TV

Mar. 4th, 2020 08:50 pm
sasha_feather: Kira Nerys from deep space nine (Kira)
Still sick, but today is the first day with no measurable fever. I've been watching a lot of TV.

"What We do in the Shadows" (TV show) is newly up on Hulu. I adored this and watched it quickly. It is a mockumentary about several vampires living together in a house on Staten Island. The producers are Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi. I liked this better than the movie, because there is a female vampire and there are canon bisexual vampires. Very silly, clever, and enjoyable. In one particular episode that I loved, Lazlo turns into his bat form only to get caught by animal control and put into a shelter, where his friends must rescue him.

Content notes: silly violence and blood, references to child harm (kids being turned into vampires), vomit, dead bodies, raunchy humor.

Ragnorak - Netflix (TV show from Norway).

I watched the first episode of this and really dug it, but then at the end, the lesbian character is murdered?!?!11! Probably will not continue with it.

22 July - Netflix.
"BOATS" (based on a true story) of the neo-Nazi terrorist attack in Norway. In English, but with many Norwegian actors, including one of the same main people from Ragnorak. This is engaging and sensitively told. It focuses on one teenage boy who is a survivor of the shootings, and also on the trial of the terrorist.
sasha_feather: Retro-style poster of skier on pluto.   (hot fuzz)
Pretty minimal spoilers for runaways thru ep 1.08; Travelers thru 2.03

Runaways - on Hulu

This is a Marvel show with high production values, great casting, good style, and an interesting premise/source. Unfortunately it has two major problems: It's way too slow, and it spends too much time showing us the villains.

I might drop this show, or I might keep going. I enjoy all the kids, especially Karolina, who is queer. The extremely slow pace is something I could handle. But, I'm increasingly uncomfortable with how the show is handling the villains, who are the parents of the protagonists. Gert's parents in particular are played by very likable actors and seem to be portrayed as funny and quirky scientists. Gert's mom looks like Mrs. Frizzle from the magic schoolbus. Chase's mom is also somewhat sympathetic in the way she's portrayed. And while there's something to be said for complex villains, and for how conflicted a person (especially a kid) can feel when someone they love is acting in evil ways-- I'm tired of it. I want the kids to take a firm stand, as they do in the comics.

In issue one of the comics, the kids run away, giving the story its name. I've seen through episode 8 of the show, and the kids have not run away, nor really done anything except investigate. Chase acts in an especially upsetting manner, and as the only white male of the group, seeing him angry and violent, and acting against the group's interest, is upsetting.

eta: We're living in a time when sympathy and understanding are routinely granted to some of the most evil people. I want this show to say, no, we are not doing that. Murder is wrong and standing up for what's right is hard but you can do it. I don't want to watch a show that is about sympathy for the devil.

Travelers - Netflix

I started season 2 and watched 3 episodes in one go. I love this show, primarily because I love the characters. They are all people who are trying very hard to do the right thing. Sometimes they don't know what that is, or they fail, but they are trying together.

The men on this show are not typical of SF action/adventure characters. They are compassionate, kind, and respectful. Part of their rules as time travelers is that they are not supposed to take a life, or save a life, unless directed to do so. Two of the characters, Trevor and Phillip, really struggle with this and try to save lives anyway. There is a man who's a social worker, and he struggles a bit maintaining his own boundaries, and loving too much. It's so refreshing to see these portrayals. The women are also great: Carly, the tactician, and Marcy, the team's medic. In late season one they introduce a woman who is a programmer; she's sarcastic and a little mean.

Highly recommended.

tv

Apr. 29th, 2017 01:50 am
sasha_feather: Retro-style poster of skier on pluto.   (Default)
I tried a couple of shows out and rejected them:

Hap and Leonard (on Netflix)
I wanted to like this because the guy who plays Omar on the Wire (Michael K. Williams) plays a gay Vietnam vet. But after a couple of episodes, I didn't like any of the characters. Williams' character, Leonard, was OK, but everyone else was mean and horrible.

Limitless (on Netflix)

A movie spin-off. Brian thinks of himself as a loser and a disappointment to his dad, even though his dad is supportive. He takes a drug called NZT, which temporarily turns him into a super-genious. I enjoyed the pilot because he used his genious for a bunch of things, like diagnosing his father's illness, solving a murder, playing music really well in a park, and talking to people about their problems (social intelligence!). But in the 2nd episode, it's clear that this is just another procedural about a white guy who is a rule-breaking genious for the FBI. He gets away with his rule-breaking because he produces results (and also b/c privilege). The science in the 2nd episode was also pretty bad: an engineered flu strain that was supposedly used for assasinations. Riiiiight. I stopped watching.

I settled on an addictive, violent, perhaps overly dramatic, gripping show on Hulu: BLACK SAILS. This has lots of queerness and is very pretty.

TV shows

Oct. 10th, 2016 10:18 pm
sasha_feather: Retro-style poster of skier on pluto.   (Daredevil)
Inspired by kuwdora, here is some of what I'm watching lately:

@midnight
A quiz-style comedy show with guests and internet prompts. There is the occasional offensive joke (based on joking about diabetes or something else tasteless); but overall it's well done if a bit on the rude side. Sometimes I laugh my butt off which is what I need. I watch this on Hulu.

Pitch
I've watched the first three eps on Hulu, and I'm in love. Ginny Baker is the first woman to play in the major leagues. She's a pitcher for the San Diego Padres. All the characters are nuanced and each episode has a theme that is explored. The pilot focuses on Ginny's first games and her relationship with her father. The second ep focuses on Ginny being in the spotlight of celebrity, and her relationship with her agent. The third ep focuses on how she wants to be treated as a ballplayer first, and how she's had to fight for that.

Luke Cage
was AMAZING. So refreshing. I don't have a lot to say about it just yet.

Supergirl
This was cheesy and had bad writing at times, but there were some things I just loved. I loved the relationships between women, and how every episode passed the Bechdel test. Cat Grant is a terrific, hilarious character. Kara's earnest desire to do good, and her belief in other people's goodness, is wonderful to watch. The show improved over the course of season one.

Nurse Jackie
I got to mid-season 3 and stopped watching because it was giving me bad dreams. :/

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