TV Shows Watched: Too Much: S1E5 and S1E6 (Netflix) with audio description, Building The Band: S1E7 (Netflix) with audio description, FUBAR: S2E6 (Netflix) with audio description, Smoke: S1E5 (Apple plus) with audio description, Untamed: S1E1 (Netflix) with audio description, The Daily Show: Monday (Paramount Plus) no audio description

Too Much- Now we’re getting into the meat and potatoes, and instead of just being a straight up raunchy comedy, the heart is being pulled in. Some truly terrific moments as we explore Jessica’s whole past asshole ex-boyfriend. We see this girl we’ve come to love, slowly be emotionally destroyed by her partner, and lose sense of self. It certainly does effect how she is with Felix, and the moment where he’s just playing guitar, and she’s singing and making up a song to make her feel better about her life, was a warm moment in the middle of a very frank series.

Building The band- No disrespect to the other two girls, but I really hope Allison’s group gets the boot. I think even the narration team wants it, or is alluding to it, because we got description about how she specifically wasn’t smiling or clapping for other groups. Then again, the editing on this show for her, has painted her like a Tom Sandoval level foil for the entire series. She’s like the grenade that rolled in the room. They’ll either keep her around so she can cause more destruction, or let her go so she can have a meltdown. Also, shitty editing on the show’s part. you literally put the bands in order worst- to best, and then when they were saved, you couldn’t even mix up the order, so they were declared safe 6,5,4,3, and then we’re left with the first two groups. By the awful editing, it should also mean Alison is toast, since they were keeping from back to front. Oh, and with deepest respect to Liam Payne, who did less of this than Kelly or Nicole, giving shitty feedback that is either “you’re just so green/new/babies” referring to the fact that they are just starting, is not actual feedback. this isn’t a competition of established bands trying to win a prize, everyone is new. that is not a unique comment. Also, “I can see your nerves.” no you can’t. Again, shut up if you don’t have feedback. what you’re reading as nerves is that they a re singing for their lives, which is different than performing for a live audience without recourse. They are also doing it for the first time, and all the groups have no idea where they stand against the other groups in terms of being accepted by actual humans. you don’t see nerves,you see kids trying to stay alive in a Hunger Games format. Want to really change how reality competition happens? Don’t eliminate anyone, work with all six groups, put all six through to the finale, and one wins.

FUBAR- I’d like to see a season finale that kills half the cast, so Season 3 can introduce some better supporting characters for Arnold to play off. I understand he needs his wife/ex wife, and his daughter, because the series would get really dark without them, but I would literally reset the entire rest of the supporting cast if I could, and find him better writers. I was watching Arlen take the pig to get those photos taken, and I was truly wondering how anyone mistook this for character development and/or funny. I love Fortune, but they’re not writing well for her, and jay Baruchel is so poorly utilized in season 2.

Smoke- What a mic drop moment at the end. Just when you think you know where the show is headed, they throw a wrench. I’m avoiding spoilers, but I like how the mystery is taking a twist, and I loved John Leguizamo this episode. Also, I know Pixel logic likes doing this images only thing for credits, but I was literally listening to this episode, and in between Roy narrating an image, I added actors names I knew, and then just repeated names. I was able to fit in a lot of names in those little breaks. Maybe it isn’t possible for all shows, but it is for Smoke. that’s why one size fits all doesn’t really work for audio description. Like, let’s say there’s an Apple Plus show that has an opening credits that is basically a stagnant image, with opening credits on top of it. Would you only do the image, and just fill with dead air while the credits play out simply for consistency purposes? Untamed- The first episode of this Eric Baña mystery/suspense/survival show left me cold. It opens with some rock climbers who are nearly killed by a falling corpse. Then, the mystery around Jane Doe, and how she actually died begins. There are suggestions of animals, dangerous animals, maybe some ties to indigenous cultures, and politics of saying a woman died from an animal attack affecting tourism. At least once a week now, we have an airplane that nearly crashed, or did crash, or had a crash adjacent landing, and people are still flying. Between cancelled flights and delays, the idea you might be in a mid air collision, that shit isn’t deterring anyone. So, if one woman getting attacked by an animal in a national park is somehow a revelation that would cause families to go to Disneyland, I call BS. The thing that made Jaws afffect tourism, was Jaws. The shark was directed to be the central villain of the story, and seemed even more dangerous than your typical shark. They have not even begun to suggest that here. Untamed is not Jaws, but it is boring.