Current TV Boxset Addiction

[Tiplodocus]

The Pacific was great but just seemed more "written" than Band Of Brothers if that makes sense.

What are the best books about the Pacific campaign? Has Beevor got near it yet?

[Tjm86]

I think the difference between Pacific and BofB is that the former was an amalgamation of the direct experiences of two individuals whereas BofB was based on historian work.  BofB tends to be more episodic and shifts attention around the unit whereas Pacific follows two or three individuals more closely.

IIRC one of the main foci (the writer who spent time in the loonie bin, can't remember his name) had gone to see the musical South Pacific and had walked out in disgust complaining that it bore no resemblance to the campaign at all.

Would dearly love  it if someone could work up the guts to do something similar on Battle of Britain or better yet the bomber campaign.  The old "how the US saved the world" does get a little boring after a while.

[Proudhuff]

I've just 'inherited' BofB (with hundreds of add ons) and Pacific box set, these along with the series six of Vikings, should see me through my ironing for the next wee while.

Interesting series on The Normans on BBC 4 just now

[Smith]

Justice League (the animated series). Its even better now then when I watched it the first time.

[TordelBack]

The Witcher. Only two episodes in and oh deer lard it really is that bad: disjointed and dissonant in every conceivable way, tonally, structurally, musically, visually, linguistically. I love it, it's every schlocky fantasy decalogy I've ever hunted down in secondhand shops and libraries, devoured one after the other over a summer and then forgotten essentially everything about it 1 month on. How great is it that this sort of rubbish is a big budget TV show.  Such sport these endtimes offer.

Probably my favourite TV thing of the moment.

Tad Williams must be crying himself to sleep, though.  First Shannara and now this!

[Trooper McFad]

Justice League (the animated series). Its even better now then when I watched it the first time.

I loved the animated DC stuff JL, Batman & Batman of the future- helped that my kids were dropped down in front of the telly when it was on so good excuse that I was "watching" the kids.

My boxer addiction just now is The Man in the High Castle - started just before Xmas and only got 4 to go. Really enjoying it.
Then it's on to Teen Titans 2 😃

[Tiplodocus]

Enjoying Season 2 of JACK RYAN so far (four episodes in). John Krasinski akes for a convincing boy scout and plays well against an abrasive Jim Greer (Wendell Pierce).

It's not quite as procedural as I'd like and they fluff the ambush taken from CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER and there's an unstoppable, relentless and resourceful assassin who stretches credulity but it's handsomely mounted engaging stuff and even lesser characters get a bit of time to breath.

[The Legendary Shark]

After loving the film, had a go at What We Do in the Shadows and did not find it wanting. Some genuine laugh-out-loud moments. The episode with the cursed hat was excellent.

[JamesC]

After finishing an entire re-watch of Next Generation, then my first ever watch of Enterprise and Deep Space Nine I'm now starting Voyager.
I'm only a few episodes in and I'm quite enjoying it. I watched a bit of Voyager when it was first broadcast as it was easy to dip in and out of. It does seem very Trek-lite though.
The characters are pretty lame so far but I remmeber them getting more interesting as time goes on.
I like Janeway, Chakotay is a big prick, Kim is a boring twat, Paris is a lame wananbe bad-boy with no charisma and Tuvok is really good and looks like he shares my opinions on the rest of them. The least said about the Godzuki/Scrappy Doo esque Neelix, the better.
To be honest I want to get through the first few seasons quickly because I'm waiting for Seven of Nine to turn up.

[Proudhuff]

I'm enjoying the October Faction, enjoyed the comics, which are a bit darker, but still great fun.

[Greg M.]

I remmeber them getting more interesting as time goes on.

Memory, as they say, cheats.

[TordelBack]

After finishing an entire re-watch of Next Generation, then my first ever watch of Enterprise and Deep Space Nine I'm now starting Voyager.

Did a rewatch of Voyager a few years ago, surprised by how much good stuff there is in there. Neelix and Tom improve, Harry never really does. And pneumatic and all as Seven is, for me the earlier seasons are stronger for her absence: it's not just that costume she's shoehorned into.

Currently working our way through DS9 - I'd formerly dismissed Season 2 as neither one thing nor t'other, but it's turning out to be rather brilliant throughout.

In between that, we're on True Detective Season 2 which pulls off amazing feat of miss-casting every major role, which is a shame when Season 1 was all about miraculously good performances. I can just about accept Taylor Kitsch's constipated vet if I imagine he's continually repressing his experiences on Barsoom, but the rest.... oh dear. And 6 episodes in I'very given up hope of any Lovecraftian vibes in this one.

[Dandontdare]

I like Janeway, Chakotay is a big prick, Kim is a boring twat, Paris is a lame wananbe bad-boy with no charisma and Tuvok is really good and looks like he shares my opinions on the rest of them.

I cannot fault this analysis

[radiator]

Just finished up a rewatch of The Sopranos. Must have seen the whole thing 5 or 6 times now, and I feel that its a series I'll probably rewatch every couple of years for the rest of my life. 'Masterpiece' doesn't really do it justice, does it? The fact that it now serves as a wonderful time capsule for all things early 2000s only adds to the appeal, and that there are 2 references to Trump in the finale is so perfect its almost like it was planned.

It's insane to think that this started airing 20+years ago, and how it managed to succeed in such a totally different - pre streaming/binge-watching - media landscape, as its so dense with continuity and subtle callbacks to previous episodes. I can't fathom what it must have been like trying to follow it week to week, year to year. Even at the time, I remember loving what I'd seen of the show, but making a decision to wait until such a time that I could watch the entire thing at my leisure to really experience it 'properly'.

Its really hard to comprehend just how influential this show was - it's basically the template for almost every non-procedural adult-oriented drama series of the modern era. I was really struck this time round of how Mad Men is really just a variation on the same theme, and how Don Draper is strikingly similar to Tony Soprano in so many ways. Like Mad men, it's one of those shows that is perfectly possible to enjoy on a completely straight, surface level, but that you get a little more out of on a deeper, thematic level with each subsequent rewatch.

It honestly never occurred to me that the ending was controversial, or even intended to be provocative, as for me it's one of those shows, again like Mad Men, where the plot is just a vehicle for the characters and themes, so it doesn't bother me at all that it ends on a somewhat ambiguous note.

Having said all that, I did for the first time notice a few slightly 'off' episodes this time round, such as the episode revolving around Columbus day, which seemed a little stiff and didactic, and there's also a slightly odd episode towards the end where Tony suddenly becomes a compulsive gambling addict, which seems a little out of character.

I know a lot of people find the dream sequences boring, but I think they're a great addition to the show, and probably one of the best on-screen depictions of dream logic I've seen, however the weird episode towards the end when Tony is in a coma and most of the episode is him living a weird alternate life as a travelling salesman continues to test my patience. We actually fast-forwarded a lot of that stuff this time as it's a bit tedious and imo doesn't really add much.

But man, what a show. Every single character adds something valuable, and each and every one of them gets to have at least a few incredible moments. Pine Barrens - the episode where Christopher and Paulie get lost in the woods while failing to kill a Russian mobster - remains possibly my favourite episode - a perfect little mini-movie of an episode.

Also just finished watching the Killer Inside: Aaron Hernandez doc on Netflix - I'm pretty sure I must have been living under a rock for the last few years, because I had literally never heard of this guy until just now. What a bizarre, almost unbelievable story.

And finally, just started on another Netflix documentary - Cheer - about a squad of college cheerleaders. Charming stuff so far, really like it.

[Colin YNWA]

Yeah Sopranos was the best thing on telly after Twin Peaks by a country mile at the time. Its hard to imagine now the landscape that something soooo good was made had so little else of comparible quality. Even say West Wing was a very different type of show.

I watched it week to week on Channel 4 (as I recall, remember when Channel 4 was a bastion of quality and creative tv!?!) and to be honest that's just the normal at the time. I only had a couple of friends who watched it but I don't think we're discussed and analyised anything on telly as much. Week to week between us finding themes and ideas as they show developed.

I've not watched it again for some time but have all but season 6 on DVD - the first two season in what is now stupidly big ass boxes, boy they hadn't worked out DVD boxes in the eary 2000s! I think I worry that it won't hold up now I've watch The Wire and other modern shows. But Twin Peaks held up so must get to that and I think I will soon.

I did watch The Pine Barrens again a couple of years ago as it happens as yes its the single best episode of telly every (weelllll aside from about 5 episodes of the aforementioned Twin Peaks I can think of) and it remained a complete delight.