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This was an outstanding essay, thank you -- after instinctively avoiding Ted Lasso since it came out, I watched the first three episodes on a flight recently and inhaled the rest of the first season with happy remorse. Two thirds of the way through the second season I am now bailing and found your video when I searched to see if anyone could put in words what felt inchoately to me very simply like the feels coming faster off of something good than I had ever seen before. But this is really elevated analysis, critical and generous, and for my money absolutely on the money.
I just realized something. The Fishes episode culminates with Michael throwing a fork, so the fork is something we come to associate with the dysfunctional family that constantly seems to be at a boiling point. In the Forks episode, Richie's path to redemption involves him spending day after day... Polishing forks. That can't be a coincidence.
this is such an amazing essay! im working on my own at the moment, focused on the aspect of youth and the undersea, “there is no before”, radical revolution vs passive apocalpyse to tear down systems and a whole host of other stuff (very rough draft atm). I fully intend on citing this a few times!
I'm taking a streaming break from Max but I miss the comfort of being able to just watch great shows like The Wire, The Leftovers, The Last of Us, and Station 11. I come to RU-vid for little tastes of them, from time to time. This video feels like someone's Masters thesis and I'm here for it since the subject is so worthy and the conclusions are expanding my love for a show I didn't know I could love more. Thank you!
The story was very thin (with a stronger sense of familiarity overall than in the first one), the visuals felt incoherent (and most of all underwhelming) with lots of "intimate" TV-level dialogue scenes (without any use of "set" or nature), and the drama wasn't all that strong*. Basically, the massive hype doesn't help it. *There is almost zero believability or tension to the psychological issues (seeming more like "angst", interchanged with superhuman steadfastness... or simple disagreements among "best friends" on what to believe), or the preachy after-commentary of morality one hears everywhere. The revenge was signalled and made plausible from the start, nothing else happened, it was even non-stop further confirmed in its necessity. In terms of moral greyness, this would still be the purest character study in GRRM's universe. Probably Sam did something shadier... And it is equivalent to calling every soldier, without distinction, a "murderer" and the like. It's just silly, hypocritical stuff, and acting stupidly "surprised" for no reason. Also from an analytical perspective, because there is never any analytical argument, it's just the "message" reiterated (and perhaps with a further story in mind). Those "subtle" issues about religious and cultural purity or whatever are pure whining, for when drinking wine on a French porch or whatever. And I just say all that because that seems to be part of the gist here, although I would have left it at my honest little comment up there. Either way, the story remains thinly written (being one half or so), whatever makes one go crazy about some little things. (You know what I found nasty? When that "poor", misunderstood other guy burned one of our "friends" alive for pure sadistic pleasure, albeit off-screen. Wonder if many picked up that "subtle" message.)
I disagree that you didn't get to see Sidney grow that much this series. If you think about the penultimate episode of series 1, you see her get shouted at by Carmey for her mistakes and then she takes it out on Richie and quits as she is feeling too pressured. In the final episode where something similar is happening, you can see her take on the responsibility of holding Carmey responsible without lashing out, onwing up to her mistakes and helping the others, while delegating the part that she is struggling with to Richie (which she refused to do in series 1)
The cannoli was discussed in a previous episode. Sid and Carm came up with the idea and Carm tells Marcus to get on it. It's that savory cannoli concept that they discussed, realized. I do think Carm should have tasted it though.
All right. Here we go. We don’t see much in the way of Logan’s competence, but we do get glimpses and hints, and as somebody who is very sensitive to management incompetence, I am compelled to highlight them. While we mostly see him manipulating and manoeuvring to preserve and expand his power, he does seem to actually know his business. When he returns to the US at the end of s3 e2, one of the first things he does after getting off the plane is reach for a document being handed to him by Carolina. Presumably, this is a report he has demanded since he has been out of the loop. He knows the numbers when he gives his speech at ATN, he knows what Pearce is actually worth and what he’s willing to pay, and he knows when Mattsson offers to buy him, that it really is his best option. All of that knowledge comes from doing actual work himself. Beyond that, he surrounds himself with other competent people. Colin, Gerri, Marcia, and Carolina in-particular can be seen to be quite competent, and he gets the most of them by actually listening to them and occasionally heeding advice. Finding good people, and letting them be good and listening to them is a quality of a good manager. He’s decisive, hard working, he knows when to listen, and when to tell people to fuck off, and at times he is even charming. These are all qualities of a good leader. The fact that he is single-minded and ruthless in his self-interest makes him evil, but I do see the qualities that others seem to revere in him.
"Can people from economic backgrounds reconcile?" Answer: Yes. In real life, yes. My family is rich meets middle class meets poverty. We are very different people, sure, but we love each other. It happens all the time. I recommend spend some time in New England. It's pretty normal here to have a range of cultures, political opinions, and economic backgrounds in one family.
My favorite show ever. Great work on this. Have been thinking of ANOTHER rewatch and now that this hit my algo I think I have to. Thank you for this video. Survival is insufficient
This was by far the best and non biased breakdown of this show. I was entering high school when Gilmore Girls premiered (definitely showing my late 30s age) and it felt relatable because of where I was in my life. Having rewatched too many times to count at this point as an adult, I definitely agree with your deep dive.
Do you have any intention of talking about Shoresy? I loved season 1 of Ted Lasso and LOVE The Bear, so I'm curious what you think of it with S3 having just come out in Canada and about to hit streaming for the states!
All those characters that started out flat tho became very deep even though they are secondary. What I like is how every character has chemistry with each other
I took my family to Copenhagen last year on summer holiday, it was my first time there and I constantly thought about how it was such a beautiful and generally nice city. Guest director Ramy Youseff captured that energy perfectly in Ep 4 with Marcus' journey. I could totally feel that energy of uncertain excitement and peace Marcus was feeling during his experience of high end dessert boot camp, not being a brutal time but a invigorating and enlightening time for him
Your point about how the show completely knows what it is, especially the points on stakes and neutrality, I think really capture why the show went off the rails in seasons 5 and 6.* It's like the show felt like there was something wrong with being the small-scale story it was and decided it needed to throw in "bigger" elements, like Rory having affairs, grand theft boat, and secret daughters. At the same time, all of the conflicts started getting constructed so Lorelai was in the right (and it got more so with each passing one), while on Rory's side of the show, she becomes shielded from the realistic consequences of her actions because she's just so special - in this town where gossip is a form of currency, no one has anything to say about her affair when she was publicly confronted over it? She gets handed the editorship of the paper after her meltdown semester when she's not even eligible rather than the staff just holding a runoff vote? The special elements of the show were lost in an attempt at being a more generic teen drama. *Season 7 definitely has its own boatload of issues (largely the result of the previous two seasons' identity crisis, IMO), but I think it gets back to the basics more than seasons 5 and 6. I am also one of those fans who finds season 7 better than not only A Year in the Life, but season 6 as well. (Unrelated rant: On your point about Luke's regression when April turns up, it's doubly frustrating because it regresses Luke not only to where he was prior to his growth in opening up to Lorelai, but he's not even at the point where he was earlier in the show. Luke might not have taken kindly to Lorelai's input on how to raise Jess - and honestly, most of that input amounted to "you should have sent him straight back to New York" - but he was constantly bringing the two of them into each other's presence. But now, Lorelai's not even allowed in the diner when April's there?)
It's so true that, as time passes, the more I think about Station Eleven and the more I love it. What a beautiful, thoughtful, well-informed analysis. Made me want to rewatch the show again. Thanks for the essay <3
you pinpointed exactly why I thought the cameos in fishes were integral to the episodes quality. it simply doesn't work with lesser known actors and it's because of what you stated, we'd know where to look, way too easily. fishes requires us to stay on our toes; not a moments rest, the boiling pot that's ready to tip over, the ticking bomb; every second counts. it's the greatest episode of television I've ever watched
This is hands down the best breakdown of Gilmore Girls on RU-vid and I've watched a lot!!! It's crazy to me that you don't have 100,000 subscribers with this kind of quality content!
First of all I love your knowledge and the way you criticize movies. For the movie American Fiction I disagree with you as I do think the story is very actual with all these fake activism in Holliwood. Other than that, I just subscribed to your channel and I will keep enjoying your content. Well done! 😊
man this channel and comment section is really something else. Best essay i've seen on this show by far and easily one of the best across any story. Thank you!!
Is that Greta Gerwig in the park scene where Greg is sitting deflated in the classroom? She’s sitting to the left with a huge smile on her face. Apologies for the asking this silly question considering your savvy breakdown of Succession with Shakespearean influences.
