What is the last Television series you watched?

[KK 3,307]

In the sense that it's often hailed as the greatest thing television has ever produced. But this show is more worthy of the position online bloggers like to rank it by.

[crocodile 8,018]

As far as maturity and character writing goes, it is still unmatched.

Karol

[Quintus 5,399]

I'd have thought the holy trinity were The Sopranos, The Wire and Breaking Bad. As far as US stuff goes, anyway.

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

I've never tried it because I sort of hate the crime genre. True Detective was a real fluke. Usually it's all just sterile and depressing to me. Same with The Sopranos. However well-made it is, I just do not care at all.

[crocodile 8,018]

I'd have thought the holy trinity were The Sopranos, The Wire and Breaking Bad. As far as US stuff goes, anyway.

It would be tempting to say The Wire is better than Breaking Bad. And I sort of did. But they are simply nothing alike. So need to compare. What they share, however, is amazing characters and great intelligence.

I've never tried it because I sort of hate the crime genre. True Detective was a real fluke. Usually it's all just sterile and depressing to me. Same with The Sopranos. However well-made it is, I just do not care at all.

It's nothing like the crime genre you know.

Karol

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

I will try the first episode. God help you if I don't like it....

[crocodile 8,018]

I will try the first episode. God help you if I don't like it....

Try three or four. It's constructed like a novel. Not as "episodic" as your usual television. Won't make sense if you just try first chapter. If you're still not convinced by then, then you're lost.

Karol

[nightscape94 965]

Usually it's all just sterile and depressing to me.

While The Wire certainly isn't upbeat, it is in no way sterile.

[Quintus 5,399]

I'd have thought the holy trinity were The Sopranos, The Wire and Breaking Bad. As far as US stuff goes, anyway.

It would be tempting to say The Wire is better than Breaking Bad. And I sort of did. But they are simply nothing alike. So need to compare. What they share, however, is amazing characters and great intelligence.

Karol

I haven't seen The Wire, but is it essentially a classic epic? Like The Sopranos and Breaking Bad. The divine comedies of the binge watching era. So not all that dissimilar, perhaps.

[crocodile 8,018]

I'd have thought the holy trinity were The Sopranos, The Wire and Breaking Bad. As far as US stuff goes, anyway.

It would be tempting to say The Wire is better than Breaking Bad. And I sort of did. But they are simply nothing alike. So need to compare. What they share, however, is amazing characters and great intelligence.

Karol

I haven't seen The Wire, but is it essentially a classic epic? Like The Sopranos and Breaking Bad. The divine comedies of the binge watching era.

It's like a big Dickensian saga about a city and its citizen at every level - from the street junkies to city hall. It's like a much better Game of Thrones with all those characters that intersect and create complicated mosaic pattern of connections and relations. It's mostly character-driven, though. And they're all great. It might seem all very self-important and pompous but this show has a massive heart.

Karol

[Taikomochi 1,136]

I will try the first episode. God help you if I don't like it....

I don't know that is the best approach. The Wire isn't really episodic. It could be viewed more as a series of 10+ hour films. I think the comparison usually made is to a novel, and the episodes are chapters. It's not like a series of short films the way you get with Breaking Bad or Mad Men or most other serialized shows, where you usually get narrative gratification within a single episode. The Wire simply introduces many evolving narrative and thematic threads and evolves them over the season.

Therefore, one episode is unlikely to give you an accurate representation of the show. I'd recommend the first season as a whole. Not to mention, each season is presented as a complete story, so it'd be easy to put down after a season if you didn't like it.

[Quintus 5,399]

Any catharsis in there?

[crocodile 8,018]

Any catharsis in there?

It does have an overreaching structure and it "all the pieces matter". But it's not about tidy plots and Hollywood three acts. Watch two-three episodes and you'll see.

Karol

[A24 4,346]

Checked out the pilot for The Leftovers. Has some promise to it, but it could easily go the other way. Sometimes it is a bit heavy-handed, but I'll give the show the benefit of the doubt.

I like the bits I'm hearing of Richter's score.

That's a pretty good description of the show on an episode to episode basis. It has some weaker entries, but between them are some of the best television around.

I agree. Like K.K. says, the promise is there. And the good thing is, it doesn't go the other way around, sometimes it actually fulfills that promise. Good to hear S2 is even stronger.

I will try the first episode. God help you if I don't like it....

I have good news for you, The Wire is not a cop show.

That one has passed the threshold of "too popular" and now I'll never watch it!

Strange, you love popular.

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

No, but I understand that it's easier for you to think that.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

For me the Holy Trinity of modern television is The X-Files, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Stargate SG-1.

Dunno about this hip and trendy new stuff the tweens all like these days.

[A24 4,346]

No, but I understand that it's easier for you to think that.

Of course I think that, I've never seen signs of you liking anything else but popular (when it comes to movies and directors).

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

Please list some examples? Other than Nolan. What other directors do I like? I don't really talk about that at all, so I'm curious.

[A24 4,346]

Nolan, Kubrick, Spielberg, you know, the big names. And yes, I agree, you don't have a lot to say when you mention how much you love them. About film music, John Williams and Hans Zimmer are not popular?

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

Nolan and Kubrick, sure. Spielberg isn't exactly a favorite, don't know why you'd think that, but considering what this site is, yeah, I've talked about him.

Hell, one would think that you only like Scott and Snyder from your posts, but I'm not that lazy. Do you put the complete breadth and depth of your cinematic and musical interests on full display here? I don't, it's true. But come on, put some thought into it. I know you don't like things spelled out for you. You could come up with serious names of folks I like, I bet.

[A24 4,346]

Well, maybe you are not into Spielberg today, but I remember you expressing your love for Spielberg and Kubrick very well. A.I. is one of your favorite movies, I believe. So you don't really like Zimmer, the most popular film composer working today? Or can't I mention him, just like you don't want me to mention Nolan, the most popular director working today? It's crazy to say you don't like popular with a fanboy reputation like that. I have nothing against popular, I love mainstream movies and music, always did and I always will. I don't think you have anything against it either.

Snyder? Me? I only like half the movies he made. And if I talk about him, it's about how Nolan, WB and DC have chained him.

Alex

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

I didn't say I don't like some things that are "popular," but you seemed to be getting at me only liking the "popular," or liking anything that is "popular."

And what's this about fanboy? Don't be childish Alex.

[A24 4,346]

Sigh! You're the one who says he doesn't like "too popular". You're the one who feels ashamed (why else deny it?) and who therefore is childish.

I'm just saying it's strange for someone who adores Zimmer and Nolan to say that he doesn't like "too popular".

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

Oh, it seems the problem here is that you took that first comment too seriously... I avoided The Wire because of my assumptions about its genre, not because it's popular.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Alex himself has gone on record to say that he's not really a fan of the genre.

[Quintus 5,399]

I'd have thought the holy trinity were The Sopranos, The Wire and Breaking Bad. As far as US stuff goes, anyway.

It would be tempting to say The Wire is better than Breaking Bad. And I sort of did. But they are simply nothing alike. So need to compare. What they share, however, is amazing characters and great intelligence.

Karol

I haven't seen The Wire, but is it essentially a classic epic? Like The Sopranos and Breaking Bad. The divine comedies of the binge watching era.

It's like a big Dickensian saga about a city and its citizen at every level - from the street junkies to city hall. It's like a much better Game of Thrones with all those characters that intersect and create complicated mosaic pattern of connections and relations. It's mostly character-driven, though. And they're all great. It might seem all very self-important and pompous but this show has a massive heart.

Karol

That sounds good actually, and has probably sold it to me more than anything else ever has. I watched the first two episodes a few years ago but it didn't click at that point and I moved something else.

[A24 4,346]

Alex himself has gone on record to say that he's not really a fan of the genre.

Cop shows? Yes, I admit, at the time I was very hesitant towards The Wire because I thought it was going to be a cop show.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

You can't blame TGP to be equally hesitant.

[A24 4,346]

I understand that part very well. I've been there. It's the "if it's popular, it's not for me" comment that I find strange.

[Mr. Breathmask 555]

Thunderbirds

Since getting the excellent new boardgame, which we've been geeking out over for the past month, me and the gf decided to rewatch the classic Supermarionation series. Thunderbirds are go!

The very first episode introduces opens with The Hood, the arch nemesis of International Rescue. He has a plan to lure International Rescue to a disaster, take a bunch of photographs of their machines and sell those to the highest bidder. He rigs the brand new Fireflash air craft with a bomb that'll go off on landing. And what's more, one of International Rescue is on board the plane!

Like most Thunderbirds episodes, the plot is a little nonsensical, but dammit, those machines are cool. That alone makes it worth watching. Initially conceived as a 25-minute show, ITV extended the order to 45-minute episodes after the first eight or so were already in the can, which prompted a bunch of rewrites and meant they had to shoot additional material. This is probably why the first episodes feel a bit slow and spend a lot of time on people trying to solve the disaster before the Thunderbirds arrive. Anyway, it doesn't matter, because the charm of the puppetry and the wonderful miniature effects are enough to keep watching.

A massive, secret machine called the Sidewinder is out and about for a test in Africa. The Sidewinder, property of the U.S. Army is a walking deforestation machine. It's probably the most ridiculously unpractical machine you'll ever see, but oh well. The thing ends up in a pit of burning rubble and International Rescue has to go in and save the trapped crew. Which they do by dragging the entire machine out of the pit. It features the first appearance of the Mole, which is pretty cool. It's a lot simpler than the first episode and I think it's one of the lesser ones. There's just not much excitement in a giant machine lying on its side doing nothing (there's some mumbo jumbo about the crew not having much time because of a potential radiation leak, but nobody cares to actually do anything about that - it's just a ticking clock device).

A family of tourists is trapped in the sub-terranean parts of a gargantuan structure - the tallest building ever built - when a fire breaks out and the entire thing comes crumbling down. The boys from International Rescue have to get to them in time before the fire reaches them and have to choose whether to use a new experimental gas burner to get to them before time runs out. But the gas still has a few problems and could mean death for the rescuers if they use it incorrectly!

A bit more drama and excitement in this one, but you can still feel they had to stretch this episode to 45 minutes. The fire breaks out, they call a bunch of firefighters, who do nothing and basically watch the whole bulding go up in flames before evacuating the area when the tower comes crashing down and then never return.

The Mole appears again and the Tracy boys use their tiny hovercrafts to get around for the first time. Depending on how you look at it, these are either really cool (hovercrafts!) or really stupid (God, those things are large and slow), but they were probably only introduced so they didn't have to let the puppets walk. It's a fun episode though, if only for the ridiculously large explosions.

The episode is totally sexist though, with the whole fire caused by a rubbish driver crashing into the parking structure below the building and causing a fire. The driver in question is a ditzy woman who seems to have no clue how to operate a vehicle. There's even a line that goes: "Yes, you guessed it. The driver was a woman." Go, sixties!

[crocodile 8,018]

I'd have thought the holy trinity were The Sopranos, The Wire and Breaking Bad. As far as US stuff goes, anyway.

It would be tempting to say The Wire is better than Breaking Bad. And I sort of did. But they are simply nothing alike. So need to compare. What they share, however, is amazing characters and great intelligence.

Karol

I haven't seen The Wire, but is it essentially a classic epic? Like The Sopranos and Breaking Bad. The divine comedies of the binge watching era.

It's like a big Dickensian saga about a city and its citizen at every level - from the street junkies to city hall. It's like a much better Game of Thrones with all those characters that intersect and create complicated mosaic pattern of connections and relations. It's mostly character-driven, though. And they're all great. It might seem all very self-important and pompous but this show has a massive heart.

Karol

That sounds good actually, and has probably sold it to me more than anything else ever has. I watched the first two episodes a few years ago but it didn't click at that point and I moved something else.

It might simply be not your thing. All I can ever talk is my own perception and my own enjoyment.

It would be a shame, though. Two episodes might not be enough. As others pointed out, it's not really structured as episodes. I can't actually tell what happened in which episode and if I have a favourite one. It's a slow burn over an entire season (sort of like True Detective).

Karol

[A24 4,346]

If there is one show that is not about instant gratification it's most definitely The Wire. It took me several attempts (three times to be exactly). Always sorta gave up after the first episode. I thought it wasn't for me.

[crocodile 8,018]

Yeah, I don't think you can really dig into it and get what they're trying to achieve until about 4th episode.

By the way, Alex, Blu-ray edition is a very good upgrade. Wide screen gives it bigger scope. I'm surprised actually.

Karol

[A24 4,346]

In the beginning, and this is true for every season, you see a lot of things and people you don't know anything about. But it wasn't only that, it also took some effort from me to find the right groove. I think at first I thought the show lacked a certain dramatization. It was only when I watched the first episode for the third time that everything suddenly clicked with me. The next day I couldn't wait to see the next episode.

[Quintus 5,399]

I'd have thought the holy trinity were The Sopranos, The Wire and Breaking Bad. As far as US stuff goes, anyway.

It would be tempting to say The Wire is better than Breaking Bad. And I sort of did. But they are simply nothing alike. So need to compare. What they share, however, is amazing characters and great intelligence.

Karol

I haven't seen The Wire, but is it essentially a classic epic? Like The Sopranos and Breaking Bad. The divine comedies of the binge watching era.

It's like a big Dickensian saga about a city and its citizen at every level - from the street junkies to city hall. It's like a much better Game of Thrones with all those characters that intersect and create complicated mosaic pattern of connections and relations. It's mostly character-driven, though. And they're all great. It might seem all very self-important and pompous but this show has a massive heart.

Karol

That sounds good actually, and has probably sold it to me more than anything else ever has. I watched the first two episodes a few years ago but it didn't click at that point and I moved something else.

It might simply be not your thing. All I can ever talk is my own perception and my own enjoyment.

It would be a shame, though. Two episodes might not be enough. As others pointed out, it's not really structured as episodes. I can't actually tell what happened in which episode and if I have a favourite one. It's a slow burn over an entire season (sort of like True Detective).

Karol

Slow burn, especially in TV, is exactly my type of deal. True Detective wouldn't have been as satisfying had it not taken its time. With The Wire, I remember the authentic dialogue and thick accents were a little off-putting to my ex and it was a bit heavy going. After watching the regionally produced Scottish sitcom Still Game (an absolute gem) recently though I'm pretty much equipped to deal with the broadest regional dialects the English language has to offer.

[crocodile 8,018]

Yeah, slang can get in the way for some people. And yeah, it can be heavy going at first. But that is also because it doesn't try to hold your hand and walk you through its world.

Karol

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

I understand that part very well. I've been there. It's the "if it's popular, it's not for me" comment that I find strange.

And once you see that it was in jest, it's no longer strange. But naturally you stop acknowledging what I say when there ceases to be grounds for a "gotchya" discussion.

I long for JWFan Pro....

[Quintus 5,399]

Alexcremers seems to get found out at a much quicker rate these days. Losing his touch!

[A24 4,346]

It's how they talk. Heck, some of the actors were actually gang members, picked right off the street. Would be silly if they talked without slang.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Do you watch with subtitles turned on or off Alexandre?

[A24 4,346]

I was raised with subtitles, so if they are available, I always have them on.

The slang of The Wire sounded like music to my ears.

It was odd to see the kid from the corners in The Walking Dead though. It probably would be vice versa for those who see The Wire for the first time.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

When I watched Saló recently, I just switched it to the English dub. Aside from Godzilla movies, I've become impatient with having to read subtitles while wanting to appreciate the imagery.

[A24 4,346]

I need the real voices, no matter what language they speak. I can't enjoy a movie when the sound doesn't match the lips of the actors.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

All depends. I've seen some English dubs that are very convincing.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Same here Alex. How can you judge a performance if the actors voice is replaced?

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

Judging a performance? Are you there evaluating how the actor emotes or do you sit back as a passive viewer and let the film tell a story?

[A24 4,346]

Passive viewer? That explains it all!

[BloodBoal 7,538]

How can you judge a performance if the actors voice is replaced?

How can you judge a performance if you're looking at the subtitles?!

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Drax only listens to the sound of people's voices, not what they are conveying.

ASMR addiction gone too far

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

And they're mostly talking in funny talk I can't understand in foreign films. It gets annoying that they need wordy bits at the bottom of the screen to translate what they're yacking on about. And English is the correct language anyway. If people can't speak it, then they should be made to!

Drax only listens to the sound of people's voices, not what they are conveying.

ASMR addiction gone too far

I need to comprehend what they're conveying by hearing them in English! Hearing them in funny talk won't do that, and I'll be damned if I have to read it while watching a movie. I may as well read a book!