What Are You Watching

[jeffcrom]

Duke Ellington - Live in '58 (Jazz Icons)

[kinuta]

This week's Rubicon and Mad Men. Both great.

[BruceH]

Dexter---Season Four

[Van Basten II]

Boardwalk Empire 2 first episodes, I'm hooked !

[BruceH]

Just finished the fourth season of Dexter---where do they go from here?

[Shawn]

That 70's Show - starting on Season 6

Edited October 16, 2010 by Shawn

[kinuta]

Peter Cook At A Slight Angle To The Universe

[mikelz777]

Well, we’re several weeks into the new TV season and like any other, there’s the good, the bad and the ugly. Here’s my early season report card for the shows that I have been watching.

Shows I don’t want to miss:

Detroit 1-8-7 I like the characters (though I have some reservations about the new father/rookie cop) and I think this show is well done. I look forward to seeing this show when the newness wears off and the actors settle more into their characters. My wife’s a CSI fan (all incarnations) so I watch them because she does but I like Detroit 1-8-7 better than them all.

Fringe Parallel universes with characters moving between and/or stuck in one or the other keeps me looking forward to where they are going with this story. Crime, science fiction, humor, action, this show has a little bit of everything.

Breaking Bad We have to wait until March to see what’s going on with our wayward friends Jesse and Walt. They both won well-deserved Emmys for their roles this last season. (Cranston making it a three-peat!) What a season ending show they left us with!! This show is very well acted and engrossing from the start. I’m really looking forward to the new season.

Shows I’ll try and catch each week but won’t set the recorder if I have to miss it:

Hawaii 5-O I find it to be a bit too cowboy at times and it can be clichéd at times but what cop show isn’t? I find the show to be entertaining and have enjoyed what I’ve seen so far. From what I’ve read, it’s one of the most popular new shows. I enjoy what Scott Caan brings to the show. I was a bit surprised at how short he is. It took me a while to figure out where I saw the actress who plays Kono before. (Battlestar Galactica)

Big Bang Theory Another show my wife likes to watch but I’ve come to enjoy it as well. It’s usually pretty funny.

Shows where I can take them or leave them:

Glee Another show favored by my wife so I watch as well. Is there a plot or story line to this show or is it (becoming) a vehicle for musical performances which generate a lot of revenue through tours, CDs and downloads? Performances run the whole spectrum from cringe-worthy to quite excellent. The most recent episode where the characters did duets had a couple of good performances. (The fake band/musicians notwithstanding.) The two girls who did “River Deep, Mountain High” just killed. I really dug the harmonies and they sounded great together in unison. The mixed duet of “Come On Get Happy/Happy Days Are Here Again” was very nice channeling the performance by Judy Garland and Barbara Streisand. (Both are on YouTube) That Lea Michelle has a fantastic voice. (based on this and other performances I've seen) She’s not so much a pop singer but she should be able to make a fine career for herself on Broadway if she chooses. Sue, the Jane Lynch character is intolerable with her constant spewing of bile. It gets old very quickly.

River Deep, Mountain High

Come On Get Happy/Happy Days Are Here Again

Community I only watch it because my wife watches it. To me, it’s OK at best. I seem to have some sort of negative biological/chemical reaction to Chevy Chase. I don’t think he is funny at all and I just can’t stand him. It's kind of odd because it goes beyond just not caring for him. I confess that I get these feelings of anger and hatred that seem to rise up involuntarily whenever I see him.

The Office Very disappointing so far, I think it’s going off the rails. If it’s getting this bad with Steve Carrell still on board I can’t imagine how it’s possibly going to fare any better without him if they continue the show. Pam and Jim aren’t nearly as interesting now that they are married and have a child. I think this show is circling the drain.

30-Rock I’m not yet disappointed in the season but I’m not especially impressed either. I hated the gimmick “live” show, it throws off the whole rhythm and feel of the show. I give it a “meh”.

Edited October 18, 2010 by mikelz777

[Jazzmoose]

I seem to have some sort of negative biological/chemical reaction to Chevy Chase. I don’t think he is funny at all and I just can’t stand him. It's kind of odd because it goes beyond just not caring for him. I confess that I get these feelings of anger and hatred that seem to rise up involuntarily whenever I see him.

I can relate to that, although for me it's David Spade.

[jazzbo]

I'm really disappointed in the new "network" season. Hawaii Five-O I had big hopes for but it's really limp. I can't watch Detroit 1-8-7 because there are three shows I've been following now in that time slot, I record two and watch one. The Event I had wished to be good but it's a bust. Outsourced is a real stinker. Outlaw has promise, but it's already been canceled and will have a few more episodes to reel out before it's gone. Ah well, luckily Fringe is better than ever, the Good Wife continues to be great, and there's a nice new motorcycle magazine show on Discovery called "Cafe Racer" to watch. I finished watching the Mad Men season finale just before I went to bed, and can't wait to watch the season finale to Rubicon this morning.

Edited October 18, 2010 by jazzbo

[BruceH]

The past couple of months I've been getting into Pawn Stars and that Pickers show. Both interesting for very similar reasons.

[kinuta]

BBC Luther

Totally outstanding, head and shoulders above anything else on tv at the moment.

Idris Elba ( Stringer Bell) turns in an amazing performance.

[Shawn]

Still watching "That 70's Show"...and loving every minute of it.

[jazzbo]

Started watching "Trauma" on dvd, its one and only season. This was a good tv show; I was sad to see it go away. The dvd doesn't really look great, the show I think looked better on broadcast, but there's no Blu-Ray of this available, wish there was.

[kinuta]

I'm really disappointed in the new "network" season. Hawaii Five-O I had big hopes for but it's really limp. I can't watch Detroit 1-8-7 because there are three shows I've been following now in that time slot, I record two and watch one. The Event I had wished to be good but it's a bust. Outsourced is a real stinker. Outlaw has promise, but it's already been canceled and will have a few more episodes to reel out before it's gone. Ah well, luckily Fringe is better than ever, the Good Wife continues to be great, and there's a nice new motorcycle magazine show on Discovery called "Cafe Racer" to watch. I finished watching the Mad Men season finale just before I went to bed, and can't wait to watch the season finale to Rubicon this morning.

Now that Rubicon and Mad Men have finished there's only The Good Wife that's worth looking forward to. The rest of the newbie US tv shows are various shades of mediocre with the exception of Terriers. I lost interest in Fringe about two thirds the way through season one but after hearing some of the recent upbeat appraisals I'll maybe pick up where I left off, if I can remember which episode.

Can't praise The Beeb's 'Luther' enough, check it out if at all possible.

[Shawn]

I wasn't that crazy about Fringe on it's initial run (stopped watching around episode 5), but when I revisited it recently it totally drew me in. Guess I just wasn't in the frame of mind for it before. Love it now.

[Matthew]

The Official World Series Film Collection. I was able to find this for $80.00, so I decided to buy it for my birthday. Been selecting various Series, to dip my toe into the water. Started with the 1968 Boston / St. Louis Series, as that is the first one I remember following, then the 1969 Mets / Orioles Series, as my 6th grade teacher brought a tv into the classroom, so we could watch the games during the week (Ah! days long gone, where you had actual day games). Just a fun box set to have. I'll look at the 1979 Series later today, as that is one of my all-time favorites -- has there ever been a funkier series than that one? We Are Family, two of the worse stadiums in baseball, great players, Earl Weaver... that series had everything and a couple of bags of chips!

Edit: 1979 World Series was Pittsburgh Pirates vs Baltimore Orioles

Edited October 24, 2010 by Matthew

[A Lark Ascending]

Had this lodged in my mind as the last great British TV drama since I first saw it as a TV series in 2003. Still gripping 7 years on.

Sadly UK TV no longer seems interested in this sort of thing - a multilayered, complex drama with 3D characters taking 6 episodes to unfold. Everything now is done at such speed, polishing it off in 90 minutes and frequently with a dose of the 'paranormal'.

I believe there's a Hollywood blockbuster take on the series.

[jazzbo]

I wasn't that crazy about Fringe on it's initial run (stopped watching around episode 5), but when I revisited it recently it totally drew me in. Guess I just wasn't in the frame of mind for it before. Love it now.

I've always liked the show, but for me it really picked up and caused me more enjoyment towards the end of last season and with this new season; I love the "war between the worlds" storyline, and they way they've handled it. Hate that it has been pushed away for a spell by baseball! (I'm not a follower of sports).

[Matthew]

Pinky And The Brain - volume 1. "Are you pondering what I'm pondering...."

[kinuta]

Foyle's War Season 7, all three episodes.

[jazzbo]

Chuck Season 3 on Blu-Ray

I've always loved the theme song, which is a portion of "I Want a Girl with A Short Skirt and a Long Jacket" by Can, and that song is really "Sweet Jane" with different lyrics. . . . .

Edited November 3, 2010 by jazzbo

[Chuck Nessa]

election returns.

[jazzbo]

Yeah, CNN is projecting right now Republicans are winning at least fifty seats in the House of Representatives.

Pfui. (What I expected).

Edited November 3, 2010 by jazzbo

[Jazzmoose]

(Ah! days long gone, where you had actual day games)

I remember sitting in class in sixth grade during the Braves/Mets playoff series, and seeing all these headphone cords going down people's shirts...

That sounds like an awesome set.

Still enjoying A Bit of Fry and Laurie as my TV fix.