Legion World Forums LEGION COMPANION The Anywhere Machine So what are you WATCHING? Part 2

Thoth, have you tried to get your brother to watch The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly? That, in my opinion, is one of the most reliable gateway movies for helping someone appreciate the better westerns.

I finished Star Trek: Picard yesterday. Really enjoyed it, though it's odd hearing the F-word tossed about in a ST series. At times, Picard seems like a background character, especially in the middle episodes, but I like the story spinning out of Data's character and how this series pays off his arc where the ST: Nemesis film left us hanging--and certainly not in a "Search for Spock" kind of way. Some worthy new characters and concepts introduced as well as some great appearances by established characters. Seven of Nine in particular, really emerges as the badass, leading lady type of character that I now realize she always had the potential to be.

TNG was really "my" Star Trek, so it's really nice to see the timeline and characters return in a way that acknowledges the past but "boldly goes" in new and unexpected directions. I think if this were just a straight-up reunion putting everyone back together on the Enterprise, it would have been just a lot of fanwank. Looking forward to Season 2 and curious as to what the story might be with Season 1's having been a complete novel in itself.

Like Ann said, I recommend starting him off with spaghetti westerns. Those are a lot easier to digest for modern sensibilities (more violent, morally dubious, etc.) than traditional American westerns from the likes of John Ford or Howard Hawks.

The latest remake of The Magnificent Seven (with Chris Pratt, Denzel Washington, Vincent D'Onofrio, Ethan Hawke, etc.) is super-fun, and the sort of 'western' that even us not-fans-of-Westerns can enjoy.

On the other hand, Cowboys and Aliens is only half a western and half a sci-fi movie, and 100% underrated awesomeness, IMO.

Voltron. The 80s one. Still lots of fun.

Event Horizon. Still consider it underrated, even more so since the Wikipedia entry was beefed up with behind-the-scenes scuttlebutt. Turns out the studio execs gave the director and producers a ridiculously short schedule for a big-budget sci-fi/horror movie. And all because Titanic was running late and wouldn't be available for summer release. Ah, Hollywood, how you fascinate and repel me...

One other thing about Event Horizon -- I love it when Joely Richardson pins back Sam Neill's arm. Don't mess with Starck.

Buck Rogers. Cheesy sci-fi from the late seventies, early eighties. But, no doubt they had some reaaaal good lookin' women.

Oh, and Buster Crabbe had a small role on one episode.

The TV series? I loved that show when I was young. Haven't seen it for years, but I remember it as being lots of fun. Thing I most remember is the opening episode of the second season with Hawk and the tragic way he joined the crew. Oh and biddi-biddi-biddi.

Yup, it's on Syfy, or however they are spelling it these days. Lot's of cheesy fun, but as a male, Erin Gray's butt looked really good in spandex. For the ladies and others, lotsa disco-y future space goodness.

"The People vs George Lucas." Hilarious, but also surprisingly even-handed and thoughtful.

Unfortunately, it was released 10 years ago, so the frequent ugliness within fandom during the subsequent decade makes it a bittersweet viewing experience.

That, and the fact that the franchise is now owned by Disney -- lock, stock, and barrel.

Tacoma F.D. Couple of the guys from Broken LIzard have a show. Very enjoyable.

I remember THX 1138 being on TV one night, and telling my partner that, when I'd seen it before, the bleakness of the backgrounds had stayed with me. In Lang's Metropolis there are loads of vehicles and people, but here it's stark and totalitarian. As we watched, I noticed that all those backgrounds seemed to contain loads of extra details and it didn't have the same impact. I admitted that I couldn't have noticed all of that before. It was only later I learned that Lucas had added visual bits and pieces, as he did with Star Wars.

He just can't seem to leave well enough alone, even with his most obscure work. Jeez Louise.

Lately I've watched a couple of old miniseries - V and V: The Final Battle. They were ok. I remember really liking them when I first saw them on TV, though.

I've also been watching some Miami Vice. (It's on the NBC app, along with Buck Rogers.) You know, I just don't understand why Miami Vice was so popular. Usually when I watch a show that was a phenomenon I can view it through the context of the then-culture, and understand why it was so popular. But with Miami Vice, I just don't get it. I mean, it's ok, but it's just too melodramatic and seems goofy.

I didn't watch Miami Vice. But at least some of the appeal would have been nice weather, clothes, weather, cars and weather whereas it was pretty grim here.

I watched the first few episodes of Miami Vice recently and kind of dug it. In addition to what thoth mentioned, the music is super-important. And the weather.

Oh yeah, the theme tune or some such did really well in the charts.

To me, the main appeal of Miami Vice is how shamelessly, exuberantly artificial it is. Larger-than-life.

From wiki: As Lee H. Katzin, one of the show's directors, remarked, "The show is written for an MTV audience, which is more interested in images, emotions and energy than plot and character and words."

Had they continued further into the '90s, Crocket would have ended up as a one eyed cyborg and Tubbs a steroid enhanced masked vigilante wielding two pistols that had never been introduced to the concept of recoil, in Miami Image.

Peter Gabriel holds the record for the most songs by a solo artist featured in Miami Vice, with a total of 7.

The Doors hold the record for any artist with 8, though all of their songs featured in a single episode.

My favorite "Miami Vice" episode will always be the 2-hour Season 2 premiere, "The Prodigal Son," where Crockett & Tubbs go to New York City (Tubbs' old stomping grounds, for those not in the know.) Fun fact: That episode was directed (and very well, too) by Paul Michael "Starsky" Glaser.

Form my Wiki peek, I saw a lot of creative talent that had done, and would go on to do, a lot of very successful shows.

It's definitely one of those shows where you see a ton of people who would later become well-known for other things, from the first few minutes of the show where Jimmy Smits gets killed.

As I recall the pitch for Miami Vice was summed up in 2 words (or an abbreviation and a word): MTV Cops.