Suggestions, please.

Posted by Eudaimonia 9 years, 8 months ago to Entertainment
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Over dinner, my wife and I like to log into netflix and watch an episode of a television series.

But most series are the same, fair to great episodes at the beginning, then somewhere before the second season the progressive drum comes out and each episode is yet another excursion into social issues pontification land.

I was really getting into "House, M.D.", but then we got to the second season.

Can anyone suggest any television content on Netflix which actually wants to tell a damned story, not beat me over the head with the same tired sermons?

Thanks.


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  • Posted by martinidick 9 years, 8 months ago
    You can't go wrong with the original Twilight Zone episodes. I keep watching them over and over again. And Seinfeild keeps me laughing as well - perhaps the best comedy series - ever - and so politically incorrect.
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    • Posted by NealS 9 years, 8 months ago
      The best one I ever saw on Twilight Zone was, "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge". An Oscar winning short, this is the second part of Robert Enrico's trilogy of short films, based on the Civil War stories of Ambrose Bierce. While An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge is easily the most famous (thanks to a screening on The Twilight Zone) all three films are stunning, filled with unforgettable images, and great use of sound. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GuP5kUQr...
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  • Posted by mualfhatheta 9 years, 8 months ago
    Friends & I decided with you --- we created a "history" night. We began just after the dinosaurs, skipped Egypt & Rome --- because we had already been there --- moved right into the middle ages and are now entering early Renaissance art. It has taken a few years but it has been a great trip. Documentaries are the way to go & we have dinner while we watch. The one that took the longest to watch was the philosophers which required a lot of pauses while we discussed what we were learning.
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  • Posted by LetsShrug 9 years, 8 months ago
    The Walking Dead. lol
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    • Posted by $ allosaur 9 years, 8 months ago
      That's my favorite. Come to think of it, seeing how different surviving groups try to govern themselves is becoming pretty interesting. Next season starts with our main (not killed off yet) characters being end of last season imprisoned in a boxcar by a community that tricked them by appearing friendly. The show will be back in October in time for Halloween.
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      • Posted by LetsShrug 9 years, 8 months ago
        It's the best show ever... "They're screwing with the wrong people".
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        • Posted by $ allosaur 9 years, 8 months ago
          LOL! Yeah, that well-organized new bad guy bunch put up signs inviting people to a happy place just to mess with them. Soon they'll learn they've bitten off way than they can chew. Looking forward to seeing how they get their butts kicked..
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          • Posted by LetsShrug 9 years, 8 months ago
            Me too. They buried those guns us know. Carol and T will show up and make some heads roll. My guess. :)
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            • Posted by $ allosaur 9 years, 8 months ago
              Meanwhile zombies are just part of the show's environment. Kinda like Obama speaking with a background of smiling (but definitely undead) human props.
              Oh, wow, did I just have a wicked thought! I'm thinking the opening line of the ultimate classic (that created the ghoul-type zombie) Night of the Living Dead. Substitute "They're coming to get you, Barbabra" with King Barry.
              I'm creating my own movie title now: The Attack of the Human Props. The theme: What libtards devolve into. The End? Think the Left Coast, sea water and lemmings.
              Maybe I'm on too much of a roll The last time I clowned here I got scolded. Got something I need to do. Bye!.
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              • Posted by $ katrinam41 9 years, 8 months ago
                We need a very off-beat sense of humor if we are to survive--the libs have no sense of humor... Maybe those Props can be flat cardboard cutouts, to give your movie some realism! Keep it going, allosaur!
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                • Posted by $ allosaur 9 years, 8 months ago
                  Well, you're a blast from the past! Just like allosaur me. Only Einstein can explain the wormhole that put this conservative ole' dino in Galt's Gulch. And . . . he's dead.
                  Psst! Some online test I took concluded I'm a libertarian with very strong conservative leanings.
                  Up until then, I thought the opposite was the case. Maybe there's a clown in me trying to wiggle out of that pinch somehow.
                  I hope that appears complicated. It would make me feel special.
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                  • Posted by $ katrinam41 9 years, 8 months ago
                    be a clown--my cousin is a clown--really--and I dress up as the pirate queen from Pirates of Penzance, used to be able to sing it too. And I am more libertarian than conservative--very disappointed with those conservatives in congress lately. did you cut and paste your above comment? i seem to remember reading it two or so days ago, before i posted. :)
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                    • Posted by $ allosaur 9 years, 8 months ago
                      I can no longer bring myself to make any donation the Republican Party has repeated asked me to make. Tossed out a renew my membership request just today. I've given a few bucks to the Tea Party, though.
                      I don't see anything I've cut and pasted above. Not sure what you mean. I do repeat things like O = 0, Liar-In-Chief, King Barry, the 2013 Lie Of The Year Winner, Bozo the Clown Biden, Princess Pelosi the Wicked Witch of the West, etc..
                      Speaking of cut and paste, I've been wanting to show someone my favorite allosaur video. Kinda bonded with that critter the first time I saw it. Was already calling myself allosaur at the time. I'll show it to the Gulch should I get a well-timed excuse during a conversation. Pretty sure you and I are the only ones talking on this page.

                      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8l-eJTb...
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  • Posted by $ Maree 9 years, 8 months ago
    Can you access When a City Falls ?
    It is exactly my city's story of 2010/11. It starts just as a doco of the first event. As the story just keeps happening, including the death of one of the team. At the start its a story, in part, of trying to repair the catholic cathedral. But yeah by june 2011 forget it.
    I posted in new year 2013 of my reflections from my Rand-based perspective - as the city fell but i didnt. This doco gets the experience of those 2 years and 11,000 events spot on. According to me.
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  • Posted by oldwarrior 9 years, 8 months ago
    I'm surprised that no one has mentioned 24.
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    • Posted by 9 years, 8 months ago
      I really liked 24 in its early seasons.
      I used to joke that my slogan was WWJBD, What would Jack Bauer do?

      But then the execs bent to left pressure and the story lines changed.
      When they had Jeananne Garafalo on the show (don't care if I spelled it right,I could have just said "shrieking Marxist") I wrote the show off.

      <Jack Bauer>DAMN IT!</Jack Bauer>
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  • Posted by BradA 9 years, 8 months ago
    No real order here ...
    Babylon 5 - Deeply philosophical and one of the first series that killed off major characters way before George RR
    Breaking Bad - Like B5 above, a masterpiece partly because of the planned story arc. Beginning, middle and end.
    Game of Thrones - as long as we're talking George RR
    The Prisoner (1960's series) - A psychological battle with lots of Objectivist content.
    Justified - The best written show currently on TV.
    Sons of Anarchy - Outlaws as capitalists.
    Person of Interest
    Ray Donovan
    Halt and Catch Fire

    Not sure which are available on Netflix.
    I also want to put a plug in for my favorite TV tracking site tvmuse.com Set up a free acount and it allows you to save and track all the shows you follow, including various ways to notify you when new episodes are out. For each episode, people post thoughts as well as streaming links. The site itself does not host or promote the links, more like friends sharing content, but that's a whole nuther topic.
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    • Posted by $ winterwind 9 years, 8 months ago
      I 85th The Prisoner!
      I want to teach a class on Secret Agent, The Prisoner and The Prisoner 2, which we would write.

      It's sad, really, that so few people understand my "Welcome to the Village" t-shirt!

      E, watch that one. I can't wait to hear what you say about it.
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    • Posted by Hiraghm 9 years, 8 months ago
      Saw a video review of Game of Thrones. Just looked like medieval porn to me.

      Again, "let's take modern people and put them in a medieval/fantasy setting!"
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      • Posted by 9 years, 8 months ago
        I saw both seasons of Spartacus, which was Roman era soft porn, but it was also a great show.
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        • Posted by Hiraghm 9 years, 8 months ago
          Most modern people would probably not like historically accurate movies/tv shows. They would be offended by the assumptions, thought habits and behavior of people in past eras, and unable to relate to them. Some of that is simple cultural shifts, most of it is the "moral" indoctrination they've received.

          But, people generally want to watch shows about people to whom they can relate; to project themselves into a given era/situation. I'm different, because I can more easily relate to previous eras, and can view the people in them as they were, in context, without condemning the society for not holding the same values modern America holds.
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  • Posted by Solver 9 years, 8 months ago
    My wife and I liked the series, Mr. Selfridge. It is about a mostly rational individualist business man with a family that starts and maintains a business collaborating with many other individuals. He never takes the immorally seductive “by any means necessary” route to achieve his ends (in business.) The one time he did sacrifice his time for a "societal duty” away from his business, his enemies caused his reputation to go to hell. “Society” didn't much care.
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  • Posted by Herb7734 9 years, 8 months ago
    Burn Notice.
    Not only does it tell an exciting story with interesting characters, it actually explains how and why the spy techniques are used.
    Spartacus
    The first season only which is all about gladiators and how they train, the politics of the gladiator slave owners and lots of tradition and verbal structure are presented. Very authentic and well researched. Lots of graphic sex, however, if that bothers you.
    Fringe
    A S.F. series utilizing much recent quantum theory. A little politics but nothing blatantly progressive. Some good special effects and better than average acting and writing.
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    • Posted by Hiraghm 9 years, 8 months ago
      "Lots of graphic sex, however, if that bothers you. "

      You left out a word... "gratuitous"

      For me, this negates your earlier comment
      "Very authentic and well researched."
      Again, from the trailers and from what you describe... just another sticking modern people in classical Rome. No doubt the protagonists will have modern PC values, and the antagonists will have stereotypical "bad" (unPC) values.
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  • Posted by $ EitherOr 9 years, 8 months ago
    Battlestar Galactica, Mad Men, Orange is the New Black (1st season only), Firefly. Also, Avatar: the Last Airbender is probably the highest-quality TV show i've ever watched in terms of plot, themes, and character development. It's animated, so good if you want to watch with kids too.
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    • Posted by 9 years, 8 months ago
      Battlestar Galactica - loved it.
      Mad Men - Joan started it before I did. She loves it, but I won't start watching it midstream.
      Orange is the New Black - See "Mad Men"
      Firefly - Can quote almost verbatim.
      Last Airbender - I will add to the list. Saw the Shayamalan movie, wasn't impressed. The Village was his last good movie, IMO.
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      • Posted by $ EitherOr 9 years, 8 months ago
        Ah well, looks like I'm batting 1 for 5. Or 4 for 5, depending on your pov :)

        Oh god please just forget the Shyamalan movie. It was hideous. One of the last episodes of the Last Airbender TV show actually comments on the movie - the characters go to see a play about themselves and leave saying "that play was terrible" "no kidding" "but the effects were decent!"
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      • Posted by Hiraghm 9 years, 8 months ago

        I swear by my pretty new bonnet, I will end you.

        Let's see... nuthin from nuthin... carry the nuthin...

        No, THIS is what going mad must be like.

        Also, I can kill you with my brain.

        You don't "fix" the Bible... it fixes you.

        Every well-bred petty thief knows that the small arms go on the left.

        I hope she does the soup thing; it's always a hoot and we don't all die.

        If they catch us, they'll rape us to death, eat our flesh, and sew our skin into their clothes. And if we're very, very lucky, they'll do it in that order.

        Everybody dies alone.

        Wash, tell me I'm pretty.
        Were I unmarried, I would take you in a manly fashion.
        Because I'm pretty?
        Because you're pretty.

        You know what the chain of command is? It's the chain I beat you with til you figure out who's in ruttin' command here.

        Well, well well. Looks like we got here just in the nick of time.
        What's that make us?
        Big damned heroes, sir.
        Ain't we just...

        Yeah, but she's OUR witch, so cut her the hell down.

        Might have been on the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one.

        We've done the impossible. And that makes us mighty.
        ---
        just from memory :)

        Was just watching an episode of Castle (which I hate for its PC) and Adam Baldwin was on. I fell asleep and missed the ending, though :( It was cool seeing Mal and Jayne together again.

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    • Posted by Hiraghm 9 years, 8 months ago
      I refused to watch the new Battlestar Garglactica after seeing that Starbuck got a sex change operation.

      Oh, yes, ancient civilizations with divergent histories will have the same stupid cultural values we have.

      I would give money if someone would make a tv series around The Mote in God's Eye.
      Or even just a movie.
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  • Posted by $ blarman 9 years, 8 months ago
    Merlin (BBC production) is good. Also liked BBC Sherlock a LOT.

    Second mention for Babylon 5, Jericho. And Firefly (skip the movie).
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    • Posted by 9 years, 8 months ago
      Merlin - very good, I thought Mab was excellent.
      Sherlock - I saw a couple of episodes, I liked it, Joan did not.
      Babylon 5 - See above
      Jericho - Saw the first two episodes... slow.
      Firefly & Serenity - Gee, it sure would be nice if we had some grenades!
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    • Posted by Hiraghm 9 years, 8 months ago
      OMG, yes, how could I leave out B-5???

      ::scowl::

      Don't leave out Serenity. It's the culmination of the series, and is kinda relevant.
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      • Posted by $ blarman 9 years, 8 months ago
        Relevant, but as a real fan of the series, it left out way too much that should have been introduced through about two more seasons.

        And neither my wife or I can forgive them from killing Wash.
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  • Posted by $ DriveTrain 9 years, 8 months ago
    If you haven't watched any of Tom Selleck's "Jesse Stone" movies, you have a major treat ahead of you. I think there's eight of them so far, based on Robert Parker's character (which I haven't yet read.) Stone is of the "flawed hero" mold - struggling with alcoholism and a divorce from a woman he still loves - but the stories are good, Selleck's acting is outstanding, and the whole mood, though somber and often sad, is elevated to an almost poetic beauty by Jeff Beal's excellent music. Not to be missed, IMO. But it's advisable to find a series list and watch them in order, because there are references to prior events throughout.

    I've been a big fan of the British series "Midsomer Murders" for years and was delighted to discover that my monthly eight bucks gets me the entire production run. John Nettles (since retired from the series,) plays the admirable and reason-dedicated detective Tom Barnaby from Carolyn Graham's books, accompanied by a succession of sidekicks (high turnover in that position for some odd reason.)

    The stories are "good-not-great," but always interesting; the cast of characters is always extensive and just as interesting (it's great to see characters who are "characters," as in: people with unique personalities, vs. the cookie-cutter of "cool" that's blandified American drama for decades,) and the setting - the pastoral but upscale villages in eastern England - is like another character in itself. Intellectual "comfort food" I suppose, but good stuff, particularly if you're looking for a modern echo of Agatha Christie.

    Oyeah, it's also a veritable who's-who of British acting royalty, with cameos from everyone imaginable, and often unimaginable.

    The chief downside is that the producers adopted, early on, a frivolous, tongue-in-cheek attitude toward the series that occasionally manifests itself in the drama itself - the notoriously high per-episode body count for instance, that's led people to speculate that if it were a real place it would soon be uninhabited.

    The sheer quantity of characters in any given episode can be daunting to keep track of too - almost to the point where you need to jot down notes (or maybe I'm just pre-Alzheimer's?) But it's a happy addiction and there's no discernible political axe being ground in any of it, unless it's an oblique lampooning of the foibles of the British upper crust.

    Another I've just sampled (the first episode,) is "Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries," an Australian series about a wealthy '20s flapper who delves into detective work. Implausible and not too deep, but interesting so far.

    On the recommendation of a sibling I watched "The Fall" with Gillian Anderson. It's a short police procedural about a serial murderer (five episodes to date, in a single story arc, with more in the can but not yet released.) The acting is phenomenal and the setting (Northern Ireland,) is interesting, but I'm not a big fan of heavy-malevolence serial murder stories, so by the end of episode 5 I was both annoyed that the story is unresolved but glad to be done with it. 'Caveat emptor on that one. I'm happy to report that Gillian Anderson has grown up since the X Files days though, in an excellent way. I could easily see her as Dagny Taggart, though I assume she'd be politically antagonistic to all things objectivist.

    I could recommend some movies too, but I assume you're more interested in series, so I'll wrap this up 'cause it's getting lengthy.
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  • Posted by $ Stormi 9 years, 8 months ago
    Actually, there may be some choices, and that is fun. "Top Gear" (the British version) is always in trouble for not being PC.
    "Castle" sneaks in remarks about government overstepping or anti-PC, anti-socialism quite frequently. Nathan Fillion is Canadian, and it is usually his character who does the little remarks.
    We always found "NCIS" to be anti-PC, they hug, they snipe, they drive muscle cars, way to go Mark Harmon.
    There are always the reruns of the "Waltons", where kids respected parents and went to church, which must drive the PC crowd crazy.
    I also loved early "House", what a character, but it went down the tubes when the whiney munchkin doctors with their PC views came on and Cuddy got slutty.
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  • Posted by mmb 9 years, 8 months ago
    Now that I think of it we really enjoyed going through Morse, a detective in Oxford. We got those from Netflix then we got all of the Inspector Lewis series. Just rented The Railway Man from Netflix . Incredible.
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