Let's have a TV shows thread.

[stripeyfox]

8 hours ago, kristianity77 said:

Just binge watched season 3 of After Life.  Incredible show.

really struggling to like this season to be honest. Liked the first series. The insistence of trying to shoe horn the C word into practically every scene just doesn't work. It's like he's a 13 year old who has just discovered the word and is using it at every opportunity. 

 

I'm hoping for a big finish to the season to perhaps save it but right now it's hard to like Gervais's character. There have been moments of charm; the scenes where he interviews people for the paper are well done; although it seems like the show would have been better set with him working on "Nuts" or "Viz" rather than the Tanbury Gazzette.

 

I'll reseve full judgement until the end but for now, it's a bit of an chore to watch it - but it feels like I need to finish it because I watched the first two seasons.

Edited 15 January 2022 by stripeyfox

[Raj]

9 minutes ago, stripeyfox said:

really struggling to like this season to be honest. Liked the first series. The insistence of trying to shoe horn the C word into practically every scene just doesn't work. It's like he's a 13 year old who has just discovered the word and is using it at every opportunity. 

 

I'm hoping for a big finish to the season to perhaps save it but right now it's hard to like Gervais's character. There have been moments of charm; the scenes where he interviews people for the paper are well done; although it seems like the show would have been better set with him working on "Nuts" or "Viz" rather than the Tanbury Gazzette.

 

I'll reseve full judgement until the end but for now, it's a bit of an chore to watch it - but it feels like I need to finish it because I watched the first two seasons.

Agree.

I think people like yo think it's better just because  it has Ricky Gervais  in.

It's pretty substandard and boring really.

[rico]

Watched 1st episode of Peacemaker,John Cena is great in it

[stripeyfox]

23 minutes ago, Raj said:

Agree.

I think people like yo think it's better just because  it has Ricky Gervais  in.

It's pretty substandard and boring really.

yeah I can't quite put my finger on it but it seems like he does a good job of getting in the way of this show.

 

I'm not totally anti Gervais either - I loved Extras and some of his other stuff but he seems to obstruct the story here. The other characters - like Diane Morgan's, Penelope Wilton's and others would benefit from being explored a bit more, as would the girl from the first series (Sandy?).

 

there is a bit of "Emperor's new clothes" about it - everyone says it's good so everyone believes it's good when it seems to be not quite all its cracked up to be

 

[ClaphamFox]

1 hour ago, stripeyfox said:

yeah I can't quite put my finger on it but it seems like he does a good job of getting in the way of this show.

 

I'm not totally anti Gervais either - I loved Extras and some of his other stuff but he seems to obstruct the story here. The other characters - like Diane Morgan's, Penelope Wilton's and others would benefit from being explored a bit more, as would the girl from the first series (Sandy?).

 

there is a bit of "Emperor's new clothes" about it - everyone says it's good so everyone believes it's good when it seems to be not quite all its cracked up to be

 

My other half and I watched the first four episodes of the new series of After Life last night and we were very disappointed by it. My take on it is that the programme has always tried to mix two very different types of show - 1) a real-life, very human story about a man coming to terms with the death of his wife; and 2) a cast of comedy characters that are so extreme that they would be more at home in a Harry Enfield/Little Britain-style sketch show. It's always going to be a challenge balancing those two elements, but in the first two seasons I think Gervais just about pulls it off.

 

In the third series, it seems like he's not sure how to write the main story about the relationship between Tony and Emma, so he just pads it out by focusing more on the other characters. The problem is, they're not supposed to be real people - they're just there for comedy purposes. So there's not a great deal he can do with them. The character of Brian, for example, is quite funny but utterly implausible - yet he's getting loads of screen time in the new series. Likewise Pat the postman, the gay theatre agent, Ratty and the Nonce, etc.

 

Another problem is that Tony's character doesn't seem to have developed at all over the three series - he's just as miserable and misanthropic as he was at the beginning. You get the sense that Gervais knows how to write comedy based on character 'types' that don't change, but he doesn't really know how to develop them - hence why potentially interesting characters like Kath and Sandy aren't really explored much either. 

 

I think he's right to end it with this series, although I'm sure Netflix would have paid him a huge amount of money to write more. It's just run out of steam.

 

 

 

Edited 15 January 2022 by ClaphamFox

[Izzy]

I still maintain that After Life should have finished after season 1.

 

I thought it was the prefect ending.

[Livid]

Started on Discovery of Witches not sure I’m going to see it though TBH. 
 

Easy watching but there have been plenty of eye rolls. Just seems yet another  supernatural twist on Romeo & Juliet. 

[marbles]

3 minutes ago, Livid said:

Started on Discovery of Witches not sure I’m going to see it though TBH. 
 

Easy watching but there have been plenty of eye rolls. Just seems yet another  supernatural twist on Romeo & Juliet. 

Saw this a few months ago and have mixed feelings about it.

I did not like the soap operish romance, but for some reason couldn’t stop watching.

Finished the first season, started episode one of the second and said “nope”

Couldn’t tell you exactly why, but I was done with it.

[Free Falling Foxes]

May I ask a favour?

If you post on this thread about a show you've enjoyed, recommend or just wish to discuss, can you let us know the channel or streaming service it's being shown on?

Too often someone will rave about a particular show that I may wish to give a try but I cannot find the bloody thing!

Edited 15 January 2022 by Free Falling Foxes

[ozleicester]

Enjoyed ""Afterlife3" not as good as one or two.. but thats to be expected. Gervais is a genius.

[The Bear]

13 hours ago, Free Falling Foxes said:

May I ask a favour?

If you post on this thread about a show you've enjoyed, recommend or just wish to discuss, can you let us know the channel or streaming service it's being shown on?

Too often someone will rave about a particular show that I may wish to give a try but I cannot find the bloody thing!

https://www.justwatch.com/

 

That website is useful for finding out where shows (and movies) are available to watch. 

[SexyGammonFox]

On 14/01/2022 at 19:34, Steve_Guppy_Left_Foot said:

Looking for a new series to watch, something like the x files maybe or a good mystery, any ideas? 

I don't think you will ever find another series like the X files, it was a complete one one off. You had a genius show runner, paired with two brilliant actors who had an unrivalled on-screen chemistry who were fed with writers with enough ideas to keep us going for a hundred years.

 

Just buy the box set and keep watching it over and over again.

[BroughtonFox]

I enjoyed After Life, wonder why some characters were missing in series three though?

[Izzy]

On 02/01/2022 at 19:48, Webbo said:

Just watched the first 3, 7 out of 10 so far. 

Is The Tourist worth sticking with? I'm half way through and undecided tbh...

[Facecloth]

16 hours ago, BroughtonFox said:

I enjoyed After Life, wonder why some characters were missing in series three though?

I think the only really noticeable unexplained one was Roisin Conaty's character, she's mentioned numerous times, but never seen.

[RonnieTodger]

Enjoying Ozark S1

[Webbo]

11 hours ago, Izzy said:

Is The Tourist worth sticking with? I'm half way through and undecided tbh...

I thought it was very good. 

[WigstonWanderer]

Just caught a bit of a documentary on Kiss. Great quote from the lead singer: “Fame and fortune doesn’t change you…. It just allows you to become the asshole you always were” 

[Babylon]

Afterlife S3 certainly wasn’t as good as S1&2, it felt a bit too forced. “This got a laugh before, let’s do it again… and again”. And trying to get a satisfactory conclusion for every character just left him with too much to do in such a limited series (not helped by several characters not able to come back).

 

But, that said it’s still touching and has some positive messages. 

[rico]

Clickbait on Netflix, great series

[Raj]

New series of The Bay on itv. 

Last 2 series were decent.

[Dahnsouff]

Anybody tried Big Sky on Disney+?

[Steve_Guppy_Left_Foot]

Must say I'm thoroughly enjoying boba fett, don't get all the hate at all. 

[rico]

1 hour ago, Steve_Guppy_Left_Foot said:

Must say I'm thoroughly enjoying boba fett, don't get all the hate at all. 

Its ok, just think the actor playing Boba is a bit old and overweight 😂

[Finnegan]

On 15/01/2022 at 08:39, stripeyfox said:

really struggling to like this season to be honest. Liked the first series. The insistence of trying to shoe horn the C word into practically every scene just doesn't work. It's like he's a 13 year old who has just discovered the word and is using it at every opportunity. 

 

I'm hoping for a big finish to the season to perhaps save it but right now it's hard to like Gervais's character. There have been moments of charm; the scenes where he interviews people for the paper are well done; although it seems like the show would have been better set with him working on "Nuts" or "Viz" rather than the Tanbury Gazzette.

 

I'll reseve full judgement until the end but for now, it's a bit of an chore to watch it - but it feels like I need to finish it because I watched the first two seasons.

 

I thought the first season was absolutely fantastic. It really resonated with me, I felt it was really heartfelt and he really hit the mark. I just feel he should have left it there. 

 

The second season it seemed like he was trying a bit too hard to find the same note. While season one came from the heart, season two seemed to come from an obligation to do more series. 

 

It just got a bit more cynical and over the top. His therapist becoming more of a significant character, for example, just did my head in. I don't doubt there's a couple of shit counsellors out there and maybe Gervais has had a bad experience but it felt like a ludicrously over the top caricature that wasn't really representative of most of the profession. 

 

I think if you're making any other type of show that doesn't really matter but in an era when encouraging people to get help and support is becoming less taboo, it felt a bit unnecessary for Gervais - whilst writing something that's supposed to relatable on mental health - to present the field so aggressively poorly? 

 

I don't doubt Gervais would laugh off that criticism and tell me it's not his job to make people seek help or that it's just a comic character and it's not supposed to represent all therapists but I dunno, it disappointed me all the same.