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No no no nononono I still have so much stuff to watch. I haven't even finished catching up to The Deuce yet 
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Dec 8, 2018 14:54
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Escobarbarian posted:Atlanta for 1 or you’re all monsters. Hell, you could argue it deserves number 1 just for the Teddy Perkins episode alone.
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Dec 8, 2018 15:10
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6th January? Thank goodness, I desperately need to finish The Deuce but visiting with the family isn’t conducive to watching a show about 1970s porn and prostitution.
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Dec 29, 2018 00:43
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One episode of The Deuce to go and I can write my list. Also holy poo poo The Deuce is good.Rarity posted:10. World War Two (Youtube) - This is a weekly documentary covering the events of WWII in real time. It's really fascinating to dive into it at such depth and Indy Neidell is great at presenting the stories without them getting boring. It's currently only three months in and the episodes are short so it's not too difficult to catch up. Also a huge shout out to The Great War which is the same but for WWI which I actually enjoy more but I'm five years behind so I can't speak for their 2018 episodes. Oh my God I haven't heard of either of these but they sound incredible.
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Jan 3, 2019 22:33
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 10. Venture Brothers - Just barely squeaking onto the list because I didn't know The Detectorists actually aired in 2017, I give this show the nod over other shows with higher highs but lower lows because it made such good use of the lengthy time between seasons. They produced an incredibly consistent and well-written season in which most of the characters achieved some measure of growth and success not just in their individual lives, but within the wider relationships of the groups they work within. Yes there was some backsliding in places (Rusty tossing aside his one actual incredible scientific achievement in favor of a - unknown to him - virtual reality orgy) but overall every character develops in welcoming ways: particularly The Monarch but PARTICULARLY Hank, who gets the final scene of the season in a pitch-perfect moment that encapsulates a lot of what I love about Venture Brothers: people change and grow, but they also stay true to themselves as people.  9. Westworld - Season 1 was one of the best shows of the year, absolutely gripping and fascinating with an incredible performance by Anthony Hopkins but also most of the rest of the cast. Season 2 unfortunately, while still extremely good in individual parts, failed to quite hold together as a cohesive whole. There is unfortunately a sense that Season 1's success, despite the pedigree of the writer and the giant budget they were given, came as a surprise and they didn't really have anything concrete in mind for season 2. The attempts to recapture Season 1's "hidden" jumping about in time is best realized in Bernard's damage preventing him from differentiating past and present, but largely feels like a carbon copy of what was done so innovatively in Season 1. Individual performances (particularly Jeffrey Wright and Ed Harris) are great but none of it quite hangs together or meshes well. The most welcome new addition is Zahn McClarnon (Hanzee from season 2 of Fargo) and the brief story of his own remarkable journey through the timeline of the park culminating in a beautiful moment of escape. There is still plenty there to enjoy and hope for what season 3 might bring, but the signs are there that things could go South pretty quickly.  8. It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - 13 seasons going strong and this bizarre, hilarious and disgusting show continues to surprise and delight with the unexpected. One of the big appeals of the show has been that the writers have so strongly resisted the urge to improve their characters or blunt their edges. But in spite of that, the reason this season made my list is because the writers actually DID attempt that this year, albeit in typically gross-out fashion with the characters acting almost purely in their own self-interest. The result was an oddly sweet and touching season in which characters supported and encouraged each other (sometimes) even if for mostly the wrong reasons. The Superbowl episode picking up on Philadelphians' belief in their own inescapably "trashy" nature but reveling in a brief moment of triumph for themselves as a city; Dee being accepted and rewarded as a leader by the group for helping them achieve their goals; Mac and Charlie facing up to the unresolved issues of being bullied as children in one of the most hilarious scenes I've ever seen. But the most incredible and oddly "Un-Sunny" moment was also the best, as the final episode played up all the usual gags before ending in a frankly incredible and visually/emotionally stunning dance number by Mac as he sought to come out and express himself as a gay man to his father. Some might say it was TOO sensitive and beautiful for this show, but given how unique it is in the context of this show, it feels earned and all the more wonderful BECAUSE it is so different.  7. Legion - The first season of this show was a revelation, seemingly an indication that Noah Hawley could do no wrong after his first two incredible seasons of Fargo were followed by such an incredible season of a completely different show. But there did seem to be some impact on the (still high) quality of Fargo Season 3, and burnout seems to have followed through to season 2 of Legion. Perhaps it was inevitable after such a stunning debut, but this season had the same issue as Westworld did where a series of interesting and well-handled individual scenes didn't translate into a cohesive whole. Perhaps the biggest sin was the reduced presence of standout Aubrey Plaza, who dominated season 1 but is largely shunted aside in this season. The 1-2 episodes that focus strongly on her are the best, especially her resurrection episode, but for most of the rest of the time she (and Jermaine Clement) are sidelined and barely seen. Her replacement as the physical form of Farouk this season is Navid Negahban who is actually fantastic, but he carries a very different energy to the manic, quickly burning-out junkie that was Lenny in season 1. The confrontations between David and Farouk are handled in a fun and interesting way (dance-offs, music videos, static face-offs surrounded by vibrant animation etc) but where the season is really let down is the abrupt ending and complete change in the status quo to setup for season 3. People act out of character, subplots go nowhere or are suddenly "resolved" without any actual resolution (Jean Smart is criminally underused) and people make decisions that are completely without logic (far beyond the understandable lack of logic people often display). It actually feels like a large chunk of the story is missing, either due to edits or rewrites. Hawley is fantastic, but he needs to pick either Legion or Fargo and stick with it. Trying to run both shows is negatively impacting on both.  6. Doctor Who - Jodie Whittaker was inspired casting and all the promotional material looked amazing, so I was pretty thrilled to watch this latest season of Doctor Who despite some trepidation about the prior quality of the work of new showrunner Chris Chibnall. Now that the season has completed (the final episode aired New Year's Day of 2019) I can safely say my hopes and fears were largely realized. Chibnall, despite delivering one of the best single seasons of a British drama series in Broadchurch several years ago, again proved that when it comes to Doctor Who he has interesting ideas but an issue when it comes to resolutions (ironically, the New Year's Special was called Resolution, and it had arguably the best one of the season). Interesting threads and potential subplots were abandoned or ignored in favor of a familiar episode-by-episode "twist". Episodes that seemed to be going to a particular destination ended up somewhere close but not quite the same. This was compounded by the editing of the show, which at times was sublime but also frequently made mistakes common to a first year film student. So why rank it so high? Because the characters were amazing (Yaz was sadly the weak link, through no fault of Mandip Gill's), the group dynamic was beautifully realized, the cinematography was a step above anything done in the previous 10 seasons, there were great guest actors (Alan Cumming was a sensational ham), and the show was happy to tackle some pretty controversial subjects (Civil Rights era Alabama and the partition of India most notably). Most importantly though, Jodie Whittaker was absolutely brilliant in the title role and brought a fresh, optimistic and overall joyful take on the Doctor in direct contrast to the often glum or repressed/depressed Doctors who preceded her. With any luck, the season and its high ratings were strong enough to grant Chibnall the confidence to be a surer hand at the till, but aware enough to close up the very real issues with the pacing, editing, writing. Of course we won't know till 2020, as despite its success the BBC won't be airing the new season until next year. But I've had longer waits for Doctor Who before, and as long as they keep making the show, I'll keep watching.  5. Preacher - Season 2 of this show was a big letdown, but thankfully Season 3 was largely a return to the form of the first season and really upped my enthusiasm for the next one. Still suffering the AMC curse of sticking the show into a single location, these limitations were handled far better this year. Returning to Jesse's traumatic childhood home, his powers not functioning and his girlfriend's life bound to his hated grandmother, the show really drove home the claustrophobia and frustration of being trapped in a place you have outgrown and don't want to be, surrounded by people whose only connection to you is by blood. Each of the main three cast were given plenty to do, particularly Cassidy who had a fantastic subplot with a fellow vampire and lover with a horrific secret. The absurdist humor remains present (a subplot of Hitler and well-intentioned shotgun victim Eugene being fugitives from Hell is particularly well done) with just enough genuinely unsettling horror to keep the monstrous characters of Grandma, Jody, The All-Father and even God from becoming purely comedic roles. Jesse's inevitable reunion with Genesis leads to an incredibly cathartic if self-destructive moment and returns Herr Starr to the role of central antagonist where he belongs. All the pieces are in place for a hell of a season 4, hopefully one more in line with this one than season 2.  4. The Deuce - David Simon and George Pelecanos' recreation of 1970s Time Square is even better in season 2 than the first. While the utterly brilliant original theme has been replaced, "This Year's Girl" is a pretty great consolation prize. Even though more characters than ever get not only speaking roles but their own subplots, everything feels more efficient and refined. The tighter pacing makes everybody feel part of a living, breathing world: albeit a disgusting, litter-fueled one. The time-skip (1977 compared to season 1's 1971) helps lend the established cast an easy familiarity. Everybody knows each other, they're all part of their sordid little world, looking for money/freedom/an escape from the everyday. The parallel plotlines move in and around each other smoothly, characters dipping in and out from one to the other when necessary or just running side by side without ever touching. At the center of it all though is the growing legitimacy (and therefore money) of the sex trade: for some it is a welcome chance to rejoin society, for others it is a horrifying sign that their own time is passing. Some want to clean it up, some want to make it the new normal, others just want things to stay the way they've always been. The central character by pure force of her performance is Maggie Gyllenhaal's Candy, but for me the most fascinating was Gbenga Akinnagbe's Larry Brown. Both are looking to get off the street and into films: Candy behind the camera, Larry in front. Larry looks the part of a deadly, hulking pimp but it is clearly an act and he doesn't have the "heart" for it. The way he lights up when acting, the adorable scene of him walking down the streets of New York enthusiastically trying to remember lines from a film, it is a delight to watch. But there are so many other great characters played by great actors: Chris Baurer, James Franco, Gary Carr, Lawrence Gilliard Jr (thank God the former D'Angelo gets to stick around more than a season and a bit like he did in The Wire), Emily Meade, David Krumholtz, Anwan Glover, Ralph Macchio (seriously!) and Method Man just to name a few. Seeing a period of time where pornography aimed for and almost achieved mainstream acceptance is both bizarre and depressing, especially as Candy and her crew reach the apex of their creative achievement only to (with great excitement) start eying up the burgeoning video-tape industry. Season 3, the final, will take place in the 80s at the height of the AIDS crisis when porn was making a huge amount of money but absolutely all creativity and concerns with legitimacy had been thrown completely out the window. Just how the characters (who survive) will deal with this will be depressing I'm sure, but I also can't wait to see it.  3. The Good Place - Last year when this show incorrectly was selected as the best show of the year instead of Twin Peaks, I thought it was probably time to catch up and see what all the fuss was about. While I still know the objective fact that Twin Peaks should have won, I can certainly see why this show was getting raved about. Thankfully season 3 kept up that quality, and also continued the theme present in seasons 1 and 2 of taking about a dozen potential single things that could easily carry an entire season by themselves and just running through them in short order. Season 2's theme looked like it was supposed to be Michael attempting to perfect his project only for that to quickly get turned on its head. Season 3 looked like it was going to be about the characters back on Earth with another chance to get things right, then turned into an interesting look at doomed people trying to help others and then suddenly went... well, Janets is one of the weirdest episodes of a particularly weird show I have seen this year, and that's a year that had Legion in it! Every member of the small but perfectly formed cast are great, but D'Arcy Carden as the robot* who has by sheer force of attrition become a fully formed person in her own right is a standout. The season ended with a pretty interesting setup for season 4 which I don't doubt it will quickly overturn, and the wonderful thing is that I won't be mad, because wherever they go instead is probably going to be utterly enthralling as well. * Not a robot   2. Better Call Saul - Bob Odenkirk's Jimmy McGill hits rock bottom in an incredible season where every single thing he does is overshadowed (like Jimmy's entire life) by his sainted brother Chuck. He can't escape, no matter what he does or where he goes Chuck remains an unshakeable presence. Which makes the big climactic scene of the final episode so incredible, as Jimmy appears to FINALLY confront and address the elephant in the room and deliver a heartfelt, tearjerking speech about what his brother meant to him. The scene that follows is heartbreaking for a completely different reason and yet the latest in a giant stack of reasons why Rhea Seehorn as Kim Wexler deserves every award there is and a whole bunch of money to boot. Meanwhile, this beautifully shot show continues to unfold the background setup for Breaking Bad, and while some find the Mike and Gus scenes intrusive, I find them as fascinating as I did in that other show. They also serve as a useful breaking up of Jimmy's own narrative, and the slow and inexorable drive towards Jimmy's life intertwining (even tangentially) with Gus's drug empire is fascinating to watch unfold, like a slow-motion carwreck where you know what the result MUST be but keep hoping that somehow, some way, there will be an escape. I kinda wish this show could just continue forever, dealing with the day to day of the lives of Jimmy, Kim, Mike, Gus and hell even Howard. It's just so well made. Watching it is an endless pleasure.  1. Atlanta - I don't know how Donald Glover does it. Any of it. Because he can do anything. He can do everything. And he does. Seemingly effortlessly (which probably means it takes a hell of a lot of effort) he expertly executes writing, comedy, acting, music. I'm incredibly loving jealous. The first season of Atlanta had a lazy, meandering feel to it which mirrored Earn's own stymied potential. Season 2 feels a lot more fractured, which again makes sense as the show mostly abandons the idea of Earn as the central character and spends a lot more time with the other characters in addition to Glover's. Each story feels almost self-contained outside of some bookended episodes which show Earn's fear of falling to the wayside of his successful cousin Paper Boi and ending up like the Uncle who never lived up to his great potential. Almost every episode could be argued as the best of the season for all kinds of different reasons. It's so well-written, well-acted, well-shot, well-scored etc, it almost seems unfair that any other show has to be considered against it. Even if episode 6 didn't exist, I'd still have listed Atlanta as the best show of the year. But it does. Teddy Perkins is one of the most unsettling, deeply disturbing things I have ever seen in my life. It elicits in me the same kind of response I felt when I first saw The Shining. Everything is just wrong, and it is a chance for the talented Lakeith Stanfield to shine in an episode almost entirely to himself. It is the best episode of television of the year, on the best show on television in the year. Nothing else in 2018 came close. Jerusalem fucked around with this message at 22:23 on Jan 10, 2019 |
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Jan 4, 2019 06:36
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I actually thought The Detectorist's final season came out in 2018, I only just noticed it actually aired in 2017 (originally in Britain at least) sorry - I assume I need to replace it with something else?
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Jan 4, 2019 06:39
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Will update it before the 6th, sorry!
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Jan 4, 2019 08:15
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I updated my list, dropping off The Detectorists, moving everything below it up a place and putting Venture Brothers into the #10 spot. Sorry for the screw-up, Rarity!bowmore posted:1. Deutschland 86 S2 I only got halfway through the first season of Deutschland 83 but always meant to catch up. Without giving away any spoilers, is 86 a whole new story or a continuation of 83? Jerusalem fucked around with this message at 23:07 on Jan 4, 2019 |
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Jan 4, 2019 23:02
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Oh, yeah I thought it was 8pm today and just loaded up the thread all excited 
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Jan 7, 2019 02:02
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Not sure if I should be sad that Preacher ranked so low, or happy that it recovered so well from Season 2.
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Jan 7, 2019 21:53
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I love Bojack but after the penultimate episode of season 4 I just needed to take a break and I haven't caught up again yet. It was an utterly incredible episode but goddamn was it dark as gently caress.
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Jan 7, 2019 22:03
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Clicks video Holy gently caress why the hell haven't I watched this show yet 
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Jan 7, 2019 22:14
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I just started watching this show (Daredevil) yesterday and the last episode I watched had the scene from the link above (thanks for linking a video with each Rarity, it's cool and good and should continue!) - it was extremely impressive. That said, it was clearly playing off the single-take shot from season 1 and that's pretty indicative of Marvel Netflix as whole: taking things that worked the first time and repeating them again and again to diminishing returns. It used to be I would be excited for each new Marvel release and binge them as quickly as possible. Last year the only one that really had me excited was Jessica Jones season 2 and that turned out to be a letdown (still good, but a big drop in quality), while Luke Cage fell apart at the halfway point and I didn't even bother with Iron Fist after the terrible first season and the godawful Defenders. Edit: Hang on wasn't Daredevil there a second ago? 
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Jan 7, 2019 22:23
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Welcome to the Rarity Top 10 Poll threads, where nothing can possibli go wrong!
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Jan 7, 2019 22:28
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Toxic Fart Syndrome posted:I forgot about Westworld Did it not look like anything to you? 
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Jan 7, 2019 22:35
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15 years old, only 7 seasons, quality increases every season... it's the reverse-Survivor!
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Jan 7, 2019 22:41
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Not enough Aubrey Plaza 
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Jan 7, 2019 23:16
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God, that linked scene is still loving amazing.
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Jan 7, 2019 23:32
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Atlanta is the best, Atlanta number one. I guess it's oddly fitting that a clerical error has seen The Good Place get the number one spot over Twin Peaks and now Atlanta.
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Jan 7, 2019 23:47
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Escobarbarian posted:drat that poo poo was a LANDSLIDE Yeah, Atlanta was Earn and The Good Place was Tracy, holy gently caress.
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Jan 7, 2019 23:54
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Thanks as always Rarity, that's a hell of a lot of work AND you did the video game one too!
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Jan 7, 2019 23:59
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BSam posted:poo poo. You sold out, Mr. Mainstream!
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Jan 8, 2019 23:36
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