Telly thread

[SuperBacon]

I'm a bit scared of watching The Wire. I've seen the first series and absolutely loved it, and can see that if I finished the rest, it would consume as me as much as The Sopranos does.

I'm sure I'll get round to it one day.

[gmoney]

Do it, it will enrich your life. And you can forever annoy anyone watching TV/films with you by going "oh it's ***** from The Wire!"

[LaGoosh]

3 hours ago, FLips said:

I just finished the The Wire and let me just say I was completely wrong and had stupid reactionary opinions before I got the whole picture. Season 4 is a masterpiece.

I’ll give my full thoughts when I’m not meant to be working but for now I’ll just say it was fantastic and my season order is 45321.

Once you realise the show isn’t about one specific character or story but Baltimore as a City and the repeating cycle of the characters, the whole thing makes sense.

There’s a ton I want to say but I will say Bubbles’ ending was perfect, as was the show’s ending in general.

Sheeeeeeeeeeeeeiiiiiiiiiiiitttttttt.

Glad to hear it. You'll enjoy it even more on a rewatch.

[kidzero]

Anybody hyped for the HBO max launch this coming Thursday....I'm interested in seeing what movies will be available or if there any older shows or sitcoms other than friends.

[deathrey]

2 hours ago, kidzero said:

Anybody hyped for the HBO max launch this coming Thursday....I'm interested in seeing what movies will be available or if there any older shows or sitcoms other than friends.

I'm excited to watch The Pitt. I've been waiting patiently to watch it since it was announced two years ago.

[WyattSheepMask]

I’m looking forward to catching up on the Game of Thrones spinoffs. We got rid of SKY a few years ago and had to get House of The Dragon off the Torrent sites, same with The Last of Us. Watched the first series of both but haven’t got round to anything since.

Hopeful that there’s some sort of HD upscale for Oz too. I know it’s been on Paramount+ since launch but no-one subscribes to that 

Edited March 20 by WyattSheepMask

[JLM]

15 hours ago, deathrey said:

I'm excited to watch The Pitt. I've been waiting patiently to watch it since it was announced two years ago.

It's so good. No spoilers in these thoughts by the way!

Watched the first couple of episodes via shady means because HBO have been holding out on us, then ended up getting the season 1 Blu Ray and haven't been able to wait to make a start on season 2. Outstanding television. Showing an entire ER shift in real time over the course of the series is such a brilliant move; every so often while watching I'd suddenly remind myself of that and think "bloody hell this is only half way through one shift and they have to do it again tomorrow". Already obviously had a base level understanding that frontline healthcare work is gruelling, but this show does a better job of hammering that home than anything I've watched before.

Definitely leagues ahead of any other medical shows I've watched, balancing the horrors, moments of levity and character building very effectively and delivering its messaging and social commentary pretty seamlessly. There is obviously a LOT to say about American healthcare, and showing a struggling ER staff grinding their way through an entire shift is the ideal platform for that. A lot of it doesn't even need to be said out loud, just watching doctors and nurses deal with horrifying scenarios that are sadly normalised for them does that job brilliantly. Again the real time nature is such a benefit there too, as a doctor dealing with unreasonable behaviour or a gut punching tragedy 9 hours into their shift hits so much harder when you've been with them for every minute of it. 

It's packed with great performances and manages to flesh out a big cast of characters even though you spend a relatively brief amount of time with them. Ended up fully invested in all of the 7 or 8 core cast members and it's one of those shows where I'll look out for the actors in other things off the back of it. Noah Wyle is magnificent and is rightly being lauded for his role, but the entire supporting cast is excellent, particularly Katherine LaNasa as the lead charge nurse and the whole cast of interns and junior doctors navigating their first month/year/day(!) during this shift. It also has one of the most sensitively handled and authentic portrayals I've seen of a neurodivergent character in a TV drama from Taylor Dearden, who I recently found out is Bryan Cranston's daughter. Again they never say it out loud and they don't make it a tokenistic/defining character trait or make her a stereotype. She isn't a super genius who behaves like an alien, but rather a three dimensional character who has "AuDHD-coded" traits and moments. 

I can see why HBO have saved it as a big hitter for the MAX launch as it's very, very good. 

 

Edited March 21 by JLM

[HarmonicGenerator]

I’ve heard nothing but excellent things about The Pitt, but have also heard it is very, very full on when it comes to things like gore and injury detail and that side of medical stuff. I’m queasy enough that I have to look away during the surgery bits in Grey’s Anatomy. Without spoilers, am I going to be able to even watch The Pitt or will I spend all of it staring at the wall so I don’t see people’s insides?

[Jesse]

1 hour ago, HarmonicGenerator said:

I’ve heard nothing but excellent things about The Pitt, but have also heard it is very, very full on when it comes to things like gore and injury detail and that side of medical stuff. I’m queasy enough that I have to look away during the surgery bits in Grey’s Anatomy. Without spoilers, am I going to be able to even watch The Pitt or will I spend all of it staring at the wall so I don’t see people’s insides?

I'm not gonna lie to you chief, there are significant parts of the show that I have had to treat as an audiobook because it is full-on. They don't shy away from it at all. It's definitely not the majority of each episode but I feel like at least one an episode I catch a glimpse of something that I really wish I hadn't.

[kidzero]

Yes I'm interested in the pitt I liked e.r back in the day but I've heard the pitt in more graphic....I wonder what warner bros movies they add hopefully it's a mixed bag not just the same old shite thats been on endless streaming services over the years.

[LaGoosh]

If you like hospital dramas everyone should watch the criminally underwatched The Knick. 

It's an incredible period piece starring Clive Owen and both seasons directed by Steven Soderbergh. The surgery scenes might make you faint though. And it has one of the most brilliantly done and emotionally gut punching twists I've seen in anything.

[Dai]

To the people who recommended Paradise, thanks. Blasted through season 1 and thought it was great. The penultimate episode may just be the best episode of something I've watched in a good while. I've moaned in this thread about the glacial pace of Silo, so this was the perfect counter balance to that. 

 

We have just finished a rewatch of Breaking Bad too, after recently finishing Better Call Saul. Maybe it's unfair to compare a fresh watch to a rewatch, but Saul is head and shoulders above BB for me. My perception of BB was that every season built the stakes and the tension, and therefore the quality. Suprised to find out that wasn't the case on the rewatch. S1 is amazing, S2 is worse, S3 is worse again, and then the quality increases again. 

Saul, on the other hand, is perfection. 

[kidzero]

I might give better call Saul a watch I've never watched it...I loved breaking bad but haven't seen it since it aired didn't sky show the last season of episodes live or on a 1 or 2 hour tape delay if I recall 

Edited March 21 by kidzero

[LaGoosh]

Loved Breaking Bad first time round. Was surprised how bad it was on a rewatch. Saul is far superior in every way.

Lalo Salamanca over Gus Fring every day.

[I Bent My Wookie]

I'll say it. 

I enjoyed SNL UK. They went British humour and it worked so well. Belly laughed at parts. Maybe it's for my generation or friend group humour but yeah pleasantly happy.