Exceelent TV Shows

[johnnya24]

Luck - I'm liking the show ... but I'm damned if I know WTF is going on with Hoffman's character and his business dealings / double dealings / revenge plots. Dennis Farina's character being semi-retarded doesn't help my understanding. I'm not sure what to make of the poker ... if it's to show the guy as a fish, then it worked (every one of his plays was donkish). If it's supposed to show him as unlucky, then it didn't. I'll give them credit here ... I think the idea behind his character is that he's a talented handicapper, who blows his winnings on the card tables ... in which case he is a fish ... but can he really be THAT big a fish? I'm mean ... going to get another 25K with only KK on an AQX flop? How big of a fish do they want to make him?

[ironfist]

Luck - I'm liking the show ... but I'm damned if I know WTF is going on with Hoffman's character and his business dealings / double dealings / revenge plots. Dennis Farina's character being semi-retarded doesn't help my understanding. I'm not sure what to make of the poker ... if it's to show the guy as a fish, then it worked (every one of his plays was donkish). If it's supposed to show him as unlucky, then it didn't. I'll give them credit here ... I think the idea behind his character is that he's a talented handicapper, who blows his winnings on the card tables ... in which case he is a fish ... but can he really be THAT big a fish? I'm mean ... going to get another 25K with only KK on an AQX flop? How big of a fish do they want to make him?

This show is so hard for me to follow. Half the time I have no idea what's going on. I'm not sure if I like it enough to put in the effort that it takes to keep up with it though.

[johnnya24]

This show is so hard for me to follow. Half the time I have no idea what's going on. I'm not sure if I like it enough to put in the effort that it takes to keep up with it though.

It's going to be one of those series that won't come together for a few weeks.

Hoffman is trying to get revenge on some of the people he ended up go to prison for. Is it related to the two people he met and arranged the deal with? My impression was that he knows he was going to get double crossed by them and their bosses, so he deliberately fed them some information. But I'm not sure. I guess it will become clear.

Deadwood, The Wire, Treme, all started slowly with a blaze of unknown characters ... and steadily improved.

[Erik]

This show is so hard for me to follow. Half the time I have no idea what's going on.

It's run by the same guy who did John from Cincinnati, so that's to be expected.

[ironfist]

It's going to be one of those series that won't come together for a few weeks.

Hoffman is trying to get revenge on some of the people he ended up go to prison for. Is it related to the two people he met and arranged the deal with? My impression was that he knows he was going to get double crossed by them and their bosses, so he deliberately fed them some information. But I'm not sure. I guess it will become clear.

Deadwood, The Wire, Treme, all started slowly with a blaze of unknown characters ... and steadily improved.

I'm sticking with it til the end since there are only 9 episodes. The cast is good and production values are high. It took me two viewings to figure out the first episode, but that's probably because I was trying to check email and such while it was on. The show definitely demands your full attention.

[johnnya24]

It's run by the same guy who did John from Cincinnati, so that's to be expected.

Unfair! How about "the same guy who did Deadwood" ... let hope it's those standards he lives up to here, not JFC.

I gave up on JFC after about 3 episodes. I can't even remember what was going on ... surfboards or something ... I remember surfboards :shrug:

[dslaw]

Saw 'The River' last night. People going down the Amazon to find a missing dude and they keep running into supernatural happenings. For a tv show I thought it was pretty well done. Hard to keep the suspense going when a commercial pops up all the time but they do ok. The promos say 8 episodes so I hope it wraps up in that time frame instead of dragging on. It could get old it they keep finding legends to turn into episodes.

[Erik]

Unfair! How about "the same guy who did Deadwood" ... let hope it's those standards he lives up to here, not JFC.

I gave up on JFC after about 3 episodes. I can't even remember what was going on ... surfboards or something ... I remember surfboards :shrug:

Just pointing out that he's been incoherent before. Not listing his resume.

[johnnya24]

Just pointing out that he's been incoherent before. Not listing his resume.

I am wondering whether he has created too many off kilter characters here ... everyone apart from Hoffman seems to have something weird/wrong about them.

[Gregg]

Luck - I'm liking the show ... but I'm damned if I know WTF is going on with Hoffman's character and his business dealings / double dealings / revenge plots. Dennis Farina's character being semi-retarded doesn't help my understanding. I'm not sure what to make of the poker ... if it's to show the guy as a fish, then it worked (every one of his plays was donkish). If it's supposed to show him as unlucky, then it didn't. I'll give them credit here ... I think the idea behind his character is that he's a talented handicapper, who blows his winnings on the card tables ... in which case he is a fish ... but can he really be THAT big a fish? I'm mean ... going to get another 25K with only KK on an AQX flop? How big of a fish do they want to make him?

There are no likable characters. My wife is out. I told her I was going one more week. Just not enough payoff so far.

[johnnya24]

There are no likable characters. My wife is out. I told her I was going one more week. Just not enough payoff so far.

Yeah ... there really isn't anyone to root for. The 4 gamblers are unlikable in different ways (degenerate, degenerate gambler, moron, crippled control freak); Nick Nolte's character is so dull ... I just want his scenes to end; Dennis Farina's plays a simpleton; the jockey agent is a bag of nerves which makes no sense; Dustin Hoffman hasn't changed expression yet. The two characters I like so far are the plucky Irish jockey (the only female character) and the Peruvian trainer, who at least has some spark about him.

[heyelander]

House calling it quits after 8 Seasons.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/0...n_1263991.html

"While it's with much regret, and a lump in our throats, we respect the decision Hugh, David and Katie have made," Kevin Reilly, president of entertainment at Fox, said in a statement. "A true original, on the page and amazingly brought to life by Hugh Laurie, there is only one Dr. House. For eight seasons, the entire 'House' team has given us -- and fans around the world -- some of the most compelling characters and affecting stories ever seen on television."

...

Laurie has said he'll retire from TV when "House" ends.

"I think I have been rather spoiled here [in America]," he told UK's Daily Record. "I can't imagine there will be another one quite like this. And I think I am extremely lucky to have had the one shot that I have had at it, and I wouldn't go looking for lightning to strike twice."

I still remember season 1 when PJs was ripping the show sight unseen. It's been one of the best things on TV for years now.

[revo]

Luck - I'm liking the show ... but I'm damned if I know WTF is going on with Hoffman's character and his business dealings / double dealings / revenge plots. Dennis Farina's character being semi-retarded doesn't help my understanding. I'm not sure what to make of the poker ... if it's to show the guy as a fish, then it worked (every one of his plays was donkish). If it's supposed to show him as unlucky, then it didn't. I'll give them credit here ... I think the idea behind his character is that he's a talented handicapper, who blows his winnings on the card tables ... in which case he is a fish ... but can he really be THAT big a fish? I'm mean ... going to get another 25K with only KK on an AQX flop? How big of a fish do they want to make him?

Finally saw episode 2 and thought it was much better than the pilot. It helps being a horse racing fan, as I know the jargon and what they're talking about, but I can understand how someone could be completely lost.

Although it's pretty accurate, I don't care for all the hard-to-understand accents -- especially the trainer.

I'm still in the dark as to why haven't they cashed the winning Pick Six ticket? Why are they so paranoid? People win the Pick Six every day, and they didn't have any real inside information (at least none we know of yet).

[ironfist]

Finally saw episode 2 and thought it was much better than the pilot. It helps being a horse racing fan, as I know the jargon and what they're talking about, but I can understand how someone could be completely lost.

Although it's pretty accurate, I don't care for all the hard-to-understand accents -- especially the trainer.

I'm still in the dark as to why haven't they cashed the winning Pick Six ticket? Why are they so paranoid? People win the Pick Six every day, and they didn't have any real inside information (at least none we know of yet).

In episode 2, they already cashed it, I think. That's why he has the bag of money. See, it's not easy to follow lol. The accents aren't a big deal for me, since I have babies in the house, I'm forced to watch everything with closed captioning on.

[johnnya24]

Maybe they are trying to keep a low profile because of the taxman?