Discuss and Rate the Last Thing You Watched (non-movies)

[happyninja42]

I really didn't care for the show, I think I stopped after episode 3. All the characters are 1-dimensional archetypes. The one guy and that chick get to having sex with less time together than a porno. Even though time is supposed to be of the essence in these games, the characters take so fucking long to actually make a decision. In the 1st episode, the announcement is made that there's 30 seconds left to open the right door and literally 30 seconds of actual time goes by as the character is deciding to open the door, then an announcement that 20 seconds is left is made (how?). In the 2nd episode I think (the game in the apartment building), they again get to what they think is the right door, the thing they've been searching for the whole game, and the stand there for like a minute deciding whether or not to open it. And the 3rd episode is like all the characters annoyingly crying for half the episode.

And there's just no way the plot makes any sense with how basically all of Tokyo instantly disappeared or how they can kill you basically anywhere. The only type of thing that would make sense is a virtual world or something. It's like Lost, there's no way to tie this whole setup together. All you had to do was keep it simple like say Battle Royale.

Eh, the "time not counting correctly due to editing" thing, that's so prevalent in film/tv that I just don't really care about that bit too much. Yeah it's nice when they actually time it right, but most don't. I do agree they take some time to come up with decisions, especially given the life/death stakes. As to the religiously repressed, seriously wounded, terrified and alone virgin, willingly letting a hot chick bang him to provide him comfort, and for it to apparently sort of synch in with his own religious views about a holy mother, and kink, I mean, I know how I responded a couple times when I was a horny youth, and some hot chick that I was actually attracted to, got rubby on me. So I can't really fault him too much. I mean they already established earlier the whole "you might die a virgin" and he was NOT happy with that. then, establish that yes, he might ACTUALLY die in this place, well, you take what you can get. And frankly, that slightly chunky (in a delicious way) Japanese lady, there are far worse ladies to bring you physical comfort in the world. That was one thing I was actually a little surprised by. They didn't pick some waifish woman to play the femme fatale. She's clearly got some meat on her when you see shots of her fully. Of which I approve. If you gotta provide some T&A in your show, give the bigger girls some love, because some of us love them right back

 

[Phoenixmgs]

Eh, the "time not counting correctly due to editing" thing, that's so prevalent in film/tv that I just don't really care about that bit too much. Yeah it's nice when they actually time it right, but most don't. I do agree they take some time to come up with decisions, especially given the life/death stakes. As to the religiously repressed, seriously wounded, terrified and alone virgin, willingly letting a hot chick bang him to provide him comfort, and for it to apparently sort of synch in with his own religious views about a holy mother, and kink, I mean, I know how I responded a couple times when I was a horny youth, and some hot chick that I was actually attracted to, got rubby on me. So I can't really fault him too much. I mean they already established earlier the whole "you might die a virgin" and he was NOT happy with that. then, establish that yes, he might ACTUALLY die in this place, well, you take what you can get. And frankly, that slightly chunky (in a delicious way) Japanese lady, there are far worse ladies to bring you physical comfort in the world. That was one thing I was actually a little surprised by. They didn't pick some waifish woman to play the femme fatale. She's clearly got some meat on her when you see shots of her fully. Of which I approve. If you gotta provide some T&A in your show, give the bigger girls some love, because some of us love them right back

It's more that's it's an annoying cliche in anime basically that just doesn't work with time restraints obviously than the fact that the time doesn't line up perfectly. That second instance where they're going around trying all these doors all super fast and then they take a minute on the door that is the one is just so annoying, there was no actual countdown in that situation except the overall time limit for the game which of course they have to push to the last seconds.

I wasn't criticizing the dude just that situation literally takes longer to develop in a Japanese porno.

 

[happyninja42]

I wasn't criticizing the dude just that situation literally takes longer to develop in a Japanese porno.

I dunno man, I've seen a lot of japanese pornos. They seem to be pretty economical with their "time to boinkin" ratio to overall film a lot of the time But yeah, realistically, most relationships IRL take WAY longer than anything in media. That's just something we accept when watching things. Though I mean, casual, one night stand hookups are a thing, and I've certainly boinked a few ladies in my youth in far less stressful situations than he was in, with about as much lead up to the nooky time.

 

[Samtemdo8]

Never mind, I meant to post this in the other thread.

 

[gorfias]

Watching a Netflix limited original series, "The Queen's Gambit". The central character is a troubled orphan girl who is a chess prodigy in the 1960s and 70s. While there have been female chess prodigy's, this story is fictional. The protagonist, Beth Harmon, is played by the spooky looking beauty, Anya Taylor-Joy.

Not sure where this is going but it makes for some gripping viewing. I'm about 1/2 way through the series now and recommend it.

 

[Phoenixmgs]

Snowpiercer Season 1 - 6/10

It moves quick and the characters are interesting enough. There's some odd character points/story points that are a bit head scratching. It's a decent watch that won't keep you bored at least.


Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Season 4 - 7/10

It's pretty much more Sabrina, which is a nice light fun show for the most part.

 

[happyninja42]

Resident Alien: Episode 1

So, Alan Tudyk plays an actual alien (from outer space), who is stuck on earth, and pretending to be human. Cue some common atypical social behaviors one might associate with autism or Asperger's, and you've got the basic premise of the show. It's basically Northern Exposure, but crossed with ET a little bit. Sleepy little "idyllic" american town in the middle of Colorado, surrounded by snow and cold, he's a "doctor" from upstate, I think they established him as a "city guy", so of course another layer of fish out of water.

Basically the entire premise of the show is to let Alan Tudyk be Alan Tudyk, and mix his blend of physical comedy and line delivery for maximum laughs. And frankly, it works. My wife and I were enjoying it immensely. It's very formulaic, if you are at all familiar with shows like Northern Exposure, maybe some Murder She Wrote in there, it's not too hard to see how the various plot beats will play out. But honestly, I don't really mind. It does enough fun twists at times to keep it fresh, and even when I see the next plot point coming, the delivery of it (usually do to the glorious Mr. Tudyk), is done so well, that you still enjoy it.

The catch is that the entire town is filled with oddballs and weirdos, so even though Alan's character is as alien as they come, and often does things that make even the weirdos do a double take, the show does take it's time to let you see how just goofy and weird the rest of the cast are too. And the supporting cast, the female lead in particular, are well done. But I like the medical assistant that is Alan's counterpart, and obvious second lead character. She's well written, the actress has good chemistry and delivery. Aaaand, she's a bit of a chunker. Like in the butt and legs department. I mention this, only because it's odd to see a female character, of such prominent screen time in a show, NOT be some waifish model actress. This lady, is nicely curvy. Of course, I'm somewhat biased, as I likes me some bigger ladies, but it was noticeable in a few shots, that Sir Mix A Lot would approve of her dimensions. I noticed they often cut away when she would turn butt first, so I'm not sure if they are particularly happy with her being bigger? But got her for her acting? Part of me is worried that the showrunners might be talking about her losing weight going forward, which I hope not. That's some shitty stuff to do in the first place, and, it's nice to see big girls getting some representation on tv. I might be overthinking it, but it seemed to be a noticeable quick cut, right before you got a real butt angle, it felt deliberate. *shrugs*

But yeah, it's fairly predictable, I called several of the major plot points like weeks ago when talking to a friend of mine, but again, it's not really a show that's trying to plow new ground....or, well snow in this case. It's found a fun new twist to the standard formula, and it's playing with it for it's own amusement. And I'm down with it.

A solid 8.5/10

Episodes 1 and 2 (haven't watched that one yet, will probably tomorrow) are for free on Youtube right now. If you like Alan Tudyk, it's a lot of him being him, which is great.

 

[gorfias]

Mandalorian Season 2 : 7/10
I'd heard Season 2 was not as good as 1. I thought it superior. I give it only a 7/10 as there is a lot to quibble about in it. But it is the best Star Wars property since Return of the Jedi (Clone Wars cartoons not withstanding: I haven't seen them and not including books/comic books/other media). Lot of fun call backs there.

Spoiler

Boba Fett? George must be chagrined as the character was not meant to be particularly special. Starbuck... different property. R2 and Luke? And Dark Troopers! Were they ever a thing outside the game!?!?). Quibbles: Baby Yoda is not a baby. He may look like one, but he's 50. He should have a more fitting personality. The Vescar armor harms things. Hard to not be irked as he takes out trooper after trooper with a single shot, while his armor withstands dozens of direct hits. But I go with it.

Fans of the property should pony up $7 and binge watch the 2 seasons. Good show.

 

[XsjadoBlayde]

Westworld season 2
Oh, season 3 is set in the real world finally, you say? Well...damn. Alright, let's plough on.
Jeffery Wright is so fucking huggable. Why does he always run from me? Is it the aggressive cursing?? I'll stop, for youuuu!...?

 

[Dirty Hipsters]

Well Jack Ryan season 2 is certainly not as good as season 1.

I somehow managed to fall asleep multiple times. Sometimes in the middle of action sequences.

 

[gorfias]

Watching Wandavision and so far

Spoiler

the first 3 episodes are nearly pure spoofs of early 1960s to 70s family tv sitcoms. It's a hard lift. You know this cannot be all the show is... and it is not. Something interesting is going on. I wonder if they should have done it differently, but if they had, episode 4 would not have been as much fun. And 5 even better. 6 drops 2-12. I am looking forward to it.

 

[Dalisclock]

Watching Wandavision and so far

Spoiler

the first 3 episodes are nearly pure spoofs of early 1960s to 70s family tv sitcoms. It's a hard lift. You know this cannot be all the show is... and it is not. Something interesting is going on. I wonder if they should have done it differently, but if they had, episode 4 would not have been as much fun. And 5 even better. 6 drops 2-12. I am looking forward to it.

Check out the Wandavision thread if you haven't already.

 

[Dalisclock]

The Expanse: Season 1(Part 1)

I finally decided to try this show out, being I needed a new show to keep me busy between video games and the 30 minutes of Wandavision I get a week. I'm about halfway through the first season and so far am intrigued. While the first episode jumps around a lot and makes it confusing, I am getting a good feel for the characters and what's going on so far and I'm curious where this is all going. Aside from an inter-planetary war between Earth and Mars with the belt stuck(metaphorically) in the middle. The crew of the ex-(former?) Canterbury and now the Rocinante looks like it's gonna be roaming around for a bit while Mars and Earth edge closer to all out conflict and I'm curious what role they're going to play here.

As a space Nerd, I appreciate that it's a little harder then Star Trek or Star Wars and maybe close to firefly in the terms of sci-fi vs. sci-fantasy, even if they're making concessions for the sake of production and storytelling(artificial gravity, sound in space). I would like some explanation what the deal with the fluid is they use for high-g maneuvers, unless I missed it during one of the early scenes. It's meant to cushion their bodies from the stress but I can't see if it's injected or what.

 

[Trunkage]

The Expanse: Season 1(Part 1)

I finally decided to try this show out, being I needed a new show to keep me busy between video games and the 30 minutes of Wandavision I get a week. I'm about halfway through the first season and so far am intrigued. While the first episode jumps around a lot and makes it confusing, I am getting a good feel for the characters and what's going on so far and I'm curious where this is all going. Aside from an inter-planetary war between Earth and Mars with the belt stuck(metaphorically) in the middle. The crew of the ex-(former?) Canterbury and now the Rocinante looks like it's gonna be roaming around for a bit while Mars and Earth edge closer to all out conflict and I'm curious what role they're going to play here.

As a space Nerd, I appreciate that it's a little harder then Star Trek or Star Wars and maybe close to firefly in the terms of sci-fi vs. sci-fantasy, even if they're making concessions for the sake of production and storytelling(artificial gravity, sound in space). I would like some explanation what the deal with the fluid is they use for high-g maneuvers, unless I missed it during one of the early scenes. It's meant to cushion their bodies from the stress but I can't see if it's injected or what.

Just made my wife rewatch the first season and half the second. You need to be totally engaged with this material or you get left behind. The Donnager episode made me love this show

 

[deleted20220709]

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[Trunkage]

I don't think the show ever explains it, but the Expanse operates on established (if often a bit fudged) physics for the most part. Gravity is achieved with thrust, which is why most ships are designed like towers with a vertical layout instead of a traditional sci-fi horizontal layout and thrust is in turn achieved by the made-up Epstein Drive that allows for infinite acceleration with minimal power or fuel consumption. In the books ships "flip" at the halfway point to their destination and basically breaks for half the journey as to maintain gravity.

The fluid is also explained in the books as a medical cocktail that helps the body cope with the pressure (pun intended) of sustained G forces. Among other things they provide stimulants so you don't pass out and various cardiovascular agents meant to prevent blood clots from forming. It is injected.

You could have just said magic juice

 

[deleted20220709]

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[happyninja42]

You could have just said magic juice

Except it's not magic juice, it's SCIENCE juice!

OT:
Watched episode 2 of Resident Alien. I'm enjoying it even more now. The humor is still good, delivery of lines are on point, and the supporting cast really flesh out the show. Alan Tudyk is still a gem of a physical comedian, and I want to watch more.

 

[Eacaraxe]

I don't think the show ever explains it, but the Expanse operates on established (if often a bit fudged) physics for the most part. Gravity is achieved with thrust, which is why most ships are designed like towers with a vertical layout instead of a traditional sci-fi horizontal layout...

Not to mention simulated gravity via centrifugal force, which without spoiling anything for those who haven't watched the show becomes a critical plot point later on.

...and thrust is in turn achieved by the made-up Epstein Drive that allows for infinite acceleration with minimal power or fuel consumption.

Not that made-up, really. The maths and drawing board work is mostly complete, and there's a prototype fusion drive being designed and built in Princeton right now.

As far as thrust and specific impulse of the Epstein drive...I think it was Scott Manley who did the maths on it for a YT video, and his results were actually damn surprising. The Roci's drive is canonically comparable in thrust to a single Rocketdyne F-1 (7GN), and the Isp is actually reasonably achievable...but the bad news is a fusion drive fueled by He-3 of that power would still generate so much X-ray and neutron radiation that it would melt housing and shielding of any known material in a matter of seconds.

The fluid is also explained in the books as a medical cocktail that helps the body cope with the pressure (pun intended) of sustained G forces. Among other things they provide stimulants so you don't pass out and various cardiovascular agents meant to prevent blood clots from forming. It is injected.

This I look at as somewhat similar to the PFC breathing liquid in The Abyss. The scientific foundation is there and entirely solid (the rat breathing PFC wasn't a special effect, they actually dunked a live rat in it), but due to lack of necessity the science hasn't translated to application quite yet. People can, and have, "reverse engineered" the juice in terms of contemporary pharmaceuticals to try to get a glimpse of what it may be composed of based on its intended use and effects/aftereffects in the novels and show.

Not to mention it's supplementary to the more-overlooked crash couches and G-suits, which play an apparently more critical role in maintaining homeostasis during high-G maneuvers.

 

[happyninja42]

This I look at as somewhat similar to the PFC breathing liquid in The Abyss. The scientific foundation is there and entirely solid (the rat breathing PFC wasn't a special effect, they actually dunked a live rat in it), but due to lack of necessity the science hasn't translated to application quite yet. People can, and have, "reverse engineered" the juice in terms of contemporary pharmaceuticals to try to get a glimpse of what it may be composed of based on its intended use and effects/aftereffects in the novels and show.

Not to mention it's supplementary to the more-overlooked crash couches and G-suits, which play an apparently more critical role in maintaining homeostasis during high-G maneuvers.

I actually saw a video about that recently.

He made some interesting points about the feasibility of the liquid as presented in the film, and it's got a few drawbacks, but the coolest thing to me, was learning that it had promising applications in neo-natal care for premature babies, who were born at a stage in development where their lungs are underdeveloped. That apparently using the fluid oxygen showed significant improvement in their survivability, and development stages.

that's actually one of the things I find the coolest about speculative scifi, and how we reverse engineer it. How people will go in trying to make X thing, based on some scifi thing. And in the process, they can't quite make X, because the science just doesn't work that way. But they end up coming up with some awesome thing for Z, and steer their development and research that way. So fucking cool.

But yeah, there have been a lot of YT videos about how impressively accurate the Expanse is, scientifically. It's not perfect no, and has to take some liberties with stuff for narrative reasons, etc. But compared to most scifi shows, it's probably the most accurate, within the limitations of the medium.