TV ShowsWatched: The Institute: S1E1 (MGM Plus) with audio description, The Waterfront: S1E6 (Netflix) with audio description, Euphoria: S1E6 (MAX) with audio description, Building The Band: S1E3 (Netflix) with audio description, Kings Of Johburg: S1E5 (Netflix) with audio description, Dexter: S5E5 (Paramount Plus) with audio description, nautilus: S1E2 (AMC Plus) no audio description, and The Guilded Age: S3E4 (HBO MAX) with audio description

Best Episode: The Institute, Runner Up: Euphoria

Best Audio Description: The Institute, Runner Up: The Waterfront

Best performance: Julia Stiles (Dexter), Runner Up: Nathan Lane (The Guilded Age)

Best Moment Of Audio Description: Cooking Up some Self Harm (The institute), TSA Check (Dexter)

The Institute- the new MGM Plus science fiction thriller is from the mind of Stephen King. You don’t need to know that, you’ll be pretty on top of it when you realize it takes place in Maine. Stephen King could write a story about Cleopatra, and somehow she’d be in Maine. Basically, we’re shown two different timelines, with the older version of our lead (Ben Barnes) taking a job as a night knocker (google it), and his teenage self in the past has been kidnapped (they don’t like to use that word) and thrown into a clandestine program for people who show either telekinetic or telepathic possibilities. Mary Louise Parker plays the head of the Institute. The scene is picked was toward the end, when Parker is doing some cooking, dancing, and really specific self harm that was described well. Roy Samuelson is narrating, because he is omnipresent.

The Waterfront- this crime drama featuring a really fun topher Grace kicks it up a notch by not killing someone off, but almost doing it. considering every other episode has whacked a character, it was pretty believable that they almost had a surprising exit. This show has consistently great audio description, and I don’t think I saw that enough.

Euphoria- The question of what is Rue without Jules. Also, the question of who is Nate… really? Good performances from the cast.

building The Band- We heard the first band, then built a second band and heard them as well. turns out two girls actually know each other from something they did as kids. one of them was actually a ringer for Trolls Band Together. One kid did a backflip and almost busted his knees, and I almost gave the audio description props for letting me know.

Kings Of Johburg- this guy uses the panic button on his watch a lot. I wonder when people are going to get wise to his watch. I don’t know how much longer I’ll be watching. I did like the show, and it looked like it would be a revenge drama there for a second, but now it just feels like a South African standard crime drama.

Dexter- You know what, people may hate Lumen, but her panic attack over being touched at the TSA was a nice powerful moment that makes sense for her character. she did some great work here, and the audio description supported her nicely so I’m giving her the accolade.

Nautilus- While finally doing the second episode, i was reminded they don’t speak English all the time in this show, another reason why it would be nice to have audio description. So while I saved it for one more week, because the plot is up my alley, it won’t survive another week on the watchlist. blind people can’t be expected to be fluent in every language, and we can’t see the subtitles.

The Guilded Age- I totally forgot Nathan Lane was on this show until he swooped back in for the wedding with an accent he picked up from Blanche on Golden Girls. I’m totally here for it. i remember loving the few moments he had in previous seasons, and while his screentime is so small, I had to welcome him back. now where is Audra?