Exceelent TV Shows

[Ken]

Pretty sure it was Revo and possibly Fresno Bob who recommended Mindhunter a couple of years back. I've kept it on the back burner for a couple years, but I'm glad I finally dug into it. Even if the series seems dead in the water (stupid Netflix).

I want to talk about a plot line thats bothering me. The first season has a principal who is tickling kids feet. Principal is told that parents and officials are concerned, guy keeps tickling anyway. Guy gets fired despite no accusations of sexual impropriety, just tickling. I found it really jarring that the show brought this up as a moral dilemma, seemingly leading the audience to conclude that the tickler was treated unfairly. I just don't see the issue. If someone is told to stop touching other people's kids, and implied that their job is in jeopardy if they continue, where is the injustice in his firing? It really bothered me. I wondered if this idea of bodily autonomy has only come to prominence recently and older viewers would agree with the show writers, that the principal firing was problematic... I would hope that its more of an attempt to show how outdated our previous concepts of protecting children were but I can't be sure where its going. Interesting anyway.

I'm also just at the end of season 1, so maybe the tickler turns out to be a pedo. I guess I'll see.

Thanks, belatedly for the strong recommendation.

Of note, the principle wade plotline came straight out of the book and is based on real events.

[Teenwolf]

Pretty sure it was Revo and possibly Fresno Bob who recommended Mindhunter a couple of years back. I've kept it on the back burner for a couple years, but I'm glad I finally dug into it. Even if the series seems dead in the water (stupid Netflix).

I want to talk about a plot line thats bothering me. The first season has a principal who is tickling kids feet. Principal is told that parents and officials are concerned, guy keeps tickling anyway. Guy gets fired despite no accusations of sexual impropriety, just tickling. I found it really jarring that the show brought this up as a moral dilemma, seemingly leading the audience to conclude that the tickler was treated unfairly. I just don't see the issue. If someone is told to stop touching other people's kids, and implied that their job is in jeopardy if they continue, where is the injustice in his firing? It really bothered me. I wondered if this idea of bodily autonomy has only come to prominence recently and older viewers would agree with the show writers, that the principal firing was problematic... I would hope that its more of an attempt to show how outdated our previous concepts of protecting children were but I can't be sure where its going. Interesting anyway.

I'm also just at the end of season 1, so maybe the tickler turns out to be a pedo. I guess I'll see.

Thanks, belatedly for the strong recommendation.

[Judge Jude]

Just finished Flight Attendant and found it very enjoyable.

one of my nieces is a flight attendant (though still grounded until March).

she loved the show but said it was ridiculous.

I told her that I learned to enjoy "Everybody Loves Raymond" the same way. she liked that (on a 20 family member Christmas Day Zoom).

[fuhrdog]

Started watching Fauda, an Israeli drama about the conflict with Palestine. 3 seasons with a 4th scheduled. Just finished season 1 and it is pretty good imo. Starting season 2 tomorrow.

[ironfist]

Just finished Flight Attendant and found it very enjoyable.

[revo]

I got to pretty near the end of season 2 (end of the first Heist) but haven't gotten back to it. Started to get frustrated with how the guy that so meticulously planned the heist, chose such erratic criminals to pull it off.

Funny, I was getting frustrated with the police side of it, how they bungled a couple of "incursions" into the Mint and couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with their shooting. Plus, the whole Inspector - Professor thing, ehhhhhh.....

Anyhow, into Season 3 and it seems like it's run its course, although my son loves it.


The Liberator on Netflix was most exceelent.....

[chancellor]

Three episodes into The Queen's Gambit, and neither me nor my wife understands all the fuss. Does it get better?

I love it; absolutely love it. But then, I have a close tie to this movie - I started playing chess when I was five, was pulled out from competition for three years at age 10 due to my behavior becoming erratic (which is probably generous), then played competitively through high school and early college years and a bit after college. The books referenced were near-sacred texts among serious chess players; many players cared for their books the way an Orthodox Rabbi cares for their Torah. The openings played are accurate, the games referenced are real grandmaster level games from the era they're showing, the issues with substance abuse (especially alcohol) for high level players was very, very real. The dominance of the Russians in the '60s is very real - other than Bobby Fischer, the other players in that era in the top five were all Russian - Petrosian, Tal, Korchnoi, Spassky, Smyslov; Karpov began his run in the top five in 1970.

The only criticism I have of the series relative to accuracy is there's not enough crazy in it. In my four years of high school chess, we had a top six team in our state all four years. We had nine different people rotate through the five boards on our team. The top board on our team my freshman year had to quit playing competitively because he'd work himself into such a mental frenzy that he'd either faint or puke; normally the former. The top board my sophomore year graduated from high school, had a nervous breakdown freshman year in college; after two years of recovery, ended up as a self-medicating, pot-smoking DJ for a local radio station. Our second board through my last three years is a brilliant language savant - learned Russian to a competent level in 18 months, was fluent in German and Latin in three years, was passable in six other languages - but he's also a severe manic-depressive whose been hospitalized more times than I can remember. The person I really didn't know well - he was a sophomore and our fifth board my senior year - committed suicide in his late 20s or early 30s. Two others were less severe, but had counseling before age 20.

But I get that too much crazy wouldn't play as well. But, damn, I've never seen more crazy in a room than at the state opens I played in.

I'd love to hear from Cavebird on the series.

[heyelander]

Final episode of Supernatural Thursday night. They've jumped through some silly hoops to keep it going for, maybe the last 10 seasons? But the series pretty much resolved itself last week in a decently satisfying way. Not sure what happens tonight, but it's been a great ride.

[Ken]

We started Bly Manor. Mrs. Gregg likes it. Me not so much. It is just one notch above boring to me. To much like a soap opera and not enough frights. She said she will finish it when I am working.

Warning for her, I really liked the start of this one, it set up a bunch of mystery as to how/why things were going on. But it failed to deliver. It flopped in the last 2 episodes for me.

[heyelander]

We started Bly Manor. Mrs. Gregg likes it. Me not so much. It is just one notch above boring to me. To much like a soap opera and not enough frights. She said she will finish it when I am working.

there's a line in the last episode where they are back at the Wedding where it all began and the bride says "You lied at the start, it's not a ghost story, it's a love story" or something to that effect. True enough I think.

Did you watch Hill House? It was a bit scarier, but they are both more eerie than frightening.

[Gregg]

Really liked The Haunting of Bly Manor on Netflix, both this and Haunting of Hill House were very well done.

Exceelent stuff all around.

We started Bly Manor. Mrs. Gregg likes it. Me not so much. It is just one notch above boring to me. To much like a soap opera and not enough frights. She said she will finish it when I am working.

[The Feral Slasher]

British baking blah blah blah....

[DMT]

Three episodes into The Queen's Gambit, and neither me nor my wife understands all the fuss. Does it get better?

[heyelander]

Really liked The Haunting of Bly Manor on Netflix, both this and Haunting of Hill House were very well done.

Exceelent stuff all around.

[heyelander]

Started watching Money Heist with my oldest son. We love it.

I got to pretty near the end of season 2 (end of the first Heist) but haven't gotten back to it. Started to get frustrated with how the guy that so meticulously planned the heist, chose such erratic criminals to pull it off.