Ottis

If you are into tradition and simplicity, it didn't seem like a terrible place to live. Especially considering they had to worry about security.

I agree. This show reminds me a lot of the cancelled Tyrant. Someone who was part of a Middle Eastern family who returns to their roots. The difference is, Tyrant took longer for the subject to get there. On The Old Man, this seems to have happened really fast. Yes, this show started out as a "retired CIA guy has to return" story that was interesting in a small world way, including the woman he "kidnapped" last season. Now it has become some sort of regional conflict in the Middle East, with factions and money and an returning leader. I'm losing sight of the point. I also struggle a bit with Shawkat's acting. Maybe I am so used to her demeanor in Arrested Development that I can't see anything but snark just behind her eyes. She is trying really hard to show emotion as she confronts a life she would have had if she hadn't been kidnapped, but it feels like a lot of effort.

I found it somewhere between boring and unnecessary. At times it felt like torture porn. And it progressed very, very slowly. So much so that about 15 minutes into the ep, when it was clear we were about to see Sofia's Arkham experience, I got up to prepare dinner and watched the show from the kitchen. It was done well, but look, we already know Sofia was unjustly imprisoned in Arkham. And we know, boy do we know due to all the lines of dialogue about it, that the mob family in this show is a boys club where Sofia wasn't given a fair opportunity to be a member due to her gender. There were a few minor unclear points like why Sofia was called the hangman (hey, wait, shouldn't that be "hangwoman?") and what Oz did to betray Sofia, but did we need to know those details? Or was it enough to know those events existed, and move forward? I think the show made a mistake pitting Sofia against Oz so soon. I liked them together, each using their own skills (and Sofia learning from Oz's smooth lying and improvisational skills) and wanted more of that. Now that they are already opposed (again), we will see just more family battling, with Oz trying to outthink his various opponents. The show is called The Penguin. I have enjoyed seeing that character in depth, and understanding what his true "super power" is. And Sofia has been a tremendous add, and getting to know her role in the family and her own overlooked skills. But I didn't need to know about her childhood in detail. That's two eps in a row where momentum came to a halt as we learned backstories of other characters. Hopefully the show picks up momentum again ... maybe with a Batman sighting?

First - thanks for all your thoughtful responses dwmarch. Good stuff. On this point about the accidental OD, IMO that's poor writing. Clearly there was no obvious reason to believe it was accidental, which is why a number of people were speculating what happened. So having it be accidental is meaningless, vs. it being something that came from sadness over leaving Mike, for instance. I guess Iris got sloppy? It's just random. I meant were they working together in season one, when we first met Milo. My recollection was he was a mostly unseen threat for much of the season, giving orders but not being involved personally, and then we met him near the end of season one. But what I remember was that he was always Mike's enemy then, that Milo's goal was to take over, period. SO then to have him return at the end of season three and want to be partners seemed abrupt. It's not like Mike has been so effective in his "job" that Milo would think Mike was now needed. IMO, anyway. Note: I haven't watched season one since it first aired, so I conceded my may not remember it well. Didn't the cops know, too? Mike knew and had told Ian. Later they raided the warehouse. I need to watch the sequence again but I believe at least a few cops knew Bunny had that kind of arsenal before the grenade attack (because I kept thinking, guys, Mike just saw all the military weapons and told you about them, that means grenades). I think there's enough for a season four, but I would like to see even more definition on Mike's "mayor" role and him coming to terms with himself.

This is maybe the funniest post I have read in these forums. How rude of Iris!

Some good, some bad, some musings: - I never found Milo to be particularly threatening, so his return was a letdown (I had hoped for a better, hidden bad guy). But was the surprise here that Mike had been working with Milo all along, and splitting profits? That whole discussion in the boat had me scratching my head, because my recollection is that Milo was a shadowy, mystery figure for a long time in earlier seasons and a threat to Mike and the status quo. So was this new info, that he and Mike were working together? - If so, maybe it played a role in Iris offing herself. She learned even her white knight was dirty and gave up. Or maybe she was just sad at being sent away, but if it is only the latter, that's weak. - Typically voiceovers are considered a tool for the simple, but I enjoyed them (mostly). They made it more clear what Mike was wrestling with, which I think was a big weakness in the first two seasons (where he was a "fixer" and apparently bad at it). I did like that Mike seemed to be owning being a fixer this season, vs. flailing. - Still lots of inconsistencies. For example, Mike says there is nothing good in that town (or that Kyle is the only good thing, for some reason), and then also gets mad that "outsiders" come in and mess it up. If it's a bad place, what difference does it make ... except to your wallet? - Did not miss Mirium, though her name was said 3 million times. - So Bunny's team *did* carry out the attack in the prison, and rookie guard thought about one of the attackers being white as a red herring to focus the investigation on the Russians? Did he tell anyone except the warden? Did the warden tell anyone? I guess that undermines all of the set up that the rookie was principled. - I struggle differentiating between plot events that are a surprise to Mike and plot events that they put in motion. That makes it hard to figure out what's going on. For example, Mike set up an ambush of the Russians by Bunny's men, but the fight actually broke out on a bridge, with many innocents. So either the planning was poor or, what? It was chance? This show is so well done. And getting better. I wonder if it is over?

I'm glad to see that everyone seems as confused as I am about who did what and why. This show confounds me. It has great characters and acting, but the actions of characters are so often unclear or nonsensical. The factions attack each other with little or no proof, and then other times they don't attack because Mike asked them not to... then they get mad at Mike. This season is better than season 2, and Mike seems to be settling into his role as fixer. So there's that.

The host seemed nervous, or like he was struggling with lines. Last season he was spot on and his timing was amazing. This time, not so much. Wonder why. The whole show was like that, really. The timing was a hair off. The dead guy on the slide was a great idea, but was halting. The Mile High Challenge skit was the first bit to build momentum. Enjoyed it overall, just cringed at the awkwardness. Add: The Please Don't Destry sketch went the "weird idea" route vs. the "hey yeah, that's true" path. I like the latter, better.

They need to ditch the nephew. What made the original Frasier so good was that no one was a doofus. Some characters were selfish, or vain, or had big egos, etc. and those traits drove their actions and conflicts. But those conflicts were organic - they were between people doing what they thought best and not always understanding their own motives. That created massive humor and laughs. Having a doofus on a show drags everything down. Nothing he does makes any sense. My immediate reaction to Frasier leaving his nephew in charge of the ham was, why? Why would you do that? You KNOW he will screw it up. And it's not funny watching it happen. It's somewhere between predictable and boring. I cannot stand the nephew character or how they are writing him. The son can be grating but he did what he thought was best for him, so it creates an organic conflict over the imaginary question, "which is more desirable - Harvard professor or firefighter?" Well, it depends on your own perspective. Being stupid? That one is easy to answer.

This was the classic "Yep, that's what they sound like" SNL show, but were they funny? From the cold open to Lucy to Charlie XCX, yep, all the impressions seemed like the people they were impersonating. But did those people say or do anything funny? Nope, not really. A few mild chuckles. And while I like and respect Smart as an actor, her whole energy is kind of negative and down. Like a bitter Edith Bunker. When Smart was on screen, it bummed me out. Overall, the show seemed technically accurate, but not very fun ... with the exception of spraying the water on Moo Deng. And from what I can tell, the actual Hawk Tuah lady seems perfectly nice and I hope she DOES make a lot of money off her bit.

I'm late to this show and have come to dislike it but feel like I have to ride it out. It was such an interesting idea, and yet every ep we spend most of it with who loves who and whether X will act like an adult. Don't care for the mayor or his family or raggedity ann and her dates or Asta and her kid or any of the kids. Move it along. Also, the alien baby is annoying.

We know it will never be a good job or any sort of rational thinking.

Not if she is my SO's family. Because no matter who you married, if you weren't born into that family, you aren't truly a family member. Sigh.

Financially speaking, it actually would have been smarter to refi the house 4 years ago when rates were 2.5% (or lower for 15-year loans). And then keeping his mortgage at that very low rate (not paying it off) and instead using the insurance money to invest in an index fund would have almost guaranteed a better return than paying off the house. Then he could pay it off later when he wanted. For a family that constantly complains about being cursed and making bad decisions, they consistently handle poor news badly. Mark is continuing the tradition. The insults from the guy behind Dan were more intelligent than anything the Connors do.

Well, the only person who achieved something ... wasn't a Connor. Who moved forward? Besides Louise. They didn't get around to protecting their insurance policy, Becky intentionally crossed the line and had her truck stolen and Ben somehow thinks owning a hardware magazine will mean something? The least the writers could have done was to have him want to buy a failing local newspaper, because he believes in freedom of the press, local news and beating the big news corporations. A random trade magazine made no sense. I'm not sure what you were watching ... see above. Ben actually said in this ep that Dan owned 10% of the store.

Correct - and I had no idea who she was before this episode, but whenever there is a skit and one of the main characters is played by someone I don't recognize I assume it is the musical guest. Then she did her first song and that confirmed it.

Ugh. Skipped the Trump opening, not even caricatures of Trump are funny. The version SNL shows is more sane than the real one. Jake sings. Is this going to be a loud, shouty show? It feels like it. Cookies was another annoying, one-joke skit that lasted forever with too much shouting. Yep. Scooby had promise but it fizzled before becoming clever (and interestingly, the audience didn’t seem to know who was playing Daphne). Whatever that Moulan Rouge skit was supposed to be was so dull I FF’d it after the guys came out. Cycler hits the daily double for yet another annoying, shouty sketch (I knew it). The audience seemed confused. Temu was the first sketch that showed some life, with some subtle humor that kept building. It also spoke to what many of us suspect. That said, can we please bury the cliched “wait, what?” line? Only made it to WU so far. More maybe if it warrants it. ADD: Some good lines in WU. The guys broke up too much at the end to understand some of the jokes, which is too bad. Also, am I the only person who didn’t realize Meghan Markel was Black until she said a while back that the royal family discriminated against her? I’ve not had any issues with Southwest.

This show has a bit of Sons of Anarchy, and a lot of Lilyhammer and a tiny bit of The Cosby Show (because Stallone, like Cosby, is always right in the end). In a way it's a shame. They threw in too much (much like SOA did), they didn't need the motorcycle gang. Focusing on the ATF/FBI and the contact between ATF woman and Stallone, plus the "stranger in a strange land" aspect, would have been enough for season one. I don't really understand why so many women are attracted to Stallone's character. Or why the people whose business and livelihoods he moves in on seem to love him so much vs run right to the FBI. Or why Manfredi keeps thinking his 25yo schemes will fly. But I try not to think too much about those things. Not quite done with the season and trying not to read a lot of these posts, yet. Late add: The dialogue on this show is so lazy. Dwight’s big speech in the bar is “get scared and ‘burn up’” or “go through it and come out on the other side stronger.” Both nonsensical. I like Grace a lot, and the bartender. They need a better show. And OMG what a terrible use of “In the Air Tonight.” Kiddies, if you want to see a good one, look up Miami Vice. That was an all-time classic.

During the rap diss skit, I kept wondering what would happen today if they reversed it and had Black people talking cluelessly about something “only White people understand.” The B&W writer film was the longest set up ever for a joke that made no sense, given the portrayed era. may as well had a Wookie show up. Dua Lipa tried but her timing was consistently bad. She’s not a comedienne so no reason to expect differently. It did cause many of her punchlines to thud. Her parents seemed nice, and like the kind of parents still shocked at their daughter’s career and degree of success. Kind of cool. They sent her to London when she was 15? Wow, that takes guts. Penne vodka was spot on. I’ve only made it to WU. Will add more if it is worth it.

Agree. I just found this show, 3 year later, and had to quickly stop reading the first post. Should be spoiler protected, in the age of streaming people find shows years later. That said, I am on ep 6 and the introduction of and the very odd rescue attempt by the mom and grandma is hugely annoying. Why? Also, I love Kelly Macdonald in everything she is in. Also, Abbott is also a great character. ADD: Just finished the series. Ultimately, what a giant mess they all were caught up in. I liked the show a lot, and felt it ended with a whimper. And man, I wish I could meet women like Mrs. Weitzmann! So I assume there was never a second series?

I'm about ready to call bullshit on this entire project, and I've only finished 5 episodes. In the fifth one, Donny goes on about how panicked and nervous he was not hearing anything from Martha ... then gets a call from his mom on a Sunday night and ... doesn't answer. Now, someone with half a brain might imagine that silence from Martha might translate into her going after others. I mean, he just described himself as panicked, right? Not panicked enough to answer the phone. Just like he isn't motivated enough to write a timeline for the police. Or smart enough to change his dad's cell number. I mean, Martha was the one at fault, but Donny had no brain. And then he goes to meet her. Really, at any point she could tell police that HE was harassing HER. he leaves himself open for it. OMG. Even as I type this I am watching ep 6, that is exactly what is happening. What an idiot. So if you are an idiot, why should I care what then happens to you?

I don’t understand. You mean viewers? Even if the HH have already chosen one of the houses, it might also be true that a different house would have been better. What locations do you always skip over? We skip past Chicago, all of California and NY/NJ. Those places are usually super expensive and not very interesting. We like watching shows about places we have never been, even small towns. And yeah, the 30-somethings buying 750k houses that are their forever homes because they have “worked so hard” are a hoot. They have no clue.

Mostly to avoid a lawsuit. I mean, of course he would say the TV character is so different as to be unrecognizable, even if it is exactly like the real person. I know nothing about the real life story. I am 3 eps in and find myself frustrated by Donny, who seems to make poor choices at every turn - not only with Martha, but with the woman he dated and even his ex. If you make enough poor choices, things go wrong. Not sure what the point of BR is. It's not a study in psychology. It's not a story of a powerless victim. It's just a story that I can't imagine going anywhere except jail or death. ADD: Watched a bit more. Donny is supposed to be 30 years younger than Darrien? I thought they were almost the same age!

The moment Hartis said in the kitchen she was having trouble finishing hamburgers I knew it would end at ADHD. This family always has an excuse. They *were* funnier in cowboy hats.

Agree, or at least a closure of that series angle before opening a different one. It's time, IMO. I only watch a show or two every 18-24 months but have tuned in more this season because it felt like we might be near the end. And as I've posted, it is amazing how many plot angles are just repeats of repeats from prior years. Not a lot new to say, and everyone has moved on.