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chuckroOne Day at a Time (Netflix, Seasons 1, 2 and 3) - It’s a very sitcom-y sitcom, complete with the limited sets, the laugh track, and the absurd contrivances. I do think there’s still a place for that kind of show (that isn’t a direct continuation of a show from my youth—this is a remake, but unrelated to the original 70s show beyond the concept), but it’s not for everyone. They have a healthy mix of goofy embarrassments (though they don’t abuse the “stupid misunderstanding” trope as much as some shows, thankfully) and “serious discussions” about racism, immigration, coming out, non-binary genders, etc. If you missed watching standard 80s/90s sitcoms on TGIF, this will definitely scratch that itch.
Lucifer (TV Series, Season 1, Episode 1) - It’s amazing how you can start with the exact same one-paragraph premise as a comic book series but somehow come out with something completely different. (A bit like iZombie, in that regard.) Lucifer himself manages to meet the description of “charismatic asshole” in a completely different way than his comics counterpart. Heck, the first episode is quick to emphasize the number of women he has sex with, while the comic character doesn’t even have genitals. Apparently the supernatural aspects of this decline as the series goes on and it becomes a more standard procedural…it was already too much of a procedural for me to begin with.
Flack (TV Series, Season 1, Episode 2) - I was very amused with a single episode of this for the wit and the terrible, amazing skill the characters bring to their jobs as PR geniuses. That said, pretty much all of what promised to be the ongoing plotlines grated on me. I suspect I’d love to see this cut down into half-episodes with only the office drama and PR magic; and none of the pregnancy freakouts and family insanity.
Captain Marvel - Fairly standard Marvel movie formula, but one that is very smart about letting the hero win on her own terms. And yes, I totally believe Carol and Maria are together (except DADT); I know they won’t confirm that but I hope they leave it nebulous.
Shazam! - Much darker than the trailers make it out to be, but I still quite enjoyed it. They used a version of Dr. Silvana who was functionally IBAC as the villain, and tied the themes of that together with a story about birth vs. found family that works reasonably well. John Glover asLionel Luthor Silvana Sr. was a lovely cameo; I also liked the Big reference in the toy store. I might quibble that the Wisdom of Solomon was on the fritz for the duration of the story, though that made the “kid in adult superhero’s body” thing work much better. (Also, they didn’t dedicate enough time to the Marvel Family; but rather than a sequel, what I’d really want is a limited-series of superhero family interactions that actually has the time to develop six characters.)
Bonding (Netflix, Season 1) - A grad student dominatrix recruits her wannabe-stand up comic gay best friend to be her assistant. They discover things about themselves and both find love while generally ignoring good kink safety and consent practices. (Apparently it’s partly autobiographical, in that the writer/producer was a domme’s assistant in his youth.) I’d imagine that this would be immensely frustrating to watch for some actually in the fetish scene / sex work.
Love, Death & Robots (Netflix, Season 1) - Adult sci-fi shorts, many of which were based on existing short stories, done in a variety animation styles. This is the closest a tv series has gotten to a sci-fi short story anthology in a long time, particularly because we aren’t wedded to any particular writer or animator’s sensibilities. The three written by Scalzi are the best, really.
Lucifer (TV Series, Season 1, Episode 1) - It’s amazing how you can start with the exact same one-paragraph premise as a comic book series but somehow come out with something completely different. (A bit like iZombie, in that regard.) Lucifer himself manages to meet the description of “charismatic asshole” in a completely different way than his comics counterpart. Heck, the first episode is quick to emphasize the number of women he has sex with, while the comic character doesn’t even have genitals. Apparently the supernatural aspects of this decline as the series goes on and it becomes a more standard procedural…it was already too much of a procedural for me to begin with.
Flack (TV Series, Season 1, Episode 2) - I was very amused with a single episode of this for the wit and the terrible, amazing skill the characters bring to their jobs as PR geniuses. That said, pretty much all of what promised to be the ongoing plotlines grated on me. I suspect I’d love to see this cut down into half-episodes with only the office drama and PR magic; and none of the pregnancy freakouts and family insanity.
Captain Marvel - Fairly standard Marvel movie formula, but one that is very smart about letting the hero win on her own terms. And yes, I totally believe Carol and Maria are together (except DADT); I know they won’t confirm that but I hope they leave it nebulous.
Shazam! - Much darker than the trailers make it out to be, but I still quite enjoyed it. They used a version of Dr. Silvana who was functionally IBAC as the villain, and tied the themes of that together with a story about birth vs. found family that works reasonably well. John Glover as
Bonding (Netflix, Season 1) - A grad student dominatrix recruits her wannabe-stand up comic gay best friend to be her assistant. They discover things about themselves and both find love while generally ignoring good kink safety and consent practices. (Apparently it’s partly autobiographical, in that the writer/producer was a domme’s assistant in his youth.) I’d imagine that this would be immensely frustrating to watch for some actually in the fetish scene / sex work.
Love, Death & Robots (Netflix, Season 1) - Adult sci-fi shorts, many of which were based on existing short stories, done in a variety animation styles. This is the closest a tv series has gotten to a sci-fi short story anthology in a long time, particularly because we aren’t wedded to any particular writer or animator’s sensibilities. The three written by Scalzi are the best, really.
