I have been watching Off Limits on and off for the past few weeks. The host basically take you into places that have been abandoned for decades, or centuries, or are highly sensitive and off limits to most people (like an old ICBM silo that the military still keeps in pristine condition, including the missile - but without warhead).

It is rather hit or miss. Some of it is really cool, other parts kind of humdrum. The writer in me loves seeing these dark, lonely, abandoned places. The many tunnel systems are just fascinating to me. From underwater pumping stations that were parts of dams or locks, to old sewers, highway tunnels, and the aforementioned missile silo. I keep thinking "this would be a great place for a horror movie" or even an action movie.

I think I´d like that show too, SubRosa. Sounds fascinating

Treydog! I have Miss Fisher Mysteries in my queue and noticed there are new episodes too! I watched the first season earlier in the year and was hooked on her game spirit and her anything-goes 'tude!

Still working my way through the Midsomer Murders. I'm now in Tom Barnaby's (John Nettles) last season, and I'm going to miss him. There's so much about both the actor and the character that I really enjoyed.

So maybe once I'm done with Midsomer County, I'll head back to Australia and our lovely Phryne to see what fresh trouble she is getting into (with her gold plated (!) pistol!).

I stopped watching some time before he quit, actually. The show had drifted away and with no Troy I didn´t have much interest anymore. Still watch the old ones with great joy though

Thanks to watching the Appendices last week, I watched the two Hobbit movies again this weekend. I wanted to see all those little things that I learned about in the Appendices for Desloation of Smaug. Like Stephen Colbert's cameo (he is the first of the Laketown Master's spies, the one with the eyepatch). The waitress in the Inn of the Prancing Pony scene at the start of Desolation is Peter Jackson's daughter. She was also one of the hobbit children in Fellowship of the Ring. Luke Evans, who played Bard, also played his great-great-great grandfather Girion in the flashbacks of Smaug laying waste to Dale. Bard's two daughters are played by the RL daughters of James Nesbitt, who plays Bofur. His now separated wife plays Bilbo's mother, so every member of the Nesbitt family is in Desolation of Smaug!

Had a twofer last night. Watched Days of Future of Past, and after that, Noah (2014). I have already watched DoFP before in a cinema, but the action never stopped wowing me. The initial intro fight scene was meh-meh; their Last Stand with Magneto was what cemented my growing love for the X-Men. (More of a Deadpool guy, myself)

Michael Fassbender's performance of Young!Magneto was frickin' awesome too. Particularly the scene where he shut down Charles just by saying the names of fallen mutants. And Peter "I'm-So-Fast-Everything's-Slow-Motion" Maximoff simply cannot be left out. If I could save Time in A Bottle indeed! I'm kind of neutral about Wolverine this time around, although there was one scene where I felt Jackman really represented the turmoil within Wolvie.

---

Noah was... Hmm. To be honest there were some parts that I thought was biblical, some parts that I thought distanced themselves from the real version but still biblical and some parts that I thought would fit in a nature documentary. A good film, all in all.

I agree with you, Troy was a lot of fun. Especially his consternation when confronted with those who lived "on the other side of the fence." The second DS - Scott, was not as likable as Troy. In fact, I felt he was rather an a-hole. Fortunately he did not last long, and Ben Jones replaced him after a couple of seasons. I really like Ben Jones and find his interactions with Tom Barnaby a lot of fun. Ben Jones is quite smart and canny in his own way, and much more personable. I really like the give and take between the two of them.

Yes, Ben was a great substitute and I could roll with him as Barnaby´s sidekick. But still, I felt the show´s atmosphere had changed and it wasn´t like before. And if you know me, I almost always like how something was before..

Today was our first really cold day, so it’s time for a fire in the fireplace and a Lord of the Rings marathon.

Only one thing could make that better:

I am already ahead of you. After watching the 2 Hobbit movies that are out so far over the weekend, I started on Fellowship of the Ring on Sunday, and finished it last night. Watching the Hobbits first really made Fellowship better. Some things really came more to life, like Bilbo's trolls on the road, the pity of Bilbo in sparing Gollum, and of course Balin's tomb in Moria. The latter is no longer just a dusty old grave, but the final resting place of that charming, white-haired old Dwarf who was always so level-headed, the voice of reason to counter Thorin's passion.

I watched the first episode of Crossbones today. So far it is so good. John Malkovitch plays Blackbeard, and he doesn't look a thing like Edward Teach. But they make it work, as the show is set ten years after Blackbeard was killed. Somehow he has survived and is back to ravage the Atlantic. I think being older, balder, and thinner is not unreasonable for someone back from the dead.

Richard Coyle plays the protagonist. I have been watching him these last few weeks in Covert Affairs, and I have really liked him there. So I jumped up and exclaimed "I know that guy! It's... it's... him!" He plays a doctor who is also a secret agent sent to assassinate Blackbeard. I am not sure if I totally agree with his decision not to kill Blackbeard at the end of the first episode.

But I am giving it the benefit of the doubt, because so far I really like all the characters. The dialogue is especially outstanding. Plus of course there is John Malkovitch. He's just fun to watch in anything.



Right now I am watching the Appendices of the LOTR films. Namely the part about bigatures. Where other movies have miniatures, LOTR had bigatures, because they were so big (some of them are gigantic!). They look like they would be so much fun to play in!

They made 80,000 tiny skulls for the City of the Dead scene, where all the skulls come pouring out of the walls. And there were plenty more full-sized skulls they had to make for the live action shots as well.

The Minas Tirith bigature had a whole team of people constructing it. It had over a thousand individual houses. It fills the building they made it in. 7 meters tall, and 6.5 meters in diameter.

Now I am into costume design. I didn't realize that the same guy who played the Uruk-Hai captain Lurtz in the first movie, also played the Witch King, and finally Gothmog - the Orc general in the 3rd movie.

My Fair Lady.

I guess I've seen it a dozen times or more over the last half century. It just never gets old.

Just watched Guardians of the Galaxy.

So. Nuch. Awesome.

And hilarity

^Love that movie!

The family has gone out and I’m going to watch The Hobbit 1 tonight. Woo!

Hobbit 2, with company this time.

Watching Life After People, the series. It is very heartening to see Mother Nature triumph over humanity.

I'm working my way through Firefly again

Gotta love this series

I'm starting American Horror Story: Coven.

I'm glad each season is a separate story so I didn't have to wait for Freakshow!

Just watched Good Will Hunting, hadn't seen it before.

Damn good film.

Just finished watching Maleficent. Wonderful!

First real thing I've heard about this movie aside from a couple small tv adds. Nice to hear that you enjoyed it. I'll have to watch for it.

It was very good, though very much a chick flick, so not for everyone. Granted, there is some action to keep the boys from completely falling asleep. It is a really nice retelling of Sleeping Beauty through the eyes of the villain - Maleficent - and in the process we find that she is perhaps not quite the monster we were told. I don't want to give away spoilers, but there were two points in the story where I found myself thinking "Wouldn't it be wonderful if X happened, because it would make so much sense, in an ironic way." Then X is exactly what happened. To me that is a sign of good storytelling, because it means the writers showed you enough about the characters that you could see what they were going to do, because that is just who they are.

I also thought it was really cute that the girl they had play the child Sleeping Beauty was actually one of Angelina Jolie's daughters. They had to use one of her kids, because all the other children were afraid of her when she was in her Maleficent costume!

I finished American Horror Story: Coven last night (well, technically it was morning, but the sun was not out!). I was a bit nervous because I heard bad things, but I really enjoyed it Every time I finish an AHS season I feel a bit sad because the story is over, but at least I still have Freakshow.

This also means that I'll be starting the third season of Walking Dead with has this woman I've already fallen a bit for. I think her name is Michone? She's got swords and walks with armless zombies on a leash. I only saw a clip of her but she looks tough as hell!

Just watched The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.

Good film. Kinda messed up in places, but a good film. 3 hours of subtitles though(well, something like 3 hours, recorded it off the TV so it had adverts in it), it's almost enough for me to say I've read it

I saw Maleficent as an in-flight movie on my last trip to the UK. I agree with SubRosa's take, except that I thought the eventual King missed the chance to excuse his actions as the only way to prevent war at the time. It would have added an extra level of indecision to her motivations, as she'd have to ask if he sacrificed their relationship for everyone else, or just for his own ambitions. The audience would know, but she wouldn't.

Still, it played well enough without that extra twist, with the possible exception of the three fairies who look after the daughter, who were a bit over-played.

Cool. Just got it on Netflix. Plan to watch it this weekend!

Third Rock from the Sun.

Haven't seen this show in years.

I'd forgotten how funny it was.

!!!

Nor have I!


Loved the messages from the Big, Giant Head

Just wrapped up what is available of "Last Tango in Halifax." Excellent program.

Also finished most recent series of "George Gently."

New episodes of "Miss Fisher" are out now- and we love the style, the automobiles, and the chemistry between Phryne and Jack Robinson.

Conspiracy

Interesting, if nauseating and disturbing.

Watching some good old fashioned post apocalyptic mayhem: The Road Warrior.

I started watching Season 8 of Doctor Who. I am really liking Peter Capaldi as The Doctor. Last year I was surprised when I first heard he had been cast as the new Doctor. The new reboot of the show has been about making the Doctor younger and more 'hip', I think to draw in a younger generation of viewers. So going with a lead who looks about the same age as the last two Doctors combined made me do a double take.

I know Peter Capaldi from other things - including playing the father of the Roman family in Pompeii back in the Tenant run - so I knew he would be a great Doctor. That never worried me. Now that I have seen a few episodes I can see why they went with him. This Doctor isn't so happy go lucky as David Tenant's and Matt Smith's. He 'feels' older, more somber, and one can definitely see that he is almost haunted by the question of whether or not he is a good man. He seems to be taking stock of his life, and what he has done with it, and that is the province of an older person who has had many years, not a younger one - who is looking ahead. So his outward appearance as being older than before suits him perfectly.

The first two episodes in the series did not do a whole lot for me. The plot in the first one seemed a little flat. While the Into the Dalek episode was a great idea, it did not live up to the expectations it created in me. I never really got the sense that they were actually shrunken down and inside a Dalek ala the Fantastic Voyage. It just looked like another 'ordinary' spaceship set and spaceship show. Nothing seemed fantastic at all, or even different. I just finished Robots of Sherwood, and I really enjoyed that one. Again, the writing wasn't that special, but the actors really made it all come together. Peter Capaldi and Jena Coleman have been very good in all of the episodes. In this one the Doctor and Robin Hood constantly sniping at one another gave it an extra something that put the show over the top for me as the best of the first three.

I've been watching a lot of Peep Show and Trailer Park Boys.

Very funny shows!

I just watched it on pay per view for Christmas. I agree! Wonderful!

Definitely a female friendly movie (as 'Rosa pointed out), but also definitely worth the watch. Never been a big Angelina Jolie fan, but I liked her performance.

Hey, welcome to my world. How many American movies and TV shows have made me read...?

We finished watching "The Assets" on Netflix. Excellent mini-series regarding the CIA mole case.

Just started "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D."- liked the first one a lot.

And also a Danish show called "Dicte" (speaking of subtitles). Quite good.

Otherwise, cop shows and "Doc Martin"

Watching ShoddyCast on Elder Scrolls lore. The narrator is awesome and sounds like your average old storytelling mage.

Of course, I watched a bit of Hircine and Boethia. Azura's was very interesting as well.

Neat stuff! Thanks for the link. I found, watched and enjoyed the one on Azura.

I finished Season 8 of Doctor Who. All in all it was lots of fun. I definitely enjoyed it much more than the Matt Smith years. It was nice to see the big villain at the end. I sort of saw it coming, because we have not seen this one since the end of Tenant's run. After the events of the 50th Anniversary show, it was only a matter of time (all pun intended), before we saw her again. As much as I did love the previous person to play the character, it was quite refreshing to see a woman in the role. It makes me wonder if someday - perhaps in a hundred years - if we will actually see a Doctor who is not a white male?

Almost done watching Changeling. I am not a big Angelina Jolie fan, which is why I never tried watching it sooner. But after being impressed with Maleficent, I decided to give it a chance. I am glad I did, it is a good movie, and once again she turned in a strong performance. She was actually acting, rather than just being a movie star.

Of course having other actors like John Malkovitch and Colm Feore helps. I noticed that J Michael Stracynski wrote the story, Eastwood directed. So there is pretty serious talent all around this movie.

Thanks to Three Dog, I have also started watching Dicte on Netflix's instant viewing. So far I have liked it quite a bit. The characters are interesting, and I really like seeing Scandinavia in films. It is such a wonderful region - with old Medieval cities, brooding mountains, primeval forests, countless lakes and seas - I would love to see more things set there.

I'm working my way through Cowboy Bebop again.

Watched The Big Lebowski yesterday.

I was recommended it by a friend, but I really can't see what all the fuss is about.

I agree with this one. It is kinda funny how the guy walks around in his pajamas constantly, and how he hates the [censored] Eagles, man.

I just started season four of The Walking Dead. I was happy to see my wife Michonne but it seemed like she's gone a lot and I hope she gets a decent amount of screen time.

I watched Comanche Moon over the weekend. Wonderful story, the prequel to Lonesome Dove for those not in the know. The characters are all so very vibrant and full of life, they just jump out at the screen at you. But really sad. I was going to watch Lonesome Dove following it, but that is depressing too. So I decided against it.

Instead I finished watching Season 2 of Doctor Who. I started again with Season One a few weeks ago. I plan to watch the whole thing through again.

I watched the first two episodes of Z Nation today. So far I am liking it. Much more than The Walking Dead, which I gave up on after two seasons. It's a Sci-Fi network show, show the budget isn't super high. So not always the best acting or cgi. But so far so good.

I am also still working through Doctor Who once more. I just got into Season Four. with Catherine Tate. This afternoon I saw the Pompeii episodes, which of course co-starred Peter Capaldi! I noticed that his eyebrows were not quite so pronounced back then. In fact, they looked quite normal. As opposed to the attack eyebrows he now that he is the Doctor.

Not quite Now Watching, but I picked up 47 Ronin this afternoon. I've no idea if it's any good, but for £1.99 from a charity shop it'll be hard not to get my money's worth

Guess I'll report back this evening with my thoughts on it.

Edit:

Well, here I am...

Eh, it was alright.

My biggest issue with it was that parts of it; Asano's daughter, the witch, Keanu Reeves' character(and everything related to him), seemed to be very obvious additions. They all had the feel of being tacked at the end.

Literally the first thing I did after watching was google 47 Ronin, and found out that they were. (Well, according to a Wikipedia page, but I was just looking for confirmation, not all the details)

For £1.99 I'd say it was worth it; it's got some pretty good action sequences in it, some good acting, some very good CGI. But let me put it this way: I'm glad I didn't buy it brand new

Z Nation is horrible. The majority of the ating, storyline, and effects are all bad. The only redeeming factor is the story arc involving Murphy and a few interesting plot elements.

Things like a zombienato, viagra zombies, and the entire ninth episode make the good parts of the show hard to enjoy. Somehow, I watched all of it so far though so it isn't entirely bad.

I don't know how anybody could prefer it over The Walking Dead.