TV Streaming Services and their Content

[Sonik Wiz]

What EVER happened to Thoreau's SIMPLICITY, SIMPLICITY, SIMPLICITY concept?

Fortunately Henry wasn't thinking of audio/video systems at that time!

IF YOU CAN'T DAZZLE THEM WITH BRILLIANCE ... BAFFLE THEM WITH ********!

I believe that quote can be attributed to Bob Stuart.

 

[J. PUPSTER]

The Lord of The Rings: The Rings of Power - Call To Adventure | Prime Video​

*WOW, I'll be honest, I know I must of watched season one of this show, but I remember little to nothing about it

​

 

[paligap]

The Lord of The Rings: The Rings of Power - Call To Adventure | Prime Video​

*WOW, I'll be honest, I know I must of watched season one of this show, but I remember little to nothing about it

​

That's what Youtube recaps are for. Or, just rewatch the season . . .

I thought it was pretty good, but I'll need to refresh my memory before season 2.

 

[jefe1]

I thought the first episode was pretty good. There are some twists in season one.
Before it started Amazon did a promo first two episodes shown free in selected movie theaters
I took my son to see it on the big screen.
The promo for season 2 looks pretty good.

 

[J. PUPSTER]

That's what Youtube recaps are for. Or, just rewatch the season . . .

I thought it was pretty good, but I'll need to refresh my memory before season 2.

Yeah, just watched the season-one YT trailer, it's coming back to me now.
Who's that weird dude they found in a meteor or something, is that Gandalf???

 

[paligap]

Yeah, just watched the season-one YT trailer, it's coming back to me now.
Who's that weird dude they found in a meteor or something, is that Gandalf???

I don't think that question has been definitively answered, but here are some possibilities:
https://www.cnet.com/culture/entertainment/who-is-the-stranger-in-rings-of-power/

 

[steelydave]

It's funny, this series got absolutely slaughtered on social media and in most fan reviews, and I think a lot of it was because the Peter Jackson LOTR trilogy is so beloved. Normally I generally concur with the majority when it comes to these kinds of adaptations, but with this one I found myself enjoying it quite a bit. While it was flawed in places (some of the leads didn't seem to quite have the gravitas for the material) there were some great bits that I found really emotionally resonant, including the meteor man and the proto-hobbits, and especially the fractured friendship between the main elf and the dwarf.

The other main point of criticism seems to be how much they spent on the production, but for me I could honestly care less because the cost to me to watch is is effectively zero. And, unlike the few recent Star Wars series (Obi Wan, Ahsoka, and especially The Acolyte, a steaming turd that supposedly cost $180m) which often look cheap, bland, small or "too clean", The Rings of Power looked phenomenal to me, especially the VFX - some of the cityscapes like Numenor are the best I've ever seen, and I say that as someone who's worked in the industry for nearly 20 years.

 

[J. PUPSTER]

It's funny, this series got absolutely slaughtered on social media and in most fan reviews, and I think a lot of it was because the Peter Jackson LOTR trilogy is so beloved. Normally I generally concur with the majority when it comes to these kinds of adaptations, but with this one I found myself enjoying it quite a bit. While it was flawed in places (some of the leads didn't seem to quite have the gravitas for the material) there were some great bits that I found really emotionally resonant, including the meteor man and the proto-hobbits, and especially the fractured friendship between the main elf and the dwarf.

The other main point of criticism seems to be how much they spent on the production, but for me I could honestly care less because the cost to me to watch is is effectively zero. And, unlike the few recent Star Wars series (Obi Wan, Ahsoka, and especially The Acolyte, a steaming turd that supposedly cost $180m) which often look cheap, bland, small or "too clean", The Rings of Power looked phenomenal to me, especially the VFX - some of the cityscapes like Numenor are the best I've ever seen, and I say that as someone who's worked in the industry for nearly 20 years.

That all sounds about right to me also, especially The Acolyte being a dropped turd; I couldn't believe it.

 

[paligap]

It's funny, this series got absolutely slaughtered on social media and in most fan reviews, and I think a lot of it was because the Peter Jackson LOTR trilogy is so beloved. Normally I generally concur with the majority when it comes to these kinds of adaptations, but with this one I found myself enjoying it quite a bit. While it was flawed in places (some of the leads didn't seem to quite have the gravitas for the material) there were some great bits that I found really emotionally resonant, including the meteor man and the proto-hobbits, and especially the fractured friendship between the main elf and the dwarf.

The other main point of criticism seems to be how much they spent on the production, but for me I could honestly care less because the cost to me to watch is is effectively zero. And, unlike the few recent Star Wars series (Obi Wan, Ahsoka, and especially The Acolyte, a steaming turd that supposedly cost $180m) which often look cheap, bland, small or "too clean", The Rings of Power looked phenomenal to me, especially the VFX - some of the cityscapes like Numenor are the best I've ever seen, and I say that as someone who's worked in the industry for nearly 20 years.

I agree wholeheartedly with all these points. I would add, without elaboration, that some of the criticism was based on politics. Such criticism mystifies and bores me.

I would also add that, although I generally prefer science fiction over fantasy, the whole Star Wars universe never captured my imagination like Middle-earth does.

 

[J. PUPSTER]

Time for my yearly rant about NBC/peacock Network and the Olympics coverage.

I get NBC from AT&T U-verse (capable of recording shows of course); and I can also get it over the air with my antenna channel 3 here in Sacramento.

The main gripe I have is that the program scheduling they show for the Olympics never matches up with what's actually playing. Also they'll often blatantly have a commercial split screen with the ad audio happening while events are ongoing.

The other day I tried to find the first USA Men's basketball game and it was a nightmare. I did see it at maybe 1pm at one spot where it was supposed to show up. The hour or two prior to that they had an opening and started showing the game starting around the second half; but when the scheduled time hit they started showing some other event entirely. Finally I figured I'd just go over to my Apple 4k TV and get it from the peacock network to stream it. It took awhile to locate it, but it was there. The only problem is I pay monthly for peacock, but they still give me 1 min. commercial breaks fairly often. So to me, it seems like they're trying to frustrate folks to get the streaming service so they can get your monthly fee and still get the ad dollars. The days of free OTA TV are surely over. The only positive benefit is that given there are so many different events happening all at the same time (impossible to catch everything live anyway) the games are there at any time on peacock to stream.

 

[mrcond]

Fargo Season 5. Juno Temple is amazing.

https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/fargo

 

[J. PUPSTER]

Fargo Season 5. Juno Temple is amazing.

https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/fargo

Redneck Sheriff Hamm in a hot tub with nipple rings

 

[mrcond]

Redneck Sheriff Hamm in a hot tub with nipple rings

Yeah, I unfortunately noticed those. Horseshoe shaped. Tonight I watch the Season finale.

 

[Sal1950]

Fargo Season 5. Juno Temple is amazing.

https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/fargo

All the Fargo seasons have been mostly great fun.
Some get dragged out way too far but as long as you have a DVR you can skip ahead when it gets boring.

 

[Willie Wilson]

Time for my yearly rant about NBC/peacock Network and the Olympics coverage.

I get NBC from AT&T U-verse (capable of recording shows of course); and I can also get it over the air with my antenna channel 3 here in Sacramento.

The main gripe I have is that the program scheduling they show for the Olympics never matches up with what's actually playing. Also they'll often blatantly have a commercial split screen with the ad audio happening while events are ongoing.

The other day I tried to find the first USA Men's basketball game and it was a nightmare. I did see it at maybe 1pm at one spot where it was supposed to show up. The hour or two prior to that they had an opening and started showing the game starting around the second half; but when the scheduled time hit they started showing some other event entirely. Finally I figured I'd just go over to my Apple 4k TV and get it from the peacock network to stream it. It took awhile to locate it, but it was there. The only problem is I pay monthly for peacock, but they still give me 1 min. commercial breaks fairly often. So to me, it seems like they're trying to frustrate folks to get the streaming service so they can get your monthly fee and still get the ad dollars. The days of free OTA TV are surely over. The only positive benefit is that given there are so many different events happening all at the same time (impossible to catch everything live anyway) the games are there at any time on peacock to stream.

I hear what you are saying. I recently moved to a new home and decided to ditch Directv, Netflix and Paramount and just have OTA TV. My impetus was to counter the endless greed of the content owners who took my money at every possible opportunity. To say it’s the way of the world today is an accurate observation, but I don’t want to play anymore.

 

[Sal1950]

My impetus was to counter the endless greed of the content owners who took my money at every possible opportunity. To say it’s the way of the world today is an accurate observation, but I don’t want to play anymore.

Understood but I couldn't live with just OTA TV and all the commercials, I have to be able to pick and choose what I want to watch, fast forward thru the garbage, and record & watch what I want, when I want.
Talk about "the way of the world" and what most everyone are paying out monthly to be "connected" with the world 24/7. Paying $100+ a month for "smart phone" connection is beyond nuts to me. I don't need nor want to have a huge phone shoved up my butt constantly. I've kept a flip phone from Trac for under $100 a year for 2+ decades now, and get great coverage whereever I am. I've changed-upgraded phones 3 or 4 times over that period for a cost of around $25 each time for the new phone.

 

[barfle]

Well, my $5 year-long subscription to Peacock is ending, and I thought I’d finish up Yellowstone, but the final episodes still aren’t there.

Anyone know what’s going on? I recall reading that they polished it all off quite a while ago, but the last episode there is the same last episode I watched a year ago.

 

[Petr Kropotkin]

Fargo Season 5. Juno Temple is amazing.

Is that the one that starts with "All Good People" from YES?

 

[mrcond]

Is that the one that starts with "All Good People" from YES?

YES! Some excellent needle-drops throughout Season 5. One of my favorites was Whipping Post by the Allman Brothers, in the season finale I think. Surprisingly effective.

 

[4-earredwonder]

I finally finished binge watching all 8 episodes of NETFLIX'S series 1899 and can highly recommend it to lovers of opaque mysteries. The International cast is uniformly splendid, the cinematography exquisite and each episode uncharacteristically ends with a popular rock song. It premiered in 2022 and with so much to watch on all the streaming services glad I made time to savor this complex and utterly baffling chinese puzzle



https://www.theverge.com/23466567/netflix-1899-review-dark-tv-series