What have you been binging lately? Let us know!
You've heard of GameSpot's Now Playing, right? The place we go to talk about the games that are keeping us busy over the weekend? If not--check it out! But if you have, you probably know exactly what to expect here. Now Watching is where the GameSpot team will go to talk about the things that have them excited outside of the world of video games--from binge-able TV shows to movie streaming services and more.
We'll tell you what's been gracing our screens, why we're taking the time, and what we're into about it--and we'd like to invite you to do the same! Head on down to the comments section below to share your current TV, movie, or streaming obsessions with us.
Hannibal - Phil Hornshaw, Editor
There are apparently a bunch of good new TV shows available on a variety of platforms, but I keep revisiting old favorites. After a multi-week rewatch of Star Trek: The Next Generation to prep myself for Star Trek: Picard (which keeps getting better each week--you should totally watch it), I dove back into Hannibal, my all-time favorite TV show. Good news, everyone: It remains amazing.
Hannibal isn't just another take on Hannibal Lecter, the infamous fictional serial killer of The Silence of the Lambs. It's a ridiculously involved and in-depth adaptation of the movies Lecter has appeared in and the novels in which he was originally created. The show centers on Will Graham, the FBI profiler from the first Lecter novel, Red Dragon, expanding on the idea that Will has a series of personality disorders that make him highly empathetic--he can get into serial killers' minds. Over the course of the show, he builds a twisted relationship with Lecter (who hasn't been outed as a killer yet) as the two assist the FBI in chasing other killers.
I've always found Lecter to be an interesting villain, but he's never been more terrifying than in Hannibal. Part of that is an expert portrayal by Mads Mikkelsen, which is even better than the one that won Anthony Hopkins an Oscar. But it's really in Hannibal's phenomenal writing and beautiful art direction and cinematography. You get into Hannibal's mind, learn what he's like, see how his mind operates as he hunts people--and it's fantastically spooky. I love Hannibal for the layer-upon-layer approach of its adaptation, but really, it's the frightening conception of one of fiction's greatest villains that keeps me coming back. | Twitter: @philhornshaw
Battle of the Brands - Chris E. Hayner, Entertainment Editor
Currently in its second season, Battle of the Brands is not only the best thing going on Xavier Woods' Up Up Down Down YouTube channel, but it's also quite possibly the best piece of WWE programming available on any platform. The premise is simple, Woods and his real-life best friend/enemy Tyler Breeze are playing General Manage mode from the Smackdown vs. Raw 2006 video game head-to-head. It's just to guys sitting in front of a TV, mocking each other as they compete to book the best wrestling show.
The first season used the game as it was released over a decade ago. In the second season, they play a modded version of the game with current WWE superstars--and some of those superstars make guest appearances.
Honestly, watching Breeze and Woods get so wrapped up in trash-talking each other--and watching Woods lose with shocking regularity, only to claim Breeze is cheating--is endless entertainment. I don't watch many YouTube videos, and the amount of gaming videos I watch is even smaller. This show, though, it's the perfect blend of wrestling nerdery, chemistry, and a simple idea done well. Watch it. | Twitter: @ChrisHayner
Sex Education Season 2 - Mike Rougeau, Managing Editor, Entertainment
On paper, Sex Education doesn't necessarily seem like it would be my cup of tea. TV dramadies about high schoolers finding love and learning about themselves along the way are a dime a dozen, and rarely does one stand out to me. But Sex Education just feels different. It's completely captivating.
In Season 2, Otis Milburn (Asa Butterfield) and Maeve Wiley (Emma Mackey) continue their "business" of charging other students for amateur sex life advice, courtesy the knowledge that Otis has absorbed throughout a life with his sex therapist mother, played by The X-Files' Gillian Anderson. The show is charming, beautifully shot, brimming with great music, and incredibly smart and emotional, without ever getting weepy. It sidesteps familiar tropes and never takes the easy route to any payoff. Most of all, you'll fall in love with the characters and want it to never end. | Twitter: @RogueCheddar
One Piece - Meg Downey, Associate Entertainment Editor
Technically I'm both watching and reading this one, but I'm still going to count it. One Piece, as many people will tell you, is a pretty daunting undertaking in the anime and manga world--it's held the title as the best selling manga series in Japan for what feels like forever and is about to hit the thousand chapter mark this year. It's anime adaptation is well into the 900s for its episode count. The idea of starting at number one, knowing just how much there is to get through is enough to put most people off the prospect of starting entirely--and really, I get it. I'm not entirely sure why 2020 became the year I wanted to finally dip my toe into One Piece.
But I'm actually really glad I did. I'm just over 150 chapters on the manga side, supplementing the chapters I read with brief jaunts into the second season of the anime and I'm having an absolute blast. I'd been tangentially aware of the characters--there's really no way not to be if you even sort of pay attention to anime or manga news, that's how pervasive they are--but I didn't know what to expect at all. It turns out this silly little pirate manga has had a vice grip on the number one slot for good reason: It's just good. The stories are just silly enough to be heartwarming (except for when they're insanely, brutally tragic--yes, I cried my way through Tony Tony Chopper's introduction story), the characters all have a Peanuts-flavored humor to them, it's easy to read (and currently all available on the Shonen Jump app) and just the right amount of addicting. Don't let the triple-digit chapter and episode counts put you off. | Twitter: @rustypolished
Bon Appétit on YouTube - Mat Elfring, News Editor of Entertainment
While I may be the resident goofball at GameSpot, I spent a lot of my time sucked in to Bon Appétit's YouTube channel. I love cooking, and BA's channel is on a lot during the workday--don't tell anyone. BA's videos don't necessarily teach the viewer to cook. The channel is driven by personalities, many of which have their own series that pop up now and again.
My personal favorite series features Chris Morocco trying to recreate--or reverse engineer--dishes he tastes, while wearing a blindfold. His palate is incredible and seeing his process of breaking down the spices within said dish is jaw-dropping. It also helps that the majority of the time, he pretty much nails it.
Claire Saffitz's series "Pastry Chef Attempts to Make Gourmet [Food item]" is probably the best put together series on the channel. Claire takes a food item you can get at the grocery store--many times it's candy--and she attempts to recreate that food in the BA test kitchen. Out of all the shows on the channel, this is the one where you can see how stressful cooking can be, as Claire doesn't hide it very well. However, that's the endearing thing about her. Yeah, she's a professional chef, but that doesn't mean there isn't a mountain for her to climb.
And then there's Brad, and Brad is… well, a mess. He's a goof, he flubs his lines on camera constantly, and his recipes fly by the seat of his pants. At least he has a good video editor who constantly pokes fun at him. There is a ton going on BA's channel, and while cooking may not be the most appealing topic for most people, this channel finds a way to make it exceptionally entertaining. | Twitter: @ImMatElfring
The Criterion Channel - Dan Auty
I'm a big fan of the Criterion collection, the DVD and Blu-ray reissue label that has been releasing amazing editions of some of the greatest movies ever made for over 30 years. Its streaming service, the Criterion Channel, launched last year has become an essential part of my monthly movie watching. Towards the end of every month I usually hit the section of films about to leave the service.
This week, I revisited a pair of films I loved when I first saw them years ago, but hadn't checked out in a long time--John Carpenter's debut, the oddball slacker sci-fi comedy Dark Star, and Jonathan Demme's darkly funny road movie Something Wild. Both held up great thankfully.
There were also a couple of first time watches. The 1937 French wartime prison escape classic Le Grande Illusion is both a hugely entertaining ensemble caper movie and one of the earliest war movies to carry an overt anti-war message. And Todd Haynes' Safe was a movie that I somehow not seen before, despite loving both Haynes' work and '90s US indie cinema in general. But it was worth the 25 year wait, with an incredible performance from Julianne Moore as a woman who succumbs to a mysterious illness that she believes has been brought on by the toxic state of the air around her. Viewing in 2020, the film's environmental message and the way it deals with issues of mental health could not be more relevant. | Twitter: @mondodan
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.