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It really is insane how much streaming has evolved since 2019.Edward Mass posted:Recommended Originals I’d like to recommend Beforeigners for HBO Max.
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Jan 20, 2022 07:10
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I always roll my eyes when I hear this. Adjusted for inflation, cable was priced twice as high as being subscribed to Netflix, Disney+ Bundle, HBO Max, and Amazon Prime at once, and the streaming services have no ads. Even DirectTV's most basic plan was more expensive than being subscribed to all major streaming services.
punk rebel ecks fucked around with this message at 06:41 on Jan 21, 2022 |
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Jan 21, 2022 06:39
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Roth posted:You also can just not subscribe to services if you don't want them, and it's not a battle to cancel the subscription. Seriously, I'm all down with "things used to be better back in the day!", but television is absolutely not one of them. I would never want to go back to the days of spending almost $100 a month in today's money, and end up only watching four or five channels for the month.
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Jan 21, 2022 06:49
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Edward Mass posted:If we weren't in a pandemic, we'd have watercoolers to meet around. The streaming era has gotten rid of the concept of a 'watercooler show' where we'd all discus the TV shows or movies we saw last night. Instead, we're now in the age of 'Spoiler Alerts', which is more frustrating. As soon as the revealed who shot J.R., it was no longer a spoiler! 
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Jan 21, 2022 07:55
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IShallRiseAgain posted:Also the reason streaming services suck right now is because of instead focusing on a certain demographic of people, they are always aiming to be for everybody. If streaming services were more like traditional tv channels and focused on a niche of content, they would be a lot better. Of course there has been some streaming services that were too focused like the stargate or DC comics streaming service. Shudder gets the balance right. Netflix alone has more niche content then all of cable combined. The amount of indie films/series, western adult animation, POC content, horror films, weird sketch shows, foreign films/series, etc. dwarfs the offerings of all the niche channels you’d find on DirecTV or Time Warner Cable combined. And that’s just one service. Add in Hulu or HBO Max and it becomes even more painfully obvious. To add to it, the basic premise is wrong. Specified niche streaming sites haven’t gone anywhere, if anything they’ve gotten stronger. Crunchyroll is a dream come true for 16 year old Suncoast browsing me. Shudder offers great horror content. Criterion has a great classic selection. And each service is cheap to subscribe to. Steaming is a dream world compared to the days of old.
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Jan 21, 2022 17:26
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So I’ve gotten around to watching “VEEP” and it makes me appreciate what the Trump Era has done to politics. The constant worrying of every minor “scandal” is just eyerolling.
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Jan 21, 2022 19:35
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veni veni veni posted:It just gets more and more bonkers as time goes on, with the last season being completely off the rails. One thing you might be easily misconstrue early on is that it's supposed to be like a Girls 2.0 where all of the characters are your besties, but unlike Girls the show itself is very aware that all of the characters are narcissistic sociopaths. If I was going to compare it to anything I'd say it's sort of like Always Sunny only moodier, episodic and bit more dramatic. This is actually selling me on the show after being put off by the painfully mediocre first episode. I do doubt that they are as depraved and monstrous as the gang from Sunny though.
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Jan 21, 2022 21:26
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precision posted:oh u have no idea lmao Do they also do stuff like have their children dig up their mother’s graves, sleep with their nieces, do mindfucks of hiring hundreds of actors to have a suicidal friend think they’ve achieved stardom just to bring them down in the end, have plans to buy a boat so they can trap people to essentially force rape them in open seas, etc?
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Jan 21, 2022 23:29
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Punkin Spunkin posted:Did an AppleTV trial for The Tragedy of Macbeth and goddamn is it lacking. The film too sure, but I mean the streaming service. They really really ain't got poo poo. Any recommendations for their tv series? I ain't watching "Ted Lasso" whatever tf. "Dr. Brain" is good.
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Jan 23, 2022 02:04
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Netflix still produces the best original content out there. If anything the quality average has gotten higher over the years not lower. I still remember when "Netflix Original Film" and "Netflix Animated Series" was synonymous for being utter poo poo. Now they release stuff like "Don't Look Up" and while their animated catalog more than speaks for itself.
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Jan 23, 2022 22:58
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BonoMan posted:https://www.businessinsider.com/why-netflix-replaced-its-5-star-rating-system-2017-4 HBO Max is great, but the trickle of stuff is slow and they very unfortunately lost the Warner Bros. film day one releases. They don't really have too many killer original IPs that are running compared to Disney or Netflix. To me HBO Max is basically HBO content and "almost everything else that is not owned by Disney". I will say saying that they are like AppleTV+ is far too harsh. They have enough content to be in the running as someone's "main service" but it is the most barren of the major three. Hulu might as well be lumped with the Disney Bundle since the Disney Bundle is more or less the same price as Netflix these days and just a few dollars more than HBO Max. I find that Hulu essentially lives and dies by FX content. Hulu originals can be great but they aren't as influential on average as what's on Netflix or on Disney+. Luckily chances are if you have Hulu, you also have Disney+ too these days. Can't speak for Amazon since I haven't had Prime in years. It used to be dire, but it has seriously stepped up it's game since. I unsubscribed half a decade ago and the service has gotten far better content since. I did watch "Invincible" which was incredible. Netflix is like 'the PlayStation of streaming services". Not only are they by far the biggest, but they operate under the philosophy of "having something for everyone" rather than "making something for everyone". They have quality programming in almost any genre for almost any demographic. To the point that they will greenlight the most nichey thing imaginable. Sure they may be too cancel happy, but who else would have greenlit a practical effects big budget "The Dark Crystal" series? Compare this to Disney who have the blockbuster Marvel and Star Wars universes to carry water as their major series. And while HBO Max does original programming too, it rarely feels as "avant-garde" as Netflix. It feels like stuff you'd see on network TV.
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Jan 24, 2022 06:09
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An issue for content judgement is that Netflix releases stuff in a binge format while other services release via weekly, so it seems that Netflix has bigger gaps in their service than they actually do.The Modern Leper posted:I guess what is "looking" in 2022. Unless you're getting fed stuff in the carousel, what is actually a meaningful way to find shows of interest? In the linear days, you had TV Guide to get synopses and whatnot, or you could just bounce around the channels and see what caught your eye on Wednesday at 8. Hell, even when cable made that onerous, you could just sit on the GUIDE channel and get a rundown of what was around. The days of TV Guide are dead. Today finding shows is generally done by search engines, web articles, and word of mouth social media. People searching "Best shows on *insert streaming service here*", sites like Variety running news and reviews of various series, and Facebook/Twitter feeds of memes and viewing experiences are what pushes modern shows. Field Mousepad posted:Wait what? Daredevil and mst3k were super popular and well received, Luke Cage not so much though. The Marvel shows were canceled by Disney due to Disney+ launching.
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Jan 24, 2022 21:25
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Where is this "Almost everything Netflix puts out is crap!" coming from? Looking at their "latest" page it doesn't seem to have a worse good/crap ratio than say Hulu's. Famethrowa posted:I love it so much. It's nice having a competition show that completely avoids the reality TV stereotypes. I may actually watch this show since it's getting such good word of mouth. punk rebel ecks fucked around with this message at 01:34 on Jan 25, 2022 |
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Jan 25, 2022 01:31
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ymgve posted:Like 90% of the Netflix produced movies they push on the front page has an IMDB rating of 5/10 Out of curiosity, I looked up the IMDB scores of the "Only on Netflix" tab for the first 10 movies that appear on my feed: tick, tick...BOOM! - 7.6 Bad Trip - 6.6 The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf - 7.3 The Ballad of Buster Scruggs - 7.3 Kingdom: Ashin of the North - 7.0 #Alive - 6.6 The White Tiger - 7.1 Between Two Ferns: The Movie - 6.6 The Hand of God - 7.4 The Irishman - 7.8 That averages out to 7.13, which isn't bad at all. I'd typically do a victory lap, but being honest the list just proves how utter poo poo IMDB is. #Alive is the lowest rated movie on the list and is the best. The Irishman is at the top but I found it very boring. Looking at IMDB's best shows of all-time list is insane. Rick & Morty is somehow almost in the top ten.
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Jan 25, 2022 09:16
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GonSmithe posted:
Rewatching “The Dark Knight” today is painful. Both it and especially its sequel are right wing glorification films. I don’t mean to sound like a CSPAMer but christ.
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Jan 25, 2022 18:31
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Would any of you be interested if I did a “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” Super Review, the same way that I did one on Seinfeld? Or am I a loser nerd with no life who will be just wasting his time on stupid nonsense that nobody cares about?
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Jan 26, 2022 00:25
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Okay, I'll definitely make a super review post.doctorthefonz posted:There are several eps missing from hulu due to blackface etc just fyi
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Jan 26, 2022 08:54
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Finding out that the main character in “Nobody” was a secret badass all along really puts me off from watching it. The entire thing that intrigued me was because I thought it was a story about a Joesixpack who trains his way to being a badass after said event.
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Jan 26, 2022 19:27
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I will comment my thoughts on the blackfaces in my mega review. I’m Puerto Rican, and the show has some specific Puerto Rican focused jokes.
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Jan 27, 2022 00:19
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The thing that bothered me the most about watching Seinfeld on Netflix: https://youtu.be/PFIrsitJW5M
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Jan 27, 2022 17:13
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Finished “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”. That was quick.
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Jan 27, 2022 23:33
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Watching "Veep", it's amusing just how it doesn't occur to anyone how nakedly corrupt and fascist they are. It was amusing watching the group throw a temper tantrum because "not-Google" refused to ban searching a scandal involving the vice president.mcmagic posted:All of Us are Dead is another pretty good Korean show on Netflix. It's not going to be the same kind of hit that Squid Game was but I'm always down for original zombie content. Netflix sure does love greenlighting Korean Zombie content.
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Jan 30, 2022 06:40
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Is everyone on VEEP suppose to be horrible human beings? Like I realize that Jonah is ultra unlikable and the very definition of a doofus, but people should at least care if he's getting molested. And why is everyone such a dick all the time? Like every new character enters the show like "Pfft, you are dumb and don't know how to do your job. You should leave it to a professional like me  ."Tokelau All Star posted:I got a free trial of Paramount Plus to watch the AFCCG. Give me some good stuff to watch on there before I cancel it please. The "Console Wars" documentary is fun.
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Jan 31, 2022 04:07
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On season sixth of Veep now. It’s amusing how everyone becomes more terrible. Selina Meyer really is a horrible president and her staff are just as bad. How Mike and Gary aren’t terminated is beyond me. It’s an obvious thing to predict but the 1080 she did on “count every vote” once she realized she could lose was disgusting. Thinking of it, Jonah Ryan is arguably the best character in the show. Yes he’s a gently caress up and is dumb, but only a notch or two more than the average staffer. And he actually treats his subordinates with respect, as he leads the only group without a toxic or hostile work environment (as long as his uncle is out of the picture). I will also say the show has liberal rot brain. Such as wanting to criticize Israel, but only settling for “they’re too aggressive with their genocide!” and the “Free Tibet!” thing is such crap that belongs in 1980s.
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Feb 1, 2022 18:59
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Just finished Veep. Being honest, I'm a bit surprised that the series as a whole is so highly regarded. I mean after the mediocre first season, the series becomes very good. However, the last two seasons or so the show gradually becomes...stupid. Everyone starts undergoing extreme flanderization. Selena goes from being highly self-absorbed to full on sociopath to an absolute monster. Mike goes from being a competent staffer who occasionally is slow to make quick decisions, to arguably the most incompetent person in the show, to the point that even his adopted daughter frequently jabs him like a sitcom character. Catherine goes from being an agreeable but naïve college girl, to a snowflake caricature. Jonah goes from being the annoying guy in the office who is underqualified for the job, to being tall/skinny Peter Griffin. And the situations they find themselves in become more and more bizarre, such as the asylum tunnel escape. I understand the messages the show was trying to say. Selena was so obsessed the presidency that she lost her friends, family, and herself in the process. And that if she would have just followed her principles in the first episode, she would have achieved more in her first vice president term than during her presidency. That said, I feel that some of the shows intended messages fall flat (unless I am suppose to feel the way I feel): - Jonah Ryan is obviously suppose to be a stand in for Trump. He's suppose to show how voters are easily suckered in to voting for completely nitwits and those who have borderline mental illness. Everyone was appalled when Selena picked him as the VP. But being honest...is he really that much worse than anyone else, let alone Selena? Sure Jonah is incredibly narcissistic and stupid, but everyone else is a sociopath and a careerist to the worst degree. At least Jonah actually believes in some things, even if they are stupid. The choice is simply would you rather have someone who will destroy the country if elected or sabotage it? The answer is it doesn't matter much. - While Richard is the stand in of being "the only good person in Washington", it's amusing to even consider that he would make it to the presidency. Washington is shown to be a soulless place where only the most ruthless, cold, and calculating survive. Richard being a principled boy scout would never make it in the land of Veep. He's shown to make it as far as he has most on luck (replace dog for mayor --> rescue people from fire he just happened to pass by --> lt. governor --> governor dies so he gets the job). Veep paints world where it's impossible to be anywhere near the top unless you sacrifice almost all, if not all, of your principles. Norway being the only exception. Overall, Veep was enjoyable and I was hooked through much of it, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus is fantastic in it. But I feel that the series just doesn't stick the landing.
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Feb 3, 2022 10:10
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Boondocks revival is cancelled: https://comicbook.com/anime/news/boondocks-reboot-cancelled-sony-pictures-pulled-the-plug-star-reveals/
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Feb 4, 2022 03:46
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McGruder wasn’t involved in the last season of the show. It’s a large reason why it sucked so much.
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Feb 4, 2022 17:24
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This seems like a good watch: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/4/netflix-film-perfect-strangers-challenges-middle-east-sex-taboos When is USA release Netflix?
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Feb 4, 2022 23:39
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Jesus gently caress, I'm so pissed there won't be season 4: https://screenrant.com/ash-vs-evil-dead-season-4-cancelled-reason/ It truly is a show that is made for streaming. Netflix should have picked it up.
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Feb 5, 2022 04:37
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Finally finished "Ash vs Evil Dead". Ridiculous that we aren't getting season 4 since nobody watches Starz. It was going to be Mad Max x Evil Dead.
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Feb 6, 2022 02:47
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~Punk Rebel Eck's: "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" Mega-Review~ Introduction In my living room laying on my second bed I was watching TV. And I did something that I rarely ever did when watching TV alone. I was laughing, laughing out loud, and at times hysterically. Not just once, but multiple times a viewing. And not just during one viewing, but during most viewings. The show I was watching was called “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” and it is quite possibly the funniest TV show I’ve ever seen. Watching was such an enjoyable experience, that I completed all of the 162 episodes in less than a month, watching an average of around 6 episodes a day. So, what is it that drove me to near obsess with this show for a month, and have it rocket its way amongst my favorite shows of all-time? Well to put it simply it’s one of the most unique and innovative scripted comedies of all-time. What the Show is About The best way to describe “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” is that it’s the “anti-sitcom”. The show revolves around a group of twenty somethings, who have been friends since high school, that own a bar and find themselves in various trials and tribulations in life. On the surface this sounds like any other sitcom imaginable, but trust me the similarities end there. The thing is rather than the main cast being relatable and endearing, they are insufferable. The cast members are: Mac  A male bimbo who is obsessed with his body and for the longest time refuses to accept that he is gay. He’s also hugely religious in which he believes the more one suffers the closer they are to God. He engages in schemes, hijinks, and general actions that ruin people’s lives. Dennis  A sociopath, master manipulator, and likely serial rapist and killer. He prides himself in his ability to manipulate others to do his bidding. Whether it’s having women undergoing emotional abuse as he uses them for sex, or getting his friends to help him with his schemes, he always seems to have a plan to use others. I would say that he would be the “leader” of the group, but he just doesn’t command enough respect and clout to definitively say that. He engages in schemes, hijinks, and general actions that ruin people’s lives. Charlie  Being honest, this character is a bit hard to describe. I would say he is the dumb and crazy character. However, he really isn’t that dumb or crazy compared to the rest of the cast. The best way to describe him is that scripted comedies tend to have a standout character who is the most “bombastic” and “fun” to watch. Seinfeld had Kramer. Workaholics has Adam. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia has Charlie. He engages in schemes, hijinks, and general actions that ruin people’s lives. Dee  The twin sister of Dennis who dreams of being an actress. She seems to have no regard for other people as she is extremely rude and even violent. Her constant outbursts drive away customers from the bar, despite her being the bartender. She is loathed by all of the other cast members but always finds a way to get involved with whatever situation they are in. She engages in schemes, hijinks, and general actions that ruin people's lives. Frank  The father of Dennis and Dee, he is a retired rich businessman, who spends his days living in squalor with Charlie as he finds that to be the most comfortable. He has virtually no morals, will have sex with anything that moves, and is all around gross. Due to his experience, connections, and money he frequently engages in grandiose schemes. Just with his hijinks and general actions, these schemes ruin people's lives. It’s easy to see that the cast are all very horrible people, to the point that if you took any of the Seinfeld cast and placed them in It’s Always Sunny, then they would comfortably be the moral compass of the show. Yet, this is what makes the show work. Because the characters are such horrible people, they aren’t chained to the confines of needing to make rational decisions or logical moves. A lot of their actions can simply be explained by “they are incredibly selfish and stupid” and it works. Here is a quick list of some things that the protagonists, often referred to as “the gang” get themselves into: - Kidnapping a critic from a local newspaper - Having two members of the cast go on an Easter egg hunt which culminates in them digging up their dead mother’s grave - Staging a fake funeral for a baby - Locking house guests inside a burning apartment All of this sounds terrible and it isn’t even the worst things that the gang has done. You don’t feel any sympathy for them, as intended. This means that you don’t feel sad when they get their comeuppance and/or go back to their sad dead-end lives. They are always the butt of the joke. Why You Should Watch It So, now that I’ve explained the show in detail, I will explain why you should watch it. If I were to describe the humor of “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” it would be dark, wacky, in your face, and pulls no punches. No topic is too taboo and the scene will be as bewildering as it needs to be. At times watching the show feels less like watching a sitcom and more like watching a cartoon. This makes the tone and feel of the show is closer to a live action South Park than a just a darker version of a prime-time sitcom. Scenes like some of the cast becoming crack addicts to scam their way into welfare, or faking cancer in order to get charity money really seems so outlandish that it’s hard to take the show seriously, but again, it works. But honestly, I find the show to really shines when the writers are put out of their comfort zone and into new territory. Such as having the characters traveling to Jersey Shore with each members having their own literal dreams and nightmares played out. Two prominent members of the gang moving from the big city to suburbia as you watch their chemistry combust as they gradually descend into madness. As the show reached double digits seasons, it’s clear that the writers wanted to spicin’ up the show more. So more of these experimental episodes not only became more common, but more offbeat. Such as the episode that is a cross between the film “Watermelon Man” and the musical “The Wiz”, as the gang wakes up as black people and navigate the world as being black in America all while breaking into song and dance. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZP-n5ArEH4 Or the episode where the show going full on 1940s noir, with Charlie being a detective that has to navigate through the dark parts of the town as he solves the mystery of the diarrhea poisoning. All in traditional black-and-white of course. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjLtS1YodPA Or the more bizarre is the episode that goes full on “Hardcore Henry” as it all completely take place in a first-person perspective, and as you see everything through the eyes of Frank. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iZCkIcQ7-0 But what’s arguably the most notorious ones, are the Lethal Weapon episodes. In which the cast creates their own entries to the Lethal Weapon franchise. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLzDttETzSU ...... Addressing the Elephant in the Room Being a show that has such dark and edgy humor while delving into controversial topics it’s no surprise that some episodes can be...well...controversial. This isn’t anything new, South Park and Family Guy for example have had their fair share of controversies over the years. But being live-action, it puts “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” in strange place, especially for specific jokes. This is obviously a very sensitive topic. On one hand I want to be careful of what I say in order to not offend anyone. On the other hand, I want to be honest and clear with my answers. Before I start, I’ll give some information of my background. I consider myself biracial with being both Puerto Rican and Palestinian. In terms of how I actually look, I may be considered “white passing” with a skin tone slightly lighter than Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, though people can often tell that I still am “something”. So, I feel that I can give some insight to some of the jokes relating to race in the show, but due to my lack of melanin I feel that I can only give so much insight. What I will say right before tackling this topic is: - There is no “Latino opinion”, “Black opinion”, "Asian opinion”, etc. People are individuals and each person sees things differently. Just because one person is offended by something doesn’t mean the entire group is, this is also true on the other side of the coin if someone doesn't find something offensive. To be fair, there is a general consensus between groups what is and isn’t offensive, but things aren’t always as cut and dry as people make it out to be. - Most opinions on “if X should be considered racist or acceptable” in media tends to come from white voices. And if it does not come from white people, it comes from their upper-class minority peers rather than “the masses”. A good example of this is the term “Latinx” which is heavily pushed by the media but most Latinos haven’t even heard of the word, let alone push for it. - Comedy’s purpose is to make people laugh, but it can also send messages that are difficult to do so in casual conversation. Similar, to the jesters of the king’s court, comedy makes the audience laugh but also think of things that they won’t typically think about. This is obviously a major double edge sword as while comedy can certainly be a smart and powerful tool, it can also put joke tellers in a bind when they want to tell a joke and leave it at that without the audience giving it more introspection. So, it can be understandable if some in the audience misinterpret the joke by seeing something that isn’t there. You can't really fully blame the audience for being paranoid, as humor tends to be the gateway for deplorable views to make it to the mainstream. Comedy can be a two way street. - As much as people want to deny it. Dark and raunchy comedy tends to be extremely effective at comedy and messaging. Sure, shows like South Park and The Boondocks make people angry, but they are also regarded as some of the smartest and respected comedy shows in existence. This isn’t without them dividing fans up on things, or even being flat out wrong in some of their criticisms (South Park in regards to climate change and trans issues come to mind). But having the creator occasionally show their rear end is the price one pays for unfiltered edgy comedy. I completely realize that a fair of those points are  , but I feel I need to get all of this out of the way before I continue. Now back to the review. I wasn’t really offended by all that much in “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”. I find that often it isn’t merely what is being shown that is offensive but it’s context. Sure, Matt Stone and Trey Parker poke fun at Muslims significantly in their media. But it’s obvious watching it that the stuff show is either meant to be so outrageous that it is purely satirical, and when they do tackle situations like Muslim extremism the joke tends to be on the ignorance of the characters (typically Cartman), best demonstrated by the episode “The Snuke.” The general message of tends to fall in the line that extremely few Muslims are terrorists or sympathize with terrorists, and the issues tend to be multi-layered to the point that explaining it all in a twenty-two-minute comedy TV show is absurd, and “South Park” is hyperaware of that. In contrast, I highly dislike how “Curb Your Enthusiasm” portrays Muslims, as the highest rated episode on IMDB (are you loving serious?) takes the context of the Palestinian-Israeli “conflict” from being a situation of Israelis performing ethnic cleansing by stealing Palestinian land and occasionally sterilizing their own citizens into a whole “if only we can get along with Palestinians, then I can eat their delicious chicken and have sex with their women.” The episode makes no mention to as of why the Jews and Palestinians hate each other, other than “they hate each other”. All the while Palestinians are portrayed...poorly to say the least, something that doesn’t really happen to an entire demographic for the show. Luckily, It’s Always Sunny falls into the former. The reason being that much of the racist acts are being done by the gang themselves, and the show makes it very clear that you are not supposed to agree with them and are supposed to be laughing at them. Whenever the characters make an ignorant comment like Muslims being terrorists, black people being thugs, or Asians not speaking English, you aren’t supposed to be taking them seriously. The show itself is showing that since the characters are so deplorable, of course they have these beliefs. It outright mocks anyone with such belief. The joke is on the racists not the races. Now to get to what these past thirteen paragraphs were building up to out of the way...no, I do not have a problem with the brown/blackface segments of the show. It is perfectly understandable if one feels differently about it, but personally for the most part, I saw little problem with it. Yes, Dee portrays an offensive stereotype of a Puerto Rican woman by having her being a complete hood rat and Dee looking like she put a black mob on her head and splotched herself with brown paint. But you are supposed to be laughing at Dee being stupid enough to think that this is how Puerto Ricans are. And by note, everyone around her is nearly as bewildered by her as the audience. You aren’t laughing at her portraying a ghetto Puerto Rican, you are laughing at Dee thinking this is how a Puerto Rican is, as well as the absurdity of it all. It’s similar to the Lethal Weapon episodes. You aren’t laughing at Mac’s portrayal of a black man, you are laughing that Mac thinks that he’s blurring the lines between what race he really is. In his mind he is the racial drag queen, but in reality he looks ridiculous. And this is pretty much where everything falls in the show to me. If I have to get technical, there’s only three episodes that I had a problem with: The first is the episode “The Gang Recycles Their Trash”. This features Dee portraying a Puerto Rican woman again and gives a speech to union workers about not quitting their strike. What makes me a bit uncomfortable is that unlike before where the people she interacts with react like a rational person would be going “Who are you and just what the heck are you doing dressed like...that?”, the crowd, who is solely brown and black, actually listen to Dee’s warcry of a speech and then form a mob. I realize it isn’t as bad as it sounds, but it’s still in the spectrum of “bad” to me. The second is the episode “The Gang Solves the North Korea Situation”. I am not Asian so I can’t comment, but just many parts of this episode make me feel uncomfortable. Especially with them making comments of how “you can’t tell the age of Asian women” and then having Charlie try and get with a girl played by a twenty something year old actress, but it turns out that her character in the show is a twelve-year-old. The third is the episode “Sweet Dee Dates a Retarded Person”. Now besides the obvious problem with title, I just didn’t feel that comfortable with the episode. I don’t have anyone who is “in the spectrum” in my family nor am I close to anybody, so I’m sure if those who do feel the same way. For what it’s worth, the creators feel the same way that it’s a relatively weak episode that they regret. Though the fans disagree. Saying all this, for show that delves deep into controversial territory unflinchingly, I am pretty surprised that I have so little to complain about. Closing Thoughts Overall, “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” is one of the best shows on television, and also the funniest. The only show that I’ve watched that seems to rival it is “Curb Your Enthusiasm”, but that’s only when factoring out the weaker seasons. Despite running for almost two decades, “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” has yet to have a “weak” season and the latest is ultimately as good as any other. The show isn’t afraid to try things to keep everything fresh, nor is it okay to give conclusions to long running gags that in any other show may only have a chance to be resolved in a planned season finale. You can tell just by watching it that the show is a labor of love. Created by actors struggling to make it in the industry, with much of the main cast marrying and still together, and Danny DeVito loving being on set so much that he decided to be on the show permanently. The “good vibes” of the show really rub off on everyone, including the viewer. “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” certainly isn’t for everyone. It can be extremely dark and is unflinching in the way it presents itself. If you want a comedy to sit down with your family, then this isn’t the show for you. But if you want a show that focuses on giving you the best laughs possible, regardless of your comfort zone, then look no further. End Notes - It was clear, and is now known by fans, that during the first season Dee was supposed to be the “female voice of reason”. Kaitlin Olson hating this demanded that her character be just has selfish and crazy as the others. The show creators/writers stated that they made her the voice of reason as they weren’t sure how to write for a woman, resulted in Olson responding to them that they should just write whatever and she will feminize whatever they wrote. This resulted in the Dee that we all know and “love”, and thinking of it she really is a breakthrough character as she is everybody as psychotic as the guys and her screen presence is just as welcomed as theirs. - That said, having Dee become a bad person not due her upbringing from Frank but rather a head injury at a roller rink was an insanely dumb retcon, and to me does a lot of damage to her character. - While the show is easily the most consistent of these double-digit season comedy shows, I will say as a whole the show was gradually getting worse. It’s in no way a huge difference in quality, but like a notch and half worse on average. The later seasons focused a little too much on experimentation instead of the gang's goofy antics. Some of these episodes weren’t even that bad, but I feel they should have spread out a bit more. I will say the latest season is definitely one of the better seasons. - I have a huge respect for the show for actually portraying the Israeli-Palestinian “Conflict” somewhat accurately. It’s even funnier seeing some reviewers  over the poor Israeli bar owner. - The cast is all fantastic. It's insane how almost everyone in the show was once an unknown actor. There is not really a weakest link, but I'd say the standouts would be Danny DeVito and Charlie Day. Best Episode: The Gang Goes to Jersey Shore | Runner Up: The Gang Goes on Family Fight Worst Episode: The Gang Beats Boggs: Ladies Reboot (this being the worst episode is so meta it’s perfect) Most Overrated Episode: The Nightman Cometh Funniest Scene: Mac and Charlie beating up their kid bullies in “The Gang Gets New Wheels” What I’d Like to See in the Future: The girl who posed as Dennis’s daughter in “The Gang Goes to a Water Park” to come back for another episode. punk rebel ecks fucked around with this message at 04:42 on Feb 8, 2022 |
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Feb 8, 2022 03:19
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Thanks for the responses everyone. I enjoyed writing the mega review and enjoyed watching Sunny even more.
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Feb 8, 2022 17:39
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Enos Cabell posted:Yeah that was a great review, thanks for sharing. Had you ever seen an episode prior to starting your marathon? What was your impression of the show going in? I watched the series before during college, but only the fourth season. I didn’t remember much about it going in. My impression of the show was that it was a dark millennial (yes I know the actors are in their 40s) Seinfeld. The show is less Seinfeld than I expected and a lot darker than I expected. In terms of season 1 being “bad”, it’s common that first seasons of great series are subpar, as shows are struggling to find their footing. But the first season of Sunny isn’t that bad, certainly it isn’t as bad as say South Park, Bojack, or Seinfeld. I will say that while the first season isn’t as “dark” as other seasons, it can be more “meanspirited”. The second episode with the psychopath kid is a good example. The entire concept is Sunny but something about the execution is off.
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Feb 8, 2022 18:31
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The entire write up of the first Dee actress is here: https://www.ramshackleglam.com/2016...-and-sweet-dee/
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Feb 8, 2022 23:56
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Watched "Horrible Bosses 2". Reminds me of the pre-2010s where sequels were virtually always worse than the originals. The film was a step down from the first in everyway (which wasn't even that strong to begin with). And the ending undermines so much of the original.
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Feb 12, 2022 05:20
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Field Mousepad posted:Arcane had good animation at least So does Castlevania.
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Feb 16, 2022 02:12
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So I want to watch something Sherlock Holmes related. Are there any good shows? I know "Sherlock" is highly rated but I watched this video which made it seem...not good: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkoGBOs5ecM But it's Youtube so they may exaggerate. Field Mousepad posted:Marshawn is a goddamn national treasure I wouldn't go that far, but he is far more charismatic and a natural than you'd expect. He's mid-tier in terms of guests which is incredible considering that he isn't an actor or comedian.
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Feb 16, 2022 06:17
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I heard I should start with the 1980s British show, but that seems too “retro” for me. I wish Netflix would give Sherlock the Lupin treatment.kazil posted:If you could, it would probably be really dumbed down for the average viewer and then it wouldn't be much of a mystery. Like Murderville?
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Feb 16, 2022 18:38
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So I've watched the first two episodes of Murder in Successville and yeah it's literally Murderville before Murderville. That said the show is much harder to follow and is just "too British" for me. The humor doesn't appeal to me.
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Feb 16, 2022 23:43
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mcmagic posted:Everyone ignored my Beforigners post so I assume no one else is watching it but you should. It's good even though it gets silly at the end of the second season. I loved the first season. I'll get around to season 2 eventually. The show is crazy under-rated. Not surprising though as only Netflix seems to have confidence with marketing foreign series.
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Feb 17, 2022 02:08
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