Appointment Television

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Episode 197: Unlikely spinoffs and The Good Fight book club part 1 Jun 13, 2019

Show notes

This week we're starting our latest TV book club, the CBS All Access / briefly CBS series The Good Fight! It's a spin-off of the long-running legal procedural The Good Wife, so we start with a little game where we try to come up with some especially unlikely or improbable spin-offs of our own. But when we turn to The Good Fight, we want to make things very clear: You do not need to have seen the original series to enjoy this show. Plus we will explain the very few Good Fight references you'll find here. We'll also explain the phrase "Chunk Palmer."

Episode 196: Inane HBO interviews, What We Do In The Shadows, and whether mockumentaries are still allowed Jun 06, 2019

Show notes

Remember those little interviews they would air after every episode of Game of Thrones? And how they were always kind of bad? And how most HBO shows also do them and they're almost always kind of bad? We talk about those.

We also chat about the mockumentary format by way of FX's What We Do In The Shadows, a show that is (thankfully) funny enough to outshine a threadbare format.

SHOW NOTES:

What We Do In The Shadows: https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/what-we-do-in-the-shadows

The Beets (from the cartoon Doug): https://doug.fandom.com/wiki/The_Beets

Episode 195: Shows everyone watches and no one talks about May 30, 2019

Show notes

We decided to talk a little about the shows most viewers do actually watch, that get decidedly less attention than many of the buzziest, prestige-iest series. We talk about some specific examples, including Blue Bloods, Grey's Anatomy, and The Goldbergs, but we also try to think a little about how these shows work, what the appeal is, and what we lose out on by just sort of forgetting they're always out there.

Also, Margaret watches a show called Jonathan Creek for Kozy Mystery Korner, and we laugh quite a bit at his sweet sweet 90s boy hair.

Episode 194: Our TV and our politics and our The Office reruns May 23, 2019

Show notes

This week we chat about a report correlating TV viewing habits (and viewers' feelings about specific shows) with their political views. Then we talk about how we, as a society, just can't quit our reruns of sitcom rerun standbys like The Office and Friends.

SHOW NOTES:

Get your politics into my TV: http://www.mediaimpactproject.org/uploads/5/1/2/7/5127770/pcc-report_0422_pdf.pdf People can't stop watching these old-ass shows: https://www.adweek.com/tv-video/the-office-friends-and-greys-anatomy-were-netflixs-most-streamed-shows-last-year/

But there's something about The Office (US): https://www.adweek.com/tv-video/why-the-office-now-one-of-netflixs-biggest-hits-still-resonates-with-audiences/

Episode 193: Summer TV preview, plus William Shakespeare? May 16, 2019

Show notes

It's time to check in with a bunch of new and upcoming series for the summer, a segment that includes discussion of such things as: Good Omens, The Society, Big Little Lies S2, Veronica Mars, and The Boys. It's also a very special edition of a Patreon Forcening, featuring an episode someone asked *MARGARET* to watch. The world turned upside down.

Episode 192: Picking Bones clean, and Netflix's show Special May 09, 2019

Show notes

This week, we revisit TV's biggest news about its biggest show, which is of course the show Bones. Then, we chat about Netflix's show Special, which is worth watching in concept despite its uneven execution. Bones update update: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/stunning-bones-decision-fox-aims-wipe-128m-punitive-damages-1203988?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter The Bones lawsuit, explained: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/bones-lawsuit-how-a-hit-885459 Hulu's Ramy: https://www.hulu.com/series/ramy-4bcb6c3a-3d9a-4d49-b8e0-57fb7de9c8d6 Netflix's Special: https://www.netflix.com/title/80987458 Where Netflix let Special down: https://www.tvguide.com/news/netflix-special-review/

Episode 191: Why was Game of Thrones so dark!? May 02, 2019

Show notes

First we talk a bit about Barry and Fleabag, two shows which we thought did not need second seasons. It turns out we were wrong! But then, we jump on the bandwagon for an actually timely episode about this week's Game of Thrones battle, so that Andrew can give us a nice little technology corner about why exactly no one could see any of Game of Thrones. Turns out it's... compression! Also, your bad TV lights. Also did you ever calibrate your TV?

Episode 190: Killing Bear Grylls and Gaming Thrones By The Watercooler.mp3 Apr 25, 2019

Show notes

This week, Kathryn finally settles her longrunning feud with wildlife expert-slash-goofball idiot Bear Grylls. Then, we gather around the watercooler to discuss the latest character to die on the final season of Game Of Thrones: the concept of watercooler television!! Of course, what is dead may never die.

SHOW NOTES:

You vs. Wild: https://www.netflix.com/title/80227574

Is Game of Thrones the last watercooler show? https://www.vulture.com/2019/04/game-of-thrones-the-last-show-we-watch-together.html

Is watercooler TV just dead, then??? https://www.theocelot.co.uk/is-there-still-room-for-watercooler-tv-in-the-netflix-era/

Episode 189: Rom-com TV and Margaret's feelings on Shrill [uncensored] Apr 18, 2019

Show notes

Our first task this week is to help a patron in need of some recommendations for happy, slow-burning rom-com TV. At the beginning of the segment Kathryn laments how few options there are to provide this; several minutes later, many options are provided.

The main course of this episode, though, is an in depth conversation about Hulu's recent series Shrill, the Aidy Bryant-led adaptation of Lindy West's memoir. Margaret. Has. Feelings.

Episode 188: Horny for sweets and the WGA thing Apr 11, 2019

Show notes

This week Andrew watches the first episode of Netflix's Kantaro: The Sweet Tooth Salaryman, a deeply weird Japanese show about a dude who gets horny for traditional Japanese sweets. Then we get serious and talk about the ongoing situation between the WGA and Hollywood agents, agents who may or may not be profiting too much off of the efforts of writers.

SHOW NOTES: Kantaro: The Sweet Tooth Salaryman: https://www.netflix.com/title/80175348

The WGA's fight with Hollywood Agencies, Explained: https://www.vulture.com/2019/03/wga-hollywood-agents-packaging-explained.html

How Hollywood Writers Feel About Leaving Their Agents: https://www.vulture.com/2019/04/wga-writers-on-leaving-their-agents-8-weigh-in.html

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