Tag: period dramas

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Starred Recommendations Watchlist

Shogun

Shogun (Season 1 – FX/ Hulu 2024)

I watched this late last year, but only putting up a mini review now for records. First of all, I had no idea it was based on a series of books, Asian Saga series by James Clavell. Second, I had no idea there had already been other TV adaptations in the past. Third, I am waiting for Season 2, due for release in 2026!

We are in Japan in the 1600s. The Taiko, the old ruler, has died and the country is dangerously divided among competing feudal lords. Two very ambitious men from two very different worlds – an English sailor named John Blackthorne and a shrewd Japanese feudal lord Lord Toranaga – collide (and sometimes collaborate) over conflicting interests. So much is changing in the 1600s globally that Japan too is bound to change.

If you haven’t watched Shogun yet, believe me, you are in for a treat.

Categories
Miscellany Recommendations Watchlist

First Quarter Wrap-Up +Movie Recs

Well, it’s been more than a quarter, but it’s just easier to sum up that way! I’m still not getting much reading done, but at least I managed to find some really good movies. Here’s a wrap-up for the first quarter.

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Books Music & Poetry Recommendations Watchlist

Tri-Monthly Wrap-Up/ Mini Reviews

Is “tri-monthly” the right word? June, July, August — loads of books and shows that I discovered and even liked (wonder of wonders)! Interestingly, in pretty much all of these, I also found that the blurb or the trailer had been misleading. Here’s a (long post) wrap up.

Castle Barebane by Joan Aiken

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

A rather strange and underrated historical fantasy work set in the 1880s involving a “road trip” from New York to Scotland. The journalist heroine sets out to help her odd brother (and also escape her marriage). Then she finds herself embroiled in a blackmail plot and with her young nephew and niece in tow. This book really defies genre and age groupings. The suspense is slow to build-up, the “fantasy” part is very, very subtle. I even thought there was some LGBTQ representation in this 1976 book. Also historically accurate, as can be expected from Aiken.

Why didn’t they ask Evans?

Rating: 4 out of 5.

A very quirky new adaptation of one of Agatha Christie’s more complex mysteries. This cryptic question changes every time: Why didn’t they ask Evans? Why didn’t they ask Evans? Why didn’t they ask Evans? Wait at least till Episode 2 for the show to really get going.

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Best of List Memes Watchlist

Wednesday Weekly: 20 TV Shows I Binge-Watch(ed)

I discovered a cool meme recently, The Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge, hosted by Long and Short Reviews. The topic for March 31 is TV Shows I Binge-Watch(ed). Here they are, and maybe you’ll find something new-to-watch here!

1 / Jessica Jones (Season 1)

Why I binge-watched: the “neo-Noir” tones, a Marvel Comics hero rediscovering confidence, great friendships, Krysten Ritter as Jessica, David Tennant as Kilgrave, and Melissa Rosenberg’s screenwriting.

2 / Stranger (Seasons 1 and 2)

Available on Netflix. A public prosecutor teams up with a cop to fish out the corrupt, while their two departments remain at loggerheads. Realistic but still marvelously uplifting. 

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