2020 Media Roundup: Telly
Dec. 27th, 2020 02:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sabotabbyNormally I watch a crapload of telly and you'd think, with lockdowns and absolutely nothing to do, I'd have watched more. Nope! I went into hardcore disinterest in getting invested in new characters and plot and an inability to focus on narrative. Also everything blurs together and I don't even know what I watched. Let's see what I liked.
Baking shows:
Obviously Nailed It! is my favourite baking show for life, but it also kind of sucks because they never make enough episodes, so I tend to binge it within two days of a new season being released. I started The Great Canadian Baking Show, which is exactly like the Great British Bake-Off except I don't need to torrent it (the point of watching these is zero effort), and then I watched Sugar Rush, and then Zumbo's Just Desserts, and then Crazy Delicious. All of these were very good. I particularly liked how Just Desserts built a narrative and had me legit wanting to see the "villain" defeated by absolutely anyone, even the person who won who I found super annoying. I realize this is 100% editing and just on a technical level, that's kind of impressive.
Other stupid reality TV:
Shockingly, my next favourite was Glow-Up, which is way better than I thought it would be. I know next to nothing about makeup and thus thought it would be boring, but nooope. There is a lot of theatrical and artistic makeup in it, and also quite a bit about photography, and I enjoyed the hell out of it. Also on other shows like this, there is always one or two very alternative types of people who I bond with and then they get eliminated and I have to watch people who are competent but lack personality, but in this case the people I was rooting for in both seasons won, and they were the weirdest ones. I also really liked Next In Fashion, which I only watched because Tan France is in it, but it was cool.
Anyway on to actual telly with narrative. My favourite shows in 2020.
Continuing:
Neither The Expanse or Star Trek: Discovery are done yet, but I am enjoying both seasons so far.
The Expanse is doing Nemesis Games, which is the best of the novels, and The Churn, which is the best of the novellas that I've read, and so far I love watching both come to life on the screen. It seems that in every episode, there is something that happens to get me super excited and scream and I really wish more people were watching it, as I think it's hands-down the best series on TV right now. I don't want to say much because if you haven't watched it or you haven't watched/read as far as I have, spoilers would definitely interfere with your enjoyment, but let's just say everything I generally love about it—compelling characters, twisted political plots with high stakes, brilliant worldbuilding—continues in this latest season.
Star Trek: Discovery, you're either watching or you're not. I'm enjoying the soft reboot, as the weird retconning they needed to do to set it before TOS never quite worked for me and felt like fanservice with production values that made no sense. So it's nice to see them go way in the future, where they can CGI to their heart's content. Despite my general whining about having to get to know new characters, I absolutely love all of the new characters they've brought on, especially Book, and I would kill and die for Grudge and they had better not hurt her in any way.
New:
Like everyone else in the world, I enjoyed the everloving hell out of The Queen's Gambit, despite having zero previous interest in chess. It had well-written characters, beautiful costume and set design, stunning cinematography, and possibly one of my top 5 endings of any TV show ever. Seriously, it spent the entire show hitting all of the narrative beats I'd expect and then pulled something wholly unexpected, and I would argue politically radical, that absolutely made sense for the character but filled me with delight.
I May Destroy You is a highly experimental, dark, and harrowing exploration of consent and trauma. It's one of those shows where I'd suggest a) make sure you're in an okay headspace before watching, because dead dove do not eat and also all the trigger warnings, and b) when you're ready, it's best to know nothing about it going in. But I think it was very artfully done and provocative.
Avenue Five is, I think, the show for 2020. It's by Armando Iannucci, one of my favourite writer-directors for film and TV, and stars Hugh Laurie and Rebecca Front, both of whom I love. For some reason it hasn't gotten much press, at least in North America, so it bears a bit of describing. It's about a luxury cruise ship in space that goes accidentally off course, with an estimated three years until they can return to Earth, and only eight months of supplies. And then it gets worse. It's the kind of black comedy that Iannucci is known for and if you take the ship's trajectory as a metaphor for the pandemic, which it was clearly written and produced before, it's just kind of perfect.
My favourite new shows of 2020 are a tie between two shows that are adaptations of books I loved:
Lovecraft Country: Deviating wildly from the book by Matt Ruff, this is a story of Lovecraftian mythos as seen through the eyes of the Black people he so despised. Set in the 50s, it follows a Black family as they become entangled with white cultists who seek to use ancient magic to secure even more power. It's a bit like Green Book if Green Book was actually good and if the racists in it got eaten by shoggoths, so actually not at all like Green Book. It's got a killer soundtrack and layers of visual and thematic depth. Also weirdly I ended up loving Montrose the most, even though he's kind of a terrible person, but then I realized he was Omar from The Wire and it made much more sense. The show's reach frequently exceeds its grasp but it is overall intelligent, beautifully filmed and acted, and politically insightful.
Trickster: Also deviating wildly from Son of a Trickster by Eden Robinson. Alas, this truly excellent show is currently being overshadowed by controversy about the director's Indigenous heritage or lack thereof, and it shouldn't be, because the writer, actors, and everyone on the soundtrack are Indigenous and deserve attention for this spectacular work of art. It follows a teenage Haisla boy, Jared, who discovers that his father is a literal trickster rather than just a regular deadbeat. Crystle Lightning is particularly incredible as Jared's tough, vulnerable, and complicated mother trying to do right by her family while wrestling her own inheritance of trauma and mental illness. It's gorgeously shot and costumed and I'm looking forward to the next season.
Baking shows:
Obviously Nailed It! is my favourite baking show for life, but it also kind of sucks because they never make enough episodes, so I tend to binge it within two days of a new season being released. I started The Great Canadian Baking Show, which is exactly like the Great British Bake-Off except I don't need to torrent it (the point of watching these is zero effort), and then I watched Sugar Rush, and then Zumbo's Just Desserts, and then Crazy Delicious. All of these were very good. I particularly liked how Just Desserts built a narrative and had me legit wanting to see the "villain" defeated by absolutely anyone, even the person who won who I found super annoying. I realize this is 100% editing and just on a technical level, that's kind of impressive.
Other stupid reality TV:
Shockingly, my next favourite was Glow-Up, which is way better than I thought it would be. I know next to nothing about makeup and thus thought it would be boring, but nooope. There is a lot of theatrical and artistic makeup in it, and also quite a bit about photography, and I enjoyed the hell out of it. Also on other shows like this, there is always one or two very alternative types of people who I bond with and then they get eliminated and I have to watch people who are competent but lack personality, but in this case the people I was rooting for in both seasons won, and they were the weirdest ones. I also really liked Next In Fashion, which I only watched because Tan France is in it, but it was cool.
Anyway on to actual telly with narrative. My favourite shows in 2020.
Continuing:
Neither The Expanse or Star Trek: Discovery are done yet, but I am enjoying both seasons so far.
The Expanse is doing Nemesis Games, which is the best of the novels, and The Churn, which is the best of the novellas that I've read, and so far I love watching both come to life on the screen. It seems that in every episode, there is something that happens to get me super excited and scream and I really wish more people were watching it, as I think it's hands-down the best series on TV right now. I don't want to say much because if you haven't watched it or you haven't watched/read as far as I have, spoilers would definitely interfere with your enjoyment, but let's just say everything I generally love about it—compelling characters, twisted political plots with high stakes, brilliant worldbuilding—continues in this latest season.
Star Trek: Discovery, you're either watching or you're not. I'm enjoying the soft reboot, as the weird retconning they needed to do to set it before TOS never quite worked for me and felt like fanservice with production values that made no sense. So it's nice to see them go way in the future, where they can CGI to their heart's content. Despite my general whining about having to get to know new characters, I absolutely love all of the new characters they've brought on, especially Book, and I would kill and die for Grudge and they had better not hurt her in any way.
New:
Like everyone else in the world, I enjoyed the everloving hell out of The Queen's Gambit, despite having zero previous interest in chess. It had well-written characters, beautiful costume and set design, stunning cinematography, and possibly one of my top 5 endings of any TV show ever. Seriously, it spent the entire show hitting all of the narrative beats I'd expect and then pulled something wholly unexpected, and I would argue politically radical, that absolutely made sense for the character but filled me with delight.
I May Destroy You is a highly experimental, dark, and harrowing exploration of consent and trauma. It's one of those shows where I'd suggest a) make sure you're in an okay headspace before watching, because dead dove do not eat and also all the trigger warnings, and b) when you're ready, it's best to know nothing about it going in. But I think it was very artfully done and provocative.
Avenue Five is, I think, the show for 2020. It's by Armando Iannucci, one of my favourite writer-directors for film and TV, and stars Hugh Laurie and Rebecca Front, both of whom I love. For some reason it hasn't gotten much press, at least in North America, so it bears a bit of describing. It's about a luxury cruise ship in space that goes accidentally off course, with an estimated three years until they can return to Earth, and only eight months of supplies. And then it gets worse. It's the kind of black comedy that Iannucci is known for and if you take the ship's trajectory as a metaphor for the pandemic, which it was clearly written and produced before, it's just kind of perfect.
My favourite new shows of 2020 are a tie between two shows that are adaptations of books I loved:
Lovecraft Country: Deviating wildly from the book by Matt Ruff, this is a story of Lovecraftian mythos as seen through the eyes of the Black people he so despised. Set in the 50s, it follows a Black family as they become entangled with white cultists who seek to use ancient magic to secure even more power. It's a bit like Green Book if Green Book was actually good and if the racists in it got eaten by shoggoths, so actually not at all like Green Book. It's got a killer soundtrack and layers of visual and thematic depth. Also weirdly I ended up loving Montrose the most, even though he's kind of a terrible person, but then I realized he was Omar from The Wire and it made much more sense. The show's reach frequently exceeds its grasp but it is overall intelligent, beautifully filmed and acted, and politically insightful.
Trickster: Also deviating wildly from Son of a Trickster by Eden Robinson. Alas, this truly excellent show is currently being overshadowed by controversy about the director's Indigenous heritage or lack thereof, and it shouldn't be, because the writer, actors, and everyone on the soundtrack are Indigenous and deserve attention for this spectacular work of art. It follows a teenage Haisla boy, Jared, who discovers that his father is a literal trickster rather than just a regular deadbeat. Crystle Lightning is particularly incredible as Jared's tough, vulnerable, and complicated mother trying to do right by her family while wrestling her own inheritance of trauma and mental illness. It's gorgeously shot and costumed and I'm looking forward to the next season.
no subject
Date: 2020-12-27 09:36 pm (UTC)Now that's a recommendation!
no subject
Date: 2020-12-27 10:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-12-27 11:24 pm (UTC)*longs for this show*
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Date: 2020-12-27 11:26 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-12-27 10:30 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-12-27 10:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-12-27 11:24 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-12-27 11:02 pm (UTC)I want to start watching the Expanse S5 this week. I've been busy with Christmas movies.
Really looking forward to Trickster when it comes to the CW. And I haven't been excited about a CW show in...years!
no subject
Date: 2020-12-27 11:06 pm (UTC)I can't wait to hear what you think.
I want to start watching the Expanse S5 this week. I've been busy with Christmas movies.
I'm rationing it out because Amazon didn't release them all at once like they were supposed to, also because when I'm done, I'll have to get to know new characters and a new show and they will be less good than the ones on The Expanse.
Really looking forward to Trickster when it comes to the CW. And I haven't been excited about a CW show in...years!
Protip: You can watch it for free off the CBC website. :)
no subject
Date: 2020-12-28 01:40 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-12-28 12:49 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-12-28 12:51 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-12-28 06:26 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-12-28 01:52 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-12-28 01:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-12-28 01:53 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-12-30 05:26 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-12-30 05:48 pm (UTC)This said, a lot of straight dudes wear really awkward shorts that make their legs look stumpy. It's not about looking tall imo, it's about looking proportionate. At 5'2, I have the same issue with skirt length.