lemonhead wrote: Tue Sep 26, 2023 8:11 am
Mostly a reminiscing series I heard? Didn't touch it. Pratchett's past Discworld TV productions mostly felt half arsed, there was no showrunner.
Don't think Small Gods will ever see the light of day but surely they could have approached his daughter about that book and Pyramids for some material. Both are a bit more real world and easier to adapt for GE2.
His daughter Rhianna is currently steward of the Discworld rights and after the situation with the recent Watch 'adaptation', she has vowed to get some more accurate stuff out there. We shall see.
The Sky adaps had a certain charm about them, but are clearly limited by budget and technology of the time. I would think there's the potential to do any of the stories properly now. Stand alones like Smal Gods might be a good place to start afresh, perhaps The Truth if looking for one that's Ankh Morpork set.
If someone gets it right it is an absolute goldmine. Huge volumes of material set across multiple timelines, multiple locations, hundreds of brilliantly fleshed out characters and interweaving storylines. 41 books and numerous spinoffs. It is 'universe' size with a hugely passionate fanbase. A series set around the Watch would be an excellent place to start - limited magic and a good chance to introduce Ankh Morpork and it's diversity. A brilliant story arc for Sam set across multiple seasons showing his rise from plucky street rat to the very top.
What it needs to take heed of though is that although it continues to be popular with young adults, it is a series largely for adults and the vast majority of its original readership will be in their late 30s upwards now. It needs to be made for adults and feature some of the underlying grit that I think is key to the series.
Guards! Guards! was my introduction to Discworld and the Watch sub-series is probably my most re-read. I would love for someone to come in and do it properly after the recent abomination. I just wonder if there's the appetite for it right now. Shot callers in entertainment seem to thrive on learning the wrong lessons from success and failure of various projects, it wouldn't be a surprise to find they've decided Pratchett or at least the Watch is too difficult to adapt because one attempt was a fuck up.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Thu Sep 28, 2023 12:34 pm
by KingBlairhorn
Tichtheid wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2023 9:45 am
I saw that it was mentioned earlier, The Bear on Disney is brilliant. We finished the second series last night. There has been more character development this series and I found myself really rooting for them.
The Christmas episode is one the best single programmes I've seen in ages - up there with the Atlanta one in the spooky house. Jamie Lee Curtis eats the scenery in the best possible way, which is just as well as you probably wouldn't want to eat her cooking with her smoking all over it all the time.
It was undoubtedly brilliant but I found that episode to be a challenging watch.
Episode 7 - "Forks" was a masterpiece for me in character development. I was rooting so hard for Richie after really disliking him before and it completely changed my relationship with him in subsequent episodes.
His daughter Rhianna is currently steward of the Discworld rights and after the situation with the recent Watch 'adaptation', she has vowed to get some more accurate stuff out there. We shall see.
The Sky adaps had a certain charm about them, but are clearly limited by budget and technology of the time. I would think there's the potential to do any of the stories properly now. Stand alones like Smal Gods might be a good place to start afresh, perhaps The Truth if looking for one that's Ankh Morpork set.
If someone gets it right it is an absolute goldmine. Huge volumes of material set across multiple timelines, multiple locations, hundreds of brilliantly fleshed out characters and interweaving storylines. 41 books and numerous spinoffs. It is 'universe' size with a hugely passionate fanbase. A series set around the Watch would be an excellent place to start - limited magic and a good chance to introduce Ankh Morpork and it's diversity. A brilliant story arc for Sam set across multiple seasons showing his rise from plucky street rat to the very top.
What it needs to take heed of though is that although it continues to be popular with young adults, it is a series largely for adults and the vast majority of its original readership will be in their late 30s upwards now. It needs to be made for adults and feature some of the underlying grit that I think is key to the series.
Guards! Guards! was my introduction to Discworld and the Watch sub-series is probably my most re-read. I would love for someone to come in and do it properly after the recent abomination. I just wonder if there's the appetite for it right now. Shot callers in entertainment seem to thrive on learning the wrong lessons from success and failure of various projects, it wouldn't be a surprise to find they've decided Pratchett or at least the Watch is too difficult to adapt because one attempt was a fuck up.
I watched about an episode and a half of that adaptation, it was crap.
I think the watch series would go to movies very well. As for studios, I would have thought that given the success of LOTR, Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, a multi film universe of dragons, witches, wizards, trolls, werwolves, vampires and such would hold a lot of promise for them. I think the sticking point is that the Pratchett Estate will, rightfully, be very protective of the characters and legacy from now on. Also, I think the studios struggle with the concept of Sam Vimes not being a handsome action hero type in the Clooney / Jackman mould.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Thu Sep 28, 2023 1:22 pm
by Biffer
EnergiseR2 wrote: Thu Sep 28, 2023 1:20 pm
Think people are done with superhero goblins for a while
EnergiseR2 wrote: Thu Sep 28, 2023 1:20 pm
Think people are done with superhero goblins for a while
Clearly not read the books
Have read some of them. My elder sister is Terry's biggest fan in the world. Obsessively so. Still reckon wizards and flash bang is done for a while. I particularly think they have missed the boat as the funny stuff Pratchett has done is going to be given a rest. All that funny ha ha superhero stuff will fuck off for a while now. Look at Wheel of Time and it's shite efforts at levity.
A Harry Potter TV series is currently under development and Warner are starting the process of rebooting the Lord of the Rings on the big screen, so I wouldn't be so sure about that.
That said, wizards and flash bang isn't a particularly good characterisation of a lot of Pratchett's discworld work, so even if there weren't still some apparent appetite for that type of stuff (albeit with established IPs) it's not necessarily an obstacle to getting Pratchett work off the ground.
Have read some of them. My elder sister is Terry's biggest fan in the world. Obsessively so. Still reckon wizards and flash bang is done for a while. I particularly think they have missed the boat as the funny stuff Pratchett has done is going to be given a rest. All that funny ha ha superhero stuff will fuck off for a while now. Look at Wheel of Time and it's shite efforts at levity.
A Harry Potter TV series is currently under development and Warner are starting the process of rebooting the Lord of the Rings on the big screen, so I wouldn't be so sure about that.
That said, wizards and flash bang isn't a particularly good characterisation of a lot of Pratchett's discworld work, so even if there weren't still some apparent appetite for that type of stuff (albeit with established IPs) it's not necessarily an obstacle to getting Pratchett work off the ground.
You are probably right. Handy Potter and LotR will be too family friendly I suspect and I say that as someone who openly loved the latter and quietly the former. Quality is such an issue for all the providers. There are so few Foundations. I read a ferocious amount of fantasy when I was young and am surprised they can't get more decent telly out of them
I still read a fair bit of fantasy and to be honest I think there's a fine line between an adaptation being decent or a cheesy looking disaster. Of the recent ones, I thought Wheel of Time was probably about right in terms of look and feel, but the source material in that case is relatively pish in terms of story.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Sat Oct 07, 2023 8:47 am
by C69
Watching Gen V, The Boys spin off.
Well it's certainly not been toned down from the original series.
Truly very amusing
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2023 8:08 am
by Sandstorm
C69 wrote: Sat Oct 07, 2023 8:47 am
Watching Gen V, The Boys spin off.
Well it's certainly not been toned down from the original series.
Truly very amusing
Cheers, I will GIAG
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Wed Oct 11, 2023 11:33 pm
by sockwithaticket
Bit late to the party, but I'm finally cracking through Peaky Blinders.
Tom Hardy could act the shit out of a shipping forecast and that Cillian Murhpy fella's not bad either.
C69 wrote: Sat Oct 07, 2023 8:47 am
Watching Gen V, The Boys spin off.
Well it's certainly not been toned down from the original series.
Truly very amusing
Cheers, I will GIAG
I'm also really enjoying it.
Just watched the first episode of the final season of Top Boy. Barry Keoghan is guest starring as a creepy new villain on the block.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Thu Oct 19, 2023 2:47 pm
by tabascoboy
so after success of password sharing crackdown and increase in subscription numbers - count me out of subscribing again
Jethro wrote: Fri Nov 03, 2023 6:58 pm
“There are some big surprises in store for the audience. Alien takes place before Ripley. It’s the first story that takes place in the Alien franchise on Earth. So, it takes place on our planet. Right near the end of this century we’re in — so 70-odd years from now." - TV show creator Noah Hawley
A gold star to anyone who can point out why Hawley knows shite about this franchise, and hence why I have zero belief that we are about to see something decent
So how's the new movie coming along, the artwork was looking cool.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Sun Nov 05, 2023 8:00 am
by Gumboot
Top Boy went out with a bang. Loved that series. Not without its faults, but The Wire lite? Fuck off.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Sun Nov 05, 2023 10:02 am
by Insane_Homer
Upload season 3 - Amazon
Invincible season 2 - Amazon
Gen V season 1 - Amazon
What we do in the Shadows - season 5 - Disney+
Loki season 2 - Disney+
Solar Opposites season 4 - Disney+
Rick and Morty Season 7 - E4 HD
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Sun Nov 05, 2023 12:08 pm
by Sandstorm
Insane_Homer wrote: Sun Nov 05, 2023 10:02 am
Upload season 3 - Amazon
Invincible season 2 - Amazon
Gen V season 1 - Amazon
What we do in the Shadows - season 5 - Disney+
Loki season 2 - Disney+
Solar Opposites season 4 - Disney+
Rick and Morty Season 7 - E4 HD
Where the fuck is Reacher S2??? They finished filming 6 months ago.
Have read some of them. My elder sister is Terry's biggest fan in the world. Obsessively so. Still reckon wizards and flash bang is done for a while. I particularly think they have missed the boat as the funny stuff Pratchett has done is going to be given a rest. All that funny ha ha superhero stuff will fuck off for a while now. Look at Wheel of Time and it's shite efforts at levity.
That said, wizards and flash bang isn't a particularly good characterisation of a lot of Pratchett's discworld work, so even if there weren't still some apparent appetite for that type of stuff (albeit with established IPs) it's not necessarily an obstacle to getting Pratchett work off the ground.
Depends how far into the series you got. Certainly the early stuff, opening Rincewind double header, Sourcery (and possibly Equal Rites?) are full of fire, flash and octarine shazammery. But it all calms down pretty fast. One of our local theatre groups put on Wyrd Sisters last year; most of the universe is relatively low magic from that point on. It's played more for laughs than driving the plot. Pratchett really hit an amazing vein of form in those ten years from 89 onwards.
As always, depends which stories to open with and how they're presented. Grant Naylor initially pitched Red Dwarf as Steptoe & Son in space and it grew from practically feck all. Most of the book adaptations would stand up pretty well on their own without breaking the budget on special effects.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Wed Nov 08, 2023 9:20 am
by Insane_Homer
Sandstorm wrote: Sun Nov 05, 2023 12:08 pm
Where the fuck is Reacher S2??? They finished filming 6 months ago.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Thu Nov 23, 2023 11:17 am
by tabascoboy
The Netflix Sci-Fi Series You're Never Going To See Even Though It Cost $55 Million
After helming only one feature-length film in 2013, the Keanu Reeves action fantasy 47 Ronin, director Carl Rinsch became the subject of an intense bidding war. His next project, a series titled Conquest was bought and paid for by Netflix to the tune of over $55 million. Unfortunately, due to a bizarre string of creative and legal battles between the streamer and the filmmaker, the series will almost certainly never see the light of day.
The New York Times claims rights to Conquest were purchased by Netflix back in 2018, during the height of the streaming revolution, when each new streamer popping up in the cinematic marketplace seemed too big to fail and eager to spend money on original programming. Now, nearly six years later, the $55 million series has never materialized. The half-decade-long tale of Conquest‘s downfall uncovers a strange pattern of behavior, including COVID-19 conspiracy theories, cryptocurrency scams, and behind-the-scenes abuse.
Sandstorm wrote: Sun Nov 05, 2023 12:08 pm
Where the fuck is Reacher S2??? They finished filming 6 months ago.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Tue Nov 28, 2023 12:46 pm
by Bullet
Slow Horses season 3 release has been moved forward to Wednesday.
Pretty sure I read a while ago that they were shooting season 3 and 4 back to back so should be a reasonable amount of episodes.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Tue Nov 28, 2023 1:45 pm
by weegie01
C69 wrote: Sat Oct 07, 2023 8:47 am
Watching Gen V, The Boys spin off.
Well it's certainly not been toned down from the original series.
Truly very amusing
I really liked it.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Tue Nov 28, 2023 1:56 pm
by Insane_Homer
Blue Eye Samurai is superb. (Netflix)
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Tue Nov 28, 2023 2:17 pm
by Tichtheid
Bullet wrote: Tue Nov 28, 2023 12:46 pm
Slow Horses season 3 release has been moved forward to Wednesday.
Pretty sure I read a while ago that they were shooting season 3 and 4 back to back so should be a reasonable amount of episodes.
Good news!
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Tue Nov 28, 2023 3:36 pm
by Ymx
Insane_Homer wrote: Tue Nov 28, 2023 1:56 pmBlue Eye Samurai is superb. (Netflix)
Is that not a cartoon ?!
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Tue Nov 28, 2023 3:36 pm
by C69
Insane_Homer wrote: Tue Nov 28, 2023 1:56 pmBlue Eye Samurai is superb. (Netflix)
Yes it was excellent
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Tue Nov 28, 2023 5:36 pm
by Hal Jordan
sockwithaticket wrote: Wed Oct 11, 2023 11:33 pm
Bit late to the party, but I'm finally cracking through Peaky Blinders.
Tom Hardy could act the shit out of a shipping forecast and that Cillian Murhpy fella's not bad either.
If you haven't seen it, check out Hardy in Taboo. Regency era drama involving The East India Company, the Crown, Hardy doing a turn as a half mad, possibly mystic and definitely up to no good protagonist and lots of hammy but fun acting.
But you will need to watch it with the subtitles on as Hardy goes on another of his mumbling growl roles.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Tue Nov 28, 2023 5:42 pm
by Raggs
Really enjoying Good Omens 2. It's not quite as good as the first one, but good solid fun with some very nice references.
It's old and hammy, but I've been going through the old SG1 series too, sort of background watching. Just watched the episode where there's a production of Wormhole X-treme, a take off of the stargate program, but they poke fun at some of the tropes, asking how come everyone speaks English, and why when they go out of phase, and can walk though walls, how come they don't fall through the floor.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Tue Nov 28, 2023 6:07 pm
by Simian
Raggs wrote: Tue Nov 28, 2023 5:42 pm
Really enjoying Good Omens 2. It's not quite as good as the first one, but good solid fun with some very nice references.
It's old and hammy, but I've been going through the old SG1 series too, sort of background watching. Just watched the episode where there's a production of Wormhole X-treme, a take off of the stargate program, but they poke fun at some of the tropes, asking how come everyone speaks English, and why when they go out of phase, and can walk though walls, how come they don't fall through the floor.
I watched a few of those randomly the other day and was kinda surprised how much I enjoyed it too!
sockwithaticket wrote: Wed Oct 11, 2023 11:33 pm
Bit late to the party, but I'm finally cracking through Peaky Blinders.
Tom Hardy could act the shit out of a shipping forecast and that Cillian Murhpy fella's not bad either.
If you haven't seen it, check out Hardy in Taboo. Regency era drama involving The East India Company, the Crown, Hardy doing a turn as a half mad, possibly mystic and definitely up to no good protagonist and lots of hammy but fun acting.
But you will need to watch it with the subtitles on as Hardy goes on another of his mumbling growl roles.
Have seen it, Hardy was extremely enjoyable. Subtitles were definitely required.
Insane_Homer wrote: Tue Nov 28, 2023 1:56 pmBlue Eye Samurai is superb. (Netflix)
Yes it was excellent
It's on my long list of things to watch that the mrs isn't interested in
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Wed Nov 29, 2023 3:04 pm
by C69
Just binge watched the first season of Reacher.
Pleasantly surprised tbh. Puts the Tom Cruise version into perspective.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Wed Nov 29, 2023 3:07 pm
by Raggs
C69 wrote: Wed Nov 29, 2023 3:04 pm
Just binge watched the first season of Reacher.
Pleasantly surprised tbh. Puts the Tom Cruise version into perspective.
Not read the books, but understood that Reacher was supposed to be an all american action hero type, massive guy etc, couldn't bring myself to watch any of the Cruise stuff, but quite enjoyed the first season, looking forward to the second.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Wed Nov 29, 2023 3:27 pm
by sockwithaticket
The first Cruise film is solid if unspectacular, provided you can pretend he's not meant to be Reacher. Also not read any of the books, but aware that his sheer size was a pretty integral element of the character.
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Wed Nov 29, 2023 5:32 pm
by Ymx
First 2 episodes of Slow Horses has just dropped.
As a reminder from above
Re: The best new and returning TV series thread
Posted: Wed Nov 29, 2023 6:46 pm
by Insane_Homer
A Murder at the End of the World (Disney+) has been excellent so far. Well worth a watch
so after success of password sharing crackdown and increase in subscription numbers - count me out of subscribing again 
