“Happy Birthday Baby!” Talk about Russian Doll on Netflix

and the majesty that is Natasha Lyonne

https://media.giphy.com/media/kKLoC2AdoTftSgzR0O/giphy.gif

Enjoying so far, will wrap up tonight.

Halfway through it. Will post again when we're done, but absolutely wonderful so far.

Saw that the show was originally pitched with a 3 season arc, but I don't know if they condensed all of that down to eight episodes or if they're planning something I can't even fathom at this point.

certainly the best of the current crop of new 2019 tv so far.

finished it yesterday and yeah it was excellent. adored the actress who played Ruth.

solid acting by basically everyone!

if I had to knock anyone's acting in this it's the guy who played Michael, the unholy offspring of Philip Seymour Hoffman and Jack Nicholson.

but I guess he was supposed to be pretty loathsome so maybe mission accomplished

he's the lack of a choice and i thought he did a great job with that

i liked the russian doll concept for the timeloop, and the way her and Alan hinged upon each other

and Natasha truly made it her own, she was fantastic

I posted this on the Netflix thread, worth a repost because it’s so lovely:

Instagram post from Jake Fogelnest a couple of days before the show went up

https://i.imgur.com/azFB33I.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/MCFMLrZ.jpg

truly i have been thinking about this constantly since I finished it on Saturday night though... lots to digest & ruminate on

oh and can we talk about the music!?
🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

I liked that one song

gotta go to bed or something like that

Harry Nilsson!

Who did that cold ass Pretenders cover?

that was joeks VG :)

but seriously the only other song I really recall recognizing was the Cults one

Oh wait, I Go To Sleep is Kinks.

Who did that cold ass Kinks cover?

Lol xxp

Spotify says Anika. Nice, I'll be listening to this on repeat now. brb

A pretty thorough song list here
https://www.popsugar.com/entertainment/Russian-Doll-TV-Show-Soundtrack-45747299

netflix has a playlist of course
https://open.spotify.com/user/midniteblaster/playlist/3M7taBzwvoasEqN3ZinZm6

Posts be disappearing like mirrors in here!

I d i e a l l t h e t i m . e

*falls down the stairs*

but i'm a cheerleader fans: jamie babbit directs episodes 4-6

Noticed that, since it is showing on Mubi now.

I've heard John Maus and also Timber Timbre on the soundtrack

i was p delighted to hear john maus "cop killer" and gang gang dance "mind killa" in the same episode of a show i love

It had the Promise by When in Rome and so therefore it is perfect.

I watched the whole thing today and I LOVED IT. Natasha was perfect and it was so well done and, yes, the music was great.

“the unholy offspring of Philip Seymour Hoffman and Jack Nicholson”

Ha!!!! This works though I just kept thinking chubby Jack. The resemblance was disconcerting!

I liked the fact that they shot so many scenes in or in front of 7B which was also used in Jessica Jones and lots of other stuff and always makes me miss NY.

I want to watch it again!

yeah i am thinking abt rewatching too

Can we talk about spoilers yet because I’m consfused about how we got from episode 7 to 8.

Or maybe I will just watch again.

Yeah sure spoil away I say.

Already forgot the details after weekend binge watch but I seem to remember them coming up with the basic idea of a plan in 7 and then executing it in 8.

I hate it when you're watching a show and there's a weird character like Alan in it and you feel like the show runners are intending for his presence to feel alienating but you are watching him feeling like "omg they put me in a show I feel so seen"

I didn't think he was weird, just very guarded! All of the things he was doing to keep his world in order were interfering with his ability to just live and his projection of structure was giving him faulty answers for why his girlfriend was cheating, etc.

a little too relatable, for sure

I'm only a couple episodes in but my friend did the score. Haven't really heard much of it yet, just the licensed songs, but I assume there's more music later.

you feel like the show runners are intending for his presence to feel alienating

i'm not alan but he doesn't come off this way to me at all

I found him v sympathetic

ENBB OTM re 7B, and NYC in general was well portrayed and felt true with a couple of excusable exceptions.

Apart from that I wasn't ever quite able to lose myself in the show because of the dialogue, which always had the clanky ring of lines that are perfect on the page. In one episode there was a brief exchange about how hard it is to write dialogue.

I did love that so many small passing details in the show weren't there to further the plot, and weren't really red herrings either. Just comfy story furniture.

Oh Jordan I heard a cello thing in ep 6 but that was the only cue I've noticed so far lol

Haha, he always gets these gigs that seem really light on score (the Aziz show being an extreme example). Said he got to do a decent amount for this but idk.

I was gonna rib him for the dubstep beat at the party in the first episode but he denied responsibility. :)

still waiting for some clue as to what elevates this above (or differentiates it from) a charming iteration of Groundhog Day. I mean I enjoyed it and all but

it's got a cat instead of a ground rodent

lol

the major variation seems to be that it's *two* people trapped and their dilemma is resolve not by falling in love, but just looking out for each other

which was also the resolution in Maniac (which I probably liked more than this tbh - or at least found it more consistently surprising)

tbh a lot of it comes down to how much you care about the setting, colors, and Natasha Lyonne. If you're ambivalent, then hey. It's just a well worn concept. However, if all those things are *very* you, this series is way elevated.

I fall into the latter group.

I like all those things and liked this fine ftr

what if i loved this just not as much as happy death day

The difference to me is that it’s not just a straight up repeating the same day for infinity, each loop is the same but slightly shifted in time & time is still ~passing~ (rotting fruit etc)

plus the lynchpin to get out of the loop is much more psychological, ie first doing the emotional work of finding that thing inside themselves that led them to be in the frame of mind they were in when they died in the first place
they have to first go inwards before they can help themselves and the other person

I do feel like this got deeper into, like, the emotional work and psychological reckoning with one's past that it takes to become a better person than Groundhog Day does - part of that probably down to having a longer time-frame to explore the characters, as well not having to hew to a more conventional romcom structure the way GHD does. Lyonne also (maybe) more sympathetic and nuanced than Murray's performance.

what if i loved this just not as much as happy death day

groundhog day > los cronocrimenes > happy death day > live die repeat > russian doll > frequently asked questions about time travel > x-files episode "monday" > run lola run > source code

all of these are great

it's true!

see you in the thread i inevitably make for happy death day 2 u sic

that's an excellent list

now flashing back to spring of my freshman year of college when we rewatched run lola run all the time

los cronocrimenes

lol no. I mean this was okay but

Live Die Repeat (Edge of Tomorrow over here) is great, just cuz the concept is so well constructed and also it's great to watch Tom Cruise die repeatedly.

thx for the tip on Happy Death Day tho!

Cronocrimines is marvelous for the way it doesn't try to dazzle with the loops, taking its slow-ass time on each of them, and especially allowing the audience to get way ahead of the very dipshitted protagonist; all of these acting together to build a sense of dread and inevitability. especially refreshing given how often time-loop films go for lols or a rush during the loops instead.

I'd probably put the Dr Who episode "Heaven Sent" in the top few too, but not sure how well it plays as a standalone: there are two small elements of continuity, which are probably set up enough within the episode but idrce

kinda think you might be able to shoehorn loopers in there somewhere

Bezos Prime link for that one, xpost

Looper is doing something different, as is Back To The Future 2, but I considered them for this list of excellence

Rian Johnson is such an awful filmmaker ugh

remember Source Code?

me neither

oh lol

I now see it was last on sic's list

There was that movie with the Californian UFO death cult where everyone's in a loop except for the protagonists, and also Triangle. Apart from poliziotteschi, this is the best micro-genre imo.

The Invitation?

The Endless!

Russian Doll also shared a Schrodinger's Cat vibe with another California loop-film, Coherence.

Hell, maybe Oatmeal *was* Schrodinger's cat...

Surprise! Lizzy Bougatsos as gutterpunk's accomplice!

Rian Johnson is not an awful filmmaker

forget it man, it’s Shakeytown

Timecrimes >>>>>

unfortunately all the other Vigalondo I've seen fucking sucks (especially Colossal, possibly the worst movie of that year)

Just finished it a little earlier. We were both very taken by it, and in slightly different ways as well, which is good for perspective. I especially enjoyed how episode 7 was horror, but in a way that some blood aside was mostly through tension and setting. (That makes two Netflix things this year that played up horror in different ways without being horror, Fyre being the other.) Kate was sharper on the uptake than I -- she clocked it was Alan in the deli from episode 1 after his character was more properly introduced later, and noticed people disappearing from the party earlier on. (She also immediately recognized JD Samson from Le Tigre as the delivery person!)

Good use of both music selections and cues (h/t to Jordan's friend). The reuse of Nilsson was smart; ending it with "Alone Again Or" a striking final touch.

Greta Lee underrated MVP for having to deliver the same opening line about twenty different ways.

I got all the cameos immediately and thought, in an inside voice, "is Natasha Lyonne trying to middle-finger Blue States Lose and all the people who made fun of electroclash or something" but I missed that it was Alan was stubbing his toes on ramen in the first episode

Headland and Lyonne, meantime, agreed in comments after this thread that this interpretation of it all is kinda key.

Loved Russian Doll, superb story/style, funny performances, go watch it. Since it’s a puzzle piece drama with magical realistic touches, it invites crazy grand unified theories – and I have one! Spoilers and a loooooong thread ahead. Feel free to mute. 1/

— Jason Zinoman (@zinoman) February 4, 2019

i love this theory

that's good thinkin' there

That theory reminds me of some of our discussion on this thread: Teju Cole: Open City (ILX Book Club #3, starts 27 June)

“Kate was sharper on the uptake than I -- she clocked it was Alan in the deli from episode 1 after his character was more properly introduced later, and noticed people disappearing from the party earlier on”

Yeah I knew it was him as soon as he met up with the deli owner buddy to talk about the breakup.

This is better than Groundhog Day because it explored past trauma and it was only after the two of them were able to confront and deal with their own traumas (NL and her realizing she blamed herself for her mom’s death and Alan realizing his part in his bad relationship and forgiving B) that they were truly about to save themselves and break the loop.

I definitely found A weird and a bit alienating.

Oooooh that theory!

Absolutely agreed it's better than Groundhog Day.

Couple of new things here -- Headland called attention to this Twitter thread just now, observing that the same three actors who are the drunk bodega bros also play the EMT crew.

https://www.reddit.com/r/RussianDoll/comments/amq6ys/same_characters_in_different_rolls/?st=JRTINXV4&sh=71311e6f

General reflections piece at The Atlantic, some good points (and indirectly references Zinoman's theory).

https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2019/02/many-layers-russian-doll-netflix/581971/

nothing is better than groundhog day

Also: the final two episodes are called "The Way Out" and "Ariadne." The latter surely refers to the Greek mythological character of the same name, who assists Theseus in killing the Minotaur and quite literally finding 'the way out' of the labyrinth. So: selflessness, assistance, escape from a trap. One thing to note, though, especially if this is supposed to be a three season story (even though I think it could simply stand alone): there's no one story on what happens TO Ariadne after that moment. This link has more on those variants:

https://www.greekmythology.com/.../Ariadne/ariadne.html

yeah Ariadne uh does not get a happy ending

Anyway, until the hopefully inevitable screencap/subtitle Twitter fan account, this for now:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DyvmxbrUYAELgkz.jpg:large

Ned, I can't remember, was it Alan that misstated her thesis?

That reads kind of differently after all of his issues with control and intimacy are kind of laid bare. He's not really a dude who could pull off joking about not remembering his girlfriend's work

Ned, I can't remember, was it Alan that misstated her thesis?

yes he thought it was about philip roth

dude's so busy trying to keep the appearance of a healthy relationship and tidy home he forgot to do the actual relationship

can i just say that maxine is an incredible character

just a very accurately and entertainingly-drawn new york archetype

i feel like i know five people who would become her if you combined them

Very good read on the fashion choices.

https://fashionista.com/2019/02/netflix-russian-doll-costumes-outfits

Reading that Twitter theory re: gentrification, it made Lizzy's appearance at the end as Horse's friend somewhat more meaningful-- a LES fixture for years displaced to upstate several years back by rising cost of living

A friend of me thinks that both Nadia (and possibly also Alan) are dead throughout the entire series. I disagree, but I'm trying to understand the smoking (beyond being another signifier for a previous time, I've never seen people smoke in a contemporary environment the way they did in this series. At first I thought it might be another signifier for "the Bohemian 80s" but idk

I assumed that Lyonne just smokes so much still that it had to be included in the show

tbh a lot of it comes down to how much you care about the setting, colors, and Natasha Lyonne. If you're ambivalent, then hey. It's just a well worn concept. However, if all those things are *very* you, this series is way elevated.

I fall into the latter group.

― Johnny Fever, Tuesday, 5 February 2019 18:55 (two days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

ambivalent vote here but herself loved it. i had ironing to do anyways.

rhian johnson movies are good

nothing better than groundhog day

manaic was good

thats my catchup with thread carry on

I assumed that Lyonne just smokes so much still that it had to be included in the show

wow I just assumed she was committed to the part

lol you don’t get that awesome gravelly speaking voice as a 36yo without a longstanding smoking habit

Extremely good interview with her here

https://www.rollingstone.com/tv/tv-features/natasha-lyonne-russian-doll-interview-785346/

her references & source materials are so varied & interesting! i have read interviews with her in the past & she always seemed like a walking compendium of cool movies & books <3

and i like the idea that the journey of the show is somewhat a mirror of an addict’s journey like she mentions

I just screened The Long Goodbye for some friends of mine this past weekend, 28 hours after I binged this, so that's a bit spooky

*48 lol

Couple of good further pieces here -- the second one is also an interview with the show's designer, many good tidbits.

https://www.vulture.com/2019/02/russian-doll-easter-eggs-hidden-references.html

https://www.vulture.com/2019/02/russian-doll-bathroom-set-production-design.html

Best possible answer to this enduring question

This was one of those things we did for real and in the aftermath realized would’ve been easy to fake. But also it was the right thing to do bc I wanted to feel like Rocky. https://t.co/KTeM3HcHVU

— natasha lyonne (@nlyonne) February 7, 2019

watched the whole thing tonight, liked it a lot

also i want alex in nyc to see it

halfway thru this and so much good about it. loving it. and great music throughout. i'll read this thread more thoroughly when i'm done.

one detail i can't help think was intentional: the air conditioner unit that falls on them is a goodman. it flashes so quickly when it falls, but that's what ours is at home and i recognized it in that flash. considering the theme of the episode, it's gotta be intentional. i've joked on it too. posted a pic of it on instagram with a "hey, i found one!" joek.

am i crazy or does the bathroom at the birthday party change around ep 5? it's getting bigger? mirror orientation different?

the bathroom changes multiple times!

the second of Ned's links goes into that

Wait, why should I see this, specifically?

set in LES, has a distinct 80's/90's sensibility

So you can blog about it and give it a thumbs up or thumbs down as to whether it jibes with your NYC experience as the original UES punk.

Only a few episodes in so far but everyone in this show is that impossibly hip person I'll see and wonder how they seem to effortlessly surround themselves with perfectly cool and unique fashion/decor/music. Her character is so unconventional too; based on her style and way of speaking I was convinced the show was set in the 80s until someone mentioned twitter or something about a minute into the first episode. Trying to ignore past posts in this thread due to potential spoilers.

interesting take; i found every single person on the show to be the sort of person i go out of my way to completely avoid. Everyone is self-involved and/or self-destructive; kinda thought that malaise was the point!

except maybe her stepmother, but she's mostly a mess too!

i should finish, take it all in, and then check out the links, apparently. xp

I'm talking more about their style and homes etc. not their personalities- agree they're all a bit screwy in that regard. Again only a few eps in.

Or sorry maybe you were responding to a post above mine? Trying not to read too much here yet afraid to ruin something for myself

i myself go to fabulous nyc parties like this all the time, but never on a sunday night. was there a reason for this beyond, like, having the code review meeting or ruth taking appointments the very next day?

it's her birthday!

We watched the first episode, it's a little too NEW YORK!!!!!! but we liked it and will watch more.

yeah but you hold the party on saturday and celebrate at midnight

you do if you're WEAK

I liked that the friend hosting the party was played by the actress who was Heidi on High Maintenance

That fan theory above is good in that it does something to explain the otherwise inexplicable ending with the puppet heads. And Lyonne's inexplicably "80s" style of speech -- as he says, not only does she reference her love for Andrew Dice Clay (a bizarrely anachronistic thing for someone in 2019 NYC to do) she talks like Andrew Dice Clay and not like people you meet in New York now.

I def think this is a horror movie! I like its frankness about the fact that either surviving OR successfully suiciding out are basically fine and OK outcomes compared to looping

Enjoying this. I like how it feels like a fantasy melange of early 00s and contemporary LES/East Village as parties like this were familiar to me - minus the recurring stuff - back in the early 2000s. Different NYC.
Have met NL a couple of times in the past via mutual acquaintances and she was always awesome. Happy for her and whatever success this brings.

I've now seen three or four episodes of this and really like it so will watch the rest. But I've known Zinoman for 25 years (we went to school together) and for whatever reason was hearing about his grand unified theory from lots of places, so popped into his feed to see what's up. I skipped to the end to avoid spoilers, but I saw that the first comment was from NL more or less saying OTM.

prob worth noting that the "fan theory" is from the NYTimes comedy critic

lol my best friend, watching on my recommendation, absolutely hated this

at least his wife liked it

A further thread

I have something to add to @zinoman's brilliant grand unified theory about Russian Doll, one of the most exciting things I've viewed in years. My addition, like his, has to do with Tompkins Square Park. His thread is about 1991. Mine is about 1974. Spoiler + long thread alert! 1/ https://t.co/n2ks8OHc3q

— Christopher DeWeese (@lighghghght) February 10, 2019

ooh I’m into that theory v much

This is so good.

love it

I kind of want to live in that bathroom.

All you have to do is die

I liked this series a lot, and like people said upthread, it felt like a more true-to-life variation of Groundhog Day with less romcom clichés, of what kind of work it takes to learn out of ones hurtful habits and try to change as a person... What I didn't like, though, was the extra plot twist they added in the final episode, that was needlessly convoluted and didn't feel natural the way the rest of the plot progression synced with the protagonists tackling their issues.

The ending of the penultimate episode was really the emotional climax of the story, so I didn't quite get what was the point of adding that extra drama on top of it? It almost felt like the writers, knowing that the series would be compared to Groundhog Day, and realising their ending was pretty much the same as in GH too, decided to add the extra twist so they could be like, "See, it isn't the GH plot after all?". But it didn't work for, IMO the final episode should've just been about how they're rebuilding their lives after the whole ordeal.

Having them end up in the same timeline at the end would've robbed them of the opportunity to save each other's lives, which was, in part, the whole genesis of the glitch.

Um, I kind of agree with Tuomas

The series would've been immensely weakened were the two timelines not divergent imo

i myself go to fabulous nyc parties like this all the time, but never on a sunday night.

This is by far the most unbelievable part of the show.

Like, just say she had to come in and do a bug fix on Sunday, it's much more believable and less distracting.

I remember lots of stuff going on Sunday nights. Friday and Saturdays were for tourists and bridge and tunnel (when I was younger).

yeah, not only would the divergent / ambiguity about divergence in the big metaphorical???? parade ending be drastically weaker, it would make the second series thuddingly bathetic

(if they do make one, which seems likely given the reaction; I'm fine if they don't, but Headland and Lyonne get commissioned to make something else new instead)


xp nah, so much of her character and milieu is IMMEDIATELY filled in by the fact that a) she doesn't want a birthday party b) rich artist friends throw her a huge party c) on her actual birthday because that is her birthday d) nearly exclusively full of people she's never set eyes on before e) that she goes to anyway regardless of her antipathy, the absence of friends, and having a major work deadline in the morning.

plus f) the way she handles the meeting when she turns up

i've thrown several birthday parties on sunday nights. monday sucked ass yeah

Horse Badorties is such a great name and I've been thinking about it all day

The idea of them making "season 2" of this is absurd and I hope nobody is actually thinking about doing it, so few things end well and this one does.

Lyonne & Headland & Poehler have a three-season plan, so they’re the ones you have to tell are getting it wrong.

They *pitched* a 3 season plan, but we don't know how much it got condensed to give us the season we got.

Yeah, not looking forward to further seasons

Well I do have great faith in them based on this, so if they came in with a 3-season plan, I trust there's a good reason for it. But if they are feeling compelled to scramble to come up with something because everybody likes this so much, then no, I think they should let this ending be the ending and do something else.

Just finished, and I adored it, but yeah, I really hope they don't do a second season. This was a full story in itself, what the hell would be the point?

if they came in with a 3-season plan, I trust there's a good reason for it. But if they are feeling compelled to scramble to come up with something because everybody likes this so much, then no, I think they should let this ending be the ending and do something else.

This sums up my feelings much better than my own post, actually.

Friday and Saturdays were for tourists and bridge and tunnel (when I was younger).

These people are too old for Sunday night blowouts

This is a ludicrous thing to be pedantic about, people party on Sundays

Natasha lyonne is in her 30s

In the show. She's about to be 40 irl.

She's about to be 40 irl.

So... she's in her 30s, then?

My "when I was younger" thing was more about NYC (pre-internet loneliness_ gentrification) than about age really.

She’s 39, apparently.

So you’re all right!

Sorry, I'm just trying to claim her for our side (forty-somethings).

Just wait a little under two months.

The best thing about nyc was how 30-40-80 somethings would still go out on school nights.

Having them end up in the same timeline at the end would've robbed them of the opportunity to save each other's lives, which was, in part, the whole genesis of the glitch.

Mainlined this entire thing last night, thoughts and impressions still percolating but one thing I keep coming back to is that, for reasons I can't quite pin down, this felt like a Jaime Hernandez story to me (which is super high praise). Possibly because I haven't seen anyone on screen better capture the essence of Hopey Glass than Natasha Lyonne (who should probably win all the awards).

Interesting comparison. I've always wondered who would be good actresses to play Maggie and Hopey.

Probably end up with Emma Stone and ScarJo.

Probably end up with Emma Stone and ScarJo.

at one point there was something caught in nadia's hair -- what was it, i didn't catch it

Champagne cork wire

later turned into a bistro chair, which people do.

Enjoying this. I like how it feels like a fantasy melange of early 00s and contemporary LES/East Village as parties like this were familiar to me - minus the recurring stuff - back in the early 2000s. Different NYC.

About to go back and re-read thread now that I finished the series yesterday but I just wanted to co-sign this ^ hard. NL's style and the party (smoking indoors incessantly lol) and the version of the LES (Odessa??!) portrayed are basically point-for-point out of the late 90s/early 00s that I remember. Pre-electroclash rockers everywhere, like no colors existed other than black, white, and red, somewhere in between mod revival and 70s glam. The vintagey blouses, the sharp-toed boots--and going clubbing on Sunday nights in defiance of Monday mornings. (Shout was on Sundays!)

It made me really happy and nostalgic tbrr.

From something someone said on fb I think the name "Horse" was a shout-out to an actual person from pre-gentrification LES days.

Oh I didn't realize both Veselka and Odessa still existed. For some reason I thought at least one of them had closed.

I just watched Ocean's 8 on the plane and they oddly eat at Veselka.

YES I watched that yesterday too! lol

Odessa bar closed, diner is still there. I djd Karen O’s 21st birthday party in her apt above Odessa but she and her friends including one ex-ilxor were more interested in hanging out on the roof with some Shout dudes.

Also saw a FB friend talking about Tompkins park gutter punk named Horse and assuming it was a tribute but I like the book theory above. Could be all if the above. Happy to accept this show as working on several different levels and angles.

He will always be Warren to me.

Warren G Horsey

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/25/arts/television/natasha-lyonne-netflix-russian-doll.html?fbclid=IwAR0DSYQQp2Pbm6ohGqXalDnUxRQ4Bs3npUHSufycDniNU0N1u9arfLGNpTw

the gutter punk who’s not based on a real character from my life that I know from Tompkins

https://www.facebook.com/whorse.krapp?__tn__=%2CdK-R-R&eid=ARCMKF0zUSWuvYcKUWww_baZWCTX0lASiHclMBp3VLc_wlzdcPIdjW-ajhLhlzV2Lg6jQcq4L1soGOLL&fref=mentions

lol, he posts his phone number there

I've read every single link posted here about the show. Love it all.

heh I'll never forget the time in early 2000 when I went to a party near the New York University campus near Greenpoint, Brooklyn (sort of by the Pies and Thighs restraunt) and I accidentally walked into a bedroom where Karen O from The Yeah Yeah Yeahs was having sexual intercourse with Julian Casabalancas from The Strokes. OMG! parties back then were really wild and crazy, with many sex and drugs! fun times

is it "Happy Birthday Baby" or "Sweet Birthday Baby!" which one does the Asian woman say

i think she says both? confirm/deny?

the latter

imago, did you know that VegemiteGrrl's thread is incorrectly titled "Happy Birthday Baby!" and not "Sweet Birthday Baby!," which is the correct reference to the show? you might want to correct her so that you can be correct and feel good about it

fbclid=IwAR0DSYQQp2Pbm6ohGqXalDnUxRQ4Bs3npUHSufycDniNU0N1u9arfLGNpTw

heh I'll never forget the time in early 2000 when I went to a party near the New York University campus near Greenpoint, Brooklyn (sort of by the Pies and Thighs restraunt) and I accidentally walked into a bedroom where Karen O from The Yeah Yeah Yeahs was having sexual intercourse with Julian Casabalancas from The Strokes. OMG! parties back then were really wild and crazy, with many sex and drugs! fun times

― del griffith, Monday, February 11, 2019 12:47 PM (twelve minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

She was giving HIM the strokes and he was singing HER some yeah yeah yeahs in return?

they were porking

Y'all are savvy so I'm probably not telling you anything you didn't already know, but I only realized because I saw his name in the credits that Horse was portrayed by

http://images2.fanpop.com/image/photos/12800000/Welcome-To-The-Dollhouse-brendan-sexton-12875721-570-359.jpg

And that is...?

It's you.

Warren (as mentioned above).

I don't like that julian casablancas fanfic.

Now re-reading it, I can't tell if it's supposed to be a parody or not.

a parody of my post? I couldn't tell either. I thought maybe it was true. But was pies and thighs ever near greenpoint? And did Karen and the Strokes ever hang out in Williamsburg? I dunno.

i don't think it was ever near greenpoint and the NYU campus part???

New York University is located near the house where comedian Ray Ramano grew up, in the Bronx.

Pies & Thighs started out in the kitchen of Rockstar Bar fwiw--does that count as near Gpt? :\ In any case: ew.

oh, i see, it is made up, which is also ew.

entertainment weekly?

actually, I think Yerac meant ew as in guh-ross! guh-rody! barf-eroo!

Why sure:

"I would love to see a [#RussianDoll] episode devoted completely to Oatmeal, in which you see everything through his lens. A Christmas special or something" https://t.co/q1a5M3evwo

— Vulture (@vulture) February 11, 2019

Quote aside, that's a very good interview with Charlie Barnett.

An Oatmeal episode would be amazing.

Karen O definitely hung around in Wsburg, as did the rest of the YYY's. Talking 2005 or thereabouts.

Finished watching and really loved this. Fantasy NYC made by people who actually lived/live there and not by some committee of "creatives" in LA or somewhere. Kudos.

The ending reminded me a lot of the ending to Bruno Dumont's "Coincoin et les Z'inhumaines", too. Sort of a creepy jubilation.

Warren (as mentioned above).

ah, Warren, the most famous mononymic pop culture figure ever

I know nick and Brian did, but Karen was really an east village type. Especially earlier in on the timeframe mentioned, when she lived on A and people would go to Shout. Don’t want to get to serious bout a stupid post but I stand by the belief that Karen and the strokes weren’t hanging out in greenpoint in the early 2000s!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meet_Me_in_the_Bathroom

Yeah that’s the book where Karen drops my name.

I'm Salvatore Principato from Liquid Liquid and I hooked up with the drummer from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and the keyboard player guy from Oneida one night in April 2000 after hanging out at Union Pool and then having a nutritious meal at Pies and Thighs. Karen O joined us later but I don't really like to talk about it. Things really changed in New York City after 9/11, when a jet engine demolished Sonic Youth's studio. It became very difficult to find horse tranquilizer at parties in the Red Hook neighborhood of the Bronx, for instance. But we still had a good time. Congratulations to Laurie Anderson on her Grammy.

James Murphy owes me $1,400 btw.

Carlos D from the Interpols doesn't even know how to properly eat a slice of pizza properly, and furthermore, he has herpes. Also, James Murphy always has bad breath. Read my column about it on Gothamist.

Hilarious stuff.

know who does know how to eat a slice of pepperoni pizza the right way? like, REALLY eat it? the members of the rock groups Blues Control and Endless Boogie. FUCK! they can't get enough

this is why it's good they have more women in writers' rooms.

cute couple alert!

http://assets-s3.usmagazine.com/uploads/assets/articles/76864-natasha-lyonne-and-fred-armisen-are-dating-details/1409092486_natasha-lyonne-fred-armisen-dating-article.jpg

It'd be real cool if you weren't doing what you're doing itt.

Yeah, what the heck is your problem?

love to clown people for having lived in a place where a large number of other people also lived, some of them notable

i mentioned the goodman hvac compressor falling from roof crushing them both upthread. if memory serves, it was from alan's roof. goodman. roof. leaping. pretty dang corny. but still loved it.

https://www.thecut.com/2019/02/interview-with-rebecca-henderson-lizzie-on-russian-doll.html

This was very good, but I want to vociferously complain about the flatly inaccurate code review scene. Group code reviews, who ever has heard of such a thing!

are you being sarcastic or

if it’s wrong i hope it was a deliberate nerd annoying move

Not sarcastic. Doesn't matter though.

I AM NOT A NERD.

sounds like something a nerd would say

Someone with the d/n "Zelda: Broth of the Wild" is definitely not a nerd.

I’ve done group code reviews and also been the one doing “oh shit you’re right I can fix that” typing in the middle of the meeting

no need to guess which character I related to

I stand corrected!

I just liked the fact that the word “unit test” was said

The words. Or the word “unittest,” if you like.

I've watched two episodes of this so far and am not reading the rest of the thread in fear of spoilers, but need to know: am I going to be sick of Schmilsson by the time I'm through?

Yes.

No

Nes

Yo.

Look, do you have a heart? If so, this show will not make you sick of Schmilsson.

I've been playing it every morning when my spouse wakes up.

I finished this show a week a ago and definitely still keep getting that song stuck in my head

xp

that seems mean to me

I'm into the Nilsson alarm clock idea

I seriously considered that very thing myself.

There is no song in existence that I would not eventually hate if it played every day as I was waking up

(But then I probably would come to hate the song very quickly so no.)

Ha, yes, that.

He smiles really big when he hears it.

He has a swiss cheese memory so he still forgets that it's going to happen.

on a tangential note, Brad's enthusiasm for "Happy Death Day" on this thread prompted me to watch that one. thanks, Brad!

yeah, i'm taping as it's on today/tomorrow on FX

I had the sensation when watching this that it wasn't Groundhog Day at all but the real feeling of waking up to the same routine every morning and starting to feel like your life was getting repetitious

Just that Nadia died at the end of the day instead of falling asleep

And the rotting fruit and veg is a metaphor for one's own decaying body

on a tangential note, Brad's enthusiasm for "Happy Death Day" on this thread prompted me to watch that one. thanks, Brad!

― mh, Wednesday, February 13, 2019 8:22 AM (thirty-eight minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

welcome to the fold

https://i.gifer.com/QUEK.gif

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gWtrnb4KjU

I had the sensation when watching this that it wasn't Groundhog Day at all but the real feeling of waking up to the same routine every morning and starting to feel like your life was getting repetitious

Just that Nadia died at the end of the day instead of falling asleep

And the rotting fruit and veg is a metaphor for one's own decaying body

I came to this same conclusion! Like all good horror, it's about not really about something imaginary, just the horror of actual everyday experienced slightly displaced so it becomes visible again.

as someone who once set his wife's phone to play "I Got You Babe" when her alarm went off on Groundhog Day, I approve of all Nilsson hijinks.

This show has introduced me to Light Asylum, who is pretty much awesome

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kB4qc7y-o60

She's dating Fred Armisen? :/

for the last five years, says google

I know. If any dude defines "punchable face" to me he's up there with Pav1 Dan0.

Gosh - that last post was a grammatical monstrosity.

* For me FA is up there with PD in the "MostvPunchable Face" celeb category.

the last episode of this was lovely. i can't think of many series that nailed the ending like that.

So in the world of this show, does everyone who isn't in therapy have to relive their last day over and over until they find someone else who's in the same situation and convince them that they should have gone to therapy?

Light Asylum is awesome, Shannon was a key participant in The Knife's live show on their most recent tour

gonna drop the name to say I dj'd a party with her (and martin from a certain ratio) and run the risk of being attacked for being a new york scenester. She also used to sing with !!!.

Need a comprehensive list of all the music in season 1

google is my friend: https://www.tunefind.com/show/russian-doll

not read the full thread yet but

It had the Promise by When in Rome and so therefore it is perfect.

otm!

In the final episode or two, Alan says a few times that he needs to stop Nadia making harmful decisions or something, but the first time round it's just drunkness/carelessness that causes her to die - as opposed to his decision killing him? but there seems to be a fair bit made of her going home with Mike with no condoms and he clearly shags around so is that supposed to indicate this is a potentially lethal decision? idk just suddenly seemed a bit 'out of nowhere'.

I did notice Alan was the deli guy in ep1, yay me

The engagement ring scene was cool

The rotting fruit (but only on the outside!) / other changes as the loops went on were the creepiest thing, I loved it. And when it's just Maxine at the party and she says 'I can't.' [go with you]. I like the 'saving memory space' idea v much.

Meeting Alan in the elevator was like when they met the tail section guys in Lost lol

.@nlyonne I think I found a way to get that party chicken cooked that fits in perfectly with the storyline. #RussianDoll #Netflix #sweetbirthdaybaby pic.twitter.com/39YwGuysfe

— Deb Amlen (@DebAmlen) February 18, 2019

watched the whole thing last night. my theory is that Nadia and Alan are the only real people living in a crashing simulation. This explains why they are linked. this is also supported by the last loop, in which nadia asks maxine to come with her and maxine just says "i can't" - she's not real. Like kinder said above, maybe this and the disappearing people/objects have to do with the simulation running out of memory space due to the crash. I kind of wish that they went a little further with this - i was waiting for an ethereal and psychedelic breaking down of reality, but it never really came in full force. in one of the interviews linked above, NL says that they wanted to things with CG that they didn't have the budget for - maybe this was one of those this things?

Maxine at one point does leave the apartment with Nadia and her other friend, though.

I'm still kind of sad about the resolution! It's optimistic but the end result is they each lose a friend and have a task: their inner conflicts have reached some point of resolution and in return it's their job to fix their companion, who never knew them

Is it? Note their clothing -- the final shot has them as the 'fixed' Nadia and Alan.

Yeah I completely missed that on first viewing. she also seems to pass two 'previous' versions of herself.

I was convinced towards the end each one would have to die saving the other so I'm just happy they made it alive

Maxine at one point does leave the apartment with Nadia and her other friend, though.

― A Grape Ape Agape (Leee)

yeah, but that was during a previous loop before things had deteriorated as badly as they had in the last loop

I took the final shot, with the parades of people from both sides merging into one, to be kind of symbolic

In retrospect, reality collapsing down to bring them back together seems just as possible

Well this was the best thing I've ever seen on Netflix

(The 2nd best was the first season of American Vandal)

pretty sure the ending is meant to be ambiguous/unresolved. unless or until there are further seasons, of course

i mean, 'alone again or'

i thought the ending was meant to suggest that the "alphas" and "betas" of the pairs have found each other and are on their own corrected trajectories; bug fixed
good luck with a second season there i suppose but hell, happy death day 2 is happening so there's clearly no limit to the public interest in seeing these kind of speculative universes play out

One prosaic thing: people keep talking about the depletion of people at the party as the loops go on, but not the fact that when Maxine explains it away but saying "It's only 9pm" she has a point. In the first loop it's mentioned that it's 00:02 (assuming that's what she means when she says she turned 36 two minutes ago). In the second loop Ruth says it's 11-ish. Obviously the depletion is eerie as fuck when it gets to just Maxine but the whole thing is tied in with the loop starting earlier and earlier, right?

Getting a real kick out of rewatching this, not least for little things about Natasha Lyonne's performance that I missed the first time. Latest joy: when the ketamine doc asks "Is there a history of mental illness in your family", the way she replies "That's not it". And the colour scheme in that scene.

tt is watching this and I have to say, Episode 1 features a song off Weyes Blood's PREVIOUS not-even-famous album so basically I'm in favour of this now

One prosaic thing: people keep talking about the depletion of people at the party as the loops go on, but not the fact that when Maxine explains it away but saying "It's only 9pm" she has a point. In the first loop it's mentioned that it's 00:02 (assuming that's what she means when she says she turned 36 two minutes ago). In the second loop Ruth says it's 11-ish. Obviously the depletion is eerie as fuck when it gets to just Maxine but the whole thing is tied in with the loop starting earlier and earlier, right?

Also, I'm pretty sure the time of her work meeting that she gets a text about keeps changing as she loops and loops (I think getting steadily later?)

Been looking at the fruit and flowers this time, expecting them to see them gradually getting more and more tired but they look just fine to me until the shot of the dead flowers that ends episode 2 (when she's in the loop after dying the ambulance crash). So not sure what kicks that off.

I didn't really follow the four-dimensional orange conversation but it was pretty cool either way

was there an explanation why Alan was in the elevator where he met Nadia. it wasn't part of his normal activities which I thought he was doing every loop until then, right?

i thought it was implied that he had been going to visit his mom each time until he met nadia

ah ok. i didn’t put it together that his mom was in that building.

Anyone else have a problem opening this thread on Flagging app for Android?

Nope. Occasionally threads don't load for me but this one's fine.

Yes, kinder, almost reported it last week but then it cleared up for me.

fwiw i'm very glad that mentioning alex in nyc a while back quickly summoned him to thread. the fire must be ever honoured

plus that tompkins square gentrification allegory theory c'mon dude!

I really enjoyed this. It was a pleasure to watch something so well executed - there is not a wasted minute in any episode (the short run times probably helped with that). The ending is very satisfying - certainly happy (yah! they're not dead), but tinged with a sadness of how hard the happy ending was to achieve (or the implications of what the resolution might mean for them) - ambiguous without being ostentatious about it (like Sopranos).

*unlike Sopranos"

alex in nyc has reported back (or on fb) if he likes it or not, right? I am wagering he likes it.

I realized I don't like the Alan character or maybe the portrayal at all.

ugh, that was supposed to be a question and not a doubtful statement above.

watching episode 1 now, finally.

:D

Preemptive warning: it gets better.

Episode 5. This gets better and better

It's hilarious that Episode 7 of this and Episode 7 of True Detective S3 both kinda do the same thing, at the start.

Man, wow.

(The "two Episode 7s" comparison relates to each introducing a new time period.)

In the final episode or two, Alan says a few times that he needs to stop Nadia making harmful decisions or something, but the first time round it's just drunkness/carelessness that causes her to die - as opposed to his decision killing him? but there seems to be a fair bit made of her going home with Mike with no condoms and he clearly shags around so is that supposed to indicate this is a potentially lethal decision? idk just suddenly seemed a bit 'out of nowhere'.

I did notice Alan was the deli guy in ep1, yay me

The engagement ring scene was cool

The rotting fruit (but only on the outside!) / other changes as the loops went on were the creepiest thing, I loved it. And when it's just Maxine at the party and she says 'I can't.' [go with you]. I like the 'saving memory space' idea v much.

― kinder, Saturday, February 16, 2019 4:44 PM (one week ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Am I losing my mind, or did Mike say something about AIDS at some point?

yeah he talked about nyc critic culture being wiped out

- i was waiting for an ethereal and psychedelic breaking down of reality, but it never really came in full force

Maybe *that's* where S2 goes?

This is definitely a show that I'm sad will continue - it would be perfect as a self-contained single season.

I think so too, but all parties involved seem to be hinting at more to come.

This destroyed me, like properly sobbing at the end and for a good while after.

And Sunday night was the wildest night of the week in Glasgow for a good twelve years, because - Optimo! which was a pool of a few thousand people, 400 or so at a time and many of whom went every week, or almost every week and went to work on Monday too.

Often straight to work after a post-club house party.

I got told in Western Australia that Sunday piss-ups are the main thing there because "if you're going to be hungover it's better on someone else's time and not your own."

bless

having not lived in NYC for a number of years and having just recently seen this, it was sort of a weird sensation walking around LES last night, niagara, Tompkins sq park etc.

Raymond, I don't think going raw (sex sans condoms) is a lethal choice. Not in the short run. It is just a symptom of her personality: she avoids control, is wild, doesn't care if she dies (as opposed to the guy, he wants to be in control all the time)

I thought this was a fantastic show. It's clearly about herself. Semi-autobiographical. Told my husband this show is so me: the way it works even better (or adds another layer) if you know the actors. (My husband doesn't know nor cares ab the ppl behind it. So he "misses" that. Not that it's essential.) I was so hyper after the ending. Thom told me: just stop, you make me feel stupid. :-(

talking to a friend of mine about this last night (who i was walking around with in east village!) we agreed that the casting, in particular the casting of the MEN, was absolutely incredible.

i think this deserves a rewatch I absolutely loved it and i'd like to see what i pick up on a second viewing

Shout out for helping me identify sample at beginning of Saint Etienne's 'Avenue'

I'm gen in love with Natasha Lyonne. Does that mean I have to watch OITNB? That's something I never expected to have to or want to do.

I'm fully on board with the crew that hopes this doesn't develop into another season or seasons. It's just a perfect thing as it is.

But I want more Lyonne.

The first few seasons of OITNB are genuinely great, and Lyonne is one of the best characters in it.

I watched a few eps of OINTB but didn't like it. The only other things I've seen her in are American Pie 1 & 2, But I'm a Cheerleader, and Party Monster. What's some good stuff she's been in?

Slums of Beverly Hills

^this

Detroit Rock City

slums of beverly hills is amazing with an unbelievable cast: lyonne, marissa tomei, alan arkin, david krumholtz, jessica walters, kevin corrigan, carl reiner.

this fuckin’ ruled, wanna watch it all over again

I liked and didn't like this in about equal measure--liked it more towards the end. Nice ending, especially Love. The actress who played Beatrice reminded me of Diahnne Abbott.

I thought you meant Diane Abbott for a moment there

There's another dia(ah)ne abbott? Does the not uk labour party have a twitter account lok

Also, "Beatrice", lol screenwriters

I didn't know about the politician Diane Abbott till last night. The actress (King of Comedy, Taxi Driver, De Niro's ex):

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZDRhZTY1ZWQtZTU3Yi00MmZiLWFhMTYtNzkyOTdhODU5MTFkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjUxMjc1OTM@._V1_SX1777_CR0,0,1777,962_AL_.jpg

Someone on Twitter suggested that Natasha Lyonne would make a great Columbo and she said she'd be up for it. That would be quite the thing.

that... actually makes a lot of sense, twitter user otm

I should mention my favourite, most timely joke: it involved the word "problematic."

"a very tough lady, who looked like if Andrew Dice Clay and the little girl from Brave made a baby"?

That was the beginning of the joke--it was the second half I loved, the thing she said as an aside.

Right, I gotcha.

Just finished bingeing this - perfect show. Loved the entire aesthetic - costuming, staging, music - and loved Natasha and everyone else. Loved that is was fun and dark and not dragged out and not too heavy.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D0k6CA4X0AA_L8y.jpg:small

http://www.splitscreensfestival.com/event/inside-russian-doll-a-guided-tour-of-time-space-death-and-resurrection/

Natasha Lyonne's #RussianDoll renewed for season 2 at Netflix https://t.co/NXJ7TRfMbv @nlyonne @RussianDoll pic.twitter.com/e6adX1Oj3E

— Hollywood Reporter (@THR) June 11, 2019

fuck yes

https://www.dropbox.com/s/k9tkqz6dlfyq3ts/IMG_1858.jpg?raw=1

I drew my friend this birthday card.

Can you view that?

Yup

:)

haha

Perfect.

love it

btw is yr display name a tribute to darraghmac?

Mine, kinder? If so I thought I came up with a good joke but may have actually forgotten that darraghmac came up with it!

I remembered it being a deems display name but can only find cutty using it (in 2010 so ripe for a resurgence!)

haha!

i feel as if i may finally adopt an air of justified injured innocence tyvm

Forgive the thread spam, but I wanted to note that this show's 2019 season is nominated in the 2019 ILX TV poll:

ILX's Best Television of 2019 Poll / VOTING AND CAMPAIGNING THREAD / Voting Ends January 31

If you like this show and you'd like to see it have a good showing in the poll (running in February) all you need to do is submit a ballot including it and your other favorites (4 minimum, 25 maximum, organized by your favorite to least favorite) to forksclovetofu at gmail by end of day today. It'll take five minutes; get to it!

S2 drops on 4/20.

yaaaaaaaay

The first series feels like a decade ago.

i am def gonna do a S1 rewatch

*jaunty piano music intensifies*

I probably said as much earlier: having a hard time seeing how they extend this into another season. (Can't remember if the end of the first set that up.)

It didn't. That one reason I want to see how they justify it.

When they cast Annie Murphy I figured it would be about her, but I guess it once again stars Natasha Lyonne?

i dearly hope they do not try to build off the prior season and just do something different

Surely they would have to. Maybe a new decade, like they do on For All Mankind.

It's set 4 years later. There's other information out there, but not sure if people want to reveal that stuff here

I have to say I rewatched this recently and, despite really liking it the first time, I found it borderline unbearable until Charlie Barnett shows up

I kinda don’t want to know anything about what’s going to happen, gonna dive in when S2 surfaces

Goddamn. This is gonna be a year of returning TV for me innit

I keep thinking that people are talking about the other Charlie Barnett and getting confused: https://www.vulture.com/2012/03/timing-is-everything-the-story-of-charlie-barnett.html

Two weeks to go...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvEyUOoLehI

So we will see andmoreagain after all.

Haven't played the trailer, but that's the post-Mitch head of news from The Morning Show on the right; she's very good in that.

I'll always think of Greta Lee as the hipster grifter from High Maintenance.

that "when are we" joke was pretty funny

Dropped today?

Maybe I’ll fire up the first episode after work

Pretty sure the rest of the Redds have watched multiple episodes already.

Went into the first episode of the new season with low expectations but it was really excellent.

Have watched 2 episodes so far and really liking it a lot. For some reason the humour element works for me much more this time than it did in series 1.

halfway through, not really feeling this season so far tbh, can't quite put my finger on why

a bit hopeful it'll resolve in a way that redeems the whole season

Just finished this. It is a bit mixed. Although I like the ambition of opening the series beyond NY to Budapest and Berlin, it didn’t work as well as the more contained first series. I also didn’t like some of the rather heavy handed resolution in the final episode.

Still plenty to enjoy in this series though.

Can someone convince me to proceed beyond Episode 3? Just not feeling it.

I know this won’t happen, but wouldn’t it be cool to have a single surprise episode of this show (in whatever season) where nothing weird happens, where the main characters just rub up against each other?

Dunno if I’ve changed or she has, but can’t deal with Nadia’s growly shit-talkin’ schtick this time around.

Noticed something similar when I watched a few minutes. In any case, think I will sit this one out until the dust settles.

There was stuff to enioy but it really wasn't necessary and was definitely resolved hurriedly. Once she takes the baby on the train and we start to see time fall apart at the hospital it didn't work at all, I didn't think.

Too many ideas were introduced and thrown away immediately - Nadia's in a mental asylum! Oh no, wait, she just climbed out of the window. The Hungarian rave warehouse felt like a low point.

can’t deal with Nadia’s growly shit-talkin’ schtick this time around.

It definitely feels like she's a relic of pre-gentrified NYC and this persona is part of it. Weirdly she seemed more at home in the 80s sequences.

The time-space collapse was my favorite part of the series and I really enjoyed watching it but my overarching question at the end was “Why?” It was a fantastic ride but the point did not resonate with me, so I ended up feeling removed from this season whereas I firmly fell in love with the first season. There broad theme seems to be self-acceptance and reconciliation with all of the contradictory forces that lead to your existence, but also tied up in it was a meditation on grief that still managed to get short shrift even though it overwhelmed the end of the season and there was no compelling reason for or payoff to Alan’s story as it was presented.

Not as good as S1 but I really enjoyed S2. First three eps were a bit blah but it gets better imo.

Wow, she really is doing Columbo, isn’t she

Started watching this last night. I said to bf "wasn't the first season set in the 80s? I'm confused". I realized that I'd so internalized Zinoman's theory upthread that I remembered it as being set in the 80s. I'm about to read that Twitter thread again and I'm excited

this was terrible: they forgot to write a story!

DJP completely OTM. As impressed as I was with how this season was handled, and as enjoyable as it was, it felt like there was something missing at the center.

can’t deal with Nadia’s growly shit-talkin’ schtick this time around.

I feel like the fact that she didn't say, "Hey, I'm walkin' here!" was an oversight (or an outtake).

I was really disappointed in this season, but I thought the last episode was beautiful and somewhat redeemed the arc.

I think I loved this as much of the first season, although it fell apart towards the end (also much like the first season?). Some refinance to me as an assimilated Jew with an Eastern European riches to rags to middle-type family story.

Anyway – would definitely watch more, but need more Alan next time.

Oops refinance = resonance

giving up a few episodes in. Just not feeling it.

i both really liked this season and agree with many of the criticisms in the thread lol. i think i just really like watching natasha lyonne do her thing, and the dialogue was really funny. i wish there was more senior ruth, love that actress and her smoker's voice.

feel like this was a v. impressive second season for a show that absolutely shouldn't have had one

i mean i liked it -- give me subway trains running throughout time and i'll watch -- but alan's part was absolutely tacked on (as was his mustache, i hope). only having to hear harry nilsson once or twice is a plus, but literally sending your protagonist to hungary as the axis falls should have somehow been more than a plot point

and if you're gonna go to the trouble of staging a modern-day hungarian rave, at least let greta get laid

Somehow got stuck unable to find an English set of subtitles for episode 5 for my tv. They were there when I looked for them on my computer.
& there is a lot of that episode with Hungarian being spoken. Wound up having to watch on the computer.

I missed how she managed to work out how to become a different generation of her ancestry. Or was that done by moving down the train like she was at the end of the episode.
Or was that covered by her saying well better get to Hungary

i both really liked this season and agree with many of the criticisms in the thread lol.

Same. I watched it when I was slightly feverish with Covid and the series' hallucinatory flavour, especially in the second half, nicely complemented my illness.

But it's a real mess. It's as if they were planning two more series - a third one perhaps focussing on Alan in Berlin- but had to bring all the ideas together suddenly at short notice. There's a lot to enjoy though if you're prepared to overlook its flaws.

I found the flaws only became apparent towards the end when the narrative started sprawling out of control, so it was still kinda five episodes of fun, and two episodes of “wait what”, and even those last two episodes had some good stuff. Alan wuz definitely robbed this season though.

gonna say it - i dug his mustache

100% sexy weird moustache

Disappointing. There were no 'rules' about what she could do, how she could change anything, where she could go, what she could take with her, so it all seemed a bit 'now she is taken here and does this thing and wisecracks to everyone'. Bit like Doctor Who, but at least that sets out 'the rules' for the current goal in each episode. The stakes seemed to get lower and lower in s2 as more and more felt unreal. Looked great though; I would've liked her to hang out in the 80s a bit more.

In s1 the people gradually disappearing and the fruit rotting etc felt genuinely sinister - here it didn't really do that. The bit about Nora's mental illness encroaching into Nadia was quite scary, but then she just became someone else.