TV: Ode to Deadwood

 I found this old review I wrote January 5, 2016. Things have changed since! 

I am re-watching Deadwood Season One... It's funny to me how deep I fell into this show immediately even now as I'm watching it for the second time. This is notable because The Wire, which is possibly my favorite TV show, has a slow start each season and it takes about three episodes before you get fully invested and wanting to know what is next.

Deadwood hits you... BAM! Who's this guy who walks funny? Why is that whore so dedicated to that mean dude?  What the heck happened to that family and why is that plotline taking so much time in these episodes?

I think this show is shot beautifully. The cinematography manages to take in the landscape of this mining-camp-growing-up and also focus on the characters. The dialogues are framed really well, and just leave the audience wanting to know who is the real bad guy in this situation. Some scenes are just downright artsy fartsy, but nothing seems out of place.

I particularly like David Milch's character dialogues and monologues in this show. I like the way the word "fuck" is used so artfully and sometimes completely appropriate and intelligently. He does good dialogue, but not always good story as was evidenced in John From Cincinatti, which was the flop-of-a-TV-show he carelessly tossed Deadwood aside for. Butthead.

So, now I'm re-watching and loving Deadwood, a show that will never offer me a finale. A show who's characters are forever stuck in screen-written purgatory. May you one day rest in peace.

Movie: All the Saints of Newark (2021) ***

 “It’s the wanting.” – Uncle Sally

Let me start by saying The Sopranos is my favorite television show. I love the writing, the acting, the atmosphere, the magically authentic way a family drama blends with the dark comedy of mafia life. 

When I heard they were making a Sopranos movie, I sent up prayers to the gods of television and big screen that they wouldn’t ruin the show in any way. I can say that my prayers were answered. I enjoyed The Many Saints of Newark, but it took a little bit of work to get there.

First of all, I had to separate the fact from fiction: I saw some of the junket surrounding the movie. People were describing it as the making of Tony Soprano, the man, through his childhood and teenage formative years. The first time I watched the movie, I was disappointed because that is not what the movie is about. After I finished the movie for the second time, I decided that this wasn’t about the making of Tony, The Saints was about Dickie and Harold. Tony took backseat to those storylines. 

 

The good: 

They filled in the backstory of Uncle Junior and why he was so bitter, jealous and single. 

Vera Farmiga played the hell out of Livia Soprano. 

The actor who played Janice, Alexandra Intrator, was also fantastic and really captured her mannerisms.

The bad:

I wanted more out of the voiceover narrative by Chrissie. He could have explained Pussy’s name. He could have provided a verbal bridge between Dickie’s behavior and Tony’s adult behavior. 

 

Who’s the boss of Newark? I don’t know who ran the show. 

 

Will someone please explain the blind baseball team? Was that a wishful thinking sequence? That was a perfect opportunity for a Chrissie narrative to do some ‘splaining. 

 

Although I liked how it looked, why did the beach scene all of a sudden turn into an arthouse short? The only thing that came to mind was that they were trying to link it to Tony’s boardwalk dreams. 

TV: Game of Thrones Season 9 Conversation (So full of spoilers)

I was talking to someone about movies/TV shows and they asked me to give the a recap of Game of Thrones season 9. She plans on watching it when the DVDs were released, but the anticipation and dodging was killing her. She wanted to hear the story and she wanted it from me. How flattering! The following is my recollection of the conversation and it is so full of spoilers and errors.

Her: What happened in the end?

Me: Jon Snow assassinated the Dragon Queen. They formed a council of sorts and put Bran in charge. The end.

Her: They killed the Dragon Queen?!

Me: Yes.

Her: JON killed the Dragon Queen?!!

Me: Yes.

Her: Wha?!!!

Me: He realized she was heading down the road to madness just like her father and rather than risk any more lives and property, he stabbed her. She died. Since he killed the queen he was banished back to the Night’s Watch.

Her: So he didn’t become king? Wasn’t he supposed to be king?

Me: Yes.

Her: They were related. Nasty! How, again? 

[This results in a longer than necessary discussion of Jon Snow’s family tree, then me Googling it.]

Me: She was his aunt.

Her: His aunt?!

Me: Yes.

[And then we sidetracked into a discussion of Targaryen madness.]

Her: I can’t believe it no wonder people are mad. Wait! What happened to those things?

Me: Uhhh....

Her: The zombie things.

Me: White Walkers?

Her: Yeah.

Me: There was a huge battle. It was fantastic television. Oh my goodness! I remember watching it and being so on edge!

Her: What happens to them?!

Me: Oh. Uh. I can’t remember. Hmm...
[At this point she takes a bathroom break to give me some time to recall. I couldn’t for the life of me, so I consulted a co-worker.]

[She comes back from the bathroom.]

Me: I got it. Arya killed the main guy and they all went down. 

Her: What main guy?

Me: You know the main White Walker guy? He rode the horse?

Her: Oh yeah, yeah, yeah! Arya? That girl is something, isn’t she? Good. What happened to the red lady?

Me: Oh that was good. She sacrificed herself to help defeat the White Walkers. She started a massive bonfire.

Her: You know she foresaw that. Wow sacrifice. And what about that one guy, the one without a penis?

Me: Ha! Which one?!

Her: The eunuch? The big guy?

Me: Oh yeah, him. Pretty sure he died can’t remember how, though.

Her: She predicted his death, too. Okay, what about those other incestuous people?

Me: Jaime and the really mean one? The Lannisters. Pretty sure they were buried alive after dragon lady destroyed that whole town.

Her: Serves them. He was evil from the beginning when he pushed that boy and I though he was the devil himself because he had such a smooth voice and worked it for some sympathy. Uh hmm. What about that guy without a penis?

Me: Ha!

Her: The one who had it cut off. And do you remember that scene when it happened and they guy who did it was eating sausage? Do you think...

Me: Theon! Theon died! It was right before Arya killed the White Walker guy. He was protecting Bran who was standing out in the woods by the tree, then Arya came out of nowhere. Stab!

Her: Oh yeah, he liked them woods. That’s too bad. He was growing on me. The big guy?

Me: The book guy? Pretty sure he lived.

Her: Did he make an honest woman of that girl?

Me: I can’t remember, but I don’t think they got married.

Her: That poor baby. What happened to Greyworm?

Me: You mean the other guy without a penis?!

Her: Ha!

Me: He went in a rage after... wait, maybe you should sit for this: They killed Missandei.

Her:  That's Greyworm's girlfriend, right? What?!! She’s dead?!!!

Me: Yep. The Lannisters.

Her: But she didn’t do anything!

Me: I think that was the point. She was insignificant to everyone, but Dragon Queen and Greyworm and the audience. It was a good plot point.

I can’t believe it! Not Sandy!

Me: Missandei. So, Greyworm and Dragon Queen tore up Queen’s Landing after that. Who else?

Her: The other Stark girl?

Me: Lived. So Bran’s head of the council, Jon’s on the Night’s Watch. Arya's is still on her own and Sansa is on the council, I think.

Her: Al the Lannisters are dead?

Me: Yep. Wait! Except Tyrion.

Her: Who's that? 

Me: The short one.

Her: Yeah. And the penis guy’s sister?

Me: Theon’s sister lived, I think.

Her: Okay. I feel better.

Me: Glad to help.

Big Love (2006 - 2011)***

I'm re-watching Big Love, a show that was one of HBO's early golden era offerings and that I watched religiously (Ha!) when it originally aired.

Big Love starts out great. I binged season 1 and 2 easily. It is a fast-paced, intricately plotted, character-driven show about faith and relationships in a world full of secrets covered by shiny, righteous smiles. Each show is high-drama and hopeful at the same time with a large cast of likeable, flawed and sympathetic characters. But along with DoctorBlake Mysteries, The Mentalist, and so many other shows and films, the central character of Big Love, Bill, is what I have come to call the Lucky Reckless Man.

As with all shows that have this Lucky Reckless Man trope, Bill is surrounded by amazing people with dynamic stories and that's what keeps me coming back for more. By season 3 and definitely in season 4 it becomes more obvious how horrible and selfish Bill is. He puts everyone close to him in physical, spiritual and emotional danger with his schemes stacked upon shaky schemes. Like a stupid superhero, he reveals his plans to his adversaries then believes that his faith will make things happen. And it does. He either has dumb luck or an eyes-half-shut Heavenly Father.

My favorite episode is season 3, episode 6, Come, Ye Saints, where the Henrickson family goes on a Mormon pilgrimage, visiting sacred landmarks along the way. Bill is shocked because he finally stops his scheming long enough to take a good look at his family only to see how unhappy they are. All the while other issues rise up like the angel Moroni.

I hate that I wrote a paragraph about how horrible Bill is, but the show and the other awesome characters wouldn't be if it weren't for him and his scheming, so I'll continue to re-watch until the end of the season, which if I can remember correctly, is very fulfilling. Bye, Bill.

This fall into Fun because I will probably watch it again, and it gets three stars ***. Geez.
I rewatched this on Amazon. 

TV: The Leftovers, Season 2 (2015)

I'm done with the Leftovers. I think I might have said this once during the first season, but three episodes into the second season and it is confirmed that I don't want to know what happened, what is happening and what will happen on that show. Episode 3 confirmed it when it ended with the line: “Who wants a hug?”

From what I have understood so far, The Leftovers is a show about what is happening in the life of the main characters since The Departure, or, when 2% of the world's population just disappeared all at the same time. The first season kept you guessing: Is there something supernatural at play or is this all hoax and hoopla? The characters were interesting and that mystery wasn't too bad. But, so far, this second season has really struck the same note as Lost, Flash Forward, and all those other “shows that have no end” as my bestie puts it, so well.

So, I did some light internet research to figure out if there were any “shows that have no end” that I liked (Google search: Shows like Lost) and came up with these:

Twin Peaks- I watched this entire series, but I was 10-11 years old when this was on and it was what my parents were watching, so, I just watched it. FYI: My parents love “shows that have no end” to this day. The latest program I was appalled they followed was The Dome.

Carnivale- Oh! I knew there was supernaturalness going on in this show. There was no question about that. I'm just upset they never got to finish it. Why did you pull the plug, HBO? It's like they hired a Fox representative the week they were planning the third season.

V- V? I was going through the list of Lost replacements and someone recommended V. I disagree. That show has an ending. A damn good one and a theme sequence that shows a horse vs. a space ship!

Okay. I think that's it of the Lost replacements aka “shows that have no end” that I agree with.

As far as The Leftovers, Season 2, it gets one star*. Yay! The first one star* post! It gets one star* because, unlike real leftovers, I don't want to finish it. Happy belated Thanksgiving, by the way.