So, I leave in less than two weeks for the next UK trip. Last time, I purchased some cheap DVDs to take with me and watch on my laptop. Did I mention the movies were cheap? I don't think I can handle another Jessica Simpson movie, so I think I'll go a different route this time.
I just this moment started thinking I might fork over the cash for a couple of seasons of a TV series. Since I don't have cable, there are many things I haven't seen. One possibility: Buffy.
Other suggestions? I like funny. I like clever. A bonus would be if it's something that I might like but that my husband might not. Then I'm not cheating on him, TV-wise. Here is a short list of TV shows I like that might help you advise me (these are also about the only good TV shows I've seen, either on one of my three channels or through Netflix).
Firefly
Lost
West Wing (first two seasons)
Burn Notice
Entourage (how can it be both offensive and endearing?)
Law and Order: Criminal Intent
House
You should keep in mind that I'll be by myself, stuck in airports, up with insomnia, missing my family, and feeling as if I should be studying*, so it needs to be something extremely diverting.
*All of the other parts of the trip will be great.
15 comments:
Our fave series: Gilmore Girls (Trev even liked it--fast, fun dialogue with lots of 80s references; it completely annoys some people), Psych, MI-5 (British spies), Alias (American spies), My So-Called Life (which I think is on Hulu at the moment, or was recently). If you want to go for cheap movies that still have some redeeming value, you can get huge packs of Hitchock films for cheap. You may also be able to get some cheap but quality movie DVDs on Amazon used. I also just watched and enjoyed "North and South" (BBC version of Elizabeth Gaskell novel) and "Lost in Austen" (a fun, but not too heady, foray into Pride and Prejudice; 3+ hrs.)
If you have internet access, hulu.com and Netflix Instant have a pretty good variety.
I don't know many recent TV shows, but I do think that Buffy is a winner--especially because there are something like 150 episodes.
"Fawlty Towers" is great if you like John Cleese--but there are only something like 10 episodes.
Oh! "Arrested Development" is quite hilarious and odd.
Recently, I've enjoyed "The Office" and "30 Rock."
I was going to say House, but you've named it already :).
My husband and I got great laughs from Chuck, which has run for two seasons on NBC. More info here.
Amstr, Good recs! The North and South idea is a good one. So apropos for my trip locale. On my last trip, I discover Netflix Instant is not accessible outside of the U.S. When I tried to do it, it said something like, "You are outside of the U.S. so you can't watch these movies because of some copyright issues." Hulu might work . . .
HM, Ah yes. I have heard that Arrested Dev is good! I, too, like the Office and esp. 30 Rock (because Tina Fey ROCKS), but since I get NBC, I'm pretty caught up with those. Fawlty Towers might be a good one to check out!
CT, I've had a few laughs over Chuck myself since it's on NBC, one of my three channels. Perhaps I should amend the last message to request non-NBC shows since I've seen most of those.
Keep 'em comin'!
suggestions from someone who replaced tv with netflix:
Flight of the Conchords season 1 & 2
The Wire, inclusive. One of the greatest shows ever.
All the hype aside, Mad Men is brilliant.
On the Masterpiece Theater (oh wait, 'theater' is too stodgy, now it's just MASTERPIECE) tip, the recent adaptation of Jane Eyre was excellent. Ditto for this version of Our Mutual Friend". And I LOVED the last adaptation of Little Dorrit. My favorite Dickens adaptation bar none.
And a second rec for Arrested Development- its fractured structure plays much better on DVD than it did on broadcast television.
if I think of any more time-eaters I'll pop back in.
House
Bones (The Candyman got me addicted)
Weeds
The Office
Top Chef
Project Runway
(The two are reality competitions, but I think they are awesome!)
I can't ever access Hulu.com when I'm out of the country. Same Netflix reasons, but it can't hurt to try!
Unless something has changed, you can't get Top Chef on DVD (which fills me with rage).
But that does remind me to recommend one of my all time junk food tv faves, PROJECT: RUNWAY!
I think the first 5 seasons are out on dvd, and they all rule.
Heroes - now available; Lost in Austen was fabulous! Loved it.
Personally, I vote for an Emma Thompson/Regency England Marathon - Remains of the Day, Howards End, Room with a View, Brideshead Revisited, Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Emma, Much Ado About Nothing, and so on and so on.
OR - you could just throw caution and good taste to the winds and indulge in every Bill and Ted movie ever made, Kill Bill, and various and sundry remakes of broadway hits.
Dexter!!!!!!!!! Completely addictive.
I like the Wire, too, and Weeds.
Extras is funny and Curb Your Enthusiasm is hysterical!
Sounds like it's time for me to break out the wallet! I hesitate to take actual Netflix DVDs with me because I don't want to lose them. Besides, since my husband is home with the kids, he's going to need some good surfing and snowboarding videos for compensation.
Keep those recs coming! And if you want to second someone else, that's great. I'm going to start researching some choices.
Definitely Buffy, but you said that. Seconding as well: Mad Men. Our friends really liked (and just loaned us, though we haven't started watching yet) Burn Notice.
Oh, and Dollhouse, now available on DVD! If you choose it, be prepared to be going WTF for the first five or so episodes. Then it gets INSANELY good!
Okay, I'm with Amstr on the Gilmore Girls rec, but I have to say that while it really is one of my all-time fav shows--very fast-talking and also sweet--my 13 year old niece also loves it. You can decide if this is a pro or a con. My second rec is with The 30-something bride--it's ALL about top chef and project runway for me. They both have a super fast-moving creative process paired with the fun/whiny/oh-my-gah-we-all-have-to-live-in-the-same-house drama flare. Also--try the library online. They've got lots of shows. And they're FREE! (They'll even bring them from other libraries for you. Just saying.)
Gilmore Girls definitely had me hooked while it was out and my husband was thumbs down on it.
The sister-witch series Charmed is fun in a B movie kind of way. Also not a winner with Husband.
Happy Travels! :o)
Wow, first two seasons of West Wing would have been my first suggestion, so you're set in my book. Heu Mihi is spot on with Arrested Development. Hmmm, caught up on 30 Rock, eh? 30-something is right...Project Runway and Top Chef are addictive and delightful because they're not nasty and are talent based.
Hilarious but vapid but did I mention hilarious: Baby Mama, Juno
I thoroughly enjoyed my recent John Hughes marathon, but I'm not sure if your teen angst coincided with mine. You know you need to replace the tapes with DVDs anyway: Ferris, Pretty in Pink, Breakfast Club, Some Kind of Wonderful.
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