TV/Movies Megathread

[Malthus]

I read one of the Reacher books years ago at the urging of a friend's wife.  She explained the books as being about a character that does all of the stuff you want to tell the characters when watching a TV show or movie:  "Shoot!  Don't listen to his long explanation for why he is a bad guy while the henchmen catch up!" "Don't try to get them to surrender, just take them out!" That's exactly what Reacher does.  He doesn't take prisoners, doesn't count to three, etc.  Like A Clockwork Orange, the ultraviolence is a spoof of violence in fiction: you sort of like Reacher to begin with, but the horror of his worldview starts to change your mind:  he's not a hero, he's just another monster, but one that is on our side and has some limits on the targets of his violence.  The criminals in these books are also ultraviolent.

The show softens Reacher a bit, but not the violence.  It also doesn't have Reacher getting beaten up nearly as much as he wins his fights.  The writing is very good and the cast excellent, so I like it for even though I never even tried to read a second book in the series.

Another aspect of his character, at least from the tv series, is that he's a gigantic bruiser who happens also to be clever.

Everyone expects him to be a dumb thug, because he disassembles opponents with his fists, he's enormous, and he doesn't say much. He deliberately plays on this in the show. 

[Josquius]

"Millions of guys in rural America..."

I've tried to wrap my head about this but I'm failing.
You're assuming what I wrote in that post is the only thing I think defines everyone in America?

[Admiral Yi]

Counterintuitively the author of the Reacher series is a Pom.

[grumbler]

I guess that I never realized that it was not widely known that a Brit was writing Reacher.

Just learned that the guy Reacher speaks to momentarily when he enters the diner at the end of the show was the author.

[The Larch]

It seems that Will Smith is getting a 10 year ban from the Academy for the Chris Rock slap.

[Sheilbh]

For goodness sake - everyone needs to get a grip

On the other hand it makes for an emotional Oscars in ten years time when he's back - which I imagine they will milk for all it's worth.

[Josephus]

It seems that Will Smith is getting a 10 year ban from the Academy for the Chris Rock slap.

yes all my news apps on my phone alerted me with Breaking News about this. FFS, Breaking News is not what it used to be.

[Josquius]

Surely that shoukd include his Oscar, it coming after the slap?

My gf says at the school where she works the winner of the Easter egg contest did a diorahama of the slap.

[Eddie Teach]

Just got finished binge watching all 5 seasons of The Last Kingdom. Destiny is all.

[crazy canuck]

How did you like it? And I'm wondering whether you noticed fluctuations in the production value over the seasons?

[Eddie Teach]

Well, I watched all 5 seasons and nobody paid me, so clearly I hated it. 

I didn't notice any fluctuations in the quality, why do you ask?

[celedhring]

Looks like they're developing a Killing Eve spinoff centered around Carolyn during the Cold War. Her character is one of the few things of the show that remain engaging, but a lot of it it's on Fiona Shaw's shoulders, casting her younger version is going to be hard.

[Josephus]

Looks like they're developing a Killing Eve spinoff centered around Carolyn during the Cold War. Her character is one of the few things of the show that remain engaging, but a lot of it it's on Fiona Shaw's shoulders, casting her younger version is going to be hard.

Yeah, she's a great actor.

[Syt]

Finished S2 of The Expanse. I binged S1 when it was on Netflix way back when but didn't keep up with it when new seasons came out.

Rewatched S1, was surprised at how much I had forgotten and just finished S2. Love it, though it's essentially "It Gets Worse - The Show".

There were a few things that pulled me out a bit, like the moons of Jupiter being "a bit" too close when Alex slingshots the Roci around them, too much gravity on Ganymede, or Adam Savage popping up in the final episode of S2.

But the weirdest was when Alex monitors traffic over Ganymede, and "Andersen AFB" appeared on screen. So I went back and had a closer look, because it made little sense.



Next thing I noticed were some of the IDs - KLM, RYR (Ryan Air), EIN (Air Lingus) ... and then the map outline. Essentially it seems they took a a flight tracker map of this area and then plopped a Ganymede graphic on top:





(Not sure how Andersen AFB figures into it since it's on Guam - possibly they overlaid two maps.)

Looking forward to getting into the next seasons.

[Darth Wagtaros]

I enjoyed Death on the Nile. But don't want a Christie "Cinematic Universe".