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Jan. 16th, 2023 02:24 amI probably watch way too much TV. Have some more recs.
anime
Trigun Stampede
studio: Orange
sci fi, action, post-apocalyptic, space western
Let me preface this by admitting it’s been probably 15 years since I saw the 90s Trigun anime, so my memory is definitely fuzzy on the OG series’ details. All I recall is that I really loved it when I watched it, and I’d been meaning to revisit it at some point before this one got announced. But I’m kind of liking going back into this franchise with fresh eyes, and only two episodes in, I’m already like, “okay I can make it 7 days, right? RIGHT??” I wasn’t sure about the animation style at first (like many folks) but so far it’s actually looking really clean, and I’m enjoying being reintroduced to characters especially since I don’t really remember the full dynamics between everyone (except maybe Vash & Knives). Plus, “TOMBI” by Kvi Baba is a bop and you can’t convince me otherwise.
movies
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
director: Rian Johnson
mystery, comedy
Oh my god this film is a blast. I absolutely loved Knives Out, and this definitely held up to the hype of its predecessor. I watched this with my sister and her husband, and we were all having a grand old time enjoying the ridiculous twists and turns (and cameos!!). I really don’t want to say too much because it was fun going into it with just the sense of “this is a fun one, you’ll like it!” without any additional context.
tv series
Yeah there’s a trend there at the end of the list. I went on a Chinese drama binge-watching spree. Still am on one, actually. :x Rabbit hole, HI
Only Murders in the Building
provider (US): Hulu
comedy, crime, murder mystery, drama
This show is so hilarious and fun and feels very much in the moment (in terms of just being really a good representation of the right-now, 2020s times), and kind of takes some pretty funny jabs at the True Crime craze. Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez are all fantastic in this, I thought. And it’s fun trying to solve the mysteries with them. Season 2 was just as fun as the first, highly recommend for a fun watch.
Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan
provider (US): Amazon Prime
action, drama, thriller
Still a fan of this show, just started on the third season and was reminded why I liked it so much to begin with. John Krasinski is a fantastic Jack Ryan and nobody can convince me otherwise. It’s a great update to the franchise, plus it’s a far more digestible storyline than the books tend to be. (Have you READ anything by Tom Clancy? God, talk about bloated plot lines and characters, it’s like he wants you to MAKE SURE you know HOW MUCH RESEARCH HE DID. Or maybe that’s just me and my short attention span, lmao.) Anyway, I digress. Love this series, very exciting stuff, super ready to get through Season 3.
Doc Martin
provider (US): Acorn TV
drama, comedy, slice of life
We all have our junk food shows, right? Well, this is one of mine. They finally released the 10th season this winter after a few years’ wait (YES TEN SEASONS okay I was watching this show SO MUCH for a while) and I’m just now getting back into it. Very silly at times, very charming and endearing, super easy watch (IMO, though I admit I used subtitles because the accents are a little thick sometimes). Basically take this super-brilliant, likely-on-the-autism-spectrum doctor whose hemophobia gets progressively worse to the point that he gets booted to a small private practice in a small seaside town in Cornwall. So much shenanigans. And it’s just so charming.
Word of Honor
provider (US): Netflix, Viki
wuxia, action/adventure, mystery, historical, based on danmei novel
Help. I’m obsessed with this show. I keep trying to make people I know who would be into it watch it with me so I have excuses to rewatch it all the way through. So this was my follow-up to The Untamed, and while I still ADORE The Untamed very much, this kind of became my favorite c-drama series. The two mains are both been through some pretty awful shit, which made them morally questionable, and yet somehow they make each other better when they’re together, and I fucking love that. Fell pretty hard for the two mains, and I’m sO shocked this got past the CCP censors because lmfao Your Honor, They’re Gay. And it’s not subtle, like the first 1/3 of the series one of the guys is relentlessly pursuing the other one. Again, the special effects budget gave me many lulz, but the COSTUMES!!! Wen Kexing is a fashion KING okay. Couple of things though… 1) there is some suicidal ideation in this, please be careful if this is triggering for you, and 2) if you only watch it on Netflix you’ll think it ends badly. It doesn’t. There’s a shorter special episode that gives much better closure; if you’re in the US, the special is available on Viki. But long story short, if you’re down for Murder Husbands, this is also in that vein.
The Sleuth of Ming Dynasty
provider (US): Viki
historical, mystery, comedy, drama, based on danmei novel
Okay so this show. THIS SHOW. The vast majority of it is total hijinks with some solving of mysteries. And food porn. SO MUCH FOOD PORN oh my gOD STOP. I had so much fun watching this one. The main characters are super fun, and the FIGHT SCENES!! There aren’t a ton but they are SO. GOOD. Which honestly isn’t surprising considering it was produced by Jackie Chan, haha. They tackled some really interesting topics in this series, considering it’s supposed to be historical, like dealing with domestic abuse, sexism, mental health (PTSD especially!), plus there’s an arc later on that centers around an autistic character. Basically, this show is about a super intelligent official (who is like 100% scholar & justice, 0% physicality & politics), a traumatized ex-soldier with royal family ties who is an Imperial guardsman, and the sassiest eunuch ever who serves the Emperor and runs his own intelligence agency while bankrolling the most popular brothel in town, teaming up and solving various cases. (I fucking love all three of them but especially Wang Zhi, he’s such a great character.) Even the regular side characters are fun, and while there are some tragedies along the way, it actually does have a positive/happy ending. I watched this after I got my soul destroyed by The Wolf, and honestly it was the best medicine.
Legend of Fei
provider (US): Viki
wuxia, action/adventure, romance, based on novel
I started watching this for three very specific reasons: 1) Wang Yibo, 2) based on Priest novel (I’d just finished Word of Honor and needed more, okay), and 3) strong-ass martial artist female lead. I got what I wanted out of this one tbh. Plenty of exciting action, adorably sweet romance (which was relatively uncomplicated except for outside factors which was SO NICE), and all of the usual shenanigans that come with a long wuxia series. Even though there were stretches of episodes that dragged horribly, overall I had a blast watching it. Also I loved seeing Wang Yibo get to smile and be a gremlin so much in this one, it was a HUGE TREAT after seeing him as Lan Zhan (I loved him in that role! This was just SO different that I almost kept forgetting it was the same actor even though he was one of the reasons I watched this lmao). Possibly a spoiler, but. I’m SO relieved it ended well, plus we got some actual closure. There were some MOMENTS where I had some serious doubts that it was going to end well (I just wanted them to be happyyyy) so it was a huge bonus.
The Wolf
provider (US): Viki
wuxia, romance, melodrama, action
I debated on recommending this. Like, I spent a good chunk of the series wanting to smack some heads together and scream “COMMUNICATE. SRSLY” at the mains SO MUCH. But I did get sucked in (because if I were to be honest with myself, I’m also a sucker for melodrama even though it makes me ANGY) and got through it all. I also stayed for Xiao Zhan because I like him and I also really liked his character, along with most of the side characters tbh. Just a fair warning, though, it’s a huge time sink and it doesn’t end well for the main characters. I was legit crushed and felt kind of betrayed for sticking it out. (Like, this is what I thought Legend of Fei was gonna do to me, and didn’t. I felt so sucker-punched.)
The Blood of Youth
provider (US): Viki
wuxia, action/adventure, sci-fi, fantasy
Aight so I just started this one and I’m already having a blast. (PLUS IT’S BRAND NEW, like it’s still currently airing!!! LOOK I FOUND FRESH CONTENT!) The storyline hasn’t quite made itself clear yet (as is common with wuxia, I’m finding), but the characters are fun and I have a few theories on a few things so far. Looking forward to getting fully caught up and pulled in on this one. Hopefully it doesn’t end with soul crushing though lmao I can’t take any more of that!
On my current/upcoming watchlist (in addition to the in-progress ones above):
- Bridgerton S2
- Tokyo Revengers S2
- Joy of Life
- The Blooms at Ruyi Pavilion
- Andor
- Reborn Rich
- Vincenzo
… plus all the movies I had to skip around my holiday break because my movie buddy had covid and then (separately) I was exposed to covid and had to quarantine :/ (managed to dodge that bullet)
anime
Trigun Stampede
studio: Orange
sci fi, action, post-apocalyptic, space western
Let me preface this by admitting it’s been probably 15 years since I saw the 90s Trigun anime, so my memory is definitely fuzzy on the OG series’ details. All I recall is that I really loved it when I watched it, and I’d been meaning to revisit it at some point before this one got announced. But I’m kind of liking going back into this franchise with fresh eyes, and only two episodes in, I’m already like, “okay I can make it 7 days, right? RIGHT??” I wasn’t sure about the animation style at first (like many folks) but so far it’s actually looking really clean, and I’m enjoying being reintroduced to characters especially since I don’t really remember the full dynamics between everyone (except maybe Vash & Knives). Plus, “TOMBI” by Kvi Baba is a bop and you can’t convince me otherwise.
movies
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
director: Rian Johnson
mystery, comedy
Oh my god this film is a blast. I absolutely loved Knives Out, and this definitely held up to the hype of its predecessor. I watched this with my sister and her husband, and we were all having a grand old time enjoying the ridiculous twists and turns (and cameos!!). I really don’t want to say too much because it was fun going into it with just the sense of “this is a fun one, you’ll like it!” without any additional context.
tv series
Yeah there’s a trend there at the end of the list. I went on a Chinese drama binge-watching spree. Still am on one, actually. :x Rabbit hole, HI
Only Murders in the Building
provider (US): Hulu
comedy, crime, murder mystery, drama
This show is so hilarious and fun and feels very much in the moment (in terms of just being really a good representation of the right-now, 2020s times), and kind of takes some pretty funny jabs at the True Crime craze. Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez are all fantastic in this, I thought. And it’s fun trying to solve the mysteries with them. Season 2 was just as fun as the first, highly recommend for a fun watch.
Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan
provider (US): Amazon Prime
action, drama, thriller
Still a fan of this show, just started on the third season and was reminded why I liked it so much to begin with. John Krasinski is a fantastic Jack Ryan and nobody can convince me otherwise. It’s a great update to the franchise, plus it’s a far more digestible storyline than the books tend to be. (Have you READ anything by Tom Clancy? God, talk about bloated plot lines and characters, it’s like he wants you to MAKE SURE you know HOW MUCH RESEARCH HE DID. Or maybe that’s just me and my short attention span, lmao.) Anyway, I digress. Love this series, very exciting stuff, super ready to get through Season 3.
Doc Martin
provider (US): Acorn TV
drama, comedy, slice of life
We all have our junk food shows, right? Well, this is one of mine. They finally released the 10th season this winter after a few years’ wait (YES TEN SEASONS okay I was watching this show SO MUCH for a while) and I’m just now getting back into it. Very silly at times, very charming and endearing, super easy watch (IMO, though I admit I used subtitles because the accents are a little thick sometimes). Basically take this super-brilliant, likely-on-the-autism-spectrum doctor whose hemophobia gets progressively worse to the point that he gets booted to a small private practice in a small seaside town in Cornwall. So much shenanigans. And it’s just so charming.
Word of Honor
provider (US): Netflix, Viki
wuxia, action/adventure, mystery, historical, based on danmei novel
Help. I’m obsessed with this show. I keep trying to make people I know who would be into it watch it with me so I have excuses to rewatch it all the way through. So this was my follow-up to The Untamed, and while I still ADORE The Untamed very much, this kind of became my favorite c-drama series. The two mains are both been through some pretty awful shit, which made them morally questionable, and yet somehow they make each other better when they’re together, and I fucking love that. Fell pretty hard for the two mains, and I’m sO shocked this got past the CCP censors because lmfao Your Honor, They’re Gay. And it’s not subtle, like the first 1/3 of the series one of the guys is relentlessly pursuing the other one. Again, the special effects budget gave me many lulz, but the COSTUMES!!! Wen Kexing is a fashion KING okay. Couple of things though… 1) there is some suicidal ideation in this, please be careful if this is triggering for you, and 2) if you only watch it on Netflix you’ll think it ends badly. It doesn’t. There’s a shorter special episode that gives much better closure; if you’re in the US, the special is available on Viki. But long story short, if you’re down for Murder Husbands, this is also in that vein.
The Sleuth of Ming Dynasty
provider (US): Viki
historical, mystery, comedy, drama, based on danmei novel
Okay so this show. THIS SHOW. The vast majority of it is total hijinks with some solving of mysteries. And food porn. SO MUCH FOOD PORN oh my gOD STOP. I had so much fun watching this one. The main characters are super fun, and the FIGHT SCENES!! There aren’t a ton but they are SO. GOOD. Which honestly isn’t surprising considering it was produced by Jackie Chan, haha. They tackled some really interesting topics in this series, considering it’s supposed to be historical, like dealing with domestic abuse, sexism, mental health (PTSD especially!), plus there’s an arc later on that centers around an autistic character. Basically, this show is about a super intelligent official (who is like 100% scholar & justice, 0% physicality & politics), a traumatized ex-soldier with royal family ties who is an Imperial guardsman, and the sassiest eunuch ever who serves the Emperor and runs his own intelligence agency while bankrolling the most popular brothel in town, teaming up and solving various cases. (I fucking love all three of them but especially Wang Zhi, he’s such a great character.) Even the regular side characters are fun, and while there are some tragedies along the way, it actually does have a positive/happy ending. I watched this after I got my soul destroyed by The Wolf, and honestly it was the best medicine.
Legend of Fei
provider (US): Viki
wuxia, action/adventure, romance, based on novel
I started watching this for three very specific reasons: 1) Wang Yibo, 2) based on Priest novel (I’d just finished Word of Honor and needed more, okay), and 3) strong-ass martial artist female lead. I got what I wanted out of this one tbh. Plenty of exciting action, adorably sweet romance (which was relatively uncomplicated except for outside factors which was SO NICE), and all of the usual shenanigans that come with a long wuxia series. Even though there were stretches of episodes that dragged horribly, overall I had a blast watching it. Also I loved seeing Wang Yibo get to smile and be a gremlin so much in this one, it was a HUGE TREAT after seeing him as Lan Zhan (I loved him in that role! This was just SO different that I almost kept forgetting it was the same actor even though he was one of the reasons I watched this lmao). Possibly a spoiler, but. I’m SO relieved it ended well, plus we got some actual closure. There were some MOMENTS where I had some serious doubts that it was going to end well (I just wanted them to be happyyyy) so it was a huge bonus.
The Wolf
provider (US): Viki
wuxia, romance, melodrama, action
I debated on recommending this. Like, I spent a good chunk of the series wanting to smack some heads together and scream “COMMUNICATE. SRSLY” at the mains SO MUCH. But I did get sucked in (because if I were to be honest with myself, I’m also a sucker for melodrama even though it makes me ANGY) and got through it all. I also stayed for Xiao Zhan because I like him and I also really liked his character, along with most of the side characters tbh. Just a fair warning, though, it’s a huge time sink and it doesn’t end well for the main characters. I was legit crushed and felt kind of betrayed for sticking it out. (Like, this is what I thought Legend of Fei was gonna do to me, and didn’t. I felt so sucker-punched.)
The Blood of Youth
provider (US): Viki
wuxia, action/adventure, sci-fi, fantasy
Aight so I just started this one and I’m already having a blast. (PLUS IT’S BRAND NEW, like it’s still currently airing!!! LOOK I FOUND FRESH CONTENT!) The storyline hasn’t quite made itself clear yet (as is common with wuxia, I’m finding), but the characters are fun and I have a few theories on a few things so far. Looking forward to getting fully caught up and pulled in on this one. Hopefully it doesn’t end with soul crushing though lmao I can’t take any more of that!
On my current/upcoming watchlist (in addition to the in-progress ones above):
- Bridgerton S2
- Tokyo Revengers S2
- Joy of Life
- The Blooms at Ruyi Pavilion
- Andor
- Reborn Rich
- Vincenzo
… plus all the movies I had to skip around my holiday break because my movie buddy had covid and then (separately) I was exposed to covid and had to quarantine :/ (managed to dodge that bullet)
