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I loved that. If you’re looking for deep dives into solid British comedy may I also recommend:
Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace
The Day Today
Brass Eye
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Hey, we all get to ‘ACK-Shelly’ a conversation when the stakes are low. I am only vaguely aware of how UK tv has evolved.
Double feature of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension and Poolman last night. Not sure what is on the docket tonight.
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BANZAI!!! I’ll see you in hell!
“Lithium is no longer available on credit.”
One of my PIC’s favorite movies, and one he introduced me to!
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ASH (2025) -dir. Flying Lotus
Riya (Eliza González) wakes up. She does not remember who she is, where she is, or what happened. And something very bad has happened. She’s in some sort of space-bunker, and there’s blood and bodies strewn about. Outside, on an alien planet, ash falls from the sky, making the atmosphere toxic. She’s soon joined by the orbiter pilot (Aaron Paul) and they slowly piece together just what went down.
Flying Lotus is a musician and filmmaker who has several critically acclaimed albums. His previous directorial efforts have been a segment for the V/H/S/99 horror anthology and 2017’s experimental horror comedy(?) film Kuso, which is awash is bodily fluids, scatological references, and absurd non sequiturs.
Thankfully, ASH is much more straightforward. His unique visuals are still very prominent, even if they occasionally veer into what I call “fractal screen saver” territory. The plot is a mishmash of concepts we’ve seen before. A big dollop of Event Horizon, a couple dashes of Alien, a few spoonfuls of The Thing. But familiarity doesn’t necessarily breed contempt. If the plot and characters are a bit well worn, a third act taking a slightly different spin is a welcome surprise, and FlyLo’s sense of style, with interesting camera work and saturated, colorful lighting make for an entertaining 95 minutes that doesn’t overstay its welcome.
It’s currently in theaters, but it’s a very narrow opening, so it may be hard to find. It’s available to buy/rent on Fandango, and will be coming to Shudder later this year. Watch for it.
3.5/5 flashbacks.
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Yeah, I think Americans think everything is BBC here. The television landscape is certainly not the same as in the US, but it is more than one channel. 
Channel 4 is a favorite.
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Watched the remaining two episodes of Adolescence, which was fantastic — if by fantastic you mean fantastically depressing. Never been happier about my choice not to have kids of either gender. Great acting on all counts.
And the next installment of White Lotus, which, after a very slow start, is really leaning into its kinky side. Love it, if only for the uproar about it all.
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I binged Adolescence this weekend. That was probably a grim decision but it was really compelling and really well done. The scene with the psychiatrist was amazing*-- chilling but also that kid’s performance. Wow. (Everyone was good, but that kid had a lot of heavy lifting to do.)
I’ve been interested in the discourse (which is also part of the reason I binged) and it is intriguing how so many of the decisions they made (a white child from a non-troubled household) were to render this a “neutral” case (because otherwise people would have used race or abuse to pathologise the boy and to not think about internet culture and the manopsphere.
Like you I’m also grateful not to have children (I don’t envy parents) but at the same time I am glad of the friends I have who are raising good young people and happy to be the “auntie” (actual and conceptual) to help out.
Also: I love Stephen Graham and Jack Thorne is an excellent television writer.
*That moment of television also brings to mind Ep 3 of Douglas is Cancelled: It was so disturbing to watch-- although I will say that episode of DiC made me feel sick for its recognisability. The number of men I encountered in my life who tried on that coercive stuff in various ways without my even realising how sinister it was as I felt compelled to be polite? Oy. So glad I can be the adult to young people to validate their experiences in these situations.
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Yeah, that shrink sesh was something, alright 
Apparently the kid’s first role ever, too!
I think 99% if not 100% of women can identify with the hotel room scene in DiC.
And yes, many of our friends are raising fine, empathetic, emotionally smart kids. Too bad we left such a dumpster for them.
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i think part of the brilliance of the show is in the nuances of the writing. there are no easy answers here, and a lesser show could have drifted into preachiness and become overbearing.
appreciated all four episodes and similarly, thought episode 3 was a standout. the performances were just burning and the camera flitting around like a hummingbird the whole time really ratcheted up the tension for me. the construction of the plot was very effective; the time jumps reinforced the rippling of consequence as we see the impact that one fairly brief moment has on a greater world.
i am not a parent either and this show probably hits in ways i can’t imagine for those that are. however, episode 4 really does bring it home, so to speak, as i watched it through my own parents eyes: how is it that you bring two people into the world, equally loved and provided for, and arrive at such divergent outcomes? not, in their case, finding yourselves having raised a child capable of murder, but in the end capable of erasing himself.
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I knew there was BBC 1, 2, and 3, which I gleaned from a long history of Dr. Who and Monty Python syndication onto PBS, as well as The Two Ronnies, Dave Allen, and… Benny Hill and the Kenny Everett Show. One can certainly not accuse BBC of only being only for snooty literary stuff.
I knew there was a ‘Channel Four’ and something called ‘Dave’, but had no real way to tell what content came from which. I also assume there’s a whole cable/pay tv ecosystem there with bunches of Murdoch owned crap various specialty channels like Discovery or the Food Network that are undergoing their own special enshitification which may or may not be different from the American type.
Each Adolescence episode was shot in one take, but they were actually filmed more than 10 times. The psychologist episode that was aired was the eleventh that they shot.
There’s also a making-of video, which I haven’t watched yet.
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Wow! That’s impressive.
I’ve been watching season eight of the great Canadian baking show. When I googled, it linked me to YouTube episodes. It’s soothing content for a world gone crazy.
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Watched the very fun Companion with Sophie Thatcher of Yellowjackets fame last night. Apart from a non-Russian doing a horribly bad Russian accent it was highly enjoyable.
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