tv_talk | Speak Up Saturday 💌

This past week I made myself decide if I wanted to continue with various shows I'd started -- shows of which I'd watched 1-3 eps, but not gone back to in weeks. A couple I decided to ditch completely. Two others, I finished watching this week. They were series 3 of Blue Lights, the BBC cop show set in Northern Ireland, and The Hack, the dramatization of the UK phone hacking scandal. I still have a few others I need to decide what to do with.

The only new show I started this week is Borderline, a cop series a bit reminiscent of the various versions of Bron/Broen (The Bridge), with one cop, DCI Philip Boyd, being from the PSNI (Northern Ireland) and the other, DI Aoife Regan, from the Garda Síochána (Irish Republic) who are forced to work together when crimes straddle both countries. I'm liking it thus far. It's a total of 6 episodes, with each case taking up 2 episodes. I have been meaning to watch at least the first episode of Riot Women, but haven't managed to fit that one in yet.

Otherwise, it was weekly episodes of Brilliant Minds, Murder in a Small Town, High Potential, British Bake Off, Celebrity Traitors (so much fun!), Canadian Bake Off, and All Creatures Great and Small.

As for looking forward to... a new series of The Traitors Canada starts this week, but I know going in it won't be anywhere near as fun/good as the UK's Celebrity Traitors. But I'll still watch. And baseball. Maybe. We'll see what happens on Sunday...

What did you think of The Hack? I stuck that in my watchlist for my next go-round with Britbox. Borderline sounds interesting as well.

I liked it, but I can see how it might not appeal to others. It's from the same person/people behind Mr. Bates vs the Post Office, but, as the Guardian noted, not quite as sympathetic? Like, you don't get emotionally involved with the main character, played by David Tennant. It also employs a lot of 4th wall-breaking in some episodes because it's the only way to dramatize journalism (which admittedly is not particularly camera-friendly). Plus, I was already extremely familiar with the entire saga because I followed it very closely at the time, so I enjoyed seeing certain MPs and others dramatized. Someone coming in cold might struggle with what is a fairly complex story with lots of moving parts and characters.

I remember it to some degree but I imagine we get less UK news here than in Canada. I'll definitely give it a go.

Not sure how much coverage it got in actual Canadian news media. As part of my job, I keep track of parliamentary on-goings in the UK (and other places), so read The Guardian and other UK online media sources pretty much daily. Plus I watched the various select committee hearings that dealt with the issue, etc. So I knew WAY more about it than the average Canadian -- and likely more than a lot of British people as well.

A mishmash of stuff this week. No Daily Show but caught up with Colbert and Oliver. Colbert had a Community Calendar segment which I was delighted to see (and also surprised to hear it's one of his favorites to do).

Watched a bit more of Jennings' Jeopardy run, the latest Millionaire, a few Name That Tunes, and the latest Dancing With the Stars. Looks like they're bringing back the Threesome dances, just in a different form.

Continued watching High Potential, and might or might not watch more Cold Case. Tried out Sherlock & Daughter instead and am a few episodes into it. It's ok. Also started House of the Dragon and am partway through that first season.

Recs of the week are Marvel Zombies (has plot holes but also has heart, great opportunity for Kamala), and Full Circle (Satisfying mystery with a lot of different puzzle pieces and characters).

In movies, saw Caddo Lake (had a few things to say) and rewatched the latest Superman with my partner as I thought he'd like it. He did. He was amused that Tsar Peter was now Lex Luthor. My favorite bit remains "Where's the dog?"

Edited 2025-10-18 17:45 (UTC)

Tried out Sherlock & Daughter

I actually went to university (for one year) with guy behind that series, Brendan Foley. It was only for one year because I was doing an exchange year at the University of York, in the UK. We lost touch but reconnected a couple of years ago and exchange the occasional email.

Oh interesting!

I was surprised to see this listed as a CW show, given the fate of that network. I don't recall it debuting.

I finished Marvel Zombies and I'm not sure how I feel about the ending. It seems a lot more open than what I expected from a mini-series.

Ghosts is back for S5. I think the solution to the obstacle set up in the S4 finale was a bit too easy. That could have taken longer. Still, I love this show and I'm happy it's back :D

Abbott Elementary's episode was a bit weird, but part of this is not being into any sport and baseball isn't a thing here at all. Ava is not my favorite character anyway, but why is she dating O'Shon? I have a hard time rooting for them as a couple and don't find the relationship very funny either.

I haven't started the new season of Watson or The Diplomat. I'm also not caught up on Gen V which will already be over next week...

I saw Ghosts pop up on my Continue Watching so will check out its return.

Agreed that Zombies looks like it could have a continuation.

Marvel tends to do that with its animated series. Actually all its series have a tendency to be open-ended? I find it annoying. But it may be a result of the comics - they are also open-ended. Marvel isn't good at ending storylines or so I've noticed, which may just be the genre.

That is a good point actually. It really happens with all Marvel shows.

I was so sure that Zombies was supposed to be a mini-series, but I shouldn't be surprised that they want options in case it does well.

My partner and I are concurrently watching The Newsreader (nearing the end of season 2), Alien Earth, and Typhoon Family (only two episodes are out so far), all of which we're enjoying in very different ways. Also, the kids' cartoon Bluey.

With a friend, we finished Low Life on Friday and plan to start the new season of Slow Horses next.

A different friend and I are watching Mystic Pop-Up Bar, and my sister and I are still watching Fringe season 2.

And on my own, I'm flipping between A Hundred Memories and You and Everything Else, but haven't settled on either. I'm also taking part in a half-episode-per-week rewatch of Guardian (Cdrama), the show that's been my primary fandom since late 2018. :-)

Me and my partner decided to jump into watching Supernatural. Have no idea if we'll watch it all since there's 15 seasons, but it's a pop culture touchstone we still haven't dipped a toe in yet. We're up to episode 7 so far.

I used to love Supernatural. I highly recommend S1-5. However, I think it is worth watching beyond that. The seasons are so long and there are fun Monster of the Week episodes. While the main mythology lost me along the way, I always liked the show enough not to quit ;)

1. Started doing an Angel rewatch with my Buffy rewatch. I've not watched Angel since it ended in 2004? I like it better now than I did then. Which is interesting. I think it's because I no longer care if Buffy shows up in it? And rather she didn't? And they keep the two separate? While back then - I wanted the cross-overs? I don't know. Clearly my tastes have changed slightly. It's a good supernatural noir detective tale - uneven in places, but overall interesting characters. More episodic in S1 - much like Buffy was in S1, it's not until S2 that they decide (much like they did with Buffy) to go serial. I don't think the writers liked stealth anthology - which they kept attempting periodically in both shows, and kept giving up on?

Buffy is still the lighter and dare I say, more innovative and experimental of the two. Also better written. But I like both for different reasons. And what I really like about both shows - is the women (on either) don't need a man to complete them - they have agency. And the men don't necessarily require a woman to complete them. Neither show - pushes romance as the end game, and seems to value friendship more? Or platonic relationships?

2. Rain Maker - this is a legal thriller/procedural - from John Grisham, who is an executive producer. It stars Lana Parilla (Once Upon a Time) as Bruiser, a badass female attorney, John Slattery (Mad Men) as the sleazy head of a big firm, they are in the supporting roles. It's about a guy out of law school, who comes from lower middle to working class roots - got fired from a big firm, and is now working as an associate for Bruiser. He's trying to bring her cases - and become a rain maker, so he'll earn his keep and get ahead. His girl-friend is with the big firm that fired him. The case he finds and signs - is the mystery that is stretched across the episodes serial style. It's not episodic, more one case across a season. I'm watching it on Peacock with commercials. (On episode 4) - it's on Peacock (NBC) in the US.

3. Poker Face - still meandering through S1. On Episode 9. Stealth Anthology, each episode is self-contained mystery, we know who, what, how, and why - the mystery is how the detective figures it out. It's very similar to Columbo. Although later episodes are more slow to show the what/how, or the why. Also how Charlie gets involved is part of the mystery and how she fixes things or figures it out. If you like Knives Out, or Rian Johnson, also the old Alfred Hitchcock Presents and Agatha Christie mysteries - this may be up your alley. I'm enjoying it. It's on Peacock in the US, with commercials (cheaper).

4. The Diplomat S3 is available on Netflix - it's fun. Great dialogue. Great cast. Plot is a nice satiric take on politics. (I just wish I wish living in that world sometimes and not the one I'm in - I'd rather have Alison Janey as President, which sigh...I'd never thought I'd say, but here we are.) I find the series hilarious and a lot of fun. But it's not for everyone? Stars Kerri Russel, Rufus Sewell, Alison Janney, Bradford Whitford (both from West Wing), and well, my favorite character is the CIA head at the Embassy. It's about an American Ambassador to the UK - and well, the chaos that ensues when she stumbles upon a terrorist act that...well was commissioned by someone high up on the power food chain. (It's not really a thriller - so much as a rapid fire comedic satire with delicious dialogue.)

[Still watching Great British Bake Off, General Hospital (with my mother - I actually watch mainly to have something to talk to mother about that is innocuous), Call the Mid-Wife, and Grey's Anatomy as comfort shows.]

Edited 2025-10-19 01:40 (UTC)

I really hope we'll get a third season of Poker Face. I love that show.

Personally, I really like the tone of The Diplomat. The mix of comedy/satire and drama works well for me. I haven't gotten around to S3 yet, but will get there soon.

It seems probable there will be a third season of Poker Face (since it's done well). I'm still on S1.

I might be interested in checking out Rain Maker next time I'm getting Peacock.

I think you'd like it? It's a mystery/legal procedural/thriller - with the lawyers acting as detectives. Also one mystery across the season.

I'm in a mood for mystery television series - or solving a problem right now, apparently.

I think Joss Whedon (ugh) has said the doesn't like doing happy endings for couples, so that might be part of it as well. (I also could be wrong about that. It might just be that his pairings tend to have tragic endings.) However, I think Buffy and Angel the Series also wanted to show the importance of platonic relationships, which I like. A lot of media showcases the romantic pairings as the most important stories - and I'm not going to say that romance isn't important to many people. But I like having a show where in the end, they're about friendship and found family. Maybe Buffy more so than Angel, considering spoilery things. (I wish DW had a spoiler cut tag thing.)

Your wish has been answered! Spoiler cut tags: https://fancake.dreamwidth.org/2117955.html

I'm currently watching Romantics Anonymous. It's cute, but I was hoping for something more swoonworthy.

Movies:
One Battle After Another: I really disliked the trailer, but this movie was a lot more entertaining than expected, despite the length.

The Monkey: Pretty silly and comedic only in the sense that there is a lot of useless violence.

I checked out a few new things but none of them stuck (so far).

Melancholia - noona kdrama with a maths genius student and his teacher (apparently the romance only starts after he's no longer her student but I didn't get very far in). Looks interesting.

Bon appetit your majesty - I got through ep one, typical kdrama length of over an hour, so that's not as little as it sounds. So far hasn't gripped me, but I'm willing to try.

A Moment But Forever - I'm on ep 20 now, over half of its 36 eps. I really like the current arc, there's lots of dream sequences and magic fights, and finally the ML gets a bit of face acting to do (he has to be mostly stoic otherwise). I'm really enjoying it for the magic and beautiful scenery/creatures, so I don't mind that the romance is glacially slow so far.

The Long Ballad - another Wu Lei drama. OMG why did nobody tell me that this has a) a cross-dressing FL and b) Wu Lei in "barbarian" braids? I am smitten. The storytelling is quite good, too, the characters are all flawed in different ways, and the action isn't quite as ott tropey as on other shows. Still plenty, the ML has to save the FL again and again, all the usual tropes are there, but she also has agency and gets stuff done on her own. The only thing I really don't like much is that it's obviously cast with only young idol actors who are too young for their roles (especially Wu Lei omg - he was 20!). But that's really my only complaint so far. The gender thing is quite nice, I'm on ep 10 now and she's still running around in men's clothing so far. Even with 40 eps to go, I'm already considering slowing down (which only happens if I really like a thing). I guess that's a good thing.

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