Fans of Television Series
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sam9s
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The Defenders official trailer ... not bad at all ..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=141&v=4h3m7B4v6Zc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=141&v=4h3m7B4v6Zc
I just started watching it. Best of all, it is available on 4k HDR and also looks quite nice in that mode.
esanthosh
Well-Known Member
I have started and stopped this post many times in the past few months based on the justifiable reason "Who watches animation series in this thread?" 
. However, I thought I'll post it anyway since I cannot keep it in my head forever.
Cowboy Bebop (TV Series 19982003)
I would liken this in some ways to 'Firefly'. They are both about crews in space playing 'space cowboys'. They both have interesting characters. And much like 'Firefly', I might watch 'Cowboy Bebop' again someday.
But there the similarities end. Why is CB interesting?
But, there are many issues that plagued CB as well. For one, assembling the crew takes a third of the series. The best episodes of the series are the ones where we come to know the backstory of a character (or) when the history of the character catches up with them. But, these episodes are far and few between. There are just too many stand-alone episodes. Sure! There is some character progression going on across the episodes, but it reserves too much of its firepower for the last few episodes. Due to this, the series' supposed 'greatness' slipped me by.
This one is a good read: https://kotaku.com/after-thirteen-years-i-gave-cowboy-bebop-a-second-chan-1542667674
Neon Genesis Evangelion (TV Series 19951996)
This one, along with 'Bebop', played a great part in the revival of interest in anime in the US, according to some blogs I have read.
I watched this long before, but had completely forgotten it and had to watch again to see what's great about it. I have mixed feelings about this series. When the first episode starts, you are pushed smack down into the middle of something you can't make head or tail of - "Who are these Angels? Why do they attack? What the hell is NERV?" Within the first few episodes, we get some of the details, enough to keep us going, but not everything. Then the series gets into a rhythm (read: some repetitive actions with repetitive music) that puts us at ease and somewhere down the line, it once again puts us back in the same awkward position - "What the hell is this Human Instrumentality project? I thought this was about angel attack and EVA pilots warding off the attack and saving the world".
'Mecha' is just one aspect of this series. There are also a lot of religious/philosophical references thrown about, but only a few of them ever make sense. The rest are little head-scratchers (Wait! How?). It is also about depression, loneliness, finding your place in the world. The series creator, Hideaki Anno, had undergone depression and the core of the series is nothing but a cathartic output of that experience. The 'hero', Shinji is a shy, introvert loner. Rei is a mysterious loner. In fact, the only part of the series that is fast paced and fun, are the eight episodes that follow the introduction of Asuka. A lot of time is spent on thinking about consequences of action, longing for acceptance and that sort of thing. There is even one long scene in a lift where there is no movement and you are wondering whether you hit pause button by mistake. The last two episodes are nothing but a long therapy session complete with question cards. The director still says that they are good enough and I kind of agree with him from a pure psycho-analysis point of view.
But, most normal fans who were expecting 'normal' episodes were baffled by the last two episodes. What is THAT? They asked. Even the actors who dubbed it in English on the state side didn't understand what it was all about.
So, they made a fresh replacement for those two episodes by creating "Death and Rebirth" (Death = recounting of 24 episodes + some new scenes, Rebirth = a replacement 25th episode). They also went back and did a 'Director's cut' of the last few episodes (19-24) by adding the new scenes from 'Death'. They followed it up with "End of Evangelion" (using Rebirth as a starting point and creating a new #25 & #26), which gave it an (agreeable to the public) alternative ending, something that is much more in line with the rest of the series.
Even that wasn't enough. So, they went back and decided to redo the whole thing as four movies. Three movies are out and the fourth one is still expected. The first one is supposed to be a rehash of the first six episodes and the rest are all going to be a fresh take. I haven't watched the movies yet but will do so in the future just for completion sake.
Post-Watch Read: https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/feature/2002-06-11
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (TV Series 20022005) - Gig 1
If not for one review of the new Scarlett Johnansson movie, I would have never watched this.
I liked the first season of the series much more than the movie (which was too heavy on philosophy). The series scores on two aspects. The first is the opening title song, which I liked despite the fact that I don't usually like this kind of music. Is it because "Inner Universe" and "Tank" are both composed by Yoko Kanno? Or is it because the song is way cooler when sung in Russian + English? I don't know. The second part is in comparison to the movie. Because of the time available in a TV series compared to a 2-hour movie, I got to know about everybody working in Section 9. It is much easier to care about characters that are fleshed out than when they are just 'contemplating' about whether they are 'still human'. The animation style of the GITS movie was such that it felt like a 'movie made with animated actors'. This one isn't as great but is good nonetheless. The character design of Major is said to be closer to the manga and she is immensely more likable with a purple hair.
My favorite episode of the series is the 15th one, Machines Dsirantes, which involved the child-like 'think-tanks' of Section 9, Tachikomas. Nothing but 'clones' with shared memory, Tachikomas start developing individuality and discuss concepts like 'death' and 'god'. It was cute and I enjoyed it more than the 'philosophy' of the GITS movie.
Related reading: There is a really, really (super-)long post by Tim Urban on Wait But Why about Neuralink. That near 40K word post took me the whole of last weekend to read. When thinking about 'cyberization' and 'cyber brain' in GITS universe, something like the 'wizard hat' makes sense as a starting point.
. However, I thought I'll post it anyway since I cannot keep it in my head forever.Cowboy Bebop (TV Series 19982003)
I would liken this in some ways to 'Firefly'. They are both about crews in space playing 'space cowboys'. They both have interesting characters. And much like 'Firefly', I might watch 'Cowboy Bebop' again someday.
But there the similarities end. Why is CB interesting?
- The animation is, after all these years, still very good.
- The music is very good too. I normally never watch opening title sequences after a few episodes. But, with CB, I sat through the opening sequence for all the episodes (barring the last one, which didn't have it). The opening title song, "Tank" is among my favourites of all time. The closing credits song, "Real Folk Blues", is good too.
- Spike Spiegel is one of the coolest heroes around.
- Ed (or Edward Wong Hau Pepelu Tivrusky IV) is the craziest eccentric genius on screen. Walter Bishop on LSD can't do such things!
- There are two aspects in which this is better than 'Firefly'. One, it does have a proper ending. I would say that it is one of the few series which ended exactly how it should have ended - definitely one of the best series finales I have come across. Secondly, no matter how much I liked 'Firefly', the overwhelming feeling I got while watching 'Serenity' was "If only they had two seasons to do this, they would have done this properly". The accompanying TV movie of CB, "Knocking on Heaven's Door" on the other hand was better than most episodes. In fact, it showed that if the writers put their mind to it, they could come up with something really, really good.
But, there are many issues that plagued CB as well. For one, assembling the crew takes a third of the series. The best episodes of the series are the ones where we come to know the backstory of a character (or) when the history of the character catches up with them. But, these episodes are far and few between. There are just too many stand-alone episodes. Sure! There is some character progression going on across the episodes, but it reserves too much of its firepower for the last few episodes. Due to this, the series' supposed 'greatness' slipped me by.
This one is a good read: https://kotaku.com/after-thirteen-years-i-gave-cowboy-bebop-a-second-chan-1542667674
Neon Genesis Evangelion (TV Series 19951996)
This one, along with 'Bebop', played a great part in the revival of interest in anime in the US, according to some blogs I have read.
I watched this long before, but had completely forgotten it and had to watch again to see what's great about it. I have mixed feelings about this series. When the first episode starts, you are pushed smack down into the middle of something you can't make head or tail of - "Who are these Angels? Why do they attack? What the hell is NERV?" Within the first few episodes, we get some of the details, enough to keep us going, but not everything. Then the series gets into a rhythm (read: some repetitive actions with repetitive music) that puts us at ease and somewhere down the line, it once again puts us back in the same awkward position - "What the hell is this Human Instrumentality project? I thought this was about angel attack and EVA pilots warding off the attack and saving the world".
'Mecha' is just one aspect of this series. There are also a lot of religious/philosophical references thrown about, but only a few of them ever make sense. The rest are little head-scratchers (Wait! How?). It is also about depression, loneliness, finding your place in the world. The series creator, Hideaki Anno, had undergone depression and the core of the series is nothing but a cathartic output of that experience. The 'hero', Shinji is a shy, introvert loner. Rei is a mysterious loner. In fact, the only part of the series that is fast paced and fun, are the eight episodes that follow the introduction of Asuka. A lot of time is spent on thinking about consequences of action, longing for acceptance and that sort of thing. There is even one long scene in a lift where there is no movement and you are wondering whether you hit pause button by mistake. The last two episodes are nothing but a long therapy session complete with question cards. The director still says that they are good enough and I kind of agree with him from a pure psycho-analysis point of view.
But, most normal fans who were expecting 'normal' episodes were baffled by the last two episodes. What is THAT? They asked. Even the actors who dubbed it in English on the state side didn't understand what it was all about.
So, they made a fresh replacement for those two episodes by creating "Death and Rebirth" (Death = recounting of 24 episodes + some new scenes, Rebirth = a replacement 25th episode). They also went back and did a 'Director's cut' of the last few episodes (19-24) by adding the new scenes from 'Death'. They followed it up with "End of Evangelion" (using Rebirth as a starting point and creating a new #25 & #26), which gave it an (agreeable to the public) alternative ending, something that is much more in line with the rest of the series.
Even that wasn't enough. So, they went back and decided to redo the whole thing as four movies. Three movies are out and the fourth one is still expected. The first one is supposed to be a rehash of the first six episodes and the rest are all going to be a fresh take. I haven't watched the movies yet but will do so in the future just for completion sake.
Post-Watch Read: https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/feature/2002-06-11
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (TV Series 20022005) - Gig 1
If not for one review of the new Scarlett Johnansson movie, I would have never watched this.
I liked the first season of the series much more than the movie (which was too heavy on philosophy). The series scores on two aspects. The first is the opening title song, which I liked despite the fact that I don't usually like this kind of music. Is it because "Inner Universe" and "Tank" are both composed by Yoko Kanno? Or is it because the song is way cooler when sung in Russian + English? I don't know. The second part is in comparison to the movie. Because of the time available in a TV series compared to a 2-hour movie, I got to know about everybody working in Section 9. It is much easier to care about characters that are fleshed out than when they are just 'contemplating' about whether they are 'still human'. The animation style of the GITS movie was such that it felt like a 'movie made with animated actors'. This one isn't as great but is good nonetheless. The character design of Major is said to be closer to the manga and she is immensely more likable with a purple hair.
My favorite episode of the series is the 15th one, Machines Dsirantes, which involved the child-like 'think-tanks' of Section 9, Tachikomas. Nothing but 'clones' with shared memory, Tachikomas start developing individuality and discuss concepts like 'death' and 'god'. It was cute and I enjoyed it more than the 'philosophy' of the GITS movie.
Related reading: There is a really, really (super-)long post by Tim Urban on Wait But Why about Neuralink. That near 40K word post took me the whole of last weekend to read. When thinking about 'cyberization' and 'cyber brain' in GITS universe, something like the 'wizard hat' makes sense as a starting point.
sam9s
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I wish, I really really wish I had the inclination to like Animated series, but I dont, I dont know, for whatever reason, I could not get myself to like, Animated tv series. Movies I am ok with, infact I have enjoyed quite a lot of Animated Movies. But when I tried this with Animated series like Naruto, I could not get myself like it, even though it was interesting. But since I am a HUGE HUGE fan of Firefly and equality HUGE fan of movie serenity, I might give a try to cowboy bebop, and hope it would not end up with the same fate as Naruto ...
So where can I source Cowboy Bebop?
So where can I source Cowboy Bebop?
esanthosh
Well-Known Member
But since I am a HUGE HUGE fan of Firefly and equality HUGE fan of movie serenity, I might give a try to cowboy bebop, and hope it would not end up with the same fate as Naruto ...
I have no idea about 'Naruto', but as far as I have searched, CB should be different. The only way to know for sure is to give 'Cowboy Bebop' a shot. It is a highly rated series, going by its ranking here and on IMDB (#31 compared to #17 of Firefly). I don't think it will break into your Top 10 series, but I hope you enjoy its style. Even if you quit, you'd have wasted only 20 mins per episode, so what's to lose?
. On a side note, GITS: SAC is #168 and NGE is #140. Of the many "Naruto" series, Naruto: Shippden (2007) is #212. Though these have no bearing on our own preferences, it gives you a rough idea about the relative popularity among IMDB voters.
Also, one thing I forgot to mention. KoHD is not exactly like Serenity as chronologically, it occurs between episodes #22 and #23. You can also skip the movie, but I'd highly recommend that you watch it.
I don't know if this can be streamed: https://www.amazon.com/Cowboy-Bebop-Complete-Series/dp/B00R2KKBLY. But the audio seems to be in English. I usually prefer to watch them in Japanese with Subs. If that is what you want, DL
Rajesh Karia
Active Member
Billions Season 2 finale was just awesome. Hats of to the writers for weaving a complex yet believable story line. Season 3 is going to be a cracker too.
Finished season 2 of BOSCH. A thrilling ride with the 10 episodes and each and every one was great and enjoyable. The only thing I missed is the strong and bold ending which was present in the first season. Overall as sam9s has mentioned its a top of the list show and not to be missed.
Could be the final season as well.. as much as I love the rivalry I don't see writers stretching it more than 3 seasons especially how this finale was.. someone will end up losing everything in season 3 for sure..
This is a must watch series, absolutely brilliant in all aspects.
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sam9s
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The Walking Dead SE 07, EP 01.... Just started season 7 for The walking Dead .... and finished EP01 ... and I am still in shivers after this episode ..... damm this is one of the brutal, scariest and depressing episodes of TWD, and not to forget the most horrifying beginning of all seasons ..... The terror of Negan (said to be the baddest villain till now of TWD) is unprecedented on a TV show. The episode was gruesome and horrifying and continued like a bad bad evil scariest nightmare that won't end ..... boy I had to take a break before I start the next one ....
Starting EP02 now .... see ya soon ...
Starting EP02 now .... see ya soon ...
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Rajesh Karia
Active Member
Naa... most definitely the 3rd Season is comming & it will be a balanced win win or lose lose situation as both are heavy weights.
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Rajesh Karia
Active Member
Bosch Season 3 turns out to be really great, just took 1 episode to settle down & it was a very absorbing season. The brand of Titus Welliver as Harry Bosch is growing with each season, there is a distinct trademark in his body language & swagger. Bosch's hilltop pad overlooking the LA valley is amazing & the theme song "Can't Let Go" just keeps growing on you. IMO the show has a bit of "Michael Mann" touch to it with HEAT & COLLATERAL coming to mind.
What, Season 3 is already out???? I just crossed checked imdb and found all the 10 episodes, I was under the impression only 2 seasons out till now and 3rd in the making. Well, thanks a lot for putting this post up, I'm off to starting season 3... you made my day.
Rajesh Karia
Active Member
Download this app to keep a tab on the shows you are watching.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.tozelabs.tvshowtime
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I have no idea about 'Naruto', but as far as I have searched, CB should be different. The only way to know for sure is to give 'Cowboy Bebop' a shot. It is a highly rated series, going by its ranking here and on IMDB (#31 compared to #17 of Firefly). I don't think it will break into your Top 10 series, but I hope you enjoy its style. Even if you quit, you'd have wasted only 20 mins per episode, so what's to lose?
On a side note, GITS: SAC is #168 and NGE is #140. Of the many "Naruto" series, Naruto: Shippden (2007) is #212. Though these have no bearing on our own preferences, it gives you a rough idea about the relative popularity among IMDB voters.
Also, one thing I forgot to mention. KoHD is not exactly like Serenity as chronologically, it occurs between episodes #22 and #23. You can also skip the movie, but I'd highly recommend that you watch it.
I don't know if this can be streamed: https://www.amazon.com/Cowboy-Bebop-Complete-Series/dp/B00R2KKBLY. But the audio seems to be in English. I usually prefer to watch them in Japanese with Subs. If that is what you want, DL
I'm actually not much of an anime fan either. Notable exceptions: Anything from Studio Ghibli such as Princess Mononoke.
A couple that really caught my eye though are One Punch Man. It has this dead-pan humor that is absolutely hilarious.
The second one that I will personally rate above even most other non-animated shows is Initial-D. Very well made, and is all about the Japanese street drifting sub-culture. Story is about this young kid who lives in a mountain pass and delivers tofu for his dad in a humble Toyota hatch-back. However, his dad is really strict about getting the tofu delivered on time (and without the tofu getting spoiled as well) so the kid is forced to drive through the mountain passes as fast as he can and develops this natural ability to drive extremely fast and drift in corners.
He gets accidentally caught up in a night street race between a couple of other competitors and ends up beating both of them (while delivering tofu!) and thereby gets noticed. The story then takes on many interesting turns. It is honestly the best racing/drifting TV series ever made - do watch it if you are a bit of a gearhead or just curious about drifting and the street racing subculture. And the interesting thing is, how intellectual it really is, how the racers respect each other etc.
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sam9s
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Yes even I was a bit surprised that season 03 was out. I still not on APV. Download is the only option....
krishtrinity
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Right now i am watching Fargo and American Gods,both are mindblowing and can rival high budget hollywood movies
sam9s
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Is it any better than Trakt.tv
sam9s
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The Walking Dead - Season 7 ... I am a fan for TWD, as I am for the Zombie genre.....very honestly speaking. The problem TWD suffers after 7 seasons is that there is not much of a storyline that has not been already explored. To keep things ultra-realistic, the pace is compromised. It gets really slow, I mean really slow, and most of you might be put off by it. I, however, did manage to go through........ as I said I am a fan ... .
The upside and what I like the most about TWD even in SE07 are Human Emotions... they are sky rocketing high, the character depth and development is at its peak with TWD, and hence when people/characters go in trouble you really really feel it on your heart, and when they come together as a family there is a sense of euphoria.
Season 7 builds the tension like a slow poison, with Negan the bad ass villain at the centre, the tension by the time it reaches the end is like soda in a closed bottle bursting to be released, unfortunately, the finally is not as hitting as one might expect. There is a twist which shook me, but after 15 episodes of mountain pressure, the finally should have been much more hard hitting as it was. \
Lastly, Negan has turned out to be one of the best cold-hearted villains of any TV show I can think off, he is just pure evil, but evil you like to watch ...... I would give this season 6.8/10. Not the best of the seasons but neither the worst.
.The upside and what I like the most about TWD even in SE07 are Human Emotions... they are sky rocketing high, the character depth and development is at its peak with TWD, and hence when people/characters go in trouble you really really feel it on your heart, and when they come together as a family there is a sense of euphoria.
Season 7 builds the tension like a slow poison, with Negan the bad ass villain at the centre, the tension by the time it reaches the end is like soda in a closed bottle bursting to be released, unfortunately, the finally is not as hitting as one might expect. There is a twist which shook me, but after 15 episodes of mountain pressure, the finally should have been much more hard hitting as it was. \
Lastly, Negan has turned out to be one of the best cold-hearted villains of any TV show I can think off, he is just pure evil, but evil you like to watch ...... I would give this season 6.8/10. Not the best of the seasons but neither the worst.
Rajesh Karia
Active Member
https://twitter.com/SHO_Billions/status/864148388953989124 Billions Season 3 confirmed.
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Order now for just ₹19,990.00
