Series seen in 2025#
(Work in progress as the year progresses, so remember to check every now and then if anything new popped up in the meantime.)
Beware: There are a couple of spoilers ahead as those are predominantly notes for myself. Nothing all too serious, but one or two twists are revealed.
Barry (Season 2)#
The second season of "Barry" luckily drops Dexter's vibes and develops its own essence. What I liked the most is good balance of funny stuff and unfunny stuff. It's comedic and at the same time it tells a story of its characters. And then, there was this fantastic episode with a taekwondo master and his daughter which reminded me of this "The Sopranos" episode where Chris and Paulie got lost in the woods with a Russian mercenary. I am looking forward to season 3.
Creature Commando (Season 1)#
"Creature Commandos" is a 7-episode animated series in a spirit of The Suicide Squad and actually picks up directly after "The Peacemaker" (Amanda Waller and John Economos return with the live-show actors voicing them). It's edgy, it's funny, it's explosive, but also touching at times (the backstories are actually tragic). DC, which didn't have as much luck with cinema as MCU, finds itself pretty well in the world of animation. Can't wait for season 2.
Wellington Paranormal (Season 2)#
The second season of "Wellington Paranormal" finally finds its pace and rhythm, and with a bit of Flanderisation, but manages to map the characters' interactions. Once again, I am grateful for subtitles because New-Zealandian English is something altogether different. What I noticed in this season is that resolutions to most of the jokes' semantic traps come almost immediately, which is unusual, but in the end, worked out quite fine.
Cien Años de Soledad (Season 1a)#
"Cien Años de Soledad" is an adaptation of a very famous book from Gabriel García Márquez. It seems that Netflix ran the first half of the season, but so far, so good. It treats the source material with respect and I read it 25 years ago, but it seems to be not taking unforgiving shortcuts. It was interesting to see this differently to how I imagined it. To think that a couple of decades ago, they would probably try to squeeze it into a 2-hour movie. Inconceivable!
Ozark (Season 3)#
The third season of "Ozark" gets even denser with various plots accumulating around the Byrde family. I really like this speed chess of changing circumstances which puts almost ever calm Marty in a tough spot after a tough spot. There's always a risk of Flanderisation here, but "Ozark" manages to stay on the working side. I am looking forward to seeing the last season later this year.
The White Lotus (Season 2)#
The second season of "The White Lotus" takes us into sunny Sicily, which was a very familiar setting for me and not exotic. I like the slow burning plot where all but the last episode are rather drama that suddenly becomes a crime story. It's hinted at the beginning that someone will die, but it's hard to figure out who can be a victim and who a perpetrator. I am surprised that the format became popular enough to spawn 3 seasons to date.
Barry (Season 3)#
"Barry's" season 3 gives us more unhinged Barry, who's slowly falling off the wagon. It's a bit of relief because acting-as-a-therapy worked for a while, but Barry probably wouldn't be a good actor. I like how the show juggles with funny and scary moments. You laugh at first, then you're terrified for the characters.
I liked the episode where he fought the dirt-bike gang. It reminded me of the season 2's episode where he had to deal with the the Taekwondo master and his daughter, but in itself it didn't feel like "The Sopranos" episode but rather the "Oldboy's" fight in the corridor (something that was also recreated in "Daredevil's" season 1).
It shows the diversity of the show, which is a comedy, a drama, and then action like that all in one.
Wellington Paranormal (Season 3)#
Season 3 of "Wellington Paranormal" is at home with its jokes and the actors feel confident with their characters. And Parker, the season 2 addition, fits in just right. I am also getting better at understanding kiwi accent. It's fascinating how differently English can sound.