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TV Tuesdays Free Talk
Have you watched any TV shows recently you want to discuss? Any shows you want to recommend or are hyped about? Feel free to discuss anything here.
Please just try to provide fair warning of spoilers if you can.
This week we checked out The Other Two on HBO Max. The premise is that a brother and sister in their late 20s suddenly have to deal with their 13 year old brother’s fame after going viral on the Internet. The older brother is an actor who’s only booked project to date is “guy at party who smells fart” in a commercial and the sister is a real estate agent who squats in the places she’s supposed to be selling. So when their younger brother becomes famous overnight, it comes as a bit of a shock and they have to rethink their own lives.
We also just watched Motel Makeover on Netflix. It’s the story of 2 young entrepreneurs who basically implement Stevie and Johnny’s plan from the final season of Schitt’s Creek. In 2015 they bought a motel and remade into a chic, Instagram-able spot you’d actually want to stay at instead of a creepy, rundown place you want to leave as soon as possible. It sounds like their first property was basically in reasonably good condition and didn’t take too much work beyond interior design. The show is about their second property. It’s in a quiet little Canadian beach town on Lake Huron. There are about 2000 people in the town where the motel is, and they get most of their guests during the 3 months of summer.
The show starts in January 2020 as they go to the property to try to get it opened and running by June 1st. (The name of their brand is also “The June”, coincidentally.) The show is sold as a renovation show, but it’s kind of lame as that. I think the much more interesting story is the business side of it, which they also show. What we quickly find is that these 2 don’t have much experience buying properties and they aren’t very good at interior design. Their plan is to make every aspect of the property “a moment,” by which they mean “something you can take your picture in front of and post on Instagram.” If that seems a bit shallow, that’s because it is.
As you might imagine, they soon find the property has some problems. None of them are the end of the world, but it ends up showing a bit of a lack of due diligence and planning on their part. That would be interesting enough, but soon the pandemic hits, and they have to stop all work on the place, while it sits making them no money for several months.
Eventually they get back to it, and we see time and time again that they just don’t think things through very well at all. They put off the biggest problems until it’s almost too late to deal with them, and then hope that other people will come through for them. Rather than planning things out, they wait until it’s time to implement something before thinking about how it will be done.
I’ll say this was definitely a hate watch for us. The business owners repeatedly put down the town they’re in and the people there. They’re trying to turn a $40/night motel into a $200-400 a night motel that you can Instagram about. Their main clientele is supposed to be women having a “girls weekend at the beach,” but it’s not clear what research they did to see whether people will actually pay that in that place. Furthermore, the design they do isn’t very original or compelling. They mostly paint things pink, replace flooring, and replace broken or disgusting old hardware. When anything goes wrong, they are completely unprepared to handle it and risk losing everything. They don’t seem like thoughtful people and the whole thing comes off as disingenuous.
I want to mention and recommend two shows I watched lately.
First one I'd like to mention is Detectorists. It's a show about two good friends (and the people around them) who share a deep, philosophical love for metal detecting as a hobby. There's not much more to say, nor anything to spoil, other than it's one of those TV shows where the journey matters much more than the destination (although it does end on a conclusive note). If I were to describe it in a sentence, as cliche as it sounds, it's the TV show equivalent of a hot chocolate on a rainy day. It brought me genuine happiness when I watched it, and I highly recommend it to those who might be intrigued.
The second show is Wayne. I'd describe Wayne as a superhero show very narrow in its scope. I do not use the word superhero in a way you'd expect, because Wayne is a very unusual show. I'd describe Wayne's violence similar to that of Banshee, but its grotesque violence doesn't cheapen its emotional aspects. It's loud, bloody, and brash but it's also extremely witty with characters fully fleshed out in a way you wouldn't expect from such a shortly lived show. (It's also only half an hour per episode.)
As a bonus, Billions picked up where it left off before the whole COVID-19 thing. I can't say I like the show very much. As with most Showtime shows, it dropped off in quality and it's been somewhat of a drag in its recent seasons but it's filling that void Succession left in me.
I'm currently watching Forbrydelsen. I'm in the middle of its second season. It's quite alright, although I wish the episodes were a little bit shorter. (They're an hour long.) There are some criticisms I can levy against it but it's not a bad show by any means and I intend to finish it. As for what I'll watch next (apart from what's currently on), after yesterday's tragic news I might pick The Wire. I've always wanted to watch it and it's the last TV cannon I neglected, so I might as well go for it next.
This is a killer list! Detectorists was so wholesome and balanced. On paper it sounds like an awful idea for a series, but in execution its beautiful.
Forbrydelsen is pretty good. They remade it as The Killing, which was pretty good, but strays. Joel Kinnaman really shines.
The Wire is excellent -- and if you like that, check out David Simon's other projects -- Generation Kill, Treme, Show Me a Hero, The Deuce, his adaptation of The Plot Against America, and also his book, Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets, which was the source for Homocide: Life on the Street, which brought us Detective John Munch and launched his career in television.
Even if you don't do the other series, the novel is worth a read. Simon brought in a an unbelievable set of real police, writers like Ed Burns, Dennis Lahane (Cry Baby Cry, Shutter Island), Eric Overmyer (Homicide, Bosch, Law and Order), Richard Price (Clockers, The Color of Money), William F. Zorzi (political journalist for Baltimore), and so much more.
I love The Wire so much. I'm always harping on people going through the commentary tracks. They're all excellent in their own way.
Wayne and Banshee were both awesome. You might also like Quarry, based on the Max Allan Collins series of the same name.
Completely agree about Detectorists. I was pretty hesitant to get into it at first because the story didn't seem interesting at all, but the great thing about British TV shows is that they don't require a lot of investment to get into. (I compiled a list of TV shows, all of which are British, that are pretty similar to Detectorists and they're on the back burner.)
I heard about Forbrydelsen's American remake and I vaguely remember people singing its praises until after its first season. I am, unfortunately, a completionist so I'll probably won't roll the dice with that one. Thanks for the heads up about the book though!
I'm somewhat familiar with David Simon's work. I watched Generation Kill, which I remember liking and The Plot Against America, which I thought was fine but hardly memorable. The reason why I haven't gotten into The Wire so far is that I know it's going to be a show that's going to demand my full attention at all times and I want to give it that attention it seems to deserve. I'm hoping things can click so I can finally get to see it.
I'm so happy you mentioned Quarry! That show was spectacular. Have you seen Rectify by any chance? I thought they were somewhat similar shows, at least in terms of their protagonist showing a lot of introspection. Rectify holds a special place in my heart. It wasn't all gloomy, in fact, it was mostly a hopeful show, but the journey to get there was not easy albeit very rewarding. I'd honestly re-watch it if I think I could handle it right now with all that's going with the world.
Thanks for your comment!
The cool thing about The Wire is that you'll notice new stuff every time you watch. Its so rich in detail. I've watched around seven or eight times now, and my favorite season seems to change each time.
Show me a Hero and The Deuce are definitely worth a watch. I'll check out Rectify. I had it when it came out, but never got around to watching :)
Wu-Tang: An American Saga is back for its second season and its even better than the first. Even if you barely know the Wu-Tang Clan, I think this series will be really enjoyable.
Only Murders in the Building started up. It stars Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez. The series is okay, but it really feels like its unsuccessfully ripping Jonathan Ames' Bored to Death. I'll stick with it, but there's something about Steve Martin that just isn't ever convincing.
I really enjoy Steve Martin's writing, but he was so unfit for Shopgirl. Maybe I struggle with not seeing him with an arrow through his head... who knows. I just don't think he works for these roles as much as he thinks he does. Its like he's trying to have that mild sadness that Bill Murray masters in Lost in Translation.
American Crime Story: Impeachment started last night and I think, like the other ACS series, it'll be excellent. It'll be tough to top The Assassination of Gianni Versace, but there's little holding them back. Sarah Paulson really shines as a character actress and doesn't get enough praise, even though she gets a lot.
Lastly, I'm finishing up Pride and Prejudice tomorrow or the next day and will watch the 1995 series... this has been a cultural blindspot for me. I'm still not certain I *get it*, to be honest.