Your capsule review and recommendations for streaming series

The second season of Minx is really good. Don't know why HBO dropped it.

Wrestlers on Netflix

A bunch of mostly emotional damaged people grinding away at their weird version of the American dream. Some eye candy, and a lot of pathos. Several of the characters make you dislike them and root for them in equal measure. The fakery of the wrestling is artistically played against the cinema verite style of the documentary. It was very engaging and accessible to me, even though I had only a passing familiarity with professional wrestling.

I'm watching Ina Garten's Back To Basics (also known as "Butter, Butter and More Butter!"). Her recipes are good, though I don't you learn as much as you do when watching America's Test Kitchen, but Ina as the Hampton's Lady Bountiful & her cadre of gay BFFs is somewhat entertaining.

"The Other Black Girl" started off great — some really good actors, and the main character's lesbian best friend is hilarious — but as it went on I wondered how they'd explain it all and wrap it up. They really didn't. In that sense it reminded me of "American Horror Story," but this was better.

Wednesday was unwatchable after about 20 minutes. Smug. Unfunny. Trying way too hard. Ugh. Hard pass.

I’m watching High Town. It’s set on Cape Cod, the main female character is a lesbian who lives in Ptown. Based on the kitschy/retro opening, I thought it was going to be a fun show about life on the Cape but it’s about the dark underbelly of Cape Cod’s opiate epidemic.

So far no man on man sex scenes or nudity but a ton of pussy eating and tits shown.

The opening has Kathy Valentine singing “Vacation” (which she wrote) with her original band. I think it’s better than the Go Gos version.

This season of Unforgotten is dire.

[quote]The Chelsea Detective (season 1 and 2) A mystery series about a socially awkward, brilliant dyslexic cop who lives on a houseboat. Many misdirections and the plot thickens in the last 15 minutes.

Do you know why they changed the sidekick for Season 2? I really liked the Season 1 actress.

If you like British TV detective shows, you might want to try "No Offence," (2015-2018) which has some comedy aspects among the crime stories. Written and created by the guy who did "Shameless." It's on Acorn.

If you haven't seen the UK series "Detectorists," all three series are now on Tubi, Roku, and the other free platforms. Mackenzie Crook (from "The Office") and Toby Jones are amazing. Sad, funny, poignant, brilliantly written.

Loved the Detectorists. Thanks for the tip about "No Offence." Agree that "Wednesday" isn't worth it. Strikes me as teen programming.

I can't put my finger on what's wrong with "Unforgotten" apart from the loss of Nicola Walter and that's a biggie.

Poker Face on Peacock. Very entertaining in small doses. Do not attempt to binge the whole series or it will become tiresome. I recommend two episodes at a time, with a week-long break in between.

Hightown looks good but you need a Starz subscription.

I watched the trailer and knew it would be exactly as you say R5. I didn't bother to watch it.

[quote]I recommend two episodes at a time, with a week-long break in between.

Why not one at a time? Why turn it into a movie?

Thanks for the recommendations for shows on Acorn. I’ve been watching The Brokenwood Mysteries, a New Zealand based show, on Acorn and have really enjoyed it.

Whoever recommended that is out of their mind R16. People binge watching everything now.

I was looking at The Brokenwood Mysteries and thinking of watching it R17. I'll give it a go then.

I'm watching Scott & Bailey at the moment. Never seen it before and really enjoying it. It's very good. Then I'll watch Unforgotten S5. Just finished Blue Lights season 1. An Irish cop show. Very good and gritty. Season 2 filming now.

R18, are there any hot Irish lads on it? Any gay ones?

Echoing R10 & R11, “Detectorists” is on a very short list of the best shows of the last 10 years.

Yes R19. One of the main characters is a lesbian. Some very hot guys.

Sorry - I got that wrong. It was a different UK cop show. Sorry the main character is not a lesbian. I don't think there were any gays in it. I think it was only straight characters but very gay friendly.

For Netflix series that you have no interest in watching but are so much a part of the zeitgeist that you feel obligated to become familiar with them, I recommend the YouTube series I Like to Watch. Trixie Mattel and Katya breeze through an entire season of a show in 20-30 minutes while ripping it to shreds when deserved. It's how I got through Squid Game, Wednesday, The Queen's Gambit, Tiger King, Heartstopper, and many others.

Sorry for the stinky linky. It was to a playlist of all the shows, which DL didn't like. Here's the latest one.

R12, I think it’s because a) I don’t care about the victim b) her mother is horrible c) her brother is pretty disgusting too d) the old guy is sympathetic which probably means he did it but since he’s got a fatal disease, he’ll probably go to Switzerland to be euthanized d) I don’t know how the guy living in Paris fits in but he’s probably guilty of something too e) the new Guv and her marriage problems are not interesting and f) not enough Hayley Mills. I could go on but you get my drift.

I started watching a new series within the past week on either Paramount Plus+, Prime Video, or peacocktv.com, but I don't remember what it was. I know it's new because I was only able to watch one episode. I don't remember what it was about, who was in it, or any other useful details. I think new episodes come out on either Fridays or Sundays.

Anyone have any idea what show I might be talking about?

Hightown is entertaining, if somewhat formulaic and predictable. The main character female agent is a gorgeous Gold Star Lesbian as mentioned upthread. There are some decent character actors featured in various eccentric roles.

The Righteous Gemstones is funny

r26 here again. It was All Rise. New episode (Season 3, episode 12) tomorrow.

I'm glad to see so many people enjoyed Detectorists.

A lot of tv OP. Tell us about you - a shut in or old or ugly?

I like Shining Vale, the new Courtney Cox show, but I don’t know why I like it.

R27, are there any gay male characters in High Town?

R33, are there any gay male characters in your posts at R33 and R19?

R34, yes. Me.

Didn't see any gays in the first season of Yellowstone although the developer's wife likes threesomes. Not showing gay relationships among the cowboys who work and bunk together is a missed opportunity.

The Chelsea detective has a lesbian aunt. The Other Black Girl has a lesbian BFF who is prominently featured and fabulous. Unforgotten's two principal actors are straight but has gays here and there. The Reese Witherspoon character in The Morning Show is a lesbian.

I resisted The Righteous Gemstones for the longest time, but got into it while recuperating from surgery. OMG. Some VERY funny stuff! I almost busted a few stitches. Lots of male full frontal -- almost to the point of being absurd, but who's counting, ha ha! There are some story lines that go nowhere and some of the episodes could have been chopped substantially, but ... I laughed out loud in just about every episode!

I liked the first couple of seasons of Yellowstone probably because I lived in New Mexico and the dynamics between ranchers, Indians and developers were not unfamilar beside the scenery was gorgeous. The violence became too annoying. I enjoyed the Chelsea Detective.

I like Elite on Netflix. Lots of sexy gay characters and plots set at an exclusive boarding school in Spain. Season 7 starts later this month.

Really looking forward to 8 episode series Fellow Travelers starring Matt Bomer & Jonathan Bailey coming out at the end of October. It’s about a love relationship between two men who meet in Washington DC during the McCarthy hearings and follows them through the decades up to 1980s. It’s based on a good book by Thomas Mallon, but seems to only be using that for a departure point.

I really liked Happy Valley. Many thumbs up for acting, ambiance and plot.

I'll add Occupied, the Norwegian series. And, believe it or not, Homecoming, the weird 2018 Julia Roberts series. I was pleasantly surprised. Stephan James was terrific in it.

R41, Happy Valley is sensational. We have two eps left of the final season. Sarah Lancashire has to be the best actor working.

The acting is exceptional and the writer has a sick, twisted mind.

Search Party: the first season is really good. Then the show falls completely apart, the writers must have gotten very high and lost track of characters and plot. One of those shows where it's best to stop before season 2.

ZeroZeroZero - I tried this at first because Gabriel Byrne was in it, but there's a torture scene early on that drove me off. You don't see the torture, but you can hear it. I tried again and this time made it all the way through. The structure is curious, but it works. Some review described it as three different movies woven together and that's about right. The Gabriel Byrne section is about a quirky American family (daughter with lavender hair, they get high together) in a quirky American city (New Orleans) who run a shipping business, partly legit, but the most profitable part of the business is being middlemen in the drug business. The Mexican section is brutal with narcotrafficante violence but with some good acting. The Mexicans are selling cocaine, which the Americans ship to Calabria, which takes us to the third section. In Calabria we see a 'Ndrangheta family in a generational struggle. This feels more like a Mafia movie showing the family issues interwoven with criminal business decisions. I recommend it.

"Mrs. Sidhu Investigates" is kind of a "Murder, She Wrote"-type detective series. The protagonist is British-Indian widow who runs a catering business in "Slough and Environs." Co-stars Craig Parkinson from "Line of Duty." It's on Acorn. (Four 90-minute episodes in Season/Series 1.)

I'm taking a real risk recommending this, but the Sleepytime episode of the Australian childrens' show Bluey. The music and the animation are beautiful. I could see a Junior figure skater doing a program to the music, an adaptation of Jupiter by Gustav Holtz.

I’ve recently finished Deadloch, on Prime. Set in a small town in Australia, it’s a murder mystery that is also funny. The lead actors have great chemistry, the writing is tight, beautiful scenery and lots of queer characters. My partner and I loved it.

Oh please series 3 of Happy Valley was ridiculous.

[quote] her brother is pretty disgusting too

It’s her son.

It was also kind of obvious in Unforgitten that

(spoiler alert)

*

*

*

*

The noisiest people were going to be innocent of the murder. The mother (Ebele) of the victim was such a whining, loud, teary, drunken, dramatic mess that she couldn’t be the murderer. Her grandson had a terrible childhood and was having a terrible adulthood, but he genuinely cared for his gf and tried to be a protector for her. So he was innocent of murder even though he lied about Lord Hume at the end. He wasn’t honest. But he wasn’t a murderer.

Ebele chewed the fucking furniture in every scene she was in.

"The Night Manager" with Hugh Lauries Tom Hiddleston, Olivia Colman, David Harewood , Tom Hollander and Elizabeth Debicki is highly recomment. A spy caper from 2016, on Prime and Acorn TV.

Grantchester. Hot priest helps solve weekly murder with daddy detective. Possible the highest murder rate in all of the UK. Also subplot with sweet/sad gay character in late 50s England.

I have not yet finished [italic]the Offer[/italic], but I'm several episodes in. I'm enjoying it. It's weird to see Pacino considered a nobody, though he still was. And I had never really thought about how specific his accent is, the nasality of his voice, but the actor does a good job. Burn Gorman really surprised me. I had only seen him play tough guys prior to this. His portrayal of Bluhdorn is a scream. I've never seen video of Bluhdorn, but I've read descriptions of him. The actress playing Ruddy's first wife, Francoise, is gorgeous. If she really was that beautiful, smart, and gutsy, no wonder he tried so hard to keep her. I'm taking a break right now, but it's fun.

World on Fire is back ad it’s a mess of a show. Everyone mixed up, unhappy, sniping at each other or dead. It’s an ordeal and I shall not continue watching.

[quote]Unforgotten (series 5) I wondered why the Met Police devotes so many resources to cold cases and then I realized how much lower the murder rate is proportionally in the UK vs the US

I always wonder why the real UK police try so hard and use so many resources, when the judges are total jokes and give the most paltry prison terms. The average killer in the UK gets out of jail in 7 years or less. And the last year or two of that sentence is spent in an "open prison".

Our Flag Means Death is mildly entertaining/funny.

There's always Beulah, on YouTube. Ethel Waters, Hattie McDaniel and Louise Beavers shift through the main role.

How to with John Wilson--HBO Max--quirky, documentary about random things to do in NYC. It’s like the ‘Kind bud’ of TV shows.

Warrior--HBO Max--taken from a script that Bruce Lee was working on before he died. Based on the Chinese community in 1700s San Francisco. Pretty violent. Bonus Hot Asian actors with British accents in real life and hot British actors with American accents.

The Cleaner--Amazon Prime--Greg Davies plays a crime scene cleaner who meets wacky people while…cleaning crime scenes.

Peep Show--anywhere--BBC show about two polar opposite flatmates

IT Crowd--anywhere--Absurdist British humor about three IT employees against the world

Justified--Hulu--most recent season. Boyd Holbrook is in tighty whities for most of it

Gangs of London--Amazon Prime--a violent BBC drama about a current-day mob family.

And I forgot

Ten-year-old Tom--HBO max--funny animated show about Tom, a 10-year-old who CONSTANTLY gets shit on by everyone from his mom to his school principal

I'm really enjoying the new British comedy Still Up on Apple+. It's about two insomniacs who phone each other every night when everyone else is asleep. One of them is a shut-in and the other has a normal life except for the insomnia. It's charming and sometimes LOL funny, and it really captures that very-late-night weirdness. The woman is Antonia Thomas, who was in The Good Doctor.

Another vote here for The Offer. R54 forgot to mention the presence in it of Juno Temple, more recently of Ted Lasso fame.

Everyone who I’ve recommended watch The Offer immediately got hooked. While Burn Gorman is great (as is almost the entire cast), it’s Matthew Goode who is beyond amazing in channeling Bob Evans. My new favorite actor, especially when you factor his performance from The Lookout. And a shoutout to Juno Temple who’s also quite different than her Ted Lasso role.

Damages

The all too short Jericho

And the all too short Eli Stone

R59, well, listen, hun, the first Chinese arrived in San Francisco in 1848 with the Gold Rush.

Bad Sisters on AppleTV+. It takes place in Ireland so you may need closed captioning to understand what they're saying.

Four sisters hate the brother-in-law of the 5th sister. He winds up dead, the insurance company is broke, and they are trying to prove murder or suicide. One, one-eyed lesbian and one really hot 1/2 brother in the insurance company. There's only 1 season so far with 10 episodes. It's already been renewed for a second season.

Misfits is on FreeVee. It’s five (short) seasons. A group of foul mouthed youth offenders are assigned community service in London when a weird storm passes through and they’re all struck by lightning. Ok, yeah, there’s a sci fi element but it doesn’t play out in the usual super hero way. I mean, if your new found ability is to make peoples hair fall out, wouldn’t you use it on your asshole ex? And how do you get rid of a body or two. Or three, when none of you own a car?

[quote]Bad Sisters on AppleTV+. It takes place in Ireland so you may need closed captioning to understand what they're saying.

Bad Sisters is good — anything with Sharon Horgan is worth checking out. And Bad Sisters proves Eve Hewson isn't a nepo baby; she really can act and has mucho screen presence.

Bosch: Legacy, season 2 starts on Amazon FreeVee on Friday, October 20. FreeVee is Prime + commercials, and I know some just can't with commercials. I do love Bosch enough to make the sacrifice, and since I watch on my laptop, I just go somewhere else during the commercials.

I don't think you need to be a Prime member.

Thanks I had no idea Bosch came back. He's so sexy.

Bad Sisters wasn’t bad by I couldn’t finish it. It has one of the more obnoxious, evil male characters ever created and it made me quite mad each time i tried. And you had to suspend disbelief to have and maintain someone like that in your life (though ultimately thst was rather the point).

I saw The Wilderness, in Amazon Prime, with DL favourite Oliver Jackson-cohen. He looks very good but the series goes, very quickly, from bad to worse. A very deranged female character, though it was so bad i am not sure they viewed it assome kind of female empowerment.

Eight is Enough on Tubi.

The original Dynasty series that aired on ABC from 1981-1989. Stream on Prime or the Dynasty channel on Pluto TV.

Just finished the final season of Happy Valley. Loved the whole series and will miss the characters. James Norton never looked as good as he does in season one!

Finishing up the final season of Reservation Dogs. What a lovely show. I hope to see all these actors again.

Actually, on one of threads about streaming shows, someone recommended In My Skin on Hulu. It became one of my favorite shows ever.

I enjoyed Blue Lights and there are some cute guys.

R59 Yeah...GREAT. Who cares?

UGGGH. Don't you HATE when you have a smart-ass retort and then reply to the wrong post?

R64 Yeah...GREAT. Who cares?

[quote]Bad Sisters wasn’t bad by I couldn’t finish it. It has one of the more obnoxious, evil male characters ever created and it made me quite mad each time i tried. And you had to suspend disbelief to have and maintain someone like that in your life (though ultimately thst was rather the point).

I felt the same way: yes, you could suspend belief that the sister married an asshole, but the other sisters continually fell for his stunts and didn't get wise & just shun him entirely. I'm not entirely sure why, but I don't like Sharon Horgan & I think she basically does the same thing in every role. It was mildy entertaining & the shots of Ireland were beautiful, but I just couldn't invest enough in it to get through it.

R77 You call that a "smart-ass retort"? "Complete fail" is more like it. I'd say "don't you just HATE it when asshats have hissy fits when their mistakes are identified?", but I find you pathetically amusing. And there will be more asshattery from you!

[quote]I enjoyed Blue Lights and there are some cute guys.

They made a TV series about Kmart?

Nonsense r44. Search Party holds up start to finish. It just lampoons a different oeuvre every season.

R65 the really hot half brother is the absolutely delicious Daryl McCormack. I really don't get the hype about Paul Mescal when this guy is the sexiest man in Ireland.

I couldn't get past episode 2 of DEADLOCH. Didn't find it funny, and the detective from Darwin is too irritating to bother watching.

Tried season 1 of THE GREAT, but it's so puerile. It's like a poor man's THE FAVOURITE.

Started two series that have been promising so far: MRS. AMERICA on FX/Hulu (about right winger Phyllis Schlafly) and THE ENGLISH on Amazon Prime.

Lessons in Chemistry but it's too soon to tell.

Just watched the first episode of Drops of God and it's very good so far.

I’m heartbroken because I just started the third season of Misfits and one of the main characters is gone. The new one they dropped in is terrible. I looked on IMDb and he stays until the end but three more people leave after this one.

It’s just interesting how you can start with a cast of five really obnoxious people but the writing is so good that by the third episode, you’re really invested in them and they can add a new continuing character (Ruth Negga) in the second season and she really clicks too. But then a new season starts and it’s all shot to hell.

Just saw Jed Mercurio's Payback on Britbox and Motionvision, which is free. Good thriller with fine ensemble acting. Recommended.

Dark Winds is really good.

Bodies on Netflix. Four police offers in four different eras must solve the same crime. Interesting idea, some excellent acting. Enjoying so far…

The last season of Billions is actually pretty good.

Before Bad Sisters there was Catastrophe. 'Why don't you just shove walnuts up your cunt to cure your cancer' is one of my fav lines of the 21st Century. Sadly, it gets weak in the final season.

Drops of God cinematography. It look like it was filmed through a greasy lens.

There's at least one stinky, unhappy cunt in every thread. Hi R31!

I was trying to enjoy Deadloch, R48, but the character Eddie Redcliffe, the dirty, whiny obnoxious second lead, played by Madeleine Sami who apparently was a writer on it was so fucking annoying I couldn't watch past the third episode. I wanted someone to kill her off.

Cunk tried way too hard. I stopped after about 20 minutes.

Just watched the first three of the four episodes of "The Sixth Commandment" on Britbox. Highly recommended story of murderer who romances and kills senior citizens

Fellow Travelers started today on Paramount + Showtime. Loved the chemistry between Matt and Jonathan, and the story works. Hand job and blowjob (both off camera) plus a dong shot of a peripheral character.

I’m so sick of magic and the supernatural

Payback is really good, watching on Britbox

In honor of Halloween I want back to watch Red Tide the American Horror Story first part of Season 10. Vampires in Provincetown. It's pretty good!

Big Brother on CBS / Paramount Plus

R 99, you can find the two final Payback episodes on dailymotion.com

I just finished watching Absolute Beginners on Netflix. It’s a good series about a Polish boy and girl applying for film school and the boy athlete who comes into their lives. Some cute actors.

I finally ditched my cable boxes today and now I'm getting adjusted to having access to streaming and OTA only. Fortunately, I already have a lot of subscriptions, but I'm thinking of upgrading Hulu to Hulu Plus Live.

R66 - Misfits is excellent. Great recommendation. Super quirky, hilarious, gruesome and very well done. Made by Channel 4.

I just watched season 1 of "Under the Vines". It was very fun and uplifting. Rebecca Gibney stars with Charles Edwards. It's a New Zealand comedy-drama about 2 people whose lives are completely fucked up. She's an aging Sydney party girl with a fabulous wardrobe and no money and he's an about to be disbarred lawyer whose wife cheated on him from London. Then they jointly inherit a decrepit vineyard in the South Island of New Zealand when her stepfather and his uncle die. They both travel to NZ thinking they are the sole owner of they vineyard - only to find they are joint owners. They instantly hate each other and don't know what to do with the vineyard. Great supporting cast and Gibney is always nice to watch. I'm just about to start season 2. It's on Amazon, AMC, Acorn and ABC iView.

To R33 - [bold]YES[/bold] there are 2 gay male characters in the series!!! One, a young very statuesque vineyard handyman and the other a famous closeted Australian actor. They begin to fall in love in season 1 and it will obviously develop further in season 2.

[quote]FreeVee is Prime + commercials.

Many will note as I have that "Watch Free on Prime" is quickly coming to an end. Most of those shows are transferring to FreeVee (example: Directorists, which still has its Prime links but then says the show is unavailable but you can watch it on FreeVee with ads).

Either that, or you have to pay to watch on Prime. Or get a separate monthly subscription to some other channel.

Amazon is evil.

More for R33 - the vineyard worker on the left and the actor on the right:

Kath & Kim!

I just saw Pain Hustlers and unlike the rest of this genre, it was only two hours long. Emily Blunt, to my great surprise, was excellent playing a stripper-turned-manager. Her story is almost completely invented. I don't know why they fictionalize these stories to the extent they do. Just make a movie about a drug called Schmentenal.

r1, It was one of their more expensive comedies. They also got rid of, "Legendary" despite winning an Emmy because of the cost. It was Zaslav cutting corners.

Zaslav has reduced the former HBO into a pile of shit.

Fellow Travelers on Showtime starring Matt Bomer & Jonathan Bailey is hot, hot, hot!

I am loving "Endeavour" on Prime with Shaun Evans and Roger Allam.

I'm current with episodes of Bosch: Legacy, Season 2 on Amazon Freevee. Guy Wilson, whom a number of you will remember as "Strudel" when he played Will Horton on Days of Our Lives, plays a very bad guy this season. I've watched eight episodes; there are two more to go.

Dr. Death on Peacock is decent.

R112 I couldn’t agree more. HBO Max or whatever they are calling it is absolutely awful. I cancelled it in October.

They're not releasing the reboot of Salem's Lot in theatres (was supposed to come out last year, then this year), because, "They need more content for Max". .

I’m loving “No Offence” on Acorn right now. Thanks for the recommendation in a previous post. I watched a season of Hinterland, set in Wales, but no one ever cracked a smile and just snapped at each other. Got too depressing.

R96 Thank you! Just started and am loving it.

Omg, Hinterland was horrible. I can picture dead Chandler Bing saying, “Could you possibly make this show worse?” and the stonefaced cast saying, “No.” I bailed.

The Curse-Amazon Prime-- BBC show set in the 80s about a wacky group of people who stole some gold bars and different criminal elements are trying to kill them. Made by the "People Who Do Nothing" writers.

30 Coins-HBO max--Spanish supernatural drama starring that hot Latin dude from Sense 8. A small Spanish town is affected by the power struggle over the 30 coins Judas earned for betraying Jesus

The first season of “Killing Eve” is on Acorn. I started watching it last night.

Started the first season of Slow Horses. Required several recaps, commentaries and replays. Gary Oldman is brilliant.

Gave Bucaneers three minutes which is more than it deserved. Edith Wharton would die. Reviews said it was for Bridgerton fans. That's another way of saying it's shit with a multicultural update.

I started [italic]the Gold[/italic] on Paramount. It's about a British gold heist in the 80s and the police tracking down the crooks. Lots of class conflict, some good music from the 80s. I tried it because the cast includes Dominic Cooper, whom I love, as a lawyer who married up and wants to climb himself so he isn't beholden to his FIL. I haven't yet finished, so I don't know whether it ends satisfactorily, but I'm enjoying it so far. Hugh Bonneville plays the copper in charge (I still haven't mastered the ranks, despite years of watching British mysteries).

Watching ALL THE LIGHT YOU CANNOT SEE on Netflix. If you've read the book, don't bother watching. It feels like the work of people trying to do a second string Spielberg movie, including the syrupy score.

The lead actress is not very interesting, but the script does her and the rest of the cast no favors. Mark Ruffalo is absurdly miscast, Hugh Laurie isn't much better, and series is full of actors using British accents to play French people.

Louis Hoffman from DARK is handsome as ever and comes off better than his co-stars, but I'm still not sure how good an actor he is.

The director, Shawn Levy, is a hack who's done such films as A NIGHT IN THE MUSEUM and THIS IS WHERE I LEAVE YOU.

Just finished Bodies on Netflix. Really enjoyed it.

Watching, "Dévoré par les flammes" or "Burning Body". I'm watching it in French, and the lead lady is living the life that we all want-she hooks up with 3 sexy Spanish mens who are obsessed with her.

I binged the 2nd season of [italic]Joe Pickett[/italic] on Paramount. I assume it was created to fill a hole that [italic]Longmire[/italic] left. Pickett is a game warden in Wyoming. This is more much family oriented, though. Still Indian issues with missing women, and still corruption issues, but not as dark as in mood as Longmire. If you want to watch a nice family coping with trauma and crime amid beautiful scenery, give it a try. Nothing gay and no one as DILF hot as Robert Taylor or Lou Diamond Philips. Sharon Lawrence appears in a supporting role, which kept me going.

R129 Burning Body is in Spanish. Why are you watching it in French?

Partner is watching "Ordeal by Innocence," an Agatha Christie three-parter with a cast that must have gotten drunk together each night. I feel for them.

r131, I'm working on my French. I watch everything I can in French. I've discovered that the series is based on a real events, and there was a doc made from it. Girlfriend was a nympho!

Since several posters watch BritBox, I received an offer for a yearly subscription for $72 with the code

SECRETSALE

Which is 20 % off the usual price. I ordered through Rakuten and got an extra $10 off. Hoping for a good Acorn deal soon.

Acorn used to let teachers subscribe for 6.99 a year. Don't know if they still have it.

Now watching "This England" which is interminable and not recommended.

I just saw a documentary on Max about a training academy for Navajo police recruits. Navajo Police Class 57. OMG, being a cop there has to be worse than being an inner city cop in the rest of the US.

[quote]I just saw a documentary on Max about a training academy for Navajo police recruits.

I was a Navajo police recruit!

My niece was over and insisted on watching two episodes of "The Buccaneers" since I have Apple TV. It's part of the Bridgerton genre of poorly scripted historical dramas where no one gives a shit about accuracy and the casting and storyline reflects Gen Z values. A total, irrevocable piece of shit that should send Edith Wharton rolling in her grave.

^multiple DL posters have indicated how terrible The Buccaneers is, which is too bad because I remember the previous filmed version (years ago, at this point) that starred DL fave Carla Gugino. I actually liked the symbiotic relationship between the Americans that needed the snob appeal of the British aristocracy for their new found wealth & the Brits that desperately needed the American $$ to maintain their crumbling estates.

FWIW, Plex sucks. I was in the mood to watch a movie Plex was showing with ads. Too many ads, too many interruptions, and loading delays, which I see on no other streaming service.

I watched the Serpent Queen on Starz. It’s a train wreck, but I finished it anyway.

I don’t know why they had to go with such a “mystical” angle. Catherine de’ Medici had an interesting life, without making anything up.

I'm enjoying Bodies on Netflix. It has gay characters, too

Full Panties on Cinemax was awesome and it sounds like a Season 2 was ordered1

Solar Opposites on Hulu. For people who think that the characters in Rick & Morty are too mild-mannered. Not sure I'll bother continuing.

American Horror Story - gave up after the first episode of the first series. Stagey, un-scary shit.

Tried Succession. Hated all the characters, gave up after the first episode. Culkin makes me physically ill.

Loki - I thought Hiddleston was good and the sets were amazing. Gave up after the first episode of series two, when I realized there was no more cool 1970s architecture forthcoming.

Game of Thrones - gave up after one episode. Ugly, grotty, stupid garbage.

Peaky Blinders. Gave up after the first 15 minutes.

Wandavision. It was...a different take. Gave up after the third episode (I hate old television shows so a show about being stuck in old television shows was unappealing)

The Mandalorian - finished the series, I think. Did I? Can't remember. It mostly sucked. "This is the way" is no "May the force be with you". Am amazed anyone cared about the lead actor, who was unmasked for maybe three whole minutes.

I'm not a prude, but I think the sex, violence and profanity in most of series television is off the charts. And while I'm not much one for "likeable characters" having them all be foul scumbags is just tedious. I also don't give a flying fuck about gangsters, cowboys, police departments, WWI or II, witches, vampires, life in rural backwater towns, rich people hating each other, politicians, ghosts, chess players, people stuck on a desert island, the lurid sex lives of, well, anybody, really, and the thin scum of genetic mold that is the British Royal Family, so much of the last 20 years of TV has not been my cup of tea.

I liked Twin Peaks: The Return and Bojack Horseman.

I realize the above makes me sound like a snarling killjoy. Trust me, I like films and books and music and the theater.

I just really, really, really hate television.

I gave up on Succession after the first episode too, for the same reason. But a year later, after all the hype, I barrelled through some more episodes and got hooked. It ended up being pretty brilliant. Try again.

New season of "Shetland," with "Ugly Betty"/"Agatha Raisin" star Ashley Jensen now playing the lead. Episode 1 on Britbox today.

I love Shetland, didn't know the new season had started. Thanks, r147.

Golden Gilrs

I just got into Ted Lasso and am blown away by how good it its. Hot men, too.

The Handmaid's Tale is one of the best shows I've watched.

R145, if you really hate television so much, why do you keep attempting to watch it?

R151, people tell me I simply *must* see this, that or the other.

Plus I do get curious.

And some shows aren't all bad.

I tend to like mysteries, surreal comedies and animation, maybe because I never know where the next turn is. I loved the Sherlock Holmes/Poirot/Dr. Who classic series and PBS Mystery. When I was a kid The Muppet Show and Fraggle Rock were favorites - and they still hold up remarkably well.

I enjoy Rick and Morty (although that too is wearing out its welcome). I thought Disenchanted was the same mixture of charming and adult humor that the Muppet Show was.

New series (#24!)of "Midsomer Murders" drops Monday on Acorn.

"Colin From Accounts" is a sweet, witty and ribald RomCom. It doesn't matter how old or cliche'd a genre is, if it's done well you remember how good it can be.

R132, yes, that was a truly butchered and unutterably poor travesty of the original Ordeal by Innocence.

I watched Misfits last month and ended up really liking it after a rough start. Unfortunately it lost steam when the original cast members started leaving.

Yes, r156, it was so fun until what...halfway in the 3rd season? You might like Humans (British)/Almost Human (U.S.)/Real Humans (Swedish Original)/Better Than Us (Russian). They are all similar, but slightly different- androids in the future. The U.S. version only has 1 season.

R154 Fuck you. Where's MY show?

Fisk - Netflix. Masters of sotto voce humour.

In the Dark is on Netflix. It was originally on the CW. You have to suspend belief for some episodes but I really enjoyed it.

I randomly came across The Lake on Amazon Prime and downloaded the whole first season for a flight. It's mindless entertainment, kind of amusing, with some good one liners.

The main character is annoying as fuck, but the boyfriend is hot. Enjoyed seeing Julia Stiles again and she's quite funny in it.

Is Sling worth $40/month? I have an offer through Chase available until 12/31 and will probably take it, but I still want to read comments if any.

"Fred and Fred' had a great first two seasons. Not so much so far in season 3.

I really like "Bottle Blondes," too. Even if the leads don't get along in real life.

r162, I really like Sling, but the reason I like it is because I've added the French package, which has 5 channels. Try it out, and if you don't like it, cancel the subscription.

R160 Yeah, like how a blind chick has highlights and dresses like a hipster.

I’ve seen the promo for it quite a few times. It shows her pushing her way to the front of a queue with the excuse that’s she’s blind and can’t see it. I’ll give it a try.

Julia on Max. Low-key, smart with a brilliant performance by Happy Valley’s Sarah Lancashire, who had balls stepping into a role, Julia Child, that Meryl last played. Low on drama but a delight to spend time with.

Season 2 of Fisk is up on Netflix.

Much as I love Sarah Lancashire, one season of Julia was enough for me. Very twee and cutsie.

Just discovered that The Avengers is streaming on Pluto TV including the first three “Cathy Gale” seasons.

Lots of Christmas specials coming up this month for the Britbox/Acorn series: Sister Boniface, Vera, Death in Paradise, Madame Blanc ...

And Call the Midwife on PBS.

R168 I just started "Frisk." I normally skip pilots because they usually suck but decided to watch it. Man, it was so good.

Goddamn spell check, FISK.

How exactly do streaming series recoup their budgets exactly?

Do streaming services just figure they have to supply enough half-decent content to keep people as subscribers? It just seems hard to quantify. Perhaps producers hope there is a greater market for their shows down the line? I still have never been able to figure out how soap operas made money, if the producer like P&G showed their own products during the commercials!

"Midsommer" is back today.

Slow Horses is back for a 3rd season, the most compelling spy thriller in years.

Season 2 of FISK is on Netflix now.

[quote]Slow Horses is back for a 3rd season, the most compelling spy thriller in years.

I've been meaning to watch this; I was initially turned off because it starred Jack Lowden, who is pretty, but kind of dull, but I'm definitely tuning in for the Gary Oldman/Kristen Scott Thomas hamfest (in the best sense) they're rolling out this season

I only watch it for Oldman/Thomas, really. The rest of the them are rather meh.

I’ve been watching Shetland on BritBox. Good, but I have to watch it with subtitles so I can understand the accents.

I had Sling for a few years - it's a clumsy interface, and there is always a lag when you change channels. If you want to just surf, forget it. You pretty much have to know what you want to watch. The DVR feature is great if you want to record and watch later. After I stopped using the pay version, I realized there is a free version which is good for all the weird free channels, but tons of commercials (I'm 80, what's my price?"

Watching the four-part Archie series on Britbox. They needed Henry Cavill instead of Jason Isaacs. They gloss over the gay rumors.

Who plays Jughead?

I wish there were some more up-to-date Christmas movies. The good ones from the 1990s were sequeled to death instead of using new ideas to make new films.

Slow Horses is great. The series is very well done, cast and acted, but I recommend reading the books as well. Most characters are awful/great, specially the ex-alcoholic secretary. She is well done in the tv series but in the books she is an excellent character. On the other hand, while,i love Scott-Thomas, she sort of underplays a bit the monster bitch character she is.

The Last Narc - A documentary investigating the torture and murder of DEA Agent Kiki Camarena and links to the Iran-Contra scandal. I'm a DLEG, so I remember when the Camarena kidnapping and murder was big news. And I remember the Iran-Contra hearings. Although this was released in 2020, I just got around to watching it on Amazon. It involves interviews in Spanish, so, unless you're fluent, you need to be ready to read the subtitles. It was sadly believable. I already hated Reagan; now I hate him a bit more.

Watching Criminal Record with the incomparable Cash Jumbo; Blue Lights about Northern Irish police trainees; Ex Pats--starring Nicole Kidman's latest face, True Detectives WTF did I just see?; Marriage with wonderful Nicola Walket; Capote vs The Swans.

Streaming movies I liked most were Past Lives, The Holdovers.

[quote]x Pats--starring Nicole Kidman's latest face

Oh snap! Generally speaking, I like NK, but she is too damn old at this point to play the mother of small children. It's getting ridiculous - it's like she's an Android from Alien - at some point, her head will fall off with milky fluid leaking everywhere.

R186, I really like the first few episodes of Criminal Record, but I think it could have been edited down an episode or two.

I finally started Murders in the Building, but I can’t stand Selena Gomez’s flat line readings.

Yeah, I enjoy Only Murders for the New Yorkiness of it all but Selena is bad and her close friendship with the two oldsters doesn’t read true.

To the person who started Killing Eve season 1: don't bother watching subsequent seasons. Phoebe Waller-Bridge did a wonderful job at the helm of season 1, and then they brought on new showrunners for s2, 3, and 4. One of the most frustrating shows I've ever sat through, which is a bummer because I found the premise very promising.

Other shows to avoid: Expats, True Detective: Night Country

If you want a fun lawyer show that doesn't take itself too seriously, check out The Lincoln Lawyer! I really enjoyed it. The lead guy is hot. Supporting characters include Neve Campbell, Becki Newton, and Elliot Gould.

I watched [italic]the Diplomat[/italic] last night, the British series set in Barcelona, not the Keri Russell show. It's competent and pleasant with enough interesting to get me to finish the series. Not the greatest show I've ever seen, but decent actors in a pretty location with decent story lines and a couple of good looking actors. One supporting gay character with just a smidge of gay content.

[quote] I still have never been able to figure out how soap operas made money, if the producer like P&G showed their own products during the commercials!

P&G never bought all the commercials - probably about a third or maybe 40 percent, max. After what CBS paid P&G to produce, their commercial sales during daytime were so strong that it paid apparently for most of the network's programming, basically keeping even the news division afloat for many years.

Apples Never Fall isn't bad. Not done with it yet.

I started Beef around Christmas- became addicted and fell in love with these characters and stopped in February with episode 7- i did not want this show to end.

Episode 9 reminded me of Long Term Parking- Adriana's episode - of The Sopranos- it was EPIC.

i am watching the final episode now- half way through... do not want it to end

I put this in my Top 10 shows of all time--- with- The Sopranos, Six Feet Under, Mad Men, Succession The Comeback, and Girls...

Beef- 10/10- and a highly recommended show.

I couldn't finish Beef because I don'r like seeing people being humilated. Stephen definitely deserved his Emmy for the church scene.

The last two eps were terrible.

Red Queen (Reina Roja) - The smartest woman in the world and a fat, gay, Basque detective unravel a kidnapping plot. No gay romance, but lots of comments and Grinder references. It's set in Madrid. I like it well enough I am now on my second viewing. I confess I'm watching it dubbed.

Amazon Prime

Holding, based on a novel by Graham Norton. It is part Irish village murder mystery, part trauma memoir, part romantic comedy. I wish he had concentrated on the mystery element because the actors, with the exception of Conleth Hill and Siobhan McSweeney, didn’t have the charm or talent to be of interest. Charlotte McKenna as the female lead was especially miscast.

It was only 3 eps but a struggle to finish.

Tracker - Colton Shaw (Justin Harley) who was raised by a survivalist father finds lost people and occasionally objects for the reward money. A lesbian couple, including Robin Weigert, find jobs for him and do some research. Hartley is reasonably good looking and takes his shirt off fairly often. Beautiful scenery, okay story lines.

I just watched a couple Swedish series on Roku. Their first seasons (8-10 episodes) were free. Subtitles must leave out a lot because it was only by the third episodes that I was able to who was related vs friends.

Rules of Engagement--It's a funny, non-Lorre CBS sitcom starring David Spade, Patrick Warburton and Oliver Hudson from 10 years ago.

Good Grief--funn New Zealand show about two sisters who inherit a funeral home. It's on IFC, I believe.

Portlandia

Royal Crackers-- HBO max

Just started Mozart in the Jungle [3 seasons on FreeVee]. I’d heard references to it but had no idea what it was about. It’s so great. Egotistical maestros, gigging classical musicians, symphony board members obsessed with money, fundraising patrons, ghost Mozart It’s so funny and a lot of it is truthful. Gael García Bernal, Bernadette Peters, Saffron Burrows, and Malcolm McDowell. Lots of cameos by famous musicians.

I love it.

I loved Mozart in the Jungle, R202. I'm embarrassed to admit I was upset when they cancelled it.

I enjoyed Ghosts (U.K version). It's a very sweet and entertaining show.

"Such Brave Girls" is showing on HULU. Only six episodes but they are funny, very fucked up, and hilarious.

The Outlaws on Prime. It’s a British show with three six-episode seasons so far.

It’s the often humorous story of a disparate group of people thrown together to perform community service under the watchful eye of the hilarious Jessica Gunning from Baby Reindeer. We learn their backstories and they get sucked into further crimes.

Christopher Walken is in it, along with a British cast. It’s a lot of fun, though eps are too long (57-58 minutes).

A fun watch.

[quote] Ten-year-old Tom--HBO max--funny animated show about Tom, a 10-year-old who CONSTANTLY gets shit on by everyone from his mom to his school principal

Sounds like must-see TV!

Good crime/thrillers from Netflix:

Capitani (Luxembourg): Cop investigates missing children in village first season. The second season involves a brothel and human trafficking in Luxembourg City.

Deadwind (Finland): Lead is a female cop recently widowed who investigates murders. The guy who plays her partner is a hot Finnish model.

Lilyhammer (Norway): Steven van Zandt is a NY mobster who goes into witness protection in Lillyhammer, Norway. It's charming

Dogs of Berlin (Germany): corrupt cops, nee-Nazis and Middle Eastern mobsters.

From PBS Passport:

The Mountain Detective (France): Ruggedly handsome Marseilles cop returns to Alpine locale

Sissy (Germany): Way hotter and sexier than Netflix's The Empress

First season of Amsterdam Undercover (Germany): German cop couple investigate and infiltrate Dutch mobsters

Sankt Maik (Germany): Con man and petty thief impersonates a village priest to escape cops. Good comedy starring the incredibly hot Daniel Donskoy. He's also in Barbarians on Netflix from Germany

Below The Surface (Denmark): Hot ex-soldier/cop up against terrorists. In first season, the terrorists take a group of hostages from a Copenhagen subway car. In the second, a group of terrorists seize a ferry to kidnap a woman.

I tried to watch Lilyhammer, I just didn’t think it was funny.

M. Spade is terrible, despite Clive Owen doing his best to rescue the damp script. Great scenery, plotting so bad that in the last episode they have to create a new character to explain to the old characters what they've just been through.

Sugar is pretty good -- Colin Farrell is one of the few actors today who really is a Star -- he commands the screen the entire time he's in it. And there's a big twist, as all noir programs have -- and it's an interesting one. The problem is the plot is thin, if not anemic.

Bodkin is a wonderful surprise: Will Forte turns in a great performance as a podcaster out of his element in weird, surreal rural Ireland.

I don’t know if the TV version of “The Other Black Girl” matches the book but the book was ridiculous with some really inane twists. I thought I’d be reading social realism and instead the plot went into magic hair grease and was just a ripoff of “The Stepford Wives”.

Lost Boys and Faires. I resisted it, but by the end I was teary.

I would like to viciously slap r144 until he dies. He sounds like a fussy, cunty, bitch.

R212, eat shit.

"Here we go", on Prime

--BBC show, youngest son Sam documents the highs and lows of the Jessop family as they navigate a combination of life's everyday challenges. I'm not too fond of family sitcoms, dramas, etc. BUT this show is sublime. I feel like I smile whenever I watch it.

R144 shared lots of good info for everyone to take or leave. Don’t get the issue.

He’s a twat that’s the issue.