NPR

Blackmac wrote: Wed May 22, 2024 5:48 pm

vball wrote: Wed May 22, 2024 7:26 am

Marylandolorian wrote: Wed May 22, 2024 1:23 am Rebus, a cop in Edinburg,

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11116780/? ... _0_q_rebus

I was working in Dubai when I first read a Rebus book. Having lived in Edinburgh for many years, I could easily find my way around the places he mentions and the people he met. The music was another shared area of interest. It just took me back "home".
So will sit down with her indoors (an Edinburgh lass) and watch some these this weekend.

A good few years back I was flying home from America sitting beside a very well off American couple who were visiting Edinburgh because they were the world's biggest Rebus fans. They were just slightly excited to find themselves sitting beside an Edinburgh detective who worked out of the same station. I arranged for them to come for a visit to St Leonard's and Gayfield stations and took them a drive around all the local hotspots and even had a pint at the Oxford Bar. They repaid me with a slap up meal for myself and my wife at The Balmoral.

Great story! And well done, that's what it's all about.

I was once hosting a rather austere British Ambassador in Edinburgh for a series of meetings. After a particularly dull drinks reception in Charlette Square we left and as I was walking her to her hotel she asked, "I don't suppose we are near the Oxford Bar". Turns out she was a massive fan and absolutely melted when I told her we were 5 minutes away. Ended up having a few pints and she transformed into a fantastic person who I am still friends with.

Did the last episode of Shogun last night. Felt slightly cheated that there wasn't a massive battle scene at the end, but thought the whole thing was very, very good.

D-Day: The Unheard Tapes.

As it suggests it's audio, some of which have not been heard by the public before, from interviews conducted with Brits, Americans, French and Germans. They've got actors, lip syncing over the audio, who resemble the person at the time of the invasion. Only watched the first episode but ot was excellent.

Slick wrote: Fri May 24, 2024 8:39 am Did the last episode of Shogun last night. Felt slightly cheated that there wasn't a massive battle scene at the end, but thought the whole thing was very, very good.

It's a character driven drama. This was the right way to do it.
Yabu was a fantastic character but you're should for choice really.
Going to leave it a while and watch it all over again.

Tokyo Vice Season 2. Really good, even better than S1.

The Acolyte is pretty good, it is finding its feet and the world building is excellent.

Seeing Jedi martial arts is really cool, and Lee Jung-jae is really good as Master Sol.

Bonus points for the cast triggering the usual cunts whining about everyone not being a white man. 

Slick wrote: Fri May 24, 2024 8:39 am Did the last episode of Shogun last night. Felt slightly cheated that there wasn't a massive battle scene at the end, but thought the whole thing was very, very good.

They certainly teased it

If they make Season 2, it'll be the first thing they show

If you're interested in the history and want to learn more about some of the real life characters Shogun was based on, the Netflix documentary is a pretty good starting point.

Uncle fester wrote: Tue Jun 11, 2024 6:42 am If you're interested in the history and want to learn more about some of the real life characters Shogun was based on, the Netflix documentary is a pretty good starting point.

I just read Samurai William: The Adventurer Who Unlocked Japan by Giles Milton. It forms the basis of Shogun. A good read too.

Hal Jordan wrote: Mon Jun 10, 2024 6:44 pm The Acolyte is pretty good, it is finding its feet and the world building is excellent.

Seeing Jedi martial arts is really cool, and Lee Jung-jae is really good as Master Sol.

Bonus points for the cast triggering the usual cunts whining about everyone not being a white man. 

Was looking forward to watching this with my Star Wars obsessed son (7). But he watched a Dr Who a couple of weeks ago and has just ditched Star Wars (plus the £100's worth of lego and costumes) and now obsessed with that...

Slick wrote: Tue Jun 11, 2024 9:04 am

Hal Jordan wrote: Mon Jun 10, 2024 6:44 pm The Acolyte is pretty good, it is finding its feet and the world building is excellent.

Seeing Jedi martial arts is really cool, and Lee Jung-jae is really good as Master Sol.

Bonus points for the cast triggering the usual cunts whining about everyone not being a white man. 

Was looking forward to watching this with my Star Wars obsessed son (7). But he watched a Dr Who a couple of weeks ago and has just ditched Star Wars (plus the £100's worth of lego and costumes) and now obsessed with that...

That's kids for you

Just finished Those who are about to die. On amazon prime, quite enjoyable, some good tense situations. Very few "Good guys" and definitely enjoyed the feeling of never being 100% sure who was going to win out and how etc.

Raggs wrote: Thu Jul 25, 2024 12:28 pm Just finished Those who are about to die. On amazon prime, quite enjoyable, some good tense situations. Very few "Good guys" and definitely enjoyed the feeling of never being 100% sure who was going to win out and how etc.

Only watched one episode and was not blown away by it. But will give it another shot.

LoveOfTheGame wrote: Thu Jul 25, 2024 12:47 pm

Raggs wrote: Thu Jul 25, 2024 12:28 pm Just finished Those who are about to die. On amazon prime, quite enjoyable, some good tense situations. Very few "Good guys" and definitely enjoyed the feeling of never being 100% sure who was going to win out and how etc.

Only watched one episode and was not blown away by it. But will give it another shot.

First episode is very much a case of introducing a ton of different characters, it did feel a bit stilted, definitely improved as it goes on in my opinion though.

Watching Andor these days, I think it's my favorite piece of the Star Wars productions, even including Eps IV/V/VI.
Grim atmosphere, some depth in many characters - even basic villains have a back story.
Just discovered what I think clinches it for me, what gives it a unique adult feel: there's one word that's never pronounced...

GuLi wrote: Thu Jul 25, 2024 3:21 pm Watching Andor these days, I think it's my favorite piece of the Star Wars productions, even including Eps IV/V/VI.
Grim atmosphere, some depth in many characters - even basic villains have a back story.
Just discovered what I think clinches it for me, what gives it a unique adult feel: there's one word that's never pronounced...

Spoiler

Show

Jedi !

Thought it was completely lame. Switched off after couple of episodes

boere wors wrote: Fri Jul 26, 2024 7:00 am

GuLi wrote: Thu Jul 25, 2024 3:21 pm Watching Andor these days, I think it's my favorite piece of the Star Wars productions, even including Eps IV/V/VI.
Grim atmosphere, some depth in many characters - even basic villains have a back story.
Just discovered what I think clinches it for me, what gives it a unique adult feel: there's one word that's never pronounced...

Spoiler

Show

Jedi !

Thought it was completely lame. Switched off after couple of episodes

I enjoyed it. It's a very good follow-on for EP4 - Andor moans as much as Luke Skywalker!

GuLi wrote: Thu Jul 25, 2024 3:21 pm Watching Andor these days, I think it's my favorite piece of the Star Wars productions, even including Eps IV/V/VI.
Grim atmosphere, some depth in many characters - even basic villains have a back story.
Just discovered what I think clinches it for me, what gives it a unique adult feel: there's one word that's never pronounced...

Spoiler

Show

Jedi !

Andor and Rogue One are the only bits of the revived Star Wars franchise I've really enjoyed, although I have skipped a lot of the TV series. The ones I did try like Ahsoka and Mandalorian weren't great.

sockwithaticket wrote: Fri Jul 26, 2024 8:35 am The ones I did try like Ahsoka and Mandalorian weren't great.

If you didn't like those, I suggest you give The Acolyte a VERY WIDE berth!!

Sandstorm wrote: Fri Jul 26, 2024 9:15 am

sockwithaticket wrote: Fri Jul 26, 2024 8:35 am The ones I did try like Ahsoka and Mandalorian weren't great.

If you didn't like those, I suggest you give The Acolyte a VERY WIDE berth!!

Even allowing for some of the racist and misogynist criticism many modern shows attract, it seems to have been particularly poorly received. No intention of going anywhere near it.

sockwithaticket wrote: Fri Jul 26, 2024 8:35 am

GuLi wrote: Thu Jul 25, 2024 3:21 pm Watching Andor these days, I think it's my favorite piece of the Star Wars productions, even including Eps IV/V/VI.
Grim atmosphere, some depth in many characters - even basic villains have a back story.
Just discovered what I think clinches it for me, what gives it a unique adult feel: there's one word that's never pronounced...

Spoiler

Show

Jedi !

Andor and Rogue One are the only bits of the revived Star Wars franchise I've really enjoyed, although I have skipped a lot of the TV series. The ones I did try like Ahsoka and Mandalorian weren't great.

Yeah, I think Rogue One is close to the best film in the whole franchise, and Andor is of the same tone and quality.

Mandalorian dragged a bit for me and I don't really get its relevance to the wider universe. I enjoyed The Acolyte though. That alongside the proposed movie about earlier times, rise of the jedi and the sith etc, are interesting themes to be explored. I've tried to watch Solo four times and never finished it.

Biffer wrote: Fri Jul 26, 2024 10:11 am I enjoyed The Acolyte though. That alongside the proposed movie about earlier times, rise of the jedi and the sith etc, are interesting themes to be explored.

It had so much potential then was ruined by stupid plot twists and unexplained events like It was never explained. That's teenager-level writing and editing.

Whereas the same chase thru the planet's rings was one of the best Star Wars scenes ever!

Episode one where Mae fights Trinity (Carrie Anne Moss ) was a superb starting point. Then we get a shite 2nd episode. Then a better 3rd one. Then the witches episode.....god help us!
It's like the Original Star Trek Movie Series of Great/Shite/Great/Shite/etc

And don't get me started on the final scene where "that guy..." is suddenly exposed, trying to guarantee a second series will be funded.

Slick wrote: Fri May 24, 2024 8:39 am Did the last episode of Shogun last night. Felt slightly cheated that there wasn't a massive battle scene at the end, but thought the whole thing was very, very good.

Being honest I almost didn't want to watch the last episode. Crimson Sky left me drained and a bit numb.

All things considered I think it's the best series I've seen in a long time. Thoughtful, well written and every trope it could've tripped over you end up clapping in admiration afterward. Just plain excellent.

LoveOfTheGame wrote: Thu Jul 25, 2024 12:47 pm

Raggs wrote: Thu Jul 25, 2024 12:28 pm Just finished Those who are about to die. On amazon prime, quite enjoyable, some good tense situations. Very few "Good guys" and definitely enjoyed the feeling of never being 100% sure who was going to win out and how etc.

Only watched one episode and was not blown away by it. But will give it another shot.

Its entertaining but you have to suspend A LOT of disbelief!!

Just spent a few weeks watching The ones who Live, one of the follow ups to the Walking Dead. Absolutely rubbish.

Blackmac wrote: Sun Jul 28, 2024 12:53 pm Just spent a few weeks watching The ones who Live, one of the follow ups to the Walking Dead. Absolutely rubbish.

Haven't watched it yet, but I wish they'd done a series of Daryl and Negan. Easily the best characters.

The actor playing Negan looks like he had an amazing time playing that role.

Sandstorm wrote: Fri Jul 26, 2024 8:27 am

boere wors wrote: Fri Jul 26, 2024 7:00 am

GuLi wrote: Thu Jul 25, 2024 3:21 pm Watching Andor these days, I think it's my favorite piece of the Star Wars productions, even including Eps IV/V/VI.
Grim atmosphere, some depth in many characters - even basic villains have a back story.
Just discovered what I think clinches it for me, what gives it a unique adult feel: there's one word that's never pronounced...

Spoiler

Show

Jedi !

Thought it was completely lame. Switched off after couple of episodes

I enjoyed it. It's a very good follow-on for EP4 - Andor moans as much as Luke Skywalker!

When he's not grimly shooting people in the head.

One thing that still bothers me is the cackhanded way they try to present the rebels as 'not so good' guys again like in Rogue One. Every morally questionable act they commit makes absolutely no sense and often has no payoff anyway, like Faye Marsay's character. Gritty and realistic? Nope, just bad writing.

Still watching but they can do a lot better.

salanya wrote: Sun Jul 28, 2024 1:06 pm

Blackmac wrote: Sun Jul 28, 2024 12:53 pm Just spent a few weeks watching The ones who Live, one of the follow ups to the Walking Dead. Absolutely rubbish.

Haven't watched it yet, but I wish they'd done a series of Daryl and Negan. Easily the best characters.

The actor playing Negan looks like he had an amazing time playing that role.

He is in the new series of The Boys, a brilliant actor tbh.

salanya wrote: Sun Jul 28, 2024 1:06 pm

Blackmac wrote: Sun Jul 28, 2024 12:53 pm Just spent a few weeks watching The ones who Live, one of the follow ups to the Walking Dead. Absolutely rubbish.

Haven't watched it yet, but I wish they'd done a series of Daryl and Negan. Easily the best characters.

The actor playing Negan looks like he had an amazing time playing that role.

There is a spin off ( the 5th overall) for The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon. Think it's showing outside the US much later after its 2023 original release though?

Sky and NOW have announced that they have acquired a number of the series in the franchise, with the original The Walking Dead show becoming available in full from Sunday 19th May and spin-off The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live airing from Friday 31st May.

Meanwhile, both The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon and The Walking Dead: Dead City will also arrive on the channel and streamer at a later point in 2024.

tabascoboy wrote: Sun Jul 28, 2024 4:14 pm

salanya wrote: Sun Jul 28, 2024 1:06 pm

Blackmac wrote: Sun Jul 28, 2024 12:53 pm Just spent a few weeks watching The ones who Live, one of the follow ups to the Walking Dead. Absolutely rubbish.

Haven't watched it yet, but I wish they'd done a series of Daryl and Negan. Easily the best characters.

The actor playing Negan looks like he had an amazing time playing that role.

There is a spin off ( the 5th overall) for The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon. Think it's showing outside the US much later after its 2023 original release though?

Sky and NOW have announced that they have acquired a number of the series in the franchise, with the original The Walking Dead show becoming available in full from Sunday 19th May and spin-off The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live airing from Friday 31st May.

Meanwhile, both The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon and The Walking Dead: Dead City will also arrive on the channel and streamer at a later point in 2024.

I watched Dead City, it was more of the same tbh, albeit with fewer main characters you knew would be saved by plot armour.

It's amazing that TWD has had so many spin offs when there's basically nowhere to go with it. Once you stop making a horror show and start doing the 'humans are the real monsters' post-apocalypse thing it becomes much of a muchness unless the writing is outstanding.

Stopped watching TWD after, I think 9 seasons, and no real interest in the spin-offs. Just got fatigued with a show that seemed to have no end point.

TWD did drag on at the end. A lot of the characters became parodies of themselves, and plots became repetitive. Yet the last season's plot was very rushed.

Not too fussed seeking out the spin-offs, though I'm interested in finding out what happened to Rick.

salanya wrote: Sun Jul 28, 2024 8:04 pm TWD did drag on at the end. A lot of the characters became parodies of themselves, and plots became repetitive. Yet the last season's plot was very rushed.

Not too fussed seeking out the spin-offs, though I'm interested in finding out what happened to Rick.

Rick

Hal Jordan wrote: Mon Jun 10, 2024 6:44 pm The Acolyte is pretty good, it is finding its feet and the world building is excellent.

Seeing Jedi martial arts is really cool, and Lee Jung-jae is really good as Master Sol.

Bonus points for the cast triggering the usual cunts whining about everyone not being a white man. 

Sorry you just lost all street cred in one post, guess you also think Doctor Who Series 14 is the bestest ever.

Serious the Jedi are now the bad guys and we have space lesbians!?!

Thankfully Disney are rumored to have canned season 2 of The Acolyte due to only you apparently watching it.

And before you start, not a Star Wars fan, last one I watched was Rogue One, it's been all downhill since imho.

Other shows you will no doubt cream yourself over "Velma", "Rings of Power", and "Wheel of Time" (if they are still making that atrocious shite).

Hey stones sink because they don't look up, I fear for the future of streaming with the current crop of numpties writing shows.

tabascoboy wrote: Sun Jul 28, 2024 7:58 pm Stopped watching TWD after, I think 9 seasons, and no real interest in the spin-offs. Just got fatigued with a show that seemed to have no end point.

Don't think I made it that far. Despite having become utterly bored of it, I did give Fear The Walking Dead a bash because they claimed it'd be about how society fell rather than the aftermath which is something all these apocalyptic bits of visual media rarely cover. Thought it'd be interesting to see them do things like how the police and local officials respond to an outbreak, how they escalate up the chain of agencies and so on or even just how a population handles things as they gradually unravel. We got maybe two episodes of the latter before it slipped right into full blown zombies have taken over and becoming The Walking Dead with a different cast and locations.

lemonhead wrote: Sun Jul 28, 2024 2:56 pm

Sandstorm wrote: Fri Jul 26, 2024 8:27 am

boere wors wrote: Fri Jul 26, 2024 7:00 am
Thought it was completely lame. Switched off after couple of episodes

I enjoyed it. It's a very good follow-on for EP4 - Andor moans as much as Luke Skywalker!

When he's not grimly shooting people in the head.

One thing that still bothers me is the cackhanded way they try to present the rebels as 'not so good' guys again like in Rogue One. Every morally questionable act they commit makes absolutely no sense and often has no payoff anyway, like Faye Marsay's character. Gritty and realistic? Nope, just bad writing.

Still watching but they can do a lot better.

Look at any unsanitized account of a rebellion, Independence movement, Revolution, Civil War, whatever, & you'll find an endless list of acts that were counter productive, & just got editted out by the victor, because they didn't want to confuse their Grand-Children by telling them that they were allied with sometimes psychotic thugs who just enjoyed killing, or idiots who killed friendly civilians, because to save the village it was necessary to destroy it ......

Any level of warfare is messy, & Politicians understand this, but deceitfully decide to hide it from the populace, & present a Hollywood version to them, because then it's so much easier to justifying sending their chikdren off to die in a foreign land.

To me this is just a much more honest representation of warfare than we've been presented in the last hundred years thru various media.

Jethro wrote: Sun Jul 28, 2024 9:11 pm

Hal Jordan wrote: Mon Jun 10, 2024 6:44 pm The Acolyte is pretty good, it is finding its feet and the world building is excellent.

Seeing Jedi martial arts is really cool, and Lee Jung-jae is really good as Master Sol.

Bonus points for the cast triggering the usual cunts whining about everyone not being a white man. 

Sorry you just lost all street cred in one post, guess you also think Doctor Who Series 14 is the bestest ever.

Serious the Jedi are now the bad guys and we have space lesbians!?!

Thankfully Disney are rumored to have canned season 2 of The Acolyte due to only you apparently watching it.

And before you start, not a Star Wars fan, last one I watched was Rogue One, it's been all downhill since imho.

Other shows you will no doubt cream yourself over "Velma", "Rings of Power", and "Wheel of Time" (if they are still making that atrocious shite).

Hey stones sink because they don't look up, I fear for the future of streaming with the current crop of numpties writing shows.

So you're not a star wars fan, but you are upset that there's other factions in the star wars universe that you weren't aware of? Or that the jedi do underhanded things sometimes?

Last thing you watched was rogue one, but you still know that it's all gone downhill since then based on what exactly?

fishfoodie wrote: Sun Jul 28, 2024 11:07 pm

lemonhead wrote: Sun Jul 28, 2024 2:56 pm

Sandstorm wrote: Fri Jul 26, 2024 8:27 am

I enjoyed it. It's a very good follow-on for EP4 - Andor moans as much as Luke Skywalker!

When he's not grimly shooting people in the head.

One thing that still bothers me is the cackhanded way they try to present the rebels as 'not so good' guys again like in Rogue One. Every morally questionable act they commit makes absolutely no sense and often has no payoff anyway, like Faye Marsay's character. Gritty and realistic? Nope, just bad writing.

Still watching but they can do a lot better.

Look at any unsanitized account of a rebellion, Independence movement, Revolution, Civil War, whatever, & you'll find an endless list of acts that were counter productive, & just got editted out by the victor, because they didn't want to confuse their Grand-Children by telling them that they were allied with sometimes psychotic thugs who just enjoyed killing, or idiots who killed friendly civilians, because to save the village it was necessary to destroy it ......

Any level of warfare is messy, & Politicians understand this, but deceitfully decide to hide it from the populace, & present a Hollywood version to them, because then it's so much easier to justifying sending their chikdren off to die in a foreign land.

To me this is just a much more honest representation of warfare than we've been presented in the last hundred years thru various media.

The psychopathic thugs are grand, you understand what they are and are left to contemplate why in your own head. That's fine. We're talking about senior leadership decisions that are dangled in front of us screaming 'grey area' that have flip all underlying logic other than to check our cheering on the good guys. I've no problem with that either if they execute it correctly and show the repercussions.

Every second counts in visual media. You have a point to make, a story to tell, a character arc to set up. Plant some seeds, set things in motion and then provide some conclusion one way or another.

Otherwise you've wasted people's time setting up a thread that doesn't go anywhere. The final episode is a perfect example of that and it's just downright annoying; the writers set up this huge moral quandary/confrontation that made no sense to begin with and either forgot or didn't bother to go through with it. Bad writing.

Raggs wrote: Thu Jul 25, 2024 12:28 pm Just finished Those who are about to die. On amazon prime, quite enjoyable, some good tense situations. Very few "Good guys" and definitely enjoyed the feeling of never being 100% sure who was going to win out and how etc.

The missus was getting a bit upset about me sloping off to my study every evening, so she insisted we watch something together - she thought I might like this, as I love the amphitheatre, Vindolanda and just about anything Roman.

I was entertained, and the CGI of ancient Rome did really catch my imagination (even if the close up chariot racing looked a bit daft), but I find it all the plot and acting more than a bit overblown.

Raggs wrote: Thu Jul 25, 2024 1:15 pm

LoveOfTheGame wrote: Thu Jul 25, 2024 12:47 pm

Raggs wrote: Thu Jul 25, 2024 12:28 pm Just finished Those who are about to die. On amazon prime, quite enjoyable, some good tense situations. Very few "Good guys" and definitely enjoyed the feeling of never being 100% sure who was going to win out and how etc.

Only watched one episode and was not blown away by it. But will give it another shot.

First episode is very much a case of introducing a ton of different characters, it did feel a bit stilted, definitely improved as it goes on in my opinion though.

Ok, wifey and I finished watching it last night. Enjoyed it overall, only negatives I have is some of the CGI and acting was below par. It's quite staggering considering the budget they had. I'd give it a 6/10, perhaps even a 7/10 based purely on the fact that there were gratuitous boobies being shown throughout the series. Said gratuitous nudity should always trump average CGI and acting in my humble opinion.