What Shows are you currently watching?

[hefdaddy42]

Finished Perry Mason on HBO.   

On to The Outsider.

[cramx3]

Big Brother started last week, nice to see a live "game show" again and it was super weird how they started with masks on and then took them off once in the house.  Seems I'll be watching all 3 weekly episodes on Saturday nights for the season 

[pg1067]

Big Brother started last week, nice to see a live "game show" again and it was super weird how they started with masks on and then took them off once in the house.  Seems I'll be watching all 3 weekly episodes on Saturday nights for the season 

Based on the Big Brother people who have shown up on The Amazing Race (and other things I've heard about the show), I think I'd rather have all of my finger and toe nails ripped off by pliers.  :-)

I have to assume they'll do something similar with Survivor as soon as they're allowed to herd up a bunch of folks and take them to Fiji.  All they have to do is quarantine everyone together for a couple weeks, and then they can shoot the show as usual.

Season 32 of The Amazing Race was run in November/December 2018 and has been unaired ever since.  Normally, it starts airing about three months after it began running.  At one point, they were going to air it starting in May, but they changed that so that CBS would have something fresh to air when the fall season begins, but I have no idea why it didn't get aired in 2019.  Regardless, I'm really looking forward to it since it's the last season of TAR we're likely to see for another couple years.

[cramx3]

Big Brother started last week, nice to see a live "game show" again and it was super weird how they started with masks on and then took them off once in the house.  Seems I'll be watching all 3 weekly episodes on Saturday nights for the season 

Based on the Big Brother people who have shown up on The Amazing Race (and other things I've heard about the show), I think I'd rather have all of my finger and toe nails ripped off by pliers.  :-)

  Yea, I hate most of the people on the show and I think that's why I enjoy it, I have people to root against plus it brings out the worst in people some times which can be fairly entertaining.  This season they did an all star cast from previous seasons which I really don't like.  I already know I don't like some of these people, I loved getting to know the cast for the first time and that's not how this is playing out.  My only real gripe so far.  Having said that, I don't know why I like this show and hate almost all other reality TV.

[pg1067]

Big Brother started last week, nice to see a live "game show" again and it was super weird how they started with masks on and then took them off once in the house.  Seems I'll be watching all 3 weekly episodes on Saturday nights for the season 

Based on the Big Brother people who have shown up on The Amazing Race (and other things I've heard about the show), I think I'd rather have all of my finger and toe nails ripped off by pliers.  :-)

  Yea, I hate most of the people on the show and I think that's why I enjoy it, I have people to root against plus it brings out the worst in people some times which can be fairly entertaining.  This season they did an all star cast from previous seasons which I really don't like.  I already know I don't like some of these people, I loved getting to know the cast for the first time and that's not how this is playing out.  My only real gripe so far.  Having said that, I don't know why I like this show and hate almost all other reality TV.

TAR is the only reality/unscripted show I watch (save for occasionally watching Survivor with my wife) because there is (or seems to be) less phoniness than in other "reality" shows.  TAR has had several folks from Big Brother, most notably Rachel Riley.

[Stadler]

I'm really getting tired of the reality show tropes, though.  They're even invading my favorite "genre" of reality TV, the cooking shows.   The "characters" are all out of central casting, and the number of people "working on their brand" is increasing exponentially.  Those shows with a multitude of participants have the full slate of stereotypes:  the old but still young grandma, the old and stuck in the 70's grandpa/old man, the butch lesbian, the out and flamboyant gay man (often African American or Latino, to check two boxes at once), the buff and either intense as a laser or dumb as a box of rocks male model, the female that was either the last one cut from "Jersey Shore" or who is looking to be the next Kylie Jenner...

Any of these in and of itself aren't the issue; it's the "roll call" of personalities, almost as if the casting team was primarily focused on what the reaction would be on social media (there's sarcasm in there).  And that's the point; none of this is even pretending to be real at this point (except for the inevitable reaction shot where someone says "this <beep> just got real!"). 

Which reminds me, I'm also bothered by the swearing; not because it's swearing - I have a mouth like a truck driver - but the way it's used; it's a symbol now - along with tattoos - of someone that "doesn't give a crap", which is wholly bogus, because someone who REALLY didn't give a crap wouldn't be anywhere near these shows.   For me, swearing is "time and place".  We as humans in a multifaceted society, ought to at the very least be able to control one's vocabulary; it's probably the one thing we have COMPLETE control of.  Even when angry; how many of you get angry at your spouse or kids, and can't control calling them "f----- m-----f------ sons of b--------" or whatever?   

This is why my reality TV is kind of limited to Chopped and Guy's Grocery Games.  They still have their character tropes, but at least the drama is piped down.  I watched an ep of GGG where the young guy was battling an old guy in the finals for $20k, which he said he was going to use to pay back a local charity that helped his young daughter in the final months of her life (she died of a cancer) and the old guy was faltering because he was tired and it was hot.  The young guy finished his cook and went over and said "Chef, I'm here to help, tell me what I can do" and helped the guy - again, who he was competing against in the name of his deceased daughter - finish his plate.  At the end, waiting for the results, the old guy says "if I win, all my winnings go to his charity.  It's the least I can do."   The young guy won, but still.  It was about the spirit of compassion and unity.  Not the petty nonsense drama that's on most reality TV.

RANT OVER, and I'm sorry in advance. 

[jammindude]

+ 1 to everything Stadler said.

This all (to me) highlights the dangers of “playing to an audience”. Is the motivation of the show to highlight competition, or to roll out the stereotypes so that every facet of the online community can have someone to love or hate?

The way that shows are put together in the internet age is (IMO) more about emotionally manipulating the audience than it is about making good entertainment.

I’ve been going old school. I pulled out my Black Adder DVDs last night. The wife and I got sick of the presentation in most current shows, so we decided to binge something old school instead.

Rowan Atkinson is just brilliant. And not as geeky looking when he’s wearing a beard.

[Stadler]

By the way, confirmation bias alert!, I was watching Guy again last night and he did a "Salute Our Troops" episode, where he had a cook from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard, each teamed with a former GGG champion (all chefs that Guy rotates in and out) competing for their specific charity.   And the Army woman - single mom of EIGHT on reserve duty who home schools her kids in a room she built off the restaurant she runs herself; slacker!!! - won.  The woman started crying and said "look, I know I work hard, but you didn't have to do this.  You changed my life and I'm grateful" and there wasn't a dry eye in the house.  The Navy and Air Force guys stood there and saluted, the chef partners were in tears as well.    The "losers" (they're not) walked out arm in arm with their chef partners and in the "exit interview" said that they were proud to help these people and both wished that they could stay in touch and "cook again" with their new friends.

Sappy, I know, but it's so rare, and so genuine, to see that kind of affection and respect for strangers on TV.  There's no "race" involved, there's no "politics" involved, it's just real humanity, and the good side.  Self control, respect, compassion, humility, grace...  Snooki and JWoww could take a page or two out of that book, for reals. 

[MirrorMask]

Started Superstore just to round off my last days of Prime Video, a sitcom that follows the workers in a, wait for it, superstore.

Funny enough to use it to kill time, not super stellar but good nevertheless. Perfect for binging when you have nothing else to do and you want some laughs.

[pg1067]

Has anyone seen Star Trek: Lower Decks?  I'm intrigued by the premise but I'm not really a Star Trek fan.

[jammindude]

Has anyone seen Star Trek: Lower Decks?  I'm intrigued by the premise but I'm not really a Star Trek fan.

My wife and I saw the first two episodes and loved it. But there a ton of “in” references.

I still think it would be funny...but it’s funniER when you get the in jokes.

[pg1067]

Has anyone seen Star Trek: Lower Decks?  I'm intrigued by the premise but I'm not really a Star Trek fan.

My wife and I saw the first two episodes and loved it. But there a ton of “in” references.

I still think it would be funny...but it’s funniER when you get the in jokes.

My wife is a Trek fan.  When I met her, she was part of a group at grad school that got together to watch The Next Generation, and I'm sure we watched the end of the final season after she moved out here.  She and I then watched all or most of Voyager, and I'm pretty sure I've seen all of the movies starting with Generations (except Nemesis and the most recent one).  I saw some of the original six movies and know IV really well, so I'm thinking I'll get most of the references unless they're really deep.

[MirrorMask]

Finished forever and ever The Big Bang Theory. Saw last night the last episode, I've managed to stick with all the 12 seasons at first through sheer enjoyment, then out of habit and affection for the characters. It was way past its prime, but still funny just enough to never make me think "geez, why do I even bother carrying on".

I'd sum up the whole series with "Group of scientists collectively fail to realize that Sheldon has at the very least OCD disorder, if not a kind of high functioning autism or Asperger syndrome". Seriously, the character of Sheldon was fun to watch, but he's not quirky. He has issues. I bet that if I google "what kind of disorder Sheldon has", I'll find a lot of pages where he has been properly diagnosed. It's a bit irritating that people in his life and all collegues at a prestigious scientific university do not even have the suspect that he could have issues, and treat him just like a petulant and annoying quirky guy, at a certain point the fault is theirs.

Anyway, the last episode wrapped it up very nicely and the last scenes were emotional. A sitcom that was wearily dragging itself over the finish lane since years still managed to end better than Game of Thrones.

[ReaperKK]

Because of my brothers insistence I've started watching Avatar. I'm a handful of episodes in and I'm enjoying it, the show is a little bit cheesy but overall enjoyable.

[gmillerdrake]

Finished forever and ever The Big Bang Theory. Saw last night the last episode, I've managed to stick with all the 12 seasons at first through sheer enjoyment, then out of habit and affection for the characters. It was way past its prime, but still funny just enough to never make me think "geez, why do I even bother carrying on".

I'd sum up the whole series with "Group of scientists collectively fail to realize that Sheldon has at the very least OCD disorder, if not a kind of high functioning autism or Asperger syndrome". Seriously, the character of Sheldon was fun to watch, but he's not quirky. He has issues. I bet that if I google "what kind of disorder Sheldon has", I'll find a lot of pages where he has been properly diagnosed. It's a bit irritating that people in his life and all collegues at a prestigious scientific university do not even have the suspect that he could have issues, and treat him just like a petulant and annoying quirky guy, at a certain point the fault is theirs.

Anyway, the last episode wrapped it up very nicely and the last scenes were emotional. A sitcom that was wearily dragging itself over the finish lane since years still managed to end better than Game of Thrones.

Man.....I never ‘got’ the love this show received. Didn’t find it funny at all and none of the characters were endearing to me. I understand it was wildly popular but it missed me completely.

[Stadler]

I view TBBT as a mixed bag, and everything that is wrong with network sitcoms.   It's no doubt funny, and my daughter and I would watch it together (so it was special that way), but inevitably, as the characters have to grow, they lose what made them special to begin with.  Raj is BORING once he started to talk.  Sheldon is BORING "exploring his feelings".   Penny is still hot, but BORING as she turns from the cute, easy "actress" (read: "waitress") into the successful pharamceutical business woman wife.   Leonard is BORING and annoying with his insecurities while married to the hottie across the hall.  Wolowitz is BORING as he turns from pathetic loser letch into a walking Borscht Belt comedian with the brisket jokes, etc. etc.   That show, like M*A*S*H before it, was awesome sauce for two maybe three seasons, and when they started to "humanize" the characaters, pffffft.    Doesn't mean it wasn't funny at times, but it wasn't the same.   

Call me a curmudgeon, but while the very last episode was better than it could have been, I'm not one of those that gets any satisfaction or "closure" out of happy endings for the characters, especially if, like MirrorMask so correctly points out, there are such gaping holes in the premise.  (My son is on the spectrum, and he might as well be Sheldon, without the neatness, arrogance and the discipline.  Every time Sheldon expresses his love of trains, it almost makes me dizzy with deja vu.)

[MirrorMask]

I wanted to write specifically that, but I kept it short... yes, I don't regret sticking with the show for the long run, but in order to keep going they had to change all the characters. I remember when Amy was just Sheldon with skirts, recoiling physical intimacy, and then all of a sudden she was turned into this girl longing for affection, kisses and intercourse. I remember when Stuart was just a normal shy guy that came this close to nail Penny (I still remember her inviting him for coffee, him saying he doesn't drink it, and Penny quipping "Aw, how cute, you think that coming in for coffee means coming in for coffee") before becoming a "woe is me" caricature who was barely functional as a human being, and of course Leonard getting Penny and Howard getting Bernardette would never happen in the real world. And the fact that they joked themselves about it in the show more than once doesn't help the situation, being self aware and joking about the flaws doesn't make them go away. But the biggest head scratcher will remain as I said a bunch of scientists never ever realizing that Sheldon might be something more than a "quirky" guy.

Still all of this never went so far to make me regret watching it, and as I said, at least it ended nicely.

[Stadler]

See, we all made fun of him, but Charlie Sheen was on to something.   If he didn't wig out and go all "Tiger Blood!" he would have been sucked into it too.  A married, sensitive, soon-to-be-father Charlie Harper would have SUUUCCCCCKKKKKKEDDDDD.  It was bad enough we had sensitive, rich, good looking Walton Schmidt (who, if the pattern holds, was probably good at golf, hung like a horse, and with the voice of an angel).   

[jammindude]

I wanna start by saying that I’m not normally a fan of cooking shows nor am I a fan of Amy Schumer under normal circumstances.

But based on a recommendation, I started watching Amy Schumer learns to cook. She married a professional chef by the name of Chris Fisher, and she has absolutely no idea how to cook whatsoever. so while under quarantine, they decided to self filming a show where he tries to teach her how to cook.

THIS SHOW IS A SCREAM.

My wife and I started watching it and we are completely hooked. We’re only on episode four and there’s never been an episode where we haven’t laughed our butts off.

[Stadler]

OOooooooooh.

See, I am a fan of cooking shows.  I watched Chopped, Guy's Grocery Games and American's Worst Chefs.  If I ever hit the lottery, I'm going to get word to Alex Guarnaschelli that I'll donate $500,000 to her charity of choice and all she has to do is cook me one meal.  If she turns me down, and since Carl Ruiz tragically passed, I'm going to either Beau McMillan or Scott Conant.   And I see ads for this all over the place for this show, and yet...   I really don't find anything endearing or funny about Amy Schumer.   Maybe I should give it a try, but from the ads, there's nothing there that seems interesting.

[pg1067]

I know I could google it, but who's Amy Schumer?

See, I am a fan of cooking shows.

You should check out this article:  https://www.cracked.com/blog/why-food-network-best-worst-cable-channel-ever/ .  It will NOT change your life, but if it makes you laugh as much as it made me laugh when I first read it, then you'll have spent an enjoyable 5-ish minutes.  Best line:  "Last time I watched Chopped, they gave the chefs a basket containing four ingredients . . . only one of which I'd ever even heard of. . . .  Here, have a ghoolaput, a slimmy, a yog apple, and a can of tuna. Make me dessert."

[pg1067]

Started watching "High Score" yesterday.  It is a 6-part documentary on the history of video games, and I watched the first two episodes so far.  The episodes are in the 35-45 minute range, so it's not at all exhaustive, but it's a pretty fun look back at the early days.

[gmillerdrake]

Started watching "High Score" yesterday.  It is a 6-part documentary on the history of video games, and I watched the first two episodes so far.  The episodes are in the 35-45 minute range, so it's not at all exhaustive, but it's a pretty fun look back at the early days.

I saw the trailer for it....looks neat. I think I'll check it out.




I watched a short 'zombie' movie called 'The Night Eats The Day' on Netflix. It's about a zombie/virus outbreak and you have the guy who luckily was 'safe' and wakes up to a world with blood hungry zombies. Pretty neat movie....it's only like an hour and a half so it's short and enjoyable and if you like the zombie genre it's worth the watch.

[Chino]

Started watching "High Score" yesterday.  It is a 6-part documentary on the history of video games, and I watched the first two episodes so far.  The episodes are in the 35-45 minute range, so it's not at all exhaustive, but it's a pretty fun look back at the early days.

I finished episode 4 last night. I'm liking it.

[jammindude]

I know I could google it, but who's Amy Schumer?

See, I am a fan of cooking shows.

You should check out this article:  https://www.cracked.com/blog/why-food-network-best-worst-cable-channel-ever/ .  It will NOT change your life, but if it makes you laugh as much as it made me laugh when I first read it, then you'll have spent an enjoyable 5-ish minutes.  Best line:  "Last time I watched Chopped, they gave the chefs a basket containing four ingredients . . . only one of which I'd ever even heard of. . . .  Here, have a ghoolaput, a slimmy, a yog apple, and a can of tuna. Make me dessert."

That’s a bit surprising. I’m not even a fan and I know who she is.

She’s been one of the most popular comedians in the US for awhile now. She first appeared in Last Comic Standing in 2007, and then she got into specials, sketch writing, magazine covers, and eventually several movies and a book.

People tend to have a very love or hate opinion of her. She kindof got famous for making jokes about being a bit of a tramp. But this cooking show with her husband captures another side of her. She’s actually fairly quick witted, and banters off her husband well. While at the same time still managing to be pretty frank about personal things. (A quality I like)

[Chino]

I think Amy Schumer is one of the least funny stand up comedians out there. Her routines depend on shock and awe rather than humor, and that's my least favorite kind of comedy. Outside of stand up, I think she's genuinely funny, and she'd probably be fun to throw a few beers back and going bowling with.

[jammindude]

I think Amy Schumer is one of the least funny stand up comedians out there. Her routines depend on shock and awe rather than humor, and that's my least favorite kind of comedy. Outside of stand up, I think these genuinely funny, and she'd probably be fun to throw a few beers back and going bowling with.

This pretty much sums up my opinion of her as well. But it’s that other side that makes this particular show work IMO. YMMV

[Zantera]

I think the changing of characters usually leads to sitcoms getting worse. Maybe that's part of why Seinfeld holds up to me as the best sitcom, because the characters don't really grow or change, and some might consider that a weakness but to me they stay funny until the end. It just seems the norm in most of these sitcoms to have the characters settle down, get married, have kids, get more successful and somewhere along the way they lose that 'it' that made them special in the first place.

[MirrorMask]

I think the changing of characters usually leads to sitcoms getting worse. Maybe that's part of why Seinfeld holds up to me as the best sitcom, because the characters don't really grow or change, and some might consider that a weakness but to me they stay funny until the end. It just seems the norm in most of these sitcoms to have the characters settle down, get married, have kids, get more successful and somewhere along the way they lose that 'it' that made them special in the first place.

Characters don't need to change if you end the series when you've told all that you wanted to say. But of course when a series goes good and they ask you for more and more seasons, you have to scrap the bottom of the barrel somehow...

[Zantera]

I think the changing of characters usually leads to sitcoms getting worse. Maybe that's part of why Seinfeld holds up to me as the best sitcom, because the characters don't really grow or change, and some might consider that a weakness but to me they stay funny until the end. It just seems the norm in most of these sitcoms to have the characters settle down, get married, have kids, get more successful and somewhere along the way they lose that 'it' that made them special in the first place.

Characters don't need to change if you end the series when you've told all that you wanted to say. But of course when a series goes good and they ask you for more and more seasons, you have to scrap the bottom of the barrel somehow...

That's why a show needs someone with authority and killer instinct to run it. Seinfeld could have gone on and we probably would have gotten more golden episodes but he knew that you should leave the audience wanting more. I get that it's tempting to keep going if you are on a big show and the pay checks keep coming - especially in this case. I mean none of the main actors will need to do anything else in their lives and they still got cash coming in because of TBBT. But if you care about the show you still should have that voice in the back of your head telling you to wrap things up in a satisfying way.

I really enjoyed the first few seasons of TBBT mainly because of the 'clash' in cultures between the nerdy gang and Penny - and the 'normal' situations they found themselves because of becoming a part of her life - situations they had not really been in before. But with Sheldon first being flanderized and then their quest to make him 'normal' (for him) as well as making the other 3 characters more bland and shoving them into relationships it just got less interesting to me.

[pg1067]

That’s a bit surprising. I’m not even a fan and I know who she is.

She’s been one of the most popular comedians in the US for awhile now. She first appeared in Last Comic Standing in 2007, and then she got into specials, sketch writing, magazine covers, and eventually several movies and a book.

People tend to have a very love or hate opinion of her. She kindof got famous for making jokes about being a bit of a tramp. But this cooking show with her husband captures another side of her. She’s actually fairly quick witted, and banters off her husband well. While at the same time still managing to be pretty frank about personal things. (A quality I like)

I don't really have any exposure to stand up comedians,** and I haven't read any non-sports or music magazines in a long time.  Maybe I've seen her and not known who she was.


** - The exception here is that I will watch the occasional episode of SNL and will check out some SNL sketches on YouTube.  My daughter also recently got me into watching John Mullaney's stand up specials, and I also stumbled on a couple of Jim Gaffigan's specials, both of which were super funny.

[Adami]

After I think it was Joe that recommended I Am Not Okay With This, I finally watched it.

I actually really liked it. Right before the last episode or so, I read it was cancelled.........so that sucks.

[Stadler]

Moreso early on, but Schumer was one of those comedians that got singled out for maybe not being completely original with her material.

[jammindude]

Moreso early on, but Schumer was one of those comedians that got singled out for maybe not being completely original with her material.

This is such a sketchy thing. Because theft has been a part of the arts since day one. How much did someone steal outright, and how much did they take part of it and make it their own.

I don’t know the specifics with Shumer. But I do know that she is a fairly quick witted person and pretty funny. Even if her actual joke writing is a little less so.

[gmillerdrake]

Watched the first three episodes of Warrior Nun. Really cool     Right up my alley