Adults in general aren't "scared" by fantasy and supernatural fiction, that is hardly surprising. It's usually something deeper that provokes the proper response.

namely, Bob

I watched all of season 6 of GoT today because I'm the pinnacle of human social prowess. Spoilers through the end of the season:



So yeah I guess I could say that my overall interest in the show had maybe slowed down a fair bit over the last few seasons but definitely it has picked back up now.

GoT, f'course...



discussed in the previous page, see my last post there for the "official" explanation...


spoiler for season 6



for anyone who wants a second helping:

Hmm, ok, sure, I guess I buy that explanation. It was only a minor annoyance in an otherwise great season anyway.

I think Twin Peaks works so well because it establishes a very strong "normal" baseline. When you read Lovecraft, watch Alien, or consume something else billed as "horror", you're mentally prepared to see some scary shit. Your defenses are up. Twin Peaks tricks you by emphasizing all of that silly soap opera stuff, then sucker punches you with really unsettling weirdness. "Catch you with my death bag!" What the fuck is a death bag?

That's another way it gets past your defenses - Lovecraft and Alien have become such an integral part of our culture now that their concepts aren't surprising or new anymore - they're familiar. David Lynch's weirdness is something that can't really be copied and as such is so foreign that it can't ever really be familiar. Like that whole dream scene at the end of episode two, with the dancing dwarf. "That gum you like is going to come back in style!" It's easy to see the reasoning behind Lovecraft's stories, or Alien, or a bunch of other horror movies. I don't think I'll ever be able to understand David Lynch's reasoning - but it works.

I think another part of it is how the show maintains a sense of unease even when there's nothing scary going on. There are many times where you think something shocking or unnatural is going to happen (e.g. the music building, or the camera moving away from the characters), but it doesn't, and these fakeouts (combined with the almost-sluggish pace of the show) keep you on edge and maximize tension even more than if they all ended in scares. Also, I realize one of David Lynch's signature traits is his use of physically deformed characters/body horror, so characters like the one-armed man, the giant, and the cousin who looks like Laura also sustain a feeling of unnatural-ness.

I waited for the DVD to come out and I just binged the whole second season of Rick and Morty.

This is one of the best shows on TV right now. Magnificent episodes.

Anyone watched the new Netflix series, Stranger Things?

I'm 2 episodes in and I am in love with that show. Great blend of mystery, horror, sci-fi and adventures. Fans of stuff like Stand By Me, The Goonies, E.T. and Stephen King will be pleased.

Yea love the 80's vibe and it stars Winona Ryder on top of it.

Stranger Things sounds neat. I'll add that to The General List.

I've been working my way through season 3 of Star Trek: DS9. It was alright at first, maybe on par with early TNG (i.e. ok) but as I suspected it would, it gradually got better and better. I just watched S03E22, which is the one where Sisko and his son go on the solar sail space journey - it's a pretty standard "feel good" sort of episode but I think I can safely say that this is the episode where I've fallen in love with this show. TNG had great characters as well, and while that show has a loftier, more ambitious sci-fi thing going on (so far anyway), the humanity of DS9 is more palpable in certain ways. Anyway it's certainly the mark of a fantastic series that such an overtly feel-good puff episode can be one of my favorite bits of the show so far.

Anyway at this point through my Trek...trek, I've really gotta say that any of you who are even vaguely nerdy but have avoided Star Trek for whatever reason are really fucking missing out. I'm still planning on being let down later on in part by Voyager and moreso by Enterprise but committing to watching all of Trek has been a really, really strong life choice.

I'm almost finished with Stranger Things. It's excellent, suffice to say.

Yeah, Stranger Things is rock solid. Super entertaining. Stephen King liked it, and I think that's only partially because they've referenced his name directly in two different scenes. It's very old school 80s, with good characters and a lot of charm to it, but also a darkness and a fear to the unknown things going on. It plays with a lot of familiar tropes, but it feels very fresh and vital. I've only got two episodes left.

Just started Vikings. So far I've seen the first six episodes and it's super direct and no-nonsense series with interesting cinematography. Nothing too special but it doesn't intend on being so.

Also, joining in on the Twin Peaks discussion and why it is so suspenseful, I think soundtrack adds to its unnerving tone too. Like, there are only a few "intentionally" creepy tracks (like Laura Palmer's theme) but as you progress through the episodes you notice that the jazzy stuff isn't just any old music that you find on other soap operas. You notice the rather unusual presence of really bassy frequencies, like something utterly malevolent lurking under a seemingly innocent façade. It's pretty intruiging.

I can attest that Stranger Things is the bomb. It's a slow reveal type of show but a lot happens in each episode, along with the newretrosynth score it has this retro charm that doesn't feel forced and feels of that era. Really nice cinematography and all-around good watch.

It goes for the 80s nostalgia bait too. Which i don't mind at all, even when the story isn't 100% perfect.

not watching much right now... what with KAT gone, it seems torrent users have yet to migrate to a new site.

can't seem to find the simplest shit (e.g, a few new eps of Tosh.0)

I'll add my voice to those recommending Stranger Things. I've got just a couple of episode to go and I'm thoroughly hooked. I found the first couple of episodes tough going because everything being introduced was at the level of 'Ooo, this is all creepy and mysterious' and nothing was really being tied together. By the third episode, however, it's on. Enough strands are tied together to give each sub plot it's own direction and tension.
Ryder's character is really annoying early on, even considering her predicament. After a while you realise that, yes, she sounds definitely unhinged but at the same time you know she is dead right. It's a delicate balance that she does really well to get across.
The 80s vibe is respectfully done without going for too much kitsch and 'all-knowing' irony. They could have used some Maiden and Dio on the soundtrack, especially 'Still Life', but Joy Division is nothing to complain about.
I don't watch much 'modern' tv, but this show demonstrates that episode length drama is well and truly dead by now. Long form story arcs and multiple threads each running at their own pace is where it's at now. It's a form that is well served on the internet medium. I mean, I still get that feeling of 'you b*****ds!' when the credits roll, but then I just need to ask myself (or Mrs Pivo) 'Go another?'. For sheer nuance in drama and tension, this form has the potential to kill cinema as well.

The ship for the new Star Trek show ("Discovery") has been revealed. Can't say I'm enthralled by the design. It just doesn't look Trek at all. That said, there might be a reason for that - the back section looks rather Klingon. A Klingon/Federation shared design?

What an uglyass ship.

I like it. Looks a bit more primitive and rugged than historical Federation designs (barring maybe the Defiant), but based on the name of the thing one can only reckon that it's meant to be flying into even more dangerous, unexplored bits of space, so maybe it's built to take a beating.

I just hope the show is smart. I can't handle more Abrams Trek.

Yeah, the more I look at it the more I like it. It's mainly the shot from the bottom that looks weird, the saucer looks too small and the triangle section looks like something from Star Wars.

The primitive look makes sense. From the NCC number it's going to be set before TOS, which I think is good. Although, the same thing could have been said about Enterprise.

Same here. Just finished Chapter 6. The writers and designers nailed this so well. It's really really good. That soundtrack!

Stranger Things is amazing. I was blown away by every second of it and am super excited that S2 has been greenlit and will be more of a "sequel" than just a standard second season.

The ship in the new Trek show looks like the Enterprise concept art for the failed relaunch of Trek in the 70's. Its OK. Looking forward to this as a relief from the current Trek movies, which just don't feel like Trek or make much sense to me. God I hate that Abrams guy.

Just finished Stranger Things and as a child of the 80's I loved it. Felt like a perfect marriage of Spielberg and early Stephen King. And I love the D&D references as a long time player of that. Not sure a sequel will be as good but who knows. I liked the way it ended and think leaving it like that works great. I'll watch though.

The Discovery design is based on an older design from an unfinished TOS movie called Planet of the Titans:

http://io9.gizmodo.com/star-trek-discov ... 1784196830

I'm actually glad there's going to be more. I thought the ending was quite good and felt final, and wasn't sure there would be more. But I actually want to see these characters and their world again.

Me, too. I just hope the quality of the storytelling and the production value are maintained. It's clear that a ton of care went into basically every aspect of it. Great show. Really looking forward to watching it again relatively soon.

Finished Stranger Things and if I wasn't watching other stuff, I could've watched it in one setting. Amazing how tv shows are becoming much better than movies now.

Having rewatched all of Breaking Bad I don't view it as highly as I did. Honestly there's so much filler with Marie, Badger, Pete, Skyler that could have essentially been scrapped and made virtually no difference, not to mention Skyler essentially has the same character arc every season while Marie has none. The series would have worked far better with a 30 minute runtime and a tighter script opting to focus on Hank, Walt and Jesse.

Breaking Bad

There were plenty of those convenient moments like Hank finding Jesse at the right time in Breaking Bad, but I don't think any of them are a detriment to the show. It's just minor contrivances you'll get in most any show with such an action packed plot, the stuff that makes fiction gripping and entertaining, by moving characters like chess pieces and having them interact at dramatic times - it's nothing bad in my opinion. I think Gilligan and co. knew how to spin an entertaining tale anyway and made it work exactly the way they wanted.

I always liked the minor characters like Marie and the other stuff, too - it added more color and shade to the world and made it a larger, more realistic place to watch. Having a smaller, tighter cast may have worked for a movie, but for a show, I thought it was good that we got more characters and plots going on.

s'why I enjoyed Martyrs (a movie, not a TV show) so much.

We'll have to disagree, I think most of the side stories serve no purpose other than running down the clock. If you see some importance or flavour or world building then that's great but I saw little more than filler with no progression, Marie stealing for example was mentioned in about three or four episodes (these were decently long scenes) yet there was no true awakening or arc, just Skyler easily forgiving her with a little "sorry" and demonizing her husband endlessly (at this point with little to no proof).

There's glaring faults and inconsistency with BB imo, most of which are attributed to using different directors/writers (The Walking Dead is the closest example but on a far more noticeable scale). I don't wanna hate on BB because despite it's bad parts there's some of the best TV put to screen, but some aspects and reveals I find really disappointing and lazy writing that doesn't match the characters established.

Side note: The guy who played 'Gomie' is a terrible actor, haha.

Did any of you watch Wake, Rattle, and Roll when you were a kid? I watched this shit every morning, and it's passing strange. What the fuck was wrong with everyone? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQM3Fd3eN9E

Some more tidbits about Star Trek: Discovery:

-Female lead, who will be lieutenant commander, NOT captain. Probably won't be a white person.
-The show will have a gay character.
-Set 10 years before the original series featuring Captain Kirk and will bridge the gap between 2005 series Enterprise and the Kirk years.
-More aliens than you would usually expect on the crew - it will not be "one person with a bumpy head". And there will be robots.
-May be the possibility of seeing younger versions of the characters seen in Kirk's crew, but not until the second season. There is also the chance to see the character of Spock's mother, Amanda Grayson, played by Winona Ryder in JJ Abrams's 2009 big screen adaptation.
-The first season will consist of 13 episodes rather than the traditional 20-24 episodes to keep storytelling tight.
-Because the programme will be shown on CBS's on demand platform, it will not be "subject to broadcast standards and practices" usually seen on network TV. Fuller said it would allow a "broader spectrum" of content including "slightly more graphic content" and profanity.

Yeah, but that was just in the first season before the show had really found its voice. It wasn't all that compelling, true, but it wasn't like they kept hammering stuff like that in by the time seasons 3 and 4 rolled around with their much more somber, serious plots. I don't think every second of BB was flawless, sure, but I just didn't find much of it to be actively detrimental or annoying, so much as just some parts not as good as the really great stuff.

I'm fine with all of it except that it's a fucking prequel. I really didn't want that.

I think having the lead character as a commander and not a captain can be very interesting and really change the dynamics. I like Fuller so I'm confident this will be good. In the meantime, I'm midway through season 6 of Voyager and I can see how a 13 episodes season will be able to streamline the story!