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Another TV round up
Nov. 4th, 2023 10:23 pm
So many things! So many GOOD things!
Ragnarok season 3 This was great, exactly as the whole thing has been. Ragnarok really nailed it - the line between the real world and the mythical one, weaving elements from Nordic mythology into the modern world beautifully. Laurits is awesome - doomed from the start to be trapped between worlds and families, trying to claw out his own best existence against all the odds. And everyone in the end fighting the age old battle, not against each other, but against fate. Can you change destiny or is it futile? I love a series that makes a choice to end and nails it down, and Ragnarok did. Netflix make some awesome foreign language stories.
Wednesday. I heard mixed reviews about this when it came out, which is why it went lower on the list and watching it got delayed. I fully understand why there was some backlash against it, because this is definitely NOT The Addams Family. The whole vibe of that series - that the weirdos are actually lovely people who will look after other outcasts of any kind - that's not this series. But it makes a lot of sense in context, because Wednesday was always the family member who rejected that outlook, who was the rebellious, sulky child. So focussing on Wednesday changes the series to her cynical outlook.
Catherine Zeta Jones is exactly as bad as I thought she'd be when I heard the casting. She ain't Morticia, can't pull it off at all. But fortunately this is Wednesday's series, and her family are only in two eps, so that's not enough to ruin it. The series is 100% Tim Burton in feel from when Tim Burton was reliably good, and we really enjoyed it. Good to hear there'll be more :-)
Reservation Dogs season 3 Damn. Another series that went all in and then called it quits when they'd said what they wanted. This series has always veered between comedy and serious commentary on Native American life and the injustices and deprivation they've suffered and still do, but this final series doubled down. There's some massive whiplash between episodes like Deer Lady and the lighter fare, but every episode packs a punch one way or another. It was great to see Ethan Hawke guest star in an ep that really needed someone with serious talent to nail it down and make it work, and he does. Watch all of it on Hulu.
The Consultant. Another one that got pushed down the list because of mixed reviews. And everything bad that I read was basically, 'It doesn't make any sense, it's not explained,' and people whined in a way that made it sound as annoying as some pretentious crap like Lost. But people, this is a SATIRE. It's insane, yes, and it's meant to be! Christoph Waltz is the personification of evil, which is exactly what he's so very good at.
It doesn't matter who Regus Patoff is, or where he comes from, or what he may or may not be hinted to be. The point is the commentary on every type of terrible manager who gets dropped into an industry they know nothing about and sets out to change everything, just so they can make their mark on the world. It's a commentary on capitalism and what people are willing to do for a promotion, or fame, or a pay rise, or a better office, everything people can be manipulated into doing for the most asinine of reasons. It's entertaining, and awful, and so many characters who could be reasonable people start to suck because they're set in competition against one another. Much better than the reviews - just don't ever try to take it seriously, when that's clearly not the point!
Archer season 14 Archer went out with a bang, and I'm so glad it did. When we watched season 13, it was a real let down. There was nothing new to say about these characters, all the jokes were just a rehash of what we'd seen before. We got to the end and said, 'Yeah, Archer's run its course, we won't bother with it any more.' But when we heard that season 14 was going to be the end, we decided to give it that last chance. And the writers had learned too - they switched things up just enough, with the introduction of a new character. It still felt like Archer, but not stale Archer, and there were in-jokes making fun of themselves and referring back to the past, and it worked. It was funny again. I'm glad they managed to give this cast and this concept a good send-off, because they deserved it.
Ragnarok season 3 This was great, exactly as the whole thing has been. Ragnarok really nailed it - the line between the real world and the mythical one, weaving elements from Nordic mythology into the modern world beautifully. Laurits is awesome - doomed from the start to be trapped between worlds and families, trying to claw out his own best existence against all the odds. And everyone in the end fighting the age old battle, not against each other, but against fate. Can you change destiny or is it futile? I love a series that makes a choice to end and nails it down, and Ragnarok did. Netflix make some awesome foreign language stories.
Wednesday. I heard mixed reviews about this when it came out, which is why it went lower on the list and watching it got delayed. I fully understand why there was some backlash against it, because this is definitely NOT The Addams Family. The whole vibe of that series - that the weirdos are actually lovely people who will look after other outcasts of any kind - that's not this series. But it makes a lot of sense in context, because Wednesday was always the family member who rejected that outlook, who was the rebellious, sulky child. So focussing on Wednesday changes the series to her cynical outlook.
Catherine Zeta Jones is exactly as bad as I thought she'd be when I heard the casting. She ain't Morticia, can't pull it off at all. But fortunately this is Wednesday's series, and her family are only in two eps, so that's not enough to ruin it. The series is 100% Tim Burton in feel from when Tim Burton was reliably good, and we really enjoyed it. Good to hear there'll be more :-)
Reservation Dogs season 3 Damn. Another series that went all in and then called it quits when they'd said what they wanted. This series has always veered between comedy and serious commentary on Native American life and the injustices and deprivation they've suffered and still do, but this final series doubled down. There's some massive whiplash between episodes like Deer Lady and the lighter fare, but every episode packs a punch one way or another. It was great to see Ethan Hawke guest star in an ep that really needed someone with serious talent to nail it down and make it work, and he does. Watch all of it on Hulu.
The Consultant. Another one that got pushed down the list because of mixed reviews. And everything bad that I read was basically, 'It doesn't make any sense, it's not explained,' and people whined in a way that made it sound as annoying as some pretentious crap like Lost. But people, this is a SATIRE. It's insane, yes, and it's meant to be! Christoph Waltz is the personification of evil, which is exactly what he's so very good at.
It doesn't matter who Regus Patoff is, or where he comes from, or what he may or may not be hinted to be. The point is the commentary on every type of terrible manager who gets dropped into an industry they know nothing about and sets out to change everything, just so they can make their mark on the world. It's a commentary on capitalism and what people are willing to do for a promotion, or fame, or a pay rise, or a better office, everything people can be manipulated into doing for the most asinine of reasons. It's entertaining, and awful, and so many characters who could be reasonable people start to suck because they're set in competition against one another. Much better than the reviews - just don't ever try to take it seriously, when that's clearly not the point!
Archer season 14 Archer went out with a bang, and I'm so glad it did. When we watched season 13, it was a real let down. There was nothing new to say about these characters, all the jokes were just a rehash of what we'd seen before. We got to the end and said, 'Yeah, Archer's run its course, we won't bother with it any more.' But when we heard that season 14 was going to be the end, we decided to give it that last chance. And the writers had learned too - they switched things up just enough, with the introduction of a new character. It still felt like Archer, but not stale Archer, and there were in-jokes making fun of themselves and referring back to the past, and it worked. It was funny again. I'm glad they managed to give this cast and this concept a good send-off, because they deserved it.
