What are you watching right now?

[Cavaliere (moderator emeritus)]

Criminal Minds: "Amplification"

[Jeff of Earth-J]

THE BOOK OF BOBA FETT: Watched episode one tonight. Half of it is flashback to how he escaped from the belly of the sarlac and what happened afterwards, which is all I really wanted to know anyway. I asked the biggest Star Wars fan I know (no, not him) and all he said was, "It happened in the comics." I never did really understand the fascination with Boba Fett. Now that he's taken over Jabba's crime syndicate of Mos Bespa from Bib Fortuna he's made some surprisingly merciful decisions, but I still don't trust him.

[The Baron]

I only know of it because the guy you didn't ask has mentioned it on FB a few dozen times.  I never understood the fascnation with the character, either.

Jeff of Earth-J said:

THE BOOK OF BOBA FETT: Watched episode one tonight. Half of it is flashback to how he escaped from the belly of the sarlac and what happened afterwards, which is all I really wanted to know anyway. I asked the biggest Star Wars fan I know (no, not him) and all he said was, "It happened in the comics." I never did really understand the fascination with Boba Fett. Now that he's taken over Jabba's crime syndicate of Mos Bespa from Bib Fortuna he's made some surprisingly merciful decisions, but I still don't trust him.

[doc photo]

Favreau and Filoni hit it out of the park with The Mandolorian but The Book of Boba Fett has been a bit of a slog.  Boba is best as a minor character. The character, and the actor who portrays him, simply can't carry an entire show.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

We watched episode two of Boba Fett last night. It's set in two time periods: the present (after The Maldalorian) and the past (after Return of the Jedi). The Mandalorian tried to make Fett something more than a bounty hunter (i.e., scum), but at the end he reverted to type when he assumed the mantle of crime lord. The new show seems to be trying to make him into a likeable character again. The action, so far, has been set entirely on Tantooine. I enjoy that they are digging deeper into  the native Tatooine culture(s) that we have seen in the movies. At one point, Fett leads a party of Tusken Raiders against a "sand train" (whose riders pick off Sandpeople like Native Americans while violating their territory). It's visually exciting, but it's hard to pick a side. I'm rooting for Fett's side I guess, but only because I want to see the plot progress, which it won't if he loses. 

[Jeff of Earth-J]

Episode V watches just like S2, E1 of The Mandalorian; Boba Fett isn't even in it. (If one were interested in a strictly linear story, the first four episodes of this series and it wouldn't affect the story.) Episode VI features Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker training Grogu. I don't know how they got him to look so young* (CGI, I imagine), but I wouldn't mind seeing more of The Adventures of Luke Skywalker; that's what Star Wars is supposed to be all about, after all. Usually I complain when series are this short, but this one was just about the right length. I still don't buy that Boba has turned over a new leaf, but overall the series was enjoyable. The next one will be about Obi Kenobi so I'm expecting to enjoy that one more. 

*How did they get him to look so young?" is something of a catchphrase in our house. Back in the '90s I was visiting my brother and decided it was time to introduce my nephews to James Bond. They only knew Sean Connery from The Hunt for Red October, and when he first came on screen one of them asked, "How did they get him to look so young?" (He eventually figured it out.) When I pointed out that James Bond had a phone in his car they were singularly unimpressed. 

[Jeff of Earth-J]

With Tracy out of town I have reverted to Kung Fu and Ultraman (Tiga). I may even thrown in a Hanna-Barbera cartoon or two. 

[Captain Comics]

We just binge-watched both Vikings: Valhalla and season 5 of Last Kingdom. The latter is more historically accurate, but still has its eye-rolling moments. With Valhalla, it helps to think of all this happening on Earth-Two. In both cases, once I checked my irritation over historical errors, I warmed up and enjoyed the story. 

[JD DeLuzio]

Second season of Raised by Wolves

Current season of Mrs. Maisel.

I checked out Astrid & Lilly Save the World but it feels like too much of a low-rent retread, despite addressing some issues with its obvious inspiration, Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

[Richard Willis]

I watched and enjoyed the first three seasons of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Now that all of season four is available I'll be watching it (and looking forward to final season five). It's a tribute to female standup comics and is a lot of fun to watch.

I haven't watched Raised by Wolves yet, but it sounds good. I'm adding it to my to-be-watched list.

I've watched every episode of Astrid & Lilly Save the World. At least a couple of times they nodded to Buffy, once having "Good Monster" Brutus refer to himself as "your Giles." The lead characters are likable and it's probably closer to a real high school than Buffy was (though I love Buffy).

[ClarkKent_DC]

We're enjoying The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and have seen most (but not all) of this season's episodes. Here's hoping there won't be another two-year gap between this season and the next (like there was with this season and the previous one).

[JD DeLuzio]

I think Astrid & Lilly is a little closer to high school, but it still feels a lot like, you know, TV. I mean the school parts; obviously, the fantasy is clearly marked as fantastic, as it was on Buffy. I may go back and catch up on the episodes I missed, but that would be sometime in the future.

It can be difficult coming late to the party. We were joking, with the most recent ep of Raised by Wolves, about how someone might react if they'd never seen the show. Two androids have a conversation that includes the line, "Believers of today have used a biotech tree to weaponize a serpent."

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel remains a must-watch show at our house, but I'm glad next season will be its last. This season feels slightly less marvelous than the first three. The matchmaker mafia subplot is leaving me cold for some reason, even though the show has always been stylized.

[The Baron]

Just finished re-watching Monty Python Live (Mostly): One Down, Five To Go *, a recording of the last Python show from the O2 Arena in London in 2014. It consists of the following.

1. An orchestral medley of "Sit On My Face", "Finland", "SPAM" and "Always Look On the Bright Side of Life".
2. A head shot of Graham Chapman as Mister Neutron set to "Also Sprach Zarathustra", which segues into an animated segment heavily influenced by Doctor Who which ends with the five surviving (at that time) and a guy in a kangaroo suit emerging from the "RETARDIS".
3. The Pythons sing about llamas in Spanish.  Carol Cleveland pops a paper bag.
4. "The Liberty Bell" plays to all of the opening animations from the TV series.
5. Palin, Cleese, Idle and Jones do "The Four Yorkshiremen" sketch.
6. Animation for the TV show segues into footage of "The Fish-Slapping Dance", also from the TV series.  (By and large, when they use footage from the TV series, it's physical stuff that they probby couldn't have re-created without hurting themselves.)
7. More animation segues into Eric Idle singing "The Penis Song", which turns into a production number abut the joys of having a penis, a vagina and a bottom. This in turn turns into Synchronized Camping It Up.
8. Cleese as the Armless Naval Chaplain rants a bit until we get footage of the late Doctor Chapman as the Humorless Colonel and the Re-Enactment of the Battle of Pearl Harbor.
9. Cleese is the Pope and Idle is Michelangelo as the former complains about the latter's portrayal of The Last Supper. This segues into a production number of "Every sperm is Sacred", which in turn segues into Palin and Jons as the Protestant couple from The Meaning of Life.
10. Next is animation of God (re-used from Holy Grail) complaining that the human race was a mistake.
11. Next is footage of the Silly Olympics from the German shows they did back in the day.
12. Palin and Cleese do the Career Counseling sketch which segues into Pailin doing "The Lumberjack Song".  I notice that no one loudly yells "Faggot!" at the end, the way they used to do back in the day.  This bit hasn't really aged well.
13. More animation segues into the "International Philosophers" bit from the German shows, which segues into Palin, Idle, Cleveland and Eddie Izzard doing the Australian Philosophers Song (this bit drags on), which segues back into "International Philosophy".
14. Jones, Cleese and Gilliam do the Whizzo Chocolates sketch. Clesse loses track of his lines once, but recovers well.
15. Palin and Idle do the Man Who Speak Only in Anagrams sketch.
16. Idle leads a production number of "I Like Chinese", with one or two tweaks to the lyrics.
17. Gilliam, Palin, Cleese and Jones are old women who discuss the intermission.
18. The ballet "SPAM Lake" segues into a production number of "Sit On My Face".
19. Old women Jones and Cleese listen to "The Death of Mary, Queen of Scots", and then the penguin on top of their television explodes. They get in some digs at Palin's travel shows.
20. To the tune of "Eric the Half a Bee", Gilliam does Gumby Flower Arranging.
21. Palin and Idle perform the two "flaming" judges.  They getin some digs at Cleese's divorces.
22. More animation leads to the tune of "Never Be Rude To An Arab"which leads to Cleese and Jones doingn the Albatross sketch.
23. Joes and Idle do "Nudge Nudge", during which Idle's mustache starts falling off.
24. Palin hosts "Blackmail", with celebrity guest Mike Myers.
25. Cleese and Idle do the Anne Elk sketch.
26. Animatipns leads into Glliam, Palin and Jones as the Spanish Inquisition, with Cleveland as the old woman, the first time I'd seen her playing one of those parts. Gilliam nearly cracks up Palin.
27. This segues into Idle singing "The Galaxy Song", which innturn leads into a filmed bit where Professor Brian Cox critiques the song until Stephen Hawking runs him over with his wheelchair.  Hawking is shown in the audience.
28. Animation leads into a production number about money based on the Minstry of Silly Walks.
29. Palin and Cleese domtheb Argument Clinic sketch, which leads into Gilliam singing the Legs song.
30. Jones, Cleveland and Idle dothe SPAM sketch, which leads intonthe Vikings singing "Finland".
31. Palin and Cleese do the Dead Parrot sketch. Palin nearly loses it, which causes Cleese to lose his place again. They get in a dig at the editor of the Daily Mail. It turns into the Cheese Shop sketch.
32. Footage of the Exploding Blue Danube is followed by more animation.
33. "Christmas  in Heaven" from Meaning of Life turns into a production number with everyone.
34. In a "spontaneous encore", Idle leads everyone in "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life".
35. We end with "The Liberty Bell" and the captions "Graham Chapman 1941 - 1989", "Monty Python 1969 - 2014"and "Piss Off".

Overall:  It was OK, for what was a nostalgia trip and a "greatest hits" show.  The guys weren't too doddery, and I'm sure no one went to this expecting to see anything else.

Obviously filmed before the passing of Terry Jones