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Jay

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Ted Lasso: S3 - Ep. 2

 

Woow! This was incredible. I loved every second of it. This truly felt like Ted Lasso and I thought one of the best episodes of the show. Everybody got screentime and storytime. Everyone had both comedic and emotional beats. It was so well written.

 

Keely's part at her company was great. That assistant was really rude (even though she did have a point). And I felt Keeley handled the situation really well.

 

Roy's who storyline about the breakup was both hilarious and sad. But was I enjoyed most were 2 scenes at the end of the episode. First in the shower when Ted told him to lose his ego. That was incredible! I was quite shocked to see Ted say that and kudos to Sudeikis for not overselling it. It was still very much Ted saying it, but he really was making a point. Then after that with Trent (how great to have him back!) I loved. It's not often that we see Roy's guard down and him actually talk about his feelings. Both in the showers and later in the office. Brett Goldsetin played those scenes beautifully.

 

Rebecca's whole thing about the new player Zava (who will be an interesting addition) was also great. Waddingham was both very funny, but I really felt for her after that conversation with Rupert. He's such an asshole and it's sad to see he still has such influence on her.

 

Some other stuff I liked:

  • The talk between Jaimie & Roy was soo funny. When Jaimie wanted to hug Roy. I laughed so hard.
  • The chemistry of all the actors remains a joy to watch.
  • I still really love the music by Mumford & Howe.
  • That Zava guy is a bit of a prick from what we've seen now. So it'll be interesting to see how he reacts to Ted's whole way of coaching.
  • As said earlier, great to have Trent back. I always loved him and to see him staying for the season made me so happy.

I laughed out loud multiple times and I got emotional at the end. I couldn't ask for more. I just love this show

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The Prisoner

 

Apparently a cult classic, but I was entirely unaware of it until a friend recommended it and lent me the Blu-ray set. Maybe it's mainly famous in the UK, or in certain geek circles, or perhaps I was simply ignorant.

 

Starring, created, largely written and partially directed by Patrick McGoohan, it starts out as a just slightly futuristic spy mystery, but gradually becomes more disorienting, absurd, allegorical, and surreal, culminating in a seriously Lynchian finale. I finished it yesterday and have since been reading up on trivia, hoping to get a clearer picture of what it's all supposed to mean, but in the end I know even less whether it's brilliant or just absurdly random, or possible both. It's intriguing for sure.

 

McGoohan shines in the leading role, with a performance that's mostly understated between outbursts, often carrying lengthy stretches with little dialogue and plenty of somewhat aloof and tongue in cheek charisma. The rest of the cast changes from episode to episodes, with some standouts, especially Leo McKern, with the penultimate episode resembling a highly charged Pinteresque stage play focused almost entirely on McGoohan and McKern, both cranked up to eleven.

 

It's rounded off by gripping main and end titles by Ron Grainer - or perhaps, according to some rumours, McGoohan himself and just transcribed from his humming by Grainer; wouldn't be a first for him (see Grainer's credit on Delia Derbyshire's Dr. Who theme), although the whole thing is so melodically fragmented that I can't imagine hummed fragments amounting to much without Grainer's funky arrangement:

 

 

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Ted Lasso 3x02 (I Don't Want to Go to) Chelsea

 

Another good episode, really enjoying the 45 minute runtimes this show has gradually evolved into having.  They really are painting Rupert to be a massive villain in every way, it will be fun seeing him taken down at the end of the season.  Likewise the new star player Zava should be an interesting way to mix things up for a while.  Want to be he'll get hurt late in the season and they'll have to win the deciding game without him?

Trent Crimm coming back to write a book was smart, and I liked the reveal of why Roy doesn't like him, and their eventually life lessons they took away from their younger selves.

 

Still not feeling much of this Keely running her own business storyline yet, though it's nice to see Katy Wix and hopefully she gets more to do soon

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On 22/03/2023 at 6:21 AM, JNHFan2000 said:

That assistant was really rude (even though she did have a point).

 

Assistant?  That's the CFO of her company.  Do you watch so much content that you miss details like this?

 

On 22/03/2023 at 6:21 AM, JNHFan2000 said:

But was I enjoyed most were 2 scenes at the end of the episode. First in the shower when Ted told him to lose his ego. That was incredible! I was quite shocked to see Ted say that and kudos to Sudeikis for not overselling it. It was still very much Ted saying it, but he really was making a point. Then after that with Trent (how great to have him back!) I loved. It's not often that we see Roy's guard down and him actually talk about his feelings. Both in the showers and later in the office. Brett Goldsetin played those scenes beautifully.

 

Agreed, Sudeikis was really good there and Goldstein was good in both scenes

 

On 22/03/2023 at 6:21 AM, JNHFan2000 said:
  • That Zava guy is a bit of a prick from what we've seen now. So it'll be interesting to see how he reacts to Ted's whole way of coaching.

 

Yea in retrospect they needed a character like this, cause everyone else on the team has already been won over by Ted, so we need someone for him to clash with

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Severance 1x02 Half Loop

 

Wow!  This was so much more involved and compelling than the first episode was, I loved it.  Really goes to show how important it is to watch 2 episodes of any new show before casting judgement.

 

The opening going backwards to show Helly's outie side of her first day was awesome; I especially liked the stairwell door scene; I knew there had to be more to that the way it was presented last week.  But damn, the surgery scene was kind of icky to watch, yikes!

 

Then came the opening credits - woah, what a trip!  I am kind of glad these weren't used in the first episode, it made more sense to save it for now.  I will look forward to picking up more stuff in here every week!

 

I liked getting an explanation for just what the hell it is they are actually doing for work (putting the numbers into the bins).  Sure it still doesn't make a lot of sense but it's clear there's more to the story.  I do wonder if it's going to be something fully explained, or forever left ambiguous.

 

So much more interesting stuff introduced this week in the severed world too, like the "break room", and Christopher Walken and Dichen Lachman's characters.  The scene where she gave Irving "therapy" was nutso; The facts she told him about his outie so carefully rode the line between ambiguous and specific, and the fact that he would be punished if he didn't react neutrally to every one was just cruel.  And the vision he had of ooze that led him there.... can't wait to see what that's all about (does this eventually happen to everyone who gets severed?)

 

And man, there was so much in the outside world too!  Mark's terrible date was appropriately terrible, though had some nice world-building that there are people protesting what Lumon is doing (severing people).  And of course there's Petey; I had figured early in the episode that there were no "code detectors" and it was just Milchick on the walkie-talkie that shut down the elevator; So when Petey had a recording from inside the severed floor, I was surprised he was able to smuggle it out.  But damn, his breakdown at the end of the episode was crazy!  It had me wonder if it was purely a side effect of becoming unsevered ("reintegration sickness" I think Petey called it), or if because Mark's house is owned by Lumon it could detect he was in there..... or, Patricia Arquette figured out he was in there.

 

Damn, can't wait to see what's next!

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1 hour ago, Jay said:

Assistant?  That's the CFO of her company.  Do you watch so much content that you miss details like this?

 

You're right. I simply forgot that.

And I do watch a lot, hahah, but I simply forgot

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That's why she feels like she can talk to Keely that way, she's a major player in the company there

 

If she was just some assistant she never would have done anything she did there

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Perry Mason 2x03 Chapter Eleven

 

Another good episode; More set-up than pay-off, which maybe an indication of how the ebb and flow if the season will be.  The episode largely sets up just how bad the Gallardos have it here; Not only are people putting glass in their food in jail, they already lost their farm due to prejudice before getting framed, the judge has barely any sympathy for their treatment in jail and seems to have already made up his mind about this case or any like it, the judge wouldn't let them be tried separately, the case will be fast tracked, etc.  Even the people who framed them used a gun that could be rented from their neighborhood to kill McCutcheon.  I love stacking up the odds against our heroes here!

 

I also liked the conversation Perry has with Della about Emily Dodson, and how even though they won her case she committed suicide not longer after.  It really raises the stakes for the Gallardos, since it seems right now like even if Perry can win, they'll be dead anyway afterward.  Curious to see where that notion goes.

 

They're really making Lydell McCutcheon quite the nasty guy, slicing that guys face open and threatening Perry.  I guess even though he knows his son was a piece of shit, he won't let the public know this.  Seems like he's gonna be a pretty good villain this season; I wonder if the season will end with him in jail or dead, or still out causing trouble

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Shrinking 1x01 Coin Flip

 

Well, that was an OK start.  Definitely tried to cram too much background into one episode to set everything up, it was a big clunky.  And I wasn't particularly endeared to Segel's character, or any characters yet really.

 

I could definitely tell it was a Bill Lawrence show, and not just from Christa Miller (who seems to have gotten even MORE plastic surgery than before... WHY does she do this!?). It really had the same comedy/drama blend and use of music he's known for.  It was all quite predictable to, of course his "winning" treatments were going to blow up in his face at the end of the episode.


Regardless, there's enough compelling ideas here to give the next episode a shot as well.  It was good to see Harrison Ford play a more casual, more comedic role than usual

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Severance 1x03 In Perpetuity

 

Really good stuff, lots of good world-building.  I'd love to learn more about the group that unsevered Petey and wants to take Lumon down!  (And learn why they left him to himself to deal with all the crazy side effects instead of helping him through all this).  There's still no outright evidence in the show that Lumon is super evil yet, though them taking the package his sister left him to check it for messages is pretty suspect (on top of having his boss spy on him from next door and infiltrate his home now too, of course).

 

I also was interested to learn that Helly still wants out of Lumon; it seemed like her finally binning some numbers made her more interested, but I guess not!  I am kind of curious why Mark is trying so hard to keep her working there when she clearly doesn't; You'd think he'd let upper management handle it or something.  Makes me wonder if he's getting feelings for her.  The break room didn't seem to be as bad as the last episode made it out, but I suppose the scene kind of stopped before we got to see everything that might happen in there.  I wonder what will come of Milchick dropping the book when Helly's last escape attempt happened...

 

The perpetuity wing was so silly, I love this satire of big companies like this.  Such an elaborate set to spend so little time in, I imagine it will come back.  I hope Christopher Walken was hired to do more than show up for 1 minute every other episode, the slow burn there better be worth it!

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Me watching TV series in the 21st century:

 

"Is it a woman? No that's a man... I mean look her hips... but look his shoulders... He looks like a man... oh geez, what this scene is about... I need to rewind it, I was not listening at all..."

 

:mellow:

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Shrinking 1x02 Fortress of Solitude

 

Well that was MUCH better than the first episode; Everything felt a lot less forced, the characters felt like they were making more organic decisions.  I think the fixing of the relationship between Jimmy and his daughter will be the core heart of the season, and I really like the angle it has where Christa Miller has been acting like a surrogate mom for the past year since Jimmy's wife died.  The way her husband comments on it all is funny, and Jimmy's coworker showing up to ream her out was really interesting.


The former best friend character seems like a really good addition to everything here; It's probably a good thing he wasn't crammed into the first episode as well.  The fact that Jimmy's daughter has chats with Harrison Ford was interesting; I think all his scenes on this show so far have been excellent (too bad he never did more work like this over the years).

 

I definitely don't think the show is particularly funny, this is really more on the drama side than the comedy side.

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5 hours ago, Jay said:

I definitely don't think the show is particularly funny, this is really more on the drama side than the comedy side.

Yep. There are some moments that do make me laugh out loud, but it’s definitely a heavy show. 

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Succession: Season 4 - Episode 1

 

Aaaaand.... we're back!

I love this show. And there were so many great moments in this first episode.

 

I thought it was interesting to have a sort of same first episode as season 1 had. Roy's birthday party but under very different circumstances. I loved the whole bidding back-and-forth between Logan & the kids. And I was surprised to see the Pierces already in episode 1, but it was a treat.

The moment after Shiv, Kendall & Roman bid 10 billion when Tom called Shiv outside was so great. That smile of Shiv said it all, it was such a great moment.

 

That brings me to the dynamic between the 3 kids. It's always great to see them on the same side, but I love that there's banter between them. It's a great dynamic and I'm interested to see how much it changes throughout the season.

 

The whole Greg situation was funny. The moment when his date had to leave and he decided to stay upstairs was hilarious, typical Greg.

 

Logan's scenes with his bodyguard were interesting. His guard came down a bit and he opened up (still in a Logan way). Brian Cox is so incredible here.

 

I also loved the conversation with Shiv & Tom at the end. I thought it was very powerful and terrific acting from them both. There was so much said, without saying anything. It was great.

 

Britell's music is excellent. There were already 3 or 4 pieces that I really like. I hope that this time the album comes out at the end of the season and not almost a year later.

 

Can't wait for the next episode.

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Succession 4x01 The Munsters

 

Decent episode, some really funny parts but not a very compelling story hook in my opinion.

 

On a comedy level, the stuff with Greg and Tom was absolute gold!  Every time Greg went up to Tom and kind of whispered "Disgusting brotherssss" I lost it, and Greg's description of what he did with Bridget to Tom was hilarious too.  But nothing was funnier than the way Tom fooled him into thinking he was caught on camera and he had to confess to Logan.  How has Greg not yet learned when Tom is fucking with him?  And why did we not get to see Greg and Logan's talk!

 

The main 3 kids ineptly trying to start a new media company was pretty funny too (they are so delusional about everything), and it was hilarious how quickly they pivoted away from it when Tom's phone call led them to think Pierce was up for sale again.  The show has always been at its best when these three share lengthy scenes together, and they spent the whole episode together which was nice.

 

Man, it was kind of depressing seeing Logan sad on his birthday, unable to say but having it be clear that he misses his kids.  What was even more depressing was leaving his own birthday party to get diner dinner with his head of security, and telling him he's his only friend - yikes.  He's not your friend Logan, he's your employee.  Logan getting all existential about the afterlife was really interesting, makes me wonder if he'll be killed off in the season finale.

 

The whole Pierce thing was my least favorite part of the episode.  It just feels like such a season 2 storyline we've long since moved past; I never understood why Logan wanted it so badly, and I don't understand why the kids want it now.  And I found the negotiating to be a bit confusing and I was never really clear about why they felt they could bid $10 after initially seemingly only have $8b available, nor why Logan couldn't then bid more than $10bil for it after their bid.  I dunno.

 

The ending scene with Shiv and Tom was fantastic!  Fantastic acting and writing.  Siobhan is so incapable of allowing herself to be vulnerable, the way she just shuts down all of Tom's attempts to discuss things is quite sad.  It's funny that in a way I think she respects him more than ever before since he pulled off the move he did, yet at the same time she can't let herself be with him due to everything else.

 

I'm still excited for the rest of the season, but wasn't particularly wowwed by this episode outside of the highlight scenes

 

 

On 27/03/2023 at 6:19 AM, JNHFan2000 said:

The moment when his date had to leave and he decided to stay upstairs was hilarious, typical Greg.

 

OMG yes, that part was great!

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Severance 1x04 The You You Are

 

This show is great and firing on all cylinders!  The way every episode slowly unveils more of the overall story and how everything works at Lumen is just fantastic.  

 

Spoiler

Well now I understand why we didn't see the end of Helly's time in the break room, it wasn't over yet.... I was just asking my wife I wonder what happens if the end of the day comes and she hasn't said the paragraph to Milchick's satisfaction yet when bam, we found out.  I loved seeing the perspective of her going into the elevator to leave, and the next thing she knows is returning again in new clothes.  So sick.  And they made her start back in the breakroom continuing the phrase!  Crazy that she finally passed the test after over 1,000 tries; I liked Dylan's explanation of how to cheat it.

 

Irving and Burt having feelings for each other was cool; I wonder if they are married in their outside lives?  I assumed the show would explore a workplace romance, but I foolishly thought it would be Mark and Helly.  I like the story they are doing with Helly instead, it's fascinating to see this side of the severance idea.  Her grabbing the paper cutter and threatening to cut off her fingers was smart, and I was wondering what would happen when they let her film the video.  Her outie's response was crazy "I'm a person, you are not", so brutal.  And also, so not smart; Obviously they must know Helly would continue to escalate?  I'm sure her suicide attempt at the end won't work but damn I wonder what the repercussions will be.

 

I find it a little unrealistic that Milchick and Harmony would have completely forgotten about the book like they did, but the result is really interesting!  It makes total sense that the innies would have no access to any books or media of any kind, and that they'd be fascinated to come across this one.  They even needed to do another crazy set of events to have Mark plan to turn it in but then lose the chance to, which is good because I liked seeing him read it, and also Dylan too at the end of the episode.  The Lumen people want such total control over everything on the severed floor, and you have to root for these guys finding anything from the outside to see how it will affect them.

 

I was worried about Petey after the last episode and hoping he would be alright; I'd really like to know who these people are that unsevered him, and then left him high and dry with no support system at all.  You have to wonder now if he just died from the process or if he was killed while in the hospital by Lumen.  It was interesting to see Mark go to the funeral and people realize that he knew Petey but also didn't, including his daughter and wife.  I hope we see them again.  Harmony having to drill the chip out was a little over the top and kinda silly, but I'll let it slide.

 

I wonder if him visiting the site that his wife died is him finally starting to grieve her properly, or not.  I thought it was very interesting that when innie Mark got a treatment from Ms. Casey, he sculpted the tree out of clay. I don't think this is a sign the severance process didn't work right on him or his worlds are starting to blend, I think its a sign that trauma we carry runs deep in our subconscious regardless of what you might be able to do with your direct memories of it.

 

Damn, can't wait for the next episode!

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Shrinking 1x03 Fifteen Minutes

 

Pretty good, Sean is becoming a pretty interesting character.  Gabby's divorce subplot was a little random (there was no setup for this whatsoever in the first 2 episodes), as was learning that Tia and her were actually best friends.  I think Alice had the best arc this episode, her realization of guilt over the plant being thrown out and the laughter with her friend was touching.  But man, Harrison Ford killed it this episode - he's GREAT in this show!  His scenes with Alice are great, his scenes with Jimmy are great, he was funny in the driving subplot.  This show wouldn't be half as good without him!

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1 hour ago, Jay said:

Shrinking 1x03 Fifteen Minutes

 

Pretty good, Sean is becoming a pretty interesting character.  Gabby's divorce subplot was a little random (there was no setup for this whatsoever in the first 2 episodes), as was learning that Tia and her were actually best friends.  I think Alice had the best arc this episode, her realization of guilt over the plant being thrown out and the laughter with her friend was touching.  But man, Harrison Ford killed it this episode - he's GREAT in this show!  His scenes with Alice are great, his scenes with Jimmy are great, he was funny in the driving subplot.  This show wouldn't be half as good without him!

Agreed about Ford, he’s so good. I am watching episode 4 now and the show is getting better with every episode IMO. 
 

ATV Plus has some seriously great shows.

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Ted Lasso s3e3 -

 

"I wasn't being ironic. I was being hypocritical." Good grief, this show can make you love ANYONE!

 

OK, playing Jesus Christ Superstar and then cutting to Murray Head's little brother? Mind. Blown.

 

Nothing good happens when "Everybody Knows" plays.

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Perry Mason 2x04 Chapter Twelve

 

I found this episode to be very frustrating.  I was already a bit confused why at the end of last episode, Drake was so determined that because he found the gun used in the murder, that the two defendants did it.  Then that was all doubled-down this episode when Perry and Della instantly believed it to.  I hated being so far ahead of the main characters, yelling duh, this is all part of the setup!  Thankfully Drake seemed to finally understand that at the end of the episode but man it took way too long.  As soon as the guys started talked about the scuffling with Brooks even though we know he was assassinated with accuracy from a distance I thought Perry and Della would immediately understand but nope, the episode ends with them still thinking they did it.  So frustrating!  I hope that doesn't last long

 

The love interests this season got a lot more interesting this week.  Perry's kid's school teacher seems to have a strange interest in Perry despite all the red flags he has; almost makes me wonder if she's been somehow paid off to do something to/with him, though she was around last season so maybe not.  I dunno.  But Della's new love interest is turning into a much more interesting character for sure.  Did Della even officially dump the hand model yet?

 

Not much else to say.  I didn't really understand what happened at the end of the episode with the money

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Ted Lasso S3 × Episode 3

 

Another strong episode. With a ton of great lines.

 

Zava is interesting. I still don't really know what to think of him. But at the moment he is a very over the top character and I feel that he is not gonna change in anyway. And the series has to be careful to not make him too annoying because it's gonna get tiresome.

 

Rebecca's appointment with the psychic was interesting. At first it was very weird, but the ending was really surprising. When Rebecca called her cruel after saying she's gonna have a child I was wondering why she got so angry. Was it ever established that she can't have children or is she too old? I can't remember.

 

The montage of the wins was cool and I am really excited to see what will happen with Jaimie & Roy. Their dynamic is so fun and it's very interesting to see the change in Jamie now that he isn't Top Dog anymore. His line about him being hypocritical and not ironic was incredible. Loved that!!

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Episode 3 of Lasso was indeed good. Especially the Rot and Jamie development was good and I’m curious how Shandy is going to be used in later episodes.

 

I’ve been watching Shrinking and you can really tell that these shows are made by the same people. Some lines in Shrinking feel like Roy Kent lol

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1 hour ago, JNHFan2000 said:

When Rebecca called her cruel after saying she's gonna have a child I was wondering why she got so angry. Was it ever established that she can't have children or is she too old? I can't remember.

 

It was established that she didn't have children because Rupert didn't want them. Now he has a kid and he told Rebecca that he just needed the right person. I forget the exact words he used, but he was a real bastard about it, of course. He's Rupert.

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Severance 1x05 The Grim Barbarity of Optics and Design

 

Damn, this show is getting crazy!

 

Spoiler

It's a real horror show what is happening to Helly.  The way her outie woke up to being hanged (and the upstairs security guard not watching the monitors, for some reason, even though it was her normal leaving time) was nuts, and then I wasn't really clear how the elevator made it back down, and whether or not she transitioned back into work Helly before passing out.  Then to see her innie wake up in the elevator still reeling from the hanging she felt like she just started only for it to be days later.  Just crazy stuff!  It's so bizarre that her outie won't quit the job; There's GOTTA be more to the story and at this point I'm thinking it won't be revealed until the end of the season, which means I'm also starting to suspect she's secretly like, an Eagan family member, or some bigwig board member, or something along those lines... or working for a competitor to infiltrate the goings-on there.  But I dunno how Harmony and the board wouldn't figure her out if that's the case.  Lots to ponder about her!

 

There was some great comedy in this episode, the funniest the show has ever been was Adam Scott as Mark trying to do kind eyes!  We were both laughing out loud.  Really that must have made things worse for Helly, lol.  I do like that innie Mark is starting to be anti-Lumon too, and tried get team up with Helly to figure stuff out.  The show also reached its weirdest point this episode, with the guy in a room full of baby goats.  WTF was that!?

 

Then there's all the Macrodata Refinement vs Optics and Design stuff.  Irving gets another black goo episode (I hope that gets explained this season), and Milchik gets him to see a painting showing O&D killing other departments.  But then the original painting in O&D shows MDR killing other departments.  I'm starting to think everything happening on the severed floor is just a big psychological experiment and not anything actually directly productive for whatever the companies products are.  But I dunno.  Dylan's hostility towards O&D has been really over the top and I hope it kind of settles down now; With Burt letting him and Irving into their secret back room, maybe the departments will start to work together or something?

 

It's funny, in all these episodes we've barely seen any of these guys actually doing their job, lol.  Especially recently, there's been so much wandering around, talking to other departments, wellness treatments, break room sessions, now book reading too.  Doesn't anyone are these guys are barely even doing their jobs?

 

Meanwhile Harmony's security (?) guy has analyzed Petey's chip and confirmed he unsevered, but she's waiting to tell the board until he can find out who helped him.  Good, I want to know more about that group!

 

Oh yea, and Mark's sister gave birth this episode too.  Not too much to say about that except I like that Mark in genuinely kind and caring towards his sister, a trait he doesn't get to show much elsewhere, and also the bit where she went to the neighboring cabin and talked to someone about to give birth there was a bit strange.  I'm not sure what I'm supposed to make of it.

 

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After a long break I finally finished the second season of The Orville and started the third one. While I am not as huge of a fan as some, it is definitely an enjoyable series with some genuinely great episodes here and there. The Electric Sheep was probably the best one yet. And while it might have started as a parody/rip-off of another famous series, I wish the actual Star Trek was more like this. When it's good, it's really good.

 

Karol

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1 hour ago, Jay said:

Severance 1x05 The Grim Barbarity of Optics and Design

 

Damn, this show is getting crazy!

 

  Hide contents

It's a real horror show what is happening to Helly.  The way her outie woke up to being hanged (and the upstairs security guard not watching the monitors, for some reason, even though it was her normal leaving time) was nuts, and then I wasn't really clear how the elevator made it back down, and whether or not she transitioned back into work Helly before passing out.  Then to see her innie wake up in the elevator still reeling from the hanging she felt like she just started only for it to be days later.  Just crazy stuff!  It's so bizarre that her outie won't quit the job; There's GOTTA be more to the story and at this point I'm thinking it won't be revealed until the end of the season, which means I'm also starting to suspect she's secretly like, an Eagan family member, or some bigwig board member, or something along those lines... or working for a competitor to infiltrate the goings-on there.  But I dunno how Harmony and the board wouldn't figure her out if that's the case.  Lots to ponder about her!

 

There was some great comedy in this episode, the funniest the show has ever been was Adam Scott as Mark trying to do kind eyes!  We were both laughing out loud.  Really that must have made things worse for Helly, lol.  I do like that innie Mark is starting to be anti-Lumon too, and tried get team up with Helly to figure stuff out.  The show also reached its weirdest point this episode, with the guy in a room full of baby goats.  WTF was that!?

 

Then there's all the Macrodata Refinement vs Optics and Design stuff.  Irving gets another black goo episode (I hope that gets explained this season), and Milchik gets him to see a painting showing O&D killing other departments.  But then the original painting in O&D shows MDR killing other departments.  I'm starting to think everything happening on the severed floor is just a big psychological experiment and not anything actually directly productive for whatever the companies products are.  But I dunno.  Dylan's hostility towards O&D has been really over the top and I hope it kind of settles down now; With Burt letting him and Irving into their secret back room, maybe the departments will start to work together or something?

 

It's funny, in all these episodes we've barely seen any of these guys actually doing their job, lol.  Especially recently, there's been so much wandering around, talking to other departments, wellness treatments, break room sessions, now book reading too.  Doesn't anyone are these guys are barely even doing their jobs?

 

Meanwhile Harmony's security (?) guy has analyzed Petey's chip and confirmed he unsevered, but she's waiting to tell the board until he can find out who helped him.  Good, I want to know more about that group!

 

Oh yea, and Mark's sister gave birth this episode too.  Not too much to say about that except I like that Mark in genuinely kind and caring towards his sister, a trait he doesn't get to show much elsewhere, and also the bit where she went to the neighboring cabin and talked to someone about to give birth there was a bit strange.  I'm not sure what I'm supposed to make of it.

 

You’re gonna love the end of this season. 

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Shrinking 1x04 Potatoes

 

Yea, this show is firing on all cylinders now; All the clunkyness of setting everything up in the first 2 episodes has given way to real smooth sailing as we journey with all our character through their various trials and tribulations.

 

Alice is becoming a really interesting character.  I liked her hanging out with Gabby, her telling Jimmy about losing her virginity to Connor and his attempt to be a "cool dad about it", her dismissing of Connor when he texted her from the jacuzzi, and her final scene trying to get some from Sean.  Even in scenes she wasn't in, everyone was talking about her, with Gabby apologizing to Liz for lying about having a basketball, Liz admitting she maybe got too invested in Alice, but at hte same time what was she supposed to do when no one else was, and Jimmy finally thanking Liz properly for helping care of Alice for the past year.  Good stuff all around

 

Brian being Paul's lawyer for his estate docs was a good way to get him into the episode; That actor is good and makes any scene he's in more fun.  Paul's scenes were all great this whole episode - Harrison Ford is killing it in this show!  His scene with his daughter were sad, and it doesn't seem like they're on much of a path to get closer.  Him giving Jimmy the potatoes and him just biting into one is just like what he's trying to do with his patients - find a quick solution instead of going through the usual process!

 

Paul's treatment tactics continue to not work.  The OCD lady hits on him, Sean won't open up about Afghanistan, and who knows what's up with Grace (she wasn't in this episode, but I hope we see more of her).  Jason Segel was really good this episode between the potato biting, yelling at Liz, jumping on the trampoline, failing to be cool dad, hanging with Sean, and then the final look at the end when Alice comes into Sean's room.  Good stuff all around!

 

So much happens in each of these episodes!

 

 

 

23 hours ago, Mr. Who said:

Agreed about Ford, he’s so good. I am watching episode 4 now and the show is getting better with every episode IMO. 
 

 

Agree, I think each episode has been better than the last too

 

23 hours ago, Mr. Who said:

ATV Plus has some seriously great shows.


Right now we're watching Severance, Shrinking, and Ted Lasso (3), and they are all really good.  Previously we saw Schmigadoon too.  Looking forward to The Afterparty, Mythic Quest, and Masters of the Air!

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Severance 1x06 Hide and Seek

 

Spoiler

Wow, Harmony being revealed to be this crazy believer of Kier Eagan's ideals was interesting.  She had a shrine to him in her house (better not ever let outie Mark inside!), she quotes him all the time, she knows all the words to some goofy song and uses that to... motivate?  And also this episode, she impersonates a latching specialist to what, spy on Devon for reasons?  And she seems to be doing it without her coworkers knowing.  What is she up to?

 

Speaking of Devon, it was pretty interesting that the other new mom in the cabin next to her didn't recognize her; I guess she gets severed to give birth so she doesn't remember the trauma of it or something?  Her husband is some kind of senator that backs Lumon so they must have done it for him as a favor.  Is Devon going to be the next ally in trying to take them down?

 

Also in outie world, Mark had another date with Alexa, which I didn't see coming at all because they didn't seem to have any chemistry.  The way she got him to open up made me wonder if she's up to anything... probably not though.  The concert where Petey's daughter June is in a band that has anti-Lumon songs was fun.

 

We also learned the name of who it was that unsevered Petey... Reghabi, who Mark meets up with at the end of the episode.  Can't wait to see what they get up to!

 

In innie world, it's so funny how these guys never actually work any more!  Mark gets reamed out by Harmony for taking Helly to an empty department, and told they are no longer allowed to roam the hallway.  But then almost immediately he takes the entire group back to O&D where they all get caught and reamed out again, lol.  There was also a scene where Irving and Burt got close in a room full of plants (where they real or fake? I couldn't tell and don't know how many plants can survive without ever getting sunlight), though Irving seems reluctant to actually take the next step.

 

The other crazy thing that happened this episode was that innie Dylan pocketed some card from O&D and Milchik finds out, so goes to outie Dylan's house and has him get in a closet where he flips some switch that draws out innie Dylan, who tells him where he hid the card.  But not before his son busts into the closet, so now innie Dylan knows he has a kid!  Curious to see how this affects him!

 


There's nothing I can say outside of spoiler blocks any more!

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Has anyone seen Station Eleven? It's a miniseries on HBO, released in 2021 I believe. 

 

It was on my list to watch but I've only just gotten around to watching the first 4 eps. The premise is a flu that wipes out most of the world's population and how a bunch of characters are living through it, before and after. Naturally, with the last show I watched being The Last of Us, I couldn't help but compare the two. 

 

There's quite a fair of bit thematic overlap with The Last of Us and usage of flashbacks, but in terms of tone it's more The Leftovers meets Villeneuve's Arrival. 

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47 minutes ago, Hurmm said:

 

... but in terms of tone it's more The Leftovers meets Villeneuve's Arrival. 

 

Sounds like a dreary show!

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You watch loads of rubbish films just so you can rate them 2/10 on an internet forum so take a stab at a few episodes of this. 

 

Ep5 was amazing. I've just googled this show and not very surprisingly the creator (Patrick Somerville) was a writer on The Leftovers. 

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54 minutes ago, Hurmm said:

You watch loads of rubbish films just so you can rate them 2/10 on an internet forum so take a stab at a few episodes of this. 

 

Ep5 was amazing. I've just googled this show and not very surprisingly the creator (Patrick Somerville) was a writer on The Leftovers. 

 

Ahem .. 'dreary' has nothing to do with quality. 

 

THX-1138 is a dreary, depressive film, yet I give it a high score.

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Shrinking 1x05 Woof

 

It seems they really want to give every single character on this show an emotional issue they're going to spend the season overcoming; Now Brian cannot pull the trigger on proposing to his boyfriend, due to the way his parents treated him when he came out.  I'm not even sure if he came to grips with his issues by the end of this episode, but it was nice that he shared his story with Gaby and Liz (apparently he hangs out with them even when Jimmy is not around?  This show has fully become a "hang out show" I guess now lol)

 

Grace similarly admitted to hiding that she was still with Donny from Jimmy because of the ultimatum he gave her, which he smartly immediately apologized for.  I thought it was nice that she seems to still know she should leave him, and will now be willy to properly talk about it.

 

Paul meanwhile finally admits to his daugher that he has Parkinson's, though he doesn't seem to want to admit to how much he misses being able to talk to Jimmy about patients.  The scene where he talked to Gabby instead was so funny! (Harrison Ford continues to just kill it on this show, though this episode the Gaby character finally really became a stand-out too; This might be the best-cast show on TV right now!)

 

Sean finally opens up a little bit about Afghanistan, but not until after he really scares Alice on what could have been considered a date.  I really wonder how this is going to play out; How old is he supposed to be, anyway?

 

Basically it was a well-crafted episode that basically had all the characters avoiding something difficult in one way or another, with many of them working through it this episode in different ways.  Halfway through the season, the show is firing on all cylinders and turning into something really special!

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Ted Lasso 3x03 4-5-1

 

I thought all the Zava stuff was fun in this episode!  Rebecca being mad at him, him showing up in her office skipping the press conference, his entrance into the locker room, his medication, and then the way he kicked ass on the field!  It was funny that he himself told the players he's just one part of Richmond, then the gameplay for every game basically involved just giving him the ball.  The montage of them climbing the charts was fun, and something I didn't expect to happy to early in the season - the TV season and the in-game football season.  Notably, I thought it was interesting that we only got very brief shots of Rupert and Nate reacting to this; After all the screentime Nate got in episode 1 of the season, I'm surprised how little we've seen him since!  I think we need to see a lot more of him, hopefully starting next week!

 

It was very logical that Jamie would be jealous of Zava being the team's new best player, and I liked that Roy understood exactly what he was going through.  I wasn't expecting him to offer to train him though, and I really can't see where that story thread is going to go.

 

Ted's story this week involving his ex was really interesting.  It always sucks to find out your ex has moved on inadvertently instead of them telling you, but the fact that she is now with their marriage counselor is really messed up.  I feel like the show has not really explored Ted and Michelle's relationship much at all, and I hope this season gets into it.

 

I liked how the episode ended with a party at Sam's Nigerian restaurant.  It made me crave Nigerian cuisine so much!  There was one interesting part where several characters all caught site of various exes - Keely and Jamie, Keely and Roy, Rebecca and Sam, etc, that was really interesting.  Speaking of Rebecca, her story about going to a psychic was a pretty strange subplot I thought. I don't really get why the show is doing this.  I have no idea what her arc will be this season, and don't know why it had to kick off with a psychic telling her about a green matchbook.  Weird. 


The other weird storyline was doing a closeted gay storyline for Colin in 2023.  It felt like such a 90s or early 2000s TV storyline.  In 2023, in England, nobody would care that he's gay, so why does he have to hide it?  And why is it significant that Trent saw them at the end?  I don't get it.

 

 

On 29/03/2023 at 10:16 AM, Tallguy said:

Nothing good happens when "Everybody Knows" plays.

 

Yea, I dunno.  That's an iconic song, and has been put to good use in many shows and movies, but why was it used here?  It covered Trent leaving the bar and catching Colin kissing his boyfriend, but so want?  I feel like the show makes me want to think he doesn't want to come out to his teammates or the press for some reason, with no explanation for why, or why its supposed to be interesting that Trent knows now.

 

On 29/03/2023 at 10:53 AM, JNHFan2000 said:

Zava is interesting. I still don't really know what to think of him. But at the moment he is a very over the top character and I feel that he is not gonna change in anyway. And the series has to be careful to not make him too annoying because it's gonna get tiresome.

 

Oh man, I didn't find him annoying at all!  I liked all his scenes, he made me laugh a lot.  I liked how he balances quiet medication before the game, with explosive celebrations when he scores.  He's a fun character, I think he's mixing up the team and game scenes nicely!

 

On 29/03/2023 at 10:53 AM, JNHFan2000 said:

Rebecca's appointment with the psychic was interesting. At first it was very weird, but the ending was really surprising. When Rebecca called her cruel after saying she's gonna have a child I was wondering why she got so angry. Was it ever established that she can't have children or is she too old? I can't remember.

 

She wanted to have children with Rupert, but he didn't.

 

On 29/03/2023 at 10:53 AM, JNHFan2000 said:

The montage of the wins was cool and I am really excited to see what will happen with Jaimie & Roy. Their dynamic is so fun and it's very interesting to see the change in Jamie now that he isn't Top Dog anymore. His line about him being hypocritical and not ironic was incredible. Loved that!!

 

Yes, that exchange was really good! And yes, this seems like a good way to get Roy and Jamie to have a bunch of scenes together, which should be great!

 

 

On 29/03/2023 at 11:03 AM, Mr. Who said:

I’ve been watching Shrinking and you can really tell that these shows are made by the same people. Some lines in Shrinking feel like Roy Kent lol

 

OK, I think that's an interesting statement, because we're also watching Shrinking 1 alongside Ted Lasso 3, and I was going to say how DIFFERENT they are!

 

Both shows involve the writing of Brett Goldstein and Bill Lawrence, but to me Shrinking feels much more like other Bill Lawrence shows (Scrubs and Cougar Town specifically), while Ted Lasso feels like more of its own thing.  I guess it feels more centered around Jason Sudeikis's lead and everything flows from that, whereas Shrinking feels more like it was built to be an ensemble with all the usual Bill Lawrence-isms baked in from the start.  I dunno how to explain it better.

 

 

On 29/03/2023 at 11:59 AM, Tallguy said:

It was established that she didn't have children because Rupert didn't want them. Now he has a kid and he told Rebecca that he just needed the right person. I forget the exact words he used, but he was a real bastard about it, of course. He's Rupert.

 

Yes, that's right.  Rupert divorced her and starting dating a much younger woman also named Rebecca, so the press started calling her "Old Rebecca".  Then he tells her that he got new Rebecca (Bex) pregnant, Rebecca says something like "I thought you didn't want kids" and he replied something like "turns out I just didn't want them with you", or something along those lines.

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1 hour ago, Jay said:

OK, I think that's an interesting statement, because we're also watching Shrinking 1 alongside Ted Lasso 3, and I was going to say how DIFFERENT they are!

 

Both shows involve the writing of Brett Goldstein and Bill Lawrence, but to me Shrinking feels much more like other Bill Lawrence shows (Scrubs and Cougar Town specifically), while Ted Lasso feels like more of its own thing.  I guess it feels more centered around Jason Sudeikis's lead and everything flows from that, whereas Shrinking feels more like it was built to be an ensemble with all the usual Bill Lawrence-isms baked in from the start.  I dunno how to explain it better.

I actually agree with that assessment that Shrinking is closer to sit coms than Lasso is but there’s something in the characterisation, the pop culture references and the overall positivity message that makes them a bit similar IMO. The focus on mental health and the therapy sessions is another obvious similarity. I finished Shrinking S1 and just rewatched S1 and 2 of Lasso and I really like both shows.
 

I read that Shrinking is also going to have 3 seasons so it seems like they have stories to tell but aren’t interested in doing multiple seasons just for the heck of it, like many comedy shows do. 

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1 hour ago, Jay said:

The other weird storyline was doing a closeted gay storyline for Colin in 2023.  It felt like such a 90s or early 2000s TV storyline.  In 2023, in England, nobody would care that he's gay, so why does he have to hide it?  And why is it significant that Trent saw them at the end?  I don't get it.

My take on this is that in men's football there are basically no players who are (openly) gay. I think at the beginning of the year it was for the first time that a player came out as gay (somewhere in Eastern Europe).

So I do think it's something that is worth paying attention to, but I agree that I'm not yet sure on how they're executing it. I'm curious to see how that story plays out

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OK. I thought England and Europe in general was more accepting of gay culture than America but maybe I was wrong

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Succession 4x2

 

I really loved this.

 

First off, that whole thing about Kelly was kinda hilarious. And how does Greg always gets talked into doing these sort of things?

And I also really like how Tom always gets really insecure and unable to speak a single sentence without a break when he is around Logan. It's both funny and a bit sad.

I did think that the way Logan handled the whole thing with Kelly was weird. Did he think it was bad and wanted he that somebody else told her? Or did he want her to get the job?

And I think that Greg could've handled the talk with Kelly a lot better. It was bad, and he should've just told her that in another way.

 

Then the whole thing with Connor was interesting. I thing I missed what happened between him and Willa, but he seemed really upset about it. And his final words before leaving the karaoke room really hit me. I did not see that coming and for me was one of the only times that Connor wasn't a bit of a joke.

 

Now, the whole thing between Logan and Kendall, Roman & Shiv. That was some of the best writing in the whole series and therefore, for me, one of the best episode the show has had.

I really like Shiv, but this episode both she and Kendall were pretty awful. And it's so interesting that Shiv can get into a fight with Logan as much as she wants, but she isn't able to talk to Tom at all. But Sarah Snook has to win an Emmy this year. She's incredible!!

 

Now I get why Shiv and Kendall are doing what they're doing, because I also had a hard time believing Logan was fully sincere. He's very manipulative and I think that last smile before the credits shows that this time he is winning. He is getting Roman on his side (which I had a bit of a feeling would happen). Roman is so in need of the love of his father, I thought it was actually really sad how he reacted when Logan 'apologised'.

 

Kendall though...wow! Matsson actually told him, that if the deal doesn't go through he is completely out. Then both Roman & Logan say this is well and he just goes through with it. Shiv doesn't know this, so I get why she's going in so hard, but Kendall should've told her. I feel that after 3 seasons and e erything that Kendall has done and is doing, that he might be the only unredeemable character in the show.

 

There's lot's more thoughts I have in it, but for now this is kinda it. Curious to see what others think.

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Severance 1x07 Defiant Jazz

 

Spoiler

OK that was pretty nuts that Reghabi just straight up murdered Graner!  I liked that Mark had an actual normal reaction to it; So many shows involved death and murder and the characters treat it like an every day occurrence, it was nice a normal reaction for a change.  I liked that she gave him a keycard and asked him to smuggle it into the severed floor of Lumon; Really shows how lax their security really is there that this is even possible.  Let alone the fact that Harmony didn't have his card's access cut off as soon as she heard he was dead...

 

Speaking of Harmony, I guess the explanation for why she's infiltrated Devon's private life is to find out if Mark ever thinks he sees Gemma still alive?  This didn't make sense until the end of the episode.... meanwhile, Devon seems to have put 2 and 2 together that the senator's wife did in fact sever herself to avoid the pain of childbirth.  But where is this story thread going?

 

Oh man, the dance party "reward" that Milchik gives MDR for Helly (almost) hitting some target was HILARIOUS.  Milchik really getting into it, Mark awkwardly dancing, all comedy gold.  I loved the way Dylan's freakout built during it and exploded - kinda weird that he bit him though (I guess its the only weapon he felt he had).  Likewise the retirement party for Burt was bizarre too, with Christopher Walken doing great work at outie Burt in the video, lots of comedic parts to that, perfectly delivered by Walken.  I would think that in normal circumstances the innie would know about upcoming retirement for a bit ahead of time, and not just be told the day it is happening, so I imagine he's being pushed out.  I wonder how many of these videos these guys are shown of their outie are actually their outies and not some kind of trick (like a second severed version of themselves?)

 

I like that all the innies got on board with subterfuge, and found the security room with the overtime contingency controls.  I'm very much looking forward to seeing Dylan try to wake one (or both?) of Helly or Mark up next episode!  And Irving coming back from the retirement party and being on board with taking Lumon down was an awesome moment too!  You knew his pro-Eagan stuff would get flipped eventually.  Sadly I suspect his weird black goo episodes will happen at just the wrong time when they are trying to do something...

 

I really don't get Alexa and why she ever gave Mark a second date; It really seemed to only happen to move the plot along because I don't get what she ever saw in him.  As such the whole scene of him being drunk as an excuse to take out a picture of her and rip it up felt a little forced.  But it was still a cool reveal that his wife is Ms Casey!  I was starting to suspect that his wife was actually still alive, either when Harmony asked Devon if he still thought he saw her, or maybe for some other reason before then.  But I would have sworn we saw what his wife looked like in another episode; Now I think I was mixing it up with Shrinking, whose main character also has a dead wife.  Anyway, once he started taping the picture together, it was clear that it was going to be a character we knew;  The only real candidates where Helly, Ms Casey, or Natalie (the woman who comes in to be the in-between between Harmony and the board).  Now I'm curious to learn why Lumon tricked Mark into thinking she was dead!  Maybe she was brain-dead after the car accident, and the only way for her to stay alive was to permanently sever her mind?  But then why force her to work for Lumon instead of letting her live her life?  And how did they get Mark to want to work for Lumon?  Did they make the accident happen to get him on board?  So many open questions.

 

You know, a future rewatch could be interesting if you watched all the innie scenes only, and then all the outie scenes only!  Then you only know what the characters know.  Could be fun.

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Shrinking 1x06 Imposter Syndrome

 

Interesting discussion between Jimmy, Brian, and Paul in the lunch room this week; Paul has taken the step he needed to talk and told Meg about his Parkinson's; Sean has started to talk about Afghanistan; however Jimmy is not really talking about Tia still.  Who is his therapist, anyway?

 

Gaby's story this week about not being able to "lady get it up" for any new guys was interesting (and her and Liz trying to find terms for it was really funny) - as soon as the last scene started we both know her and Jimmy were gonna hook up.  Such a bad idea!
 

It was interesting to see a party at Jimmy's house, and it juxtaposed with an old party he threw when Tia was still around.  I couldn't tell if Gaby was completely honest when she said Tia never told her that she was not thinking of leaving him.  Of course, she might have thought it but knew she couldn't tell Gaby about it...

 

Alice finally made a move on Sean and I'm so glad he rejected her!  Curious to see where that goes next.

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Severance 1x08 What's for Dinner?

 

Wow, what a great penultimate episode!

 

Spoiler

So, Irving comes home from work every day and pours himself a giant pot of coffee, and slaps black paint all over various flat surfaces, repeatedly painting the image of the corridor that Gemma / Ms Casey goes through to get on the elevator to the "testing floor".  WTF!?  Does he eat? Does he sleep?  Is the black goo he sees as his innie because of the black paint here, or is the black paint here because of the goo he sees as the innie?

 

Mark meanwhile goes to Ricken's book release party, where the warmth he has when he's around his sister was again nice to see.  Ricken pondering if he should go back home to get a copy of the book to read along with was funny, and Harmony hugging him when he said he was thinking of quitting Lumon was really interesting.

 

The only shot we saw of Helly in outie world was toasting with champagne at some event - starting to really think she's on the board or somehow related to Lumon since that party Harmony was planning on revealing everything to the board by is coming up soon!

 

Innie world was crazy this week.  It makes no sense that they all had to wait for Helly to hit 100%, and basically didn't have to work until she did, and they could all just basically do nothing.  Well maybe it does make sense, since we still don't really know what they are even really doing with these numbers.  But anyway, then the prize is a waffle party, but only for 1 person, even though its a reward for the group of them all accomplishing something.  Does this happen every quarter?  Regardless, the egg meal they got ahead of the waffle party looked REALLY delicious!

 

Harmony seems to WANT Mark and Gemma / Ms Casey to remember each other, so has them do an end of quarter wellness treatment and seems disappointed when they don't.  But like Milchick says, that only proves the chips work, so why is she disappointed?  She seemed to pro-Eagan/Lumon until the end of the episode.... anyways, there's a lot to ponder, actually, with mark and Gemma not recognizing each other.  Of course if the chip works, they'd have no MEMORY of each other.  But there doesn't seem to be an attraction, either; In fact, Mark is more into Helly.  Is the show trying to say that relationships are purely based on circumstances, not there's no pheromonal / subconscious connection between people?  Mark's subconscious remembers what the tree looked like where the car crash happened, but no attraction to Ms Casey?

 

So the board finally found out about Helly's suicide attempt, and fires Harmony for both that and her hanging out with Devon.  I never would have guessed that she was doing that on her own and nobody else knew about it, and it doesn't really make a lot of sense that the board never found out about Helly's suicide until randomly now.  Did Milchick tell them?  The board firing her doesn't make a lot of sense.  She knows too much, way too much, and could easily do damage to Lumon if she wanted to.  It makes no sense to immediately fire her for what she did, they'd move her to some other department instead or something.  Very strange.

 

I loved all 4 people on MDR reaffirming their commitment to trying to wake themselves up, even with Milchik lingering around.  I was a bit surprised by Helly kissing Mark before going up the elevator, because I thought that their attraction was pretty underplayed throughout most of the season.  Dylan's waffle party was pretty nuts.  How does it work with his outie life that just before going home for dinner time, they fill him up with eggs and waffles.  His outie must be like WTF, why am I so full.  Anyways, once he finished and saw the message to go on the bed, that had a Kier Eagan mask, how did he know to put it on?  And once he did, holy crap, WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK was that crazy ritualistic dance a bunch of people did or him in various masks.  THIS COMPANY IS SO WEIRD.  I wonder if the dancers are severed people or regular employees.

 

His escape from that to go perform the Overtime Contingency was an exciting episode end.  I knew as soon as he flipped the second switch the episode would be over!

 

Can't wait to see how it ends!

 

Did anybody notice Ben Stiller's cameo?  He was the voice of Kier Eagan on Helly's computer screen.

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Succession 4x02 Rehearsal

 

I dunno, I'm not really feeling this season so far; Seems to be a step down from season 3, which was already a step down from season 2.  I dunno.  The funny parts are still great, but the main story seems so repetitive and not compelling.  It feels like the sale to GoJo is dragging out forever, as is the Pierce stuff.  Many scenes feel like variants on old scenes.  I can't precisely point to any major issues I guess, just more of a vibe.  Maybe I'll like the season more as it goes on.

 

The best story thread this episode was Kerry wanting to be a newsanchor - each beat of this story was comedy gold!  Her terrible audition tabe, the siblings' reaction to it, Tom and Cyd pretending she was great, Hugo and Gerri laughing at it and Hugo having to shut it down quickly on his laptop, and finally Greg telling her she's not in - all so good!

 

But then you got Logan wandering into ATN and giving some inspiring speech, which wasn't very compelling to me and seemed to go on way longer than it needed to, to make its point.  He started ATN and it's the piece he gets to keep when he sells everything else to GoJo, but I don't know if I'm supposed to believe he's found real inspiration in wanting to improve things at ATN or is just grasping at straws.

 

Another thing I didn't care for was the dynamic with the siblings.  It was great to see them working together last week, and now they are already falling apart.  Logan's assessment of them at the end of the episode is SO spot-on: They are not serious people.  The nepotism they've had all their lives makes them thing they are good at high level business, but they continually do everything possible to screw deals up.  Shiv is letting wanting to get back at Tom guide her decision making, as is Kendall when he gets the call from Matsson that lets him know the deal is off forever if the board passes on the current terms.  And Roman at the end of the episode is certainly going to let Logan's offer of replacing Cyd affect his decisions.

 

I did like all the stuff with Connor and Willa this week.  Her getting cold feet was more than expected, and I literally didn't know if she'd end up deciding to stay with him or not at the end of the episode.  It was kind of sweet that she did, and I think Shiv and Roman are right when they told Connor he'd never find anyone better.  I have a feeling the wedding next week will be fun.

 

I also like the Tom/Shiv divorce stuff.  The whole "meet with the best divorce lawyers in town so your spouse can't use them" is so known to everyone now (didn't The Sopranos cover this?), I thought it was a little silly that Shiv was so shocked by Tom doing it.  But I still kind of feel like Tom doesn't really want to get divorced and is doing this more to stretch everything out, than to get the best settlement.  You really feel like these two people could work well together if they laid out all their issues and agreed to make some compromises, but Shiv just isn't interested in that.  I guess we're not supposed to like any of the main characters...

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I tried to watch the Lord of the Rings tv series.

 

Stopped it for cause of irreconcilable deep boredom, at the 3/4...

 

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Shrinking 1x07 Apology Tour

 

Pretty funny episode, though with some serious drama!

 

The opening scene with Jimmy and Gaby was a hoot.  Jason Segel just loves to get naked doesn't he?  The conversation was interesting as was their second one at the end of the episode.  She's really becoming one of my favorite characters, and I'm surprised I never knew the actress until now!

 

Alice avoiding Sean made sense, as did Liz's analysis that she just doesn't want to be abandoned again.  Poor Sean, he's in such a tough situation (losing out on another job opportunity).  I hope his character gets some kind of happy ending somehow...

 

Harrison Ford was so hilarious waking up on the couch with his tie in his mouth, and his early scenes with Meg singing the papers, visiting his doctor, and discussing their options are interesting.  But then it was such a gut-punch depressing situation when he explained that he didn't want to move across the country and Meg took that really hard.  It's a super tough situation because both sides of the argument have a lot of merit. There's really no clear solution here.

 

Liz and her husband's talk about his retirement and how he earned hanging out and home and she needs to find a hobby was funny.  Did she never work?

 

Jimmy talking to Tia's picture was nice (it was nice when Gaby did it too), and it's funny how all these episodes end with a cliffhanger, this time Alice overhearing him mention he slept with Gaby... oh boy...

 

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i saw The Last of Us and I thought it was pretty great

 

On 06/04/2023 at 9:09 PM, Bespin said:

I tried to watch the Lord of the Rings tv series.

 

Stopped it for cause of irreconcilable deep boredom, at the 3/4...

 

they literally made almost every possible choice to make it more boring, it's hilarious. it just goes on and on forever

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