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I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 12:03 am
by silverscreenselect
To change the subject from all the political threads.

I just finished watching the entire run of the soap opera, Dark Shadows. The show ran from 1966 to 1971 with over 1200 episodes. The half hour episodes run about 22 minutes plus two minutes of commercials on Tubi TV. Unlike most soap operas of that era, TV stations and viewers actually recorded and kept every single episode, so that the producers of the DVDs were able to procure them from various sources. The first 250 episodes or so were in black and white, while the rest were in color. As you might guess, the video is kind of rough on some episodes (primitive VCR forerunners used) but always watchable. The video is missing entirely for one episode, and they substituted the existing audio with still pictures from the episode.

I actually watched the show on occasion when I was in high school and college, so I decided to start watching several months ago and then considered it a challenge to keep going. It took me over a year to finish, usually watching 3-4 episodes a day. It was fun to watch, although many of the storylines ripped off popular Gothic and horror literature (Dracula, Frankenstein, The Turn of the Screw, H.P. Lovecraft, Dorian Gray, the Salem Witch Trials, and others).

Now I'm trying to figure out what to binge next. A show I can finish in a week or two doesn't seem like much of a challenge.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 9:11 am
by Beebs52
Have you watched all of Goliath or Bosch?

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 9:21 am
by silverscreenselect
Beebs52 wrote:
Sat Nov 20, 2021 9:11 am
Have you watched all of Goliath or Bosch?
I saw all of Bosch with Mrs. SSS, and the first three seasons of Goliath. We will watch the final season over the holidays. I've also seen the first five seasons of Dexter and will be finishing the last three of the original run soon (don't have Showtime, so we won't be able to see the new season for a while).

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 9:47 am
by Beebs52
Have you tried shohd? We don't have showtime but were able to watch first of new season. Just say Dexter. I dunno why we get it.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 9:57 am
by triviawayne
The Simpsons should keep you busy for a while.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 10:01 am
by jaybee
Going by memory and not Google - Was one of the main characters in DS Barnabus Collins?

I never really watched it more than catching a part every now and then but my best childhood friend was a fan.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 10:30 am
by Vandal
Yes.

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Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 10:55 am
by BackInTex
Have you watched Patriot on Amazon Prime? It's a little odd at times but some good darkish humor.

If you haven't seen Chernobyl, you should, but I'd wager you have.

I'm currently watching the Designated Survivor series. Almost done with S1.

Others I've binged:

Breaking Bad with the follow up movie El Camino
Ozark
Goliath
Fargo series
Jack Ryan series
The Crown

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 10:57 am
by earendel
I am watching The Expanse on Amazon Prime.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 12:44 pm
by silverscreenselect
BackInTex wrote:
Sat Nov 20, 2021 10:55 am
Have you watched Patriot on Amazon Prime? It's a little odd at times but some good darkish humor.

If you haven't seen Chernobyl, you should, but I'd wager you have.

I'm currently watching the Designated Survivor series. Almost done with S1.

Others I've binged:

Breaking Bad with the follow up movie El Camino
Ozark
Goliath
Fargo series
Jack Ryan series
The Crown
I've seen Chernobyl. Hadn't heard of Patriot, but I might check it out.

I watched the first episode of the new Amazon Prime series, The Wheel of Time, which is based on one of those YA fantasy series. I wasn't very impressed (but they paid me to watch the show so I can't complain too much).

I've seen the others except Breaking Bad, which will probably be sometime down the line for me. Ozark films near where my brother-in-law has a B&B on Lake Allatoona (which doubles for the lake on the show). Some of the crew have stayed at his B&B in the past.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 12:57 pm
by Beebs52
Only Murders in the Building, Hulu. Steve Martin, Martin Short, Selena Gomez. It is funny. Only one season now but should be renewed.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 12:59 pm
by silverscreenselect
jaybee wrote:
Sat Nov 20, 2021 10:01 am
Going by memory and not Google - Was one of the main characters in DS Barnabus Collins?

I never really watched it more than catching a part every now and then but my best childhood friend was a fan.
The show was originally a Gothic soap opera along the lines of books (and films) like Rebecca, but ratings were poor and they were on the verge of being cancelled after a year. They decided to try adding a vampire (they had already had a storyline involving ghosts) and introduced the character of Barnabas, who was originally supposed to be a short term villain. But the character became so popular that they rehabilitated his character somewhat (he kept trying to find a cure for his vampirism so he could be "normal") and he wound up as the most popular character on the show. Jonathan Frid, who played Barnabas, was a Canadian stage actor. After the series ended, he only got offers for other cheap horror films and went back to stage work (he appeared on Broadway in a revival of Arsenic and Old Lace).

There is a documentary about Frid that I believe is on Showtime currently:


Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 4:22 pm
by triviawayne
Beebs52 wrote:
Sat Nov 20, 2021 12:57 pm
Only Murders in the Building, Hulu. Steve Martin, Martin Short, Selena Gomez. It is funny. Only one season now but should be renewed.
Pretty sure I saw that has been renewed

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 4:25 pm
by Beebs52
triviawayne wrote:
Sat Nov 20, 2021 4:22 pm
Beebs52 wrote:
Sat Nov 20, 2021 12:57 pm
Only Murders in the Building, Hulu. Steve Martin, Martin Short, Selena Gomez. It is funny. Only one season now but should be renewed.
Pretty sure I saw that has been renewed
Yay

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 10:40 pm
by T_Bone0806
In the past 4 days I've binged both seasons of Ted Lasso. Don't usually watch a bunch of episodes of a show on the same day...watch 1, maybe 2 every day or so when a show hooks me maybe, but this one was so darn good I couldn't stop. Funny as hell, quirky characters, out-of-left-field pop culture references, and oh yeah..a whole lotta heart and some sad situations as well..the feels kinda sneak up on you. Yes, it's built around a soccer club, but you don't have to like soccer, or know much about the sport, to love this show. I mean, the title character, an American college football coach hired to coach an English soccer team (for unsavory reasons), sure as hell doesn't know anything about it. But his unrelenting upbeat and optimistic attitude goes to work...

The supporting characters are pure gold. I love this show. Just one problem...now I gotta wait a while for Season 3.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2021 10:41 pm
by T_Bone0806
Beebs52 wrote:
Sat Nov 20, 2021 4:25 pm
triviawayne wrote:
Sat Nov 20, 2021 4:22 pm
Beebs52 wrote:
Sat Nov 20, 2021 12:57 pm
Only Murders in the Building, Hulu. Steve Martin, Martin Short, Selena Gomez. It is funny. Only one season now but should be renewed.
Pretty sure I saw that has been renewed
Yay
yes it has..we liked this show as well.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 9:52 am
by Bob Juch
Here's a list of what is called the best Netflix has:

https://ew.com/tv/best-shows-on-netflix/

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 7:22 pm
by MarleysGh0st
I was very fond of Dark Shadows when I was a kid. By the time I started watching, I think Barnabus had already been rehabilitated. The ghost, Quentin, was the really menacing villain at the time.

If you haven't watched Breaking Bad, yet, I'd vote for that being your next binge. I came to the series late, and couldn't believe I'd been missing such a terrific show.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 7:25 pm
by Beebs52
I tried to like Breaking Bad, thought it was warped and funny and then got so bleak. But, then, got into Better Call Saul, so...who knows.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 7:38 pm
by SportsFan68
MarleysGh0st wrote:
Mon Nov 22, 2021 7:22 pm
I was very fond of Dark Shadows when I was a kid. By the time I started watching, I think Barnabus had already been rehabilitated. The ghost, Quentin, was the really menacing villain at the time.

If you haven't watched Breaking Bad, yet, I'd vote for that being your next binge. I came to the series late, and couldn't believe I'd been missing such a terrific show.
Breaking Bad is great, and it's right down the road -- sorta. I watched the series ender without watching any of the earlier episodes, and SteelersFan was able to answer every one of my questions. I was like, "This is great! Why haven't I been watching this?" Maybe it came on right after the Walking Dead. Or before.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 10:43 pm
by Ritterskoop
If you didn't see it the first time, consider "Modern Family," for real. Yes, it got more than its share of awards, and yes, it is occasionally too precious.

But in an era of weird and dark and mean, this show is nearly always, deep-down, sweet. Roomie and I had to take a little break while he was in the hospital and rehab, but all is well now, and it has been the perfect show of which to watch 3-4 episodes a night. We are nearly done (11 seasons does take a while), and then will ponder what's next.

My friend loves "Dark Shadows" - he did a rewatch recently, and now I think is watching "I Dream of Jeannie".

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Wed Nov 24, 2021 3:10 pm
by Beebs52
We just started Succession, Hulu. It's GREAT.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Wed Nov 24, 2021 9:45 pm
by Vandal
I'm not a binge watcher, but there a few series' that my wife and I have watched until completion.

Episodes - a Netflix series (more sitcom than anything) based on a British series. I don't watch too many sitcoms because most are terrible and rarely make me laugh. This one made me laugh pretty much every episode. Yes, even Matt LeBlanc. Five seasons

Longmire - a Western crime drama set in Wyoming with Aussie Robert Taylor as the titular sheriff. Lots of great characters, including a wide range of Native American actors. Six seasons.

Mad Men - This one has been around awhile, but it is one of the best series ever produced. I got the entire series on Blu-Ray for Father's Day a few year's back. It's worth the hype and awards. Seven seasons.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Thu Nov 25, 2021 3:54 am
by silverscreenselect
Vandal wrote:
Wed Nov 24, 2021 9:45 pm
I'm not a binge watcher, but there a few series' that my wife and I have watched until completion.

Episodes - a Netflix series (more sitcom than anything) based on a British series. I don't watch too many sitcoms because most are terrible and rarely make me laugh. This one made me laugh pretty much every episode. Yes, even Matt LeBlanc. Five seasons

Longmire - a Western crime drama set in Wyoming with Aussie Robert Taylor as the titular sheriff. Lots of great characters, including a wide range of Native American actors. Six seasons.

Mad Men - This one has been around awhile, but it is one of the best series ever produced. I got the entire series on Blu-Ray for Father's Day a few year's back. It's worth the hype and awards. Seven seasons.
We saw both Longmire and Mad Men through till the end. Another one we enjoyed was Damages with Glenn Close. For both Mad Men and Damages, we started out mid-run by watching the first couple of seasons on DVD and then following the rest as they aired.

Re: I'm the King of Binge Watching

Posted: Thu Nov 25, 2021 4:04 am
by silverscreenselect
As an appetizer, I finished The Flight Attendant with Kaley Cuoco. She's very good in it and the actual story is a fairly good mystery, but... she's an annoying, self-pitying, whining central character who only semi-rehabilitates herself by the end of the series. Following her for eight hours was an endurance test.

Based on some of the feedback I've gotten here (thanks to all who contributed), I've started on Breaking Bad. Four episodes down, 58 to go, plus the movie. I should finish around Christmas.