[gwnn]

I watched all the episodes of both series and I have to say that I prefer Elementary, although I will not deny that Sherlock is also a great show. I like that Watson can stand up for herself. In both the original texts and in Sherlock, Watson is little more than an incredulous pushover ("My dear Holmes!" "How in the world..?" "Surely you are not serious!"). Not Lucy Liu's. She is clearly inferior to Holmes but not from a different galaxy. What I also like in the setup of Elementary is how Holmes' misogyny (which is a common enough accusation about the original texts and one that is difficult to deny) is almost excluded from the get-go, since he clearly respects Watson. I know that "I'm not a racist because I kinda had this black friend once" is kind of a stupid excuse often heard, but how about "I'm not a misogynist because my only friend I ever had was a woman"? Also the police in Elementary are not the mind numbingly stupid kind, which is a nice touch.

[Winstonm]

I cannot stop watching Doc Martin and I don't know why.

[kenberg]

I watched the first of the series on The Roosevelts last night. So far so good. An amusing, perhaps even seriously intended, comment on TR: "Today he would just be given Ritalin and grow up to be a salesman."

[GreenMan]

 kenberg, on 2014-September-15, 07:54, said:

I watched the first of the series on The Roosevelts last night. So far so good. An amusing, perhaps even seriously intended, comment on TR: "Today he would just be given Ritalin and grow up to be a salesman."

Haven't seen it, but I'm told the Guardian called it Burns' masterpiece, at least equal to The Civil War.

[barmar]

I also haven't watched it, but several other reviews I've read and heard have said the same thing, Burns' best work.

I'm embarassed to say that I'm not sure I've watched any of his documentaries, even though they're generally considered some of the best of the genre, and consistently win awards. I expect I would find them interesting, I just don't have enough time in my viewing schedule.

[kenberg]

Regarding the time commitment (14 hours or is it 16, something like that). My first thought was "That's a lot of Roosevelt". I still may not watch it all, but I certainly liked the first one. They have an accompanying study guide for grades 7-12. It looks good, with a lot of thoughtful questions addressing one of the themes: How flexibly should we view the Constitution? I thought of suggesting it to the 15 year old grandson, but then I got a grip on reality. He is already taking AP this and AP that, and doing this stuff and that stuff, when would he have time? He wouldn't. Maybe this is just for us retirees! Thursday I have to fit in sunrise kayaking, an afternoon bridge game, and watching the Roosevelts all in one day. It's a tough schedule, but I am ready!

Seriously I think it is looking good, but it really is a lot of Roosevelt.

[blackshoe]

 kenberg, on 2014-September-15, 17:48, said:

How flexibly should we view the Constitution?

Good question. I think most Presidents would answer, if they were being truthful, 'very flexibly". Most citizens, on the other hand…

[mike777]

Just to be clear most americans would be against some items in the constitution. Many americans would be against some of the bill of rights.

Clearly our presidents have been against parts of the constitution.

People forget all of the above.

It is human nature to be inconsistent.

"Inconsistency is everywhere. Criticizing others because they are "inconsistent" is like criticizing others because they breath, thus wasting oxygen. The world is inconsistent; everyone's choices are inconsistent, every day. That's not a valid criticism of anyone. Moral inconsistency is the universal condition of the human race, and it has to be that way, because otherwise one would have to resolve EVERY moral issue in order to resolve ANY moral issue"

[chasetb]

I'll throw out one there - Blossom. It ran from 1990-95 (I was in the 2nd grade in '95) and starred Mayim Bialik in a family show that addressed lots of life issues (oddly, most of which I have yet to experience). For not taking formal acting classes and such, you can see her work improve from season to season, she's a natural. And beautiful as a teenager.

They are currently showing it on the Hub network.

[y66]

My wife and I are enjoying Deadwood (an HBO series, not a movie). We missed it when it came out 10+ year ago because we're too cheap to pay for HBO bundled with other programming. Some forum mates have objected to the gratuitous profanity which was particularly annoying in the first 6 episodes or so. I got hooked by the scenes with Wild Bill Hickok and the imaginative writing that went into them. I really think this should be required viewing for 3rd and 4th year high school students. Maybe this will happen.

[kenberg]

 y66, on 2015-July-29, 07:23, said:

My wife and I are enjoying Deadwood (an HBO series, not a movie). We missed it when it came out 10+ year ago because we're too cheap to pay for HBO bundled with other programming. Some forum mates have objected to the gratuitous profanity which was particularly annoying in the first 6 episodes or so. I got hooked by the scenes with Wild Bill Hickok and the imaginative writing that went into them. I really think this should be required viewing for 3rd and 4th year high school students. Maybe this will happen.

Probably I was one of those forum mates. From what I have heard, I may well have misjudged the show. Often my likes and dislikes turn on small things. I felt I was being insulted. Something like 'We know what you morons out there really want. Violence, naked women, and a lot of vulgarity. Here it is." Actually I don't recall any naked women, maybe that would have helped.

I also didn't get beyond the first episode or two of Game of Thrones. They threw some kid out a window or off a cliff or something and I decided to skip this. I also have tried watching The Wild Bunch several times. I just can't. On the other hand, I really liked Taxi Driver and The Unforgiven. Maybe I could be a case study for some psychologist. A while back we were visiting friends and they wanted us all to watch Total Recall. At some point I needed to use the bathroom and I told them not to bother to pause it, just let me know who else was dead when I got back. I was disappointed to find they had paused it. They didn't want me to miss anything.

I can barely explain and not at all defend my choices. I didn't watch The Wire either. It is true that sometimes I change my mind. Quite possibly I would have if I gave Deadwood a chance

PS Becky is still with Game of Thrones but she agreed with me on Deadwood.

[Mbodell]

 kenberg, on 2015-July-29, 10:42, said:

I can barely explain and not at all defend my choices. I didn't watch The Wire either.

That certainly isn't defensible. All the more for someone from Maryland.

[kenberg]

 Mbodell, on 2015-July-30, 01:19, said:

That certainly isn't defensible. All the more for someone from Maryland.

So I have heard. Both with The Wire and with Game of Thrones, I have become convinced the shows were well done. I will go to my grave thinking that Total Recall was just stupid, but enough people have told me that Wire and Thrones are good that I expect that they probably are. As to Deadwood, the jury is still out. Maybe it's good, but to find that out would have taken more patience than I was up for.

[gwnn]

Anyone else watch The Americans? It's a pretty awesome show, presumably even more so for people who were alive in the 80's for more than a few years. It constantly challenges my perception of who I'm rooting for and somehow makes me care for various main characters more than Breaking Bad (a show I enjoyed but not as much as most people seem to have).

[Mbodell]

 gwnn, on 2015-July-30, 05:30, said:

Anyone else watch The Americans? It's a pretty awesome show, presumably even more so for people who were alive in the 80's for more than a few years. It constantly challenges my perception of who I'm rooting for and somehow makes me care for various main characters more than Breaking Bad (a show I enjoyed but not as much as most people seem to have).

I haven't seen the most recent season yet, but yes, it is very, very good.

[blackshoe]

Is that the one about the Russian "sleeper agent" family in the US, where the son, who doesn't know about the sleeper agent part, becomes a CIA agent?

[gwnn]

I hope not, or you are spoiling the whole thing! I'm midway through the second season and the son is still about 10, though, so it's probably not that

[hrothgar]

Second season of "From Dusk til Dawn" is coming out in August.
I hope it is as good as the first!

[blackshoe]

 gwnn, on 2015-July-31, 15:56, said:

I hope not, or you are spoiling the whole thing! I'm midway through the second season and the son is still about 10, though, so it's probably not that

Probably a different series then.

[Al_U_Card]

The Wire is a classic (McNulty as the ultimate protagonist.) Treme also a big plus with the Nawlins musicality. GoT is better than most (like Dexter it seems to have peaked at season 3...) Americans is also above avg. Battlestar Galactica is also a gem.