I did start up a new show yesterday, We Were The lucky Ones (Hulu). I knew nothing about it, but I wanted to at least have a pilot review. The show takes place just at the onset of WWII, before the Jewish population of Europe really is subjected to what we know is the historical ramification of this period. Obviously, it isn’t a happy show, but this does start with a little bit of naïveté in terms of believing what is still to come. We focus primarily on one family, and the characters in or adjacent to that family. the first episode does a good job of introducing us to these characters. The episode did feel long, like it had no time constraints, and could use however long it needed to accomplish that. To be fair, Shogun’s first episode is feature-length, so this trend is not unique to this show. The cast does a nice job of navigating accents that are not theirs, as this is an American cast full of Logan Lerman, Joey King, and Robin Weigert, all doing some solid accent work. I did not like Mark Ruffalo’s accent in All The Light We Cannot see, so I never take this for granted, especially coming from Lerman, an actor who rarely impresses me.There’s something missing from this show that makes it stand out, and I’m not sure what it is. But, this is a subject matter that is mined frequently. Obviously, The Zone Of Interest immediately comes to mind, but last year at this time we also had A Small Light. Perhaps with time, this show will find stronger footing. While I thought the written narration was quite good, the wrong narrator is attached here. Much like a similar complaint I had with Apples Never Fall, when you have a show with serious subject matter, it’s hard to attach these lighter voices to them. This narrator sounds far more appropriate for a romantic comedy, or a family film than he does a holocaust drama. Even an optimistic one whose title suggests that this cast might survive. It’s his voice that will keep this from rising up, as I am a little at arms length with Apples Never Fall for the same reason. This is a middle tier narration, averaged out by having a well written script.

It has happened. I finished Halo (Paramount Plus), which I’ve been saying is the best described series I’m currently watching. Since I won’t be watching this anymore, until Season 3, I can’t say that anymore. but, this finale went big, introducing a new foe. I have to say I would have loved to see how this virus affected the other half of the known species in this show, instead of just humans. But, a promising third season is ahead, and a big thank you and huge kudos to the team for this narration. Top tier, for one last episode.

I also finished Choir (Disney Plus), which probably ran more episodes than necessary. But, I love music, and I liked this sow enough. I wasn’t a huge fan of the direction of this description, but to continue to punish every successive episode, like they’re going to make some creative shift is just beating a dead horse. I’ll say middle/bottom tier.

I’m still rewatching season 1 of The Tourist (Netflix), because I totally forgot what this was, before I could ever even start the second season. The audio description here is fine, and parts of this come back to me. I am remembering a third to a half or every episode thus far. This is average audio description, so middle tier.

The Girls On The Bus (MAX) just really can’t find its footing as a show. I’m not engaged at all anymore. It is a show that wants to be too many things, and ends up feeeling like none of them. This isn’t the next Sex and the City, nor is it the next West wing or Scandal. It lives in this ambiguous world, and I’m not sure it matters. I think this is a limited series. I can’t see MAX picking this up, considering how conservative they are being about show renewals. Again, mid tier audio description.

It seems like ABC passed all of its audio description onto a new company that isn’t taking nearly the care with most of ABC’s shows as they should be. I say that, because I’m four episodes into The Rookie (Hulu), and it still has really pretty solid audio description, even more so now considering the rest of ABC’s lineup, and the comparative audio description. You can tell there’s maybe a slight change in how the narrator sounds, but the team on this project is doing much better than the other shows. It pays off. There’s a shooting in this episode, and some really dramatic moments play out rather well due to the audio description. II’ll go middle/top on this.

I also caught up on another Veep (MAX) episode, where Selina has to select a new running mate. This show is excellent. The audio description is sparse, as it struggles to come in around the massive amount of dialogue, but it maximizes its potential. I can’t go full out, because there are much more descriptive programs and films out there, and this one is kneecapped from the start by the structure of the program, but it really does try to give as much as it can. Middle/Top tier.