Rate The Last TV Show Episode You Watched

[AndyDursin]

You can, I think the only thing is you'd probably better appreciate some of the issues inherent in 1923 if you've seen Yellowstone, just general concepts about the ranch, the land, etc. There seems to be a little bit more "thematic" connectivity between Yellowstone and 1923, whereas 1883 is completely isolated in its own story.

That said, 1883 and 1923 do lead into one another. The only funny element in 1923 is trying to figure out who all the characters are -- Sheridan apparently didn't want an "1883 Season 2" so he dispensed with the leads. The two little boys in 1883 are grown up in 1923, but I couldn't even figure out who they specifically were at first. (then again, if you didn't watch 1883, it wouldn't be a problem at all! lol)

[AndyDursin]

THE MANDALORIAN Season 3

Great to see this back and Jon Favreau still in charge writing this -- if Kathleen Kennedy indeed is on the way out at DisneyLucasfilm, this show and anything Favreau handles will be in good shape indeed. He and co-producer Dave Filoni have the right pulse on tone and story, making Mando "family friendly" in the way classic Star Wars was, while offering a solid central story line that exists really minus much connection to the old characters (no CGI Luke please this season). Hopefully Gina Carano can be coaxed back, that character is missed -- but the elements all seem in place here for a solid season to come. And Dean Cundey shot the premiere!

1923 - Full Season

Wow what a fall this "Yellowstone" prequel took. The first half of the series that premiered was everything I wrote above -- but the later episodes are a real, exploitive drag.

Every single Catholic priest and nun shown here is a wholly evil villain that savages the local Indian girls they're supposed to be taking care of -- and later, there's even a gang (!) of collared Irish Catholic priests on horseback who slice and dice their way through the poor Indians. Like "Irish Young Guns" or something -- except they're priests. I mean seriously it's as believable as a comic book but what's sad are people watching this might actually think it's actual history. I have no doubt some of these "Indian schools" were awful places but what transpires in this show is so laughably over the top, I'd love to read the "actual stories" that inspired their depiction here...my guess is none of it ever happened to this degree.

Beyond that, there are endless scenes of bad guy Timothy Dalton watching prostitutes whip each other. Not once -- but twice -- in completely pointless and gratuitous sequences that go hand in hand with a narrative that doesn't advance very far.

We've seen "Yellowstone" itself (especially last season) get bogged down in uneven scripts and the only thing I can think of is creator/producer Taylor Sheridan -- who writes many of these episodes himself -- is over-extended. We get glimpses of pure storytelling bliss here but then a "what the hell is happening" succession of violent/needless scenes that come out of nowhere. Utterly odd, and ultimately unsatisfying, at least in the case of "1923."

[AndyDursin]

Whoever decided it would be a good idea spending 34 interrupted minutes of this week's Mandalorian episode on the feckless scientist talking about cloning and Empire/New Republic moral equivalency...before ending with a 1984 like torture scene...are you trying to follow Willow into the abyss of other Disney+ disasters? Reminding us of the worst parts of the prequels and sermonizing that comes out of nowhere...that the good guys are no better than the bad ones? That the rebellion are just as horrendous as the Empire in the concluding moments? What kind of a MESSAGE does that send??

Theo screamed FINALLY when Mando reappeared. Just horribly miscalculated in addition to being terribly written and performed.

This is again evidence of how Disney and Kennedy just have no idea what this franchise was about and why people loved it. It's not 1984 and it's not THX 1138. It never will be either because fans and families will stop watching it if it keeps going down this road.

Shame on Favreau also for signing off on this.

Star Wars used to be about fun....and this wasn't it.

[Paul MacLean]

Star Wars used to be about fun....and this wasn't it.

You need to adapt to more "adult" iterations of Star Wars, like Andor!

[AndyDursin]

Like Doomcock said last night in his summation of Andor, just because you can show heroin addicted aliens in Star Wars doesn't mean you should!

[Monterey Jack]

You need to adapt to more "adult" iterations of Star Wars, like Andor!

If Andor is "Star Wars for adults", stick a pacifier in my mouth.

[Edmund Kattak]

What's next?

ENDOR - Story about heroin-addicted EWOKS with Tourette's Sydrome who single-handedly bring the empire to its knees?

[AndyDursin]

Another Disney Star Wars series gone to hell...

Just when you think Disney cannot heap any more indignity upon Star Wars, Mickey Mouse and his minions find a way. Disney’s mission to extract maximum value from the venerable sci-fi franchise began with a trilogy of ever-direr movies, where lore-breaking storylines battled with dialogue so dreadful – “they fly now?” – that it didn’t disturb the force so much as make it consider early retirement.

Even worse was last year’s Obi-Wan Kenobi spin-off, for which Ewan McGregor dusted down his 20-years-old Alec Guinness impersonation to little avail. Amid all that Jedi dross, The Mandalorian stood out as a rare beacon of joy. There wasn’t much to the tale of an armour-encased bounty hunter (Pedro Pascal, assisted by stunt-doubles) and his adorable side-kick Grogu, aka Baby Yoda. That was the point. Here was a reminder that the simplest pleasures – a tin-plated mercenary and his green blob sidekick having adventures, say – can be the most rewarding.

But the gloss has gone off the show with its third season and a spirited and spectacle-filled finale isn’t enough to restore Mando’s mojo. There’s lots of action and the script belatedly gives Grogu something to do beyond hopping around radiating cuteness. Alas, it’s too little, too late.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2023/04/ ... ro-pascal/

[Monterey Jack]

I still have not watched one episode of the current season of Mandalorian. Andor utterly broke me.

[AndyDursin]

The finale was actually pretty good but so much of the season was a waste. I mean it's only 8 episodes they can't get their act together with a consistent plot running through them? Why is it so hard?

[BobaMike]

I agree Andy, the finale was good...and was seemingly almost a series finale as well!
The rest of the episodes were just okay....

I think being forced to shove Mando into the Boba show screwed things up, as well as the Last of Us stealing away Pedro for any mask reveals. I bet he wasn't on set once this season.

Too many masked people this season- hard to care about any of them. Masked flying stormtroopers vs masked flying mandalorians. Yawn.
I was hoping the Mandalorians would all give up their mask wearing pledge.

[jkholm]

Overall, I enjoyed this season. The last two episodes were terrific. Of course there were the two episodes that people complained about. There was that lengthy one with Dr. Pershing that I figured was probably designed to set up a future plot point. That turned out to be true but the revelation wasn't that surprising and they certainly didn't need 45 minutes just to set it up. The Jack Black episode has the distinction of making even the hard core fans angry. If the guys on the Rebel Force Radio podcast hate something Star Wars, it must be pretty bad.

Two things I really like about what they're doing. First is the positive portrayal of fatherhood. Most TV shows give dads short shrift, often portraying them as a dopey sitcom dad, an alcoholic monster or completely absent. Not so in the Mandalorian. There are truly great father and son moments. Second is the overt religious symbolism of the Mandalorian culture. They have a spiritual leader (the armorer), they recite creeds, they were dispersed from their home and are now returning to reclaim their land. Most obviously, they incorporate baptism into their rituals as a means of spiritual cleansing and acceptance into a community. They even allow both dunking and sprinkling! It is astonishing that this show comes from Disney.

[AndyDursin]

Two things I really like about what they're doing. First is the positive portrayal of fatherhood. Most TV shows give dads short shrift, often portraying them as a dopey sitcom dad, an alcoholic monster or completely absent. Not so in the Mandalorian. There are truly great father and son moments. Second is the overt religious symbolism of the Mandalorian culture. They have a spiritual leader (the armorer), they recite creeds, they were dispersed from their home and are now returning to reclaim their land. Most obviously, they incorporate baptism into their rituals as a means of spiritual cleansing and acceptance into a community.

The strong Father/Son connection was great -- and I certainly appreciated the adoption angle as well! My issue is: I wanted MORE of that. More than just the last 15 minutes of the season finale.

So much of this season was a useless waste of story -- setting up Moff Gideon's rather uneventful return as it turns out -- then like so many modern series, the last 2 episodes "get it together" and come to a (satisfying) endpoint that was probably written out well in advance. It's everything inbetween that I wasn't engaged by. I also confess I grew bored with Bo Katan, there was too much of her -- and too much of her saving Mando, in multiple episodes! I realize Disney was too incensed by Gina Carano to offer her a return to the series (though they should have), but I found her and her character more appealing than Katee Sackhoff's clenched-jaw performance. There's not enough of a contrast in her character either.

Plus, at least it would've been a lead who wasn't wearing a mask most of the time. Speaking of which...

Too many masked people this season- hard to care about any of them. Masked flying stormtroopers vs masked flying mandalorians. Yawn.

I don't know why it struck him as funny but Theo laughed outloud when Moff Gideon put his "Kylo Helmet" on and sounded all "techno". He did it in episode 7 and then again last night. When I asked him he said he "looked ridiculous".

[BobaMike]

I don't know why it struck him as funny but Theo laughed outloud when Moff Gideon put his "Kylo Helmet" on and sounded all "techno". He did it in episode 7 and then again last night. When I asked him he said he "looked ridiculous".

I wished they had done more with his clones. Have Mando fight them! Maybe Moff Gideon isn't really dead, and that was a clone they fought.

But yeah, his helmet was stupid. I would rather have had the original Dark Trooper suit, from the old Dark Forces video game it was taken from:

dark_trooper_phase_iii__1_by_barricade24_dbsyjw2-pre.jpg (99.35 KiB) Viewed 4117 times

[jkholm]

Rabbit/Hole (Paramount +)

I really enjoyed this new series starring Kiefer Sutherland as a "corporate espionage" expert who gets involved in a vast deep state conspiracy. I honestly can't tell if the show is trying to appeal to right wingers or is making fun of them. Probably both. Sutherland is basically playing Jack Bauer again but paranoid and mentally unstable. OK, more paranoid and unstable. This is one of those shows with half a dozen plot twists, shocking reveals, double crosses and triple crosses each episode and it's a lot of fun. The writers clearly know what kind of story they're telling. The relentless plot twists might seem excessive but I think it's designed to make the audience just as paranoid as the main character. Some of the twists seem like cheats but mostly they're well crafted and happen in unexpected ways. The show isn't remotely believable but that's not the point.

I'm also trying to make my way through season 2 of Star Trek: Picard. I keep hearing how good the third season is so I was trying to get caught up but it's a struggle. The first few episodes are decent but the second season gets worse and worse as it goes along. Can we please put an end to every single snow on TV being about trauma and therapy???