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March 28, 2024, 08:23:53 AM

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Veep (Season 6)

Started by Straight Faced Customer, April 26, 2017, 09:39:42 PM

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Straight Faced Customer

If the new season of Silicon Valley has a thread, then surely Veep should get one too?

The second ep stands out with Jonad's rather grim escapades on the dating scene. The first one was a bit off, as it seemed someone decided to C+P as many swear words as they could into the script[nb] It seems they forgot Larry David's sage advice in the Krazy Eyez ep of Curb - 'I would lose the "motherfucker" at the end - 'cause you already said "fuck" once. You don't need two fucks.'[/nb].

Neomod

Have they changed the writers this season because something seems off. As you say they all seem to have turned into Malcolm T.

Julia Louis Dreyfus is still one of the funniest women alive though.

backdrifter

It's a bit more cartooney than it was, but still funny as hell.

Richard never gets old.

Bleeding Kansas

Quote from: backdrifter on April 27, 2017, 12:11:27 AM
Richard never gets old.

"Well actually, I am still subject to the usual bodily aging process, so that's not really accurate." as I'd imagine he'd say in that mild mannered tone of his.   

There's definitely a decline in quality from the last two seasons so far but certainly still enjoyable.  I still wonder if there really needed to be another season after the way 5 ended. Maybe it depends on whether you viewed VEEP as a show that was more about the American Political system or more about the story of Selina Meyer.

In terms of the story, what is this season giving us that a 'Where are they now end of series montage' wouldn't have given us?

I'd be very happy for the show to prove me wrong though.

amnesiac

It definitely feels a bit off. I looked through the credits and didn't recognise one name in the writing staff but there's still so much to love:

- The power dynamic between Selina and her daughter-in-law-to-be
- Marjorie's "you gave me AIDS"
- Kent's utter humiliation and resignation to his fate

Looks like we'll get a whole sub-show with the fourth estate/ Dan.

Can anyone remember what the garment Richard Splett-erised in ep2? he is pure gold.

Straight Faced Customer


kidsick5000

None of it felt plausible for the characters.
Like backdrifter says, it's a cartoon. As though the writers' research was just one episode from last season.

Bleeding Kansas

I think knowing it's the final season at least means you can enjoy it for what it is without the dread of further deterioration. A fun, bonus, epilogue season, that's kind of take or leave. I just really can't see what it's leading up to that suggests it will be anything more than this.

Enrico Palazzo

Is it the final season? I haven't seen that anywhere.

Bleeding Kansas

Quote from: Enrico Palazzo on April 28, 2017, 10:02:25 AM
Is it the final season? I haven't seen that anywhere.

Shit, I must have got that wrong then sorry.

Anyway this made me laugh. Kent's dating presentation to Jonah.
 
https://twitter.com/DavidHMandel/status/857734104996954112

Mr Faineant

I like it when I come here and see people say exactly what I've been thinking. It definitely seems off.

I think the characters are being written for their quirks...their traits are amplified to caricature. Everything feels a bit one dimensional in that way. I think this is clearly seen in Amy, they've really ramped up the cold bitchiness aspect of her.

It's still quite good, but it's lost its charm so far this season, methinks.

Dr Rock

Well this sounds not good. Is it still worth watching?

magval

Two schools of thought on that. My wife's going to continue watching week to week, living in hope I guess. I would go as far as to say that it isn't worth watching, even out of curiosity. I wish I'd had the restraint not to see the previous season through to the last episode because it's seriously lowered how highly I think of the show. I haven't enjoyed it since Armando left at all, and I like David Mandel. Hell, I hate Kevin Smith more than anyone I ever met and I liked the Clerks cartoon because of his involvement.

I suppose the argument could be made that I need to lighten up and not take it too seriously, and that the characters are worth sticking with for the occasional foul-mouthed gem of dialogue but for me it just feels too much like a poor impression of a show that used to be great that wouldn't have survived its showrunner leaving without the guy from Seinfeld waiting in the wings.

It's definitely been Americanized, if there's such a thing. It seems to take a lot of cues from Arrested Development and I'm sure there are other shows it's cribbing from. It even seems to borrow things from, erm, itself, but when it was good. Feels too superficial, likes there's nothing underneath. You'll still catch the odd moment of fleetingly great swearing but there's no bite.

And like has been mentioned here, all of Armando's people seem to be gone now, rather than the 60/40 mix of existing staffers and Mandel's crew from last season.

Lastly, it's now a television program about someone who was vice president for a few seasons before a season of presidency who's now no longer the president. It's a real Prison Break problem. You're out of prison. Stop fucking filming.

Nah, abandon it!

brat-sampson

Yeah, most of the characters don't have an excuse to interact anymore, so you can't mix up the pairings week by week. I'll probably keep watching it if I have the time, and the cast are still all doing a fantastic job, but it's not what it used to be.

Repeater

Eh, forced is the word. Why did she have to say the thing about "them/they" in the transgendered conversation, didn't fit. Yer boy going on about oriental... nah, he's in politics, he'd know better than that, very Brent-ish, no having it. Also, why would her daughter physically give her a check? They'd do it online or something more subtle. Pish writing. Nope.

McQ

I've noticed a real dip with this, also, which is odd because I thought they maintained the quality throughout the previous season. I found the latest episode depressingly racist. All the stuff with Selina interacting with the people of Georgia reminded me of the (I felt, unsuccessful) opening scenes of Borat, weirdly. I think you can make it work when you go for laughs by showing racist characters blithely saying things that demonstrate their ignorance, but when a show instead decides to create reductive and unflattering caricatures of foreigners, it pretty much give the game away in terms of who the joke is aimed at.

Repeater

Get the British actors so far to fuck tbh

Dr Rock

Turned it off after 8 minutes. Not the same show and not funny.

remedial_gash

Quote from: magval on April 28, 2017, 11:11:01 PM


It's definitely been Americanized, if there's such a thing. It seems to take a lot of cues from Arrested Development and I'm sure there are other shows it's cribbing from. It even seems to borrow things from, erm, itself, but when it was good. Feels too superficial, likes there's nothing underneath. You'll still catch the odd moment of fleetingly great swearing but there's no bite.

And like has been mentioned here, all of Armando's people seem to be gone now, rather than the 60/40 mix of existing staffers and Mandel's crew from last season.


I too noticed the shift in tone, and I will admit to not really liking the first season, but it was never as reductive as this. I scoured the credits and Will Smith is still listed as a 'consulting producer' but appears to be the only brit involved.

Noodle Lizard

The stuff with Jonah going on dates and being HILARIOUSLY inappropriate was straight out of a completely different show.  What did it have to do with anything?  Also that Georgia episode with the most tired "jacked-up Eastern European country" stereotypes and Stephen Fry turning up in that Blackadder-esque makeup - fuck me.  It's hard to imagine the writing staff on such a prestigious show being quite that desperate.

Still the occasional somewhat funny line, but other than that I think it's probably done.  This is the last season anyway, right?

Repeater

Aye it really is base as fuck now. 

zomgmouse

I have just gone through every single episode in the past several days and while the latest season feels a bit lighter in content and maybe not as tight or electric as some of the previous ones I'm still enjoying watching them all fuck up, down and around in completely different contexts. There's obviously not as much of a situational anchor but I'm having fun.

BlodwynPig

Horrible episode with Fry. Felt like 2 and a Half Men or something.

amnesiac

It's become pure pantomime. Not that there's anything wrong with that! Sally Phillips and JLD sandwich? YES PLEASE

olliebean

I found it amusing that the horrible disfigurement he was supposed to have suffered turned out to be just Fry's normal face with a bit of purple makeup on it.

phantom_power

Christ you lot love your hyperbole don't you. Like a pantomime? Two and a Half Men? Bollocks. This season isn't as good as the last one but there are still plenty of laughs and the characters are pretty much as you would expect.

backdrifter

Quote from: phantom_power on May 04, 2017, 12:12:53 AM
Christ you lot love your hyperbole don't you. Like a pantomime? Two and a Half Men? Bollocks. This season isn't as good as the last one but there are still plenty of laughs and the characters are pretty much as you would expect.

Exactly, but its pretty common around here though right? Something passes its peak and its immediate == 100 holocausts.

RenegadeScrew

Yeah I'm still enjoying it too.  It has become a bit more cartoonish, still some great characters worth pursuing.  Personally I think the change in character from Amy makes a lot of sense - just someone working in a world of cunts who is sick of losing.

BlodwynPig

Quote from: phantom_power on May 04, 2017, 12:12:53 AM
Christ you lot love your hyperbole don't you. Like a pantomime? Two and a Half Men? Bollocks. This season isn't as good as the last one but there are still plenty of laughs and the characters are pretty much as you would expect.

i was referring specifically to the Georgia episode. I think Dan's smugness is the best characterisation.

Dr Rock

Quotebut there are still plenty of laughs and the characters are pretty much as you would expect.

Granted I only watched eight minutes before turning it off, but this was certainly not the case for me. Horses fuck horses.