BobO'Link

I was totally surprised I enjoyed Coupling as the description didn't sound like something I'd truly like. In spite of that feeling I purchased S1 when I got a deal (under $5) and, after watching, found it wasn't like what I'd gotten from reviews, or I'm just seeing it differently. It's quite funny and, while frequently "naughty," not the smutty series I was expecting.
That's one that just never sounded interesting to me. My daughter loves it as do several regulars at the LCS so when Amazon offered S1 for $5 BF I did a blind buy and may try to work it in during January, if not before.
There ya go... I watched that one some during the original airings but never regularly, although I did like it better without Farrah Fawcett in the cast. I keep telling myself I need to pick up S1 and possibly S2 for nostalgia but have never done it.

Dimension X

Batman and Robin? Now you gotta be trollin'.
I didn't hate either one.
I saw it on cable several years ago, but I remember it being pretty "smutty" (that's part of what made it funny).
The Walking Dead is a "slow burn." If all you want to see is people kickin' zombie ass, avoid it. Plus, even though it doesn't exactly follow the comics' storyline, you'd probably be more likely to like the show if you've read the comics.

One reason I'm behind on it is because at the end of the past season, the show finally caught up with where I was in the comics and I'm trying to decide if I want to read the books first, or watch the show.

I think I quit watching after the third season when it aired originally. I'm surprised by how much I enjoyed the two seasons I've watched. They actually hold up pretty well (keeping in mind when they were made).

shadokitty

I discovered an interesting show on Amazon Prime, Shark Gordon. Just watched the first episode and it was pretty good. Apparently it was originally on Animal Planet.

Travis McClain

I've largely quit watching TV shows in any format over the last several years, but I have spent some time over the last few months going through some via Hulu. Around August and September, I streamed my way through Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Recently, I went through Red Dwarf. I maintained a running, ranked list of the former but forgot to keep up with the one I started for the latter.

I think my chief focus during this year's challenge is going to be Batman, since January will be the 50th anniversary of its debut as a mid-season show. I almost dived into it during last year's challenge, but wanted to focus more on my un-logged disc library. As for the conversation in this thread about such things, I'll just say that I have had no interest in Smallville, Arrow, or Flash. I was initially curious about Gotham, but nothing I've heard about it so far has really made me curious enough to bother checking it out. Ditto Supergirl, which is really the one out of all of those I think I want to succeed just based on my interest in the character. My lack of interest in the DC shows and current movie franchise is rooted in how generic, lazy, and bleak they all appear. Man of Steel was dismal, and Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice looks like a fanfic video game. For the first time since 1989, I think I may not even bother going to see a movie with Batman in it because it just looks that truly uninspired.

Side note to the side conversation: Two years ago, I stayed up and watched the entire Christopher Reeve Superman series over the course of two nights; one night was Superman (theatrical cut), Superman II (theatrical cut), Superman III, Supergirl, and Superman IV: The Quest for Peace; the second night was Superman (DVD cut), Superman II (The Richard Donner Cut), and Superman Returns. What surprised me was that the one I found the most satisfying of the lot was Superman III.

I'll also take Batman & Robin over The Dark Knight Rises handily. Both are stupid movies; the difference is that B&R knows it's stupid. TDKR actually thinks it's as sturdy as its two predecessors, and it isn't remotely close. (I also have a Stockholm Syndrome-like relationship with Batman & Robin that I suppose ought to be taken into account.)

Superhero stuff aside, I also have most of Psych left to go through on DVD. I'd like to get through at least one of those seasons soon. I may even jump into The Complete Third Season before the challenge officially begins, since I'm not actively participating in this year's Holiday Challenge and don't have any other particularly "organized" viewing going on right now.

A few days ago, Amazon ran a 30% off sale on one season of most of the TV shows in their digital store. I don't really stream much from Amazon, even though I have the app on my streaming player, so I wanted something self-contained that wouldn't bother me not to be accessible with my UltraViolet stuff elsewhere. I settled on the 2002 TV mini-series adaptation of Doctor Zhivago. I loved David Lean's 1965 picture and a few years ago, I finally read Boris Pasternak's novel, so I'm eager to see how much of the source material that didn't make it anywhere near the Lean film made it into the TV version. I've heard good things about it, and that's on my watchlist for the challenge.

BobO'Link

Hey... with the line "Holy rusted metal, Batman!" how can you *not* like it? I think I was the only person in the entire theater who laughed at that one. I know I got some odd looks!
I'm not at all interested in people "kickin' zombie ass" so much as a good story. Not being that much of a zombie flick fan, one reason I've not bothered with The Walking Dead, I have a larger collection than I'd have thought of "zombie" films. The ones I tend to like best are those that have more to offer than frequent zombie battles.
What did you think of it? The first time I saw it I wondered just what the heck I'd watched. It was only after purchasing the series and watching from the beginning that I really got into it.
That one was one of my "Holy Grail" shows. It's one I did the very rare purchase on release date and watched it as soon as it came in. My granddaughters (ages 4 1/2 & 9) have watched episodes with me and both love it. The youngest *regularly* asks "Can we watch Batman pa?"
Yep. I agree with all those statements. I've seen a few trailers for Batman v Superman and have yet to see anything that makes me want to spend time with it. I absolutely can *not* wrap my head around Ben Affleck playing Batman! Possibly the worst Batman ever, based on the trailers I've seen. I *do* like Wonder Woman but she's not been in the trailers enough to make the film a "gotta see" event.
Another good observation. It's nice to know I'm not the only one who truly doesn't care for the new Batman films. I usually get lots of raised eyebrows when I make that comment.

Travis McClain

That line is in Batman Forever, not Batman & Robin. This has become one of the most commonly mis-attributed lines of modern cinema in my anecdotal experience. That aside, I loved Forever, and it annoys me when people retroactively act as though in 1995 they didn't. It was an outright hit then, and it wasn't until after Batman & Robin in 1997 that it was unfairly demoted in public standing for its association as the other Schumacher Bat-flick.

I watched it somewhat actively when it originally aired and enjoyed it at the time, but I didn't keep up with it so the last few series were entirely new to me. For me, the heart of the series will always be the stuff where it's just the guys. The rest of the crew detract from the character relationship dynamics, and that's what I responded to the most.

I saw a lot of allusions to mental health issues this time through, which I freely admit may well be because of my recent outpatient/inpatient/outpatient treatment that I had completed just before delving into the show. Some episodes are overtly about things like depression and anxiety, but there are myriad nuances even in situations that aren't specifically about them at all. On the whole, I feel the show did a great job addressing how those kinds of things affect people.

The comedy holds up fairly well overall, though there's some stuff that made me cringe. Mostly this was sexist stuff, particularly "Kryten TV", in which Kryten is re-wired by another inmate to become a voyeur spy in the women's showers. Lister initially gives voice to decency, but then it almost plays as though that was more about getting it out of the way that someone tried than it was about imbuing the episode with an actual conscience.

Cat cracked me up more this time around than he did when I originally watched, and that has to do with having lived with cats in the intervening years. The cat-centric jokes written for him rang particularly true, and I don't know if Danny John-Jules gets enough credit for keeping such a vacuous character entertaining.

I've got Trevor to thank for adding it to our UltraViolet library! I just need to actually, you know, revisit the show! I have the '66 movie on Blu-ray (it's also in the UV library), and I have Return to the BatCave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt on DVD, too. I intend to watch the movie between Season One and Season Two, and I'll likely watch Return... after the series.

I know I'm in the minority, but Affleck is actually about the only thing that interests me about this entire project. I think he's shown a lot of growth over the years as a storyteller, both in front of and behind the camera, and I'm curious to see what he does with the role. Unfortunately, it looks increasingly as though nothing *anyone* might bring to their job will really make all that much difference once it's all thrown into the nihilistic post-production blender.

I enjoyed Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, though I don't worship at their altar the way a lot of the more vocal fans seem to. My relationship with TDK is a lot like my relationship with Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan; I get really sick of the tunnel vision worship as though they're the be-all, end-all of their respective franchises, but I have to admit that each time I've gone back and actually watched them, I've walked away satisfied. Not convinced they really are the be-all, end-all, but satisfied. The Dark Knight Rises, though...Ugh. Try as I might, I just can't even classify that one as an "average" movie. It's a genuine storytelling failure, and it doesn't have a charming personality to hide behind.

Dimension X

Beat me to it. I'll just add I think it was "'Holey' rusted metal, Batman!" (because of the holes).
You might like the show then. Most of the complaints I've read are about too little action, and too much talking.
There's someone who posts here who always talks bad about the Nolan films. Like in everyone of his posts, in any thread, no matter the subject. So you're not the only one who doesn't like them (assuming he's not just trolling).
I didn't hate The Dark Knight Rises, but it's not very good, and definitely suffers in comparison to the first two. I feel the same way about Superman III, Spider-Man 3, and Iron Man 3. The upcoming Captain America movie looks like it'll avoid that curse.

BobO'Link

I always get 'em mixed up and normally double check to be sure - didn't this time. For me it's because I hear Batman & Robin thinking *that's* the film that introduced Robin. IMHO those titles fit the films better if they are swapped.

Yes, that's correct but I *always* hear it with the flavor of the 66 Batman TV show as it's what I watched as a kid. I think the exchange is:

Robin: Holey rusted metal, Batman!
Batman: Huh?
Robin: The ground, it's all metal. It's full of holes. You know, holey.
Batman: Oh.

Well, crap! Another film where I tend to swap titles! I was talking about the first film, Batman Begins and haven't yet seen The Dark Knight Rises! :/
I really enjoy TWOK but like many of the regular series episodes better. But I can safely say that about *all* of the Trek films. I enjoy them all, even The Final Frontier, but none are as good as certain series episodes and several feel overly long. And while I enjoy ST: TMP, it suffers for being nothing more than a thinly veiled remake/mash up of several series episodes.
I now have to break down and watch that one so I can see what you're talking about. I'll decide after the viewing if I should thank or curse you for it!

Travis McClain

As I previously mentioned, I found Superman III the most entertaining of the Reeve series when I revisited them in a marathon a couple years ago, but I won't defend that. Iron Man 3, however, invariably provokes me to say a few things, spoilered for length because it's so off-topic:

Travis McClain

LJG765 and I synced up to go through TOS, TAS, the first six movies, and all spin-off episodes featuring TOS characters two years ago. I found a greater appreciation for The Motion Picture than I previously had. You're right that it's a thinly veiled rehash of "The Changeling" and pieces from assorted other episodes, but one thing that stood out to me is how unlikely we are to ever see a big budget franchise movie like that again that focuses on concepts over action. It may not have been 100% original, but at least it trusted its audience enough not to spoon feed us an action movie with ray guns and call it a science-fiction film as so many movies since then have done (and that call-out isn't restricted to the Trek franchise).

I wish there was a home video release somewhere of the movie with nothing but Jerry Goldsmith's magnificent score. No dialog, no sound effects; just music. It could even be the extra-boring, extra-long cut as long as all I can hear is the score!

shadokitty

I just finished the third episode of Season One of Ancient Aliens. Enjoying revisiting the show. And if anyone is interested, I'm starting to feel a little better today.

jjcool

I'm the same with regards to zombie flicks. I do not seek them out, am not a fan, and I do not like excessive gore and viscera. That being said, I was convinced to sit down and watch the pilot of The Walking Dead. That turned into watching the entire first season over the span of three days. That turned into catching up to the current season before too long. Presently it is one of the very few shows that I watch live most weeks. While the show has weakened in later seasons, those first several seasons were real strong. Compelling story, and developed characters. The blood and guts, and they do try to outdo themselves, takes a back seat to the story, in my opinion.

Libby

Count me in!

davidh777

This is always a great but tough challenge for me--so much eligible content! I like how I can watch a football game and get "credit," but then I kick myself for inefficiency.

I have tons of TV to catch up on, but I want to continue my journey through Friends, but also have the complete Batman and Cowboy Bebop sets that I want to get to. Those might have to wait for Action, though.

I like Smallville, but for strange reasons I started in season 5, so maybe together we can consider ourselves finished. I own the earlier seasons so it's a matter of fitting them in. I saw a few episodes of Arrow and liked it well enough, but got caught up in other things. Flash is on my list, but I gave up on Gotham after a few episodes because it didn't hold my interest. I've stopped buying series like this (including Agents of SHIELD) because they seem to hit streaming before I get around to watching them.

I would like to try to catch up on Supergirl, though, and maybe Walking Dead since I've like completely screwed the pooch on this half-season.

shadokitty

I found an episode of Ancient Aliens I had never seen on H2 On Demand, about Alien Wars, a Season 7 episode. I also bit the bullet and bought Season 2 of Battlestar Galactica, since Season 1 ended on a cliffhanger.

BobO'Link

You may as well go ahead and purchase the other seasons then... *all,* except the last, end on cliffhangers. The series actually has resolution with, IMHO, a mostly satisfying conclusion, even though I saw it coming *several* episodes before it hit.

shadokitty

I probably will over time.

shadokitty

I just finished revisiting Season One of Ancient Aliens, including watching the bonus episode for the first time. I haven't decided what to work through next however.

LorenzoL

Thanks for hosting it again Travis. This challenge is my favourite one but I'm not sure how much I will be participating in the new year.

shadokitty

I just watched a bowhunting show on a bowhunting channel on Roku, since I was in the mood for an outdoor show.

shadokitty

I started right in on my TV watching of the day as soon as I woke up today. Kind of depressed today, so gonna need it. Just finished a hunting show on Angel Two.

shadokitty

I feel like I'm coming down with the stomach flu today. The perfect chance to veg in bed. I also finally decided what series to work on next, I just finished the first episode of Season One of Knight Rider.

Travis McClain

While I'm thinking about it, does anyone have any thoughts about the checklist? It seems like just about no one really uses it. Sometimes I hear that people use the checklist to get ideas what to watch, but they don't actually attempt to complete it. I've personally never felt this challenge is suited for a checklist and I don't attempt 'em, but I want to create as fun a challenge for everyone as I can.

Cardsfan111

I'd agree with this. Checklists encourage a person to watch a large variety of things. While I try to view a few different shows during this challenge, I'm not likely to jump around from show to show in an attempt to check things off a list.

BobO'Link

I don't think I've ever used one for this challenge. As you indicate I pretty much watch what I want and catch up on series I've let go stale. I can see someone using it to get ideas but you can also do that in the discussion thread by listing stuff you like and asking for suggestions.