Binge Watching Series Recommendations

[j44ke]

Shogun is so far - good. The Japanese actors are the show though.

[Bob Ross]

We just wrapped up all 6 seasons of This Is Us and I don't think I've ever enjoyed a television series more. Highly recommended if you like subtle nuanced performances and realistic, not-dumbed-down drama...but consider yourself forewarned if you prefer high-octane action (it is a very quiet, slow-moving series) or have trouble following multiple simultaneous timelines (lots of flashback and flashforward).

[kdawg]

Yeah, I’ve been enjoying Shogun.

We’ve been away for the weekend with a poor cellular signal so watched all of 3 Body Problem. It’s the first thing in a while where I’ve actually binged something. It was very good - although the first 8 episodes are apparently just the first of many books and now we have to wait.

[vertical_doug]

Yeah, I’ve been enjoying Shogun.

We’ve been away for the weekend with a poor cellular signal so watched all of 3 Body Problem. It’s the first thing in a while where I’ve actually binged something. It was very good - although the first 8 episodes are apparently just the first of many books and now we have to wait.

The original Chinese series has 30 episodes @ 50 minutes each

[j44ke]

Yeah, I’ve been enjoying Shogun.

We’ve been away for the weekend with a poor cellular signal so watched all of 3 Body Problem. It’s the first thing in a while where I’ve actually binged something. It was very good - although the first 8 episodes are apparently just the first of many books and now we have to wait.

The original Chinese series has 30 episodes @ 50 minutes each

I jumped into the middle of 3 Body this last week as friends we were visiting in Prague where immersed in it, so we watched a couple episodes. And while they thought it was amazing, I was bothered by it. Everyone seemed to be having a nervous breakdown and there was lots of weeping. Just seemed strangely different from what sort of drama our friends would have typically been drawn into. And then I read this article which explained some of the shifts from the original to the Netflix version, and after asking our friends about it, they rated the earlier episodes (that I did not see) far higher than the later episodes of the series (which I did see.) So the article suggests origins for that split.

[rec head]

I started the 3BP from the start and the episodes so far are hit or miss. I gave it a few episodes to develop then finally there was a good one. Then the next was back to so-so. I don't know what episode I'm on and have to admit I'll probably finish it but I can't recommend it.

We are almost done with season 3 of Fargo. We jumped around and this is the last season for us. It is bittersweet.

[72gmc]

Recently watched The Gentlemen and enjoyed it. Now watching Derry Girls (after the rest of the world already has). Not sure 3BP is going to be my wife's cup of tea.

[72gmc]

A few episodes of Mr. Bates vs The Post Office has driven me down the rabbit hole a bit. Good show. I hope it concludes with a scene in which someone in jail on marijuana charges is released early, and Paula Vennels is put into that open cell.

[d.bancroft]

About to start season 3 of Slow Horses on Apple. Loved the first 2, and Gary Oldman and Kristen Scott Thomas are great. Also about to start watching Fallout on Amazon on the advice of my son.

[j44ke]

Shogun episode 9 was a real tour de force from Anna Sawai who plays Mariko.

[bironi]

Shogun episode 9 was a real tour de force from Anna Sawai who plays Mariko.

I have slogged through this version of Shogun without much satisfaction.
The Anjin is a true one note wonder.
Most of the other characters are also cutouts.
It's been many years since reading the novel, but perhaps I would have a similar opinion if I read it today.

I'm not yet to episode 9, but will give it a go.
By

[j44ke]

I have slogged through this version of Shogun without much satisfaction.
The Anjin is a true one note wonder.
Most of the other characters are also cutouts.
It's been many years since reading the novel, but perhaps I would have a similar opinion if I read it today.

I'm not yet to episode 9, but will give it a go.
By

Even when I read Clavell's book back in 7th grade, I thought it was a typical British Empire male fantasy, albeit one fastidiously researched by an author with a very interesting history himself. And a page turner of a book. So I actually like that this version of the stories has made Anjin simply a piece on Toranaga's chess board and elevated Mariko to her position as the most interesting character in the book.

And I think the acting by the Japanese leads has been very good. They are invoking very traditional motifs from an era where restraint was of the utmost, so the subtle nod, hand movement, proximity, etc. was very important. Hiroyuki Sanada who plays Toranaga is especially good as he portrays Toranaga's decay in the face of total defeat in episodes 8 and 9. And Tadanobu Asano is also good as Yabushige, the lord who makes his living from split allegiances.

I thought the original version with Richard Chamberlain was unwatchable.

But admittedly, these series are limited in a lot of ways that books are not, especially when it comes to covering expanses of time. The book was 1152pp in its original printing. 10 episodes is just not enough time to make anything as historically detailed as the birth of the Tokugawa Shogunate that lasted 300 years on a highly ritualized multi-level social structure in which honor and shame were the primary animus for a tremendous production of art and war.

So yeah, definitely flatter than actual history. But as a binge object in 10 easy parts, I think it has a good beat and you can dance to it Mr. Clark.