What are you watching in (late 2025 and) 2026?

[Rabulias]

Rooster on HBO is REALLY good.
A perfect blend of funny and heart felt with excellent writing

Cop hawk!

 

[Pale Violet Light]

Watched the first couple episodes of Mr Inbetween, an Australian show about an enforcer/hitman for a gang, with a heart of… well, copper, maybe. Pretty good so far; the lead has a nasty twinkle in his eye that does sell him as a bit of a psycho.

 

[jian]

Watched a couple of episodes of Bait, a short comedy on Amazon starring (and created by) Riz Ahmed as Shah Latif, a Pakistani-English actor who’s in the running to be the next James Bond. It’s funny and clever and very relatable, I’m sure we’ll finish it (there’s only 6 episodes).

(While it’s funny that it’s on Amazon - but at least it means they can make it’s clear it’s Bond without any rights issues - I also think it highly unlikely that Amazon will make a Bond film with a POC actor, Riz Ahmed or not.)

 

[TheSword]

Very much enjoyed season 4 of Bridgerton. Probably the best one yet. Made more poignant by the Queen Charlotte spin off. Added far more of life below stairs. Which added a new dimension.

 

[billd91]

My wife and I recently enjoyed Margo's Got Money Troubles on AppleTV.

I'm looking forward to the 4th season of Ted Lasso in August. And we've also got a season of Resident Alien coming up on Netflix.

 

[Pale Violet Light]

And then next week we start the first two seasons of Invincible on DVD, a superhero show based on a comic book series I haven't read (which has the added bonus of me not griping about any changes made for the show).

Rather like Invincible, pretty entertaining superhero show. It’s got a couple major twists early on but it’s not a deconstruction like The Boys or whatever. Do note that it is extremely violent.

 

[jian]

Rather like Invincible, pretty entertaining superhero show. It’s got a couple major twists early on but it’s not a deconstruction like The Boys or whatever. Do note that it is extremely violent.

Well, technically it’s not more violent than most superhero media, it’s just a lot more gory. Not more realistic either, mind. The creator just loves impaling people on fists. Everyone’s hands are made of steel and everyone’s torsos are made of Kleenex.

 

[Pale Violet Light]

Yeah, gory would be more accurate (though it is both). Haven’t seen that much animated blood and viscera in a long time, especially in a western animated show.

 

[jian]

Not 100% sure this counts, exactly, but it was at the cinema so why not.

We went to see The Playboy of the Western World (National Theatre Live) at the cinema yesterday, and it's slightly doing my head in, so if you don't mind I'd like to talk about it here.

The Playboy of the Western World is a 1907 play by the Irish playwright John Millington Synge and concerns a quiet young Irish chap (Christy Mahon) who thinks he's murdered his overbearing father and wanders off across Ireland to a pub, where he finally breaks down and tells everyone about it. To his amazement, they all celebrate him as a brave daring fellow, as a one-day wonder and celebrity. It emboldens him to become a lyrical, romantic speaker and local hero (he wins a donkey race), until things inevitably go south.

It was a very good production which seems very true to the intent of the play as far as I can tell, traditionally staged, and the star is undoubtedly the lyrical Irish speech (Hiberno-English, I think it's called) which is a wonder to listen to and behold.

But I can see why Irish people rioted when it was first put on. Many of the characters feel like alcoholic rural hick caricatures (and the one character who doesn't drink is a coward) and their reaction, to glorify a patricide (however nice and regretful he is) seems like some sort of take that at contemporary Irish culture. In some ways it's quite relevant to today - the elevation of unexpected and reprehensible people on social media, very temporary celebrity, people being ruined by celebrity - but the whole story doesn't sit very well with me. At the same time, I don't feel able to criticise it because I'm not Irish and don't know anything about Irish culture then or now. It's a weird thing.

 

[payn]

Not 100% sure this counts, exactly, but it was at the cinema so why not.

We went to see The Playboy of the Western World (National Theatre Live) at the cinema yesterday, and it's slightly doing my head in, so if you don't mind I'd like to talk about it here.

The Playboy of the Western World is a 1907 play by the Irish playwright John Millington Synge and concerns a quiet young Irish chap (Christy Mahon) who thinks he's murdered his overbearing father and wanders off across Ireland to a pub, where he finally breaks down and tells everyone about it. To his amazement, they all celebrate him as a brave daring fellow, as a one-day wonder and celebrity. It emboldens him to become a lyrical, romantic speaker and local hero (he wins a donkey race), until things inevitably go south.

It was a very good production which seems very true to the intent of the play as far as I can tell, traditionally staged, and the star is undoubtedly the lyrical Irish speech (Hiberno-English, I think it's called) which is a wonder to listen to and behold.

But I can see why Irish people rioted when it was first put on. Many of the characters feel like alcoholic rural hick caricatures (and the one character who doesn't drink is a coward) and their reaction, to glorify a patricide (however nice and regretful he is) seems like some sort of take that at contemporary Irish culture. In some ways it's quite relevant to today - the elevation of unexpected and reprehensible people on social media, very temporary celebrity, people being ruined by celebrity - but the whole story doesn't sit very well with me. At the same time, I don't feel able to criticise it because I'm not Irish and don't know anything about Irish culture then or now. It's a weird thing.

Reminds me of The Banshees of Inisherin. Fantastic film.