Decent Recent TV

[unzippy]

Wild London

Attenborough's latest docco.

Enjoyed.

However, they must have found the most photogenic foxes and pigeons in London! They are certainly not that good looking round my way

[Beany]

A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms

GoT spin off based on the novellas about a "hedge knight" (basically a peasant knight with no land) and his squire, but based entirely around the premise of looking at the world from the bottom up, as opposed to GoT/HotDs 'top down' view from the royalty. Much less 'big scope, world ending threats' and a lot more playful than GoT, but still has the stop notch casting, costuming, direction etc you'd expect. Based on the 1st episode, writing is good too - captures the tone of the novella well, although HBO have to get their toilet humour level bits in there somewhere, in ways that stand out....like, really really badly.

A bit like when they just happen to have someone getting out of bed naked so they can hang dong on camera, where any normal person would throw a sheet over themselves - AKA an "HBO moment" - got to appease that subset of their audience who are just the mentally challenged with a credit card. HU HUR, COCK, etc.

Other than those moments, however, it's basically spot on, and took me right back to the feel I got from the novellas - it's spooky how well it matches what was in my head when I read it. The casting of the two main characters (Dunk and Egg) is uncannily good.

Shorter episodes (and only six of them - the novella is around 100 pages) and a much more tightly contained, localised story, all of it already written and just needing adapting mean it should be a breezy jaunt. Those who have had full season screeners have quietly said the whole series is basically as good as this first episode, so with any luck it won't do the usual HBO thing of shitting the bed at the end.

Trailer here if that sounds interesting.

[RobYob]

Only watched ep 1 of KOTSK(?)and never read the Dunknegg books. It was slow but I'll persist based on the great reviews it's getting. Never bothered with House of the Dragon but I think the GoT finale trauma has faded enough now to enjoy some more GRRM.

[Beany]

The first episode is very much "setting the stage" baseline stuff - it's entirely from the view of Dunc and Egg so there's not going to any other explanatory POVs or zooming around a continent etc so I suspect they kinda had to do that and pace it the way they did.

Also, there's no 'internal monologue' unlike the novella which used it extensively to explain Duncs thinking - so the whole 'having supper with the Baratheons' scene was really to cover for quite a lot of that, externally, in terms of his confidence/where he feels he fits in the world etc. See also him chatting with the horses - that was previously entirely in his head. Got to accommodate for that in the screen writing.

I'd expect things to pick up a bit next week - the novella is only ~100 pages and moves along at a brisk enough pace so I'd expect the series to do much the same.

[Swervin_Mervin]

A bit like when they just happen to have someone getting out of bed naked so they can hang dong on camera, where any normal person would throw a sheet over themselves

That's how I get out of bed No camera there though

[V8Granite]

Surely you just get out of bed as you get in

I don't think most people slide out of bed, get dressed mid commando roll and arrive at the bedroom door in a 3 piece suit and roll neck.

Dave!

[IanF]

Beany getting out of bed..

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1AT7yKSguG/

[Beany]

When I get out of bed I have the good grace to wear a foot long censor bar as I walk around the house, even though I live alone - that's how well mannered I am.

[Swervin_Mervin]

When I get out of bed I have the good grace to wear a foot long censor bar as I walk around the house, even though I live alone - that's how well mannered I am.

I go full dong "HBO shot". There may be no cameras around but the wife might get a morning eyeful at least*.

*She never does because she's usually still asleep**

**Probably just keeping her eyes firmly shut.

[jamcg]

I get up and throw on one of those oversized snoody things, no one wants a full frontal of an overweight hairy arsed plumber