TV: What Are You Watching?

[Yodaking]

Yeah, I see that Georgia Peach symbol pop up quite a bit lately. They've really made an investment (ie. tax credits, local behind the camera skilled labor, etc.) in building up their entertainment industry footprint. I actually first started seeing the symbol via a video game, now I see it after films and tv shows.

[chas]

The Flash had a particularly good episode recently, where Barry and his daughter travel back in time to several story eras. They utilized various actors from older episodes, who it was fun to see again. This continues to be my favorite CW comic program, although I also enjoy DC Legends for pure zaniness, and Supergirl is sporadic for me (I'm still not crazy about the lead actress).

This Sunday an extra episode of Flash will kick off a 3 night crossover mini-series to do with various universes and time travel--I think.

Vikings has started its new series on History, and is fun as usual.

[Hahma]

My daughters and I finished The Haunting of Hill House on Monday night. We really enjoyed that series.

[Tornado]

You do not like Melissa Benoist? I think she makes for an awesome Supergirl, love that show.
Gifted is tops for me right now, followed by Legends and Supergirl. I have been only catching Flash is pieces as it is on the same time as Gifted, for now.

Arrow has been way better than the last few seasons and Black Lightning is really coming into its own after a brutally slow first season.

[chas]

While I was in Union Square the other day, I picked up the last season of Vikings I hadn't collected before on DVD. In a couple of episodes one of the Viking princes allies with the Sami people (Lapps), who are shown striking silently in camouflage type outfits in the woods only. An extra I just watched on one of the discs when I was testing to make sure they all loaded properly was a good one, as it was hosted by the writer of the show, who has a great historical/mythic orientation. He said they were known as The Silent People because, believing that everything has a soul, they went through the forests quietly, so as not to disturb all the various forest beings. And of course, they fired their bows and slings from silent ambush. I actually saw a tourist encampment of these people when I was up in Norway.

They are the real Elves!

[Yodaking]

That's pretty cool. I love Vikings!

[chas]

Announcement from IMDB: 2020 will see the start of a spin off series set 10,000 years before Game Of Thrones! I will be reading more about the earlier time periods in the book The World of Ice and Fire, which is due here next week! You can get it for about half price ($30 = postage instead of $60) from Amazon. For more discussion see the new thread in this section Game of Thrones.

[japes]

Two episodes into Legion and it's a bit quirky at the beginning but in a good way. Not sure how it will be going forward but my wife is enjoying it so I'll get to find out.

[chas]

Just picked up Season 5 Volume 1 of VIKINGS, which is the sixth of what I expect to be seven DVD 10 episode sets. Although some have said that its gone downhill since Ragnar's fate (no spoiler), I find upon a second viewing (the original being the first broadcast) that these episodes and those in the previous set hold up very well, and I am enjoying them almost as much as the original stories. I am also liking what I think will be the final episodes being broadcast now.

[Yodaking]

Is Vikings ending after this season? Seems like they could keep it going for a while. It will be hard to top Ragnar's run but I'm still enjoying the show quite a bit. I like the Bishop character.

[chas]

its based on Ragnar Lothbrok's Saga, which I can't find a copy of because a couple of years ago they all disappeared as the show became popular. A new translation from England was sold out when I tried to get it on Amazon! I don't know how it ends, or how long it goes on, but my feeling is that as the "end of the world" is coming according to the story, and it will be the finale of the series too.

[chas]

Here's an interesting TV/Comics/History crossover, which I also posted in the Comics section:

I don't have it yet, but note that they are coming out with a graphic novel Vol. 1 of 2 on Avatar Kyoshi, one of the earlier Avatars who we get tantalizing glimpses of in Avatar: The Last Airbender. I'm always looking for historical and mythological references in modern anime and other works based on Chinese or Japanese culture. The description of the upcoming graphic novel notes that Kyuoshi founded the Earth Kingdom Dai Li, the secret police which eventually corrupted it, and are later seen as evil in the 'modern' TV episodes.

When I first saw this sinister underground organization in one, I recalled a memoir I'd read of a WWII American sailor, who served as a coast watcher in China during that conflict. He noted that he was given a small insignia pin to show around if he was ever in need of cooperation, and it always got him almost frighteningly good treatment whenever he had to travel in the country, got frustrated in his mission, and had to show it to get a response. If he was forced to produce it, citizens almost fell over themselves to help him out, and he wondered what it was. But since it seemed to inspire fear as well as aid, he used it circumspectly.

He later found out that it was the badge of the Dai Li, Chiang Ki Shek's Nationalist secret police!