The TV shows you've seen recently thread.

[Cheddahz]

I haven't watched The Simpsons since season twelve and it's going to stay that way (first ten seasons are still perfect though)

[toku]

Person of Interest probably the most important network tv show of our era and no one seems to really care about it. Part of that, probably has to deal with the fact that they don't hit yout with the realness until late, almost end, of season one but still. You get existentialism in the internet and machine age, you get a sentient AI/machine being the ANTI-skynet, actively trying to fix what would appear to be irreparably broken humans! shit is beautiful.

PoI about how the new wild west is being fought for digitally.
PoI about how when you create god, it takes the best characteristics of it's maker.
PoI about how you can't give up on love and hope even when the dark seems endless.
PoI about how you can never stop searching. Even if it leads to your grave.

[cool breeze]

I want to watch it but CBS sucks about putting shows on Netflix or Amazon prime or hulu or even Comcast on demand.

[Junpei the Tracer!]

I don't really care for Shaw, she's pretty much a female Reese which is nice but the show already had a tough guy role, so having two seems a bit much. I like Root a lot though.

[Dennis]

Marvel Agents of Shield Episode 2: well that wa......never mind! Preview for Episode 3 Simmons hair down is hot as fuuuuuuuuuuuck!

[Dennis]

Person of Interest Shaw is hot as fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck stop trying to make the show something it is not. Hot people being hot.

[Joe Molotov]

I wonder how long this new, brain-damaged Fitz is gonna last before they decide to squirt some alien juice in him.

[toku]

I wonder how long this new, brain-damaged Fitz is gonna last before they decide to squirt some alien juice in him.

Bet you simmons left to go find the alien juice.

[Dennis]

No jacked Ward-on-the-road-to-redemption this week makes Dennis a sad panda.

[Kara]

PoI about how you can't give up on love and hope even when the dark seems endless.

[Phoenix Dark]

PoI about how you can't give up on love and hope even when the dark seems endless.

Sounds like Downton Abbey. I'll give it a shot, breh.

[benjipwns]

I'm in for good on Gotham for the season now. It's not any worse than any other police procedural but has Donal Logue among others. And I like imagining that Richard Kind is playing the same character from Spin City but he's ascended to Mayor of Gotham. Seems like they might do some stuff that could be relatively interesting with Selina as well. And the first "Gotham weirdo" baddies of the week were a decent halfway between something like Castle/CSI and the insanity of the Arkhamites. The dialogue is pretty good too, except for some of the THIS IS IMPORTANT BUT NOT REALLY DO YOU UNDERSTAND THIS IS A THREAT?!? speechifying you can't get away from on shows these days. (And I liked the Penguin's incompetent antics this week compared to the premiere.) Also, there's some nice "cityscape" porn shots.

Best "hey! we're a show about Batman! BATMAN!" of this week: Alfred yelling at Bruce about how it's rude to just "appear" out of nowhere and talk to people.

Cat-assed the last two seasons of 30 Rock. I’d seen s1~5, but had not bit on 6 and 7. I’d seen the series finale, and felt like I’d missed a bunch -- but most of the big stuff is really only set up one or two episodes before the finale. Anyway, TINA FEY IS AWESOME.  I really love this show.

30 Rock got more positive as the show went on, the last season is almost cloyingly so except that it's done so well and includes the context of the previous six seasons. And they did some nice "wrapping up" the characters without making it seem like their life ends when the show does.

spoiler (click to show/hide)

BLIMPIE

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[benjipwns]

With a lot of shows actually, more sitcoms probably.

The oddest for me was Outsourced, by the end of it I was kinda liking it quite a bit and ready for a few more seasons. It seemed like the perfect "fourth" wheel for the NBC shows. And in an odd way, it was somewhat effective at humanizing the stereotypes it started out with, like the show was learning along with the main character. The episode where they go for a train ride and there's a hesitancy about riding ON the train instead of inside it had some effective moments of the Indian characters imparting that "we don't necessarily want to do it this way, but we'll enjoy it because we have to." (Even if the show was quite reasonably leery of actually getting into a too impoverished area of India and there was too much American character gives Western liberal advice against backwards caste/arraigned marriage/etc. culture and it works! Though this too dissipated as the show went on.) Felt like it was moving towards where a second season could round off the sharp edges of the premise much like happened to The Office/Parks and Rec.

Wilfred is going to be one. There was something about that show for me.

The Defenders remake (with Jim Belushi) on CBS was one, thankfully I knew Rake was doomed so I never got that attached. Need more questionably moral personnel lives defense attorney shows.

[cool breeze]

I'm in for good on Gotham for the season now. It's not any worse than any other police procedural but has Donal Logue among others. And I like imagining that Richard Kind is playing the same character from Spin City but he's ascended to Mayor of Gotham. Seems like they might do some stuff that could be relatively interesting with Selina as well. And the first "Gotham weirdo" baddies of the week were a decent halfway between something like Castle/CSI and the insanity of the Arkhamites. The dialogue is pretty good too, except for some of the THIS IS IMPORTANT BUT NOT REALLY DO YOU UNDERSTAND THIS IS A THREAT?!? speechifying you can't get away from on shows these days. (And I liked the Penguin's incompetent antics this week compared to the premiere.) Also, there's some nice "cityscape" porn shots.

Best "hey! we're a show about Batman! BATMAN!" of this week: Alfred yelling at Bruce about how it's rude to just "appear" out of nowhere and talk to people.

yeah, I liked the second episode enough to stick with it.  setting a typical cop show in a corrupt garbage city is a decent hook.  it's weird that the specific batman stuff might be the worst part of the show.  as funny as it is to see Bruce listening to metal and scribbling shit on his notebook, him and Alfred are separate from the other ongoings of the show.

[benjipwns]

I'm hoping the little part at the end with Bruce trying to find something to give the kids is the start of an arc that shows some of him establishing the Wayne empire from a financial perspective.

Otherwise I don't know what the fuck they are even supposed to do with him on the show other than check in every once in the while to see if he's alive. Selina at least you have a reason for the cops to run into her every so often, getting caught or as a witness or street source or whatever.

[cool breeze]

maybe they have a storyline involving Wayne Enterprises.  I don't know.  it wouldn't be hard to make Bruce's storyline more interesting, but connecting it with the rest of the show is a problem.  do you devote some time every week for kid Bruce's adventures, or shoehorn him into the rest of the show?

[Madrun Badrun]

Gotham seems OK.  Shield started off very good. 

[Dennis]

Gotham isn't half as bad as the negative nancys like to pretend.

[Kshow]

Gotham isn't half as bad as the negative nancys like to pretend.

So no one can have a negative opinion?

[Madrun Badrun]

No.  Not here. 

[benjipwns]

I think some of the backlash was due to what people were expecting. To me, since the summary from like three years back, it always screamed "police procedural in Gotham, meet early versions of all sorts of dudes" and not even something near the level of Arrow.

But then I've been advocating for years for a Gotham Central series, and Batman barely actually appears in a lot of that (even though his existence loomed over everything) and it worked more than just fine. And I think this show could work towards that if they build up Allen and Montoya more. It's done decently with random cop dudes though in terms of making it seem like there's a police force outside of Gordon/Bullock.

[chronovore]

Finished Defiance season 1. The penultimate episode (Past Is Prologue) was really striking; very good. Not sure why. It felt like it was setting up a lot of stuff, expanding the backstory. I hate to trot out the Empire Strikes Back comparison too much, but I think it’s one of my favorite things when a series allows the audience to begin filling in backstory in their minds, doesn’t let the characters off the hook easily, and gives them new challenges to face -- and that’s what happened in the second-to-last episode.

Then in the season finale, the appropriately named Everything is Broken, everything kind of turns to crap. There are a lot of challenges for the characters to face, but the setup is a little too clear, too many telegraphed deliveries and happenstances, several interesting new characters are casually disposed of, and the artifacts which have been the focus of s1’s arc are exposed to be the most embarrassingly trite bit of deus ex machina.

Is the 2nd season any better, or should I just buy Almost Human season 1 instead?

Cat-assed the last two seasons of 30 Rock. I’d seen s1~5, but had not bit on 6 and 7. I’d seen the series finale, and felt like I’d missed a bunch -- but most of the big stuff is really only set up one or two episodes before the finale. Anyway, TINA FEY IS AWESOME.  I really love this show.

30 Rock got more positive as the show went on, the last season is almost cloyingly so except that it's done so well and includes the context of the previous six seasons. And they did some nice "wrapping up" the characters without making it seem like their life ends when the show does.

spoiler (click to show/hide)

BLIMPIE

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spoiler (click to show/hide)

BLIMPIE...

[close]

I wouldn’t call it “cloying” -- I think if you re-watch it, you’ll see that Jenna still has zero redeeming qualities at the end of the show, Jack has maintained his position as a control freak who finally has another good idea (which is entirely unrelated to TV, and in fact finds him sliding back to his original job; it’s a career regression), Liz will spend the rest of her life looking after versions of Tracy and Jenna. However, to support your assertion, Liz appears happier, Jack seems satisfied, and the nicest guy on the show wins the most coveted position on the network.

Hm.

[chronovore]

No.  Not here.

ICWYDT

[benjipwns]

Yeah, I think you take that stuff in the context of the series. Even Jenna has somewhat found a partner to be happy with. For much of the early show you had Liz going through essentially a midlife crisis, and Jack too while fighting for power within GE/NBC/Kabletown/etc., all his problems with his mother and stuff. Kenneth puts up with years of shit. Pete and everyone else on the staff are miserable throughout and don't really respect Liz. But by the end they seem to have an odd sense of survivor pride with their work and ability to move on and also happiness outside it, even acceptance of Lutz to some regard, Frank has been in charge at times, etc. Even Tracy by the end is much more willing to be a father and husband, serious worker, etc. And Pete gets to fake his death if only for a little while.

I think the ultimate example is that at the start of the show Liz is with Dennis the Beeper King.

[benjipwns]

Yeah, I think you take that stuff in the context of the series. Even Jenna has somewhat found a partner to be happy with. For much of the early show you had Liz going through essentially a midlife crisis, and Jack too while fighting for power within GE/NBC/Kabletown/etc., all his problems with his mother and stuff. Kenneth puts up with years of shit. Pete and everyone else on the staff are miserable throughout and don't really respect Liz. But by the end they seem to have an odd sense of survivor pride with their work and ability to move on and also happiness outside it, even acceptance of Lutz to some regard, Frank has been in charge at times, etc. Even Tracy by the end is much more willing to be a father and husband, serious worker, etc. And Pete gets to fake his death if only for a little while.

I think the ultimate example is that at the start of the show Liz is with Dennis the Beeper King.

[etiolate]

So

Gravity Falls

Pretty durn good. Like a cross between Eerie, Indiana and maybe Bob's Burgers? It's a kid cartoon but works well on just an ageless level.

[chronovore]

I just watched the first two episodes of Penny Dreadful. I am well-and-truly hooked. Clearly inspired by The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, though so far it pewps all over the movie of LoXG. Vampire charnel house in episode 1 was super effective; I felt like I could smell meat. Timothy Dalton is a treasure. Eva Green is fantastic in the séance sequence in episode 2, and the finale of that episode basically set the hook in my jaw like the sickle shot in the vampire fight. Wow.

[Madrun Badrun]

http://www.lohud.com/story/news/local/westchester/yonkers/2014/10/01/hbo-david-simon-bill-zorzi-yonkers-desegregation-schlobohm-show-hero/16569869/

Can't wait

[Kshow]

Gotta love a lil Roseanne!  One of best scenes of the show! 
https://m.

[Eel O'Brian]

Halloween Wars tonight

[fistfulofmetal]

I've watching Supernatural sporadically with a friend whenever we're in front of a Netflix enabled device.

Been missing chunks of episodes so I'm not getting the full story but so far it's pretty damn cool show.

[chronovore]

I've watching Supernatural sporadically with a friend whenever we're in front of a Netflix enabled device.

Been missing chunks of episodes so I'm not getting the full story but so far it's pretty damn cool show.

IT’S TOTALLY FUN.

If you’re sticking with it, bail at the end of season 5. There is a REALLY DAMNED GOOD arc which wraps up the show. It’s apparently still decent with season 6 onward, but after the send-off it gets with the close of season 5, I don’t care to see it get extruded all to heck and back.

[fistfulofmetal]

Heh, I actually picked it up when my friend was midway through season 4 and I'm currently near the end of season 5. I've heard that it gets shitty from season 6 onward but that season 8 and 9 aren't bad.

[Am_I_Anonymous]

Been watching the blacklist. While it definitely follows the "formula" for this type of spy on spy shit I simply can't get enough of Spader. Dude plays a fantastic role.

[Stoney Mason]

It's not bad for a typical network style show. It's definitely formula television with a terrorist of the week structure but for what it is, its alright. I like that they seem to have a boner for the actors from the Wire also.

[Am_I_Anonymous]

It's not bad for a typical network style show. It's definitely formula television with a terrorist of the week structure but for what it is, its alright. I like that they seem to have a boner for the actors from the Wire also.

Agreed. They need to kill this whole Berlin thing somewhat early in this season though. I think it's going to hold the show back.

Here's some thoughts on the show:

Red is Liz's dad
Red is actually the bad guy
Tom Keen actually wanted to save Liz (he could have killed her several times)
Alan Alda dies this season
At least 1 more agent will get killed this year.

[etiolate]

So Homeland is back and it's about fuck-ups with air strikes.

Does anyone care? Carriie, Saul and Quinn are still interesting to watch, but I'm kind of tired of the show at the same time.

[Quaker]

Mandy Patinkin, man.

I did a after they almost ruined his character in the beginning of the last season.

I think it's watchable if you reject the notion of it being a prestige drama like Mad Men(which Showtime desperately wants it to be) and embrace it as a smartdumb 24 successor being propped up by some cool actors/characters. It's still not easy(I can't believe they dragged the show down with that Brody's daughter tangent after how much shit 24 caught for Jack's daughter), but it has its moments.

[Kara]

Is that show violent? It seems like it could be and the official reason for Mandy ruining Criminal Minds by leaving it was that he felt it had become too violent.

[ZephyrFate]

Homeland is watchable but would be so much better if it actually gave a shit about portraying the Arab world as anything more than full of terrorists

[Quaker]

Is that show violent? It seems like it could be and the official reason for Mandy ruining Criminal Minds by leaving it was that he felt it had become too violent.

Mild spoilers.

[Kara]

WTF Mandy you forsook me for this.

You're dead to me now.

Having to put up with Joe Mantegna in lieu of Mandy.

[Eel O'Brian]

boardwalk empire:

- they gave that dude playing young nucky prosthetic buscemi teeth

spoiler (click to show/hide)

- i knew that cockeyed bastard torrio was in with luciano and lansky

[close]

[BobFromPikeCreek]

Two episodes into Rectify. Seems pretty good so far. Seems like they're going a bit overboard on trying to make Teddy Jr unlikable, but we'll see where that goes.

[ZephyrFate]

Homeland is watchable but would be so much better if it actually gave a shit about portraying the Arab world as anything more than full of terrorists

Yeah, never going to happen.

I guess they're trying with the Pakistani kid this season, but I doubt it will go anywhere than him becoming a suicide bomber or something.

Bob: Teddy Jr. does come off as quite abrasive, but you have to take a few things into account: 1. he's the prodigal son who is inheriting the family business 2. he's a good ole' Southern boy who ain't never had to think 'bout 'nothin real complicated-like 3. He's "masculine" as fuck and thus has no empathy for the emasculation Daniel has suffered for 19 years.

He's definitely a total asshole, but you kind of see where it comes from.

[BobFromPikeCreek]

3. He's "masculine" as fuck and thus has no empathy for the emasculation Daniel has suffered for 19 years.

That golf scene was pretty awesome. The writing for Daniel's character is really, really good. Hell, most of the writing is really good. I have a good feeling about this show.

[ZephyrFate]

If there's one thing consistently amazing about Rectify, it's the writing for Daniel Holden as well as how Aden Young portrays him. He really needs an Emmy. Season 1 is probably the more well-written of the two seasons, but that's likely because they were only working with 6 episodes and manage to put into a LOT of content into a short episode count.

[TakingBackSunday]

Sleepy Hollow is fucking atrocious

why the fuck did this get made

[ZephyrFate]

It's so fucking good 

[Madrun Badrun]

The first episode was great.

[toku]

Arrow-Bore, y'all trying to watch The Flash?

why not

I expected to hate the backdoor pilot shit in s2 but the guy they cast for flash actually sold me?

[cool breeze]

Arrow-Bore, y'all trying to watch The Flash?

why not

yeah.  the trailers look decent if not a little goofy in that old spider-man way.  and apparently the shows are going to be pretty connected with characters showing up on both in addition to the occasional crossover episodes.

[Madrun Badrun]

You guys know the first episode has been on torrents for like a month now?  Go watch it. 

[chronovore]

Penny Dreadful started off SUPER strong in the first two installments, and then fumbles the ball for the next couple. Episode 5 was strong again, so I guess I’m partial to slow reveals and teasing rather than episode 3’s emo Frankenstein’s monster.

Don’t click if you haven’t seen episode 2:

spoiler (click to show/hide)

The first monster was one of the best bait-and-switch moves I’ve ever seen on TV. I was completely unprepared for losing Proteus. I was thrilled to be so surprised, and couldn’t wait to have the existence of the thing slowly revealed over the coming episodes.

Instead, we are rewarded with a nearly-complete overexposure of EMO MONSTER, who awoke in unbearable pain (dude, we are ALL born screaming), was abandoned by his creator, beat up once -- ONCE -- in an alleyway, before being befriended, fed, and given a job IN THE THEATER -- and now wants revenge for the cruelties of the world. Now EMO MONSTER wants Victor to get him laid, all the while preaching about how superior it is to be an EMO MONSTER.

I keep waiting for scenes of EMO MONSTER pining away in his room, listening to Joy Division or Morrisey or The Smiths.

[close]

The show gets back on track with episode 5, but -- wow -- after the heights of episode 2, 3 was a let-down.

[BobFromPikeCreek]

Just finished season one of Rectify  :'( :'( :'(

[ZephyrFate]

Just finished season one of Rectify  :'( :'( :'(

More sads coming in Season 2.

[Eric P]

i don't give a fuuuuu about batstupidity but Gotham is great.  It's just a weird procedural and that's all I wanted from it.

[benjipwns]

Hello James; Old Friend.

I love the goofy over the top zoom in on the logo at the end of every episode.

[Eel O'Brian]

Apparently our CW channel is SD only (even though we have digital cable and every single other network channel is available in HD), so now I'm going to steal The Flash from the internet like everyone else did/does. Thanks, TWC.  I'll be glad when the last SD television dies.

[Phoenix Dark]

Apparently our CW channel is SD only (even though we have digital cable and every single other network channel is available in HD), so now I'm going to steal The Flash from the internet like everyone else did/does. Thanks, TWC.  I'll be glad when the last SD television dies.

my Sony CRT still lives

spoiler (click to show/hide)

until Black Friday

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