29. Better Call Saul: "Mijo"
28. Rick and Morty: "The Ricks Must Be Crazy"
27. Peep Show: "The William Morris Years"
26. Ash vs Evil Dead: "Brujo"
25. Peep Show: "Kid Farm"
24. This is England '90: "Winter"
23. Rick and Morty: "Get Schwifty"
22. Rick and Morty: "Auto Erotic Assimilation"
21. Better Call Saul: "Nacho"
20. Better Call Saul: "Hero"
19. South Park: "Sponsored Content"
18. Fargo: "Rhinoceros"
17. Ash vs Evil Dead: "Bound in Flesh"
16. South Park: "Where My Country Gone?"
15. Better Call Saul: "Five-O"
14. Peep Show: "Gregory's Beard"
13. Ash vs Evil Dead: "Books from Beyond"
12. Ash vs Evil Dead: "Bait"
11. Ash vs Evil Dead: "El Jefe"
10. Rick and Morty: "Look Who's Purging Now"
9. Rick and Morty: "Total Rickall"
8. Better Call Saul: "Pimento"
7. Better Call Saul: "Alpine Shepherd Boy"
6. Better Call Saul: "Uno"
5. Peep Show: "Threeism"
4. Rick and Morty: "A Rickle in Time"
3. Community: "Emotional Consequences of Broadcast Television"
2. Better Call Saul: "RICO"
1. Ash vs Evil Dead: "Ashes to Ashes"

[Reply #134 on:]

Damn. You're really making me want to take up TV-watching as a profession so I can make a similar list myself.

Although I might have seen enough TV to make an all-time list. Maybe.

[Reply #135 on:]

Yeah, I don't think I could do a "best episodes" list. It'd just be too damn hard (particularly with the large number of serialised shows out there, which are quite difficult to judge on an episodic basis).

But I think my #1 spot would either go to BoJack Horseman's "Hank After Dark," "Escape From L.A." or Nathan for You's "The Movement."

[Reply #136 on:]

In other news, I'm glad I held off doing a top episodes list because the most recent episode of Ash vs Evil Dead, "Ashes to Ashes" was absolutely phenomenal and is currently my favourite episode of anything of the year.

I contemplated to give that series a try.
Judging from your post I assume you consider it recommendable ?

Have you seen the Evil Dead Trilogy?

If not, you probably ought to watch that before the series. If so, are you a fan?

If not, then the series won't do anything for you. If you are, it's ludicrous that you aren't already watching it. It's everything a fan could hope for.

Also, funnily enough, I found that despite enjoying them both immensely, Daredevil and Jessica Jones don't really have any particular episodes that stand out to me.

I felt the same way about Jessica Jones, actually. I loved it but no particular episode stands out in my memory.

Young man, I saw AoD when it premiered at the movie theatre*

About "not already watching it": Unfortunately, there is the aspect of "my spare time", a ressouce my employer has the habit of considering himself being entitled to ridiculous amounts of it.  So, I'd rather take the short amount of time to inquire about a new show, than wasting time seeing another classic mercylessly slaughtered upon the altar of pop-culture recycling.

Anyway, "everything a fan could hope for" sounds just like the recommendation I was hoping for. (Especially as I usually agree with your movie/series critics)

*(I am afraid Tachy will beat me to that by having seen the premiere of "Evil Dead")

[Reply #137 on:]

Nope, not this time

[Reply #138 on:]

Goodbye Yahoo Screen. I never even knew you.

[Reply #139 on:]

I'm really going to miss Other Space.

[Reply #140 on:]

That article by the A.V. Club seems to blame Community for Yahoo Screen's demise. Au contraire, who among us can honestly claim to have even heard of Yahoo Screen prior to their acquisition of Community? If anything, they can thank Community for whatever miniscule amount of success that service may have seen.

[Reply #141 on:]

That was a humourous reference to this article, in which Yahoo! claim they lost $42 million on Community's sixth season. The logic being that they assumed Community would draw people in to their streaming service and get them to stick around afterwards to check out their other content (both original and otherwise), but this was not the case - despite Community actually pulling in impressive audience numbers.

From what I've heard, Yahoo! Screen was very glitchy and would crash/freeze on a frequent basis. Quite a few members over at The A.V. Club even admitted to watching it via torrents, despite living in the US and having full access to Yahoo! Screen, because it was just far too unstable to use.

So, no, it's definitely not Community's fault - Yahoo! took a major gamble and they lost, simple as that. Given how many different streaming services there are now, I expect quite a few more will be going bust over the coming years.

[Reply #142 on:]

Oof. Considering that Yahoo had previously said they would be happy to bankroll the Conmunity movie if they got around to making it, and assuming that's out the window now, what are the actual chances of a movie actually happening anytime soon at this point?

They should just do the crowdfunding thing for the movie. I can't imagine they would have any trouble being successful with that.

[Reply #143 on:]

Agreed. Community is what it is because of the fans. This is one of the more fan-driven series in recent television. No doubt the fans would back it.

I read some time ago that there was an executive at Yahoo! that particularly championed the acquisition of Community. This is the one person at Yahoo! who, prior to the service's cancellation, could have pushed the show back into production for another season or that fabled movie. However, she (I think it was a she) left Yahoo! several months ago.

Also, when Yahoo! approached Sony and Harmon about acquiring the show, they were already pretty close to closing a deal with Hulu, but Yahoo! made the bigger offer so they went with them.

If either of these events turned out differently, we could already have a movie in production by now.

[Reply #144 on:]

I may be wrong here, but my understanding is that the lack of a movie taking any forward steps so far is on Dan Harmon. I thought he wanted a bit of a break from the show in order to cleanse his head-space and that he wanted to finish season 2 of Rick and Morty followed by a book he was working on before even thinking about it. I don't think that book is out yet, so there we go.

I can't imagine they'd have too much trouble getting some money together for a movie. Dan Harmon has alluded to the idea of self-funding the thing if it comes to that in the past and he frequently makes reference to his status as a millionaire (I mean, he opened Starburns Industries with some of that sweet movie/TV money. He's no stranger to investing his own money into his work) so I'm sure the film could realistically get much of its funding directly from him.

Then the Kickstarter route would no doubt be able to raise a few million, too. They'd at very least be able to produce a movie with the budget to be like 4 episodes of the show back to back, I'd expect, but it would be a shame for them to not get loads of money to go out on a bang with. That said, I'd be pretty amazed if Sony wouldn't put at least a little bit of money into such a project, even if they'd be apprehensive about funding the entire thing themselves.

[Reply #145 on:]

There's been interviews with him recently where he states the movie is very much on his mind and that he plans to make it a very ambitious project. Honestly, I imagine the biggest roadblock will be getting the whole cast including Donald Glover together to do it, since I believe that is his intention.

The nice thing about crowdfunding is that after the initial amount you get from that by itself, it's often easy to then get a studio to take notice of the amount of support you've received and offer additional funding and distribution methods.

[Reply #146 on:]

I've finally seen the first season of Sense8, and I fucking loved it. If I were redoing my "best tv of 2015" list, it'd definitely be in the top 10.

The high-concept premise manages to be really fun in a goofy kind of way, and yet also really clever and deeply affecting, and the pacing between the slower, more introspective character stuff and the balls-to-the-wall action scenes is pretty much perfect. It's really hard to talk about the series further without giving too much away, but the sheer scope of the show is ridiculously impressive (it's set - and filmed - in a wide variety of countries, and has one of the most diverse casts on television), and is probably second only to Hannibal on the "gorgeous cinematography" front. It's just a really ambitious and ground-breaking series all around.

Oh, and it may very well have my favourite intro of all time. And this is coming from someone who watches a lot of tv. 12 episodes of it and it's still giving me chills.

[Reply #147 on:]

I've been watching Luke Cage. Five or six episodes in.

Honestly, it's not that great. The story moves at a snail's pace and although there's plenty of great moments, they're few and far between. It doesn't hold a candle to Daredevil or Jessica Jones, however am I enjoying it enough that I will probably finish the season.

Show spoiler

I laughed like hell when Luke's stupid-looking classic costume made a cameo.

Side note: I never thought I'd be hearing the word "Nigger" thrown around in a Marvel production, especially with such frequency.

[Reply #148 on:]

I'm only 1 episode in and I wasn't hugely impressed. It wasn't bad but it didn't hold a candle to Jessica Jones and, even though I hated Daredevil, it wasn't as good as the first episode of that (that I actually did enjoy for some reason).

I'll definitely give it a chance with a few more episodes, though.

[Reply #149 on:]

Finished Luke Cage. I found it much more enjoyable when

Show spoiler

Claire showed up.

The last four-or-so episodes were pretty great, and compared to Jessica Jones and Daredevil I feel like it actually maintained its momentum rather than slowing down a tad too much.

I gotta say though... some of the characters are annoyingly stupid.

[Reply #150 on:]

And now I've started Iron Fist. Four episodes in, I think?

It's pretty bad. The writing is dumb and the action is boring, although I was expecting something far worse based on the reviews it's getting (I'd say it's a 5/10 at worst). But since I'm less than halfway through I'm sure it's too early to jump to conclusions. I'm hopeful for Defenders so I'll put up with it.

[Reply #151 on:]

I'm having a lot of trouble getting through Luke Cage (I started watching when it first came out and have only gotten through the first six episodes slowly, I'm really not enjoying it), so I'm seriously dreading the idea of slogging through Iron Fist from the way it sounds. And yet I loved Daredevil and Jessica Jones enough to want to see how the whole Defenders experiment plays out, so...guess I'm in for the ride.

[Reply #152 on:]

Anyone sat though 13 reasons why yet? I can't stand how patronizing it is, man. It's got some good character interactions here and there, a couple moments that have some good weight to them... but the overarching plot is so immaturely written.

[Reply #153 on:]

I've just caught up with the currently aired episodes of Tangled: The Series. It's surprisingly well-made; I am really impressed with the character dynamics and the quality of the voice acting.

[Reply #154 on:]

There's a series? That's both surprising and not surprising at the same time.

In other words I feel nothing at all.

[Reply #155 on:]

I did an episode or two of Iron Fist and didn't mind it, actually, but it wasn't really good enough to justify bothering to watch the rest. Jessica Jones is the only one of them I've really enjoyed, which means that I'm less excited about The Defenders than I am for just season 2 of Jessica Jones.

In other news, I see that I didn't do my top 50 episodes thing for 2016 because I haven't been here in ages. So here it is, late:
50. Love: "Tested"
49. Better Call Saul: "Gloves Off"
48. Stewart Lee's Comedy Vehicle: "Islamophobia"
47. Inside No. 9: "The Devil of Christmas"
46. Bates Motel: "Norman"
45. South Park: "The End of Serialization as We Know It"
44. Ash vs Evil Dead: "Home"
43. Orange Is the New Black: "It Sounded Nicer in My Head"
42. Silicon Valley: "Two in the Box"
41. South Park: "Oh, Jeez"
40. Ash vs Evil Dead: "Second Coming"
39. Ash vs Evil Dead: "The Morgue"
38. It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: "The Gang Goes to Hell: Part Two"
37. Better Call Saul: "Fifi"
36. Better Call Saul: "Nailed"
35. Veep: "Kissing Your Sister"
34. Mid Morning Matters with Alan Partridge: #2.2
33. Mid Morning Matters with Alan Partridge: #2.5
32. Better Call Saul: "Cobbler"
31. Better Call Saul: "Switch"
30. Mid Morning Matters with Alan Partridge: #2.3
29. Mid Morning Matters with Alan Partridge: #2.6
28. The Venture Bros.: "Red Means Stop"
27. Better Call Saul: "Amarillo"
26. American Dad!: "The Unincludeds"
25. Black Mirror: "Hated in the Nation"
24. Black Mirror: "Men Against Fire"
23. Ash vs Evil Dead: "Trapped Inside"
22. Black Mirror: "Shut Up and Dance"
21. Love: "The Date"
20. Better Call Saul: "Klick"
19. American Crime Story: "A Jury in Jail"
18. Black Mirror: "Nosedive"
17. Silicon Valley: "Daily Active Users"
16. Silicon Valley: "The Uptick"
15. Orange Is the New Black: "People Persons"
14. South Park: "The Damned"
13. South Park: "Douche and a Danish"
12. South Park: "Wieners Out"
11. South Park: "Member Berries"
10. The X-Files: "Mulder and Scully Meet the Were-Monster"
9. Silicon Valley: "Maleant Data Systems Solutions"
8. South Park: "Members Only"
7. Love: "The Table Read"
6. Silicon Valley: "Meinertzhagen's Haversack"
5. American Crime Story: "The Verdict"
4. Mid Morning Matters with Alan Partridge: #2.4
3. Mid Morning Matters with Alan Partridge: #2.1
2. Ash vs Evil Dead: "Home Again"
1. Ash vs Evil Dead: "The Dark One"

[Reply #156 on:]

I watch Friends... a lot.

[Reply #157 on:]

I think HIMYM is better.

[Reply #158 on:]

Hmmm, definitely comparable but I don't know about that kid

[Reply #159 on:]

I know everyone's already seen it, but black mirror is phenomenal. And Jane the virgin is pretty entertaining as well