Recommended Shows You Probably Don't Watch



Imagine you showed early tendencies towards being a killer. What if your foster father helped you channel that into killing for a purpose? As Arnold Schwarzenegger said when Jamie Lee Curtis asked him in “True Lies,” “Have you killed anyone? This character’s answer would also be, “yeah, but they were all bad.” The Showtime series “Dexter” has come by awards honestly. This character has learned to isolate his true self from others with an intelligence and wit that’s astoundingly played by Michael C. Hall. This blood splatter specialist has an inside line into why and how people kill and he’s “dead-set” on ridding the world of some of the baddies. There are lots of subplots and twists and turns and I honestly could just listen to the internal workings of this guy’s head for hours and hours on end and never get bored. Brilliantly written, terrifyingly creepy, and genuinely original. If you haven’t seen this, you can find a sample on instant watch on Netflix. ( I believe season 2 is on instant watch right now)

For my eco-friends out there, the Sundance Channel has a show called “Eco Trip.” This I found on Netflix instant watch too which gave me an opportunity to try it out. Loved it! It’s hosted by a Brit with a good deal of curiosity and global understanding (and not bad on the eyes). He ventures off to learn more about how one light bulb changes our need for coal and how one t-shirt involves massive amounts of pesticides that leach into the ground water. It’s not fatalistic (I’m afraid many eco-weenie’s like to doom and gloom), but it talks about present changes we’re undergoing and the time line to a healthier alternative. Every episode is laced with hope that humanity finally gets it.

For horror lovers, “Harper’s Island” was a 13-part series that was astoundingly addictive. Although they just completed the 13 episodes, you can catch the first 11 episodes on Netflix instant watch too. This involved a murder mystery on an island with a “Ten Little Indians” feel to it. It kept you wrapped up in the huge ensemble cast and subplots, as well as wondering “who the heck is killing everyone off?” Kudos for the surprising ending. Some of us had the killer figured out ahead of time, but didn’t realize his intentions. Creepy and the setting—an island off of Washington State—gorgeous!!!

I did try out the series opener for “Hanger 13” from SyFy. What an enormous disappointment. I liked the premise that there was a hanger in the middle of nowhere used by the government to hide away paranormal items that we don’t understand yet and could hurt us such as Pandora’s Box and Houdini’s wallet (not sure why that’s so special). Unfortunately, like so much other tripe SyFy spits out too quickly with bad special effects, this show had no insight into humans and their motivations or character development. They’re rather first grader in their “wasn’t raised by a mother so he’s hard-ass and has no emotions” equations. I don’t think SyFy in general understands the human condition yet, but we keep hoping they’ll figure out us earthlings eventually. I’m willing to give it another try just to see if they can flesh out the characters but for now I really don’t give a flying fig about them or the tasks before them. In other words, this is no “X-Files.” Even worse, the comedic relief isn’t intelligent, it’s banal and infantile. You’d expect more from a station that supposedly caters to the higher intelligent beings.

You might try finding these online, as most shows now do show online repeats. It's a good way to sample if you want to get hooked. I’d love to hear from any of you about series that you think are interesting and overlooked by our spookier set of people reading this blog.

Comments

  1. Autumnforest-I really dropped the ball on Harper's Island! I so hope the vids are available to rent assuming I ever have money again haha! My father told me about Dexter when it was on CBS (old shows I think for awhile) and I got hooked on it! I think the man who plays Dex is so handsome and love the lady who plays his sister. I thought of a weird movie the other day and thought I would mention it here-it was simply titled "May" and I saw it in 2005 or 06-it is about this young woman's struggles to create the perfect companion. For anyone with weird tastes in film every now and then it might appeal to them. I would say it is halfway between slasher/horror film-had forgotten all about it. The "Tartan Asian Extreme" horror movies are usually pretty good-and they used to be available in great quantity at Blockbuster videos. Just thought I would also give these movies a mention-hope it does someone some good:) best to you as always!!

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  2. Devin;
    Thanks. I saw that Harper's Island is out on DVD on Sept. 8th. Cannot wait!!! I can't remember a time in my life I was ever that glued to a show and felt from the first episode like I knew this huge group of people. The setting was beautiful and the mystery exciting. It was really really well done. Boy, I hope they do another series with the same idea--again in the NW, I love that place with the huge woods and the ferns and moss...Oh, I so belong there. Thanks for the heads up on the movie "May." I remember seeing the cover for that with a woman's face on it, but I never rented it. I'll have to check it out. My best friends are totally into Asian horror and I liked one or two movies, but then I got tired of the pacing and the style (aka people walking like crabs). I think it's something that's acquired, but I'm okay with Pang Brothers. I think there was one of the Tartan Asia Extreme movies my friend wanted us to watch on floating movie night. We project a movie onto the wall of my house which is right beside the pool and float on rafts and watch it. It's a big hit. Maybe I'll finally find an Asian horror that suits me. I actually like foreign horror a good deal. I'll have to cover some of the best from each country some time. I have to admit foreign films seem to be less self conscious than American ones and sometimes so quirky they haunt you. They have less plot limitations, I think. We tend to think inside the box too much. I could talk horror all night. It's getting to be that time of the year where you'll hear more and more from me about horror movies and Halloween. I usually get the Halloween bug in late July--start watching "halloween" in the background while I'm writing my horror novel to at least pretend I don't live in an oven like Hansel and Gretel. :-)

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  3. Thanks for all the reviews. I think I will have to try to catch Dexter. Is that on HBO or Showtime?

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  4. Dexter is on Showtime. I've never seen anything like it. It's quite addictive. I can't believe how well written it is and how well acted. Amazing.

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  5. I was told by several people to watch Dexter and I have yet to see an episode. I don't have showtime so I may have to catch it some other way. As you know I was a big fan of Harper's Island and was glued to the TV every week it was on. Even though Mike and I guessed the killer, we too did not know of his intensions. I also love the setting, the huge trees and water surrounding the place.....loved it! I have Warehouse 13 recorded and haven't watched it yet. I will give it a try as well to see if it turns out to be a good show.

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  6. Hey Julie;
    You can probably find seasons 1-3 of Dexter at the videostore. You might find episodes online too. It's so addictive that my husband and son literally sit through several episodes a night from Netflix and my husband never ever likes to watch TV. Dexter is the best character TV has ever spat out. I'm so pleased that someone gets the complexities of high intelligence, humor, and the darker sides of people. I'm excited to hear what you think of it. I'm giving the SyFy show a chance by watching a few more episodes. I'm only doing that because it stars the guy from "Stark Raving Mad" TV show which was my FAVORITE TV show of all time! Jeez, I miss that show soooo much!

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