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

[#80 :]

Fair point. Like I said on the other page though it's difficult to avoid spoilers in those threads so I usually just avoid them if I'm not caught up.

Fair enough.

I felt like season 5 was an admirable but failed experiment when I watched it on a week by week basis.

After "binge" re-watching the series recently, it felt a lot stronger to me. Honestly, I don't see much difference in quality from season to season of Archer. It all just kind of blends into one for me, other than season 5, which stands out for obvious reasons.

[#81 :]

I pretty much agree with the above. I really enjoyed season 5 (Archer Vice) taken as a whole, especially as a kind of experiment, but I'll admit it didn't have as many standout episodes. Season 6 was a surprisingly strong return to the regular format though.

I'd probably rank the seasons 2>1>3>6>5>4.

[#82 :]

I'd go 3, 1, 2, (notable gap), 5, 6, 4. But ultimately, I feel the first 3 seasons are quite comparable in quality, as are 5 and 6.

[#83 :]

Though 4 was my least favorite, I still wouldn't say I didn't enjoy it. There were some standout episodes for me like Fugue and Riffs, Once Bitten, Coyote Lovely, and Sea Tunt.

[#84 :]

Remove Sea Tunt from that list and I agree.

[#85 :]

They were basically just weaker versions of the Space Race two-parter (the same could be said of Drastic Voyage), but it would be hard for me not to enjoy episodes with Eugene Mirman, Kristen Schaal, and Jon Hamm all as guests.

[#86 :]

I think I was mostly disappointed at the complete lack of pay-off for anything that had been building up over the season. Granted, I have since accepted that Archer ultimately isn't going anywhere, but at least the other season finales did something with this disparate plot points they'd introduced over the season. Sea Tunt wasn't bad, but (other than the reveal with Lana) the whole thing felt really unnecessary.

[#87 :]

saw the season three premiere of Nathan for You earlier today and I'm so glad the show is back

[#88 :]

That show truly is a work of comedic genius, and the season premiere was one of his best episodes to date (though I think the film festival episode is still my #1). I'm really happy to have it back as well.

[#89 :]

I've watched the first few episodes of the new The Muppets TV series.

I'll admit that it's not anything super, above-the-grain awesome, but I've still been enjoying it. This series has yet to do anything that really sets it apart from other mockumentary comedies (other than starring a bunch of muppets, that is ), though I do say that it is a bit deeper than one might initially anticipate from a bunch of talking puppets.

Hey, oh, hey, oh, I'll enjoy most anything with Kermit the Frog. I reckon that Disney has been taking good care of The Muppets IP thus far. Plus, I'm too young to be intimately familiar with the old The Muppet Show (which I would love to watch through, given the mupportunity).

[#90 :]

I share your thoughts. I thought the first two episodes were incredibly underwhelming, but the third and fourth were significantly more promising.

[#91 :]

I have a hard time not enjoying myself while watching The Muppets, even if it's not their best stuff. I like the show, I think it's cute!

[#92 :]

Yeah, I've been watching it and pretty much echo all the other sentiments here. The mockumentary approach is unnecessary (and a tad overused these days), but the show's consistently amusing so I can't really complain.

Also on my "fun new shows with lots of potential" list: The Grinder and Moonbeam City. I haven't really been watching many other new shows though, now that so many things are back on the air (namely You're the Worst, Nathan for You, South Park, Fargo, and Fox's Sunday lineup).

[#93 :]

Oh yeah I watched the first episode of Moonbeam City and was quite amused by it. It was like extreme Archer Vice and I love the design of everything.

Also: JESSICA JONES TRAILER!

[#94 :]

... now that so many things are back on the air (namely You're the Worst, Nathan for You, South Park, Fargo, and Fox's Sunday lineup).

Does that show star Britta Perry?

[#95 :]

Oh yeah I watched the first episode of Moonbeam City and was quite amused by it. It was like extreme Archer Vice and I love the design of everything.

Yeah, it's pretty much impossible to avoid Archer comparisons with that show. Not that that's necessarily a bad thing, but a little unfounded since it primarily matches Archer in terms of the character designs and adult-oriented humour. Archer's strongest suit - the witty, fast-paced dialogue - isn't quite as present, though the writing has been improving since the pilot. The cast is fucking excellent, and I love the visual style, so I'll stick with it for now.

... now that so many things are back on the air (namely You're the Worst, Nathan for You, South Park, Fargo, and Fox's Sunday lineup).

Does that show star Britta Perry?

No, though it really is one of the best comedies on tv right now, and everyone should definitely check it out.

The second season is also beginning to venture into some serious BoJack Horseman territory. As in, you start out thinking you're watching a silly comedy and it turns out you're actually watching a pretty nuanced, realistic (and occasionally heart wrenching) depiction of depression. And the show is actually pulling it off equally as well as BoJack.

[#96 :]

Also: JESSICA JONES TRAILER!

This looks good. I know very little about Jessica Jones but if this is half as good as Daredevil I'll be happy.

[#97 :]

I used to love Fallon but I grew up a little and realized 80% of his stuff isn't funny.

That's a funny way to write 100%.

[#98 :]

So, Ash vs. Evil Dead is off to a fantastic start.

[#99 :]

Season 2 of Fargo is absolutely incredible so far. I am so fucking happy they avoided the sophomore slump (by which I mean "descent into pure nonsensical garbage") that True Detective went through this year.

[#100 :]

I wholeheartedly agree with the previous two posts.

I think Fargo's second season is even better than its predecessor so far.

[#101 :]

I'm not sure I'd go that far - at least not until the entire second season has aired, anyway. Season 2 doesn't quite have a character on the same level as Malvo yet (though Mike Milligan is coming very close), and I'm a little worried the show's suffering from the enormous size of its cast this year - I don't always feel as if we get enough time with each character per episode. Having said that, I'm sure more characters' plots are going to dovetail and coalesce in the back half of the season, as that's what the show does, so I'm probably worrying about nothing.

But yeah, it's pretty damn amazing on all other fronts. The performances are fantastic, as is the writing, cinematography and overall style. It seems like they've kicked pretty much everything up a notch this year, and for the most part, it's working really well.

[#102 :]

Bruce Campbell is the TV comeback kid! I loved him on Fargo last night, he wasn't doing an impression he was doing a character and it was pitch perfect.

[#103 :]

I'm an episode behind you guys as I'm watching as the show goes out in the UK, but I'd have to wholeheartedly agree that, so far, it's better than season 1.

That said, the last couple of episodes that I've seen were a big step down from the first two, so by the end of the season, I might have changed my mind. We'll have to wait and see.

[#104 :]

I caught up with the past few episodes of The Muppets, except for the one airing tonight. It doesn't take a lot to please me as far as Muppets are concerned so I have thoroughly enjoyed each episode more than the last. I also like how each episodes allows for the revolving door of characters to have their moment to shine. Rowlf, Animal, Swedish Chef, Uncle Deadly, Big Mean Carl, Beaker, and Sweetums all have had a lot of awesome moments. I also loved the use of "Rainbow Connection", it was so sweet and funny at the same time.

[#105 :]

Yeah, the show has its flaws but I think the early reviews have been far too harsh - it's consistently delightful and amusing, which is all I ever really need from the franchise.

Supposedly the show will be going through some notable changes coming up in episode 10, though (one of the show-runners left at this point and the network did some "retooling"). I'm cautiously optimistic.

[#106 :]

I don't know how I feel about it. If it was like last week's episode I'm down but I honestly don't have a problem with the format now. And yeah the reviewer at the AVClub is so harsh. I don't like him, should the show get renewed I hope he doesn't continue doing reviews next season.

[#107 :]

I think the show could be better, but I do like it. I think it took until about its third episode to really justify itself, since then it's been pretty enjoyable.

[#108 :]

Jessica Jones is now available on Netflix. The ending of the first episode was amazing. I'll probably binge the entire season over the weekend and give my opinion on the series as a whole then.

[#109 :]

Jessica Jones is now available on Netflix. The ending of the first episode was amazing. I'll probably binge the entire season over the weekend and give my opinion on the series as a whole then.

I lied. I binged the entire thing in less than 24 hours.

I enjoyed it. It doesn't have as much action as Daredevil but the subject matter and execution are great. Several scenes made me feel physically uncomfortable, which can at least partially be attributed to David Tennant's excellent performance. To be completely honest, it barely even feels like a superhero show; it's almost like a crazy supernatural version of Sherlock with occasional references to the Avengers.

The only strong continuity from the MCU that I noticed was the appearance of Claire from Daredevil. Obviously Luke Cage is getting his own series as well, though.

I really need some sleep.

[#110 :]

I watched the first episode yesterday and I liked it but I'm apprehensive because I liked the first episode of Daredevil a lot, too, and that immediately turned into a show so dull I gave up after episode 4.

Still, the first episode of Daredevil felt like it was setting up a fun, monster-of-the-week kind of crime detective thing and that obviously wasn't what the show was at all. The first episode of Jessica Jones feels like it's part 1 of a big, serialised thing, so I'm more confident that I'm going to enjoy this one.

[#111 :]

I definitely think the story is more interesting in JJ, and it does have much more of a serialised approach like you said.

[#112 :]

I've gotten through the first 5 episodes and have really enjoyed it so far. I just don't have time really to binge it more than one to two episodes a day unfortunately.

[#113 :]

I'm in more or less the same boat. I've watched the first 4 now and I'm enjoying it a lot. I can't see the quality tanking at any point, either.

[#114 :]

After I watched this week's Fargo I went and revisited season one. Lester is still an unholy abomination of shit but Gus and Molly are adorable and it's still really stressful to watch the season even knowing that they make it out okay.

[#115 :]

I accidentally initiated an Amazon Prime free trial a couple weeks ago while attempting to check what the price of a couple items would be with and without Amazon Prime. I've since checked out their Instant Video service.

Overall, I'd say the selection is incredibly lacking. Everybody always comments on how poor Netflix's selection is, even though I've always thought it was sufficient. For the most part, the few shows that interest me on Amazon Prime Instant Video are already on Netflix, but Netlix has so much more than just that. Additionally, I would have enjoyed Amazon Prime Instant Video a lot more while they had all of the Viacom content (mostly for the Comedy Central and old Nickelodeon shows).

I have checked out two shows so far:

Alpha House
Alpha House is an Amazon original series starring John Goodman as a Senator in Washington. This political satire is also billed a comedy, but it is neither a black comedy nor the type of comedy that's actually funny. I appreciate its grounded sense of being and how they seem to seamlessly fit the characters into real-world D.C., but I wouldn't say that I really like this show. This is something that I would watch while I'm bored and have nothing else to watch. Unfortunately, the prospect of instant video streaming effectively nullifies that scenario.

The show is good, but nothing special to me. I give it two out of five cursed monkey paws.

Avatar: The Last Airbender
I'm really enjoying this show. I've never watched an anime before (I'm aware that this show is not truly anime), but I'm really getting into it. The characters are strong, the humor is simple though common and enjoyable, and the story itself is pretty interesting. I'd really like to watch this show the full way through, as well as The Legend of Korra (the follow-up series).

Excellent show. Five out of five cursed monkey paws.

However, I can only keep watching Avatar if I keep my Amazon Prime membership past the free trial. I will probably do that if I can enjoy Amazon Prime music streaming on my Xbone while playing games. Otherwise, I don't have much use for the membership overall. (It was nice to have free shipping during my ThanksBlackCyber Weekend shopping, though. )

[#116 :]

I gave up on Alpha House about halfway through the first season. I don't need comedies to keep me laughing uproariously the whole way through, but shit, even most dramas are capable of making me laugh at least once an episode. The political satire was also pretty weak (Politicians are actually lazy and apathetic, and care far more about their careers than the issues at hand! WOW!), and given how well Veep already does everything the show was trying to do, it really just has no reason to exist whatsoever. A huge waste of a talented cast.

[#117 :]

Dear fuck, this week's episode of Fargo was something else. In the best possible way. This season is well and truly topping the first, which is no easy feat.

I want to further discuss the insanity I just witnessed, but am unsure as to how many other people are watching. Is there enough Fargo viewership here to warrant a separate thread??

[#118 :]

I haven't watched the newest episode yet, but if it's even better than the excellence that was last week's, then shit son.

[#119 :]

They make a really ballsy and out-there move this episode, which, on ANY other show, would have ruined the entire series, but somehow made this crazy-ass season of Fargo even better.