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osprey_archerOne last post about television that I’ve watched this year, and then we’re done! Except maybe then I’ll do a post weighing the pros and cons of various shows that I’ve been thinking about watching. (I'm particularly looking for comedies. Anyone have any opinions about 30 Rock?
Political Animals. Like many people, I watched this for Sebastian Stan - the same reason I watched Kings, which IMO is superior for Sebastian Stan scenes but inferior to Political Animals in pretty much every other way. Political Animals has far more convincing political intrigue, and Sigourney Weaver is a powerhouse as Elaine Barrish.
Having said that, I’m not sure I would recommend it. The show got canceled on a cliffhanger, which is frustrating in itself, and I found many of the characters frustrating and/or boring. Sebastian Stan, for instance, plays Elaine Barrish’s drug-addicted gay son, and while I felt sorry for him in the abstract, mostly I found him irritating for taking away screen time for people who were doing interesting things rather than wallowing in self-pity. Although Barrish’s other son also spends a certain amount of time wallowing in self-pity, so it’s not like Sebastian Stan’s character had a monopoly.
As a matter of fact, I found most of the younger generation characters frustrating, most particularly the reporter Susan Berg. She made her name writing nasty articles about Elaine Barrish, with an argument that ran something like “Elaine Barrish is supposed to be a strong, independent woman! How dare she let her husband cheat on her without leaving him like the dog he is? I don’t blame him for being a dog; that’s just his nature.”
Say what, Susan Berg? I don’t think I was supposed to find this quite as off-putting as I did, and if she had some redeeming qualities I could have seen it as a flaw, but she’s smug, self-satisfied, and at the same time brittle and insecure and covering for it by being nasty to people like the young reporter Georgia, who looked up to her until she realized that Susan Berg was actually cruel and selfish and would never mentor her because Georgia writes a blog and Susan is far, far too snooty to get within ten feet of an icky blog.
The Mindy Project. I watched the first season of this, and enjoyed it, but I don’t feel any particular urge to go on to season 2.
The Vicar of Dibley Christmas Specials. Fantastic. I watched the main series (serieses?) of The Vicar of Dibley a few years ago, but it’s only recently that Netflix added the Christmas specials, so I’ve been watching them in honor of Christmas (I’m saving the last of them for Christmas eve), and they’re hilarious. Every episode makes me laugh so hard. I highly recommend the whole show.
Political Animals. Like many people, I watched this for Sebastian Stan - the same reason I watched Kings, which IMO is superior for Sebastian Stan scenes but inferior to Political Animals in pretty much every other way. Political Animals has far more convincing political intrigue, and Sigourney Weaver is a powerhouse as Elaine Barrish.
Having said that, I’m not sure I would recommend it. The show got canceled on a cliffhanger, which is frustrating in itself, and I found many of the characters frustrating and/or boring. Sebastian Stan, for instance, plays Elaine Barrish’s drug-addicted gay son, and while I felt sorry for him in the abstract, mostly I found him irritating for taking away screen time for people who were doing interesting things rather than wallowing in self-pity. Although Barrish’s other son also spends a certain amount of time wallowing in self-pity, so it’s not like Sebastian Stan’s character had a monopoly.
As a matter of fact, I found most of the younger generation characters frustrating, most particularly the reporter Susan Berg. She made her name writing nasty articles about Elaine Barrish, with an argument that ran something like “Elaine Barrish is supposed to be a strong, independent woman! How dare she let her husband cheat on her without leaving him like the dog he is? I don’t blame him for being a dog; that’s just his nature.”
Say what, Susan Berg? I don’t think I was supposed to find this quite as off-putting as I did, and if she had some redeeming qualities I could have seen it as a flaw, but she’s smug, self-satisfied, and at the same time brittle and insecure and covering for it by being nasty to people like the young reporter Georgia, who looked up to her until she realized that Susan Berg was actually cruel and selfish and would never mentor her because Georgia writes a blog and Susan is far, far too snooty to get within ten feet of an icky blog.
The Mindy Project. I watched the first season of this, and enjoyed it, but I don’t feel any particular urge to go on to season 2.
The Vicar of Dibley Christmas Specials. Fantastic. I watched the main series (serieses?) of The Vicar of Dibley a few years ago, but it’s only recently that Netflix added the Christmas specials, so I’ve been watching them in honor of Christmas (I’m saving the last of them for Christmas eve), and they’re hilarious. Every episode makes me laugh so hard. I highly recommend the whole show.
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Date: 2015-12-28 06:47 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-12-28 03:34 pm (UTC)