Cranky Is Coming

[slightlyoffaxis]

So, we signed up for HBO. It was nice knowing you all.

Jesse immediately dived in and started DVRing movies. (Jesse, I swear Cyrus is on Netflix Instant-you don't need to take up DVR space with it!) I, on the other hand, wanted to start sampling all of those shows that everyone raves about but I'd been barred from since I (before now) refused to

Comments

[ext_1115841]

I think most Game of Thrones fans root for Tyrion, in both the books and the show. I know I do. The trailer for the second season of the show certainly implies (to my mind) that they see him as the central character.

[slightlyoffaxis]

First, a plea to Game of Thrones fans: I still have no idea who any of these people are. Please stop making me go to the Game of Thrones wiki! From now on, we have to call them "Daenerys, the chick with the super-blond hair," or "the dude from Conan," or "Sarah Connor." (Or, my new favorite, Chris from Skins. Seriously, someone has to tell me if/when he dies.)

Anyway, yes, I quite enjoyed Peter Dinklage when he was on screen. But he was kind of a sarcastic git, so I can't tell if I actually like the character, or if I just like Peter Dinklage.

[mushroom_kitty]

FYI, Walking Dead got really slow and boring in the second season, with the exception of the last two episodes, which were so awesome they almost made me angry.

[slightlyoffaxis]

What made you keep watching if it was slow and boring? Did the last two episodes make up for the rest of the season?

I ask because I kept watching the whole first season, even though I wasn't really loving it. Then it got to the finale, and (spoilers), a lot of people I didn't care about to begin with died, and when the show was gone I didn't miss it, so I dropped it. But it was odd, because killing off a cast of characters I had no attachment to should've made me think that the opportunity was there to repopulate with people I did like. But, then again, I probably should've just dropped the show earlier.

Anyway, this is the whole problem in a nutshell. Do I have to watch the entirety of something before I decide if I liked it or not?

[mushroom_kitty]

Because I liked the first season so much I kept hoping it would get back to that. It's not like it was just boring from the beginning of the show, you know? The last two episodes gave me hope that the third season will be better.

I understand your point, though I tend not to mind waiting a few episodes to see whether I like a show.

[slightlyoffaxis]

Yeah, it's definitely impossible to judge from a first episode, but I just don't know what the magic number is.

[kiwicutie41]

I watched the whole Game Of Thrones series in one sitting, and I still can't tell you who Tyrion is. All I know is that his last name is Lannister, which immediately makes me hate him. Unless he is the LP. If he's the LP, then yes, I'm rooting for him to turn into a good guy and destroy his family. No one treats Sean Bean like that and gets away with it. LOL. We are related, but we are SO different, Marisa. I don't like watching shows unless there is a through story line. Any time we go to rent a series (yes, they still have video stores here), I make the rule that it has to be "a long movie series" and not a "different story every time" series. But we do agree that Boardwalk Empire kicks ass! We just started watching that a few days ago. OH, and P.S. I'm totally blowing up your spot....you were a TOTAL X-files fan! You are the reason I started watching it!

[slightlyoffaxis]

Yeah, he's the little guy. You also have to like Chris from Skins, the blacksmith who was sent to the wall, because I say so. Seriously tell me if/when he dies!

I don't know how we're related, either. I went to all of those renaissance fairs, but I can't get into Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones and somehow you can!

I watched the X-Files, but I never got into (or understood, really) the conspiracy episodes, just the monster-of-the-week ones. (Peacock Family 4 Life!) I think more shows should be like that, with a mix of plot-furthering episodes and stand-alone episodes.

Or, if not a mix, then a blend. Skins kinda does both at once, where the whole thing is plot-furthering teen melodrama, but it's done in an episode-centric way, with each episode from the point-of-view of a different character.

[freakjaw]

I had to look up who Chris from Skins is, and then who he played on Game of Thrones because I didn't recognize his face, and after all that I'm not actually sure if I remember his character anyway. I don't think he's died yet, and I don't want to look him up on Wiki, for fear of finding out stuff that happens after the first season, so I'll say that he's a pretty minor character and is still alive?

[slightlyoffaxis]

I looked it up on the Wiki, and it seems like he's still alive, so you're going to have to keep me posted on that.

[freakjaw]

I found this post really intriguing!

So, Game of Thrones and I weren't a match made in heaven. But whose fault is it? Did I give it enough of a chance? Are two non-consecutive hours enough to judge a 10-hour season?

First, I'd say that no, you didn't "give it enough of a chance" and that two non-consecutive hours aren't a good way to judge a 10-hour season, and that you STILL are probably right that Game of Thrones isn't your jam. I wouldn't say it's either of your "fault", it just sounds like there's some kind of aesthetic issue there that means it wouldn't suit your tastes (never mind the rape and graphic violence). I suspect some of the issues you bring up (like the claim that nothing happens, and possibly the issue of not connecting to the characters) would be addressed had you actually watched from the beginning/seen the whole season, but that doesn't necessarily mean the show would be to your liking. The way that you describe the names and "mythology" bouncing you out of the story definitely makes it seem like a taste thing

[freakjaw]

I've definitely been thinking a bit about this subject since we talked about it (I guess when you first brought up those articles), and watching the first four or five episodes of Luck has informed my thinking a bit. I had just assumed, sight-unseen, that it might be too dense or impenetrable or plain-old-boring to be enjoyable (like John From Cincinnati, which I also haven't seen!), but I was surprised to find myself engaged by the first episode. I thought it had interesting characters, good writing and performances, good filmmaking, and a really intriguing world that I didn't know much about. I found the process of figuring out the ins and outs of the racing world and it's attendant culture (with some hand-holding, but not a ton) to be kind of exciting. It definitely struck me as being akin to something like Mad Men or Treme in the way it seemed to insist that the subculture it was depicting, and the craft & sensitivity of the writing & performances, would be enough to hold an audience's attention, without the blood-and-breasts

[freakjaw]

You brought up two things that I was particularly interested in hearing more about, because they tend to be most often brought up in internet pop-culture discussion in negative contexts.

I watch New Girl not because I particularly love it, but because it's amusing, it's quick, and it doesn't tax my brain even in the slightest. I don't have to remember anything about any other episode to enjoy what's going on.

This kind of thing seems to actually be brought up most often in television discussions in a sneering way. "Stupid American audiences are too lazy for Community/Arrested Development/etc. and don't want their brain to be taxed in the slightest."

There wasn't anyone I immediately latched onto as someone to root for.This is more often used as a way to complain about studio/executive/network interference smoothing out or "dumbing down" stuff because they're afraid that those "stupid American audiences" have to have a likeable main character that they have to root for unambiguously

[slightlyoffaxis]

OK, there is much to discuss.

First, I'd say that no, you didn't "give it enough of a chance" and that two non-consecutive hours aren't a good way to judge a 10-hour season.

I'm interested in what you think is a fair chance. Is it that I didn't give it enough time, or start at the beginning, or pay enough attention? Because you're starting to inch up to the halfway mark, which is a slippery slope to "watch the whole thing, and then decide if you like it after." Which might be your opinion, but I'm not really willing to put that much time into figuring out if I like a TV show or not.

The novel/TV analogy isn't perfect but it's definitely applicable.I agree that it's definitely applicable. (Though I'd argue that, even if it's not the best way to pick up a book, you can learn something from sampling a chapter in the middle--like if you like the writing style or the genre.) The thing is, I don't really want all of my television shows to be like novels. There are definitely some HBO-style shows I enjoy--some of my favorites, too--and I

[kiwicutie41]

Going back to what I said about not knowing who Tyrion is (which has become clear since then), that's the ONLY problem I have with Game Of Thrones. There's so many characters. Maybe that's the reason you can't find one character to fall in love with-- theres just too freaking many of them! Does Boromir/Ned Stark REALLY have to have all those kids AND a bastard son to boot? Are they all really necessary? I'm pretty sure the youngest Stark (not the bratty girl you like, or the cripple...theres another one on TOP of that) has been useless. Anyway *SEMI POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERT* I had to ask Jonathan who Chris from skins was, and if my plot-hypothosizing skills are still on point, I think he's going to be around for a while. I also think you may want to try watching it again, since you may have unknowingly found someone cruicial to root for. But I don't have access to any spoilers, that seriously is just coming from the under bowels of my brain. And if you still don't want to watch, I'll keep you posted.

[slightlyoffaxis]

I have to trust your instincts--you're good at calling the plot twists of things! Keep an eye out for my boy Chris.

Also, if it's at your video store, you guys should watch Skins, because Skins is great!

[slightlyoffaxis]

And yeah, there are way too many Starks. I had no idea there was that last one!