(Part 2) Top products from r/television

> Do you have specific instances?

Yes. Early on the hark about how rare their photon torpedo are and how many they have; Here's some dialogue from 'The Cloud'

> CHAKOTAY: We have a compliment of 38 photon torpedoes at our disposal, Captain.
> JANEWAY: And no way to replace them after they're gone.

They fired 85 photon torpedoes by shows end. Did they come across a stockpile? No. Did they have an episode that addressed how they made more? No. A stray line of dialogue even? No.

Voyager had a shuttle complement of 8 at full capacity. They blew up 10. Is this ever addressed, no?

More to the point, they are supposed to be lost and struggling for survival in the delta quadrant. That's kind of the whole premise right? Voyager looks brand new from first to last episode. After the first season 'surviving' in the practical sense is nothing more then lip service. For 99% of Voyager episodes they might as well be in the alpha quadrant.

Once the Maquis put on Starfleet uniforms (end of the second episode I believe) they are indistinguishable from the other crew members. Betraying it's premise of having two crews with different ideals and temperaments having to work together to survive. That's what it was supposed to be about. If it took a few seasons for that to happen, fine. That's progress. Two episodes is lazy. The Maquis is only mentioned in passing, maybe half a dozen times after the first season.

I could literally go on and on and on.

> "Can be boiled down to" is a weak argument

Eh, you're right and wrong. Yes, ultimately every character revolves around a few key features. Voyager is worse. Voyager made no attempt to push them out of those boundaries, that's the difference. (The Doctor is the exception here, I will give you the doctor). Need an example? Does Chakotay have any episodes that aren't based around being a native american? I'm not saying none of them should have been- but every single person who tried to do something with a Chakotay central episode that wasn't related to him being native american was shut down. There are numerous examples of this, from the actor himself who practically begged to do more then say 'yes ma'am' to janeway on the bridge to directors. Here are some segments from a Robert Beltran interview:

> ...I think writers have an obligation to fill out all the characters if they’re regular characters on a series. I think several of the characters were diminished – Chakotay and Tuvok and Kim and Neelix.

> I risked being fired because I wasn’t happy creatively.

Here is the director of the season two episode Initiations talking about this issue:

> My problem with the Chakotay character was that I wanted to forget the Indian aspect and make him the Maquis that he was supposed to be. I knew Chakotay would have to eventually cooperate on the ship, but I hoped he would do it unwillingly most of the time. I talked to the writers about it, why we weren't playing that conflict. They went with the Indian thing, which was kind of intriguing, but in my opinion, never paid off because it was done too subtly.

The same case can be made for Tuvok who can be described solely as 'vulcan.'

> I would say having a woman lead a Star Trek show is taking quite a chance.

That was neat, and I can appreciate that. But they cast a woman captain and then what did they do with her? Nothing. When they cast Avery Brooks the fact that he was black actually occasionally made it into the show in a meaningful and respectful way. It was great they cast Kate Mulgrew, but for 99% of episodes they could have given her lines to Archer and it wouldn't have made a difference.

> Bold statement, but it comes down to speculation.

This is patently false. This is not remotely speculation. I'm not going to comb through the book and pull out quotes right now but if you don't believe me read Season Finale: The Unexpected Rise and Fall of the WB and UPN. This is not up for debate. It is a fact.

> I'm going to need some sort of documentation on this. You make them out to be inept at worst, conniving at best and I just don't follow that.

Ok.

Here is Ronald Moore again:

> "When we were working on ‘Equinox Part II,’ I remember the pages coming in, and I would take notes, and send the notes back. There were just pages of it that I have no idea what’s going on. It was just page after page of, ‘Reroute the so-and-so, and engage the blankety-such, and the subspace dewop is doing its other thing.’ Just pages would go by, and in reading the script I’m flipping through it to find something of substance. It just fell on deaf ears.... The show was a little short, so they had to add some pages, which was nothing unusual."

Is that sufficient?

> Now, I think that's just speculation on your part, same as the UPN theory.

It's not speculation. You now have proof.

> The first two seasons of TNG were wildly inconsistent in their writing, performances, and even set design and yet that whole show is lionized among superfans.

Yeah the first season of TnG is pretty tough. I'll stand by season two though as being more good then bad. The difference is TnG got better. Voyager got worse and stayed bad. It never improved.

> Voyager remains to be underappreciated. I'll take "Caretaker Pt. 1 and 2" over "Encounter at Farpoint" any day of the week.

Yeah, well Caretaker was a pretty decent pilot episode with a lot of promise that they show immediately threw out an airlock. I probably would too. But comparing two episodes like that is a pretty bad argument. You can take the best episode of Voyager (which by the way is Living Witness) and put it next to the worst episode of The Next Generation (Sub Rosa) but that doesn't mean Voyager is a good show.

It's not underrated. It deserves the flack.

Aight so from the looks of it reddit doesn't read Cormoran Strike. So let me do a basic pitch.

I think JK Rowling doesn't want to do really high class stuff. I think Casual Vacancy was her attempt to do something that felt "artistically meaningful" and it left her drained, and I don't think it was just the audience reactions. I think she quite literally did not enjoy writing Casual Vacancy the way she did Harry Potter.

Which is where Cormoran Strike comes from. I don't think the pseudonym JK Rowling decided to use was specifically to temper expectations (nor as an experiment to see if she "still had it"), I just think the idea was for her to be able to write a novel that didn't think too highly of itself and release it for the right environment. Somehow I don't think "JK Rowling Presents... A Mary Higgins Clark Novel!" would go well with most people.

So let's talk Cormoran.

Cormoran Strike is not Harry Potter. It's not even Sherlock (the tv series). Cormoran Strike is the most simple and straight forward detective novel JK Rowling could have produced. It has no ongoing mystery. It has no suspense or drama that originates from the detective part of its story (with some exceptions, like the climax to book 3).

Instead, it's literally just cases where a detective solves murder mysteries in the most realistic way possible. There's no moment where Cormoran goes "That ink in her shoulder indicates that...", or any moment where Cormoran anticipates the killer's thoughts. He quite simply gets the most obvious clues into his note book, then goes around interrogating people until the story he has been accumulating through every testimony points to a likely suspect, at which point he'll solve the case.

Where Cormoran Strike completely deserves your read is in that it's a straight forward detective novel... written by JK Rowling.

So yes, the cast is amazing. Yes, the dialogue and prose are witty and easy to read and yet rich with details, in that tough balance act that almost no one these days seems capable of. Yes, everyone relates to each other in realistic fashion and people behave like people, sometimes to their own detriment, because people are dumb, people are private, people are skeptical. Yes, there's drama involving the characters as they begin to grow closer and then figure out what they are to each other, and how the development of that relationship changes their lives and their work.

And it's fun. It's a heck of a lot of fun. The fact that Cormoran isn't following a Moriarty, or that he isn't solving cases involving super tricky methods that only a master detective would put together, or that there's no agency to the mysteries except that Cormoran is a detective investigating them, leaves the door open for all of the things JK Rowling does best to shine.

No, you won't look back on Cormoran Strike and think "man that sure defined a generation of literature and influenced tons of people to try and capture that same lightning in a bottle". You may not even remember half of what happens to them.

But you'll have a hell of a ride, one that is written by a master of her craft who is doing the one thing it feels like she wants to do.

Enjoying that ride as much as her readers.

Here's the first book.

It's not about sitcoms, but Alan Sepinwall's The Revolution Was Televised is a fantastic look at the dramas of the last twenty years or so, and features interviews with the creators and others involved with the shows. Great behind-the-scenes information, and also an interesting look at how TV has changed.

And if you like oral histories, Live From New York is an amazing one all about Saturday Night Live.

I highly recommend to anyone who loved the show to read Jonathan Abrams' oral history All the Pieces Matter. It's a really enjoyable book.

The character description is interesting: "an honest but ambitious FBI agent willing to go to any length for his family." If they're going to make Season 3 like Born Again, then I suspect he's going to be a combination of Nick Manolis and Ben Urich (RIP on TV).

A link to the book if anyone else is interested. I'm actually pretty excited to read it, so much nostalgia.

If you like the California raisins special check out the Claymation Christmas - https://www.amazon.com/Vintons-Claymation-Christmas-Halloween-Celebrations/dp/B00009WHRM

The raisins are one of the shorts. My favorite are the camels from "We three kings"

Actually, they've got the Leviathan Wakes series in the pipe.

This is the single best production/executive decision SyFy has made in 15 years. If they don't fuck this up, it could catapult the channel into a new, top level of prominence.

Legend. One of my childhood heroes. I was such a big fan I read his book [Games You Can't Lose: A Guide for Suckers.] (https://www.amazon.com/Harry-Andersons-Games-Guide-Suckers/dp/067164727X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1523927282&sr=8-1&keywords=harry+anderson+games)

Here's an [Oscar moment between him & John Larroquette on Night Court.] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQ93Rg8GhGM)

There's actually a pretty good book about about the merger and all the behind the scenes drama: https://www.amazon.com/Season-Finale-Unexpected-Rise-Fall/dp/0061340995

I bought the Looney Tunes Golden collection on Amazon and it is one of the single greatest purchases any human has ever made

Looney Tunes Golden Collection Vol. 1-6 (6-Pack) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005NFJAQC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apap_qTd8563QJLAW3


Also you could find a lot if them on Kodi and probably some on seriesonline. io

It's the comics run that this season is (loosely) based on. There are a few nods/hints to it through the trailer. It's written by Frank Miller and it's fucking excellent. Yours to own for just £11.70!!

I flew through the book series for The Expanse quicker than anything I have in a while (I listened to them on audiobooks). The first one Leviathan Wakes is some of the best sci-fi I've 'read' in a while. There are 4 books(and a few short stories) out so far with another 5 planned.

I got this for our TV. It works great. It gets quite a few HD channels.

It's on there, watched it the other day, it's separate from the main show though I believe, says like "Battlestar Galactica Mini Series 2003" or something like that.

EDIT: Here ya go

The actor that played Screech went a little off the deep end, He stabbed a guy a few years ago on Christmas. He also stared in the Saved by the Bell porno parody.

Lark Voorhies the actress who played Lisa Turtle has also gone completely insane. She now writes books that are pretty much unreadable.

FWIW, I remember reading one of his books and it was excellent. Cheap now, too.

Easy Google. https://www.google.com/search?newwindow=1&rlz=1C1GCEA_enGB794GB794&ei=kVxuXKisFcmm1fAPyJye8AE&q=ken+burns+the+west+music&oq=ken+burns+the+west+music&gs_l=psy-ab.3..0j0i22i30.213745.215736..216449...0.0..0.221.800.1j4j1......0....1..gws-wiz.......0i67.Ok6y2NsijME

https://www.amazon.com/West-Matthias-Gohl-Black-Voices/dp/B0013AZOPM

http://www.amazon.com/Looney-Tunes-Golden-Collection-1-6/dp/B005NFJAQC

That is what you are looking for friend.

If anybody here hasn't read 'The Disaster Artist' you really really need to.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Disaster-Artist-Inside-Greatest/dp/1451661193

It's the story of the production of The Room written by Greg Sestero, who plays Mark.

Well this is the news I didn't expect.

​

Also, there are a series of books that already act as the sequels.

The book this artical is about on amazon. as a 90s kid, they can exspect a sale from me.

You can order from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00009WHRM/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_1DjJub05S4YNG

Here are some links for the product in the above comment for different countries:

Link text: Live From New York

• UK: amazon.co.uk
  
• Spain: amazon.es
  
• France: amazon.fr
  
• Germany: amazon.de
  
• Japan: amazon.co.jp
  
• Canada: amazon.ca
  
• Italy: amazon.it
  
• China: amazon.cn
  
  
  This bot is currently in testing so let me know what you think by voting (or commenting).

For the unfamiliar https://www.amazon.com/True-Light-tenuation-authenticate-revelation/dp/1450243541

no idea, but Greg just put a book out about the movie

Perhaps writing an eyewitness account would be enough? If I Did It

You wouldn't be likely to notice a modern HD antenna. There are also indoor ones.

Here you go

It goes back to when Leno "stole" the Tonight Show on Carson's retirement, which "everyone" had assumed would go to Letterman. Letterman had been Carson's preference.

There's a whole book about it.

When Johnny Carson retired from The Tonight Show in 1992, both wanted the throne. There's a book called The Late Shift chronicling it, and it became an interesting yet cheesy HBO film.

Incorrect. There totally is a book version!

Very. https://www.amazon.com/Leviathan-Wakes-Expanse-Book-1-ebook/dp/B0047Y171G/

https://www.amazon.com/All-Pieces-Matter-Inside-Story/dp/0451498143

Here it is on the official soundtrack album
https://www.amazon.com/West-Matthias-Gohl-Black-Voices/dp/B0013AZOPM

There's a four-episode miniseries before the first episode.

https://www.amazon.com/Battlestar-Galactica-The-Mini-Series/dp/B000VFUJQ4

http://www.amazon.com/If-Did-It-Confessions-Killer/dp/0825305934 read the description of this book.

this it?

https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Moon-Chronicles-War-Book/dp/0553572857/ref=pd_sim_14_1/134-9370006-9010038?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0553572857&pd_rd_r=59298f10-6d14-11e9-a246-0ddaba5d67f8&pd_rd_w=lassF&pd_rd_wg=tSl1x&pf_rd_p=90485860-83e9-4fd9-b838-b28a9b7fda30&pf_rd_r=VD3TVFQ67S1A2C2HZ5RQ&psc=1&refRID=VD3TVFQ67S1A2C2HZ5RQ

it just doesnt mention willow in the desc which is why i am confused.

That's the pseudonym she chose to write crime fiction under, hoping to keep her real identity and the critical/fan attention neutral/unbiased for a few years. Unfortunately, someone broke the NDA and folks knew it was her before the first book was out. But Robert Galbraith is the name that's on the book covers:

https://www.amazon.com/Cuckoos-Calling-Cormoran-Strike-Novel/dp/0316206849

See also: https://robert-galbraith.com/about/. If you have a ton of time, there's audio of an interview she did with Val McDermid where they talk about the pseudonym.

The 1st book is Leviathan Wakes - http://www.amazon.com/dp/0316129089

Description stolen from Amazon:

Humanity has colonized the solar system - Mars, the Moon, the Asteroid Belt and beyond - but the stars are still out of our reach.

Jim Holden is XO of an ice miner making runs from the rings of Saturn to the mining stations of the Belt. When he and his crew stumble upon a derelict ship, The Scopuli, they find themselves in possession of a secret they never wanted. A secret that someone is willing to kill for - and kill on a scale unfathomable to Jim and his crew. War is brewing in the system unless he can find out who left the ship and why.

Detective Miller is looking for a girl. One girl in a system of billions, but her parents have money and money talks. When the trail leads him to The Scopuli and rebel sympathizer Holden, he realizes that this girl may be the key to everything.

Holden and Miller must thread the needle between the Earth government, the Outer Planet revolutionaries, and secretive corporations - and the odds are against them. But out in the Belt, the rules are different, and one small ship can change the fate of the universe.