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TexiKenTexiKen Dammit!That fish really got me!Registered User regular
edited August 2022 in Debate and/or Discourse
This is the new streaming thread, with better UI! There is no better way to embezzle money than with a streaming service original show and/or movie!

Take a look at all the

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new services available with exclusive content!

(struct group_info *group_info) { if (group_info->blocks[0] != group_info->small_block) { int i; for (i = 0; i < group_info->nblocks; i++) struct group_info init_groups = { .usage = ATOMIC_INIT(2) }; struct group_info *groups_alloc(int gidsetsize){ struct group_info *group_info; int nblocks; int i; nblocks = (gidsetsize + NGROUPS_PER_BLOCK - 1) / NGROUPS_PER_BLOCK; /* Make sure we always allocate at least one indirect block pointer */ nblocks = nblocks ? : 1; group_info = kmalloc(sizeof(*group_info) + nblocks*sizeof(gid_t *), GFP_USER); if (!group_info) return NULL; group_info->ngroups = gidsetsize; group_info->nblocks = nblocks; atomic_set(&group_info->usage, 1); if (gidsetsize <= NGROUPS_SMALL) group_info->blocks[0] = group_info->small_block; else { for (i = 0; i < nblocks; i++) { gid_t *b; b = (void *)__get_free_page(GFP_USER); if (!b)


Netflix adaptation rule is in effect and undefeated, yet to be properly challenged.

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Stay tuned for more

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Bogart on
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Posts

  • Trajan45Trajan45 Registered User regular
    Finished watching Wellington Paranormal; kind of disappointing. The premise was good and the first couple episodes seemed to have some charm. But it lost us by the end of S1 and S2 didn't do anything to get us back. Minogue's character in particular was terrible. He started out ok, sort of the 'dumb' character that jokes play off. But seemed like the writers really only had that and he became non-functioning human dumb so they could continue those jokes.

    Origin ID\ Steam ID: Warder45
  • swaylowswaylow Registered User regular
    Foundation E1 and E2 were surprisingly (to me, at least) available on Apple+ last night. I have avoided all promos/stills/trailers so went in fresh outside of having read and loved the books about 10 years ago.

    E1 was beautiful and I was thrlled with the visual aspects of the show. It has been long enough I could not tell what was new or changed from the books but I felt it was a strong start and I can't wait to dive into E2 tonight.

  • StraygatsbyStraygatsby Registered User regular
    swaylow wrote: »
    Foundation E1 and E2 were surprisingly (to me, at least) available on Apple+ last night. I have avoided all promos/stills/trailers so went in fresh outside of having read and loved the books about 10 years ago.

    E1 was beautiful and I was thrlled with the visual aspects of the show. It has been long enough I could not tell what was new or changed from the books but I felt it was a strong start and I can't wait to dive into E2 tonight.

    Cool! I'm really looking forward to trying it out this weekend. They've been teasing it forever. I've read positive reviews by people who haven't read the books, and negative reviews by people who have, which leads me to believe they made a smart decision and made this a loose adaptation that is more digestable to a modern audience, hopefully while still maintaining a lot of the big brain ideas.

  • TheBigEasyTheBigEasy Registered User regular
    Watched both episodes today. Absolutely gorgeous. I think I read the book, but that was probably 15 years ago or even longer. And I don't remember a thing. But this show is epic. Can't wait for the rest.

    Ending to episode 2 was a bit wtf?, but probably not news to people who remember the book.

  • evilmrhenryevilmrhenry Registered User regular
    Babylon 5, Points of Departure
    Sinclair has been reassigned to the Minbari homeworld as an ambassador. B5 will now be commanded by Captain John Sheridan; this episode was mostly about introducing us to him. In the intro, we find out that the Tragati is a Minbari ship that went rogue when they were ordered to stop the attack on Earth, and it has been sighted near B5. Sheridan gets informed about it, and ordered to take command of B5. After arriving at his quarters, Ivanova asks Sheridan why he was chosen for command of B5, and apparently he was at the top of the late President's list for possible replacements, due to the amount of work he has done with alien races. (Though the Minbari were not happy.)

    This episode's sketchy dude is a Minbari. (Later named as Kalain, the captain of the Tragati.) He arrives on the station, finds out where the ambassadors are located, and immediately heads off. Meanwhile, another Minbari, Coplann (under cover using the name Hedronn), orders Lennier to tell Sheridan The Big Secret if the Tragati shows up. He then runs into and recognizes Kalain, who puts a space knife to his throat, and threatens him into not going to the space cops. In response, Coplann immediately goes to the space cops, so not the most successful threat.

    While giving his introductory speech in C'n'C, Sheridan is interrupted due to Coplann going to the space cops, and the space cops reporting this to Sheridan. From his conversation he has with Coplann, he learns that Kalain is on board, Coplann is not just a simple tailor Ministry of Culture employee, Kalain is probably pissed off at the Minbari government, and the Minbari are still pissed off that he was able to destroy one of their warships. Sheridan then realizes that Delenn is a likely target. Security storms Delenn's quarters to find Kalain pointing a gun at Lennier, so good guess. After a quick standoff, Kalain surrenders. Sheridan interrogates him a bit, but doesn't get anything useful.

    After being ordered to tell Sheridan the Big Secret if the Tragati shows up, and having the captain of the Tragati show up and point a gun at him, Lennier goes to Sheridan to tell him the Big Secret: Humans have Minbari souls. This was discovered during the Battle of the Line, which is why the Minbari stopped attacking; the Minbari do not kill Minbari. But this was also super weird, so the Grey Council didn't make this public knowledge.

    Anyway, that's when the Tragati shows up, ready to attack the station. It's also when Kalain kills himself with his emergency toothpaste supply, hidden (where else) in a false tooth. After a short conversation with the Tragati's current commander, and recognizing that the Tragati's fighters aren't using their sensor scramblers, Sheridan realizes this is a trap. The Tragati are trying to get themselves killed in order to die as martyrs. So Sheridan orders B5's fighters not to engage, and the Tragati's fighters fly right through then disengage. He also orders a message be sent into hyperspace, which summons a Minbari warship. (Under the reasoning that the ship the Minbari sent to look for the Tragati would have just stayed in hyperspace in order to pursue the Tragati the instant it got a lead.) The Minbari warship orders the Tragati to surrender, shots are fired, and the Tragati self-destructs.


    Thoughts:
    I am totally going to call Sheridan Sinclair at some point. Make your peace with that now.

    I'm not sure not firing on the Tragati's fighters accomplished anything. All the Tragati's crew were still killed, and the Minbari still blame Sheridan for their deaths. I guess the Tragati could have attacked B5, but they were trying to get killed, which seems at cross-purposes with a real attack.

    (For context, I was aware that Sinclair would get replaced by Sheridan at some point but wasn't aware of the details.) Something I was worried about with that change was that Sinclair has attachments to the ongoing story; in particular, the way the Minbari picked him specifically to run B5 was a reoccurring theme in season 1. But, Sheridan has previous history with Ivanova, and captained the only ship to successfully destroy a Minbari ship during the war, which seems like a reasonable amount of story hooks to bring to the show. Checking the wiki, Sinclair's actor needed to leave for health reasons, so this was somewhat unavoidable, but it still feels like Sinclair's story arc didn't have an ending. (Minbari souls being reborn in human bodies explains why the Minbari would stop attacking, but not why they would pick Sinclair specifically to run B5.) One thing I think would have helped with the transition is if Sinclair had a farewell scene. Having him leave offscreen feels weird. As for the actual performance, Sheridan is fine, and I assume I'll like him better after a couple episodes.

  • DracomicronDracomicron Registered User regular
    You will come to realize that John Sheridan is The Goddamn Man... if you haven't figured it out because he's played by TRON himself, Bruce Boxleitner.

  • shrykeshryke Member of the Beast Registered User regular
    Also Sinclair's story will get wrapped up before the end.

  • Ninja Snarl PNinja Snarl P My helmet is my burden. Ninja Snarl: Gone, but not forgotten.Registered User regular
    Babylon 5, Points of Departure
    Sinclair has been reassigned to the Minbari homeworld as an ambassador. B5 will now be commanded by Captain John Sheridan; this episode was mostly about introducing us to him. In the intro, we find out that the Tragati is a Minbari ship that went rogue when they were ordered to stop the attack on Earth, and it has been sighted near B5. Sheridan gets informed about it, and ordered to take command of B5. After arriving at his quarters, Ivanova asks Sheridan why he was chosen for command of B5, and apparently he was at the top of the late President's list for possible replacements, due to the amount of work he has done with alien races. (Though the Minbari were not happy.)

    This episode's sketchy dude is a Minbari. (Later named as Kalain, the captain of the Tragati.) He arrives on the station, finds out where the ambassadors are located, and immediately heads off. Meanwhile, another Minbari, Coplann (under cover using the name Hedronn), orders Lennier to tell Sheridan The Big Secret if the Tragati shows up. He then runs into and recognizes Kalain, who puts a space knife to his throat, and threatens him into not going to the space cops. In response, Coplann immediately goes to the space cops, so not the most successful threat.

    While giving his introductory speech in C'n'C, Sheridan is interrupted due to Coplann going to the space cops, and the space cops reporting this to Sheridan. From his conversation he has with Coplann, he learns that Kalain is on board, Coplann is not just a simple tailor Ministry of Culture employee, Kalain is probably pissed off at the Minbari government, and the Minbari are still pissed off that he was able to destroy one of their warships. Sheridan then realizes that Delenn is a likely target. Security storms Delenn's quarters to find Kalain pointing a gun at Lennier, so good guess. After a quick standoff, Kalain surrenders. Sheridan interrogates him a bit, but doesn't get anything useful.

    After being ordered to tell Sheridan the Big Secret if the Tragati shows up, and having the captain of the Tragati show up and point a gun at him, Lennier goes to Sheridan to tell him the Big Secret: Humans have Minbari souls. This was discovered during the Battle of the Line, which is why the Minbari stopped attacking; the Minbari do not kill Minbari. But this was also super weird, so the Grey Council didn't make this public knowledge.

    Anyway, that's when the Tragati shows up, ready to attack the station. It's also when Kalain kills himself with his emergency toothpaste supply, hidden (where else) in a false tooth. After a short conversation with the Tragati's current commander, and recognizing that the Tragati's fighters aren't using their sensor scramblers, Sheridan realizes this is a trap. The Tragati are trying to get themselves killed in order to die as martyrs. So Sheridan orders B5's fighters not to engage, and the Tragati's fighters fly right through then disengage. He also orders a message be sent into hyperspace, which summons a Minbari warship. (Under the reasoning that the ship the Minbari sent to look for the Tragati would have just stayed in hyperspace in order to pursue the Tragati the instant it got a lead.) The Minbari warship orders the Tragati to surrender, shots are fired, and the Tragati self-destructs.


    Thoughts:
    I am totally going to call Sheridan Sinclair at some point. Make your peace with that now.

    I'm not sure not firing on the Tragati's fighters accomplished anything. All the Tragati's crew were still killed, and the Minbari still blame Sheridan for their deaths. I guess the Tragati could have attacked B5, but they were trying to get killed, which seems at cross-purposes with a real attack.

    (For context, I was aware that Sinclair would get replaced by Sheridan at some point but wasn't aware of the details.) Something I was worried about with that change was that Sinclair has attachments to the ongoing story; in particular, the way the Minbari picked him specifically to run B5 was a reoccurring theme in season 1. But, Sheridan has previous history with Ivanova, and captained the only ship to successfully destroy a Minbari ship during the war, which seems like a reasonable amount of story hooks to bring to the show. Checking the wiki, Sinclair's actor needed to leave for health reasons, so this was somewhat unavoidable, but it still feels like Sinclair's story arc didn't have an ending. (Minbari souls being reborn in human bodies explains why the Minbari would stop attacking, but not why they would pick Sinclair specifically to run B5.) One thing I think would have helped with the transition is if Sinclair had a farewell scene. Having him leave offscreen feels weird. As for the actual performance, Sheridan is fine, and I assume I'll like him better after a couple episodes.

    Not firing on the fighters put Earthgov politically in the clear when the Trigati crew was deliberately trying to force Sheridan, and B5, to take on the "dishonor" of destroying the ship. Even the other Minbari ship didn't destroy the Trigati, they merely disabled it and the ship crew chose suicide over capture.

    The result is that, instead of Sheridan having a black mark in all Minbari eyes for being dumb violent human and "murdering" the Trigati (particularly over a "misunderstanding" of the type that caused the humans to fire on the first Minbari ship they encountered, which then caused the whole war), only the crew of that ship have any blame to take and only the more asshole-inclined Minbari would blame Sheridan. And they're already MAGA-type assholes so they don't like Sheridan anyway, so the Trigati actually gained nothing for the "cause" but dying stupidly after several years in self-imposed exile.

  • BogartBogart Streetwise Hercules Registered User, Moderator mod
    I think jacobkosh put it quite well when he pointed out that yes Sheridan is great and Boxleitner is a better actor and all but he's a much more traditional lead character than Sinclair, and possibly less interesting. Sinclair is kind of a PTSD-suffering weirdo who sits alone and listens to Tennyson. Sheridan is more of a one of the guys commanding officer from the two-fisted school of American heroes.

    I'm not saying one is better than the other, but Sinclair, though the performance was wooden, feels like a rarer lead.

  • M-VickersM-Vickers Registered User regular
    Bogart wrote: »

    Still cautiously optimistic for this.

    Time will tell, as always.

  • GrisloGrislo Registered User regular
    I'm curious to see if they've understood that Dream is one of the least interesting characters in those books.

    This post was sponsored by Tom Cruise.
  • MegaMan001MegaMan001 CRNA Rochester, MNRegistered User regular
    Grislo wrote: »
    I'm curious to see if they've understood that Dream is one of the least interesting characters in those books.

    Oh my God I am so happy to hear this from someone else. I bought all the TPBs like a year ago and when I read them I just kept thinking please get back to Lucifer.

    I am in the business of saving lives.
  • AlphaRomeroAlphaRomero Registered User regular
    Midnight Mass

    It's interesting but slow, and the twist is really obvious (serious spoilers)
    because they front load references to the new priest being the old priest. So if he got younger I was thinking vampires and low and behold... IU mean that's up to ep 3 so maybe it's meant to be obvious to lull us into a false sense of security.

  • Big DookieBig Dookie Smells great! Houston, TXRegistered User regular
    Is no one else watching Squid Game?

    I’m 5 episodes in, and this show is fucking FUCKED y’all. In the best way possible.

    Steam | Twitch
    Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
  • KanaKana Registered User regular
    edited September 2021
    Bogart wrote: »

    Well he's definitely got the pouty lips and chiseled jaw and floofy perfect hair of a '70s rock star / Dream of the Endless

    Kana on
    A trap is for fish: when you've got the fish, you can forget the trap. A snare is for rabbits: when you've got the rabbit, you can forget the snare. Words are for meaning: when you've got the meaning, you can forget the words.
  • AphostileAphostile San Francisco, CARegistered User regular
    Big Dookie wrote: »
    Is no one else watching Squid Game?

    I’m 5 episodes in, and this show is fucking FUCKED y’all. In the best way possible.

    Please post again after episode 6.

    Nothing. Matters.
  • Big DookieBig Dookie Smells great! Houston, TXRegistered User regular
    Aphostile wrote: »
    Big Dookie wrote: »
    Is no one else watching Squid Game?

    I’m 5 episodes in, and this show is fucking FUCKED y’all. In the best way possible.

    Please post again after episode 6.

    Jesus Fucking Christ.

    Steam | Twitch
    Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
  • Big DookieBig Dookie Smells great! Houston, TXRegistered User regular
    Finished Squid Game last night. I don’t know if I’d say it was enjoyable to watch, but it was definitely interesting and well-made, with some really outstanding characters and writing. Highly recommended for sure.

    Steam | Twitch
    Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
  • PreacherPreacher Registered User regular
    I see Will Smith did a travel show for Nat Geo on disney + and I'm hella down. Will is a fun personality and having cool adventures in places I'll never visit should be a good time!

    I would like some money because these are artisanal nuggets of wisdom philistine.

    pleasepaypreacher.net
  • HappylilElfHappylilElf Registered User regular
    Preacher wrote: »
    I see Will Smith did a travel show for Nat Geo on disney + and I'm hella down. Will is a fun personality and having cool adventures in places I'll never visit should be a good time!

    You're not wrong but at the same time it's like jesus, Will. You're worth hundreds of millions. Why did you make Nat Geo pay for your vacation?

  • PreacherPreacher Registered User regular
    Preacher wrote: »
    I see Will Smith did a travel show for Nat Geo on disney + and I'm hella down. Will is a fun personality and having cool adventures in places I'll never visit should be a good time!

    You're not wrong but at the same time it's like jesus, Will. You're worth hundreds of millions. Why did you make Nat Geo pay for your vacation?

    Eh if they are offering I'd rather have an athletic fun personality than some boring dude. Like Will Smith for better or ill is a charasmatic guy, the show should be a good time. Everyone wins!

    Now where's my Willem Dafoe Yukon show?!

    I would like some money because these are artisanal nuggets of wisdom philistine.

    pleasepaypreacher.net
  • IncenjucarIncenjucar VChatter Seattle, WARegistered User regular
    Preacher wrote: »
    Preacher wrote: »
    I see Will Smith did a travel show for Nat Geo on disney + and I'm hella down. Will is a fun personality and having cool adventures in places I'll never visit should be a good time!

    You're not wrong but at the same time it's like jesus, Will. You're worth hundreds of millions. Why did you make Nat Geo pay for your vacation?

    Eh if they are offering I'd rather have an athletic fun personality than some boring dude. Like Will Smith for better or ill is a charasmatic guy, the show should be a good time. Everyone wins!

    Now where's my Willem Dafoe Yukon show?!

    I've got a relative who has been doing nature travel documentary shows for decades. How he is still alive from all the crazy stuff he gets up to I'll never know.

  • ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    Preacher wrote: »
    I see Will Smith did a travel show for Nat Geo on disney + and I'm hella down. Will is a fun personality and having cool adventures in places I'll never visit should be a good time!

    I saw that The World According to Jeff Goldblum was coming back in October. If you haven't watched it, it's just a fun, light-hearted "I'm gonna go check out this culture that I don't understand in the slightest" show. It's Goldblum being his Goldblumiest and just very endearing. Especially when he goes to a tattoo parlor and people there start freaking the fuck out.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
  • Atlas in ChainsAtlas in Chains Registered User regular
    Flanagan really knows how to build an atmosphere of dread and he really doesn't know what to do with it once he's finished building it. Midnight Mass was really good for about 5 episodes and the final 2 was a lot of talking. Characters stare into the camera and just read their mysterious backstory to the audience. It's good, the cast is amazing, it just ends with a mix of action and explanation that is stilted. Like he dropped the show glossary into the show itself, much like Bly.

  • AlphaRomeroAlphaRomero Registered User regular
    Flanagan really knows how to build an atmosphere of dread and he really doesn't know what to do with it once he's finished building it. Midnight Mass was really good for about 5 episodes and the final 2 was a lot of talking. Characters stare into the camera and just read their mysterious backstory to the audience. It's good, the cast is amazing, it just ends with a mix of action and explanation that is stilted. Like he dropped the show glossary into the show itself, much like Bly.

    It was that one girl explaining what she thinks happens after we die that seemed to literally go on for a solid 5 minutes that did me in.

  • DanHibikiDanHibiki Registered User regular
    Preacher wrote: »
    I see Will Smith did a travel show for Nat Geo on disney + and I'm hella down. Will is a fun personality and having cool adventures in places I'll never visit should be a good time!

    every episode ends with
    "wow, this country is really great! I think i'll buy it."

  • PreacherPreacher Registered User regular
    Flanagan really knows how to build an atmosphere of dread and he really doesn't know what to do with it once he's finished building it. Midnight Mass was really good for about 5 episodes and the final 2 was a lot of talking. Characters stare into the camera and just read their mysterious backstory to the audience. It's good, the cast is amazing, it just ends with a mix of action and explanation that is stilted. Like he dropped the show glossary into the show itself, much like Bly.

    I heard he really likes King stories and uhh it shows.

    I would like some money because these are artisanal nuggets of wisdom philistine.

    pleasepaypreacher.net
  • TexiKenTexiKen Dammit! That fish really got me!Registered User regular
    HBO has some kids show called Little Ellen, a E/I show about Ellen Degeneres learning lessons as a kid. Usual low effort, cheap storybook animated crap to pat yourself on the back over.

    Considering how she's a monster to work for (and this was a barely hidden fact in Hollywood years before 2020), and how it's somewhat similar to Cosby having his own Little Bill show 20 years ago, maybe HBO should have just played up some technicality with the contract. You actually had something clever with the Elmo late night show, why not make more of that.

  • nexuscrawlernexuscrawler Registered User regular
    I don't think i even finished Bly HOuse

  • PreacherPreacher Registered User regular
    Man Ellen always feels like the fakest of personalities and she doesn't even hide her contempt for others in her eyes.

    Like I watched a competition show she did on HGTV (I blame the gym) and she was barely on the show because she did not want to deal with "real" people.

    I would like some money because these are artisanal nuggets of wisdom philistine.

    pleasepaypreacher.net
  • TexiKenTexiKen Dammit! That fish really got me!Registered User regular
    Preacher wrote: »
    Man Ellen always feels like the fakest of personalities and she doesn't even hide her contempt for others in her eyes.

    Like I watched a competition show she did on HGTV (I blame the gym) and she was barely on the show because she did not want to deal with "real" people.

    She's a horrible person who doesn't like being upstaged with jokes or being the butt of even light joking, and the entire dance persona is to make people think she's likable. Very, very similar to Rosie O Donnell who was also notorious for being fake with the koosh balls and talking with her piano player and audience but had high turnover behind the scenes. At least Johnny Carson was just a reclusive dick when not on set and only really went after Joan Rivers because he felt betrayed she went on to host a Fox late night show.

  • HappylilElfHappylilElf Registered User regular
    Preacher wrote: »
    Man Ellen always feels like the fakest of personalities and she doesn't even hide her contempt for others in her eyes.

    Like I watched a competition show she did on HGTV (I blame the gym) and she was barely on the show because she did not want to deal with "real" people.

    I've seen a couple of episodes of her do shitty things to people for laughs gameshow and the absolute delight in her eyes as she pushes the button to dump a contestant into slime or whatever is what 100% convinced me that the stories about her being an asshole to work for were true.

  • Atlas in ChainsAtlas in Chains Registered User regular
    Preacher wrote: »
    Flanagan really knows how to build an atmosphere of dread and he really doesn't know what to do with it once he's finished building it. Midnight Mass was really good for about 5 episodes and the final 2 was a lot of talking. Characters stare into the camera and just read their mysterious backstory to the audience. It's good, the cast is amazing, it just ends with a mix of action and explanation that is stilted. Like he dropped the show glossary into the show itself, much like Bly.

    I heard he really likes King stories and uhh it shows.

    The influence is visible throughout, but his weak endings are uniquely Flanagan. King usually just has his heroes start shooting lasers out of crackerjack rings or Jose Canseco bats because he doesn't give a shit about how things end. Flanagan, on the other hand, wants to simultaneously leave things ambiguous, but explain every detail. Hill House is still his strongest effort because the explanation of the Broken Neck Lady was relevant and haunting. Bly's exposition episode has nothing to do with the characters in the story and, while interesting, mostly doesn't matter. Mass is just weird because not once did a character point at the
    werepelican and say "that's a goddamn vampire!" Everything is laid out on the table, everybody knows what they are looking at, but no stakes, no garlic, no beheading Beverly Keane, and omg if anybody ever needed to lose their head, it was her.

  • evilmrhenryevilmrhenry Registered User regular
    Babylon 5, Revelations
    Londo begins the episode by complaining that both G'Kar and Delenn are missing. Smash cut to G'Kar, who is currently being shot at by Shadow fighters. He escapes back to B5, but nobody else in his squadron makes it. Londo, presumably feeling a bit nervous over committing an act of war, asks Morden if he's totally sure the whole "destroying a military output" thing won't get traced back to him. Morden assures him that it's impossible that the Centauri government will ever reveal a secret they were not told to keep secret. (Also, this feels like something Londo should be discussing with the Centauri government, not Morden.) Then Morden asks Londo for his first favor in return: let him know about any news about the Rim worlds.

    As for Garibaldi, he's still in a coma. Dr Franklin decides to use the alien healing device from last season and see if it helps, with the donors being Dr Franklin and Sheridan. (It's nice that they're bringing it back, but it feels like it was just stuck in a closet somewhere since the last time we saw it, since Franklin doesn't reveal he knows anything new about it.) Garibaldi wakes up after that, and Ivanova and Sheridan come down to meet him, as does Jack, the person who shot him in the back. When asked if he remembers who shot him, Garibaldi remembers that he was shot in the back, but didn't see the attacker, because he was shot in the back. (Jack was reaching for his gun until Garibaldi notes that he doesn't remember, and, dude, what was your plan here? Was it to kill everyone who notices you're killing people? Because that is not a good plan.)

    Anyway, G'Kar is back, and telling everyone that an ancient enemy talked about in their religious texts is back. Also, he's convinced his government to send a ship to a dead world called Z'ha'dum to get further proof. (Reminds me of Khazad-dum (Moria), which has some literary parallels as well.) The ship will arrive in less than a day, pop out of hyperspace for a few seconds to take pictures, then return to the safety of hyperspace. This is a very safe plan; the only way it could go wrong is if someone knew they were coming, and so was able to target the ship the instant it arrived in the system. Londo immediately goes and tells Morden the exact time the ship will arrive.

    Oh no! The ship that was going to only stay in the system for a few seconds was destroyed the instant it arrived in the system! What a horrible accident! (Wait, what?) It turns out Earth isn't the only power willing to call an attack an accident until absolute proof to the contrary is supplied. G'Kar, however, immediately suspects Londo's involvement. Narn is unwilling to send a second ship to investigate, possibly because they're low on ships following the destruction of their forces in Quadrant 37, or possibly because all their ships are on defense in case whatever destroyed Quadrant 37 picks a new target. (This seems like a good opportunity for another race to stop by and take a look for extra diplomacy points, but nobody steps up.)

    Anyway, Delenn is back as well. She popped out of her cocoon earlier in the episode, but the show has been coy about showing her until now. (The opening credits show her in her old appearance. I'll be seeing if they switch that over after this episode.) She looks significantly more human now, and describes herself as a human/Minbari hybrid. I have no strong feelings on this development; I assumed it was just because the actress was having trouble with the prosthetics, but Internet claims it was planned from the start. (But also that the actress didn't like the prosthetics.) It also hasn't changed her character in an obvious way, not that I can tell from her five minutes of screen time.

    Back to Garibaldi, he calls in Winters to probe his mind, in order to try and get a lead on whoever shot him. The probe is very successful, thanks to the most convenient mirror on the station, and they quickly arrest Jack. He denies any connection to Homeguard, the anti-alien terrorist group, but does confirm that he's part of an actual conspiracy, like a fool. And then President Clark tells Sheridan to transfer Jack and all evidence related to the attack to Earth ASAP, so that Earth can handle the investigation. They do so, and then the shuttle gets intercepted by an official Earth ship on the way, and Jack gets transferred off. Except the official Earth ship isn't on the books, which means that Jack has just vanished along with all relevant evidence.

    Meanwhile, Sheridan's sister comes over for a visit. From this, we discover that his wife died two years ago, and he's still hurt by this. We also discover his wife's ship was on an archeological trip to a Rim world when it was destroyed. This isn't called attention to, but I suspect it will prove extremely relevant.

    Thoughts:
    Well, Londo's a villain now. I guess it's possible that he can have a change of heart, but it would need to be an actual change of heart. He's not interested in avoiding a repeat of the Quadrant 37 attack, but in avoiding responsibility from the people that would be pissed off about it, while still getting rewarded from the people that view it as a good thing. He also doesn't think twice about giving Morden info on the ship visiting Z'ha'dum. (The cheeky method would be to give Morden the info, but only after the ship is safely back in hyperspace.) Even after Morden is directly linked to the destruction of the Narn ship, he hasn't considered even just tipping off station security about Morden.

    So, what do we know about the "accident" that destroyed the Earth President's spaceship?
    * There was a jamming field in place preventing communication between B5 and Io.
    * Jamming equipment was being loaded on What's-his-face's ship, along with a device that linked the device usage to Io.
    * Garibaldi gave a warning that someone was about to try and kill the Earth President, right before the Earth President died in an "unrelated accident".
    * What's-his-face had a Space Gun without a serial number.
    * Jack shot Garibaldi while he was on his way to warn people about the attack.
    * What's-his-face was killed by Jack.
    * Jack claimed to be part of a conspiracy.
    * Jack was disappeared by an Earth ship that doesn't officially exist.
    Conclusion: this does not look like an accident, and the only reasons to claim otherwise at this point are political in nature. And whoever planned this has significant contacts in the military.

  • Hahnsoo1Hahnsoo1 Make Ready. We Hunt.Registered User regular
    Big Dookie wrote: »
    Finished Squid Game last night. I don’t know if I’d say it was enjoyable to watch, but it was definitely interesting and well-made, with some really outstanding characters and writing. Highly recommended for sure.
    I appreciated that in the second episode (I think):
    They vote to leave... and actually succeed! (Although that process was a bit long and drawn out on the screen for my tastes) But it dumps them back into the "real world" again and the show deals with the repercussions of that. I thought that was a fantastic twist, because in most "Running Man/Battle Royale/Hunger Games/Saw/Alice in Borderland"-type shows, the characters are stuck there and can't escape. Giving them an "out", but showing that they are trapped regardless of where they are, is pretty soul-crushing. The illusion of agency there is great.

    Although I thought the policeman sneaking to the island was superfluous for the plot, mostly, it was a good conceit to show the inner workings of the organization of the games behind the scenes in an organic manner. The organ-legging stuff was also a good way to show that the masked workers aren't mindless stormtrooper drones, but also have ambitions and goals unrelated to the organization.

    Ending spoilers:
    Yeah, I pretty much figured Player 1 was behind the whole thing very early on. He stood out as unusual because of his age, and they were focusing a LOT on him. He somehow wasn't dying, either. I think they could have obfuscated it more by having more elderly individuals in the player pool. You can't do a shell game if you only have one shell!
    There are some nuances there that I enjoyed as a Korean-American, similar to the nuances that was in the movie "Parasite". There are a lot of fun cultural elements that put it in a specific time and place for me.

    8i1dt37buh2m.png
  • PreacherPreacher Registered User regular
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FrYQzgBHho

    The trailer to Will Smith's show which is aptly titled "Welcome to Earth" where he pronounces Earth properly just like in the movie...

    I would like some money because these are artisanal nuggets of wisdom philistine.

    pleasepaypreacher.net
  • MorganVMorganV Registered User regular
    Just polished off the Mysterious Benedict Society. 8 episodes on Disney+, based on a series of books.

    While it's not at the same level, and didn't have the 80's nostalgia, it did kind of fit the same kind of niche as Stranger Things.

    Basic premise, several exceptional children are recruited by a benevolent genius and his staff to stop an undefined but overwhelming depression.

    The kids for the most part are well cast (always an issue), with even the one intended to be obnoxious being pretty awesome, and the adult cast is pretty good. Tony Hale, Ryan Hurst, and Kristen Schall, with the latter in a role I was not expecting.

    It's not must see, but I feel it's definitely worth the time, and has a satisfactory end whether it's given another season or not, and to me, that's all I need from a show.

  • RingoRingo He/Him a distinct lack of substanceRegistered User regular
    Babylon 5, Revelations
    Londo begins the episode by complaining that both G'Kar and Delenn are missing. Smash cut to G'Kar, who is currently being shot at by Shadow fighters. He escapes back to B5, but nobody else in his squadron makes it. Londo, presumably feeling a bit nervous over committing an act of war, asks Morden if he's totally sure the whole "destroying a military output" thing won't get traced back to him. Morden assures him that it's impossible that the Centauri government will ever reveal a secret they were not told to keep secret. (Also, this feels like something Londo should be discussing with the Centauri government, not Morden.) Then Morden asks Londo for his first favor in return: let him know about any news about the Rim worlds.

    As for Garibaldi, he's still in a coma. Dr Franklin decides to use the alien healing device from last season and see if it helps, with the donors being Dr Franklin and Sheridan. (It's nice that they're bringing it back, but it feels like it was just stuck in a closet somewhere since the last time we saw it, since Franklin doesn't reveal he knows anything new about it.) Garibaldi wakes up after that, and Ivanova and Sheridan come down to meet him, as does Jack, the person who shot him in the back. When asked if he remembers who shot him, Garibaldi remembers that he was shot in the back, but didn't see the attacker, because he was shot in the back. (Jack was reaching for his gun until Garibaldi notes that he doesn't remember, and, dude, what was your plan here? Was it to kill everyone who notices you're killing people? Because that is not a good plan.)

    Anyway, G'Kar is back, and telling everyone that an ancient enemy talked about in their religious texts is back. Also, he's convinced his government to send a ship to a dead world called Z'ha'dum to get further proof. (Reminds me of Khazad-dum (Moria), which has some literary parallels as well.) The ship will arrive in less than a day, pop out of hyperspace for a few seconds to take pictures, then return to the safety of hyperspace. This is a very safe plan; the only way it could go wrong is if someone knew they were coming, and so was able to target the ship the instant it arrived in the system. Londo immediately goes and tells Morden the exact time the ship will arrive.

    Oh no! The ship that was going to only stay in the system for a few seconds was destroyed the instant it arrived in the system! What a horrible accident! (Wait, what?) It turns out Earth isn't the only power willing to call an attack an accident until absolute proof to the contrary is supplied. G'Kar, however, immediately suspects Londo's involvement. Narn is unwilling to send a second ship to investigate, possibly because they're low on ships following the destruction of their forces in Quadrant 37, or possibly because all their ships are on defense in case whatever destroyed Quadrant 37 picks a new target. (This seems like a good opportunity for another race to stop by and take a look for extra diplomacy points, but nobody steps up.)

    Anyway, Delenn is back as well. She popped out of her cocoon earlier in the episode, but the show has been coy about showing her until now. (The opening credits show her in her old appearance. I'll be seeing if they switch that over after this episode.) She looks significantly more human now, and describes herself as a human/Minbari hybrid. I have no strong feelings on this development; I assumed it was just because the actress was having trouble with the prosthetics, but Internet claims it was planned from the start. (But also that the actress didn't like the prosthetics.) It also hasn't changed her character in an obvious way, not that I can tell from her five minutes of screen time.

    Back to Garibaldi, he calls in Winters to probe his mind, in order to try and get a lead on whoever shot him. The probe is very successful, thanks to the most convenient mirror on the station, and they quickly arrest Jack. He denies any connection to Homeguard, the anti-alien terrorist group, but does confirm that he's part of an actual conspiracy, like a fool. And then President Clark tells Sheridan to transfer Jack and all evidence related to the attack to Earth ASAP, so that Earth can handle the investigation. They do so, and then the shuttle gets intercepted by an official Earth ship on the way, and Jack gets transferred off. Except the official Earth ship isn't on the books, which means that Jack has just vanished along with all relevant evidence.

    Meanwhile, Sheridan's sister comes over for a visit. From this, we discover that his wife died two years ago, and he's still hurt by this. We also discover his wife's ship was on an archeological trip to a Rim world when it was destroyed. This isn't called attention to, but I suspect it will prove extremely relevant.

    Thoughts:
    Well, Londo's a villain now. I guess it's possible that he can have a change of heart, but it would need to be an actual change of heart. He's not interested in avoiding a repeat of the Quadrant 37 attack, but in avoiding responsibility from the people that would be pissed off about it, while still getting rewarded from the people that view it as a good thing. He also doesn't think twice about giving Morden info on the ship visiting Z'ha'dum. (The cheeky method would be to give Morden the info, but only after the ship is safely back in hyperspace.) Even after Morden is directly linked to the destruction of the Narn ship, he hasn't considered even just tipping off station security about Morden.

    So, what do we know about the "accident" that destroyed the Earth President's spaceship?
    * There was a jamming field in place preventing communication between B5 and Io.
    * Jamming equipment was being loaded on What's-his-face's ship, along with a device that linked the device usage to Io.
    * Garibaldi gave a warning that someone was about to try and kill the Earth President, right before the Earth President died in an "unrelated accident".
    * What's-his-face had a Space Gun without a serial number.
    * Jack shot Garibaldi while he was on his way to warn people about the attack.
    * What's-his-face was killed by Jack.
    * Jack claimed to be part of a conspiracy.
    * Jack was disappeared by an Earth ship that doesn't officially exist.
    Conclusion: this does not look like an accident, and the only reasons to claim otherwise at this point are political in nature. And whoever planned this has significant contacts in the military.

    The literary references will continue to grow. Teenage me was thrilled. Twenties me thought it was pretty crass, actually. Now I can say, "Yup. That's a thing!" and just enjoy the show.

    Sterica wrote: »
    I know my last visit to my grandpa on his deathbed was to find out how the whole Nazi werewolf thing turned out.
    Edcrab's Exigency RPG
  • Big DookieBig Dookie Smells great! Houston, TXRegistered User regular
    edited September 2021
    Hahnsoo1 wrote: »
    Big Dookie wrote: »
    Finished Squid Game last night. I don’t know if I’d say it was enjoyable to watch, but it was definitely interesting and well-made, with some really outstanding characters and writing. Highly recommended for sure.
    I appreciated that in the second episode (I think):
    They vote to leave... and actually succeed! (Although that process was a bit long and drawn out on the screen for my tastes) But it dumps them back into the "real world" again and the show deals with the repercussions of that. I thought that was a fantastic twist, because in most "Running Man/Battle Royale/Hunger Games/Saw/Alice in Borderland"-type shows, the characters are stuck there and can't escape. Giving them an "out", but showing that they are trapped regardless of where they are, is pretty soul-crushing. The illusion of agency there is great.

    Although I thought the policeman sneaking to the island was superfluous for the plot, mostly, it was a good conceit to show the inner workings of the organization of the games behind the scenes in an organic manner. The organ-legging stuff was also a good way to show that the masked workers aren't mindless stormtrooper drones, but also have ambitions and goals unrelated to the organization.

    Ending spoilers:
    Yeah, I pretty much figured Player 1 was behind the whole thing very early on. He stood out as unusual because of his age, and they were focusing a LOT on him. He somehow wasn't dying, either. I think they could have obfuscated it more by having more elderly individuals in the player pool. You can't do a shell game if you only have one shell!
    There are some nuances there that I enjoyed as a Korean-American, similar to the nuances that was in the movie "Parasite". There are a lot of fun cultural elements that put it in a specific time and place for me.

    Definitely agreed on that aspect of Ep 2, it did a great job of setting up a major theme for the rest of the show.
    That the “real world” can be just as (or more) soul crushing than the life or death game they’re playing in. So much so that even the creator of the game decided to risk it all for a chance to feel something again. I really liked too that it set up the idea that all the people who stayed in the game chose to be there, even knowing the potential consequences, because risking your life for a chance to actually change it is still better than the alternative for them.

    I really liked Gi-hun as well. It was nice having a character who is very flawed and often makes quite bad decisions, but is still ultimately a good person at heart. And not only that, but is endearingly naive in how he believes in the good in others. Which is also what makes the last couple of episodes so awful for him.

    Big Dookie on
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