TV Episodes You Have Just Watched

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I watched What Would You Do? again tonight. They were repeating some of the same scenarios they did in the show's first season, and they even had the same actors, to see if things are any different now than they were in 2008. One thing that was really different was when they had a guy refusing to serve two Hispanic people speaking only in Spanish and accusing them of being illegal immigrants. This time around a lot more people stood up for the two guys and told the Mexiphobic guy off.

Too bad what a few decent people did won't really change the way their country's going...

Gotham.
The Orville.

Bewitched

The new Star Trek series. Meh, it felt more like a movie than a television series, and I'm afraid they're going to lean on their FX budget and not strong story telling and character development. Only time will tell, but it certainly didn't feel like a traditional Star Trek TV series.

Star Trek: Discovery

Watched it last night. I enjoyed it. Bryan Fuller is one of the creators and he wrote the episode. He got his start writing for Deep Space Nine and then Voyager, and went on to create and write Wonderfalls, Dead Like Me, Heroes, Pushing Daisies, Hanibal The effects are flashy, the make up is good, although the opening scene pulls back from an extreme close up and my first thought was ceremonial mask, but it wasn't. It was just, I hate to say, bad makeup. I just told myself to just get over it. The program is not about this one set of makeup.

I am interest in Lt. Saru. My first impression was when faced with trouble, is he more likely to run and hide? Later in the episode it is explained that where he is from the relationship between species is binary, the diner or the meal. His species was the meal, and as a result they have developed a heighten sense of danger. What I liked about his explanation was how they presented a situation early on and in a subtle way brought attention to it, and one simply makes an observation, perhaps wondering how did this guy become an Lieutenant in Star Fleet if his first inclination is to run away? Then later, in a discussion later on when he is advising the topic comes up to explain something that is going on now, but it also explains that first impression. He fight or flight response is not an issue of character, it is genetic. I liked the explanation because it seemed very organic the way it presented itself. And in a nice way tells us something about first impressions in general. I'm a Bryan Fuller fan, so it might be that his style of writing is very agreeable to me, but may not be to others. Much like I can hear a piece of music, and instantly just like, and then find out that it was composed by Philip Glass or Hans Zimmer. I need to watch the episode again a few times. That's where I tend to notice the subtlies, because I'm easily distracted and miss things, or don't process what happened very well.

I also realized this morning that Lt. Saru is played by Doug Jones. He has played countless creatures, but the one where I first became aware of him was in Pan's Labyrinth, when he played the pale creepy guy with eyeballs in his hands, and the satyr. They had a extra about him on the DVD.

Fear The Walking Dead.

I adored the first ep of Star Trek Discovery. Adored, adored, adored. Is it perfect? No, but Star Trek never was, and anyone pretending otherwise needs to go check themselves. Each series took a while to find its footing, each series had its filler and dud episodes. This first ep shows much promise presenting an engaging (ha ha!) story, cool characters that seem rather well rounded right off the bat and an intriguing new take on the Klingons. If the following episodes keep up this quality, I think there might be hope for Star Trek yet.

Star Trek Discovery
episode 2

I liked it it. The plot presented problems that seemed insurmountable, a battle with the Klingons. A disabled ship with portions destroyed, only a containment field preventing the crew from being sucked in the vacuum of space. Like Kirk, they used their wits to escape, but not without causalities. I think the show is going to be interesting.

I think that is enough teasers without spoiling things.

I thought the Klingon makeup looked better. It is a bit different, from what we saw in Worf, but it was ok. Does anyone speak Klingon? I think they teach it in some universities. There is a lot of Klingon spoken. They have subtitles, but like watching a Japanese movie with subtitles, it must be a different experience if you can understand the language. I do not.

The series was actually created by Alex Kurtzman and co-created by Bryan Fuller.

The Big Bang Theory from last night.

"The Good Doctor"
"The Vietnam War"

American Horror Story: Cult.

Star Trek Discovery (eps. 3)

I like where this show is going.


The Good Doctor (eps. 2)

Doctor Shaun Murphy is treated like an imbecile by the surgeon he works under and is told to do scut work. After ordering tests, he is instructed to get a nurse's permission for everything he does. This nearly kills a patient. In the end, Shaun saves lives of patients that others have misdiagnosed and someone takes credit for an out of the box idea Shaun thought of. I think he gains an ally. He also has a moment where he clearly lets the audience know that he knows he is different but it does not mean he is wrong. This was a really nice touch because he usually responds to people in silence, like an android. Ooo! Sound familiar? So in this one scene he manages to convey to characters in the program that he is aware, and at the same time convey that to the audience. He gets the other characters and the audience to connect with him. Masterful writing (in my opinion). I think there are less subtle ways the show helps the audience connect, but they are more traditional. There is a fair amount of backstory reveled that I think helps a neurotypical build sympathy for him, but the scene I'm thinking of commands respect.

There, I've managed to give a interpretation without the actual context of what I'm talking about. Does that work? Attempting to talk about something without giving away spoilers.

I like the show so far because it doesn't feel forced to me. Although a script is by its very existence something "forced." So is it how the story is told and the acting? Here is an example of something that feels forced and predictable. Wonder Woman. They are in the trenches and the battle field is referred to as no MANs land. The first time it passes. All's good even though I'm already rolling my eyes. When the term is repeated, then it becomes predictable and my soul moans a little. The play on gender words has been used before, and with more subtly. I think it was in Lord of the Rings. Still, it was an awesome movie and an awesome scene. sorry. I know i'm on a tangent.