Small Talk: The Quiver

[bijoux]

I didn't connect with The Good Place really. Too cutesy or something and things didn't gel for me. I have no specific things I can point at, it just doesn't feel like my kind of show.

[dtissagirl]

The Good Place: I only liked KBell and Ted Danson. HATED every other character. I tend to enjoy gimmick-y shows, but I need A+ acting to go with it, and I thought the supporting cast was just plain BAD at it. I muted the British accent neighbor lady twice out of secondhand embarrassment.

I sort of guessed the This Is Us twist last week when all the pilot reviews came out -- put together the separate articles had all the clues right there, hee. But I liked it well enough to come back for ep 2. I liked that underneath the melodrama there's some interesting self-deprecating humor going on. I didn't even ugly cry, which I was expecting. And I do love everyone in this cast, and the hilariously alt.folk.post.hipster-y soundtrack was made for me.

Edited September 21, 2016 by dtissagirl

[catrox14]

11 minutes ago, bijoux said:

I didn't connect with The Good Place really. Too cutesy or something and things didn't gel for me. I have no specific things I can point at, it just doesn't feel like my kind of show.

I had the same reaction. I might watch it again if nothing else is on but that didn't really thrill me that much. 

[bijoux]

Here's the thing I'm curious about This Is Us episode 2.

Spoiler

Was the fact that Randall was kept separate from Kate and Kevin in this episode simply to keep up the secrecy or have they drifted apart? Kate had the photo of the three of them and Randall did bring up The Manny during his meltdown. I'm leaning towards, and definitely hoping for, the first option. But there is definitely the possibility of alienation here, especially since Randall was looking for his biological father. Now I've brought myself around to wondering whether their parents or their dad died recently and that's what prompted the search.

[Chaser]

I think it was for twist purposes.

[BkWurm1]

Watched This is Us.  I did ugly cry but I cry easily at tv stuff so that might not mean much.  It is a heartwarming family drama (might as well be a genre) so you know at times they will do the very special story arcs designed to make you miserable and I usually avoid those kind of shows preferring my misery to show up unexpectedly in my comic book hero action romance shows, but the one thing this show did really well is make me like and sympathize with every single character, even the ones I knew were never going to be on the show again. ( I'm currently bummed the doctor won't be a regular.)  I probably will have to watch again next week.

 

Also watched Speechless and the first episode was fantastic.  Highly recommend.  Adore Minnie Driver in it.  But liked the dad and the kid actors as well.  Great writing.  I'm probably overselling it but it was so nice to watch a brand new comedy and actually laugh a bunch of times.  I liked The Good Place but the kind of "like" where you hope that it will eventually reach it's potential even though I wasn't feeling it completely which is usually the best I hope for in a new comedy but Speechless was better than that.  It's by no means perfect but I enjoyed the imperfections as well. 

Edited September 22, 2016 by BkWurm1

[foreverevolving]

Haven't watched Speechless yet. Did watch Designated Survivor, It's not too bad.. since the first promo a while back I knew something about the show was bugging me.. 5 minutes in I realized it was because that once again we are getting White House show where the super white protestant man is the president, as well as the president who was killed. Would have been much better if they had broken off from that aged cliche and joined us all in the 21st century.

The kid who plays the daughter can't act. the son is just a tad bit better. I may stick around if only for my love for all things Natascha McElhone, with all due respect to Kiefer Sutherland, she's a far better actor than he is, imo.

I really need the new season of Madam Secretary to start already.

Edited September 22, 2016 by foreverevolving

[BkWurm1]

17 minutes ago, foreverevolving said:

Haven't watched Speechless yet. Did watch Designated Survivor, It's not too bad.. since the first promo a while back I knew something about the show was bugging me.. 5 minutes in I realized it was because that once again we are getting White House show where the super white protestant man is the president, as well as the president who was killed. Would have been much better if they had broken off from that aged cliche and joined us all in the 21st century.

The kid who plays the daughter can't act. the son is just a tad bit better. I may stick around if only for my love for all things Natascha McElhone, with all due respect to Kiefer Sutherland, she's a far better actor than he is, imo.

I really need the new season of Madam Secretary to start already.

I agree with all you said.  It's fine for what it is, but nothing too terribly special.  I'll probably tune in again next week but I too went looking to see when Madam Secretary is coming back.  It's October 2nd  

[foreverevolving]

5 minutes ago, BkWurm1 said:

I agree with all you said.  It's fine for what it is, but nothing too terribly special.  I'll probably tune in again next week but I too went looking to see when Madam Secretary is coming back.  It's October 2nd  

I am intrigued enough to come back next week if only because

Spoiler

what Maggie Q character said about there not being any chatter from terrorists pre attack, implying it is someone from within. the general is a far too obvious option, so it may not be him. It be interesting to see who was responsible.

[catrox14]

My sis-in-law keeps trying to get me to watch Madame Secretary and I tried like twice and was so bored. Plus I'm not that big of Tea Leoni fan so what other reasons should I watch?

[Mellowyellow]

6 minutes ago, catrox14 said:

My sis-in-law keeps trying to get me to watch Madame Secretary and I tried like twice and was so bored. Plus I'm not that big of Tea Leoni fan so what other reasons should I watch?

Omg I loooooooove it!!!!! LOVE IT!!!!!!!!! But then again I adore Tea Leoni and really like Tim Daly and the guy who plays POTUS.

The supporting cast are really fun and I love the character Bess! Bess is badass, awesome, intelligent and adorable. I want to be Bess!!!!! I like the plot too. Find it really exciting without being nonsensical.

Haha you're dealing with a really biased crazy fan here.  

[catrox14]

3 minutes ago, Mellowyellow said:

Omg I loooooooove it!!!!! LOVE IT!!!!!!!!! But then again I adore Tea Leoni and really like Tim Daly and the guy who plays POTUS.

The supporting cast are really fun and I love the character Bess! Bess is badass, awesome, intelligent and adorable. I want to be Bess!!!!! I like the plot too. Find it really exciting without being nonsensical.

Haha you're dealing with a really biased crazy fan here.  

Sis-in=law? Is that you? LOL .  I do like Tim Daly.  Maybe I'll try it again.  Thanks!

[BkWurm1]

24 minutes ago, catrox14 said:

My sis-in-law keeps trying to get me to watch Madame Secretary and I tried like twice and was so bored. Plus I'm not that big of Tea Leoni fan so what other reasons should I watch?

If Tea Leoni bugs you maybe still give it a chance cause I don't think she's really as quirky as in some of her rolls but it is very much her show even if others do get a chance to shine. 

Personally, I've really enjoyed the relationship she has with her husband on the show.  It's about the first time I've seen them get right the dynamic with a very powerful woman who is also a wife and mother.  He's never insecure about her being fourth in line for the president or on speaking terms with most leaders of the free.  He's great in what he does and there's no pissing contest or him worried about his masculinity.  So that right there was great.

I also like the family dynamic and they've managed to make high stakes statesmanship interesting.  It's not a show that grabbed me right off, it's not flashy but it just kept me coming back and got me invested in the characters.  The writing again isn't flashy but it's not dumbed down and the characters feel genuine.  It's also a generally hopeful show. 

Oh and once Madeleine Albright guest starred.  :D

Edited September 22, 2016 by BkWurm1

[Velocity23]

Ok i seriously have to ask what kind of trauma does Berlanti have since he always recycles the same storyline ever since Everwood.

Spoiler

Happened on Blindspot also with the ex of Kurt being pregnant.

[bijoux]

There are Gilmore Grils reruns on TV where I am and I catch them sometimes. I cannot in good conscience claim to ever have been a Dean fangirl, but I don't remember him being this annoying either. Every time I catch him, he's bitching about something. It's Tristan, or Rory not saying she loves him at his pace, or her working on a house, or I don't even know. God Good, son. Take a chill pill.

Of course, Jess just showed up. I liked him originally, but now I'm laughing at the WB version of a bad boy. And there was Luke pushing him off the bridge. That one holds up to the test of time.

[Chaser]

Dean doesn't hold up at all. I remember not being a fan by the end of his run but I didn't remember him being that problematic. Watching the way he would talk to his wife alone made me go yikes. 

I would toss a vote in for Madame Secretary. I'm not one for political dramas but that one I enjoyed. It takes a few episodes but it's worth it.

I like The Good Place but I didn't think it was as good as early reviews made it. Speechless was better. I'm not a comedy watcher and I only watched it for Minnie Driver. I was glad I did. 

[bijoux]

I thought I was't that into Dean when I was younger because he wasn't really exciting. Later I thought it was cute that the show had Rory's first boyfriend be a nice guy. Before all the cheating happened, you know. But watching it now, early Dean is very much  Nice Guy™. I guess my instincts were better than I thought.

[Angel12d]

I've been rewatching Gilmore Girls in preparation of it coming back in November and I think I've reached the point where I can't remember why I originally enjoyed the show? IDK, it's so weird. No one really bothered me all that much when I was younger but now I can't stand pretty much any of them and Rory is coming across like a total brat to me. What happened?! Haha. (Same thing happened with Friends though. I liked all of them when it actually aired but now I think Ross is garbage and Rachel deserved better.)

I never really cared about any of Rory's boyfriends tbh because I was more about Luke/Lorelai but Dean is especially bland Mr Nice Guy. All of them are meh, IMO, so I really don't care who she ends up with. Of course that might change when the new stuff airs! Haha.

Edited September 22, 2016 by Angel12d

[bijoux]

This was never my show to be honest. I watched it when it was on, but I didn't go out of my way to follow it. The show's central point, Lorelai and Rory's relationship lost its charm for me pretty soon. At this early point, I like Emily a whole lot less then I did later on. She could be a prime bitch to be honest. Later she mellowed and there was more of her point of view. But here she comes across as Lorelai's wicked stepmother at times. 

Dean being bland was my original impression. Now I'm in the camp of him being entitled, whiney and, frankly, manipulative. I did like Jess originally, we'll see this time around. I never warmed up to Logan though, because from what I saw of his run, Rory was the worst during it. There wasn't anyone else significant, was there?

[Sakura12]

I'm one that could never get into Gilmore Girls, I think watched the first season and caught a few eps the rest of the season. Strangely enough I am looking forward to their return on Netflix. 

It's probably the same with Full House, that show is terrible during rewatches, but I ended up enjoying Fuller House for what it was. Or it's just nice to know what happened to characters on tv shows after the show ended. 

As for the new shows, I expected to like The Good Place more, it was just okay. I'll give it another chance since I watched most of the sneak peaks and knew about most of the first 2 episodes ahead of time. I will say most of the other characters besides Kristen Bell and Ted Danson are really annoying. 

[NumberCruncher]

Team Logan. /unpopular opinion

I hated both Dean and Jess.

[foreverevolving]

1 hour ago, NumberCruncher said:

Team Logan. /unpopular opinion

I hated both Dean and Jess.

Oy team Logan too, I never liked Dean too much, he was just... there. and Jess was smart but always came across as undependable. Logan, once he finally got his act together, felt like a good partner.

Though looking back I am happy Rory didn't marry him, it felt way too soon for her to marry anyone.

Edited September 22, 2016 by foreverevolving

[catrox14]

I think even Jared Padalecki didn't like Dean for Rory. During the reunion last summer he said he was Team Jess probably because he's friends with Milo but still LOL.

[looptab]

2 hours ago, Angel12d said:

I've been rewatching Gilmore Girls in preparation of it coming back in November and I think I've reached the point where I can't remember why I originally enjoyed the show? IDK, it's so weird. No one really bothered me all that much when I was younger but now I can't stand pretty much any of them and Rory is coming across like a total brat to me. What happened?! Haha. 

Same. I can't stand Rory now, and Lorelai at times. Thank God for Luke.

But if Rory doesn't end up with Jess, they better hide.

[Chaser]

Unpopular opinion: I still love the show and the characters. The only time I had issues with the characters was in the later seasons. Pre-Yale was perfect. 

[Angel12d]

5 minutes ago, looptab said:

Same. I can't stand Rory now, and Lorelai at times. Thank God for Luke.

But if Rory doesn't end up with Jess, they better hide.

Yeah. I'm mostly okay with Lorelai but Rory is awful. I never realized how selfish she was. But even Luke bugs me sometimes. It's amazing how differently I view things now that I'm older. 

[looptab]

Luke is pretty much perfect to me until the April thing, hehe. Rory gets really really on my last nerve by the time she starts college - I can tolerate her in earlier seasons. The Dean debacle was..ugh.

[bijoux]

I'd say Rory was fine in the first season. That's the one that ended with Lorelai cancelling her wedding to Max, right? It just ended in reruns and I have no complaints overall.

[kismet]

Tuned into Notorious and it was just a hot mess.... I really enjoy the majority of the actors on the show, I hope the writing improves. Because right now, it's UGH. No amount of liking an actor can make a show watchable unless it gets better or embraces its cheesiness. 

Also, I don't know how it does it but HTGAWM once again hooked me the last minutes with another amazing cliffhanger/parting moment. Seriously, I don't know how it does it. I can think of maybe one episode in its entire run that has had a crappy or flat ending. Other than that its always tantalizing & intriguing.

No offense to Arrow, but HTGAWM set up the perfect we killed a major cast member and we won't tell you who it is for awhile. I'm actually invested in wanting to know & why. Unlike last Arrow season, where it was pretty obvious & speculating was only fun because of here. I wasn't actually invested in the character's death or mystery behind it. I guess, OQ's stoic tear just didn't inspire as much as Annaliese's emotional breakdown. They might as well revealed the grave name in the premiere and that would have been more intriguing. Also HTGAWM writes better flashbacks.

Edited September 23, 2016 by kismet

[looptab]

Was it obvious? I remember us discussing it until the very wednesday it aired. 

[kismet]

It was obvious to me that it was a Lance. And LL made the most sense from a shocker perspective. But small talk is not the place to discuss Arrow. 

I'm just saying in my perspective, HTGAWM is a far superior show in terms of twists, gamechangers and cliffhangers. And it impresses me how consistently good they are in the last 5-10 min of every episode.

[apinknightmare]

HTGAWM is better with the game-changers and plot twists because those are what moves the show almost every week-and IMO some of the twists are fairly ridiculous. It's designed to be a shocker from episode to episode and Arrow really isn't. It also has half the episodes to fill, so I'm not really sure it's fair to compare the two. 

[kismet]

Well maybe someone should give MG and the Arrow writers that memo because game changing, epic twists is what they kept on raving about for the last 4+ seasons.

Either way, in my perspective its fair to compare any 1 hour serial drama made for network television that uses similar techniques and strategies to promote themselves. It's not fair to compare different categories like a procedural v. a serial drama. And it's not fair to compare cable to network, but Arrow & HTGAWM are the same category of show, a network serial 1hr show. I don't look at the episode count because the writers now how many episodes they write for. They can properly space and prepare their story arcs. Shorter or longer each have their pros/cons.

And ultimately, you don't have to agree, since its my opinion. HGTAWM is superior in game changing twists. Arrow has its strengths but game changing twists or season long mysteries (like who died or who killed Sara) is not one of them.

[apinknightmare]

Quote

I don't look at the episode count because the writers now how many episodes they write for. They can properly space and prepare their story arcs. Shorter or longer each have their pros/cons.

My point was more that "game-changing twists" like HTGAWM delivers are more palatable when they're done 11 times per season compared to 22. 

And I'm aware that this is your opinion. Just chiming in on the discussion which as far as I know is allowed here. 

[BkWurm1]

On ‎9‎/‎22‎/‎2016 at 0:28 PM, Chaser said:

Unpopular opinion: I still love the show and the characters. The only time I had issues with the characters was in the later seasons. Pre-Yale was perfect. 

I adored Gilmore Girls, though the final season which always felt just a little off and as few episodes at the end of season six when Lorelai frustrated the hell out of me left me with a sour feeling for a long time that for a long time made rewatching any episode hard.  I've still never opened my season 7 DVD's. 

Season 7 was not great.  Not only for the storylines but also the pacing felt off and the writing too often felt like someone trying to hard.  And they recycled jokes.  And not even funny ones.  It ended OKish, I mean it could have ended far worse but still way too much time spent on stuff I hated.  I did not like Lorelai's choices in season six going into seven AT ALL.  Yes, Luke was being myopic with April but I still can't get over how Luke was supposed to indefinitely put the wedding on hold until Lorelai and Rory worked out their issues (which was like May thru Oct or Nov - at least five months)  but when Luke asked for time, Lorelai decides after less than three months that putting off the wedding meant Luke didn't want to marry her and it was over.  So not only does she force a break up with an ultimatum, she totally makes it stick by immediately self sabotaging with a night of "drinking" with that rat bastard Chris who was more than happy to take advantage.  Sorry, still bitter. 

On ‎9‎/‎22‎/‎2016 at 0:23 PM, looptab said:

Same. I can't stand Rory now, and Lorelai at times. Thank God for Luke.

But if Rory doesn't end up with Jess, they better hide.

  Never hated Lorelai but OMG that end of season six storyline was frustrating.  As frustrating (maybe more) as Thea saying Oliver had to lie to Felicity about William to protect him. 

Rory reached "what the hell is wrong with you!" levels with the Dean thing and I really did not like her when she quit Yale and sweet talked her Grandparents behind her mom's back.  Logan didn't seem that great of an influence which is probably why I never completely warmed up to him either.  Always seemed insincere even when he was.  I quite liked Cary on Good Wife but in the rerun I just caught from season seven where Logan is being perfectly wonderful and considerate, I still want to smack the smug smile off his face.    

Yeah, I'm on Team Jess but after he left town it was always Team in the future once he grew up and got his shit together Jess.  And ten years later should have given him that time, lol.  Best thing about the Rory becoming a Yale drop out party girl was running into Jess and him calling her on it. 

I know a lot of people really liked Logan though at the end.  He probably was at his best in the final season but that's the season that Amy Sherman Pallidino is ignoring as best she can, lol.  So that gives me a bit of hope, still I was never as invested in Rory's love life as I was with Luke and Lorelai, so as long as they DO NOT go with Dean, I won't care too much.  Points if Dean shows up and talks about the Impala he's restoring.   

[BkWurm1]

Wow, McGyver is not good.  Friday night makes sense.  The voice over explaining step by step even the obvious was worse than what Arrow had. 

[thegirlsleuth]

I never really got into Gilmore Girls because I feel like all the characters sounded alike.  I had the same problem with West Wing.  When I see quotes from the shows I love the lines, but the execution bugged me.

I like Kristen Bell in everything, and so liked The Good Place.  I feel like the cast didn't quite gel, but I am willing to watch some more episodes to see if I like it.  I really liked Pitch--I though the actress really sold the physicality, and did a nice job aging up and down. I liked Ali Lartner, and was shocked to discover when I went to go look up the dirty/sexy catcher that it was Mark Paul Gosselaar.  With all the industry jokes and big show moments it reminded me of Empire, although I don't know if it will be quite that soapy.

[Delphi]

9 hours ago, BkWurm1 said:

Wow, McGyver is not good.  Friday night makes sense.  The voice over explaining step by step even the obvious was worse than what Arrow had. 

I haven't really enjoyed a voice over since Veronica Mars. Though, Terminator did a pretty good job with Sarah'so.  They usually just come off so bland.   You need a really good actor to be able to deliver that kind of info dump. 

[dtissagirl]

I love the Narrator on Jane the Virgin -- he's my favorite character on the show -- but he's treated as a full-on character by the text, which is what makes him so great.

[foreverevolving]

Goddamn you "Pitch" and your unexpected twist at the end!

I did NOT see that one coming! I need tissues.

That was really as good as the promos made it to be. I can't wait for the next episode.

I love the manager she's such a kick ass (and she looks familiar), loved the Clooney joke :-), and I think I adore the other player wife.

[statsgirl]

MacGyver was so bad, I can't wait till the Great British Baking Show comes back to that time slot .  (And I'm no means a fan of reality shows.)  It's better than Scorpion but both shows are written about geniuses by average IQ writers and aimed so that the audience who found Grade 4 science challenging can understand them

I liked Gilmour Girls in the early seasons but then it became about the "cute" psychological tics of Lorelei and Rory until I couldn't stand either of them.  I did love the grandparents though.

[Jediknight]

8 hours ago, foreverevolving said:

Goddamn you "Pitch" and your unexpected twist at the end!

I did NOT see that one coming! I need tissues.

That was really as good as the promos made it to be. I can't wait for the next episode.

I love the manager she's such a kick ass (and she looks familiar), loved the Clooney joke :-), and I think I adore the other player wife.

You mean the agent?  That was Ali Larter.

And I agree, the pilot was good, I'm looking forward to the rest of the season.

[catrox14]

Speaking of baseball :(

R.I.P. Jose Fernandez. 

I am shocked, gutted. Awful news. I'm not even a Marlins fan but that kid was a phenom and his whole life story of coming to America, saving his drowning mother and his grandmother finally being about to see him pitch. What a wonderful young man. I am so sad right now. :(

[quarks]

35 minutes ago, catrox14 said:

Speaking of baseball :(

R.I.P. Jose Fernandez. 

I am shocked, gutted. Awful news. I'm not even a Marlins fan but that kid was a phenom and his whole life story of coming to America, saving his drowning mother and his grandmother finally being about to see him pitch. What a wonderful young man. I am so sad right now. :(

That gif that's going around Twitter of him cracking up on the mound is both wonderful and heartbreaking.

[catrox14]

18 minutes ago, quarks said:

That gif that's going around Twitter of him cracking up on the mound is both wonderful and heartbreaking.

Do you mean this one? If not, enjoy this. I'm a Rockies fan so this gif makes me happy and sad:

[quarks]

Yep. I like the whole "Yes, I did," followed by laughing.

[bijoux]

14 hours ago, quarks said:

Yep. I like the whole "Yes, I did," followed by laughing.

The batter asking him if he caught it, completely shocked, is terrific as well.

As I'm still sticking with Gilmore Girls reruns, I've realized there's something I really appreciate - the show taking time with developments. I'm currently on the episode in which Lorelai and Sookie approach Fran to buy the Dragonfly (208). I remember the place being opened in the season 4 finale, but it first came onto Lorelai and Sookie's radar in season 1, they start making business plans in season 2 and buy it sometime in season 3, I'd imagine. It really makes it feel earned.

[BkWurm1]

To all those wary of the second season of Poldark, I can at least recommend watching the first two hours of it.  Absolutely nothing icky in it with Ross or Elizabeth or Demelza.  It's all about his trial.   Actually you could watch it and consider it a conclusion of the whole series if you are willing to ignore a few loose ends.  I might just do that.  As they say, the key to a happy ending is to know when to stop telling the story.  Or in this case, watching it.  ;)

[SmallScreenDiva]

Finally watched "This Is Us." Hadn't read anything about the show other than it's "buzzy." Only thing I knew was that there was a twist, from posts of people here. I guess watching out for that twist helped me guess it fairly early. I like most of the cast so I'm curious enough to return next week. But boy did it remind me how much Mandy Moore annoys me. She's actually pretty good in it, but it's just ... her. Total irrational dislike.

[lexicon]

13 hours ago, SmallScreenDiva said:

Finally watched "This Is Us." Hadn't read anything about the show other than it's "buzzy." Only thing I knew was that there was a twist, from posts of people here. I guess watching out for that twist helped me guess it fairly early. I like most of the cast so I'm curious enough to return next week. But boy did it remind me how much Mandy Moore annoys me. She's actually pretty good in it, but it's just ... her. Total irrational dislike.

I had pretty much the same experience watching "This is Us" since everybody and their mother who had a screener kept harping on there being a twist so I spent most of my watch trying and then succeeding in figuring it out. It would've played much differently had I been unaware that there was a twist ending. 

As for Mandy Moore, I loathed her when her first single came out and for years I associated her with that "Candy" video and rolled my eyes when I saw that she was going to trying acting but then I saw her in a few things, like A walk to remember and now I'm a fan.