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Post by Tommen_Saperstein on Dec 10, 2019 5:29:01 GMT
I haven't seen S3 yet but I can't wait to get to it. So much to watch, so little time. I till need to finish Mr. Robot, and I haven't started Watchmen yet, and The Witcher comes out in 10 days...
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Post by Pavan on Dec 10, 2019 6:22:15 GMT
I'm 5 episodes in. Show's pretty good as usual but the costumes are fabulous this season.
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Post by Tommen_Saperstein on Dec 10, 2019 7:41:22 GMT
I'm 5 episodes in. Show's pretty good as usual but the costumes are fabulous this season. have they ever not been fabulous?
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Post by Pavan on Dec 11, 2019 12:07:31 GMT
Not as great as the first two seasons but still very entertaining and delightful to watch. Rachel Brosnahan is a treat to the eyes. Her presence, acting and looks Parents got a fair share of screen time this season while Alex Borstein only had a few great moments. On the flip side i feel the show is getting stuck as far as Midge's arc is concerned. It is too busy dancing in own delights and while that's easier to watch i also think i could do greater things.
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LaraQ
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English Rose
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Post by LaraQ on Dec 11, 2019 12:34:50 GMT
I'm a few episodes in and it's fine but maybe Midge's schtick is starting to wear on me a bit because I'm not enjoying it as much as the first 2 seasons.
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Post by Pavan on Dec 13, 2019 7:22:57 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Dec 13, 2019 12:46:57 GMT
I'm a few episodes in and it's fine but maybe Midge's schtick is starting to wear on me a bit because I'm not enjoying it as much as the first 2 seasons. I just don't think I can muster the energy to even begin Season 3.
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Post by DeepArcher on Dec 14, 2019 4:19:31 GMT
Another good season, but most have noted it as a downgrade from the first two and I would agree, largely for a key reason that I've seen it criticized for already: there's really no plot development. At all. This season sees the series at by far it's most indulgent -- and don't get me wrong, that's not entirely a negative. I love the performative quality of the show, I love its gorgeous visuals and its energetic showmanship, so, yeah, the fact that season 3 doubles down (to put it lightly) on the ostentatiousness and its flair for the theatrics was really entertaining; that's the content I come to this show for, and I got it in spades.
But because of how much time it spends indulging in itself, any sense of narrative gets entirely put on the back-burner and the season winds up being, for the most part, really stagnant. A lot of that has to do with the fact that at this point in the story Midge's career is just taking off, and because of that, there's really very little conflict to be found in this season, other than what they can use to make social statements ... which is fine, but it turns this season into a case where each individual episode is sort of going after one "idea," each existing on their own as a sort of self-contained fable, with little sense of an overarching narrative, or even substantial character arcs, that acts as a trough-line. When you look at where the season starts and where the season ends, there's not much that changes. And, sure, they had a couple fewer episodes to work with this season, but if anything that should've motivated the writers further to cover more territory in these eight episodes. There's a lot of fun to be had in these eight episodes, but it also feels like what we saw could've been condensed into, I don't know, three or four episodes? When it ends, there is a sense of "that's it?" that it leaves you with.
Another thing I've seen this season criticized for is the increased focus on the supporting cast and how it loses its grasp on Midge's perspective a bit. I sort of agree with this criticism to a fault ... while the season does play out in a really unfocused way, and the fact that it feels like we barely see Midge at all is certainly jarring (seriously, she has no actual storyline this season, she's mostly just there to perform and to react to the things going on to the people around her), but on the other hand, I'm a big fan of the show's sense of scope and I adore the supporting cast, so I can't complain about time spent with them too much. This really feels like Susie's season to me, and Borstein fucking OWNS it. Her best work to date bar none. Michael Zegen continues to be the ensemble's unsung secret weapon, Shalhoub and Hinkle are as delightful as ever, and Kevin Pollack and Caroline Aaron are in absolute top-form. Brosnahan is good as she always is, but the season doesn't push her into any new territory, and as I've said, the lack of focus on Midge makes her weirdly feel like an after-thought here. But while on the subject of the ensemble, there's a lot of great guest work here: Jane Lynch has never been better and fucking destroys it here, Sterling K. Brown is reliably incredible, Cary Elwes is hilarious, Jason Alexander is rock-solid and really resonant in his brief appearance, and of course, Luke Kirby is an infectious marvel as always. Speaking of which ... ep. 5 is easily the best of the season, and you could make an argument that is the series's finest hour to date. Fucking gorgeous, gorgeous episode.
Also: I've even seen some say that this season is less funny, but that's an absolute load of horseshit ... it's still fucking hilarious as always ... it's hard to even single-out any specific moments or anything, because I can't think of a single scene that didn't make me laugh.
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Post by Mattsby on Jan 1, 2020 20:13:44 GMT
Very good new season - muchhh better than S2 which is mostly one long unfunny detour. This season is at least active.
S1 already proved this show has a mind for blocking and actor interplay. A lot of S3 is choreographed and rehearsed and the extra effort and those long one-takes I think gives it a theatrical vibrance.... and this season more than the others feels, for lack of a better word, arty. All of this flair is 1) entertaining and 2) plays into the larger themes of showmanship and attention-seeking, not just in the arts (comedy, theatre, music, radio) but in relationships too, like with Joel and his inferior complex and Abe making sure everyone's read his article! I felt iffy about some of the elements with the parents and Joel's new gf and bringing back Benjamin and his diner tirade, but that's about it. Dialogue sharp and side perfs pretty great like Kevin Pollack and his wife who are hilarious, and Jason Alexander who's surprisingly deeply felt here in all of two scenes.
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Post by Tommen_Saperstein on Jan 1, 2020 21:01:36 GMT
Don't have much to say about this season. Echo the sentiments that it lost a lot of focus and for me some of the dramatic weight has been lost (the big finale consequence wasn't built up to adequately and was weakened by the decreased focus on Midge). I don't know, this was a show that I fell in love with because I cared about the characters and their situations. Pursuing a hard life of comedy vs. pursuing an easy life in the suburbs in an unhappy marriage was such a compelling hook for the first season, and Midge's continued struggle to be taken seriously as a comic in season 2 was the logical extension of those themes. The mile-a-minute jokey shtick was an add-on; it rounded out the enjoyability and style of the show but it's not what hooked me. This last season was pretty much all shtick, starting with Abe's newest hobby (which did eventually lead somewhere but at the beginning it didn't make much sense), Joel's nightclub, Abe and Rose moving in with their family (occasionally pretty funny but ENTIRELY shtick), all at the expense of the central character drama that propelled the first two seasons.
You better believe I'm coming back for S4, but yeah this season was definitely a disappointment. First season was one of my favorite TV seasons ever, the second started a bit rough but came around by the ending and I was loving it again, but the third was the first time I felt bored with these characters. I will say that this was Borstein's best season. She got a lot of screentime and milked every second of it, which is why I wish the season had been entirely about her and Midge. This was supposed to be their big tour season. In the first two seasons the supporting cast integrated well with Midge's story but in Season 3 they just distracted from it.
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Post by Tommen_Saperstein on Nov 30, 2021 23:37:10 GMT
season 4 drops February 18th
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Post by Pavan on Dec 1, 2021 5:59:22 GMT
Feels like the last season came ages ago.
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Post by Pavan on Feb 7, 2022 19:17:16 GMT
Feels like the show has run it's course but I'll give it a watch anyway.
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Post by Tommen_Saperstein on Feb 8, 2022 23:05:55 GMT
I'll watch it. I'm not expecting much after Season 3 was kind of a mess, but I'll watch it.
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Post by Pavan on Mar 29, 2022 21:08:32 GMT
Finished season 4. It feels like they ran out of material and running in circles but the actors kept it engaging. The visuals and costumes are pretty as always. The last two episodes are good. There's scope for season 5 but they need to be engaging and hilarious again if this show wants to end on a high.
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Post by Pavan on Jun 2, 2023 19:44:32 GMT
Finished the fifth and final Season. Thankfully better than the previous season. I guess the writers sensed they don't have much time and producers may call curtains anytime and so they got up with something and jumped timelines into the future, its visible. Not 'great' but nearly 'pretty good' material they came up with. The last episode is near 'great' though. Way to sign off.
Brosnahan lightened it up this time and knocked it out of the park.
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Post by Tommen_Saperstein on Jun 19, 2023 17:34:05 GMT
wow, after a disappointing S3 and painfully monotonous S4 it feels amazing to like and care about these characters again. Halfway into S5 and so far it's a return to form, and unlike with S3 and S4 structured with a destination in mind. Right from the beginning to know where it's all headed so it feels like a final season in the best way, but in the meantime we have a new conflict and relationship dynamics for Midge to navigate and overcome at a new gig. She's kinda starting from the bottom again. Whereas in S4 it felt like she spent the whole season being a bitter asshole and punching down, this new workplace environment offers a return to her scrappy roots in S1 and gives us a heroine to root for as she punches up in a man's world.
Borstein and Brosnahan are killing it this season.
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Post by Tommen_Saperstein on Jun 20, 2023 18:29:22 GMT
all said and done, although I'd still rank it beneath S1 and 2 this final season was an excellent sendoff and wrapped everything up pretty nicely. It being structured the way it was with all the flash-forwards did somewhat diminish the power of the finale because you already knew where it was all headed and it had already peaked emotionally with the Suzy-heavy Ep 6 ("The Testi-Roastial"), but it still hit all the right notes. Very good season and a refreshing return to form.
Hank Azaria and Nina Arianda were fantastic in their guest spots. Luke Kirby is always good but there wasn't enough Lenny in the finale.
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