Be Excellent To Each Other

Just finished watching the first episode of Jessica Jones and it was pretty damn good; and had an impressively twisted ending. I seem to have started binge watching the rest of them now.

You will not be disappointed.

Oh, apparently I watched the season finale of The Expanse without realising it was the finale.

That's some good TV, but only ten episodes? Booooo!

Started watching "Into The Badlands" might watch another episode but only because it seems to be fairly well regarded. The fighting was ok but the plot seems to be largely nonsensical. Set in the future in America somewhere after some sort of an apocalypse they're all kung fu fighting and with knives and whatnot at the behest of a load of heroin barons. They're kung fu fighting to the death because apparently guns have been "banished".

I've not watched it yet, but picked up a brief headline synopsis


In which case that's only about half way through the first book!

Just finished watching all of Jessica Jones and, a few misteps aside, it was generally very good stuff. It did get a bit comic book-y at a certain point and a number of the characters felt like superfluous filler (especially the mental neighbour sister woman, I don't think I've ever wished death on a fictional character quite as much before; just shut up and fuck off you wanker) but it rallied again nearer the end and overall it was good stuff.

I do wonder about the wisdom of giving it a second series though simply because

I'm actually a bit torn about him in general. At the start the entire idea of him is genuinely fucking chilling. More so even than galactic level baddies like your Thanoses and whatnot there's something utterly terrifying about the havoc he can wreak on individual lives and the straight up terror you'd feel if he turned his attentions on you, especially given how much of a total sociopath he is. The worst you could really fear from almost anyone else is that they kill you, which is what it is. But the idea that he could spend minutes or years or any amount of time in between casually violating your free will is just fucking brrrrrr. As things progressed though he started to seem, I dunno, whiny? I mean the progression of the character made complete sense and the way they even managed to make you feel fleetingly sympathetic for him was a credit to the writing, but along the way he somehow totally lost the compelling edge he originally had. And that was long before you find out about

Actually, that last plot point made her seem a bit stupid in retrospect. The scene with

Those are fairly minor criticisms though and overall I thought it was excellent.

tl;dr: Jessica Jones is very good and people should watch it.

I wonder what I should start watching next? I have the following to get through if anyone has any strong feelings either way:

• Friday Night Lights (not sure if I'll bother with this actually, but I have heard very good things about it)
• In The Flesh
• Show Me A Hero
• The Affair
• The Last Man On Earth
• The Returned season 2
• Utopia

Disagree on JJ. His petulance is the best part of him. All that power combined with the mind of a spoiled brat - now that's chilling.

Utopia is one of the best show in recent years. It does reach an acceptable conclusion, but it's criminal that they didn't give it a third series.

Episode 4 of new X-Files was OK I thought, apart from Scully

Lacking the playfun fun of Episode 3, but still a decent enough slice of telly I thought.

I have decided Gillian has gone under the surgeon's knife though, which is a shame. Her face doesn't move properly.

On the other hand, extra points for her worrying with a well-unbuttoned shirt.

Can I request that x-files chat is spoilered please?

I am watching at Channel 5 speed, and have only seen episode 1, now I know at some point that:



Now that might be really minor and of no consequence, but I'd rather not know

Thanks

Her mum's an alien.

Fair enough Malc I've spoilered those lines out, I did consider spoiling them originally but decided it was a trivial detail, but I can understand others feeling differently

To an extent I agree, but when he initially turns up it's the fact that he's a callous sociopath with no empathy and all that power which I think makes him affecting. The fleshing out of his back story and character is fine in itself but at some point along the way I think he lost some of what made him so threatening in the first place. On paper what they did with him sounds fine, a good idea even, but somewhere in the execution they lost me a bit; although I admit I can't point to anything concrete that I think they fluffed or anything.

Those things being "Lyla Garrity".

The first episode is really good, so if you watch that and don't think "this is really good", then don't bother.

I'm slightly put off that (a) it's about American Football which I couldn't give less of a shit about and (b) there's 76 episodes to be ploughed through if I get into it. Christ, look at me moaning that there's too much of something I might enjoy. Anyway, yeah, not sure about it. I'll probably go for The Returned or Lewie's recommendation of Utopia first because they're pretty short in terms of episodes and it'll feel satisfying to clear out more of my backlog after having powered through Jessica Jones.

Goddammit! While looking up Minka Keely after Grim's post I've now stumbled across a whole other TV series that sounds interesting in the shape of Man Seeking Woman.

I started Friday Night Lights, got most way through the first series and felt no compulsion to go back. The prospect of another 50-odd episodes put me off. Perfectly enjoyable and I'm sure I'd have shed a few tears throughout. The fact it's Whedon's favourite show makes me think I should revisit it.

Lewie is spot on entirely about Utopia.

Stuff I've been enjoying enormously lately and would recommend , if they've somehow passed you by:

The Bridge (a tailing off in Season 2 is counteracted by a storming season 3)
An Honourable Woman - some of the tensest business on TV. And some brilliantly darkly comic scenes to boot.
Hannibal - I always seem to watch this when I'm eating, which is a mistake. The most gruesome program I've ever watched, but so artistically done I can just about stomach it. Just started the third series.
London Spy - slow start but quickly picks up. Onto the last episode.

Friday Night Lights is brilliant, however it's a US soap opera basically. I've very well written, and very well acted, and very well made, but still a soap opera. So don't go in expecting anything else.
I'm not into american football, but even though that's what it's about, it's not really about that, really...

First series is very good indeed, the other four drop in quality year on year though.

Describes so very many US TV shows.

Lyla. Fucking. Garrity.

Also Coach's wife

Actually the drop is quality you got after series 3 is probably because the writers decided to change it from a "man's show" to a "woman's show", thus it took a rather jarring new direction with storylines, etc.

You can certainly only watch the first series and be done with it, it makes a self-contained little story.

Series 2 isn't bad, but has one really stupid plotline and just stops toward the end of the storylines due to the writers strike.

And you should probably stop there.

[edit]Oh wait, I was wrong. it's S04 where it changes direction. S03 isn't bad at all, so watch that one and then read the rest. It ends in pretty much exactly the way you'd expect. And you don't have to deal with a new character called (I shit you not) Epyck.

Yeah, that series 2 bit was just crap and completely out of sync with the rest of the show.

The thing about Utopia is that unlike pretty much any other TV show, I think I would be able to identify it from any single still screen of it's entire broadcast run. Maybe Mr Robot or Breaking Bad would achieve this too.

Also it has moments of incredibly beautifully done violence and understated gore, a story-line full of escalating conspiracies on top of conspiracies, and an undercurrent of nihilism that somehow manages to shock my desensitized mind. I can't quite believe it exists.

It's sci fi/drama/action, has a stellar cast and a really strong identity.

It's not US TV though, so sorry (although HBO/David Fincher were going to do a US remake but then it got canned).

Aww man, I hate it when people get old. Lee Majors doesn't even look like Lee Majors any more.

Fall Guy? Winter Guy, more like.

I was just about to post "there's far too much neurotic Caroline" in new 2 Broke Girls.

Then they went to ...

...a gaming convention...

...as booth babes.

BEST. EPISODE. Since Max dressed as a French maid.

Jessica Jones first episode - sort of meh to be honest.

2 Broke Girls in pictures.

And now Max is cosplaying.

Life is complete (assuming you have very low expectations about life).

And then the new Brooklyn Nine Nine (episode 11) was the best I've seen in ages. Beatsie Boys rap was excellent.

That's what im watching next then. Grey's anatomy has been quite depressing.

Yeah, I agree. I mean I do generally enjoy the show and all but this episode seemed to be much funnier then usual somehow.

I literally just came here to post this. Everyone should watch this episode.

Even Sophie was funny!

Oh, obligatory:

Oh shit, the latest B99 is starting strong.

Boieeeez!

Impossibru!

Daredevil Series 2 trailer proper has appeared...Punisher doing lots of punishing.

I think the idea of using Castle as a foil to explore Murdock's darker side is a brilliant one. Two sides of the same coin -- both vigilantes, but one with limits and one without. Who's right and who's wrong? Very fertile ground, there.

I wonder to what extent we're getting Daredevil vs Punisher or if there'll be a larger villain they'll eventually team up against. Going flat out and casting Castle as the actual season-long bad guy would be interesting, and bold; but the Netflix/Marvel shows are pretty bold so I wouldn't rule it out.

It will be interesting how Castle's Story intersects with the other character's introduced at the end of the trailer (if it does...which I assume it will).

Not watching the trailer! No spoilz!

If I was writing this, I'd have Castle's family killed by someone Daredevil left alive last season.

Oooo, now that's a saucy idea.

I sure hope Kingpin is back, even if not the main villain.

X-Files 10x03 (Mulder And Scully Meet The Were-Monster) is just fucking delightful from beginning to end.