What's everyone watching? (July)

[AuntiePam]

Maybe we could do monthly threads for TV and movies, like we do for books. I just watched Tin Men, and while I don't have enough to say to justify a separate thread, I wanted to say that I liked it. My only quibble is how easy it was for Bill (Dreyfuss) to get Nora (Barbara Hershey) into bed. I understood it, but it happened pretty fast.

I liked the scenes of Baltimore. I'm pretty sure we saw the Domino Sugar sign in some episodes of The Wire. I liked the minor characters, the conversations the guys had over breakfast and in their office. They didn't even sound scripted. And the scams were awesome!

TNT has a new series starting tonight, Rizzoli and Isles, a cop and a medical examiner. I believe it's based on books by Tess Gerritsen, who I haven't read. The promos looked okay, so I set the DVR.

[Zeener Diode]

I'm playing catch-up until Madmen returns later this month.

[severe delays]

I managed to watch some of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly last night but it got taken offline when I came to watch the rest today. I'm hoping it will come back soon (it usually does on the BBC) as it was rather good.

Aside from that, not much. I'm slowly working my way through The IT Crowd but I'm savouring them so I don't want to rush anything there.

[Tamerlane]

I've started watching the Sarah Connor Chronicles on Roku. Two episodes in, I'm so far entirely undecided on it.

I also have the third season of Veronica Mars cued up on Roku - I saw the first third of the the third when it aired and thought it was a a bit of a decline from seasons one and two, but I figure I should be a completist and see if it ever returned to form. But actually I have a buttload of things backed up on Roku - my TV watching is pretty erratic these days.

Now that Justified is done for the season, I'm not watching much as it airs. Half-heartedly sticking with Deadliest Catch, but it is becoming a bit to self-promotional this season. I don't blame the fishermen, it's all about the Benjamins afterall, but it is becoming less faux documentary-like and a bit more manipulatively soap-opery, which is losing my interest.

Also the revived Futurama, because I'm a geek ( and speaking of animation I liked both Archer and Ugly Americans earlier this year ).

[Lord Blackmore]

Not a whole lot right now. Almost all of the shows I usually watch are in summer hiatus. True Blood is the only current show I've been watching.

I saw Juno yesterday. It was excellent.

[Kat]

I'm netflixing Alien Nation right now. You know how sometimes you really really like a TV series, and then you go back and watch it years later and discover it really sucked and you completely missed that? Alien Nation is still awesome.

I also just watched Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. It's okay, but the scene at the end with Lorelei and her fiance's father is great.

[Dirx]

I haven't been watching much TV lately. The new episodes of Futurama, which are good so far. The SciFi channel has finally brought out the new seasons of Eureka (always a good show!) and Warehouse 13 (a so-so show; it's like it's trying to be both X-Files and Eureka at the same time, and it's not really working). I so far have no interest in the rest of the channel's lineup, new or returning.

I'll also catch Deadliest Warrior and Wipeout if I can remember (and I usually don't). Both are rather fun.

[Sleeps With Butterflies]

Addicted to True Blood. Love it.

Watching baseball, baseball, baseball.

Ready for Weeds starting in August. There's also a show coming on following weeds on Showtime with Laura Linney that's starting called "The C Word" that looks promising. Not THAT C word. Cancer!

Dexter doesn't start until September

I'm trying to decide on a series to start that I never watched the first time around. Some people suggest The Wire and some It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia while others are still insisting on The Sopranos or Lost even those don't really appeal to me.

Any suggestions of those listed?

[Dirx]

I wouldn't bother with Lost. Not unless you stop watching after season 2 (at the latest), and just make up your own ending.

I haven't seen the others, so I can't make any recommendations on those.

[Jeff]

Ditto on Lost. I stuck with it through to the end but can't recommend anyone else do so. I think you could even cut and run after season 1. The Wire is also very good but doesn't seem to be everyone's cup of tea, never watched The Sopranos or iASiP.

I'm just finishing off the second season of Chuck and starting the third season of Dexter. Also waiting for Mad Men to start up. Entourage has started again but I think I'll skip it, the last few seasons have been very dull & the show is well past it's prime.

Movie-wise, I watched State of Play and it was pretty good, not great but good. Ben Affleck was in it and managed to not heavily suck. Russel Crowe was also good though he does a hell of a mumbly American accent. Terminator: Salvation was another good but not great movie, just brainless action and killer PEW! PEW! robots with a bit of a stupid ending.

[AuntiePam]

Originally Posted by Sleeps With Butterflies

I'm trying to decide on a series to start that I never watched the first time around. Some people suggest The Wire and some It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia while others are still insisting on The Sopranos or Lost even those don't really appeal to me.

Any suggestions of those listed?

The Wire rewards viewers who have the patience to let the story unfold at its own pace. It's even better if you own the DVDs so you can watch often. It's the opposite of instant gratification. It seems slow when you're accustomed to dramas that wrap up a story line in an hour. That's a deal breaker for a lot of people. It's my favorite series. I've probably watched all the way through four or five times, and some episodes more than that. It never gets old.

[Dirx]

Oh geez, we're including movies, too? I signed up for Netflix recently (I know, I'm behind the times), and have been abusing the instant play feature like it's going out of style. A few choice movies I've seen:

The Colour of Magic - I got to watch Hogfather, but never caught this one. I thought it was pretty good, despite the fact that none of the characters was portrayed quite how I imagined them.

Big Trouble - A very underrated comedy based on a novel by Dave Barry. It (as well as the book) is fucking hilarious. Go watch it, now.

Tin Man - Another one I missed when it was aired. I saw the Alice in Wonderland thing that I think was by the same person. I hated that, but heard good things about Tin Man. I think everyone who said those good things lied. I got to the part with cyborg ghost town before I couldn't take it anymore.

Murder by Death - Hilarious 1976 spoof on murder mysteries, with a great cast. Definitely worth a watch.

The Great Race - Jack Lemmon plays a sinister Snidely Whiplash type of villain (complete with top hat and evil moustache), with Peter Falk as his bumbling crony. Pit against Tony Curtis and Natalie Wood in a race around the world. Over 2 and a half hours long, but a very enjoyable movie nonetheless.

[Wolf Larsen]

The Great Race is one of my all time favorites. I use the line "That's one the Great Leslie should try on for size" to this day.

[Tamerlane]

Originally Posted by AuntiePam

The Wire rewards viewers who have the patience to let the story unfold at its own pace. It's even better if you own the DVDs so you can watch often. It's the opposite of instant gratification. It seems slow when you're accustomed to dramas that wrap up a story line in an hour. That's a deal breaker for a lot of people. It's my favorite series. I've probably watched all the way through four or five times, and some episodes more than that. It never gets old.

Ditto to all of this. It may be my favorite as well and I generally dislike police procedurals. However it is something of a cumulative effect - I made that decision only after season 4 and the first few episodes interested me, but didn't exactly rivet me. Like Deadwood it took me a bit to get into and I can see some folks never warming up to its particular style.

I'll go against the consensus on Lost, even though I have a many a nit to pick with it, particularly the last season. But I consider the journey, including a couple of excellent acting jobs, to be worth the annoyances.

The Sopranos is of course great TV, the first of the truly great HBO series, but again it depends on what you're looking for. I think its a little easier to get into than The Wire or Deadwood, so it might be worth trying a few episodes and seeing if it resonates.

Looking forward to Weeds myself and I forgot I am DVRing Warehouse 13, but I haven't watched the season opener yet. It's one of those shows that is ( and was ) hanging on to my attention by its fingernails.

[Salambo]

About the only thing I am watching is The Sopranos right now. I watch just about everything I'm interested in on DVD anyway, because I'm impatient and cliffhangers piss me off. I'm also listless and lazy and tend to miss a week or two, even if I'm dying of anticipation, thus pissing myself off even more.

We just finished Season 4 of the Sopranos, and will probably start the next season this weekend, when we go borrow it from my in laws. I like it a lot. It really surprised me. It, too, has a habit of just going at its own pace - sometimes big stuff happens right smack in the middle of a season, but not necessarily during the finales. (Though the Season 4 ender had a lot of crap going on, damn.) Some endearing characters, some hateful, some you love to hate - superb acting. Excellent story.

Other than that, I try to remember to tune in to Futurama, but sometimes I forget, even though I geekgasmed over the whole thing coming back. Now I just want it to come out on DVD.

[tunaman]

I'm liking The Good Guys more and more, even though Fox is likely to kill it.

Leverage is back, but while I enjoy the show, I think the premise is wearing thin. I was especially annoyed at the most recent episode, when someone used the SCREEN of her Blackberry-type phone to scan a document. No, not take a picture of a document (something actually believable); she used it as a scanner. Blech.

I'm "pee in my pants" excited that Psych is coming back this week! The humor, Maggie Lawson, the 80s references... I've missed them all so much!

I'm also watching Burn Notice, but that's just because nothing else is on that night. I loved the first season, but the premise of the show REALLY IS wearing thin at this point. Moon Bloodgood's brief appearance last season notwithstanding, how have Michael, Fi and Sam blown up or shot at half of Miami without attracting police attention?

I'm half-heartedly watching Scoundrels, although I haven't seen the New Zealand original, and didn't think Honest (a British remake) was all that good. I guess it's just the power of Virginia Madsen's chest keeping it going for me.

I'm still watching Deadliest Catch, although I'm going to ditch it as soon as Phil Harris' death is covered.

I'm watching Persons Unknown, although like Flashforward it's not nearly as good as it could be, and NBC has moved it to the Saturday night death slot.

There are a few decent new British shows out there: Luther is a really great show, and it is (or will soon be) on BBC America here. Identity is pretty good so far, but I say that as one of the few Keeley Hawes fans, so there's that. Rev, a dramedy about a vicar in a dying South London parish, walks a tightrope between being "blasphemous" and "human", although it's not especially funny. The Silence is a new BBC series about a deaf girl who witnesses a murder; I'm downloading it as I type, so I can't comment on it yet. There's also a new series of The IT Crowd out now, but I've been disappointed in it so far.

I'm also currently burning through the entire run of Underbelly, an Australian show about real-life gangsters in Melbourne. Several reviewers called it "the best Australian crime show ever", and I tend to agree with them. It's very well done, pulls few punches, and is all the more chilling as all these people exist(ed) and their crimes were real.

Of course, I'm pumped about my all-time favorite show - Mad Men - returning on the 25th [commercial voice] at 10 pm on AMC! [/commercial voice]

And lastly, I just wanted to tell Sleeps With Butterflies that It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia is either the funniest or stupidest show on TV. The first couple of seasons, when the gang were in the bar most of the time, were hilarious. Later seasons... not so much. And within any given season, there are episodes that are side-splittingly funny, and others that make you want to sue FX for wasting 30 minutes of your life. IMHO, of course. If you've never seen the show, it's a bit like Seinfeld in that the characters are all incredibly self-centered and selfish, only they're all really stupid 20 something slackers.

[Khampelf]

We're following True Blood and Hung on HBO, Dexter and The Tudors via Netflix. I'm looking forward to Scorcese's Empire with Steven Buscemi, coming in September. I'm also inflicting Father Ted and the original Mr. Bean episodes on the GF. She likes Bean, but thinks Father Ted is stupid and offensive.

[Doyle]

On Deadliest Catch tonight, Cap'n Phil finally heads for those bountiful crab fishing grounds in the sky.

[Lungfish]

A new series of CSI: Miami starts tonight on UK tv, so I'll be watching it. Most of the tv I watch consists of American imports.

[AuntiePam]

Rizzoli and Isles pretty much sucked. The plot was stolen from Silence of the Lambs. A serial killer called The Surgeon is in prison, but someone is killing using his MO. The cops figure he's trained someone. Rizzoli was a victim of The Surgeon years before. She goes to see him in prison and actually asks him who his student is. She asks him! Of course he escapes and of course she gets all pissy-tough when people want to protect her.

Some of the banter was kinda funny but the plot had my eyes rolling.

[whirlingbladesofkick]

Originally Posted by AuntiePam

Rizzoli and Isles pretty much sucked. The plot was stolen from Silence of the Lambs. A serial killer called The Surgeon is in prison, but someone is killing using his MO. The cops figure he's trained someone. Rizzoli was a victim of The Surgeon years before. She goes to see him in prison and actually asks him who his student is. She asks him! Of course he escapes and of course she gets all pissy-tough when people want to protect her.

Some of the banter was kinda funny but the plot had my eyes rolling.

I'm glad you posted this feedback because the premise of this show attracts me like a fruit fly to vinegar! Good to know I needn't waste my time.

[Pencil]

Originally Posted by AuntiePam

The Wire rewards viewers who have the patience to let the story unfold at its own pace. It's even better if you own the DVDs so you can watch often. It's the opposite of instant gratification. It seems slow when you're accustomed to dramas that wrap up a story line in an hour. That's a deal breaker for a lot of people. It's my favorite series. I've probably watched all the way through four or five times, and some episodes more than that. It never gets old.

The Wire...
This is where television became art. On any given day, I can say that X is the best tv show ever, and it will be true that day, because it depends on my mood that day. But The Wire simply is the best show ever. I think it's Dickensian in its scope and when I watch it, I'm confirmed in my belief that there are no good people. Everyone is evil, it's just that some of them are on our side.
Yes, it's bleak, it's hard to get into, the street slang of Baltimore might be easier for an American than for someone who has English as his second language. But it's all worth it. It's so beautifully plotted, excellently acted, well directed. This show will be a subject in liberal art colleges in 70 years, the way Citizen Kane is today.

Originally Posted by tunaman

I'm liking The Good Guys more and more, even though Fox is likely to kill it.

Leverage is back, but while I enjoy the show, I think the premise is wearing thin. I was especially annoyed at the most recent episode, when someone used the SCREEN of her Blackberry-type phone to scan a document. No, not take a picture of a document (something actually believable); she used it as a scanner. Blech.

It was an HTC. They all have them product placed now.
I thought Good Guys was a summer filler. I Have a hard time seeing Wilford Brimley Bradley Whitford playing that 'stache for many seasons. I too enjoy it, and I agree that Leverage and Burn Notice are wearing thin.

I'm "pee in my pants" excited that Psych is coming back this week! The humor, Maggie Lawson, the 80s references... I've missed them all so much!

I love it too, but last season was a bit weak. I think Roday's ego is getting a bit big. Dulé Hill is every bit as skilled a comedian and doesn't get nearly as many jokes. Best episode is still 2.01 American Duos.

I'm watching Persons Unknown, although like Flashforward it's not nearly as good as it could be, and NBC has moved it to the Saturday night death slot.

Flash Forward got above average good at the end and the last episode of Persons Unknown showed much promise. It would've fared better on cable.

I'm gonna check the new episode of the Closer later tonight, though I doubt it will be very fresh. Eureka started again and them taking on James Callis is interesting. Maybe they can breathe new life into it. I'm catching up on Lie to Me, which is only bearable as a House M.D. clone because they managed to get Tim Roth (who got to keep his accent) and he's better at playing a bastard than Laurie. They had to give House a bum leg and substance abuse to explain why he's an asshole. Roth manages to be that for no other reason than Cal Lightman really is an asshole. I like it.

Warehouse 13 is back and it's so bad it's funny. It suffers from having two unbearable actors in the lead. George Clooney's project with Jason Lee - Memphis Beat - looks somewhat interesting, though the seasoned cop not doing it by the book is way too clichéd. I'm not sure Lee has the acting chops to pull it off, but they sure make Memphis look like a city I'd like to visit.

[tunaman]

Originally Posted by Pencil

I love it too, but last season was a bit weak. I think Roday's ego is getting a bit big. Dulé Hill is every bit as skilled a comedian and doesn't get nearly as many jokes. Best episode is still 2.01 American Duos.

Actually, I agree. Last season was pretty weak, and I too am afraid of it turning into The Shawn Spencer Show. Although Shawn certainly is the main draw here, it's such a great ensemble cast... I'd hate to see Roday ruin it.

Originally Posted by Pencil

I'm catching up on Lie to Me

I watch Lie to Me too, but there's something about the show I don't like. Worse yet, I can't seem to put a finger on it. The acting seems OK, the characters are mostly likable, and I can even look past the "pseudo-science" aspect of the show. I think it's because it's one of those shows where they always find the killer 58 minutes into the show. But it's more than that. Personally, if I were a Fox exec and had to choose between Human Target, Fringe, or Lie to Me, Lie would be the first to go.

Originally Posted by Pencil

Memphis Beat - looks somewhat interesting

[steps on soapbox]

Meh. Jason Lee is a Scientologist. While I don't actively seek out actors to boycott because of Scientology, if I happen find out that an actor is a member of the cult, I'll start to avoid them... especially since there's dozens of other shows I can get into. Example: I used to like That 70s Show, and especially Laura Prepon. But then I found out she was a Scientologist, so I started liking Mila Kunis... for a while, until I just stopped watching the show altogether. Having said that, I'll make an exception for Jason Dohring on Veronica Mars, as I just loved that show.

[steps off soapbox]

[Pencil]

Originally Posted by tunaman

Meh. Jason Lee is a Scientologist.

Why does Clooney lower himself to work with those wackjobs? I guess Hollywood really makes for strange bedfellows.

But then I found out she was a Scientologist

What is it with celebrities and Scientology?
She just got 90 per cent less hot. Being dumb is not attractive.

[Dudley]

Originally Posted by AuntiePam

The Wire rewards viewers who have the patience to let the story unfold at its own pace. It's even better if you own the DVDs so you can watch often. It's the opposite of instant gratification. It seems slow when you're accustomed to dramas that wrap up a story line in an hour. That's a deal breaker for a lot of people. It's my favorite series. I've probably watched all the way through four or five times, and some episodes more than that. It never gets old.

Totally. It's such an awesome, gritty, true-to-life production not just about detectives but how an entire city operates around politics and corruption. I can watch it over and over and over again, always picking up on something I missed the previous time around. Every character is well-written and well-developed and they actually feel like real people. There has and never will be another show like it.

For me, the best TV series ever is a toss-up between The Wire and Band of Brothers.

[maplekiwi]

The only "must see TV" for me is "I'll do Anything" which is on UKTV . NZ show "Outrageous Fortune" started its 5th & final series last night. I had stopped watching the previous series, but last night's episode was a cracker. http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment...s-good-as-ever
Other than that I watch NZ show "Shortland St", Oz drama Underbelly, The Big Bang Theory &Top Model when I have time.

[blank]

Hmmm:

The last ever series of Big Brother
The repeat of Skins series 4
The repeat of Misfits series 1
The IT Crowd
Stand Up For The Week
That Mitchell and Webb Look
Shooting Stars
And for this week only The Silence

And I have Oz and Six Feet Under series 5 on DVD.

[Tipsy Imperial Concubine]

Project Runway starts on July 29, really looking forward to it! Not sure how I feel about Heidi's new hair. I like my spokesmodels/model hostesses glamorous. Her hair is now shorter than mine and that just can't be right.

I really liked Lost, guess I am in the minority. There was one really bad season, although at this point I do not recall which it was. Overall, I think it was a great series, loved that the characters were not always likable, liked the timeline jumping, but YMMV, etc.

I keep hearing about how great The Sopranos is, but how violent is it? I find that kind of thing really upsetting, it will give me nightmares. Call me wussy (WUSSY!) but it is what it is. Also, I know how it ends, will that ruin it for me?

[AuntiePam]

Originally Posted by Tipsy Imperial Concubine

I keep hearing about how great The Sopranos is, but how violent is it? I find that kind of thing really upsetting, it will give me nightmares. Call me wussy (WUSSY!) but it is what it is. Also, I know how it ends, will that ruin it for me?

A few violent scenes stand out, but they weren't so gory that I had to close my eyes. What made me edgy was the low-key violence -- ugly arguments between ugly people, always trying to get over on each other. If you're losing faith in the basic goodness of people, this isn't the show to watch.

[Giraffe]

Originally Posted by Tamerlane

I've started watching the Sarah Connor Chronicles on Roku. Two episodes in, I'm so far entirely undecided on it.

We watched the first season and part of the second of that awful show, solely because a friend told us it got good eventually. That friend is either a goddamn liar or a friggin' retard, because it just got worse and worse. Cut your losses.

I'm not watching much right now -- just the new Futurama episodes and whatever catches my idle fancy on Netflix Watch Instantly. (Last night I queued up the first couple of episodes of The State. Kind of funny, but they were trying a bit too hard and hadn't hit their stride yet.) Very much looking forward to the next season of Mad Men.

As for Sopranos vs. The Wire, while I quite liked them both, like others in this thread, I'd definitely recommend The Wire to start. It's just really interesting and really, really good. I quite like mob movies, so I liked The Sopranos a lot as well, but I don't think it's as universally appealing as The Wire.

I thought Lost was awesome, but only because I had low expectations all the way through -- it's a soap opera set in an X-Filesy kind of mystery, and the dialogue and characters reflect that. As guilty pleasure trash shows go, it's top notch.

[zuma]

There is a sabatouer on Big Brother this season. And Chef Ramsey is calling everyong f*****g donkeys again.

OK, OK, I'm currently watching those two plus:

Futurama
True Blood
Friday Night Lights

Awaiting Mad Men, Dexter, and Weeds.

[Dirx]

I've recently started watching Farscape via Netflix. I'm really liking it so far. I'm actually rather surprised at the depth and development of the characters in just the first few episodes already.

[Lungfish]

Wednesday tv looks good. A new series of Law & Order: Criminal Intent start on Five. Then its The Big Bang Theory on Channel 4 followed by 2 episodes of My Name Is Earl. Last episode of The IT Crowd on Friday.

[AuntiePam]

The new season of Mad Men starts tonight!!

[Caprese]

Originally Posted by AuntiePam

The new season of Mad Men starts tonight!!

I thought I was the only one who cared!

[iampunha]

Originally Posted by Caprese

I thought I was the only one who cared!

^3

[jali]

I added Starz so that I can see Pillars of The Earth: I love it! There have been a few storyline changes, but the casting is wonderful and I'm looking forward to episode 2.

I watched an episode of Hung last night - pretty good. I'll have to give it another go.

I'm becoming addicted to Generations and Isidingo (two South African soaps on the Africa Channel).

I watch True Blood - hilarious!

SYTYCD is a "can't miss" for me too as are the reruns of Glee.

[whirlingbladesofkick]

Hung is good, but I find it nearly as depressing as Breaking Bad.

[blank]

Sherlock started last night- Steven Moffat does it again!

[Khampelf]

The Tudors and Dexter are on hold while the GF is away, so I've been catching up on Burn Notice (thanks to the appreciation thread) and had a robot chicken festival on a rare chunk of downtime last friday. I think it was friday, one day is blearing into the next.

[Taur]

Count me as another one solidly in the MAD MEN camp.

It's Monday, so that means new episodes of LIE TO ME and GOOD GUYS. Both are still highly in my favour for being mid-season starts.

Tim Roth and Kelli Williams have terrific chemistry in LIE TO ME, and Roth portrays Lightman with the one-up swagger that someone who knows what you're thinking while you're thinking it would possess. I'd like to say the show hasn't fallen to too many cliches where plot progression is concerned.

Save for last week's episode, GOOD GUYS has provided an hour of laughs. Top notch editing, love the sound effects and the flashbacks, and Bradley Whitford's unconventional ways are a hilarious foil for Hanks' achiever persona.


[Anxiously awaiting the season opener of DEXTER because--OMG--the previous season's finale!]

[tunaman]

Originally Posted by blank

Sherlock started last night- Steven Moffat does it again!

I haven't seen the entire episode yet, but I've really enjoyed the first 37 minutes of "A Study in Pink". Sad that there will only be three episodes, but they're 90 minutes each, so I guess I can't complain too much.

Originally Posted by blank

The IT Crowd

... has been a disappointment so far this season, IMHO. That is, until Friday's episode, which was actually pretty funny. I just wish they'd do more, ya know, IT stuff. I also wish they'd hurry up and get funding for a new series of FM.

Originally Posted by Board Taurus

Save for last week's episode, GOOD GUYS has provided an hour of laughs.

And Jenny Wade. You can't forget the Jenny Wade!

Originally Posted by zuma

And Chef Ramsey is calling everyong f*****g donkeys again.

Am I the only person tired of his shows? I mean, I liked Ramsey and all, but it seems like every season of Hell's Kitchen is exactly. the. fucking. same. Male vs. Female teams... Various challenges coming down to the last item... I just don't care anymore.

Originally Posted by AuntiePam

The new season of Mad Men starts tonight!!

"I can use my expense account if I say they're whores."

I missed that show so much!

[Pencil]

I just wanted to add that I think Persons Unknown is improving. Hope they get a chance to wrap it up before it's canceled.

[tunaman]

I'm sure they will: it's only a 13-part miniseries, and they've already paid for it.

[Pencil]

Good to know. Thanks.