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tiggymalvern
I keep watching all kinds of fun stuff, and rarely tell anybody about any of it. Some of it is already very well known, some of it I never see mentioned among my friends, so what the heck, here goes.
Spartacus. The third and final season ended recently ::sniff::. The second season had dropped a little in quality, after the joys of the first and then the prequel half-season - losing actors of the calibre of John Hannah definitely tells. But the third season picked right up again, with great plots and counter-plots, and for a story in which the ending was never in any doubt, it kept up the tension stunningly well. Great all round entertainment, for those who love political scheming and aren't averse to blood and equal opportunity nudity. Though as I've warned before, if you start at the very beginning, the first two or three episodes are quite terrible. Stick with it until the main plot kicks in, it's worth it!
Justified. A Deputy US Marshal is reassigned to his hometown of hicksville, Kentucky, a place he never wanted to see again. Now in its fourth series, each one has a central criminal arc story, with other plots continuing all through. Justified is a fabulous combination of drama, snarky dialogue and hilarious dry humour, with both criminals and Marshals weaving some very tangled webs. Timothy Oliphant is just perfect in this role. Thanks to![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
evildrem for pointing me at this one back in its first series.
American Horror Story. I loved this, and it's one of those series I'd completely missed, until I spotted a small article in the UK press. Each series tells a completely unrelated story, recasting some of the same actors in new roles. The first series was the classic haunted house scenario, while the second was set in a 1960s asylum. The joy of this one is in the details of the characters, as their stories are revealed, and a really fun guessing game about the haunted house. I will say that the first three episodes of the second season almost lost me as a viewer, as it seemed to have become a horror schlock-fest with no depth. But episode four suddenly became all about the characters again, and service as usual was resumed :-) Third series is on its way!
Elementary. Elementary is definitely no Sherlock, and is never going to foster that kind of fannish love. But it's solid entertainment, and the who-dunnit plots are interesting. Plus it has Lucy Liu; did you need another reason to watch?
Castle. The story of a murder mystery writer who attaches himself to a New York homicide department, Castle is formulaic light entertainment lifted well above the ordinary by a good cast and great dialogue. It's pure froth, with the awesome Nathan Fillion having his usual fun in the title role, and when you're looking for something light to watch that doesn't require much of a brain, Castle is the perfect go-to.
Lost Girl. This one was recced to us by one of the SO's workmates, and we will never trust his judgement again. It's about a succubus who was raised in a human family, and finds herself in the middle of an impasse between the Light Fae and the Dark Fae. We were hoping that the writers were going to play around with that concept, and add some layers of complexity, but no, it is that simplistic - the Light Fae are mostly well-meaning people, and the Dark Fae mostly suck. The plots and the writing are distinctly mediocre, and the casting is off. Bo is supposed to be pure sexual magnetism, irresistible to everyone, while the actress is standard bland-pretty. If she had half the charisma of Lena Headey's Sarah Connor or Claudia Black's Aeryn Sun, it might be getting somewhere. We watched the first season to its end in case the plot had some larger goal in mind, but it really didn't. The kudos the series gets for having an actively bisexual main character is not enough to make up for the rest.
Doctor Who. We're still watching this, but with waning enthsiasm. The last series I really enjoyed was the one with Donna (series four of the new version). It's just getting too self-involved, self-referential, and basically too proud of itself, with insufficient justification. Every now and then it still throws in a good episode, usually one unrelated to any main arc plot.
What I will be watching - Game of Thrones, but I don't need to tell you to watch that since all of you already do. We haven't started the latest series; we're hoarding episodes so we can have a cram session at the end. Don't talk to me about it!
Anime Section
Black Butler (Kuroshitsuji). I rewatched this recently withdarthhellokitty, who had never seen it, and I found I enjoyed it even more the second time around - it's more layered than I initially noticed, with significant foreshadowing in seemingly throw-away lines. Black Butler is the story of a young Victorian Earl, whose parents were murdered, while he was kidnapped and tortured. To escape, he made a pact with a demon - the demon will serve him while he finds his parents' murderers and takes his revenge, and then the demon will eat his soul. It has the usual anime habit of veering between crazy chibi-ness and some seriously dark and creepy tones, and it loves to play around with twisted Judaeo-Christian religion. These are definitely Old Testament angels!
Tiger and Bunny. Yes, you all told me I should watch this, and I finally did, and yes you were all right :-) It's fun, it's cute, it's slashy, with bickering super-powered heroes fighting crime while propping up the TV ratings for advertisers.
Clannad. Another older anime, 2007-8, which I looked up because of an AMV I saw. I really enjoyed the first series, though it made me cry several times too. It's about a group of teenagers, all misfits in their own way, some with tragic backstories. It has a good mix of school silliness and more melancholy plotlines, but the theme of loneliness underlies the whole run.
The second series, Clannad Afterstory - hmmm. It started off well, continuing with the characters of the first series, but frankly I'd recommend that when it gets to the point when they all leave school, just stop watching. The plot then abandons the mix of fun and issues, and goes headlong for downright depressing. Even more annoyingly, it was a plot that could be seen coming a mile off, and made me really angry at the two main characters for being so stupid. Then suddenly there's some sort of magical alternate-universe fix-it that makes everything all right again. Except it didn't for me; I was still mad.
Blue Exorcist (Ao no Exorcist). I don't remember who recced this one to me a couple of years ago. It might be a bit early to add this to the list, as I'm only about 8 episodes in. I enjoyed the first two episodes, when it was all about fighting demons, and then suddenly with episode 3 it became a high school hi-jinks comedy with demons as a comic aside. Say what? I'm not sure right now how much more I'll keep watching - if it doesn't evolve again soon, I won't be finishing the series.
One of these days, I should probably make an effort to watch some current anime, instead of always being several years behind!
Spartacus. The third and final season ended recently ::sniff::. The second season had dropped a little in quality, after the joys of the first and then the prequel half-season - losing actors of the calibre of John Hannah definitely tells. But the third season picked right up again, with great plots and counter-plots, and for a story in which the ending was never in any doubt, it kept up the tension stunningly well. Great all round entertainment, for those who love political scheming and aren't averse to blood and equal opportunity nudity. Though as I've warned before, if you start at the very beginning, the first two or three episodes are quite terrible. Stick with it until the main plot kicks in, it's worth it!
Justified. A Deputy US Marshal is reassigned to his hometown of hicksville, Kentucky, a place he never wanted to see again. Now in its fourth series, each one has a central criminal arc story, with other plots continuing all through. Justified is a fabulous combination of drama, snarky dialogue and hilarious dry humour, with both criminals and Marshals weaving some very tangled webs. Timothy Oliphant is just perfect in this role. Thanks to
evildrem for pointing me at this one back in its first series.American Horror Story. I loved this, and it's one of those series I'd completely missed, until I spotted a small article in the UK press. Each series tells a completely unrelated story, recasting some of the same actors in new roles. The first series was the classic haunted house scenario, while the second was set in a 1960s asylum. The joy of this one is in the details of the characters, as their stories are revealed, and a really fun guessing game about the haunted house. I will say that the first three episodes of the second season almost lost me as a viewer, as it seemed to have become a horror schlock-fest with no depth. But episode four suddenly became all about the characters again, and service as usual was resumed :-) Third series is on its way!
Elementary. Elementary is definitely no Sherlock, and is never going to foster that kind of fannish love. But it's solid entertainment, and the who-dunnit plots are interesting. Plus it has Lucy Liu; did you need another reason to watch?
Castle. The story of a murder mystery writer who attaches himself to a New York homicide department, Castle is formulaic light entertainment lifted well above the ordinary by a good cast and great dialogue. It's pure froth, with the awesome Nathan Fillion having his usual fun in the title role, and when you're looking for something light to watch that doesn't require much of a brain, Castle is the perfect go-to.
Lost Girl. This one was recced to us by one of the SO's workmates, and we will never trust his judgement again. It's about a succubus who was raised in a human family, and finds herself in the middle of an impasse between the Light Fae and the Dark Fae. We were hoping that the writers were going to play around with that concept, and add some layers of complexity, but no, it is that simplistic - the Light Fae are mostly well-meaning people, and the Dark Fae mostly suck. The plots and the writing are distinctly mediocre, and the casting is off. Bo is supposed to be pure sexual magnetism, irresistible to everyone, while the actress is standard bland-pretty. If she had half the charisma of Lena Headey's Sarah Connor or Claudia Black's Aeryn Sun, it might be getting somewhere. We watched the first season to its end in case the plot had some larger goal in mind, but it really didn't. The kudos the series gets for having an actively bisexual main character is not enough to make up for the rest.
Doctor Who. We're still watching this, but with waning enthsiasm. The last series I really enjoyed was the one with Donna (series four of the new version). It's just getting too self-involved, self-referential, and basically too proud of itself, with insufficient justification. Every now and then it still throws in a good episode, usually one unrelated to any main arc plot.
What I will be watching - Game of Thrones, but I don't need to tell you to watch that since all of you already do. We haven't started the latest series; we're hoarding episodes so we can have a cram session at the end. Don't talk to me about it!
Anime Section
Black Butler (Kuroshitsuji). I rewatched this recently with
darthhellokitty, who had never seen it, and I found I enjoyed it even more the second time around - it's more layered than I initially noticed, with significant foreshadowing in seemingly throw-away lines. Black Butler is the story of a young Victorian Earl, whose parents were murdered, while he was kidnapped and tortured. To escape, he made a pact with a demon - the demon will serve him while he finds his parents' murderers and takes his revenge, and then the demon will eat his soul. It has the usual anime habit of veering between crazy chibi-ness and some seriously dark and creepy tones, and it loves to play around with twisted Judaeo-Christian religion. These are definitely Old Testament angels!Tiger and Bunny. Yes, you all told me I should watch this, and I finally did, and yes you were all right :-) It's fun, it's cute, it's slashy, with bickering super-powered heroes fighting crime while propping up the TV ratings for advertisers.
Clannad. Another older anime, 2007-8, which I looked up because of an AMV I saw. I really enjoyed the first series, though it made me cry several times too. It's about a group of teenagers, all misfits in their own way, some with tragic backstories. It has a good mix of school silliness and more melancholy plotlines, but the theme of loneliness underlies the whole run.
The second series, Clannad Afterstory - hmmm. It started off well, continuing with the characters of the first series, but frankly I'd recommend that when it gets to the point when they all leave school, just stop watching. The plot then abandons the mix of fun and issues, and goes headlong for downright depressing. Even more annoyingly, it was a plot that could be seen coming a mile off, and made me really angry at the two main characters for being so stupid. Then suddenly there's some sort of magical alternate-universe fix-it that makes everything all right again. Except it didn't for me; I was still mad.
Blue Exorcist (Ao no Exorcist). I don't remember who recced this one to me a couple of years ago. It might be a bit early to add this to the list, as I'm only about 8 episodes in. I enjoyed the first two episodes, when it was all about fighting demons, and then suddenly with episode 3 it became a high school hi-jinks comedy with demons as a comic aside. Say what? I'm not sure right now how much more I'll keep watching - if it doesn't evolve again soon, I won't be finishing the series.
One of these days, I should probably make an effort to watch some current anime, instead of always being several years behind!
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no subject
Date: 2013-05-10 12:08 am (UTC)I'm having a little trouble with Dr. Who this season, too. It's not grabbing me the way it has in the past... the latest companion is a bit bland for me. But I might be surprised later, so I continue!
no subject
Date: 2013-05-10 04:29 am (UTC)I'm vaguely curious to see where they're going with the Clara Oswald(s) plot line. I just can't help thinking that wherever it is, I'm going to be disappointed.
no subject
Date: 2013-05-13 03:57 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-05-13 05:03 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-05-10 01:56 am (UTC)Quite some time ago I started watching Ao no Exorcist. There were only three or four episodes out so it was quite interesting to me. Then, while I was waiting for more to come out...let's just say I have a very short attention span these days and I lost track of it. Not so great as it goes on, huh?
Like you I'm behind by quite a LOT of years in TV watching. I'm kinda catching up by watching series on Amazon Prime. My latest is the first season of NCIS. They're on season 11 currently so the series has been around for a loooong time. See? Don't you feel much more current now? :D
no subject
Date: 2013-05-10 04:35 am (UTC)Ao no Exorcist just doesn't seem to be going anywhere beyond 'misfit kid at the posh kid school' right now, which is absolutely not what I was expecting from it. I'm hoping there's more to it... please?
no subject
Date: 2013-05-10 04:56 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-05-12 02:53 am (UTC)I need to watch S2 of American Horror Story, S1 was so delightfully batshit.
I'm behind on Elementary but it's awesome. I also am totally in love with Hannibal, which if you're okay with a certain level of gore is totally worth checking out just for the visuals.
no subject
Date: 2013-05-12 06:16 am (UTC)I haven't checked out Hannibal yet, but it's on The List. I hear good things, and hey, we watched Spartacus. We can definitely live with some gore!
no subject
Date: 2013-05-13 04:07 am (UTC)I really got into Clannad at one point, and went on to watch the afterstory. The alternate endings, where Tomoya is with different girls kind of weirded me out. They spent the entire series setting him up with Nagisa, and then we see him with another girl! WTF? And... part of me thought that someone like Kyou or even Tomoyo might be better for him.
Have you heard of a show called Orphan Black? I've been told it's good. TV, not anime.
no subject
Date: 2013-05-13 05:09 am (UTC)Orphan Black doesn't mean a thing to me - hitting google now :-)