[kenberg]

 barmar, on 2017-January-20, 10:17, said:

I have a feeling it's a "black thing". Much has been said in the show about the role that black men play in their family and community, and Randall needing a role model. On the other hand, the mother-son relationship seems to be more related to the nurturing that the mother provided, so his attachment will be to his adopted mother.

Lots of TV shows have made a big deal about biological parenthood. The most notable one is the show "Switched at Birth", which is about two families (an affluent white family and a lower middle-class Latino one) who discover that their now-teenage daughters were switched at the hospital. Of course you expect to take home the child you gave birth to, but after 15 years, why would someone really feel the need to form a relationship with someone who just happened to be genetically related to them? I can certainly understand being curious about your biological parents, but is there really more to it than that? On other shows, a long-absent parent has come back and tried to get custody -- it seems crazy to me that the law actually supports this. After a certain amount of time, the biological relationship should become irrelevant.

The inter-racial aspect certainly complicates matters. I mentioned during one of the episodes where this was being heavily played that the show seemed to be making a strong case against inter-racial adoption. Becky felt it was making a strong case against adoption at all, and a particularly strong case against inter-racial adoption. Some year back there was some vocal folks in the black community that were strongly opposed to white parents adopting black children. I have not heard much on that movement lately, maybe it has subsided.

Of course in this show everything works out fine. The found black father is (literally) beyond belief as a truly great guy. Again, just fot contrast I will give you this. Thanks to the internet, I checked out a little about my birth parents. My mother had their names although she was not suppose to, and she gave me this info when I was 12. I never sought them out. My birth father married another woman during my birth mother's pregnancy, and they had a child shortly after. Apparently he had gotten two women pregnant at more or less the same time and on the coin flip of whom to marry, or however the decision was made, my birth mother lost (or perhaps I should say won). Sure I could have tracked him down and used him as a role model, but I think leaving well enough alone was a good choice. This history may be more personal than is appropriate online, but I do find the perfect character of William to be more than a little unlikely.

[barmar]

 kenberg, on 2017-January-20, 14:18, said:

The inter-racial aspect certainly complicates matters. I mentioned during one of the episodes where this was being heavily played that the show seemed to be making a strong case against inter-racial adoption. Becky felt it was making a strong case against adoption at all, and a particularly strong case against inter-racial adoption. Some year back there was some vocal folks in the black community that were strongly opposed to white parents adopting black children. I have not heard much on that movement lately, maybe it has subsided.

I didn't interpret it as making a case against adoption (inter-racial or not), just pointing out that there are issues. Jack and Rebecca were naive (or just idealistic) to think that they could raise Randall in a color-blind way -- there are both physical and social reasons why his race will make a big difference. That doesn't mean that these types of adoptions shouldn't be done, but they're not as simple. I'll bet the movement against it still exists, but unless you're involved in such an adoption you probably don't hear about it much.

[mike777]

A dissenting vote for the tv show, I watched the first two shows and dropped it. The critics love it.


One of the few tv shows I can recommend is the DCI Banks show on PBS. It is a British crime show based on the great books by Peter Robinson. You might want to also check out the Miss Fisher Mysteries also on PBS and Netflix.

[kenberg]

 mike777, on 2017-January-20, 16:31, said:

A dissenting vote for the tv show, I watched the first two shows and dropped it. The critics love it.


One of the few tv shows I can recommend is the DCI Banks show on PBS. It is a British crime show based on the great books by Peter Robinson. You might want to also check out the Miss Fisher Mysteries also on PBS and Netflix.

I watch and enjoy the Banks show. Becky has read many of the stories as well. And Miss Fisher is a real kick. For some reason we have had trouble finding some of the episodes. Do you know if new ones are still appearing?

As to This is Us, the more I see it the more I like it. I have found some of the portrayals not completely realistic, but all in all I find the development interesting. I can see why some wouldn't.

[mike777]

 kenberg, on 2017-January-20, 18:06, said:

I watch and enjoy the Banks show. Becky has read many of the stories as well. And Miss Fisher is a real kick. For some reason we have had trouble finding some of the episodes. Do you know if new ones are still appearing?

As to This is Us, the more I see it the more I like it. I have found some of the portrayals not completely realistic, but all in all I find the development interesting. I can see why some wouldn't.

I have not seen any new Miss Fisher episodes, PBS just started with the very first ones which I enjoy watching again. DCI banks seems to have some new ones I have not seen before. I have read all of his books.

[barmar]

I binged on "Sneaky Pete" on Amazon over the past 2 weekends. It stars Giovanni Ribisi as a Marius, a con man who got himself sent to jail to escape from a Vince, a mob boss (played by Bryan Cranston, co-creator of the show) who wanted to kill Marius after he discovered that he was the victim of a $100,000 con. When Marius gets out of jail a few years later, he insinuates himself into the extended family of his cellmate, Pete, who had been estranged for 20 years, while trying to get the money he needs to pay back Vince(who is holding Marius's brother as collateral). He has to keep pulling con after con, and soon discovers that the family (which operates a struggling bail bonds business) has their own dark secrets. He also has to avoid a crooked cop who's working for VInce and trying to track him down, and deal with a parole officer (Malcolm-Jamal Warner) who believes he can actually rehabilitate his charges with affirmations.

Like most movies and shows about con men and capers (think movies like "The Sting" and "Oceans 11", or TV shows like "Mission Impossible" and "Leverage"), there are an incredible number of moving parts. Marius's ability to talk himself out of any jam on the spur of the moment, and anticipate many developments, seems practically superhuman, so you have to suspend disbelief. But the performances are great. Margo Martindale plays Pete's grandmother, and this is one of the best performances of an always reliable character actress. Cranston played a suave counterpoint to his role from Breaking Bad, and there were a number of other recurring roles played by familiar character actors.

The subplot about the parole officer was pretty brief, I suspect it was a setup for something that will come back in the 2nd season. The 10 episodes of this season just cover 1 week (the deadline Vince gave, before he would start cutting off the brother's fingers).

[mike777]

 barmar, on 2017-February-06, 13:32, said:

I binged on "Sneaky Pete" on Amazon over the past 2 weekends. It stars Giovanni Ribisi as a Marius, a con man who got himself sent to jail to escape from a Vince, a mob boss (played by Bryan Cranston, co-creator of the show) who wanted to kill Marius after he discovered that he was the victim of a $100,000 con. When Marius gets out of jail a few years later, he insinuates himself into the extended family of his cellmate, Pete, who had been estranged for 20 years, while trying to get the money he needs to pay back Vince(who is holding Marius's brother as collateral). He has to keep pulling con after con, and soon discovers that the family (which operates a struggling bail bonds business) has their own dark secrets. He also has to avoid a crooked cop who's working for VInce and trying to track him down, and deal with a parole officer (Malcolm-Jamal Warner) who believes he can actually rehabilitate his charges with affirmations.

Like most movies and shows about con men and capers (think movies like "The Sting" and "Oceans 11", or TV shows like "Mission Impossible" and "Leverage"), there are an incredible number of moving parts. Marius's ability to talk himself out of any jam on the spur of the moment, and anticipate many developments, seems practically superhuman, so you have to suspend disbelief. But the performances are great. Margo Martindale plays Pete's grandmother, and this is one of the best performances of an always reliable character actress. Cranston played a suave counterpoint to his role from Breaking Bad, and there were a number of other recurring roles played by familiar character actors.

The subplot about the parole officer was pretty brief, I suspect it was a setup for something that will come back in the 2nd season. The 10 episodes of this season just cover 1 week (the deadline Vince gave, before he would start cutting off the brother's fingers).

watched bout half of them....up to the point where the grandparents find out he is some kind of crook and he finds out about the real estate con.
the brother got his cut toe cut off....I turned away. series is sort of ok I guess I will keep watching.


Netflix just announced season 3 of chef's table coming 2/17 yummmmm

[Aberlour10]

Watching something really old fashionated, but,,,IMO one of the best TV series has been ever made, with Gordon Jackson at his best.

I enjoy it again after so many years....

Upstairs Downstairs S02 E05 Guest Of Honour

https://www.youtube....S_JXvK8&index=2

[y66]

 Aberlour10, on 2017-August-20, 14:52, said:

Watching something really old fashionated, but,,,IMO one of the best TV series has been ever made, with Gordon Jackson at his best.

I enjoy it again after so many years....

Upstairs Downstairs S02 E05 Guest Of Honour

https://www.youtube....S_JXvK8&index=2

They did such a good job of bringing that era and those characters to life. So much went on in that house.

[y66]

The first few episodes of Twin Peaks: The Return were almost too weird and too auteuristically self absorbed for my taste but I'm glad I stuck with it. One for the short list of most original and interesting TV shows ever.

[kenberg]

 y66, on 2017-September-03, 09:10, said:

The first few episodes of Twin Peaks: The Return were almost too weird and too auteuristically self absorbed for my taste but I'm glad I stuck with it. One for the short list of most original and interesting TV shows ever.

Ok. I will give this some thought. Or at least mention this to Becky. She liked the original, I was not much watching tv at the time and when I would see the occasional episode I had no idea what was going on. But the original got such rave reviews I decided I would give it a try this time around. After 2 or 3 episodes Becky and I both had had enough. At times Becky seems to think maybe she should have stuck with it a bit longer. She did like the original.

Whenever I start trying to figure out what is really going on in something that David Lynch does, after about five minutes I ask myself why I am doing this. And then I usually stop.

But I do thank you for this and I will mention it to Becky.

[Aberlour10]

 y66, on 2017-September-03, 08:43, said:

They did such a good job of bringing that era and those characters to life. So much went on in that house.

Historical events, political backgrounds, life style...all these things real and with love for detail...

[barmar]

 kenberg, on 2017-September-03, 14:05, said:

Ok. I will give this some thought. Or at least mention this to Becky. She liked the original, I was not much watching tv at the time and when I would see the occasional episode I had no idea what was going on. But the original got such rave reviews I decided I would give it a try this time around. After 2 or 3 episodes Becky and I both had had enough. At times Becky seems to think maybe she should have stuck with it a bit longer. She did like the original.

Whenever I start trying to figure out what is really going on in something that David Lynch does, after about five minutes I ask myself why I am doing this. And then I usually stop.

But I do thank you for this and I will mention it to Becky.

I remember liking the original Twin Peaks. But now that I've finished watching The Return, I have no idea what it was about. Seems like it was just weirdness for its own sake.

[y66]

Spoiler alert:

TP:TR is frequently over-the-top and annoyingly weird but what it's about is not such a big mystery or so I think. The owls are not what they seem. What is? The world is beautiful and malevolent. We love Coop for the same reasons we loved Andy Griffith in Mayberry RFD and Gary Cooper in High Noon but he cannot save Laura any more than the sheriff in No Country For Old Men could stop what's coming in his part of the world. What's even weirder than some of those scenes in the red room is thinking they can, expecting it even.

Laura Dern, Naomi Watts, Kyle MacLachlan and David Lynch as Gordon Cole were so good.

[barmar]

What it really seemed like was a chance to try "experimental theatre" with the budget of a mainstream TV series. The finale had almost 10 minutes of Cooper and Palmer just driving on a dark road, with practically no dialogue, and there was an earlier episode with a similar scene where we just watched a woman getting ready to leave the room for 10 minutes. The actors were clearly just having a ball doing all this weird stuff, stretching their acting chops under the helm of their favorite auteur, especially McLachlan playing 3 widely different versions of Cooper (I'm including Dougie in that). And they had the pleasure of reuniting most of the cast of the original series. And I could enjoy watching it on that level.

McLachlan has also been going down the weird road lately with his recurring role on "Portlandia", and it's hard to imagine Laura Dern not jumping whenever Lynch calls.

[Al_U_Card]

As a sci-fi fan, I really enjoyed "Continuum" Temporal anomalies, well executed, can be a lot of fun.

[Winstonm]

I found Lexx quirky and fun.

[kenberg]

Has anyone else out there seen Top of the Lake, either the first series a few years back or the recent one, China Girl? I found the more recent one both challenging and interesting. Which is not quite the same as saying that I can find no fault with it. I would be what others have made of it.

It's written by Jane Campion although I gather she had others involved. I saw The Piano, a movie by Campion, when it came out in the early 1990s and I really liked that. With China Gil there are some plot devices that I look at and say "Really? Doesn't seem right." But still, both Becky and I happily set aside the time to watch it.

The story line is heavily involved with the abuse of children, or maybe very young adults, 18 or so, in various forms. Making it repulsive. Often that's a deal beaker for me, but not in this case. And there are other repulsive features. And still I watched, which I guess says something about what I though of the overall writing. It's not at all unusual for me to just say "I'm not watching this revolting crap" and turn off a show that many regard highly. Game of Thrones was an example of this. Another way of saying this is that while I really looked forward to seeing the story through, it is not so clear that my stomach would take another round of it should there be a third season.

Anyway, I am interested in what you might have thought.

[PassedOut]

Constance and I watched both and I agree that they were both worth watching, even though the situations and characters aren't easy to identify with. It was interesting to see Elisabeth Moss playing the detective after her role in Mad Men and now in Handmaid's Tale. She doesn't talk much about her Scientology, which is fine with me.

[barmar]

I didn't watch the original, but I watched China Girl, mainly because at this time of the summer there's not much on so I was able to binge this 6-hour season pretty easily.

I thought the acting was good, but I found the coincidences linking all the different plotlines a bit incredulous. Was the first season also like this?