I'm start to get to the point where I think I'm going to switch up streaming services. I think Netflix is going to get the ax as there's really not much I want to watch on there anymore. All the shows I liked are gone and I'm not terribly interested in much of the original content.
D+ took over for the kids content, so I'm thinking I'm going to go for their bundled package instead. I hope E+ plays a bunch of random sports late at night.
So, what have you been watching?
I've started watching Billions on Prime and Peacemaker on HBOMax.
Peacemaker is dumb fun.
I also started the latest season of Ozark. It's good but I'm getting a little tired of it.
I watched part of the new Netflix show The Woman in the house across from the Girl in the Window or some such. This to me is the Netflix equivalent to the Bantam Bulwyr contest from Spooky's site. I think it was supposed to be a comedy based on the title, but it was just so fantastically bad. I can't describe it other than you have to see it for yourself.
Been rewatching Better Call Saul which does such a great job supplementing the Breaking Bad universe. I hesitate to even pick one over the other. They're both just excellent.
Started watching Never Have I Ever on Netflix - show about an teenage Indian girl coming of age. The sexual subject matter is a little cringe-worthy, but overall has been very enjoyable. Through Season 1 so far. Will start on Season 2 soon.
I've also thought about dropping Netflix due to the price increase, but our kids watch it enough that I think I'll probably end up keeping it. We also currently have Prime and Hulu and on the music side Spotify. Used to have Paramount Plus for old Survivor Seasons, but got tired of those. Haven't picked up any others. Don't know what we're missing and it's probably better that way.
My wife and I watched The Woman In the House Across the Street from the Girl In the Window (or something like that). It was definitely intentionally bad, but bad enough to be funny to me. It gets even more ridiculous as it goes along, so if that's your thing, it might be worth finishing it. It's definitely not for everyone, though.
We picked up D+ a while back so the Poissonnière could watch Pixar films. The only thing I’ve found myself wanting to watch on my own is Get Back. If it weren’t for Big Mouse swallowing Pixar, we wouldn’t be D+ subscribers. I really enjoyed Get Back, but found that watching a nearly 3-hour episode starting at 10 pm explored the outer limits of my attention span’s endurance at that time of day.
I find I primarily watch Netflix’ original content and gravitate heavily to non-English productions. I finished The Minions of Midas & Lupin in December. Solo feature film viewing included Killing Them Softly, The Coldest Game, & The Irishman, all of which I hadn’t previously watched. When I noticed they were leaving their respective streaming services, I rewatched Children of Men, Fight Club, and Moneyball, which is a bit of a touchstone in my office.
Friday nights are Movie Night. Kirikou and the Sorceress made a big impression on the Poissonnière. I was impressed with the film, which is definitely different from a lot of what you see in big studio production. I’d recommend screening it yourself before you watch it with small fry, just to make sure you’re comfortable with animated depictions of natural nudity and some of the themes. I don’t want to spoil anything, so you can read a summary here if you’d like to know more.
Current streaming roster, ordered by viewing percentage: Netflix, D+, Apple TV+, Prime Video.
As I mentioned, I cancelled my MLB.TV subscription’s auto-renewal. Deciding whether to pick it back up will depend first on the owners’ actions during the lockout, and second on whether (& how) the Twins’ front office addresses the glaring holes in their roster.
I have had MLB radio on auto-renew, but haven't really listened to many games the last several seasons. I probably should cancel and just "borrow" the boy's MLB.tv subscription on occasion when I need a Twins fix.
We've been watching Boba Fett (not as bad as fanboys make it out, but it could have been structured better) and Peacemaker. I liked Hawkeye, and gotta say David Cronenberg has been my favorite part of latest Star Trek: Discovery season.
Spiderman: No Way Home was good fun -- lots of crowd reaction.
We currently have YouTube TV, Hulu, and split Disney+ with Runner daughter. It gets the job done. We have another trip coming up (Phoenix and Sedona) and popping the Chromecast into the suitcase has been a godsend -- Mrs Runner knows the remote and the channels/apps, so no struggles to adapt to something new.
We have my parents' Amazon Prime and cable log ins, my brother's Netflix, friends logins for Disney+ and HBOMax, and I go halvsies with a rugby buddy on the rugby package on Peacock.
With all of that, the streaming app that gets the most use is PBS Kids. The little one loves Super Why
We caught Ghosts on OTA CBS randomly two weeks ago and plowed through the back episodes, then started on the BBC version, which is available on HBOMax.
I also have an Emby server set up on our home desktop where I've ripped all my DVDs to, so we can stream Moana, et al without D+ if need be
Movies
Spiderman -- It was fun fluff (Theater)
Matrix Resurrection -- Surprised I liked this. I loved the meta-ness of it all. I watched at home.
Licorice Pizza -- Meh. It's a bunch of vignettes that don't really hold together. I got the feeling PTA just loved how well he was portraying the 70's in the set design, etc. (Theater)
Nightmare Alley -- Decent. You can wait until this get's streamed (Theater)
TV
Station Eleven -- Great. This is right in my wheel house. (HBO/MAX)
Get Back -- I was bored. It was kinda cool to see how some of the songs came together but I didn't need 10 hours of it. Others may disagree but McCartney comes across the best. He's actually a musician trying to come up with songs. (D+)
Invasion - Got bad reviews and kind of slow. I enjoyed but wasn't overwhelmed. Great acting. It did get renewed for a second season so let's see where it goes (Apple +)
Yellowjackets - 4 episodes in and really enjoy. No spoilers please. (SHO)
Ozark - 3 episodes in. This is my bike riding show for now. It's all kind of the same. I'll watch to the end (Netflix)
Only Murders in the Building -- fun, great acting of course. Kinda figured out the killer early but still a blast. Will watch season 2 (Hulu)
Get Back -- I was bored. It was kinda cool to see how some of the songs came together but I didn't need 10 hours of it. Others may disagree but McCartney comes across the best. He's actually a musician trying to come up with songs. (D+)
I agree on the first episode but felt like it got better. The first one had a lot of awkward sitting around.
It really felt like Paul was the only one keeping the band going at that point. He was definitely the adult in the room.
I agree about Paul coming across best, but I thought only John really came across poorly. Paul had clearly evolved to the point where he was embracing the entire scope of the work of being a professional rock musician, but he hadn’t developed the ability to accept that others felt stifled by his (truly impressive) creative process. I was pretty awed by his arranging and on-the-fly composition skills.
George is clearly — and rightly — fed up with being the third-string songwriter. Whether he felt left out of the creative dynamics of the Lennon-McCartney duo, or was still trapped in the “little brother” role, he wasn’t getting the chance to put his shoulder equally to the wheel. At one point he brings up releasing a solo project (what became All Things Must Pass, which I think is probably the greatest post-Beatles record any of them released) because he has so much material written, and John kind of throws water on the idea of side projects, yet doesn’t give him a lane to contribute the material toward the group’s releases.
Ringo, for all the crap he gets as a musician or songwriter, clearly mattered a great deal to the dynamic. He was always there, ready to play, the kind of understated constant presence the other three needed. My absolute favorite moment was when he & George arrive ahead of the others, and Ringo starts playing a tune on the piano. George gives him a little ribbing —“I see you’ve learned A-minor.” — and then comes over to work on Ringo’s new tune. Watching the two of them work on a song that John probably hated and Paul would have trampled a bit was charming.
I think one of the biggest things I came away with was how much those guys still cared about each other, even despite how difficult things had become.
All good thoughts and no disagreement. John was a super mean prick in his comments about I Me Mine when George presented it. Wow.
The wife and I finally started Ted Lasso and halfway through the second season, I quite like it while also feeling like I'm missing exactly why it's become such a huge critical darling. Like, it's a strong 7 of 10, but i don't think it would break into my top 50 favorite shows or anything. Roy Kent makes me laugh consistently though, so there is that.
The only movie I've seen recently was Uncut Gems. I really enjoyed that one. Adam Sandler can be so good if given a part that sticks to his strengths. KG was also weirdly good.
Newbish and I ran through the entirety of Gravity Falls in December. I had seen it before, but it was all new to him. The show skews a little dark for his age, and I was worried that he might get creeped out by some of it, but he absolutely loved it. It really is a fantastic achievement in kids television.
The wife and I finally started Ted Lasso and halfway through the second season, I quite like it while also feeling like I'm missing exactly why it's become such a huge critical darling. Like, it's a strong 7 of 10, but i don't think it would break into my top 50 favorite shows or anything. Roy Kent makes me laugh consistently though, so there is that.
I felt the same way. I think that's the problem with high expectations when you watch later than everyone else.
It's on my list, but I don't have AppleTV, so someday I guess
I think I've been consistent in saying Lasso is aggressively fine. It's a perfectly cromulent, watchable show with far, far too many convenient plot setups, but still a fun time. So, yeah, 7/10.
I'm in the camp that loves it. It isn't a Mike Schur show, but it's probably the next best thing.
I think the obvious comp would be P&R, but that show earned its moments so much more.
Yes. TL is the Saints to P&R's Twins.
I could agree with that (though I may argue it's closer to the Surge).
American Auto on Peacock. It started off promising and kind of funny but 6 episodes in I'm ready to bail.
Law and Order:Organized Crime on Peacock. The show is more entertaining than it should be
Rewatching Alias on Hulu. I remember watching and really liking the show when it aired 20 years ago. The first season goes off the rails (not in bad way, but more of a WTF?! ok! way). Second season is strong and halfway through the third season it getting weird.
I tried watching Yellowstone since about half my regular customers at the store recommended it and I think that one is not for me.
Iron Chef pre Morimoto episodes streaming on its own PlutoTV channel and post Morimoto episodes on Peacock. A really good 'have on in the background' show
That's disappointing about American Auto. I liked Superstore, and was thinking about giving this a go.
More Beatles Get Back thoughts. CH above said: I think one of the biggest things I came away with was how much those guys still cared about each other, even despite how difficult things had become.
I agree. It still amazes me that it was literally less than 5 years from the Ed Sullivan show to the rooftop concert. Just think what you were doing in middle February of 2017 and that's like the bulk of the span of Beatlemania. One thing I got out of Get Back is that they all were exactly what they had shown to the public over the last 5 years. It wasn't an act and that you saw their true selves in the studio. Ringo was kinda of goofy, John was sardonic, Paul was friendly(ish), George was kind of mysterious (these are simple descriptions but apt and what was "sold" to the public). They easily seemed like the same dudes you met in A Hard Day's Night or in their various Christmas recordings.
Yellowjackets: I really liked this one. I won't say anything about what happened, but I enjoyed the suspense and mystery in it.
Mr. Corman: Written by, directed by, and starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, on AppleTV. This was great. The style and story varied throughout the series, in part because of the story shifting to show the COVID world partway through the season. It deals with mental health issues, loss, and loneliness in real, experiential way, while also having moments of levity and fun. Definitely recommended.
Lost in Space(the new Netflix version): We just finished the third season. My wife and kids all liked it, but it didn't really do it for me. I didn't hate it, but it just never really drew me in.
Spiderman: We went to it with the kids at the drive-in. I liked it a lot, until my car battery died with about 15 minutes left in the movie, so I missed out on the ending while trying to figure out how to jumpstart an electric car. (Which eventually worked just fine, once I did it the right way).
The Power of the Dog: Too slow for me, at least while trying to watch it at night. Beautiful scenery, well-acted, and interesting characters, but couldn't keep me awake.
Anyone else excited for the new Jackass movie or are you all successfully grown up?
It's about a half a century too late for me.
"too old" does not equal "successfully grown up".
It's about a half century too late for me.
I am unreasonably excited for new Jackass. I don’t think there is any movie that has ever made me laugh as hard as the other Jackass movies. It will certainly be only me watching it in our house, but I’m all in.
I also loved those movies. Soooooooo stupid. I laughed really, really hard at the trailer for the new one while dr. Chop gave me the side eye. I’ll laugh hard while she’s sleeping, I guess.
Same. I think I also got a “Well, you enjoy that.”
Any Macbeth viewers out there? Thoughts on the latest version?
Ethan Coen had thoughts. (Oh, that was from your post, wasn’t it?)
What's that one weird looking show they keep playing commercials of during the Olympics (at least on my streaming platform)? Like, I Am Dog or something like that? Young, pretty lady with kind of shlubby guy?
It was Wolf Like Me, in case anyone was wondering. I was close enough. Anyway, no clue what that show is about.
Home sick today, so I decided to watch a movie that my wife wouldn't care for. Settled on The Power of the Dog and it's....good.
Cumberbatch deserves an Oscar, more than likely. He's horribly magnetic every time he's on the screen. The movie itself never really gives much for anyone else to do (other than Smit-McPhee in the second half. He's real good, too).
Speaking of the Searchers, someone is REALLY a fan of the "figure standing in the doorway" shot. It gets a workout here.
If you’re interested in ‘westerns,’watch Old Henry. It’s fantastic.