Post your Netflix favorites here. (Amazon Prime favorites in the next thread.)
If you would be so kind, please include the genre and maybe a little bit about the basic premise?
Update: This thread has been added to the No Cabin Fever For Us! section in the sidebar.
Open Thread.
Hildebrand
Rewatching ‘West Wing’ has been very satisfying.
CorgiMum
Currently binge-watching The Repair Shop – BBC show where experts fix things, from furniture to ceramics to metalwork to clocks to teddy bears.
Also like the British gardening show Big Dreams, Small Spaces.
the antibob
Sex Education, The End of the F**ing World, I Am Not Okay With This, Grace and Frankie, Hap and Leonard, Altered Carbon, Stranger Things.
JOHN MANCHESTER
DEVS is a very good tech sci-fi miniseries—finale tonight. Fine visuals of SF, unusual music, nice acting and a meaty story.
MattF
Babylon Berlin. I’m paused now at episode ~10, but will continue later.
donnah
Mindhunter, both seasons are excellent. A crime/thriller series based on the formation of the FBI serial killer task force. Excellent, gripping, and well-acted.
Brent
@JOHN MANCHESTER: Devs is on hulu. Not netflix.
ETA. I also would recommend Devs btw. Just clarifying where one can actually watch it.
MattF
@MattF: Set in late ’20s Berlin, stunning visually, starts out explosively. It’s getting more soap-opera like in the later episodes, but I guess that’s unavoidable. Also, in German.
WaterGirl
@Brent: Is Hulu as big a thing as Netflix or Amazon Prime? Do we need another post for Hulu?
tybee
i don’t watch many movies – prefer to read but, since this is an open thread:
the missus wants to know if there is a way to make a sourdough starter using only whole wheat flour?
cokane
spanish language film “the platform” was very interesting imo, has some disturbing scenes, so fair warning. some very timely themes for our quarantine + economic recession era. sort of a sci-fi, twilight zone type setup. Something akin to Snowpiercer or Cube if you’ve seen those. The less you know about it going in, the better, imo.
Catherine D.
@CorgiMum: Oh, yes, The Repair Shop. I hope Netflix can get rights to more series. I’ll have to look for the gardening show. I watch Gardener’s World on BritBox for the same feeling of calm.
I also really liked Unorthodox. Must watch the “making of” documentary.
Gravenstone
I’m sure not to everyone’s taste, but I can’t recommend “Violet Evergarden” strongly enough. Only 13 episodes, plus an OVA and now the first movie is all available. Beautiful animation, and fair warning – there will be tears.
Gravenstone
@WaterGirl: Hulu is a repository for loads of TV series, among other things. So it may have value for some people.
Catherine D.
@tybee: Yes, sourdough grows fine in whole wheat flour.
ETA – I’m stretching my yeast store by starting a biga the night before I bake with maybe a quarter tsp of yeast and 1/3 of the flour and water. Then I only need to add a little bit of yeast for the loaf.
cleek
@tybee:
definitely. it’s probably better to start with wheat than with white flour. rye might be even better. they have more natural yeast on them.
JoyceH
Call The Midwife. 1950s lower class London, medical issues, but somehow heartwarming and life-affirming.
cleek
Witcher – swords and magic, but dryly funny
Stranger Things – sci/fi 80’s retro
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina – gritty reboot (drink!) of the comic
American Vandal (season 1) – hilarious take on the true-crime podcast
Lady Dynamite – if you like Maria Banford…
those are all NF originals. if we’re talking about things on NF.. well…
Parks & Rec was well worth watching
Cuckoo was much better than i expected from a premise like “wacky Andy Samberg is out of place in suburban England”
Bufflars
Ozark is good, although OzarkHillbilly can comment on the accuracy of it if he’s seen it.
Seconding Mindhunter, which was quite good, but apparently there may not be a third season, unfortunately.
For those with kiddos, She-Ra and Kipo are great.
Sonoran
Just finished Ozark on Netflix which I describe as Breaking Bad from the money side. Previous binge was the Outsider on HBO, another Jason Bateman joint. CBS streaming just offered a free month, so Star Trek Picard is up next!
WaterGirl
Thesis for some sociologist somewhere. What makes Netflix peeps tend to share more about their shows than the Amazon Prime peeps?
More verbal?
Better at following directions?
The first few people included more information, so everyone follows suite?
Inquiring minds want to know!
WaterGirl
@cleek: Super helpful, thanks!
clay
Derry Girls. Hilarious coming-of-age show about life in Northern Ireland during the 90s. Very short, as well.
Turn on the subtitles.
WaterGirl
@Sonoran: Is Ozark as violent as Breaking Bad?
trollhattan
“GLOW” is a hoot and captures the ’80s as well as, but far differently than “The Americans.”
Bufflars
@WaterGirl: I’d say Ozark is not quite as violent as BB, but it is still pretty violent.
cleek
@clay:
oh hell yes. Derry Girls was amazing.
trollhattan
@WaterGirl:
Also, WhoLoo is famous people vlogging from the toilet. Quite the cult following.
WindyCityCat
Bojack Horseman, which seemed like a comedy at first, and quickly descends into the depths exploring various forms of mental illness. Don’t let the animation and anthropomorphic characters throw you off, it’s very well done. The series finished in January and the episodes are less than 30 mins long, so easy to binge.
eclare
Unbelievable came out last year, but it is compelling tv. Best thing I’ve seen in years.
Ozark is worth watching for Ruth Langmore alone.
Marion323
Dark
Fantastic sci-fi time travel. Watch in German with subtitles
JPL
@Hildebrand: Truthfully, I think I’d cry watching it again, because it would remind me of another time.
Adam Lang
This is very frustrating, since I don’t know what any of these are and most people aren’t posting any kind of genre info, let alone basic premise. Thank you to the few who did.
cain
I love Witcher thus far, being a huge fan of the video game
All the marvel shows are amazing and awesome with Jessica Jones being #1 followed by Daredevil and Luke Cage.
Altered Carbon is good, and Riverdale is pretty interesting take on Archie comics. I love the first 2 seasons, but I haven’t gotten into the 3rd one as of yet. It’s getting a bit dragging.. kind of how I feel about Arrow and Flash. :)
cain
@WaterGirl:
It’s just way too dark for me.
WaterGirl
@Adam Lang: People are doing better at that on this thread than on the Amazon Prime thread.
I even said please in both threads. :-)
Roger Moore
@tybee:
Yes. You can do about the same as what people do with white flour. I haven’t worked much with whole wheat starter, but I think it’s supposed to be a bit more temperamental than white starter.
Sphouch
Ditto on Derry Girls. My wife loved Broadchurch, and I was keen on Mindhunter. Stranger Things is as close to must see as you can get IMO, but I am surprised not more people have mentioned Dark yet. It’s in German, and it’s really gripping.
David ? ☘The Establishment☘? Koch
38 comments and no one has mentioned “The Crown”
Geez
cleek
The End Of The Fucking World – two angst-filled British teens make a few bad decisions and take to the road to escape. very dark, but also dryly funny and sweet at times.
I Am Not OK With This – from the same people as the previous. set in small town PA. an awkward and troubled teenage girl discovers she has the power to … blow things up. also dark, but sweet.
both have really good soundtracks
cleek
@David ? ☘The Establishment☘? Koch:
seconded!
trollhattan
@cain:
“Jessica Jones” is good and for me 100% because of Krysten Ritter, who is utterly riveting. They put zero effort into explaining anything of the world one is dropping into and knowing nothing of the character’s past, I had to watch it for the story and forget about the magic powers crap. Which worked at least until David Tennant shows up.
ETA for more Krysten Ritter, “Don’t trust the B____ in Apartment 23” is hilarious. Dunno who carries it.
Roger Moore
@Catherine D.:
You don’t need to do it with a biga. You can make your dough with only a tiny amount of yeast and then let it rise overnight.
WaterGirl
@cain: Good to know, thanks.
WaterGirl
@Sphouch: Can you say more about Broadchurch and Mindhunter?
eclare
@Adam Lang: Guilty! Unbelievable is about a teen foster girl in Seattle who is raped, reported it, and the police did not believe her.
Rapes start happening in CO, and the two female detectives there take the victims seriously. They find pics of the teen in the rapists collection.
The acting is top notch: Toni Collete and (I think) Meredith Weaver are the CO cops. Meredith won an Emmy. On lots of top ten lists.
eclare
@eclare: Merritt Wever is the actress’ name.
MattF
Also, The Good Place and The Magicians. Both good– TGP final season comes to Netflix later this year, it’s about… um, life and death and moral philosophy. The Magicians is a TV-ized version of Lev Grossman’s books; starts out relatively faithful to the books, then wanders off…
Lavocat
@WaterGirl: No, but it can be much more shocking as it is often unexpected. For example, check out the final scene of the last episode of season 2. Holy shit!
Bob7094
Schitt’s Creek — wealthy Hollywood family loses everything and go to live in a rundown motel in Ontario. Funny, and the characters all mature over time.
Currently watching Locke & Key
Hope another season of Stranger Things is on the way.
— Bob
Gretchen
@Bob7094: I second Schitt’s Creek. My husband bailed after a few episodes because the characters were self-involved and unsympathetic. I just watched the whole second season last night, and it gets better – it’s clear that the townspeople are amused by them, and they start getting more sympathetic. I laughed quite a bit.
mrmoshpotato
@donnah: I still need to watch season 2 of Mindhunter.
cleek
We started The 100 and The Magicians, stuck with them for a few of seasons, but it started to feel like they were both going off the rails (or, into loops).
pinacacci
@trollhattan: I second GLOW, watched with my brother and we thoroughly enjoyed it. When you think you know where it’s going, you don’t! Lots of humor and heart.
Also loving Kingdom, zombie apocalypse set in Joseon Korea, palace drama and intrigue, action, wow. Just wow. Terrific at ratcheting up tension and letting it explode in great action set pieces. I highly recommend it!
sphouch
@WaterGirl: I really didn’t watch much Broadchurch, but I believe it was a whodunit-type serial set in rural England with David Tennant and Olivia Colman. It starts out with investigation of the death of an 11 year old boy and the effects of dealing with it among the community.
Mindhunter is about the establishment of the federal Serial Killer investigative unit – the profiling type stuff that they do.
O/T but We’re going through Schitt’s Creek right now and it’s growing on me. Definitely worth a look. I’m trying to get into The Valhalla Murders, but it’s just not quite clicking for me (investigation into a series of murders set in Iceland)
cope
Looks like documentaries are getting short shrift here so let me chime in. “The Big Hack” is a great tale of the Cambridge Analytica story (yes, I mentioned this in a previous thread). One of the more chilling parts of it showed how they targeted young black voters in Trinidad and Tobago and encouraged them not to vote. This allowed the other dominant class of citizens, those of Indian descent, to gain electoral victories. The two groups are roughly equal in population percentage so even a small change in voting had a large effect.
“Dirty Money” is a documentary series about, well, dirty money. Of the multiple episodes, I have watched the one about Jared Kushner (“Slumlord Millionaire”) and “Dirty Gold” about the international trade in gold. I have several more episodes to watch in this series created by Alex Gibney whose works on Enron and Scientology (among others) some of you may know.
For fun, the four episodes of “Cooked” by author Michael Pollan are worth the time. Also, for trashy people watching, “Fyre” fits the bill. Sorry, I cannot bring myself to watch the apparently even more trashy people in the tiger show, however.
Out.
TaMara (HFG)
@CorgiMum:That show gives me all the feelz
Frankensteinbeck
Providing the list for animation fans:
She-Ra is brilliant and essential.
Aggretsuko is popular. I don’t like it. It is angry and a little nihilistic, and I have a lower tolerance for those. But I mention it because it pleases many.
Kipo is fun. Not exceptional, but all-around enjoyable.
Next Gen is a great movie about an angry teenager and her warbot.
Love, Death, and Robots is trying to be edgy and adult with a fair amount of nudity and violence, and each episode is by a different studio, but some are quite cool.
The still have Into The Spiderverse, the most essential animated film in decades.
Beastars is brilliant. Beastars is beautiful. Beastars is one of the most messed up, deranged, and adult stories I have ever watched. It leaves Bojack in the dust, while not having Bojack’s nihilistic overtones. I was prepared for the carnivorous violence. I was not prepared for Haru’s dysfunctional sex life, and it just gets more disturbing from there.
Bojack is brilliant, but extremely nihilistic, and I have a lot of trouble watching it while admiring the Hell out of it simultaneously.
Hilda is slow, but extremely cute.
DC Superhero Girls is hyper, but mind-meltingly cute.
Wakfu is French.
I didn’t like Dark Crystal, and I’m not sure I could tell you why.
Soul Eater is, without question, the best shonen anime I have ever watched. It is like Naruto, but better in every way and with no filler. Except maybe the first three episodes, which for no reason I understand are goofy and childish and totally different in tone from the rest of the series.
I just saw they have Puella Magi Madoka Magica, which is sugically, artistically cruel and sad, a tragic deconstruction of the magical girl trope. Things go straight to Hell in episode three, and they don’t stop plunging.
One Punch is an icon of fun and funny.
TaMara (HFG)
Late to the party, but Dramaworld, Bonding and I’ve been rewatching Madame Secretary.
WaterGirl
@TaMara (HFG): I know Madame Secretary, but have never heard fo Dramaworld or Bonding. What are those about?
Kent
In Ozark, the cartel’s are mainly looming ominously and frighteningly out of sight in the background (until the last season). In Breaking Bad they are right up front in the middle of the plot. That’s probably the main difference.
Plus, the crime is money laundering, not meth production and trafficking so the characters are more normal on the surface and less psychopathic violent.
Kent
I’m in the middle of Valhalla Murders, but if you want Icelandic murder mysteries then Trapped on Amazon is better, as is Borderland (set in Finland) on Netflix.
WaterGirl
@Kent: Super helpful, thanks!
Brachiator
@Hildebrand:
I do not currently subscribe to Netflix, but have been watching clips of “The West Wing” on YouTube. Reminds me of what a great show it was.
Definitely worth re-watching for those who have this streaming service.
Clem Fandango
A couple of British comedies
“Toast of London” is a crude and hilarious sendup of the London “theatah” scene- that’s where I stole my nom de blog
Episodes is a crude and hilarious sendup of Holywood as seen by a couple of british writers- bonus points for casting Matt LeBlanc playing himsef- a crude and more self involved version of Joey from “friends”
I laughed out loud during both and was sad when they ended
mrmoshpotato
65 comments and no mention of Storybots or DinoTrux.
I don’t even know you!
Storybots – a quintet of animated characters answer kids’ questions to hilarious effect. (And Bing’s a total stoner)
DinoTrux – quartet of different dinosaurs and others build in their crater and do other tasks while battling other dinosaurs who try to wreck their home
WaterGirl
@mrmoshpotato: We were saving them for you!
HumboldtBlue
I just finished the Last Kingdom. Very good plot development, wonderful characters, a lot of violence. The story revolves around a boy born a Saxon but kidnapped and raised by Vikings during the time of Alfred the Great 800-900 Britain. Three seasons with season four to begin April 26.
Peaky Blinders a series about organized crime in Birmingham, England post-WW1. Tommy leads his family and friend into gangster battles with all sorts of interesting characters. Lots of violence but an engrossing story based at least partly in historical events.
The English Game a short series about the development of the game of football (soccer) in Britain from the ownership of the game by the elite and Public School snobs (who gave the game its modern rules and structure) to that of the game of the working man. Shallow Julian Fellowes plot but the story is interesting enough as a historical tale to stand up.
The Crown, I found the first few seasons riveting. Excellent actors, wonderful historical detail and worth a watch if for no other reason then to learn how the Royal Family worked and developed in the 20th century.
LarryB
“Unorthodox” (fiction) and “One of Us” (documentary). Both are about the Hasidic community in New York. Both are excellent.
HumboldtBlue
@Brachiator:
I should have added it to my comment, but there’s a ton of excellent free content on YouTube whether it’s military, science, architecture, you name it, there is plenty to watch and that doesn’t even include the contect from universities around the world who provide free lectures and even courses.
WaterGirl
@LarryB: I LOVED the Chaim Potok books when I was in my teens and in College, so my ears are perking up.
Can you say more about the documentaries?
Adam Lang
@eclare: Awesome. Sounds… well, maybe ‘good’ doesn’t quite describe it, but ‘worth watching’.
LongHairedWeirdo
@tybee: I think starting with whole wheat is preferred.
One thing to keep in mind, though: if you’re starting with some actual starter, even just a half cup, you can easily make it regular, or whole wheat.
If you’re starting with just flour and water, it can be trickier. See, there are two hypotheses about sourdough. One is, it picks up yeasts and such in the air. This probably holds true in old bakeries, where there’s been yeast in use for years (and, in Europe, possibly much longer) but it’s probably not true in your average kitchen.
I have heard that each home will tend to have its own, unique, starter profile – eventually, any starter will tend toward that particular profile. But it’s not usually enough to start the sourdough process reliably.
Others think that sourdough uses yeasts from the wheat kernel itself, and a strong bit of evidence for this is, it’s nearly impossible to grow a starter from flour that’s been irradiated to kill everything in them. (NB: I can’t claim primary source knowledge on this matter – I’m reporting hearsay.)
I’ve heard it said that whole wheat is more likely to let you create sourdough starter from scratch. I can’t speak to this; I’ve started my current lineage with purchased starter.
I can say this: if you take a bit of white flour starter, and feed it carefully with whole wheat, you’ll get a fine starter. That is much, much easier than trying to start from nothing.
Other tips: bread dough is usually surprisingly wet to new bakers. If you’re not noticing that, and are baking in loaf pans, you’re probably not hydrated enough. You do need less water for free form loafs, but you should always be able to get rid of creases in the dough. If you can’t squeeze the creases out, your dough is probably too dry.
And, do *not* try to change a recipe from white to whole wheat (obviously: unless you know this rule, and want to find out what happens if you break it :-) – you might find you like the substitution). Whole wheat is more flavorful, but will also carry some bitterness, so you need to modify things a bit to downplay that – usually, a bit more sweetener, and honey or brown sugar are common, because the flavors help cancel out the bitter of the whole wheat. Of course, using sourdough will help, because you’ll get the fermentation flavoring.
Pittsburgh Mike
@Clem Fandango: Have to second Episodes. It’s great. Also should watch anything with or by Sharon Horgan.
I’m not sure where you can watch it, but Outnumbered is one of the funniest British TV shows I’ve ever seen.
HumboldtBlue
@cope:
I absolutely loved that series and have re-watched it twice including once when I introduced it to my dad and we watched it together. Brilliantly done.
I just finished The Vietnam War as well and I’m still sad.
Dave
Unless I missed it, no one mentioned Longmire…. a modern western/murder mystery, set in a small town in Wyoming (although filmed in New Mexico). 6 seasons, 10 episodes per season, and very few clunkers in the whole thing. My wife and I liked it so much we’ve watched it twice. That’s right, all 60 episodes, twice.
Also, Wanted, following two strangers who intervene in a deadly carjacking only to be swept up in a roller coaster chase across Australia in a car full of money. The strangers must rely solely on each other while they are on the run. Much better than that description I copied from IMDb! Made in Australia, very interesting character development, the two women meet by chance because they’re kidnapped from the same bus stop, and are almost polar opposites.
orchid moon
The Witcher – Fantasy about the way 3 lives intersect. The Witcher who is a monster killer for hire, a sorceress, Yinnifer who is his on/off love, and Ciri, heir to one of the kingdom’s thrones. She becomes his ward. Lots of war, monsters, and interesting characters. Elves, fairies, dragons, and dwarves, oh, my. First season goes back and forth setting up the 3 characters, and how they come together.
Ninedragonspot
“A Boy Named Flora A” – a low-key and intensely local slice-of-life comedy set in the Taiwanese countryside. It stars Crowd Lu – one of my favorite Taiwanese singer-songwriters.
”Bromance” – loopy & utterly undemanding Taiwanese crypto-gay rom-com. Pop-infused soap opera with a couple subtle points. (Disclaimer: I may have a minor crush on Baron Chen)
HumboldtBlue
@Pittsburgh Mike:
If you like Hugh Dennis (and what fool doesn’t?) you’ll enjoy 8 out of 10 Cats Does Countdown as well as Mock the Week in which Hugh Dennis plays a large role and it’s all free on YouTube.
WaterGirl
@Dave: I watch Longmire when I am on the treadmill. Even when I don’t know if Ferg was alive or dead, I don’t get to watch anymore until the next time I get on the treadmill. I was also worried about the good doctor a few weeks ago.
LongHairedWeirdo
There are some great DC Universe shows on Netflix.
Arrow starts dark, but gets more hopeful. It is, however, always darker than Supergirl and The Flash.
Supergirl and The Flash are pulled straight from the golden age as I remember it – relentlessly optimistic and hopeful, the good guys always win for the right reasons (though sacrifices are made) ; and I kind of like a lot of the subplots. Supergirl also takes some shots you’ll love. (“Every fifth grader knows that global warming is real; of course the President is better informed than a fifth grader!” – if only that were true in *our* universe!)
There’s also Legends of Tomorrow, of which I’ve followed least of them all – but it was a pretty good show from what I remember. The pilot is great, just because of how it all works out. The boss man says “you are all *great* heroes in the future!” Well, actually, they are the people who could be removed from the timeline with minimal damage – kind of the opposite of great heroes. Nevertheless, they persisted….
There are some great crossover events so it’s not a bad idea to watch them all, if you love the DC universe as I do. But just Supergirl or The Flash are great for watching people who believe in doing right, and that if they just try hard enough, and work long enough, that good will triumph over evil.
dm
[i]Carole and Tuesday[/i], more music on Mars from the director of [i]Cowboy Bebop[/i].
Nice, poppy music (I was surprised at how much I liked it).
Maybe a little topical, as the latter half of the show deals with an anti-immigration (to Mars) politician.
Marc
Giri/Haji
Recent BBC series on Netflix, a Tokyo detective is sent to London to track down a yakuza hit-man, who also happens to be his younger brother. Half set in London, half in Tokyo (in Japanese with subtitles), an odd premise that provides context for an interesting story about the interaction between “duty” and “shame”.
Cleardale
Altered Carbon – Mystery, action
Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Punisher – All the Netflix Marvel heroes are good except Iron Fist. Punisher is super violent though.
Kingdom – Historical Korea period piece zombie show.
The Umbrella Academy – Superhero show, somewhat dark.
Into the Badlands – Martial arts apocalypse world.
Russian Doll – Uhhh…uhhhh sci-fi-ish? Kinda hard to put into a genre.
mali muso
We really enjoy “Kim’s Convenience”, a comedy set in Toronto focused on the experiences of a first/second gen Korean-Canadian family who run a convenience store. Very funny but also feels pretty authentic (I’m not Asian-American or Canadian, but I’ve read positive reviews from people in the community). Each episode is short and manageable but the storylines connect. Just the thing during these grim times.
SkyBluePink
Thank you for these threads
I scroll aimlessly through the Netflix titles- these suggestions give me aim
WaterGirl
@SkyBluePink: You’re welcome!
This thread – and the Amazon Prime one – has been added to the No Cabin Fever For Us! section in the sidebar.
Poe Larity
@Dave: +1 on Longmire. Good arc. Like most series, the best writers leave after the second season and is more spotty.
eldorado
late to the party, and not a horror fan in general, but i really liked ‘marianne.’
and by liked i mean that i spent several nights not sleeping with all the lights on
opiejeanne
I enjoyed “Somebody Feed Phil”, with Phil Rosenthal (who created Everybody Loves Raymond, not my favorite show). There are 2 seasons of Phil wandering around different parts of the world and being introduced to interesting foods by people who live in these places. He tends to say, “Oh, come on! Come on!” a lot, delighted when encountering just about every food he meets. He ends each show with a Skype with his elderly parents, who are hilarious.
Previous to this PBS produced a six-part show, “I’ll Have What Phil’s Having”.
He’s sweet, goofy, funny, and always appreciative and delighted with the food he encounters.
I can’t say enough about “Longmire”, a modern-day sheriff in rural Wyoming dealing with murder, robbery, the tension between the Crow reservation and Absaroka County’s law enforcement, an ongoing squabble about jurisdiction. The series is based loosely on Craig Johnson’s Longmire books, with a couple of added characters. Stars Robert Taylor, an Australian actor playing the title character, Katee Sackhoff as a deputy, and Lou Diamond Philips, who plays Henry Standing Bear, the only flaw being that Henry in the books is described as an FBI, and Philips is more of of an MBI. Fans of the books complain bitterly when Henry is not featured enough in them, fans of the show react in a similar manner.
Trabb's Boy
Adoring the choices from other countries:
Trapped — Just AMAZING cop show from Iceland. Filmed and directed and acted magnificently. They did a second season 4 yrs after the first but it’s no good.
Better Than Us — Russian cyberpunk thriller.
Unorthodox — Young woman leaves Hasidic life in Brooklyn for unlikely adventures in Berlin.
Road to Calvary — Russian period piece about WWI and the revolution. The romance bits are poorly written but it does a great job showing the dynamic of life with brilliant, visionary political thinkers in the midst of new ideas in art and religion and the mob mentality that charismatic people can generate. People talk about breaking everything down, and something better will emerge. Possibly horribly relevant.
Always a Witch — much lighter fare from Colombia, about a young 17th century witch transported to modern times.
opiejeanne
@Dave: Aw, you got your comments about Longmire posted before I did.
Fans of the show were very upset when it ended, and their reaction is hilarious when we tell them that Craig Johnson is still writing the books: There are books????
AndyG
Peaky Blinders!
opiejeanne
@Poe Larity: The writing on Longmire was much better after A&E dropped it because the production company refused to sell it to them. It was their top non-reality show, and they just dumped it out of pique.
When Netflix picked up the show, after a massive letter-writing campaign by the fans, they told the writers to use the whole hour, since there aren’t any commercials. As a result, every episode has more detail and is better-written.
charon
Big Mouth is great, animated comedy, about kids entering puberty. Nick Kroll written.
Also Russian Doll is great, psychological thingy. (Think Groundhog day crossed with The Good Place, title alludes to Russian nesting dolls, Matryoshka dolls).
eclare
@Adam Lang: And based on a true story.
JustRuss
Just finished rewatching Twin Peaks. And by finished, I mean through season 2 episode 9. After that it’s a train wreck, and not the good kind. It was nice to hang out with Truman and Cooper again. Finished the Witcher a couple weeks ago, very well done.
Z. Mulls
@watergirl @Adam Lang
So much on Netflix, plenty to see.
Netflix movies:
The Irishman, if you haven’t seen it yet. It is very watchable, it’s Goodfellas in a slow and mournful key, almost a reflection of the earlier films, staking out it’s own ground. The anti-aging is distracting but you get used to it. The scene at the Latin Casino in the middle is phenomenal storytelling, and it’s the only time in the film Pesci and Pacino talk face to face, and they make the most of it.
Okja is by Bong Joon Ho and it’s as weird and surprising as Parasite. It’s about how we think about what we eat (or don’t) and our relationship to our dominion over the animals. Plus Tilda Swinton.
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is easy to watch as it is six short stories by the Coen Brothers. It’s really for Coen Brothers fans but it has some of the top work in it.
The Other Side of Midnight is the Orson Welles film that was never finished, and was put together by archivists and film historians. Fascinating for film history.
Oh Hello – the stage show with John Mulaney. It’s very strange humor so you’ll either get it or you won’t.
Netflix Series.
I highly recommend EASY – each episode is a self-contained story about folks in Chicago, and their relationship with/to sex. Never smarmy, always thoughtful, and the scenes are heavily improvised. Some of the characters appear in more than one story, and in Seasons 2 and 3, some stories continue. Low key and both amusing and contemplative.
I second the recommendation of American Vandal (first season only). Brilliant faux documentary. You wouldn’t think you could watch hours of discussion about spray-painted dicks or watch a computer recreation of a handjob.
Movies currently on Netflix:
The Talented Mr Ripley – if you have never seen it, or haven’t seen it for a while, it’s just wonderful. Matt Damon as a nobody con man who excels at pretending to be what he is not. Period piece with Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow, Cate Blanchett and a rising Philip Seymour Hoffman.
Dolemite is My Name for the Eddie Murphy fans.
Hell or High Water is exceptional. Two brothers rob small banks in Texas, and Jeff Bridges is the Marshall chasing them. But why they are robbing the banks and how they do it is part of the deep surprise of the film. The desolation of the economy lurks in every frame and it is a fantastic script. Very very satisfying.
A Serious Man is also for Coen Brothers completists. This small film is about growing up Jewish in the Midwest, with all the normal Coen Brothers weirdness. Plus my Dad is in it. (He’s the Hebrew school teacher in one of the early scenes).
Series on Netflix
American Crime Story, if you haven’t seen it. The OJ Simpson season is rightly praised, and the Versace season is quite compelling
Black Mirror, if you missed it first time around, the Twilight Zone for technical innovation. I would start with the Christmas episode, with Jon Hamm. It’s the longest but has everything good about the series in one episode.
Recitfy is a very slow, quiet, spiritual series about a man released from prison. He was convicted of a terrible murder, but is released on a technical reason. We are never quite sure (at least a few seasons in) whether he did it or not, and it turns out not to matter.
Halt and Catch Fire — I just binge watched the whole series. It wanted to be Mad Men for the early Personal Computer era. Season 1 makes many mistakes, tries to be too dark and tries to create another Don Draper. Most everything wrong about S1 is fixed in S2. Not super-great, but very watchable.
As for Hulu, you should definitely take another look. Hulu has Better Things, Younger, The Bold Type, and Don’t Trust the B—– (mentioned above). They also have HBO Unlocked currently, with Veep, Succession, The Wire, Silicon Valley and more.
FelonyGovt
La Casa de las Flores, or House of Flowers, a kind of over the top soap opera about a wealthy Mexican family that owns a flower shop. Very funny.
rikyrah
There are a number of telenovelas on Netflix.
Michael
Not Netflix, but free with antenna: Most of the stuff on PBS on Sunday nights. Possibilities, which seem to change every week: Call the Midwife (OK, very sentimental but Britain and they are up to the 60’s or so), World On Fire (WWII England, and who doesn’t like WWII England), Baptiste (English/Dutch/Romanian set in Amsterdam crime stuff), Endeavor (young Inspector Morse – which is what they should have called it).
I think these were one-offs of previously shown series, but who knows what is coming back: Inspector T (Belgian and great modern police detective drama plus sort of dream sequences and comedy – NYC showed the first episode which sets up the whole series), Last Tango in Halifax (they also ran the first episode recently, which I had never seen but also sets up the whole multi-season series).
You can find a lot of stuff on pbs.org, or pay more for Passport (I have no idea). Or some may be available elsewhere.
And of course PBS shows docs under several titles on other nights.
JOHN MANCHESTER
@Brent: Sorry! Can’t keep these platforms straight (but grateful to have them now!)
Dadadadadadada
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
PaulWartenberg
I just re-subscribed to Netflix last week.
Caught up with The Witcher, episodes of Community, starting up on the Marvel Defenders shows that are still on there, I’ve tagged Sex Education for binge watching later (ST. SCULLY!), not really intrigued with anything else at the moment
Its’ anime offering are not that good IMHO.
Marc
Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories
Touchy and funny stories about the customers and owner of a tiny restaurant in Tokyo that opens at midnight.
Poe Larity
Death Note is on netflix – for those who haven’t tried anime, it’s where you get 20 episodes in and the next episode button on your controller breaks. Thriller between killer human with supernatural ally and anonymous sherlockian brainiac.
Also, IDK if it’s still available but iTunes had a Cowboy Bebop season (there’s only one) for like $4.99.To buy, not rent.
Peter
@cleek:
@tybee:
Yes, whole grain (wheat, spelt, rye, etc.) are all excellent and have more nutrients than white so they microbes love them. A mixture is also good, based on what you have as you work through your stores.
James E Powell
I like a lot of UK and Euro cop shows & murder mysteries. There’s less of the standard macho cop with ex-wife and drinking problems who always bends the rules hangs out in strip joints and at the end beats up or shoots the bad guy.
Sadly, some of the series that I watched on Netflix are no longer on Netflix. Shetland, for example, had three seasons on Netflix, but dropped it. I’d like to continue with it but I’d have to buy/rent and added to that, I’ve not yet recovered from what happened to Tosh.
Bitter Daisies. Hotel Beau Sejour. The Five. Hinterland. The Stranger. Marcella. Collateral.
Very much appreciate the contributions on this and the amazon prime thread. Thank you all.
mrmoshpotato
@WaterGirl: ?
narya
@tybee: Yes. Mine is 100% whole wheat (and 8-9 years old). If you have an existing starter you can gradually switch to WW as you feed it, but otherwise you can start it w/ whole wheat.
Pinkpuppy
@trollhattan: Hulu has two seasons. (JustWatch is great for tracking down where you can stream)
Jak
Babylon Berlin and Dark. In German w/subtitles.
Dextrous
Happy to recommend: The Money Heist. From Spain, in Spanish with subtitles, maybe dubbing as well but not sure. About a grand heist plan and its execution. Dense story line, compelling characters, interactions, almost too many, with lots of sub plots and loose ends whose threads may be retraced. Very action packed, great acting with some over the top, but so so addictive. There are four parts (seasons), and I’m re-watching season two because there is so much to go back and catch the second time around. I’m limiting myself to two a day. Thank you all for the recommendations so far.
Mart
Can’t believe no “Trailer Park Boys” fans yet. Primarily about three white Canadian trailer park men who love (shot before legal in Canada) weed and booze, without decent jobs or money to pay for it. All sorts of petty theft and drug deals that keep putting them back in jail. Sub-plots with the trailer park security team, police, and trailer park women. Lots of gun shots, but their aim is really bad. I mean really bad. Sounds like a mess, and it is, just a really funny well made and acted mess. Expect more suited to men who still have some Beavus and Butthead in them.
glc
My favorites in recent viewing
And then there are:
Renie
All of the Narcos shows are great. Start with the original about Pablo Escobar, then it goes to the Cali drug cartel in Columbia, then 2 seasons of the Mexican drug cartel. All may not be presently on Netflix but the last of the Mexico angle just got released.
I loved Bloodline. About a family operating a resort in Florida Keys (beautiful scenery) and the drama among the family inter-mixed with cop drama as one family member is a cop.
Agreeing with others that Mindhunters is a fantastic show about the original FBI behaviorial unit.
Dexter (again a Florida setting) is also on Netflix. Never saw it when it first aired but really enjoyed watching it on Netflix.
Another one I never saw when first aired and is on Netflix, Nurse Jackie with Edie Falco who is great in it.
The Kominsky Method with Michael Douglas as an aging acting coach; also starring Alan Arkin.
Dead to Me is about a friendship between 2 women, one of who is a recently widowed real estate agent trying to come to terms with her loss.
Heidi Mom
@James E Powell: Shetland has moved to Britbox. And Tosh recovers.
Ruckus
It’s not a series, just a documentary but I’ve watched Resurface 3 or 4 times now. It is about treating vets with PTSD and it is damn good, IMHO.
It is a Netflix deal.
TheronWare
Designated Survivor
Seanly
Sci-fi show Travellers! You have to power through the first 3 or 4 episodes of the first season and then it takes off like a rocket. Only got to make 3 seasons, but they end the story.
Oh my god, so good. Showrunner/creator Brad Wright, Eric McCormack gives a great performance. Brad Wright also has many Stargate alums in various roles.
It saddens me that it took 120 comments before someone posted about it. Everyone I recommended to has come back & thanked me. Okay, that might be biased as I only recommend to people looking for a sci-fi show.
Emma
Will try to mention things that haven’t been mentioned yet. Regarding that, how has no one mentioned Nailed It yet? A send-up of all the other baking competition shows where the showrunners deliberately invite bad bakers, who themselves know that they’re bad, to have fun baking hilarious crap in unrealistically short amounts of time. There are like 10 spin-offs now; I approve.
I watched Blown Away after mistermix’s post on it, and I also thoroughly recommend it now for people who like art. I really like that a talented older, somewhat curmudgeonly lesbian with strong views won over a technically brilliant, but boring on the ideas guy.
Wassup Man Go is pretty great if you just want mindless fun, although it does have touching moments when Park Joon (Joon Park) randomly connects with strangers. The Slab City episode is probably my favorite. Ignore the first episode, unless you’re dying to see various Korean TV agents and actors neg him. Also be prepared for lots of “Let’s get it” phrases.
Galavant is also on Netflix now, for all the people who love Alan Menken songs and Mel Brooks humor. A show canceled before its time #GalavantSeason4PleaseNetflix
Jack Whitehall: Travels With My Father fits all the tropes of deliberately cringey British travelogues, so I quite like it :) his father is also the one Tory I don’t reflexively hate (only after due deliberation ;) ), although I’m sure they play up his Tory-ness for laughs.
JBWoodford
For an odd sort of foreign comedy/mystical martial arts series, try “Once Upon a Time in Lingjian Mountain.” It’s part of a Chinese fantasy subgenre that I had no idea even existed (xianxia), and learning the conventions on the fly has been interesting.
Gravenstone
@PaulWartenberg: Hulu has a pretty good bench of anime, since they are affiliated with Funimation and carry a lot of their content.
Mike G
Formula 1: Drive to Survive — documentary of the racing series, focuses on the people and personalities
Hello My Twenties — thoughtful Korean drama
Strong Girl Bong Soon — funny Korean action drama
White Gold — hustling British window salesmen in the 80s
Rake — free-wheeling Australian lawyer with unconventional clients, like “House” but for the legal world
NotMax
Without letting the list get too long, several titles in no particular order. Tried not to duplicate suggestions from above and to cull from the list as first typed any which are are no longer on Netflix. Not all A level, however attempted to keep it no less than a solid B. Rather than include a wall of text description, have faith in the jackals’ Google skills.
“Last Tango in Halifax”
“Fallet”
“Occupied”
“Rake”
“Rita” (and spinoff “Hjørdis”)
“Iris” (Korean series, not the movie)
“Black Spot”
“Club de Cuervos”
“Travelers”
“El Ministerio de Tiempo”
“Grand Hotel” (series from Spain)
“Bordertown”
“Hinterland”
“Hotel Beau Séjour”
“Broadchurch”
“Tunnel” (Thai version)
“The Break”
“Servant of the People”
‘”Thieves of the Wood”
“W1A”
“Toon”
“The New Legends of Monkey”
“The Code” (series, not movie)
“El Barco”
“Galavant”
“The Invisible Guest”
“The Perfect Dictator”
NotMax
@NotMax
Could have sworn I’d included it, but on rereading apparently not.
“London Spy”
MD Rackham
Only one K-drama mentioned so far? Netflix has a ton of Korean shows, some teen, some rom-com, some zombies. I’d definitely recommend:
Stranger – Emotionless, brain damaged (?) prosecutor attempts to to track down serial killer.
Tunnel – Chief detective goes through time warp into future where some things are the same, some different. He’s both trying to get back, and searching for his wife in the future.
Designated Survivor – A thoroughly Korean-ized version of the American show. Much better.
Kingdom – Historical drama, with zombies.
In all cases watch with Korean sound track and English (or whatever subtitles).
Dave
@WaterGirl: we really enjoyed that each episode is a new mystery, but also carried a longer arc of story that makes one want to watch the whole series. Also wondered out loud how many people could be left in such a small town with so many murders!
Great cast and characters, love the interplay between Walt and Vic, and Lizzie is a really fun character too.
Sonoran
@WaterGirl: Yes. It’s focus is on a family and the constant threat of violence to them. You can’t be “a little pregnant” when it comes to cartels… But great writing and acting.
Sphouch
@MD Rackham: or, if you’re a former (like myself) Korean linguist like me, try with the subtitles turned off and see how much you can recall after 20 some odd years
Anya
I am late to this thread but I would like to second, third, fourth, fifth Broadchurch. It’s so well done on every level. And it ended when it needed to end.
I would also strongly recommend The Last Kingdom. Please stay with it till after the 3rd episode because the first two are a bit slow. But it gets better. If you like Vikings you’d love it. It’s a reality based Game of Thrones. It’s a fictionalized version of Alfred the Great’s quest to unite the saxons and defend his kingdom from Norse invaders.
artem1s
Rewatching Agents of Shield. I generally enjoy Joss Whedon’s work anyway. And really like Clark Gregg too.
LongHairedWeirdo
@Cleardale: I’ll second the MCU stories on Netflix, and I think they also have Agents of Shield, which was pretty good.
@Z. Mulls: Dolemite Is My Name isn’t just for Eddie Murphy fans. I loved the whole thing, beginning to end, just as a send up of the energy of entertainers – the search for the right shtick, the records, the pressing drive to make a movie, and risk it all, the meeting with the distributor, calling out the need to honor the people who made it all happen… it was a *great* movie about a man with the drive to reach out, and make a connection. In a real sense, it was like Bohemian Rhapsody, albeit with a *far* less interesting soundtrack. (All my humble opinion, naturally.)
glc
@Seanly: Strong recommendation, noted. I hadn’t heard anything about it.
meander
A few music documentaries on Netflix:
Hip Hop Evolution (a Netflix production) — a multipart series that goes from the beginning until now, making visits to NYC, LA, Atlanta, Houston, Detroit and other hip hop hot spots. TBH, I’m not a fan of hip hop, but I loved this series — something about seeing creative people talk about what makes them go. The host interviews quite a few legends as he travels from place to place. The music in one episode — “The Rise of the Super Producer” from the latest batch — made me dash for the music databases to find Missy Elliot’s “Supa Dupa Fly”. What a weird and wonderful album.
The Remastered series (a Netflix production) — a mixed bag of single subject stories, too many about crime for my taste. “Tricky Dick and the Man in Black” is about when Nixon invited Johnny Cash to play at the White House. “Who Shot the Sheriff? A Bob Marley story” looks into who shot Marley. “The Two Killings of Sam Cooke” is about Cooke’s life and death. And there are a few more.
Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool – A look at the messy life of one of the jazz greats. Too light on musical details for me — just a few minutes on Kind of Blue or the 1960s quintet (Davis, Shorter, Hancock, Carter, Williams).
Chasing Trane – The life and music of John Coltrane. Again, too light on his music, but I guess that is necessary for a 2 hour movie. What a legend and such a noble man (after a troubled start), gone way too soon.
Not actually about music, but with a great soundtrack: Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker. Bio pic starring Octavia Spencer tells the story of Madam C.J. Walker’s rise from poverty to become the first self-made woman millionaire in the U.S. (via hair care products for African Americans)
A few so-so biographies (IMHO): Quincy (about Quincy Jones), The Black Godfather (Clarence Avant, “mentor and behind-the-scenes rainmaker in music, film, TV and politics”)
WaterGirl
Big thanks to everyone who contributed to these Favorites threads!
They are in the sidebar, so people will see any additions that are added.
DaddyJ
Highly recommend Maniac. Admittedly terrible title. Stars Emma Stone and Jonah Hill, both terrific, as broken people clinging to sanity by their fingernails. They volunteer for a very strange pharmaceutical trial in hopes it will solve their problems. Unfortunately the entities running the trial are as screwed up as the test subjects! A psychic comedy-adventure with some dark themes that, suprisingly, ends well. A wicked parody of 80s self-help therapies (cf Est, Silva Mind Control).
lurker3000
Baztan Trilogy, Spanish thrillers by Delores Redondo. Strong female characters, oddball mysteries involving interesting Basque legends. The mysteries are a bit uneven but the scenery and churches make up for it for me. Two movies made so far, third in the works.
Diceros bicornis
@Dextrous: +1 for The Money Heist (La Casa de Papel)! Great action tv with “Latin passion” (as they said in The Making Of documentary). Was a huge phenom in Europe a few years ago. I just finally caught it.
Also a +1 for Russian Doll. Weird and oddly satisfying.
thanks for this thread! Helps a lot to sort through the netflix stuff, though not everything on netflix in the US is available where I live.
Vickie Feminist
Fallet is funny cop procedural.
Korean Odyssey is in Korean with subtitles. Outstanding writing, exquisite photography, most popular Korean tv ever. Twenty 90- minute episodes . It ‘s fantasy, comedy, and great drama set in today’s Seoul. Don’t let first episode put you off, please sit through the second before judging. Netflix is not pushing it at all.
Emma
I just watched the first episode of the anime “Carole and Tuesday” in both Japanese and English, and holy crap, it’s so damn good. It’s interesting in that it feels like a show that balances the taste of Japanese and Western audiences equally, or heck, maybe even more on the Western side. The director, Watanabe Shinichiro, is the guy who did Cowboy Bebop, another very non-Japanese anime, if that makes any sense. The episode titles are famous English songs, the background references include things like “Creamy Cream Doughnuts,” and the songs the characters compose and sing are written in English in Tuesday’s notebook and sung in English. Which brings me to my main point: THE MUSIC AND THE DEPICTION OF MUSIC-MAKING IS SO GOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!! Don’t skip the end credits, because that song makes me so happy.
As to the never-ending sub vs. dub debate, I like both versions, although I did find that the English script had more character than the subtitles. Angela’s mother in the Japanese version is truly creepy (the kind of showbiz mom who would pimp her daughter to Harvey Weinstein), but Carole and their future agent (if I’m guessing correctly) had more character in the English version. But I think I will continue with the English version, since the songs are written and sung in English even in the Japanese version.
Ed
I like The Magicians. It was a while before it took off for me, but once a few of the premises were established, that besides the imaginative premise the writing becomes pretty deft and funny and its tailored for a cast of good ensemble actors, who make fun of themselves and their characters. As with other long series, there’s a place when you can tell that the show has strayed from the where it began and everyone in the production is winging it, but to me it seemed like that’s where the joy starts. It gets very silly, in a good way.
Ed
A new documentary, Circus of Books, is pretty cool. About a gay porn bookstore in Santa Monica and its unlikely and unique owners, a heterosexual Jewish couple. Their children didn’t know about the store, growing up, and the daughter is the filmmaker. Interesting little window to an odd history of gay rights and censorship along with the personal story.
Trabb's Boy
@Vickie Feminist: Oh, thank you for the Korean Odyssey recommendation! Lee Seung-gi is amazing in a complicated ruthless sweetheart role. I am charmed and then furious with myself regularly.