There’s a forum I participate in called “Budget Light Forum,” where all kinds of LED flashaholic geeks mingle and share wares, stories, mods, tips, etc. They have a TV series topic and people are always posting to it. I’ve come across a few suggestions that were good, then some that weren’t.
Anyway, I thought maybe it would be fun to start one here.
I just finished the 3rd season of “For All Mankind.” Awesome series. The premise is, Russia beats the USA to the moon. And then the USA has to play catchup. The way things progress, the Apollo program doesn’t end with 17. It keeps going. The next race is to building the first moon base. And beyond. It’s very well done. Some people might accuse it of being “woke,” because there are strong women and black women with central parts. But it’s all so well done. Believable, for the most part. Some people do terribly stupid things that pissed me off, but ignoring those, the upside makes it worthwhile.
My wife and I have watched the first two seasons of this and enjoyed it. Each season jumps about a decade. Season 1 in the late 60’s, season 2 in the 70’s and (I assume, based on the teaser) season 3 in the 80’s.
That’s about right. 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s, stretching into 90’s. The overall ratings of the show were better in Season 3. I don’t consider it significantly better than the other two, but my favorite is probably Season 2. I’m really curious to see how Season 4 turns out!
This is a British detective series, provided to the USA courtesy of PBS and also streaming on Amazon Prime.
Has anyone here seen “The Mentalist”? Really enjoyable detective series, taking place in Northern California (for the most part), centered around Patrick Jane. He’s a brilliant guy, a genius when it comes to finding clues. But he’s also a confidence man. Very adept at talking people off ledges and getting them to reveal things they don’t want to say (there’s a long, convoluted back story to him… where he scammed people in a circus show as a young man, but later dropped that for altruistic pursuits).
Anyway, Endeavor takes elements from The Mentalist and Sherlock Holmes, to conjure up the character Endeavour Morse. He’s a brilliant detective, but also painfully flawed in a number of respects. The setting is England in the 1960’s, in the city proper of Oxford. A vast majority of the crimes are murder related, but they are often quite complicated and intriguing. It’s really a sophisticated show. The acting is excellent.
There are 9 seasons in all (the 9th was finished in March of 2023, yet hasn’t aired in the USA as yet), but the number of episodes average about 4 per season. Some of the episodes are quite long, touching past 1.5 hours. Seasons 1 to 7 are in the 1960’s, and the last two in the 1970’s. The accuracy of the time is brilliantly done in terms of costuming and automobiles. Also, events of those times are nicely woven in, like assassinations of notable US political figures, and the Apollo moon landing, as well as events in Britain.
This is the kind of show that you’ll watch through and then want to watch again (if you liked it), just to catch more details.
Psych (takes place in Southern California, but filmed primarily in White Rock, BC, Canada) is about a guy who pretends to be psychic (in reality hes just very attentive, similar to Patrick Jane), but more of a comedy/drama/crime show. Overall very good, I would always recommend
I may have watched through all 8 seasons of Psych 3+ times…
My wife and I recently finished binge watching What We Do in the Shadows (5 seasons on Hulu, season 6 in production).
(NO SPOILERS) It’s documentary style look into the lives four vampires who have been living on Staten Island for hundreds of years. It is hilarious. It can be a bit randy at times, so it’s not a “kid friendly” show. We both felt the writing and presentation were spot on. The first few episodes start off slow, but once you pick up what’s going on it really picks up. Also several episodes have cameos by actors such as Wesley Snipes, Mark Hamil, and Patton Oswalt just to name a few that came to mind.
Case Histories is a 2 season detective series from the UK, centralized in Scotland (premiered in 2011). It’s based on a series of novels. written by Kate Atkinson. The lead actor is Jason Isaacs and he does a fantastic job. Lots of good character development.
Sadly, the series basically ended with the novels and didn’t extend them. I really would have liked to see a few more seasons. But what we get is still a nice experience. It was published in the USA via PBS, so it’s available through Amazon Prime and possibly other services.
Have you seen the movie? It came out quite a while ago, and I believe its success was the genesis for the TV show. Absolutely hysterical. There‘s a scene in which one of the characters explains why vampires prefer to drink the blood of virgins. I won’t spoil it, but I’ll never not recommend that movie.
Severance (Apple TV) is a fascinating concept with phenomenal acting, sharp dialogue and really smart set design.
The premise is: there’s a medical procedure you can volunteer for in which you have no memory of your private life while you’re at work, and no memory of your work life when you’re at home.
Severance is a very bizarre slow-paced series. Co-created by Ben Stiller. One of the strangest things is the maze of the office building with no obvious clues as to where you are, or where you need to go. You just have to know… because someone walked you through it.
It is one of those shows you need to watch more than once to finally get all of the nuances. Apparently a season 2 is in the works. I guess it’s supposed to air sometime in 2024?
I don’t know if I’d call it slow-paced, but it’s certainly not high octane - at least in the beginning. I believe season 2 is slated for the fist half of 2024.
I tried to get into Silo. The sets are absolutely amazing. Some very good acting. The premise is intriguing. But the story development is so disjointed at times, IMHO. Some episodes are straight forward and others seem to meander, flirting with different story premises, and then don’t have a good wrap-up. I’m hoping season 2 will advance the whole premise, particularly with awareness of “outside.”
What’s kind of curious is that both Severance and Silo have similarities… in that “overlords are living secretly among us” bit. Also, what you think you know about your world is not quite real.
Continuing on Apple+, “Foundation” is amazing. I did read the first book (by Isaac Asimov) back when I was a teenager… and found it a bit challenging to get through (almost as bad as Dune). Got half-way into Foundation and Empire, but stalled due to other priorities at the time and never went back. It feels like the video series is pretty respectful of the book series. The acting is amazing! Great cast. There’s a bit of… “wokeness” in it, which might trigger some people on the right, but I think it can be overlooked. It’s such an epic story, stretching over so much time. It was hard to make into a cohesive book, so I worried a video series would be too difficult to get right. But they’re doing a damn good job. One of my favorite actors is in it: Jared Harris I’m eagerly awaiting the third season!
Switching away from sci-fi and back into things closer to reality, there’s Billions. I’d known about this series for a few years and it features two actors I really enjoy: Paul Giamatti and Damian Lewis. Lewis was launched into fame with his iconic role of playing Captain (and Major) Winters in Band of Brothers. It shocked me to learn he’s British. His American English accent is terrific. Anyway… the series looks very predictable right up front… and it kind of is, but along the way it serves up much intrigue and tension. It’s very well done and makes you wonder if it’s a pretty accurate portrayal of what goes on in the never ending challenge of the law upon those who seek to undermine it, in high financial society. If you’ve seen “Succession,” you might believe it’s just another flavor of the same kind of premise. But it’s not. I’m just about to hit season 4. The last season (7) just dropped last month.
The Diplomat
This is the American series, but filmed in the UK. It centers on Kate Wyler (played by Keri Russell), the new United States ambassador to the United Kingdom, as she helps defuse an international crisis, forges strategic alliances and adjusts to her new place in the spotlight. She also manages her deteriorating marriage to fellow career diplomat Hal Wyler (played by Rufus Sewell).
This is an intense series. It feels incredibly realistic, for a political drama. Thankfully there’s no “conservative vs. liberal” underlying theme dominating here. It’s international diplomacy, through and through. PACKED with details. You really have to watch each episode more than once to appreciate everything. The character development is first rate. So much about it is focused on interpersonal nuances. There’s a lot of twists, turns, and intrigue.
There’s only 1 season out now, with 8 episodes. But back in May of 2023 it was given a green light for a 2nd season (hopefully appearing sometime in 2024). The last episode has quite a cliffhanger.