dolorosa_12 | Quaran-TV, part 4

July was, mostly, a good month for TV. I've already discussed some of the things I've watched (such as the rather dreadful Eurovision film, and the much more excellent The Old Guard), so this represents a roundup of everything else.

The Luminaries, a BBC adaptation of Eleanor Catton's Booker Prize-winning novel. I have read the book, and remember really enjoying it, but I was dubious about an adaptation, because the book was so ponderous and slow, and also really, really literary (by which I mean a lot of its power relied on various tricks specific to it being a story told through a written medium). The show departs from the book in several ways — changing the focal character — but otherwise keeps the mood, feel, and so on. It's set in a remote mining community in New Zealand during the 19th century, and revolves around the mysterious death of a wealthy prospector. I found the TV series a little slow, but enjoyed the gorgeous New Zealand settings.

What We Do in the Shadows — from one New Zealand to another, I suppose (although of course the TV series is set in New York). The second season of this hilarious vampire mockumentary is just as good as the first, and I'm looking forward to some great fic for this in Yuletide.

The Baby-Sitters Club is a nostalgia-fest for women in my generation who grew up with this series of books, even though the TV show has been updated and set in contemporary times. This was just delightful, so kind and pure. My sister and I both watched it independently when we were feeling really low, and it definitely lifted my spirits.

The Great, a black comedy series about Catherine the Great, made by the same director who made The Favourite. It's very similar in tone to that film, so if you enjoyed The Favourite, you'll know what you're getting into: nasty people, sweeping, unsettling tableaux, and a strange kind of hyperreality. Elle Fanning and Nicholas Hoult are fantastic in this.

Warrior Nun: exactly what it says on the tin. This is a ridiculous Netflix series about a secret order of nuns, trained in martial arts to fight demons. The main character has an angel's halo embedded in her back, which gives her superpowers, nobody seems to worry about money, passports, or crossing in and out of Schengen without documentation, and everyone lives in Malaga for some reason. It's that kind of show.

Succession: it was kind of surreal to watch this show (which airs on Murdoch-owned channels both in the UK and Australia) about a ghastly, right-wing media mogul and the battle among his terrible adult children to inherit the vast, international media empire in parallel with a three-part documentary about the Murdoch family. Anyone who claims Succession is not about the Murdochs is deluded — the parallels are incredibly obvious, right down to specific events! This is not a show to watch if you want to feel good about the world: every character is awful and selfish, and what they're fighting for is an abominable stain on the world, much like the real-life Murdoch empire.

Hamilton. When everyone was in raptures over this several years ago on Tumblr, I kind of ignored the whole thing. I'm not really a fan of musicals, and I just assumed the whole thing was overhyped. Nothing could be this good, I thought. I'm happy for others to have their fannish fun, but this is not for me. Well, I have never been so pleased to be wrong — this is a rare occasion where the hype is justified. If I had one criticism, it would be that the second act is a little too long and unfocused, and it might have been better to cut the first act sooner and reduce the length of the second.

And that's my month in TV. What have you all been watching?

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

kore

I love the Hamilton OBC soundtrack but really didn't get why people were so gaga over the musical until I saw the staging. I think Act I stands pretty well on its own but Act II really needs that dynamic stage with the great effects of Hurricane and the King George bits and all the other great direction.

I also think part of the unfocused feeling is the span of time -- Act I as far as I can figure out is 1776 to 1781, but Act II is 1789 to 1804 -- five years as opposed to fifteen. Plus Act I is basically "We must fight -- We won!" and Act II really is "What comes next?" which is a lot more complex and diffuse. And it's pretty amazing!

From:

falena

The Luminaries sounds interesting, I just like shows set in...different parts of the world, and New Zealand is just so gorgeous. The book has been on my to-read list for a while, do you think I should read that before giving the tv show a try?

The Great sounds intriguing too.

I haven't been watching much since I've gone on a massive romance binge-reading, but I'm slowly watching an Australian miniseries on Netflix, Stateless, about an immigration detention centre, and enjoying it despite the uncomfortable subject matter and the fact that somehow they were able to make the story mostly about a white woman? Though it seems it's inspired by real-life events. Still, perhaps putting white people at the centre depressingly is the only way to help a lot of viewers identify and care? As i said, I haven't finished watching yet, so I'm withholding judgement, but it's very well-acted and I almost invariably end up liking Australian tv shows. Must be the accents, I'm easy like that. ;)

From:

merit

What We Do in the Shadows was just very amusing television. I have a lot of fondness for a well done mockumentory.

From:

dolorosa_12

I liked the component of 'what comes next' that focused on the political elements — basically building republican (small R) democracy from scratch, without any real models for how to do so. I was less interested in the romance(s), and that was what felt bloated and unfocused in the second act. I don't know really how to get around that, because if you cut or reduce that component, it basically removes or drastically curtails all female roles from the musical.

As an aside, I love that icon!

From:

dolorosa_12

The book of The Luminaries is great, but it's also ponderous, meandering, and pretty heavy going, so although I recommend it, I only recommend it if you feel like it's something you could focus on. I personally feel the TV series, especially the first couple of episodes, might be a bit confusing if you haven't read the book.

I had heard of Stateless, but its content put me off. I'm so ashamed of the way Australia treats refugees and immigrants, and I wasn't sure I was in the right headspace for that kind of subject matter. I'm glad you've been enjoying it though!

From:

dolorosa_12

It's just so funny! I love the relationship between Nandor and Guillermo in particular.

From:

kore

I LOVE the Schuyler sisters, I'd watch a musical about them! I thought there was supposed to be a group bio of them after the musical, but maybe I missed it.

I also have to admit Act II just gets way too fucking sad for me, until the very end. Blow Us All Away, NOPE. Stay Alive, NOPE. Quiet Uptown, NOOO THANK YOU. Hamilton dies! Burr is shamed! If Eliza didn't have that final number it'd be such a total downer. (Altho sometimes that works, like when Don Giovanni was performed for I don't know how long without the final sextet.)

From:

falena

I'm not sure I could focus on something like that right now. I mean, I think there is a reason why this is turning out to be the great summer of romance, for me.

Heh, if I think of our immigration detention centres (or our relationship with Lybia, or the treatment of international rescue ships or anything else related to immigration in my country) I pretty much want to die. So I can relate to that.

From:

dolorosa_12

Yeah, that's what I figured, hence the warning about the nature of the book.

From:

dhampyresa

Please tell me more about the ridiculousness of Warrior Nun!

Also Leslie Odom as Burr is <3

From:

dolorosa_12

I'll take my husband's description: Brilliantly nonsensical, basically Buffy meets The Da Vinci Code meets Devs. Demon fighting, martial arts trained nuns, a scientist trying to build a quantum tunnel to the afterlife, treason in the Vatican. The McGuffin is that the heroine gets an angel's halo implanted in her back. For some inexplicable reason all of this happens in Malaga.

There's tension between the main character, who had no knowledge of the order of warrior nuns, and just wants to party, and the women who were raised in the order and have a much stronger sense of duty (and awareness of the danger of the demons they're fighting). Everyone speaks English to each other, although the main actress is Portuguese, others are Spanish and Italian, and, as I say, the whole thing is set in Malaga. (I mean, obviously it makes sense that English would be their common language, but it makes less sense that everyone they encounter immediately speaks English to them.)

Leslie Odom was excellent.

From:

dhampyresa

Sounds very entertaining!

Did you have a favourite Hamilton moment?

From:

dolorosa_12

Did you have a favourite Hamilton moment?

I suspect I would have to rewatch it several times for this to happen; at the moment I'm just marvelling at its quality as a brilliantly crafted whole work, to be honest.