What have you been watching lately? 2024 Edition

How do you like it? I added it to my watchlist but haven’t started it yet.

So I’ve finally started the new version of Shogun on Hulu/FX

Fantastic production value, and 2 episodes in, I’m appreciating several things about it:

The subtitles keep me immersed and paying attention. And I think they benefit the performances. I wouldn’t have been opposed for them to keep most of the dialog in Portuguese and Japanese and done subtitles for the whole thing.

The costumes (and sets, yes, but particularly the costumes) are just stunning.

I never did watch the original miniseries way back when. I was probably just a little too immature to appreciate it, and I haven’t read the source material, so I don’t know how well it’s reflected here. But I really like the way the writers seem to be leaning into the “there are no good guys here. Just competing agendas.” and extending that to very little faction of this conflict. No one is blameless, no one is pure, and everyone is proceeding from their own differently but equally erroneous ideas of “The Way Things Ought To Be”

While Blackthorn is clearly our protagonist, they seem to take great pains to make sure we know he is NOT a heroic figure, and neither is anyone else. That’s a tough task to set oneself as a writer, how to keep an anti-hero ACTUALY anti-heroic, and not fall into a lazy redemption arc. All of which is to say I hope they don’t want to make us LIKE Blackthorn very much. He doesn’t need to be likable to be interesting.

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I liked it, but not as much as some others BBC detective shows.

We are watching Suspects now.

I like the male lead in Suspects.

@Saregama , I enjoyed Grace enough to watch all the available episodes, if that means anything.

Finished Annika (and would definitely understand if it included "comedy " among its descriptors). I canceled my PBS Masterpiece subscription I watched it on, so if there is something I should watch before August 5th on there, someone please let me know!

I looked into “The Split”, but not sure if I will try it, in spite of its highly esteemed “stumper”! Re-trying D.I. Ray, for now, also on PBS Masterpiece I think.

Also looking for this one; I used to watch both of his shows on “appointment TV”.

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Longlegs, allegedly The Scariest Film of The Decade.

Save your money. It is not, not even by the farthest stretch of the imagination. The only highlight is a damn near unrecognizable Nicholas Cage (beneath all the makeup and prosthetic facial … things). Glad we went on cheap movie day :yawning_face:

Much more entertaining (to the point of camp) is Evil, a ‘drama’ on Netflix in its 4th season. Occasionally very creepy, especially the first two seasons, with everyone’s favorite creeper par excellence, Michael Emerson playing the evilest role. Katja Herbers is wonderful, as are her co-stars Aasif Mandvi as the skeptic and Mike Colter as the aspiring priest.

It’s really well done, including a lovingly elaborate intro. I’m surprised the show isn’t getting the attention it deserves.

Pearls :woman_shrugging:

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If you really want an actually scary movie, this was rather disturbing.

I love Evil! What a fantastic cast! It was created by the brilliant husband and wife team of Robert and Michelle King, who brought us The Good Wife and The Good Fight. I love the way they mix creepy with humor.
It is actually streaming on Paramount Plus, unless Netflix also has it.

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They also are show runners/co creators of Elsbeth, the quirky lawyer that was in the Good Wife and Good Fight. Evil has always sounded too scary for me (yeah I’m horror adverse) but have read really glowing reviews.

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My bad. We have so may screening services and subscriptions I can’t keep them straight :crazy_face:

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I know the feeling :slightly_smiling_face: I think I have all of the major streaming services, except for Netflix, plus I have cable, which is ridiculously expensive. It’s so hard to keep up with what show is on what app. I mainly started subscribing to streaming services since Covid, because no new shows were being made.

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Yes. Elsbeth is another fun show. They also created short lived Brain Dead.

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[Evil spoiler ahead if you haven’t seen Season 1, Episode 10.]

My favorite. IYKYK.

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Sort of a Monk situation, but BBC style

I watched a bit, thought it was okay. They play up his eccentricity almost too much, as they did in Death in Paradise. Not saying I won’t watch the rest, though :grinning: (Love Monk)

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I thought Elsbeth was a good light watch, but her storylines were so much better on The Good Wife!

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Is he ( one of the many) from Paradise? I liked that show!

He was the original guy

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Yes, I agree. A little bit of Elsbeth goes a long way. One hour could be a bit much, but I do enjoy the ‘Columbo’ feel of it (and the special guest stars each week).

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Ooooh! I like the sound of that!

Wikipedia says

“Elsbeth is usually a “howcatchem” TV mystery show as opposed to the traditional “whodunit”, showing the audience from the start who the killer is, how and why they commit the crime and how they are caught.”

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