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[DMC]

6 minutes ago, RumHam said:

Wait, is Choo Choo not the big dumb white dude who worked with Gillahunt's character for Avery Markham in the final season?

He is indeed.  I'm frankly not sure what ethnicity he's supposed to be -- plus, regardless, he's half train.

[Zorral]

4 hours ago, DMC said:

The best part is he's the only LEO in US history that almost exclusively kills white males

Thanks for that, which somehow I'd never noticed.  Considering who the bad guys are, generally, in the Raylan universe, I guess we just sort of expect that majority kill rate to be white guys.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I was delighted by the bit in Tokyo Vice's penultimate episode in which Adelstein, out of the blue, has a street encounter of his past, his reality, from home. This momentarily after walking out of his HOT encounter with Japanese ‘prostitute’, during which he’s called by his editor, Emi Maruyama – to get out there on a HOT line to Their Story Investigation.  Everything from his ciggie to his walk broadcasts “I’m KING OF THE STREETS!" I flashed back to so many guys I’ve know with that exact swagger over the years -- so American: “I’ve got it ALL goin’ on.  All of it!” 

Then the guy from school shows up, and it does harsh Jake’s buzz, for all kinds of reasons, including we see the deal at school in Indiana called up by his former fellow student wasn’t, shall we say, anything like how he was feeling right before this guy from home got in his face?  And here we are, in the earlier throes, or later ones, depending on one’s pov on these matters, global, i.e. you run away to the furthest place from your unsatisfactory home and family, and here it is is, it’s followed you into your new! improved! exotic! World. Perfect writing.  I wonder if that event is in Adelstein’s Memoir?

Sad there's only one more episode to go.  I've been rationing them, but there aren't that many to start with.

 

[DireWolfSpirit]

The 4 year run of OZARK is completed for me.

It's been a fun ride. A lot of great cast members and the script writing has kept me tuned in to stay on the journey till the end.

There really isn't anything negative I can say about the show, some "ole Missouri shine goin on" (even though the majority of filming has been in Georgia and Illinois
.

[RumHam]

1 hour ago, DireWolfSpirit said:

There really isn't anything negative I can say about the show

Can I? Holy shit.

[DireWolfSpirit]

3 hours ago, RumHam said:

Can I? Holy shit.

Sure

But why did you keep watching if it was so unpleasant for you?

[Heartofice]

Ozark at its peak is wildly entertaining and gripping, with some good performances from a few of the leads. 
 

Ive just started the second half of season 4 and yeah, it seems like that peak was season 3. There is a clear drop off in quality that was on show from the first batch of this season and I fear it will continue.

The shows main problem I think is that what made it so good was that each tiny issue for the Byrd family escalates into bigger ones and they are constantly playing Wack-a-mole putting out fires.  It’s fun for a bit but there is a real limit to how long that can sustain itself.

The end of season 3 felt like it culminated in a Big Bang, but this season just feels like it’s going over old ground and struggling to find a reason to exist. The show doesn’t really know how to end and what it’s trying to do any more 

[ljkeane]

Yeah, I still haven't even finished the first half of the last series. Ozark has been really good at times but this last season does really feel like it's dragging for me.

[aceluby]

IMO Ozark has fallen victim to something a lot of shows before it have, and that's the idea that you must constantly be escalating in order to keep the show interesting - where this strategy makes the show feel like it's missing something and drags instead of actually keeping the viewer interested.  By the time you get to this point the realism of a broken family trying to keep it together is lost as they juggle dumb shit like national political leaders, cartel interpersonal relationships, and FBI double crosses.  It's not the stuff that made this show popular and I'd say most dramatic shows that go on for more than 3 seasons have this issue.

[aceluby]

Sorry for the double, but is anybody watching Shining Girls on AppleTv+?  I have no real idea what's going on, yet it's really gripping.  Between this and Severance I love that Apple is taking some risks on its content and putting some unique things out there.  After getting burned on so many good weird things on Netflix, only to be canceled after a season or 2, I'm happy to see another company willing to make some content that isn't based off some algorithm to get new subscribers.  Anyway, there's 3 episodes released so far and I'm hooked.

[Heartofice]

1 hour ago, aceluby said:

IMO Ozark has fallen victim to something a lot of shows before it have, and that's the idea that you must constantly be escalating in order to keep the show interesting - where this strategy makes the show feel like it's missing something and drags instead of actually keeping the viewer interested.  By the time you get to this point the realism of a broken family trying to keep it together is lost as they juggle dumb shit like national political leaders, cartel interpersonal relationships, and FBI double crosses.  It's not the stuff that made this show popular and I'd say most dramatic shows that go on for more than 3 seasons have this issue.

Actually I think with something like Ozark they really did have to escalate and go bigger, because that is kind of the story they are telling. The problem is that I think they really could have found a way to end it last season, it really just feels like it’s grinding its gears now and trying to find ways to be shocking, but it’s repeating itself. Shame really, I do like the show.

[Deadlines? What Deadlines?]

I'm watching the documentary series Wild, Wild Country on Netflix. I'm two episodes in. Holy crap this is bonkers. What strikes me is how this story was completely off my radar. I've heard about Jonestown and the Moonies and some of the stuff the Mormons and Scientologists were getting up to, but I've never even heard of this. Not that I'm drawing any equivalence between these groups, mind you. File it under the broad "non-mainstream religion controversy" category.

"They're taking over. Not with bullets, but with money and with immoral sex." -actual line from episode 2.

Recommend. 

[dog-days]

1 hour ago, aceluby said:

Sorry for the double, but is anybody watching Shining Girls on AppleTv+?  I have no real idea what's going on, yet it's really gripping.  Between this and Severance I love that Apple is taking some risks on its content and putting some unique things out there.  After getting burned on so many good weird things on Netflix, only to be canceled after a season or 2, I'm happy to see another company willing to make some content that isn't based off some algorithm to get new subscribers.  Anyway, there's 3 episodes released so far and I'm hooked.

I finished watching Severance last night and loved it. Great casting, quirky characters, interesting concept with contemporary relevance at the centre of events. I've seen nice things said about Shining Girls, but haven't watched it yet. Since I've got two weeks left of my month of Apple, I'll be sure to give it a go. 

[aceluby]

48 minutes ago, Heartofice said:

Actually I think with something like Ozark they really did have to escalate and go bigger, because that is kind of the story they are telling. The problem is that I think they really could have found a way to end it last season, it really just feels like it’s grinding its gears now and trying to find ways to be shocking, but it’s repeating itself. Shame really, I do like the show.

That's my point.  You can only keep escalating for so long before it feels contrived.  Escalating to tell a story is fine, you just can't do it forever, otherwise you get something like Weeds or House of Cards nonsense.

[RumHam]

9 hours ago, DireWolfSpirit said:

Sure

But why did you keep watching if it was so unpleasant for you?

It wasn't always, just at the end. With six episodes or so left I wasn't going to give up.

[dbunting]

I am 3 seasons into The Shield. It has gotten better, it seemed real shaky and forced in S1 and part of S2. This has a real feel of SOA and I want to say Justified combined but that's just lazy on my part, I can't quite think of the cop show to mix with it. The schemes and bad decision making along with wanting to do good but it never quite working out... 

Spoiler

So, they seem to be leading us to Dutch boy turning into a serial killer. The strike team imploding and maybe them or Mackie catching Dutch in the end and both dying in a shoot out? Heard this series ends really well so I can't help myself from looking ahead to what may be coming.

 

I am gonna switch over to the last part of Ozark now that it's out, don't want to get spoiled on it.

[WarGalley]

30 minutes ago, dbunting said:

I am 3 seasons into The Shield. It has gotten better, it seemed real shaky and forced in S1 and part of S2. This has a real feel of SOA and I want to say Justified combined but that's just lazy on my part, I can't quite think of the cop show to mix with it. The schemes and bad decision making along with wanting to do good but it never quite working out... 

I think the general consensus is that it's shaky in the mid-seasons but generally gets stronger at around Season 4 through to the series finale.

Kurt Sutter, creator of Sons of Anarchy, was also a producer, writer and director on the Shield. And Justified has Goggins and is also an FX production so I don't think it's too lazy to have those feelings. If you like those 3 shows, you may also want to add Terriers to your watchlist as it's from Shawn Ryan (co-creator and writer for The Shield) and is very similar in vibe.

[RumHam]

Alright so here are my thoughts/complaints about the final batch of Ozark episodes:
 

Spoiler

The final half season was pretty boring. The writing reminded me of when you write a paper the night before it's due and aren't concerned with it being good, just getting it done. I didn't like how they invented Javi in the first half of the season to be a more evil cartel villain. So I really didn't like them switching to his mom as the villain. (Did she appear in the last batch of episodes? If so I don't remember her.) It felt like they set up this huge conflict between the Byrds, the cartel and Ruth at the end of those episodes and then just kinda walked it back and tried to mine drama from other shit that I did not care about.

When Marty went down to run the cartel they kept telling us how dangerous it was if he didn't get their respect. But they didn't show us that. Everything just went smoothly and the takeaway was "Marty is uncomfortable with torture and murder." I never once thought he was in any danger of a mutiny. Which he should have been, Marty is not a commanding cartel leader type of guy.

Ruth and Rachel taking over the casino was just so ...limp. Marty just seemed mildly annoyed. And they didn't do it by being clever or anything interesting. They just sort of realized Ruth was entitled to a stake in it and then bought that other guy's share. I'm not a lawyer but an adult repeat felon having her record wiped clean didn't seem very realistic.

I have no idea why they revisited Ben's death. Other than "hey remember when this show was emotionally impactful?" I thought maybe Nelson would tell Wendy that he died well and forgave her. Give her some closure, maybe as he's about to kill her. But no. That was some really shoddy green-screening outside the restaurant when it switched to the new footage. Nelson's death was incredibly lame too. He just gets shot? at a distance, by Rachel? I think Ruth should have killed him and they definitely could have made it more tense and dramatic. Let him have the upper hand at first.

What the hell was the point of the car crash? They flashed forward to it and made it seem like a big deal but it was nothing.

The plotline with the most potential I think was Wendy's dad. His jesus loving facade and secret alcoholism and abusive nature. There were moments there where he really had my attention. But then it's resolved with Ruth pointing a gun at him and telling him to fuck off. I would have preferred if the kids figured it out for themselves or Wendy had stood up to him more effectively. Didn't really like her "I'm going to kill my dad so let me into the mental institution" thing.

Like Ran once said it was always tier two TV, and there's nothing wrong with that. You hope though that it will get better over time and not worse. It really seemed to me like the people writing the show checked out.

 

[Week]

7 hours ago, Deadlines? What Deadlines? said:

I'm watching the documentary series Wild, Wild Country on Netflix. I'm two episodes in. Holy crap this is bonkers. What strikes me is how this story was completely off my radar. I've heard about Jonestown and the Moonies and some of the stuff the Mormons and Scientologists were getting up to, but I've never even heard of this. Not that I'm drawing any equivalence between these groups, mind you. File it under the broad "non-mainstream religion controversy" category.

"They're taking over. Not with bullets, but with money and with immoral sex." -actual line from episode 2.

Recommend. 

Really, really good documentary. Definitely one of those that feels astonishing that it isn't in the collective memory a la Jonestown, Waco, etc.

[dbunting]

3 hours ago, WarGalley said:

I think the general consensus is that it's shaky in the mid-seasons but generally gets stronger at around Season 4 through to the series finale.

Kurt Sutter, creator of Sons of Anarchy, was also a producer, writer and director on the Shield. And Justified has Goggins and is also an FX production so I don't think it's too lazy to have those feelings. If you like those 3 shows, you may also want to add Terriers to your watchlist as it's from Shawn Ryan (co-creator and writer for The Shield) and is very similar in vibe.

I only liked a couple seasons of SOA, just got comical the last few.  Justified was much better IMO.

[Nictarion]

3 hours ago, RumHam said:

Alright so here are my thoughts/complaints about the final batch of Ozark episodes:
 

  Hide contents

The final half season was pretty boring. The writing reminded me of when you write a paper the night before it's due and aren't concerned with it being good, just getting it done. I didn't like how they invented Javi in the first half of the season to be a more evil cartel villain. So I really didn't like them switching to his mom as the villain. (Did she appear in the last batch of episodes? If so I don't remember her.) It felt like they set up this huge conflict between the Byrds, the cartel and Ruth at the end of those episodes and then just kinda walked it back and tried to mine drama from other shit that I did not care about.

When Marty went down to run the cartel they kept telling us how dangerous it was if he didn't get their respect. But they didn't show us that. Everything just went smoothly and the takeaway was "Marty is uncomfortable with torture and murder." I never once thought he was in any danger of a mutiny. Which he should have been, Marty is not a commanding cartel leader type of guy.

Ruth and Rachel taking over the casino was just so ...limp. Marty just seemed mildly annoyed. And they didn't do it by being clever or anything interesting. They just sort of realized Ruth was entitled to a stake in it and then bought that other guy's share. I'm not a lawyer but an adult repeat felon having her record wiped clean didn't seem very realistic.

I have no idea why they revisited Ben's death. Other than "hey remember when this show was emotionally impactful?" I thought maybe Nelson would tell Wendy that he died well and forgave her. Give her some closure, maybe as he's about to kill her. But no. That was some really shoddy green-screening outside the restaurant when it switched to the new footage. Nelson's death was incredibly lame too. He just gets shot? at a distance, by Rachel? I think Ruth should have killed him and they definitely could have made it more tense and dramatic. Let him have the upper hand at first.

What the hell was the point of the car crash? They flashed forward to it and made it seem like a big deal but it was nothing.

The plotline with the most potential I think was Wendy's dad. His jesus loving facade and secret alcoholism and abusive nature. There were moments there where he really had my attention. But then it's resolved with Ruth pointing a gun at him and telling him to fuck off. I would have preferred if the kids figured it out for themselves or Wendy had stood up to him more effectively. Didn't really like her "I'm going to kill my dad so let me into the mental institution" thing.

Like Ran once said it was always tier two TV, and there's nothing wrong with that. You hope though that it will get better over time and not worse. It really seemed to me like the people writing the show checked out.

 

Spoiler

I pretty much agree with all this. I didn’t hate the final season, it just kind of fell flat. Marty as an acting cartel boss did come pretty close to a jumping the shark moment for me though. But it’s not like this show was ever particularly worried about being  grounded in reality.

Definitely missed Darlene Snell. 

They also basically telegraphed Ruth getting killed. Did anyone really think things were going to end well for her once she started building dream houses and putting in pools?

I also didn’t really like the stylistic choice for how they did her death scene. Instead of being upset about my favorite character from the whole show getting killed I just remember thinking the scene came off kind of cheesy.

Honestly it’s hard to really point to any particular highlight from the final 7 episodes. Which is pretty telling.

As for the series as a whole, for me it goes down firmly in the good, but not great category.