TV Series - Furies (French)

In French, with subtitles

Watched on Netflix
Season 1
Number of Episodes: 8
Length of Episode: 45 min.
IMBd: 6.2/10
RT Critic's Consensus: n/a
RT Audience Score: no ratings
cag: 4.5

Premiered: 3/1/2024 (US)

Note:  VERY violent 

My comments:  This kept me totally engrossed all day Sunday, despite its violence and having to read subtitles.  Twists, turns, surprises, love triangle....what's not to like?  I didn't enjoy the huge amount of violence, but the relationships and story were great!

Storyline from IMBd: A dive into Paris's criminal underworld, where Lyna meets the enigmatic and brutal Furie, the boss of this hazardous environment.

Storyline from IMBd:  Seeking to avenge her father's death, a young woman becomes entangled in the web of the Fury, peacekeeper of the Paris criminal underworld.

TV Shows - 3 Body Problem

Watched on Netflix
Season 1
Number of Episodes: 8
Length of Episode: 45-60 minutes each
IMBd: 7.7/10
RT Critic's Consensus: 78%
RT Audience Score: 80%
cag: 6

Premiered: 3/21/24 on Netflix

Characters: Five scientist/physicist friends, all brilliant, all very close.  The Chinese/English cop/bodyguard, The original Chinese young adult from the 60's Cultural revolution is followed from young girls and the beginning of all the trauma throughout the entire series.

My comments:  Absolutely awesome SciFi.  Top notch entertainment.  Comes from a book of the same name, written by a Chinese writer, set in China.  This television version switched the contemporary scenes to London, but kept a diverse set of characters and the 1960s parts still set in China.  Incredible cast, the relationships between the five main characters (spoiler:  only three are left "alive" at the end of season 1) seem real.  LOTS of characters, great sets, super well done.

Storyline from IMBd: Set against the backdrop of China's Cultural Revolution, a secret military project sends signals into space to establish contact with aliens. An alien civilization on the brink of destruction captures the signal and plans to invade Earth. Meanwhile, on Earth, different camps start forming, planning to either welcome the superior beings and help them take over a world seen as corrupt, or to fight against the invasion. The result is a science fiction masterpiece of enormous scope and vision.

TV Show - Dark

First ever German language series on Netflix
Dubbed in English
Premiered: 2/1/17
Seasons:  3
Number of Episodes: 24
Length of Episode: about 50 minutes
IMBd: 8.8
RT Critic's Consensus Season 1:   Dark's central mystery unfolds slowly, both tense and terrifying, culminating in a creepy, cinematic triumph of sci-fi noir.
RT Critic's Consensus Season 2:  Dark's sumptuous second season descends deeper into the show's meticulously-crafted mythos and cements the series as one of streaming's strongest and strangest science fiction stories.
RT Critic's Consensus Season 3: Dark's final chapter is as thrilling as it is bewildering, bringing viewers full circle without sacrificing any of the show's narrative complexities.
: RT Audience Score:  94/95
cag: 4
Produced by: Netflix

Characters:  So, so many!  Four families:  Kahnwald, Nielsen, Tiedemann, Doppler (three generations of each).... Check out Wikipedia

My comments:  Loved Season 1, got terribly confused with seasons 2 and 3, even with making a family tree list.  By the time I got to the end of Season 3 I had pretty much figured everyone out.  Adding two worlds to the original world was hard on me, lol!  Satisfying ending. Loved the actors.  Loved that it took place in Germany.

Storyline from IMBd: A family saga with a supernatural twist, set in a German town, where the disappearance of two young children exposes the relationships among four families.

 

 

 

TV Show: Sweet Magnolias

Premiered: 5/19/2020
Season 1
Number of Episodes: 10
Length of Episode: 45 minutes?
IMBd: 7.4
RT Critic's Consensus: none as of 5/26/20
RT Audience Score:   67 / 69
cag: 5
Produced by: Netflix

Characters: Three friends
     Maddie (ex husband, Dr. cheated on her) and her three kids: Tyler, Kyle, and young girl
          Coach, love interest for Maddie, hunk
     Dana Sue (chef, daughter Annie)
     Helen (single lawyer who wants a baby)

My comments:  Quite delightful, not too heavy, which is much needed right now.  A little slow moving, but the romcom kind o show that has been tickling my fancy lately.  The only porblem is that it ended on a horrible note, a car wreck where the younger son, Kyle was pulled out unconscious and put on a stretcher and the second passenger was unknown.  His brother, Ty?  Dana Sue's daughter, Annie?  Frustrating because it'll be a t least a year IF it's renewed.  o surprises, but enjoyable.  Great cast.  The lead, Maddie, looks so much like Amy Adams that they could be twins.

Storyline from IMBd: Centers on three South Carolina women, best friends since high school, as they shepherd each other through the complexities of romance, career, and family.

TV Show - The Sinner Season 2

Premiered: 8/1/2018
Number of Episodes:  8
Length of Episode:  45 minutes?
IMBd:
RT Critic's Consensus:  In its second season, The Sinner establishes itself as an engrossing why-dunnit thriller series with staying power.
RT Audience Score:  97 / 83
cag: 5
Produced by:  USA/ I streamed on Netflix

Characters:
Det. Harry Ambrose (Bill Pullman)
Black female lesbian cop, Hannah
Her dad, a white dude and old friend of Ambrose's
Vera, head of the cult, and mom to Julian
Julian, the 13-year old in the center of the case
Marin, Hannah's best friend until she disappeared after joining the cult (after high school)

My comments:  I loved all the twists and turns.  cults. Good guys and bad guys.  Deling into Harry's background and difficult years with a bipolar mom.  Fascinating storytelling.  The young man who played Julian seemed exceptionally talented.  Wowser.

Storyline from Rotten Tomatoes:  In Season 2 of the drama series, Detective Harry Ambrose (Bill Pullman) goes back to his small hometown to investigate the murder of a couple by their 11-year-old son. As he tries to figure out why the boy would commit such a crime, it becomes clear that the town is hiding some very dark secrets that people will do anything in their power to protect. While attempting to bring these secrets to light, he also meets Vera (Carrie Coon), who might hold the key to understanding everything that's going on.

TV Show: After Life

Premiered:  March 8, 2019
Seasons:  2 so far
Number of Episodes:  6 per season, 12 total
Length of Episode:  30 min.
IMBd:  8.5
RT Critic's Consensus:   After Life's first season teeters tonally between dark comedy and affecting drama, but Ricky Gervais' poignant performance illuminates new sides of the actor's talent.   Though After Life's second season struggles to affirm its existence, it's a solid entry for anyone aching for a little more contemplative gallows humor.
RT Audience Score:  74/88
cag:  4
Netflix, written by Ricky Gervais

Characters:  Tony played by Ricky Gervais
His dead wife, Lisa
His brother-in-law and boss, Matt and Matt's 8-year-old son, George
His sex-worker friend, Roxy
His cemetery buddy, Anne, who talks to her dead husband Stan every day, on a bench at the cemetery
His postman, Pat, a homeless guy who asks to use his bathroom and takes a bath!
His co-workers and friends, Lenny and Sandy
His dad, with Alzheimer (who was on The Strain)

My comments:  Laura told me this was good but it made her cry a lot.  For that reason I almost didn't watch it, I hate to cry.  For me it was more depressing than sad.  Ricky Gervais was deperssed and it made me totally depressed, too.  However, it was so tongue in cheek black-humor funny that I totally enjoyed it.

Storyline from Rotten Tomatoes:  Tony (Ricky Gervais) had a perfect life. But after his wife Lisa suddenly dies, Tony changes. After contemplating taking his own life, he decides instead to live long enough to punish the world by saying and doing whatever he likes from now on. He thinks it's like a Super Power -- not caring about himself or anyone else -- but it turns out to be tricky when everyone is trying to save the nice guy they used to know.

Storyline from IMBd:  After Tony's wife dies unexpectedly, his nice-guy persona is altered into an impulsive, devil-may-care attitude; taking his old world by storm.

TV Show - Bonding

Just finished watching Season 1
Premiered: 4/24/2019
Season: 1, Season 2 has begun filming(apparently Jan. 2020)
Number of Episodes: 7
Length of Episode: 12 - 18 minutes each (VERY short_
IMBd:  7.2
RT Critic's Consensus:  Though Bonding's juicy spin on friendship and sexuality boldly treads into uncharted territory, the show's writing too often teeters uncomfortably between bewitchingly funny and bewilderingly underwhelming to make it a truly satisfying experience.
RT Audience Score:  71%
cag:  5/Loved it
Produced by: Netflix

Characters:  Tiff/Mistress May: Zoe Levin
                       Pete/  : Brendan Scannell
                       Josh (Pete's boyfriend) Theo Stockman
                       Doug (Tiff's possible boyfriend):  Micah Stock

My comments:  What a hoot!  Loved it....great actors, funny as hell, and it portrayed some really interesting relationships.

Storyline from IMBd: A New York City grad student moonlighting as a dominatrix enlists her gay BFF from high school to be her assistant.

TV Show - Sex Education

Just finished watching Season 1
Season 2, Finished watching 3/29/2020, see below!
Premiered: 1/11/2019
Season: 1
Number of Episodes:  8
Length of Episode: 45 min.
IMBd:  8.3
RT Critic's Consensus:  Bawdy, heartfelt, and surprisingly wise, Sex Education is a raucous romp through a group of teenagers whose sexual misadventures are so thoughtfully rendered, adults could learn a thing or two from them.
RT Audience Score:  95
cag: LOVED it, going to be an all-time favorite
Produced by: Netflix

Characters:
     Otis Milburn - Asa Butterfield (main character, a HS kid whose mother is a sex therapist)
     Jean Milburn, Otis' mom, is played by Gillian Anderson
     Maeve Wiley is played by Emma Mackey, the "hot" female lead, who befriends Otis
     Eric Effoing is Otis' best friend, gay and black and wonderful
     Adam Groff is the mean kid, who we can tell is attracted to Eric, very much against his will, lol
     Ola Nyman has appeared on the scene, and becomes Otis' girlfriend
     Jakob Nyman, Ola's dad, has an on and off relationship with Otis' mom, who doesn't "do" relationships, but is very much attracted to Jakob....

My comments:  This was totally and fulfillingly entertaining.  X rated in places, R in others. British.  FUNNY and heartfelt, with some really serious stuff thrown in, too.  What a MARVELOUS cast!  Some are newbies, and they're wonderful.  I was so upset when the short series one came to an and, but an happily awaiting season two which is currently in production.

Storyline from IMBd:  Feeling pressured by the rumor that everyone in his class is having sex except him, awkward teenager Otis (Asa Butterfield) struggles with masturbating. It doesn't help that his mother, sex therapist Dr. Jean Milburn (Gillian Anderson), constantly meddles with his personal life. Things come to a weird turn when Adam (Connor Swindells), his school's resident bully, learns about Jean and asks Otis for help regarding his sex life with girlfriend Aimee (Aimee Lou Woods). The situation becomes even weirder when the school's resident bad girl Maeve (Emma Mackey) and Otis' gay best friend Eric (Ncuti Gatwa) persuade Otis to open a "sex therapy clinic" in school, with Maeve and Otis splitting the profits.

Season 2, Finished watching 3/29/2020, see below!
Premiered: 1/17/2020
Season: 2
Number of Episodes:  8
Length of Episode:  45
IMBd:  8.3
RT Critic's Consensus:  Sex Education's sophomore season definitely has more going on, but by treating each new subject with care and humor, it leaves plenty of space for its characters to grow.
RT  Audience Score:  97
cag: LOVED it, going to be an all-time favorite

Produced by: Netflix

Additional and new characters for Season 2
Jackson Marchetti is Maeve's old boyfriend and swimming star, who is tired of swimming and takes up acting
Viv, a socially awkward smart girl who tutors Jackson
Isaac, a wheelchair bound trailer park neighbor of Maeve's
Aimee Gibbs, sweet, slighty dumb, and promiscuous, she's Maeve's best friend
Lily Iglehart is Ola's bestie...and becomes more....
Rahim is the sexy new student who instantly goes after Eric

TV Show - Unorthodox

Just finished watching Season 1
Premiered:  Today!!! March 26, 2020
Seasons:  This is brand new, and may only be this one season
Number of Episodes: 4 long episodes, watched in one sittinga
Length of Episode:  about an hour?
IMBd:  7.9/10
RT Critic's Consensus:  none yet
RT Audience Score:  note yet
cag:  5

Characters:  Esty, 19 year-old protagonist; Yanky, her hustband; Moishe, Yanky's cousin, who leads the twosome to Berlin to bring Esty home.
    NOTE:  Israeli actor Amit Rahav is someone to watch!

My comments:  I loved every minute of this series.  I LOVE the way it seamlessly goes from the present in Berlin and back to the roots of the story in Brooklyn a year or so previously.  The actors were superb and believable, you're rooting for all of them all the way.  Apparently the Brooklyn part is based on Deborah Feldman's memoir, but the Berlin part was totally rewritten.

Netflix Official Site
NY Times Review and summary

  

Storyline from IMBd:  Story of a young ultra-Orthodox Jewish woman who flees her arranged marriage and religious community to start a new life abroad.