Post Your All-Time Top 10 Television Shows

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  • Posts: 2,161
    Denbigh wrote: »
    Has anyone else seen Penny Dreadful out of interest?

    Couldn't get through more than a couple of episodes.
  • GoldenGunGoldenGun Per ora e per il momento che verrà
    Posts: 7,134
    DarthDimi wrote: »
    Denbigh wrote: »
    Has anyone else seen Penny Dreadful out of interest?

    I have seen a few eps of the first season back in the day, but somehow lost track of the series.

    Same here. I saw the first few episodes and then I lost interest.

    I did, and I quite loved it to be honest.

    Then again, Timmy D, Eva Green and classic monsters in foggy London. A combination that just could not go wrong for me.
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    I had Penny Dreadful on my radar back when it first released, but never got around to it. Part of the problem is that as time goes on there's more and more great shows to watch and at a certain point you must become discerning about how you spend your time. I've spent most of the last few years on a work shift that gave me very little free time, and each moment counted, so there was large spaces of time where I watch nothing but videos on YouTube. And now YouTube has replaced cable for me, and I don't watch anything but that content.

    Being a creative person myself, I usually find myself working on some project of my own instead of spending time watching movies or shows, as much as I'd like to do those things. Every moment is very precious these days, and I'd rather be making my own things than watching what others made at this point, because if I don't prioritize my own pursuits they'll never be completed and I am trying to build up my portfolio of work to get out of the rut I'm currently in work wise. There's days where I envy the average Joe or Jesse who aren't creatively minded and don't have a thousand ideas barking in their head at once that they're trying to give time and attention to, because without that nagging I'd probably just relax all day off work and enjoy films or shows I have never been able to catch up on. But most days I'm glad I am the way I am, as I am finally at a point where I give myself credit for the things I make, which wasn't always the case. Wish I could shut my brain off once in a while, though.
  • mattjoesmattjoes Julie T. and the M.G.'s
    Posts: 7,021
    Practically the only show I go out of my way to watch is Columbo. Most others I watch incidentally. I prefer films and books, as they represent a shorter time commitment and expose me more quickly to different styles, aesthetics, ideas and points of view. I too have started to pursuit creative endeavors more intensely than before. The art forms I've experienced so far have provided an education of sorts in many respects. It happened when I wasn't looking.

    That said, after Columbo, I would definitely consider watching Penny Dreadful, more than many other recent shows.
  • DragonpolDragonpol https://thebondologistblog.blogspot.com
    edited November 2022 Posts: 18,280
    mattjoes wrote: »
    Practically the only show I go out of my way to watch is Columbo. Most others I watch incidentally. I prefer films and books, as they represent a shorter time commitment and expose me more quickly to different styles, aesthetics, ideas and points of view. I too have started to pursuit creative endeavors more intensely than before. The art forms I've experienced so far have provided an education of sorts in many respects. It happened when I wasn't looking.

    That said, after Columbo, I would definitely consider watching Penny Dreadful, more than many other recent shows.

    A man after my own heart when it comes to Columbo. My favourite TV series of all time and one of my biggest passions outside of James Bond. I've loved them both since childhood.

    I still need to do a list for this thread actually although I might struggle to come up with ten favourite TV shows.
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    @mattjoes, so are you in the same boat as I am where you feel like you watch less of every kind of entertainment than ever before? I barely even head to the theaters anymore, but that's mostly because I don't find much worth seeing. Still, I feel more out of touch with what's being produced for TV and film than ever before. I don't really mind that, though. I have always watched movies and shows that were decades older than whatever the present day time was anyway, so I'm never considered about not being up to date.

    Been going through all the old episodes of Wanted: Dead or Alive recently, as a matter of fact, and having a helluva time with it. You learn a lot as a viewer and as a writer about how to produce economical and effective storytelling when you're only given about 20 to 30 minutes per episode to do it. I am continually impressed by just how much these old shows managed to accomplish despite their technical disadvantages and censors. Been on quite the western kick recently and WDoA is my go to for old westerns. Like The Rifleman and Gunsmoke as well, but this one just does it for me. I like that so many of the stories have stark endings with loose ends left untied, which feels very true to the period and is surprisingly experimental given so much of the other TV that was on at the time that strove to be comfort food programming. Easy to see why Steve McQueen got propelled to stardom as a result, as you can see all his potential on full display.
  • mattjoesmattjoes Julie T. and the M.G.'s
    Posts: 7,021
    @mattjoes, so are you in the same boat as I am where you feel like you watch less of every kind of entertainment than ever before?
    No, I still watch a lot, even more than before, and of a greater variety. It's just TV shows that I experience in limited quantities. I gorge on films.

    I barely even head to the theaters anymore, but that's mostly because I don't find much worth seeing. Still, I feel more out of touch with what's being produced for TV and film than ever before. I don't really mind that, though. I have always watched movies and shows that were decades older than whatever the present day time was anyway, so I'm never considered about not being up to date.
    I too tend to watch older films. My endless source of fascination are the US films of the nineties; they're my bread-and-butter, though certainly not my whole diet. Despite my preference for older films, I recently decided to make a point of watching a minimum of new films released each year.

    Been going through all the old episodes of Wanted: Dead or Alive recently, as a matter of fact, and having a helluva time with it. You learn a lot as a viewer and as a writer about how to produce economical and effective storytelling when you're only given about 20 to 30 minutes per episode to do it. I am continually impressed by just how much these old shows managed to accomplish despite their technical disadvantages and censors. Been on quite the western kick recently and WDoA is my go to for old westerns. Like The Rifleman and Gunsmoke as well, but this one just does it for me. I like that so many of the stories have stark endings with loose ends left untied, which feels very true to the period and is surprisingly experimental given so much of the other TV that was on at the time that strove to be comfort food programming. Easy to see why Steve McQueen got propelled to stardom as a result, as you can see all his potential on full display.
    Westerns are an underexplored genre for me, but I can think of several I want to watch. Nothing like the strong traditions and conventions of a genre to emphasize, by contrast, the multiple ways in which one can play with them.
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    @mattjoes, if you do ever get into watching more westerns, you can hit me up any time. I have a lot of recommendations I could give you to get you started on your way, from back in the day to more recent times. At this point I love westerns about as much as I love noir films and mysteries, the latter of which used to dominate my life. There's just something about them. The right western can do so many things...They can transport you back to a time where survival wasn't a guarantee, depict a world pre-industrialization that is undiscovered and untamed, and tell incredibly complicated morality tales with its rich assortment of character types. I personally don't like a lot of old school westerns that were very "clean" in their look and storytelling, and have always gravitated more to revisionist westerns that went out of their way to present all the dangers and depravity of that time with their more mature stories, to the point that the rugged grit, grime, filth, dust and despair of the locations just drip from the screen.
  • Posts: 7,430
    Denbigh wrote: »
    Has anyone else seen Penny Dreadful out of interest?

    Yes I have seen 'Penny Dreadful' loved it
  • mattjoesmattjoes Julie T. and the M.G.'s
    Posts: 7,021
    @mattjoes, if you do ever get into watching more westerns, you can hit me up any time. I have a lot of recommendations I could give you to get you started on your way, from back in the day to more recent times. At this point I love westerns about as much as I love noir films and mysteries, the latter of which used to dominate my life. There's just something about them. The right western can do so many things...They can transport you back to a time where survival wasn't a guarantee, depict a world pre-industrialization that is undiscovered and untamed, and tell incredibly complicated morality tales with its rich assortment of character types. I personally don't like a lot of old school westerns that were very "clean" in their look and storytelling, and have always gravitated more to revisionist westerns that went out of their way to present all the dangers and depravity of that time with their more mature stories, to the point that the rugged grit, grime, filth, dust and despair of the locations just drip from the screen.

    Thank you.

    I also find those kinds of Westerns interesting. I watched a German "neo-Western" named Deadlock some time ago, in which Anthony Dawson appears. My review is somewhere in that Last Movie You Watched thread.
  • MaxCasinoMaxCasino United States
    Posts: 4,634
    @mattjoes and @0BradyM0Bondfanatic7 you both see TV as I do. I don’t really watch TV until after something is done, or been on for a while. Sometimes I watch shows that weren’t on for too long, as I feel that you can creatively learn more from failures than successes. I’m not much of a Western fan, I admire what the genre has done. It could still make a big comeback. One show that I could go back and rewatch again and again is Batman The Animated Series (1992). There’s a lot to learn from that show.
  • DenbighDenbigh UK
    Posts: 5,970
    Mathis1 wrote: »
    Denbigh wrote: »
    Has anyone else seen Penny Dreadful out of interest?
    Yes I have seen 'Penny Dreadful' loved it
    Same @Mathis1, the writing is so good.
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    @MaxCasino, with how long it takes me to get caught up on some shows, I more often than not get to them when they are finished, which is actually nice. The only thing I worry about is spoilers, because knowing too much about a show can kill any interest I have in watching it, which is what happened with Game of Thrones and anything else popular enough that the whole world thinks everyone has time to watch the newest episode or season as soon as it comes out. I remember fondly the weekend I was home from college on Easter vacation and watched all of Breaking Bad within four or five days. I barely slept or ate, I was so hooked on it. These days I never have any time to binge a show, and instead watch an episode or two here or there when I'm having a meal in the morning or at night, so it takes me a long time to get through shows anymore. I took for granted my youth, where time was unlimited. It is definitely nice to know when a show ends and you don't have to waste time getting into a show destined for death.

    I get what you mean by learning from where shows fail. I have a pretty good detector for a show that won't last at this point. I think a lot of us that are creatively minded or that watch a lot of TV can spot the red flags that make for a dead fish program. At this point there are common pitfalls that you can get a keen sense of that spell death for the show.

    Westerns seem to be something that older generations/watchers prominently get into, as I don't see a lot of young people that get into them. I've always felt like an old man, so it makes sense why I enjoy them as much as I do. I think the genre has produced a lot of great things in the last ten to fifteen years, so it's come as close to having a comeback as it's had since Clint Eastwood made Unforgiven. 3:10 To Yuma and True Grit were both remakes that trumped their originals and showed how far the genre can be pushed in conveying powerful narratives with complicated characters, and other movies like The Proposition, Hell or High Water, Hostiles and Bone Tomahawk are now amongst my favorite westerns ever made, and are just great films in their own right. Other films in the genre like There Will Be Blood, No Country For Old Men, Django Unchained, The Revenant and Power of the Dog also lit a fire and got a lot of audience and awards attention over the years, as did shows like Deadwood, Westworld, Godless, Hell on Wheels, Justified, and especially my personal favorites, Longmire and Yellowstone. Games like the Red Dead Redemption series have also exploded and gotten people even more familiar with westerns and their tropes. It's a great time to be a western fan, as there's not been such a high concentration of high quality entertainment in the genre since the 50s and 60s. Makes me proud.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,976
    MaxCasino wrote: »
    @mattjoes and @0BradyM0Bondfanatic7 you both see TV as I do. I don’t really watch TV until after something is done, or been on for a while. Sometimes I watch shows that weren’t on for too long, as I feel that you can creatively learn more from failures than successes. I’m not much of a Western fan, I admire what the genre has done. It could still make a big comeback. One show that I could go back and rewatch again and again is Batman The Animated Series (1992). There’s a lot to learn from that show.

    That's the best way to do it. I'm tired of sticking with shows from day one just to have them canceled years down the road. It's a waste of my time.
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    @Creasy47, or, as seems to be more common these days, a show goes on too long and the quality takes a nosedive later on, making you feel like crap for sticking with it for so long just to be disappointed.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,976
    @Creasy47, or, as seems to be more common these days, a show goes on too long and the quality takes a nosedive later on, making you feel like crap for sticking with it for so long just to be disappointed.

    Exactly, so you either cut out while you can or stick out the worst of it just to say you saw it through to the end. It's a lose/lose.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    I've just watched the first two episodes of Wednesday and I must admit that I'm smitten by Jenna Ortega's portrayal of the titular character. Single-digit me fell in love with Christina Ricci's Wednesday Addams back in the '90s. The character has been a favourite of mine ever since. And now, Jenna Ortega, whom I loved in You, X, Scream, The Babysitter 2 and The Fallout, is giving me yet another intensely amusing Wednesday. I'm not saying the series has captivated me already, but the central character sure has.
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    @DarthDimi, Ortega is definitely impressive for a young actress. Says a lot about a performer when they can lit up the screen while playing a character that's very dead inside. ;-)
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    @DarthDimi, Ortega is definitely impressive for a young actress. Says a lot about a performer when they can lit up the screen while playing a character that's very dead inside. ;-)

    Very well put. I have always been impressed by young actresses playing subversive characters in a comically dark way. Christina Ricci's Wednesday, Grace-Moretz's Hit-Girl, now Ortega's Wednesday... And Jenna's already had a brilliant couple of years. I hope she'll build an even stronger career from here.
  • DwayneDwayne New York City
    Posts: 2,847
    Speaking of the Addam's Family, I had to look it up, but Lisa Loring – Wednesday, in the 1964-1966 TV series – will be 65 years of age next year.
    LfMpH-1620764158-3551-blog-Wednesday%20Addams.jpg
    God ….. I’m old.
    :))
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    @DarthDimi, I'm not surprised you've enjoyed her work in the last few years, being the big horror fan you are. She's definitely a scream queen for a new generation, like Jamie Lee Curtis and Neve Campbell were before her.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    @DarthDimi, I'm not surprised you've enjoyed her work in the last few years, being the big horror fan you are. She's definitely a scream queen for a new generation, like Jamie Lee Curtis and Neve Campbell were before her.

    I also think she's incredibly beautiful. That helps. ;-)
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    DarthDimi wrote: »
    @DarthDimi, I'm not surprised you've enjoyed her work in the last few years, being the big horror fan you are. She's definitely a scream queen for a new generation, like Jamie Lee Curtis and Neve Campbell were before her.

    I also think she's incredibly beautiful. That helps. ;-)

    Yes, they all have that in common. ;-)
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