#veep season three

[brostateexam]

Writers have always endured indignities in Hollywood. But, as long as there are millions to be grabbed, the trade-off has been bearable—except when it isn’t. The past month has brought the discontent of television writers to a boiling point. In mid-April, the Writers Guild of America (the modern successor to the Screen Writers Guild) voted to authorize a strike, with a decisive 97.85 per cent in favor. The guild’s current contract with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers expires on May 1st; if the negotiations break down, it will be the W.G.A.’s first strike since late 2007 and early 2008. At issue are minimum fees, royalties, staffing requirements, and even the use of artificial intelligence in script production—but the over-all stakes, from the perspective of TV writers, feel seismic. “This is an existential fight for the future of the business of writing,” Laura Jacqmin, whose credits include Epix’s “Get Shorty” and Peacock’s “Joe vs. Carole,” told me; like the other writers I spoke to, she had voted for the strike authorization. “If we do not dig in now, there will be nothing to fight for in three years.” TV writers seem, on the whole, miserable. “The word I would use,” Jacqmin said, “is ‘desperation.’ ”

How did it come to this? About a decade ago, in the era of “Mad Men,” “Breaking Bad,” and “Veep,” TV writing seemed like one of the coolest, best-paying jobs a writer could have. As with the talkie boom of the nineteen-thirties, playwrights and journalists were flocking to Hollywood to partake in the heyday of prestige TV. It was fun. “We were all just trying to figure out, like, where to live. How do we sublet? Do we buy a car? Do we rent a car?” Liz Flahive recalled. In 2008, Flahive had just had a play produced Off Broadway when she got hired to write for “Untitled Edie Falco Project,” which became Showtime’s “Nurse Jackie.” TV, unlike big-budget movies, was a writers’ medium, and it was undergoing a creative explosion. “The old-timey mentality was: you go work in TV, and it breaks your brain, and you learn all these terrible habits,” Flahive said. “But you didn’t. You were writing great scenes, and for really good actors.”

The “Nurse Jackie” writers’ room, Flahive recalled, “was half queer, majority female. It was half people who had done TV for a long time, and half people who had never done TV before.” But it was possible to learn. “I turned in my first script, and the co-E.P.s sat me down and said, ‘This is really great. But this is the most expensive episode of television ever written. It’s a half-hour show, and you have forty-one setups.’ I was, like, ‘What’s a setup?’ And they explained, ‘If you set this scene here, and you write this scene here, this is a whole company move, and this is a whole new set we have to build.’ And then I got to take that script and go sit on set and actually see what it meant when you write ‘EXT. SUBWAY PLATFORM,’ and why that’s complicated.”

Flahive rose through the ranks of “Nurse Jackie” and went on to co-create the Netflix comedy “GLOW” and the Apple TV+ anthology “Roar,” both with the playwright and producer Carly Mensch. But, in the intervening years, the profession has devolved. Streamers are ordering shorter seasons, and the residuals model that used to give network writers a reliable income is out the window. The ladder from junior writer to showrunner has become murkier, with some people repeating steps like repeating grades, and others being flung to the top without the requisite experience, in order to meet demand for new content. Studios are cutting writing budgets to the bone by hiring fewer people for shorter time periods, often without paying for lower-level writers to be on set during production, which makes it all but impossible to learn the skills necessary to run a show. On “Roar,” Flahive said, “we had to fight to budget for writers to prep and produce their episodes,” and some of her writers had never been to the set of shows they’d worked on, “which is astonishing to me.”

[gerri-godmother]

20 author questions

tagged by the lovely @badcatholichusband

1. How many works do you have on AO3? 11

2. What’s your total AO3 word count? 153,683

3. What fandoms do you write for? Succession

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

This is not therapy — Roman chooses to go see Dr. Kellman on his own, which she identifies as one of his “strengths.”

Once upon a poolside — She knows by the knock that it’s him. That, and she was half expecting him to come crawling to her, a glutton for punishment. What she’s not expecting is to see him already punished: the blood on his shirt, the tear in his suit, the bruise already forming around his left eye. Not again, Logan, she thinks, only to remember that they’d entombed him that afternoon. Just another hurt-comfort fix-it fic immediately following S4E9.

Soft like silk — roman/gerri with twice the silk blouses (my magnum opus)

I know a place — season three of succession but it's Shiv who's weird about Gerri

Something unholy —something about “in costume” put the image of Roman in a priest’s collar in my head and I can’t get it out. A silly, sick, sexy, and heartwarming romp. In response to: Roman/Gerri autumn date. Takes place in a simpler time (season 2). I am going straight to hell.

5. Do you respond to comments? Not really but I would like to start because I love comments and am so grateful to everyone who reads my fic!!

6. What’s the fic you wrote with the angistest ending? Honestly I’m not sure how White Ferrari will end, but I’m thinking it will probably be that one. As for existing fics, probably Once upon a poolside, but it’s not even that angsty. I’m all about hurt/comfort on a micro and macro level.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Soft like silk or maybe This is not therapy.

8. Do you get hate on fics? Only one time and it wasn’t even really hate but someone was like “Gerri’s too mean” and I was just like “uh-huh.” because that’s how I like her.

9. Do you write smut? If so what kind? I pretty much ONLY write smut lol. The kinky kind??

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? Yes I love them. Honestly my Hacks one I think is the craziest. One day I’ll finish that. And my Veep.

11. Gave you ever had a fiction stolen? No! But Soft like silk has inspired some stuff and honestly that counts for like a billion kudos

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? no

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? no but I would! hmu!!

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship? oh god this is so hard — I really am just absolutely obsessed with bisexual icon Gerri Kellman and will pair her with anybody (even her husband Baird!) but Shiv/Gerri I think

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? Meditations in an emergency. I am going to finish I know a place one day but there’s just a lot of pressure (from myself) to make it good (plus I have to rewatch the end of S3 to put myself back in that place/time.

16. What are your writing strengths? kink/smut, dialogue, accuracy to the source material, character complexity (according to my wife who betas everything)

17. What are your writing weaknesses? Self indulgent background on the Kellman family, commas

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic? my French isn’t good enough

19. First Fandom you write for? Sherlock (I used to write Irene Adler/Kate the maid, so that’s telling of a number of things)

20. Favorite fic you’ve ver written? probably This is not therapy because I’m a therapist in real life and it was fun to just disregard literally every single element of what that’s actually like and have fun with the idea of Gerri being Roman’s therapist

tagging anybody who wants to do this including my IRL wife @thegables and romangerri folks like @catherineflowers29

[seriseriously]

The gang on the roof of the VEEPS office in like season two or three (pre presidential era)

They are all so unbelievably gay and I can’t even explain how much I love them

[oknowkiss]

getting to know you tag game

gosh i'm late on this, but thank you for the tags @eveningstruggle @geesenoises @citrusses @ghostofnoir

three ships: drarry, of course. two more from HP which i've never written but really like: plantseeker (harry/neville), lunarry (harry/luna). three outside of HP: kagehina, kenhina, sakuatsu. sorry this was like 9 ships i have no control

first ship: god the first fic i ever wrote was in middle school: self-insert o-town RPF with me and ashley angel. it was lost in the great ff.net RPF purge so don't even try looking for it. my first ship i really shipped? harry/zacharias smith

last song: sitting by tj mack + all requisite covers, each one more amazing than the last

last movie: in theaters: bottoms (so fun!! so gay!!), at home... does it count as a movie if i watch half a season of veep in one sitting?

currently reading: 

fic:

cut from the sky by @mallstars

the star splitter by @oflights

terrible people by @wolfpants

non-fic:

you, again by kate goldbeck (when harry meets sally reylo AU that become published romance)

just finished the guest by emma cline, which gave me zero anxiety at all

currently watching: paint dry in my bathroom after the ceiling partially caved in almost a month ago (ask me about my anxiety levels). also veep. also considering torturing myself by starting jujutsu kaisen

last thing i wrote: the waiting for @hd-wireless / @m0srael

currently writing: my @hd-erised fic! and that's all i can say about that!

i feel like most everyone has done this so far, but if you haven't @sorrybutblog @mintawasalreadytaken @vukovich @oflights @tackytigerfic @sweet-s0rr0w @mallstars @babooshkart and anyone else who sees this and wants to!

[lies]

The Diplomat: Predictions for S2 (and S3)

Heavy spoilers for season 1 after the cut. Also, brief mention of some leaked photos from season 2 filming that contain a significant season 2 spoiler.

Unless otherwise noted, this is all just me speculating based on rewatching season 1 of The Diplomat multiple times, because I love it. I don't actually know anything.

As I mentioned in a previous post, Ronnie is dead from the Grove car bombing. I loved Ronnie's character, and would have loved to see them in season 2. But at this point they do more for the story dead than alive. sigh

As also previously mentioned, Hal and Stuart are alive but injured. This is partially confirmed by recent leaked photos from the Season 2 production, which show Kate and Hal leaving an event with a bunch of people dressed in black (Ronnie's funeral/memorial?) with Hal having visible injuries to his face but looking otherwise okay.

No sign of Stuart in those photos, though. Stuart was a few feet closer to the blast than Hal was, going by the freeze-frame of the car bombing effects shot. So it would make sense for him to have been hurt worse than Hal. I think he's alive, though. Debora Cahn & Co. know what they're doing, and Stuart is a top-tier part of what makes the show great. No way they'd kill him off.

The Grace Penn thing will blow up and Kate will be named to replace her relatively early in S2. I'm basing this on my sense that the show is going to have a three-season structure where S1 = Kate as UK ambassador, S2 = Kate as Veep, and S3 = Kate as President. I'll talk about the presidency part below, but in terms of veep it would be anticlimatic at this point not to have the Grace Penn thing happen soon. They've established that it will happen, that it could happen at any time, and that it is likely to happen in the next six months. Having it happen any later than 6 months would feel like a bait and switch. Having it happen in 6 months would feel flat. We want to see Kate thrown into the deep end. That's what they did in S1, and they're going to keep doing it in S2. They'll raise the stakes, and having Kate thrust into the vice presidency does that.

So Kate will go to DC. Stuart will go with her. Hal might go with her, but he might also be pressed into service as Kate's replacement for ambassador to the UK. This means a few things: a) It keeps Mrs. Munning, Pensy, and Winfield House in the show, yay! I mean, I can imagine scenarios in which they have Pensy and Mrs. Munning go to DC with Kate, but those don't really pass the smell test. b) It keeps Dennison in the show, which obviously needs to happen. c) It means Sec of State Gannon is out, since Gannon hates Hal and Rayburn promised Gannon he'd never hire Hal again. So push will come to shove, and I'm sorry, Gannon, but you don't have Hal's plot armor. So Gannon goes, though he could still show up as a Rayburn rival, and a S3 Kate rival, assuming she does ascend to the presidency and we see her subsequent election campaign in the second half of S3, which I think is likely.

Eidra goes to DC. It's a positive career move for her (assuming she gets a sufficiently high-powered role), and Kate's going to want her around. With Kate's newfound sway as a vice president taking the lead on foreign policy, she's going to want a trusted ally at the CIA. So more Stuart+Eidra relationship, yay!

Again on the subject of major players we will not be losing, Trowbridge (at least for a time) will continue as Prime Minister. There will be lots of fun intrigue in S2 about Kate and Dennison looking for evidence to tie him to Lenkov.

It makes me sad to predict it, but Rayburn is definitely going to die at or around the end of S2. They've telegraphed it enough times ("My cardiologist is sure I'm gonna die on his watch", "Just knock off that 'I resign' shit. It really pisses me off. I don't have that kind of time."), and again, how do they raise the stakes? Rayburn's heart is Chekhov's gun, and it absolutely is going off around the S2/S3 transition. (Unless they try to do a slow-burn and stretch it out for more seasons. But this is a Netflix show. If they're not planning for three-and-out they're not paying attention. And again, Cahn & Co. obviously know what they're doing.)

When they finally get the goods on Trowbridge, he'll be out as PM and Dennison will take his place. So the long-distance Special Relationship will continue and escalate in S3. It is to swoon. 🙂

I think that's it for specific predictions. In general I think the show's main dramatic arc will continue to be Kate gaining influence by convincing people of her abilities. This will happen through her “catching fire” as VP in S2, as Billie hopes, and then as President in S3, such that we'll recapitulate Stuart's journey from "it sounded delusional" to "then I met you and it sounded, frankly, more delusional" to "but now I'm getting the idea." Except now it will be everyone in the world going through that same process.

A lot of these predictions, maybe most of them, will turn out to be wrong. But I know the show will continue to be amazing: superbly written, cast, acted, and produced. I can't wait to see it.

[wulfhalls]

tv shows you most often rewatch completely?

the thick of it!!!!!!!!!! comfort show and comedy of all time!!! veep (david mandel seasons notwithstanding *shaking fist against the sky* dan x amy deserved better) wellington paranormal, arrested development <3 (first three seasons), father ted, iasip, band of brothers, the terror, hannibal

[maximumwobblerbanditdonut]

"Slow Horses,” Apple's TV highly acclaimed espionage drama returns for season three.

#GaryOldman returns to lead the Slough House team for a third season of #AppleTVPlus's #SlowHorses.

Slow Horses is a darkly humorous espionage drama that follows a dysfunctional team of British intelligence agents who serve in a dumping ground department of MI5 known un-affectionately as Slough House.

Slough House is an administrative purgatory for MI5 service rejects who have bungled their job but have not been sacked. Those consigned there are known as "slow horses”

In season three, a romantic liaison in Istanbul threatens to expose a buried MI5 secret in London. When Jackson Lamb and his team of misfits are dragged into the fight, they find themselves caught in a conspiracy that threatens the future not just of Slough House but of MI5 itself.

Oldman stars as Jackson Lamb, the brilliant but misanthropic leader of the spies, who end up in Slough House due to their career-ending mistakes as they frequently find themselves blundering around the smoke and mirrors of the espionage world.

The ensemble cast also includes Kristin Scott Thomas, Jack Lowden, Saskia Reeves, Rosalind Eleazar, Christopher Chung, Freddie Fox, Chris Reilly, Samuel West, Sophie Okonedo, Aimee-Ffion Edwards, Kadiff Kirwan and Jonathan Pryce.

Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù joins the season three cast as Sean Donovan, the former head of security at the British embassy in Istanbul, along with Katherine Waterston who plays Alison Dunn, an MI5 agent who uncovers a dark secret at the heart of the agency.

Adapted from Real Tigers, the third novel in the Mick Herron spy series, the six-episode third season of Slow Horses season three will begin streaming via Apple TV+ on Wednesday 29th November.

Slow Horses is produced for Apple TV+ by See-Saw Films and adapted for television by Will Smith (Veep).

Jamie Laurenson, Hakan Kousetta, lain Canning, Emile Sherman, Douglas Urbanski, Gail Mutrux, Will Smith, Jane Robertson and Graham Yost are executive producers on the series. Season three is directed by Saul Metzstein.

Apple TV+ previously announced a fourth season is set to be adapted from the fourth novel, Spook Street.

#SlowHorses #espionagedrama #SloughHouse #Britishintelligence #agents #MI5 #AppleTV #JacksonLamb

[tellthemeerkatsitsfine]

I've finally got my new laptop set up, and it has a 1TB hard drive instead of my old one that was only 500GB, so I've decided to move my American TV show collection to my internal hard drive, while I'd previously had it on external ones. I took the opportunity to do some editing on it, and here's how it looks now:

It's my collection of shows where I've seen every episode many times over, enough times so that when I want to watch something quick and easy as a comfort show, I could jump into any episode of any season and would 1) enjoy it, and 2) have it basically memorized. It's nice to have those downloaded, because if I'm in the mood to want to put on an episode of those, I won't be in the mood to navigate a website. I'll be looking for something quick and simple.

The one TV show I've been thinking of adding to the list is Brooklyn Nine Nine, as I used to watch that over and over, and really liked it. But I think it just barely misses the cut of shows I liked enough to justify the amount of space they'd take up, given that it ran for 8 seasons and the smallest torrent I could find with every episode was about 44GB. I think I just barely didn't quite love it enough to justify 44GB. Maybe I'll change my mind about that, though. It was a lot of fun.

The Office (US) is the other American sitcom where I've seen every episode many times, but I don't mind not having that one. I was fun while it lasted, I did used to re-watch it a lot, but I wasn't attached to it enough to need to see it again.

There were also older American sitcoms that I watched over and over as a kid - mainly M*A*S*H, Cheers, and Seinfeld. My parents had boxests of those when I was young so I watched every episode until I memorized them, and then I've sporadically re-watched bits of them as an adult. I've sometimes thought about downloaded a bunch of seasons of M*A*S*H and Cheers to do a proper re-watch and see how seeing it as an adult compares to seeing it as a kid (the way I've done with the British sitcoms that I watched on DVD boxset as a kid, like Yes Minister and Blackadder and Fawlty Towers).

I think beyond Brooklyn Nine Nine, if I were to expand this folder, the next American comedy TV shows to make the cut of "things I've watched and enjoyed enough to want to have at my fingertips for sporadic re-watching" would be Portlandia and Broad City. Freaks and Geeks would be up there too. I of course already have Veep downloaded, in a folder along with The Thick of It and In the Loop on my main external hard drive that's almost always connected to my laptop, so that is also at my fingertips when I'm in the mood to re-watch that stuff.

Bojack Horseman is an incredibly brilliant show, I really loved it, I've watched it all the way through three times, but I'm not sure it lends itself well to randomly dipping into an episode when I need a comfort show. In that it has too much of a story to be good at random, and it's not particularly comforting.

Thinking about animation has reminded me that Archer exists, which definitely fits the bill of a show where I've seen every episode multiple times and would enjoy re-watches. That should be on my list too, maybe. Now that I've got more internal hard drive space.

[is-this-a-sideblog]

I love episodes that show how random and/or normal people are affected by the shananigans of the main characters.

I think every show worth it's money should have one of these.

I ranted to my friends about an episode of Gargoyles called Vendettas in season three, but also things like Go Fish in Buffy and Alicia in Veep are really good at showing just how strange, dramatic, or awful the main characters are from an outside perspective.

It's really fun.

[kuwdora]

Top 5 Most Underrated SF shows/movies you think everyone should watch and why

Top five most underrated SF shows/movies you think everyone should watch, and why :) --from destina

Okay a million years ago (more like 2 and a half months) destina asked me about my top 5 most underrated SF shows/movies I think everyone should watch. I have three shows and two films that I’ve really enjoyed over the last few years and I'll try to break down why I'm loving them.

This gets kind of long so I'll put it under a cut. The shows/films include: Moonhaven (AMC), Avenue 5 (HBO), Humans (AMC/BBC), Life (2017) and Prospect (2018).

Moonhaven is a new AMC show (1 season, 6 episodes) that is rather high concept on the sociological side of the scifi spectrum. They’ve built a utopia on the moon, guided by an AI that has spent a century learning from the human colony there in order to learn how to build better technology and solve the environmental/social ills on earth. This colony of humans have been cut off from the Earth and they’re about to send their first batch of humans and tech back to the planet when there’s a Murder that happens.

The main character is Bella Sway who is a cargo pilot/smuggler and who is also a war vet of sorts who gets accused of committing a crime while she’s on the moon and there’s a lot of mystery/intrigue to unravel.

Now this is very very serious and interesting set-up but what the trailers for this show did not highlight is how strange and wacky the character dynamics are. Because you’ve had a socially isolated human colony (Mooners) now interacting with a bunch of Earthers and— it’s hilarious and strange and eerie. Most of the time the Earther characters are baffled as fuck by the mooners who sound like they’re in a group therapy session that’s performing on stage. The mooners have high emotional IQs and love art and culture and are so touchy feely that the contrast with the hardened Earthers is amazing.

The show also is filmed in Ireland so you get to see some new filming locations that you don’t ordinarily catch in genre shows. AND of course has Dominic Monaghan who looks like he’s having the time of his life.

Emma McDonald plays Bella Sway and she brings such an incredible amount of nuance and depth to her character that 6 episodes just haven’t been enough for me and I’m really excited to see more. I try not to get my hopes up with new scifi shows these days because it’s too easy to get my heart broken but I have REALLY enjoyed this show. It’s doing a lot of interesting thematic exploration about nature vs nurture and the role of technology in people’s lives and how different groups of people see the purpose of technology differently.

It has SO MUCH WORLDBUILDING - including polyamory and partner dynamics within a family, fascinating birth/death rituals that have evolved on the moon, and some rather questionable ways mooners have altered child-rearing responsibilities to circumvent tribalism and prevent violence in their society.

What the trailer and reviews for this show mostly fail to capture is also just how fucking funny and strange the cultural differences are between the Mooners/Earthers. The Mooners LOVE to dance out their feelings.

There’s a conspiracy plotline that I’m not sure how it’s going to shake out but I’m really gnashing my teeth happily on these characters, the worldbuilding, and the technology.

Avenue 5 is an HBO scifi/comedy (2 seasons, somewhat cancelled but maybe not cancelled according to some sources, seems to be a bit of a Schrödinger Cancellation) I am not sure I really recommend for most people because it is hilarious in that dark satire kind of way that not everyone wants to stomach (for good reasons). It’s by the same fellow who wrote/produced Veep so the humor is dark. I described Ave 5 as looking at our current dystopia through an un-funhouse mirror and laughing in horror.

The premise of the show is a space cruise gets thrown off course and it’s going to take years to get back to earth and the ship is full of tourists and incompetent people running the ship. It also features Ethan Phillips playing an obnoxious Martian astronaut character in a GIANT NOD to the hilarity of Star Trek Voyager.

The biggest (and most delightful) surprise of the show is Hugh Laurie’s character is queer and poly (he had two partners back on Earth). The show veers into shenanigans throuple territory (that I 100% need to write some fic for because the show is reasonably cancelled and I need MORE).

This show has some of the most hilarious and obscene dialogue that I’ve heard in years. I love it and have watched every episode several times because humanity is terrible and I kind of like laughing at their pain and awfulness rather than the real world. It’s extremely self-aware and has Lenora Crichlow (of Being Human UK!!!!) and Hugh Laurie being ABSOLUTE TOP OF THEIR FUCKING GAME.

Humans (UK) is the AMC/BBC take on the Swedish show with the same name. On the surface this is a “we’ve created robots to do all of our work for us” premise (they’re called Synths here) and features a Colin Morgan as a scruffy fellow on-the-run with his fellow Synths that he was raised with as a child because his dad programmed the Synths with intelligence. This also has GEMMA CHAN!!!!!! As one of the main leads and she is EXQUISITE as Mia.

I watched and loved the original Swedish version but the British version did a fantastic job of building the family dynamics. It follows the Hawkins family who purchases a new Synth (Mia) and Mia has had her memory temporarily wiped to be in hiding so she doesn’t know who she is yet. The mystery in the beginning season is great but in the later seasons it really builds out the Hawkins mother/daughter relationship as well as letting Laura use her legal background to explore what kind of autonomy and protection she could advocate for Mia and her Synth family.

Mattie is a teenager who has an interest in programming and she’s adrift like many others her age who are facing a future with little job prospects and just getting yanked around by the world- and I just loved her arc in the show so much, especially as she gets involved with helping Mia and her family.

Colin Morgan is really great, too but I really fell in love with Gemma Chan’s depiction of Mia who slowly learns who she is and then is trying to find and keep her family safe while also protecting the Hawkins who are trying to help her.

I found this to be a very solid show — and one that I wish I had vidded already — with great character arcs and was very mindful in the way it was exploring these age-old questions about personhood and outsourcing work to machines and how you treat these machines.

Life (2017) is a horror/thriller film inside a sci-fi setting. Scientists on the International Space station find a new life form that they picked up from Mars to study and Things Go Bad. Pretty great cast- Rebecca Ferguson, Hiroyuki Sanada, Ariyon Bakare along with — for some reason — Jake Gyllenhaal and Ryan Reynolds.

The life-and-death tension and anxiety of being trapped with something scary in the vacuum of space is spectacular. Really enjoyable film.

Prospect (2018) is hands down one of my favorite indie scifi films. Low-budget, INCREDIBLE ACTING, masterful storytelling. The stakes are emotionally and physically high for our characters and had me on the edge of my seat the whole time.

The premise is a girl and her dad (Jay Duplass) go to a remote alien moon to try to mine some minerals to make it rich and start a new life. They get a contract that goes tits up in a bad way and end up face to face with the locals and scoundrels. INCLUDING PEDRO PASCAL. Pedro Pascal and Sophie Thatcher are the fucking stars of this and absolutely captivating. And yes this is part of the Pedro Pascal Multiverse Dad Canon so put it on your list to watch if you need more Dad Pascal.

This movie is INTENSE and raw and absolutely 10000% highest recommendation from me. The writing, the characters- the acting. The set/wardrobe design. A+++++

Everything about this movie is so detailed and internally consistent in a way that makes me wriggle with so much fucking joy.

I even trawled through YouTube to try and find out more about it and fell in love with a behind the scenes featurette. They filmed dust motes in a basement and transposed the dust over the outdoor scenes of the alien planet rather than doing CGI for it. And the work they spent designing the space suits is so great, too.

[halles-comet]

If HBO really wants to disappear shows they should start with the last three seasons of Veep

[buzzdixonwriter]

Movies You Don’t Think Of As Christmas Movies (revised and updated for 2022)

Yeah, yeah, It's A Wonderful White Christmas Carol Story On 34th Street instantly springs to mind whenever somebody says "Christmas Movie" but here are a few you should give thought to as alternative programming for the season.

 L.A. Confidential

 The movie opens with a renegade LA cop going through his naughty list then spreading a little holiday cheer in a liquor store before answering the musical question, “Does the LAPD knows how to throw a Christmas party or what?”

 Die Hard / Lethal Weapon / Gremlins

 Oh, yeah, like you didn’t see these coming…

 On Her Majesty’s Secret Service

 The only James Bond movie with a Christmas song.

 Hell’s Heroes

 Hell's Heroes is the first sound version of The Three Godfathers, most famously filmed in 1948 with John Wayne.  Based on the novel by Peter B. Kyne, Three Godfathers has been filmed officially six times (2 silent versions, 3 talkies, 1 TV movie) and unofficially more than can be counted (see below).  Hell's Heroes is my favorite take on the tale, a story of three doomed desperadoes who sacrifice themselves to bring an infant to safety across the trackless desert. 

 Tokyo Godfathers

 So how in the world does a novel set in the American West translate into an animated feature set in 21st century Tokyo?  Very well, thank you.  The time and setting and characters have changed but it remains essentially the same story:  The desperate, the doomed, and the damned prove their humanity by saving an infant on Christmas Eve.  Highly recommended.

 The Junky’s Christmas

 Now, I know what you're thinking: You're thinking "Buzz has finally lost his pea-pickin' mind.  A story about a petty criminal drug addict trying to score a fix is his idea of a Christmas story?!?!?"

As a failed veep candidate would say:  "Hew betcha."  'Cuz The Junky's Christmas is William S. Burrough's meditation on the act of compassion even when it runs contrary to one's own self-interest.  It's the story of a jonesin' user who has the choice of feeding his addiction or helping a total stranger who needs his fix even more than he does.  Read the original short story, then watch the marvelous animated puppet film.

 Christmas On Mars

 No, this is the film where I finally lose my pea-pickin' mind.  Christmas On Mars is an indie sci-fi feature by the Oklahoma alt rock band, The Flaming Lips.  It's a clever, well made, intelligent, thoughtful, and ultimately uplifting tale of human colonists on Mars just trying to get through their daily routines without collapsing into despair and depression.

I recommend Christmas On Mars highly, but if you are among my many friends who are easily offended (and remember, if I think something might be a little iffy you can guess how far on beyond zebra it must be) take heed:  The aliens are modeled on something that's incredibly NSFW.  Santa Claus Conquers The Martiansthis ain't...

 Tangerine

 A story of two transgender Hollywood street hustlers on Christmas Eve, with everything you could want in a holiday film:  Inventively obscene language, rampant prostitution, startling displays of nudity, and horrifying-yet-hilarious street violence.

And compassion.

And loyalty.

And love.

For several characters, their Christmas ends in heartbreaking despair brought about by their own weaknesses and failings, yet in the end Tangerine focuses on the two hustlers mutual support providing them joy and peace that none of the others can know.

 © Buzz Dixon

[sakebytheriver]

The problem with Blockbuster is exactly the same problem Spaceforce had, the tone.

Both were going for Netflix romcom meets Netflix sitcom vibes and humor when both of them should have been going for is an elevated dark comedy sitcom format like Veep or like Barry. I'll die on the hill that Spaceforce should have completely modeled themselves after Veep which went after the ridiculous and brutal nature of the American government only with the American military instead, like they could have taken their shitty concept and made something incredible and the same with Blockbuster if they had made it an actual critique of life under late stage capitalism in a small American town and the utter brutal reality of working a shitty minimum wage job a la Superstore, but with a little darker humor and some more tragic character backstories this show could actually feel like something instead of a bunch of seasoned professionals somehow stuck in baby's first acting class reading three page scenes they're teacher just handed them and told them to be funny or angry

Also the camera work is pathetically lazy, like literally just an entire show made of shot reverse shots

[clarafordahwin]

Who told the season 6 writers of veep that they could say that word. Three times this season! Plus a bearded lady comment! Die! Literally die!

[laserpinksteam]

Double bill: American Rust (created by Dan Futterman, 2021), Your Honor (created by Peter Moffat, 2021)

I've been Maura Tierney's biggest fan since I saw her first episode in ER on Polish TV. This might have been the beginning of me getting into watching TV series, which would become a way of escaping the pain of writing my M.A. dissertation on a topic I would later find out that I didn't care much about. ER would soon fill in the gap between the ends of Sex and the City and Six Feet Under and the beginning of Weeds, probably the last single-series experience I would have before I started watching multiple series simultaneously. She showed up as Nurse Hathaway's obstetrician to then join the series' core staff a few weeks later. She was amazing, her face registered every tiny emotion, she didn't give a fuck, yet she cared so so much. I later discovered Newsradio, where she was the stabilizer to everyone else's zaniness. Each of the above titles would eventually bring me disappointment: Newsradio lost Paul Hartman, Weeds got lost in its constant transitions, Six Feet Under would get mean and implausible, while Sex and the City was like those people in your life that suddenly you understand that had toxic throughout but you just failed to notice. Out of these, ER is the most fascinating case of a show that weathered through its most spectacular loss of Edwards' Dr. Green into the unexpectedly well-written season 9 to then, equally unexpectedly, dramatically drop in quality especially in the last three seasons. Tierney was great throughout, particularly in her last full season, where her character suddenly, but credibly started drinking again. Tierney then had a fantastic guest stint at Rescue Me, returning to the show for a moment two years later, just after recovering from cancer: due to that, I think, her character, already a broader, funnier, and more sexual version of Abby Lockhart, would be given a raw cancer storyline, which, for me, became one of her three best performances. The second would be a variation of it, a blunt prosecutor on Your Honor, a show that was not so great and super popular, yet it had three great supporting roles (Tierney, Landecker, Toussaint). My third would be her winning supporting-to-lead performance in The Affair, a show as consistently flawed as it was entertaining to watch. American Rust is more frustrating. It is bleak and tries so hard to emulate the poverty of its characters that it comes off as gratuitous. Both shows have recently been renewed for second seasons, both were in a limbo for a while, which shows how unimpressive they turned out. I am looking forward to Tierney being offered funnier and punchier productions, her own Veep or Mare of Easttown or Hacks, something funny, potent, and smart as she always makes her characters.

[smukher2]

Article: JB Smoove - “Curb Your Enthusiasm” & Stand-Up Comedy as Therapy | The Daily Show #TheDailyShow https://youtu.be/N83TdKbF4xc

ArticleSummary: "JB Smoove talks about his experience on "Curb Your Enthusiasm," the improvisational nature of the show, and how stand-up comedy has been a therapeutic outlet for him. He discusses how he embodies the character of Leon Black, his approach to comedy, and his future plans in TV and film."

By #www.smukher2.eu #www.smukher2.co.uk #www.smukher2.com #www.smukher2.net #www.smukher2.org #smukher2 To #Everyone: Laughter is indeed a powerful remedy for life's challenges, as emphasized by JB Smoove in a recent interview on 'The Daily Show.' With 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' approaching its final season, the entertainment world is abuzz with anticipation. Larry David's humor, Jerry Seinfeld's timeless wit from 'Seinfeld,' and Julia Louis-Dreyfus's unmatched talent have made lasting impressions. These comedic icons have shared laughter and joy through their work, showcasing their brilliance and leaving an indelible mark on the industry. Celebrate their remarkable careers by revisiting their shows and reveling in the magic of laughter. Here are some nice clips, trivia and shows by these three of my favorite #fairwissenschaft heroes, Larry David, Jerry Seinfeld and Julia Louis-Dreyfus.

Larry David was the common link between Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Jerry Seinfeld for the Seinfeld show

Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, two comedy legends, have shared many memorable moments together, both on and off screen. They have worked together on 'Seinfeld', and have appeared together on 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' and 'Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee'. Julia Louis-Dreyfus was a cast member on SNL from 1982 to 1985. She met Larry David, a writer and future co-creator of Seinfeld, during her time on the show. Julia Louis-Dreyfus was a cast member on Saturday Night Live (SNL) from 1982 to 1985. During her third and final year on the show, Larry David joined as a staff writer in 1985. During her time on the show, she met Larry David, who was a writer and later became a co-creator of the hit TV show Seinfeld. Larry David introduced Julia Louis-Dreyfus to Jerry Seinfeld for the Seinfeld show.

Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm Cross Paths

The Seinfeld ROUNDTABLE - FULL LENGTH https://youtu.be/1HZrrdesY0I

Larry David on Possible Seinfeld Reunion in Curb Your Enthusiasm Final Season https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8s6lq4

Larry David & the Seinfeld Cast | Curb Your Enthusiasm | Season 7 by HBO https://youtu.be/mofkVvRHT2k

Curb Your Enthusiasm S07E03 - Seinfeld Reunion Argument https://youtu.be/8w1UX8QW5sU

Jerry Seinfeld Hints at ‘Seinfeld’ Reunion https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8oq71l

With Jay Leno and David Letterman

LARRY DAVID TONIGHT SHOW! STAND UP AND INTERVIEW WITH JAY LENO https://youtu.be/gq2WjTT4iEA

https://youtu.be/2GO3X6RXIvs

JERRY SEINFELD TONIGHT SHOW! STAND UP AND INTERVIEW WITH JAY LENO https://youtu.be/k1L3x4FcxAw

JULIA LOUIS-DREYFUS WITH LETTERMAN https://youtu.be/YHNqWWiQnEs

Larry David Talks Real-Life Seinfeld Moments | Letterman https://youtu.be/fa1c7ZUNrVU

Jerry Seinfeld Is Excited About His New Show "Seinfeld" | Letterman https://youtu.be/Z4CJ6uDNStE

SNL collection

SNL Archives http://www.snlarchives.net/Seasons/?1984

Julia Louis-Dreyfus Sketch Collection on SNL by Saturday Night Live https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS_gQd8UB-hLyjqLyynpP4NSFBA4bOEfe&si=GdjfiwaK-DG6Naxf

Jerry Seinfeld on SNL by Saturday Night Live https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS_gQd8UB-hKN0AuML2ejiQio92Gp9cuP&si=WUc0XVcaTiTRrzGS

Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm Clips

Seinfeld Clips https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjBqA4_YGHZHE73jVyPK-gMaky5AbOysK&si=-YMTFKFHSJdnzct3

Curb Your Enthusiasm - Funny Clips https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1qEHolxtoZO-DVdcyKapMXdBd5TB7oq6&si=syHFdI6KHqRzib8h

Julia Louis-Dreyfus

Julia Louis-Dreyfus Veep https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1759761/

Julia Louis-Dreyfus Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus Lemonada Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wiser-than-me-with-julia-louis-dreyfus/id1678559416

Jerry Seinfeld

Comedians İn Cars Getting Coffee S01E01 Larry David Larry Eats A Pancake https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6hxfnz

Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2314952/

Jerry Seinfeld: 23 Hours to Kill https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12117854/

Jerry Seinfeld on Broadway, I'm Telling You for the Last Time, FULL set, Stand-up Comedy, Live, 1998