# Series you've recently watched, are now watching or have given up on **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted\ **Created:** [July 9, 2021, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108 "2021-07-09T17:50:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 325
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6488 "2025-05-30T01:48:26Z")
Also, at the beginning, Seinfeld episodes started with a short clip of Jerry doing stand-up, and whatever he was talking about onstage was related to the episode contents. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6489 "2025-05-30T01:50:22Z")
I started re-watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I was expecting it to not age well, but I think it’s held up better than I had expected. It is kind of weird as a time capsule of the mid to late 90s. No cell phones, just the barest hint of the internet. And I’m having fun spotting actors who guest starred, that I saw in much later series or movies. Quite a few young actors in the 90s made turns through this show. ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6490 "2025-05-30T04:19:19Z")
I’m pretty sure Dawn gets a cell phone at some point, though (obviously) a later season. ETA- Season 7 opener > **[Lessons](https://buffy.fandom.com/wiki/Lessons)** > > "Lessons" is the season premiere of the seventh season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the 123rd episode in the series. Written by Joss Whedon and directed by David Solomon, it was originally broadcast on September 24, 2002, on the UPN network.... > Dawn gets a mobile phone, the first we will see the Scoobies use since Cordelia in “Welcome to the Hellmouth.” Buffy is also seen with her own for the first time. Brian ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6491 "2025-05-30T05:01:30Z")
“The Seinfeld Chronicles” (at least in the US) was the title of the pilot episode _only_. This was back in the days when a network would air pilots before they actually became series. When NBC ordered the first season, the title was changed to “Seinfeld.” > **[The Seinfeld Chronicles](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Seinfeld_Chronicles?wprov=sfti1)** > > "The Seinfeld Chronicles" (also known as "Good News, Bad News", "Pilot", "The Premiere", or simply "Seinfeld") is the pilot episode of the American sitcom Seinfeld, which first aired on NBC on July 5, 1989. > The first of the 180 Seinfeld episodes, it was written by show creators Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld and directed by Art Wolff. It revolves around a fictionalized version of Seinfeld, who is unsure about the romantic intentions of a woman he met, and frets about the meaning of her signal... ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 9:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6492 "2025-05-30T09:01:18Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Also, at the beginning, Seinfeld episodes started with a short clip of Jerry doing stand-up, and whatever he was talking about onstage was related to the episode contents. That continued through most of the series, and only got abandoned in the last few seasons, don’t quite remember when. Actually the difference between the early series and the later ones is that in the early episodes, the standup bits not only started the show, they also ended it, and in the earliest episodes were even interspersed in the middle of episodes. In later episodes, there would often instead be a clever closing scene as the credits ran. I know there are people who dislike the show. My view is that I dislike Jerry Seinfeld personally, as I think he’s a self-serving schmuck, but the comedic brilliance of the series is undeniable. It’s just magical, and a real treasure in television history. ETA: In one of the standup bits I saw recently in one of the episodes, Jerry Seinfeld makes some smartass quip about how he’s never seen an episode of _I Love Lucy_ – not a single one. This is part of the reason I dislike this asshole. The implication is that because _Lucy_ was so incredibly popular, it was lowbrow humour, unlike his own show which was so “sophisticated”. Well, guess what, asshole? _Lucy_ blazed new ground in an entirely different generation, just like your show did 40 years later, in different ways but in a similar pattern. And it actually had a much bigger audience share, and changed the television landscape more fundamentally, than your show ever did, as much as I admire it. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6493 "2025-05-30T12:05:12Z")
I finished Season 3 of Reacher on Prime. The best thing I can say about it is that it does a fairly good job of following the book upon which it is based. Not sure if I would recommend it to anybody not familiar with the character. There was a fight scene in the final episode between Reacher and the big oaf. It seemed that the fight lasted for damn near the entire episode. I know that Reacher wanted to prove his manhood against a giant, but shouldn’t he have just shot him, given that time was of the essence? Time to find something else to watch. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6494 "2025-05-30T14:24:42Z")
> [@Railer13](#): > > I finished Season 3 of Reacher on Prime. The best thing I can say about it is that it does a fairly good job of following the book upon which it is based. Not sure if I would recommend it to anybody not familiar with the character. > > There was a fight scene in the final episode between Reacher and the big oaf. It seemed that the fight lasted for damn near the entire episode. I know that Reacher wanted to prove his manhood against a giant, but shouldn’t he have just shot him, given that time was of the essence? > > Time to find something else to watch. I will eventually get to that. I did watch the first season and liked it. Then I saw clips of season 2 and it’s ridiculously clownish way it portrayed how the military works and I haven’t been able to turn it on. At some point I’ll turn off my disbelief filter and try to watch it. > [@wolfpup](#): > > The plot lines tend to more cautious, more cerebral, than in later seasons that get wild and crazy, and the different characters are still in the process of fully establishing the eccentricities that will fully define them later on. Interesting bit of TV history. On multiple occasions Jason Alexander has said he didn’t have a good feel for how to play George. He thought it read like Woody Allen so he played it like a Woody Allen impression. Then one day early on he got a ridiculous script and went to Larry David and said no one would ever be in a situation like that and would ever react that way. Larry David said “What do you mean? That happened to me and that’s what I did!” He then started playing George as Larry David since much of it was based on his ridiculous life. It’s very noticeable that in the beginning George was like Woody Allen. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6495 "2025-05-30T15:41:06Z")
**Until I Kill You** , based on the book by real-life victim Delia Balmer, who was nearly murdered by her boyfriend, who unknown to her was a serial killer. Only four eps, but very intense. Anna Maxwell Martin is superb in the lead role. Started **Death Valley** , which tries too hard to be amusing, IMO. Not sure we’ll continue with it. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6496 "2025-05-30T16:25:18Z")
just started dci banks. so far, so icky good. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2025, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6497 "2025-05-31T11:18:45Z")
**Dept. Q** , a surly English detective working in Scotland is on a complicated cold case with connections to current crimes. I’m hooked. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2025, 11:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6498 "2025-05-31T11:29:45Z")
I just gave **Dept Q** a try myself, but I did not like it. A bit too grim and miserable for my tastes. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2025, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6499 "2025-05-31T17:49:29Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > I actually watched Seinfeld in its first mini-season. I wonder how many others caught it on TV during its original brief run. I did, because my sister had found it. We loved it from the beginning. It was a bit weird at first, but the kind of weirdness that said this is something a little different. Not a standard sitcom. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2025, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6500 "2025-05-31T20:45:54Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > **Until I Kill You** , based on the book by real-life victim Delia Balmer, who was nearly murdered by her boyfriend, who unknown to her was a serial killer. Only four eps, but very intense. Anna Maxwell Martin is superb in the lead role. On your recommendation (and at least one other upthread) I tried episode one. Intense, indeed. I saw Shaun Evans’s name in the credits and thought “that’s a way different role than Endeavour!” He seems to be using his real accent – or pretty close – as well. I’ll continue with it since I know she makes it out alive. She couldn’t very well have written a book about it if she didn’t, eh? I like Anna Maxwell Martin, as well, This is the first time I’ve seen her as a blonde, well, strawberry blonde. I liked her in that _Pride and Prejudice_ sequel _Return to Pemberley._ ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2025, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6501 "2025-06-01T13:25:45Z")
Last night we started watching **Vera** on Britbox. I didn’t realize until I saw in the credits that it’s based on books by Anne Cleeves, who also wrote the “Shetland” books. Also didn’t realize that we had started on episode 1 of _season 12_, so now we need to go back and start from the beginning. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2025, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6502 "2025-06-01T13:41:28Z")
Finished the latest season of _Hacks._ It’s still holding up. I’m not usually a fan of cringy uncomfortable humor but they do it the right way. Before it gets too uncomfortable they do a shift back to comfort. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2025, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6503 "2025-06-01T15:17:27Z")
**Your Friends and Neighbors** on Apple. John Hamm doing his thing. I’m not sure where it’s going, but it’s okay so far. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2025, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6504 "2025-06-01T16:22:51Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > Also didn’t realize that we had started on episode 1 of _season 12_, so now we need to go back and start from the beginning. I’ve done that so many times with Netflix and Hulu. Twice, just recently, I was surprised at how a show really jumped right into the stories without giving us a chance to really meet everyone, only to find out Netflix/Hulu, for whatever reason, decided I should start with a season finale. With both Archer and Abbot Elementary, IIRC, I watched the last episode of the first season, then the first few of the second season before I realize something’s wrong. I used to also have an issue when using Netflix through my Tivo where it would play the episodes backwards. I’m guessing it was putting the newest ones at the top of the list instead of the other way around. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2025, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6505 "2025-06-01T17:19:09Z")
My wife was out of town Friday and Saturday, and so in between bouts of de-mildewing and painting the bathroom ceiling, I watched all nine episodes of Department Q on Netflix. It’s a mix of very familiar tropes, rough violence, fun ensemble casting, and charming Scottish + English accents, and I obviously enjoyed it. I’d say the character and dialogue writing is a little above average for the genre, which is why I stuck with it. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2025, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6506 "2025-06-01T18:48:36Z")
I finished **Dept. Q** , too, and thoroughly enjoyed it. The dialogue was that of a Guy Ritchie movie and hilarious. Appears to be set up for a second season. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2025, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108/6507 "2025-06-01T18:56:54Z")
For a minute I thought you were talking about the animated **Q-Force** , also on Netflix. Kind of a mash-up of Archer and Venture Bros. with an LGBTQ twist. Not as good as either of those shows, but my wife and I did enjoy it well enough. I’ll have to check out **Dept. Q**. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108.md?page=324) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/series-youve-recently-watched-are-now-watching-or-have-given-up-on/946108.md?page=326)