The Watch - It’s Not Too Late to Get Into ‘Peaky Blinders’ | The Watch

Episode Date: October 4, 2019

Season 5 of ‘Peaky Blinders’ premieres on Netflix tomorrow, but it’s not too late to get into the show (2:00). We talk about the surprisingly stacked cast (9:36), our favorite characters on the show (27:05), and what else we’re watching on TV right now (29:58). Host: Chris Ryan Guest: Juliet Litman Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What's up, guys, it's Liz Kelly, and welcome to the Ringer Podcast Network. I want to tell you guys about a brand new podcast coming to our luminary slate called Sonic Boom. For more than four decades, the Seattle Supersonics were among the NBA's most iconic franchises. But in 2008, they packed their bags for Oklahoma. Hosted by the Ringer's Jordan Ritter-Con, Sonic Boom tells the story of basketball and politics, wealth and power, and reveals new truths about the NBA's greatest heist. You can find the eight-episode documentary podcast exclusively on Luminary starting October 3rd. I need sports to have to clear the room. Stand up and walk now.

Hey guys, thanks for listening to today's episode of The Watch. Today I was joined by my good buddy Julia Lippman, and we talked for the most part about peekie blinders. Now, I don't think we got into any spoiler territory. The new season is starting on Friday on Netflix. And I don't think we really got too deep into any. anything that was like this character lives or dies. So this is not about season five yet, which we haven't seen. It's all about the first four seasons.

But it's really all about how Peaky Blinders has been like the slow burn, like really, really, really solid television show basically over the better part of this decade. So it was a really fun conversation with Juliet. We also got into a couple of other digressions in there, especially about Killian Murphy Instagram accounts. We will be back on Monday. Greenwald will be here and we'll also have the audio from number one boys with me and Jason Concepcion, our Succession after show.

You can watch that on Sunday. After Succession's East Coast airing on HBO, you can find us in all the usual places. And then we will be coming to you next week. After the season finale, we're going to do that on Monday. So we'll watch it. Everybody will watch it on Sunday. And we will come in and do number one boys on Monday.

We'll have reactions. Then can't wait for the end of the season of Succession, meaning like I can't wait to see what happens. It's like, I wish the show never ended. Other than that, let's get into today's show and talk to Juliet. All right, now I'm joined by Juliette Lemon to talk to me about a variety of subjects, as she always does when she joins the watch. Thanks for having me, Chris. Great to be here. Where do you want to start? Do you want to talk? Let's start a little bit on Piki Blonders.

Phenomenal. Which is coming back on Netflix for its fifth season tomorrow on October 5th? Yes, October 5th. Fourth? Yeah, you're right. And it's already aired in England. If you already watched the English, right? I haven't.

So you're just saving it. Yeah, I had to stay off some of my favorite websites for a bit, What are some of your favorite websites? Dailymail.co.uk. Okay. A favorite of Megan Markles as well? No, it is not. I feel conflicted about the Daily Mail,

but, you know, I just have all the photos that I crave. So, Picky Blinder's is wild popular in the United Kingdom. Sure. And as a result, the day after the season 5 premiere, Daily Mail had like a spoilery article in the storied right rail. Okay. And I... Where they usually have...

look at this footballer with a this way to Essex anyway, but Essex? Anyway, the only way is Essex. Only way is Essex star on a yacht drunk. Or like Megan Markle steps out or, you know, any of that stuff. Right. But it wasn't that spoilery. I just was like, oh, like, this is back. It was just, you know, this is not really a spoiler.

If you've watched any seconds of the Peeky Blinders, they're like, bloodiest premiere in Peeky Blinders history. I'm like, okay. Like, what is that? Is that even true? Have we done the math Daily Mail? But all to say, it's back. People are excited about it. And, yeah, I'm looking, I can't wait.

I want to talk about how I missed Peaky Blinder's. I'd love to discuss that as well. So I think that there's a huge thing about, like, the intimidation factor of when you know that you have three seasons ahead of you. Right. And it took me quite a while to realize those three seasons were only 18 episodes. Yeah, I mean, that's one of the things that's so great about the show is that if you, feel like you need like a really entertaining and fun serialized drama right now?

Like, why not pick picky blinders? Because you've six fresh episodes coming to you and only 24 to catch up on. That is the same as, that's less than the first season of like many network shows from the 1990s. Yeah, and unlike a lot of movies today and I would say it made me like about five or six TV shows that are on, it's unlikely unless you go to the Dailymail.com. Like Juliette does. That you're going to accidentally walk into some people. Peaky Blinder's spoilers on like Friday night. Very unlikely. Because it tends to be a little bit like kind of walled off in its own peeky blinders world.

But it is incredibly popular. I think that the main thing, and I've talked about this a little bit, was I started the first episode a few times. And I was like, this is pretty cool. And then early 2000s garage rock would start playing. Nick Cave and the Bad Seed or something. This is really stupid. But it was, the Nick Cave part is the theme song I was okay with.

It was more like Arthur and Tom. go to a bar and Jet starts playing or, you know, the Vine starts playing. Yeah. And I was just like, this is a really, really stupid choice. And sometimes even in season three, season four, I'm like, I wish they just, like, had like, classical music playing or like old-timey jazz playing or something that was a little bit more period appropriate. Yeah.

And when they do do scenes where they're dancing to jazz or something, I'm like, this is what it should be. Like in season two, I think you're referring to. It shouldn't be, it shouldn't be, hate to say, I told you so. Yeah. I think that also, this is really silly, but for me, with a lot of British shows, the accents can be a real barrier. So you gotta go full subtitles with this show and not look back. Can we have a quick subtitle conversation? I'd love to. A little digression. Do you find yourself ever mostly reading when you're watching it with subtitles?

Like, do you feel like your actual eye line is going bottom of the screen? Yes. And it's almost like a weird, like... I found that with Chernobyl. Yeah. Actually. Yeah. And some people don't like subtitles because it's almost like

Spoilery because like you'll see it on screen before it happens. It's bad for comedy. It's terrible for comedy. Because the jokes come. They put up a block of text that doesn't have the timing of the comic. Interesting. Because like when I watch the In Betweeners, I never considered putting the subtitles on.

But I think I did watch sex education with subtitles. And I didn't really love sex education. No. Everyone else did. Did you watch Derry Girls? No, I was just thinking about that. Derry Girls is incomprehensible without subtitles as somebody who's like lived in Ireland for six months.

Interesting. I cannot understand it. It's essential with this show. For dramas, it does kind of like help me follow along. One thing that depresses me is that just my comprehension for television is so down. How so? Like, or like my attention for it. Like, I just, I played two dots on my phone while watching so many TV shows, and I'm

embarrassed by it. Does Peeky Blinders count? Like, do you watch, do you do other things while watching Peeky Bs? No, I was really, I watched it last December when I was living with my parents, and I was just like, I'm busy. Please don't talk to me. Like, I got to watch this show. How did you parcel it out, binge-wise?

Because I've had to, like, really mainline it, which I think has been both good and bad. So the 24 episodes, I think I watched in like three weeks. That's kind of close to where I'm going to be. Because I think I started watching it in Philly. I watched, like, a full season on a flight back from Philly, and now I'm approaching home plate. When you get into it, it's really fun.

And you just want to keep going. And this, of course, brings us to one of the most electric and dynamic characters on television, male characters. Yes. Since Don Draper, the one and only Tommy Shelby. So this is the thing that I am most apologetic for. I have found God late in life. And he is an Irish man named Killion Murphy who...

I was having this text message conversation actually back and forth a little bit with Sam. Often gets cited. My text messages on this pod with Sam. This is the second time we're talking about him today. Is it? Yeah. But not on this pod.

No, I just said earlier to my favorite Twitter content as his Twitter feed. Yeah, I mean, Sam's an absolute American. Institution and a legend. Yeah. And he supports this pod by giving me really good ideas when we text.

Sam, text me too. He was talking about how, I don't even think he particularly cares for pekey blinders, but the Killian Murphy's of the world, the TV used to be their place to shine.

It wasn't like, oh, Amy Adams is coming down from the majors to do a six-episode show or somebody, some major star, Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson

are going to do TV. It was the person who in movies, was usually a supporting actor or maybe just in indie films or movies that you didn't really see a lot. The bad guy in Red Eye, the guy who was in 28 days later.

And then Killian Murphy gets 24 hours to completely live in and inhabit this character who in any other actor's hands I think would be not nearly as interesting. Like I think that his performance belongs in the conversation among like the best performances I've seen on television.

I agree and I want to parse that. I just want to say the only other actor I could potentially see being Tommy Shelby is Christian Bale. That's the only one out there. Yes, but even Christian Bale, there is, it's not even like a who's a better actor. It's like, Killeam Murphy's eyes are actually so much more humane than Christian Bales. Like there is a certain warmth to his demeanor that even when he is doing dastardly shit or being Machiavellian, like, I, there is a warmth and a connection that I feel to him that I don't often feel. when Bail is pretending to be blind in the big short. Yeah, I don't even remember that.

Or losing tons of weight for any movie. He's like, hey, do I have to lose weight for this movie? I'm in. I'm in, baby. Killeen Murphy is amazing because unlike ever with Christian Bale, we're always like, wow, Christian Bail's really going for it. You're like, Tommy, wow, Tommy, like, oh my God, this character. So much restraint.

So much restraint. And you just, I lose myself to Tommy Shelby. I'm not like, wow, I need to sit down and watch this Killian Murphy performance. And that's why I think it's more akin to Don Draper. I was talking to my friend Talley about this and she was like comparing them as characters. I don't think Tommy and Don Draper have very much in common, to be honest. But I do think both actors so deeply inhabit the character that they make you think of each other. Because it's like a perfect world has been constructed for the character.

And like Peaky Blinders perfectly suits this amazing performance that Killian Murphy gives to be this incredibly complicated and, like, objectively vile human who you also cannot help but fall for. I mean, I think his eyes is a big part of it. It's a really good point. Like, there's so much light in them all the time. And the show is pretty dark, both in terms of its visual tone and, like, it's tenor. It's grimy. It's grimy. Yeah. Absolutely. And he is just absolutely incredible in it. He dominates literally every scene of the show. I think he's in 95% of the scenes. I'm trying to. like some Arthur scenes. There's some poly scenes, you know.

But he's in so much of it. Yeah. And he absolutely carries it and is just like a magnetic force. Like there are not a lot of actors like this out there. He operates from a place of restraint. Yeah. Which is something that can be easily read as sort of

you know, low energy or not bringing enough to the table in terms of like projecting action and activity on screen and, you know, passion. But what it means for Killingham Murphy, because he is a very personable actor and he really is watchable, is that when he does get hyped up or when he does lose it in a violent way, or when he's just even like in the beginning of season three,

and he's just kind of like in a tailspin a little bit, it becomes that much more magnetic because you're used to him just like walking in and just being completely cool in every situation. It is a lot like Don Draper in that sense. Don Draper was always like too cool for school in all these situations. And then when he does have those personal like trials and tribulations, You're like, oh, man, watching this guy like unravel is fascinating. I think that also with both of them, and it's just so true of Tommy Shelby, the way he wears his suits and he's always in a suit, essentially, really works to show off the special gait that he has and, like, how he walks.

Yeah. And it has so much command. And also, like, always seems like he's in a rush. Like, he's never, like, walking casually. When we see him walking, he's, like, he's off to go somewhere and maybe to kill someone. So this actually segues weirdly into one of the things I love the most about. about this show is how much it takes advantage of the means of communication back then. We're talking about 1919 to the 1920s.

Obviously, the tie between the war in England is when it's set over the course of a couple of seasons. And one of the things I love is the necessity of like face-to-face communication in all these situations and how Tommy essentially his day is like doing the rounds and going into the garrison and going into meet people and talk to them and he has to like grab people on the street and talk to them. And it's a very, even though it's an, I would say almost, it's sneakly driven by its dialogue. Like, there's only a few set pieces per year. I mean, there's some fights and stuff like that, but for the most part, there's like a big thing that happens at the end of the year. Most of it is watching Tommy go through his day and like negotiate. It's really true. And like he

pays a visit. It's like one of the most work a day representations of a gangster on TV where like he's, he's checking in with people. He's intimidating people. He's. scaring people, and then he's taken care of his family. And he's trying, so essentially the overarching story, I don't know if you're still listening, if you haven't watched PC Blinder's yet, but this is supposed to be kind of like a way to entice people to check it out,

is that it's the rise of this crime family in Birmingham, England, starting in 1919. 1919, right? And I get confused because 1917 is coming out. It's a big time for World War I. Yes. Which is, you know, as we know, the only real war. It's the only real war.

World War II. Only real war in World War II was Dakota. Yeah, just the epilogue. And it tracks the rise of the Shelby family and Tommy's somewhat sincere efforts to take the Shelby family legitimate with its business concerns. I don't know if that.

Do you really think that's fair? Yeah. And in the meantime, he has siblings who are at once his allies and also like flies me ointment to some of these machinations. And it hits a real sweet spot of, if we had gone,

could go back in time if I, if I, if I, if I could have covered the show in a different way from when it started when we were still at Grantland and we were doing Hollywood prospectus, or if it wasn't this absolute like flood of content right now, I think this would be one of the biggest shows on TV. If it's, if it's not already, because I think it is actually quite popular. It is really popular. When you find a Peaky Blanders fan, they're like, they really want to talk to about it, which is, as I keep saying to you that you've become like my receptacle for all of my thoughts. And this is, this is, um, really exciting for me because I watch to show most of a year ago.

And I was like, Chris, you need to watch it. And you were just like, eh, maybe. I tried, couldn't get into it. I think it was just like, it's just one of those things where, I mean, I asked you to watch Good Fight for like five years or whatever. I did it. And you finally did it. I'm watching Piki Blinders.

And it's the right mix of actually thought-provoking. Actually informative. It's really interesting to just read about, like to see all this stuff about the way that different cultures clashed in London and Birmingham at the time. And just like the way that those cities. were sort of shaped by the post-war dynamics. I think also just one thing that amazes me about early 20th century stuff is like how shipping was like such a vital part.

Everything was import export. Yeah. It's like the art vandalay way of life. Like it was just was so vital for so long. And that like comes across very clearly with Birmingham, which like is relevant because it's on a river. Like that that's like, I don't know. It's just so crazy in our in our digital 21st century life.

but like just the really basic transportation of stuff. No, the importance of like half the cities, if not more than the world, are because of their like relationship to a body of water. Yeah, absolutely. And there's a lot in peeky blinders about like who controls the roads and who controls the waterways and like how that affects your business. And it's so basic and straightforward. But it's like totally lost in like so many.

No, it's like the only thing that ever addresses that really is like Captain Phillips in the last like five years in terms of its mom. It's kind of funny. that guy, Shane Carruth, who made Upstream Color. Yes, of course. Another Grantland legend. His big, like, next project was supposed to be about modern shipping. Oh, fascinating. Yeah, but never, it didn't seem

to get off the ground. Let's make it a podcast. I'd listen. Just Shane Cruz talking about this movie he didn't make? Yeah. Okay. Let's talk about some of the recurring stars in the show. Okay. It's also wild. Well, I just wanted to say, so, like, this is the perfect mix of slightly hypnotic and, it's, like,

just enough hypnotic and trashy and repetitive so that you, never really feel like too jolted out of like, why is an Arthur like this? Or, you know, like, where's Ada? They're always like, they're always kind of the same. But then it also does move the story along. And there are enough new, interesting arrivals on the scene, most notably, Tom Hardy in season two, which is just kind of like, that is actually, I should be brought up on, on charges. Because it's one thing just to be like, I didn't like it because of the music. But Tom Hardy plays a Jewish crime family boss.

Alfie Simons. I think he's also a diamond dealer. Salonels, right? Yeah. Alfie Salonans. Also a diamond dealer? And also just seemingly Tom Hardy is just like improvising his dialogue the entire time. It seems like Tom Hardy's having a great time. It just seems like... No shots at Stephen Knight who I want to get to.

But Tom Hardy has had a blast. A blast, yeah. And it's like a really cool character given a lot of room to operate. And he sort of is a double agent. But you don't even ever know who the two sides are. Like, it's hard to tell who he's playing and what and when. And he is, like, a joy to watch on this show. I can't believe Killian Murphy keeps his straight face in those scenes with him. And he's like, you fucking know, if you don't know, then you know.

So after I, you know, I'm a YouTube addict. And, like, for some reason, the two things that I need to know, like, after I become interested in either, like, a performer or some kind is, like, what they're like in real life. And so, like, with a musical act, that means, like, I need to watch their live performances, like, ad nauseum until I feel like I just really get. So do you just watch Tom Hardy's, like, junket interviews? Tom Hardy and Killian Murphy, I was like, I want to see these guys together in real life. And thank you to our guy, Christopher Nolan. There are a lot of interviews with them, but only for Christopher Nolan projects. None for Beaky Blender.

Nonetheless, it's really fun watching them do interviews together because Killian Murphy clearly despises doing press. Like, he just at least... He has, like, a really good, long interview in Vulture today with Matt Zoller Sites. But even in this interview, you can see him just... sort of kind of like coasting through it. Yes, he clearly despises it. He left London and moved back to Ireland for, I think, he's from Florida. Yeah, he moved back

for a quieter life. He, I think, really likes doing theater because it's sort of like he can explore his craft without all the pomp and circumstance of Hollywood. I think he probably likes doing this show because, like, you do it. And I think he shoots it for like three months and he's like, I'm all set. I'm good here. I'm going to go to the

St. Anne's warehouse and do grief is a thing with covered in feathers or whatever that play was called, that I really wanted to see and did not get to. But they do press together. And Tom Hardy, in these interviews, like, is riffing as Tom Hardy instead of as Alfie Solomon. While Killian Murphy's just kind of, like, sitting there, like, looking like either bemuse or disinterested and, like, clearly is, like, waiting for it to be over.

Which is the same thing as, like, actual peeky blinders. Yes. It's like, Tom Hardy will pull a gun on him and then put it down and then spit on his hand and shake hands with him and then give him rum and then, like, punch him in the face. It's just, like, two extremely gifted actors who are so different. Yeah. And their energy in picky blinders is so captivating because they are really like playing off each other.

And both in them, they're having fun and they're different ways. And then when you watch them in interviews as themselves, there's a clear comfort there where they both are also just like, when the fuck is this over in their own ways. And I love it. I just like there's not enough disdained from actors these days. They're too cooperative because they all want to have nice things said about them. Right. Neither killing Murphy nor Tom Hardy care. And Tom Hardy in the show, like, he pops up.

He's in it a lot. Like, no spoilers. It's really cool. No, I mean, so Tom Hardy obviously has a relationship with Stephen Knight that goes back to at least Locke, which was Locke's first directorial effort. And have you ever seen Locke? No. You know what it is? No.

It's Tom Hardy plays like a construction contractor. Like a, he's in charge of a cement construction firm. And the entire movie, it's like an 85-minute, maybe 90-minute movie is set in Tom Hardy's car. as he's like making multiple phone calls driving down like the M1. Sounds like it would have been a great role for Killing Murphy. You would love this movie. You should check Glockout. So Stephen Knight is a real Juliet person.

I don't even know if you know that. I'm just familiar with him from Piki Blinders, but tell me more. He is the creator of who wants to be a millionaire. He is? Yes. What? Yeah. So he's mega wealthy and this is his passion project.

He's mega wealthy and is like one of the most prolific and successful modern screenwriters. don't even talk about it. And I would say routinely works on incredibly interesting shit, even if it's not always super successful. Oh my God. You just blew my mind. For instance, he wrote the Bradley Cooper movie Burt that we have so much fun with. He incredible.

Wrote the Girl with the Spider's Web, the sequel to the Steve Larson movie. Yeah. He wrote that movie Serenity, which was like dissected the Anne Hathaway Matthew McConaughey movie from last year that was like everybody lost their mind over because there was like 85 twists in it. Oh my God. He did All right. Yeah. He did

the Christmas Carol miniseries. Oh my God. And he is the creator and writer of Taboo. Of course. One of your frives. He is one of, he worked on the Apple original C with Jason Mamoa that's coming up. And I think he is one of the writers on the sequel to World War Z. Like he just, Stephen Knight, come on the watch. What are you doing? That's our guy.

But I love... Can we carpool with him and then share an office with him for three years? That would be great. I love it when a person is like, I got dumb rich off this earlier thing. This is the, which one, which of the men and blazers? Michael Davies. Mike Davies. Just like, I'm just going to do men and blazers for rest of my life.

Yeah, plus, kicked up. Plus, watch it happens live. Oh, yeah, that's right. He is, Emacy Row is like, he's, he's killing it many times over, but yeah, he just like does what he wants. You want to have the baseline of success from which to them pursue your interests. All you need to do is invent either who wants to be a millionaire or Survivor with Mark Burnett and you're good.

You're all set, you know? Do any project you want. after that. But that also speaks to a real time and place where, like, at the turn of the century, if you came up with a really good reality or game show idea, like, you were set. I mean, that's... Many of the richest people in TV, like, came up with really good

ideas from, like, 19 and 2009, 2005, and, like, now they're all good. Right. Like, Chuck Laurie is, like, basically the same. Is the market gone on that? Did the bottom out? I think, like, the long-running network show... Like, who's the Masked singer-creator? Is that person kicked? I believe that person's Korean.

Okay. I think it's from Korea. I don't know. But at least, like, starting in Hollywood, like the long-running network show, regardless of genre or category, is kind of dead, right? Like, that's just not...

If it doesn't already exist, it's probably not going to launch unless it is, like, the Mask Singer. No, I'll be curious to see, for instance, like, whether Young Sheldon runs as long as Big Bang Theory. There's absolutely no way. But that probably already...

That has a better chance for it because it's probably a bigger international market for syndication. And that's why a lot of these shows were sustained for so long. But that's just not going to happen anymore. So like, does a Stephen Knight even happen? Like, does a Stephen Knight get to make all that green from one, like, ingenious, evergreen,

no pun intended project and then get to go on and do piggy blinders, like, again? That's, like, amazing, though. I wonder also if, like, he's able to, like, just sort of say in certain places, like, I will, I don't know if he puts up his own money for it, but clearly he's not, like, writing script to script where he's like, I've got to make ends meet, so I have to do this. No, but I will say, um, I had to mute all the fan accounts because I didn't want to be spoiled. All the peek-a-bees.

Yes. But I follow... Are you following a lot of fan accounts? I follow one really important Killing-Murphy account, and it's... What's your Twitter follow account at? I keep it at a hard 400. This is on... But you're making room for Killion-Murphy fan accounts.

This is on Instagram. Okay. But I do unfollow. I make room. If there's a new account... I'm at 400 right now, so some things are going to have to be purchased in. But... Who's out?

Hey, Brin? No, Maggie's more important than ever. No, but I follow this one account that started on Tumblr and moved to Instagram, sign of the times. And it's at O-F-Y-C-M. Oh, fuck, yeah, Killing-Murphy. And it has just, like, a lot of information and, like, ephemera from Killion Murphy industries, essentially. And, like, it has a lot of Stephen Knight's stuff. Like, well, he's active on Instagram.

like we'll post from set or whatever. And, you know, I think he like really, like, rightfully so, embraces this, filled a lot of ownership over it. Like, it's his project. Yeah, I like how there's not... One of the things that I think that often troubles both of us with long-running dramas that we like is the sense that the people on it don't want to do it anymore.

Yeah. And I do not get that sense from PE blinders. I don't either. I really don't. And I think other than Killian Murphy, I don't really know, like, who's particularly put out by being on the show. Like, he does have to do a ton of work for it.

Plus, he has to get the hair. smoke the herbal cigarettes every day. God, the cigarette, he makes Don Draper look like a teenager. A little about a cigarettes he has to smoke on this thing. I know. And the way he just, how do you perfect that? Like, how do you keep it on your lip the right way? I don't know.

He's just so hot. It's unbelievable. I've made it so far into this podcast without saying it. It's okay. He's just, but like I don't really care about Killeen Murphy. It's just Tommy Shelby. Today's episode of The Watch is brought to you by CLR. pop culture addicts, you better believe we've seen a lot of shows.

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cleaning performance right in your home, visit CLRbrands.com today or pick up a bottle from a retailer near you. Trust Your Clean to CLR. So let's talk about the Shelby's in general. Okay. Who are some of your favorite Shelby's or even just your favorite peekie blinders characters aside from Tommy. Well, I do love Alfie Solomon. So let's put him aside as well. I also just want to say, like, not only is Tom Hardy on the show, but Adrian Brody is a major part of season four. Yeah. Like, he plays an American gangster. Like, the mafia comes to England, essentially. My favorite shall be, it might be Linda. I love Arthur's wife. She is sassy and not intimidated by Tommy. And she kind of plays against type. She's a bright-eyed.

rosy-cheek blonde woman who tries to make Arthur go straight. And she's just not intimidated and she also likes the money. Like she's kind of like this show's Carmela, essentially. This show, speaking of Arthur, I think that this is another one of the reasons why I had a little bit of a hang-up getting into it. Is it also feels like the kind of show that was made for a time. It's not even before streaming, but when you had to remind people what the show was about. Not in terms of exposition, but in terms of behavior. So for a solid two full seasons,

every episode is Arthur walks into the garrison. It goes, all right, picky fucking blinders! And he just does his whole Arthur thing and has his little Tokyo and drinks his drinks and gets really excited. But it's like tonally always kind of repetitive in that way. So that was just a Mitmire hangar. Are you a big Arthur fan? I do like Arthur.

I find Michael interesting. Like he's a really. real like deus ex machinac kind of, but actually integrated into the family way better than I could have guessed. He's Polly's like son that comes back in season two after not being in season one. Are you into Polly? I like Polly. She's like the other part, access of power. I love Ada. I love the sister. Yeah. I like the feisty women on this show, of which there are many. I like honestly like how matter of fact so many of these people represent things that were happening at the time period. So whether it's like they're left-leaning or communists. Yeah, there's a whole

communism plot to this with like or it's really like social it's more socialist but and then a lot of the World War I stuff is pretty well done yes it is I mean Tommy has PTSD and um you know this show like begins with kind of based on his connections to people he was in the war with yeah I mean he uses it in some ways to get out of some pretty tight jams is to say like well you know we serve together it's just a great it's just a really fun show okay it's also just like it's not like fun like wow good feeling fun but like it's just

it's immersive and I think that is something that I really value. And not that many Netflix shows are immersive. And I think the ones that are stand out. Like, Stranger Things, extremely immersive. Like, really creates a vibe. They do. They do seem to do period pieces pretty well.

Yeah, I think they do. And that, like, is obviously a model that works for them. It's just a great show. This is a good way to get into a conversation that you and I have a lot in our personal life, the comedy v. drama thing. So where are you, how are you feeling about that right now? In general? In terms of, like, what you're kind of leaning towards.

you find entertaining. I want to be into comedy, but I just can't, I just can't quit the hour-long show. I just can't get away from it. Like, I actually didn't even watch the series, the season finale of Younger the season, because I like heard what happened. I was like, that sounds bad. I don't want to watch that. I've started like blocking out TV that I'm like, I think this will not, I will not find this pleasant. So I just not going to be involved. I just quit. When it properly combines two things like L to the OG though. Oh my God. Succession. I was alone in my apartment watching last week's episode when Kendall wrapped. And I think I said to my TV, like, what is going on here? And I was so uncomfortable and enthralled. And I loved it. And I've

rewatched the rap, like, at least 15 times. You just have it on your computer screen. Yeah. Yeah. It's been weird because we've been doing these episodes for the most part of number one boys a couple of days before the episode airs. So I'll just look at my phone on Sunday nights. And all of a sudden, everybody will be just tweeting out pictures of Jeremy Strong wearing a baseball Jersey and saying L to the O.G. Incredible. Dude be the O.G. A. N. He playing. Doesn't even make sense.

Have you enjoyed the way that Succession has sort of... Like, the first season is largely about... I was talking with Allison Herman about this day. Like, the first season is largely about Kendall and Kendall's relationship to the family and then this season is largely about Shiv. Yes.

And her relationship to the family. Do you think that's like an effective storytelling structure for them? I do. It seems like they're setting up season 3 to be about Roman. Not mad at that. No, me neither. The Roman and Jerry stuff is so fucking funny. Yeah.

And weird. But also believable to me. Mm-hmm. I think that the change in Shiv has been a little bit drastic from where she was to where she is now in terms of like her professional goals and hopes and everything. But I really enjoy Sarah Snook. And I think her tete-a-tete's with Holly Hunter have been really great. And I love the Holly Hunter stuff. I think that the writing for Holly Hunter's character has not been quite.

as deft, because obviously there's not the same sort of, like, long game at play with a character like that. That's the benefit of probably working with HBO and also, like, having, like, a family drama where you know, barring, like, a death, whatever, which just, which only seems like it would befall Logan. Right. You'll be with these characters for a while, so there's a lot of time to set things up. And I think that the show really benefits from that, especially with a big cast, like nothing is rushed. Also, less Greg and Tom this season. A little bit less. I think that because the show, I actually think, that even with the Kendall stuff last year

that this season feels a little darker. Yeah. I think they have to like put Greg and Tom a little bit in the background if it's going to be a darker episode because you can't, you can't really have those guys be taken too seriously. Brian Cox just really overpowers a lot of stuff too.

We only got him for half a season last year. Yeah. And so having him in every episode just really changes it because he's such a towering figure as an actor and then obviously Logan within the family just, like, really is so domineering. But even when he gets to be funny, like, when he's talking to Greg at the end, when he's like,

do you want to be with a fun uncle or Grandpa Grumps? Like, it's just so funny. I think the Greg Zit stuff was amazing. This is my favorite episode. I don't know if that's a popular opinion, but last week's Dundee was my favorite episode. I still think Saferam is my favorite episode of this season. I also loved Argestis. Yeah, our justies is really good, too.

I guess I like a field trip. What else are you watching right now? I'm catchy up. I'm below deck med. Me and Soderberg, you know. Do you want to explain what you just said there? Steven Soderberg watches below deck and includes it in his like what I watched read and Yeah, it's pretty amazing

Whatever. It's a great show. I have to, I'm going to be honest because I, Stephen Soderberg's one of my favorite filmmakers of all time. But I sometimes like watch the shows that he's like Vanity Fair confidential. And I'm like, man, is this like some hidden fucking piece of art? And then you watch it. And it's just like, no. This is just like. I find his interest in in low cultural.

to revalidating. Yeah. I love it. What else am I watching? I can't wait to go home tonight to watch the Troika of Grey's Anatomy, A Million Little Things, and The Good Place. You watch A Million Little Things. I do.

I sure do. Interesting. Stere's Dave from Road Rules, who some of you may remember as Mary having dated Kara, who was in Maxim, and then he was on the challenge. And, like, now he was a serious actor. He was on Grim for many years. Yeah. I don't even know Dave.

his last name. He's just Dave. I think he's like David something now. But he's just Dave for him. He's on a million little things. That show is stolen by another guy's name I don't know. I don't know the name of any actor on the show. Do you want me to look them? Really rare. No, I don't think we need to know. He plays Gary. And the only person I do know in the show is Romani Malco because I always wanted him to have a better career than he did. After a 40-year-old virgin. Yeah. And Weeds.

He was amazing on weeds. And no one from that show really took off afterwards. Anyway, it is like a true guilty pleasure for me. Like, I really bristle at that term when applied to many of the shows that I like. But it is a true guilty pleasure for me. And I don't know. I just like the soap. I love a soap opera.

Have you tried any of the other network dramas that have premiered like Stump Town? I was thinking about trying Stump Town. What's almost family? Is that the one that's like... Almost family. I love Britney Snow. I think that's a comedy, but I won't be watching. I don't know it was a comedy. Is it not? I think it's like a... Well, I don't... I'm not sure. I think it's a comedy that people take issue

the fact that's being played for jokes. Essentially, like all these people have the same father. And it's like a... It's like not because of the same sperm. Fertility doctor, yeah. Yeah, it's like pretty gross. Yeah. So I think that's not funny. Maybe I'm wrong and it's not a comedy, but I just don't see that drama being on network TV.

What else am I watching? I mean, that's kind of a lot. Yeah, that's a ton. I'm catching up with righteous gemstones, loving that. It's great. I'm dipping in and out of styling Hollywood on Netflix. Did you get to Goggins yet on Gemstones? Yes, I did. He's very, very good. I love Danny McBride. He's just so funny.

Yeah. This gemstones has been like a real miracle, like a quiet miracle this season. It's really good. It's fun that HBO is good. You know, I like really miss Chernobyl. Like, I wish there was more Chernobyl coming, which is weird. I, like, really loved it. And... Would you prefer if Peeky Blinders was HBO every Sunday for six weeks? Yes, I would. Yeah. I would like to, like, drag it out, but I know I'm not going to. Like, I'm busy this weekend. I'm watching Peeky Blenders. I know. It's really hard to have the discipline. Yeah. And also, it's hard to, because you can't go on the internet in certain places. You can't go to Killian Murphy fan accounts on Instagram without getting spoiled. Oh, O-F-Y-CM. I just want to tell you I'm reading this book, Middle England by Jonathan Coe, who we both love. Have you read it? I have not. I think you're going to love it.

And it's going to be a great BBC miniseries. We're just talking about all these, everybody's got their Brexit book. So John LaCherry's new novel, an agent running in the field, is Brexit. Ian McEwen's got a Kafka riff that is a Brexit book called The Cockroach. I got to read that. I love me. In Middle England, is that about Brexit? It is.

It starts in 2010 and kind of each chapter is a different month when it's leading up to 2016. It's about a family living in Birmingham And it reminds me a lot of... What if he wrote like a sequel to Peekeye Blaine? It's kind of about how the Midlands suck. It's good. Why do they suck? Just because of their location or just...

Because it's like indicative of a certain lifestyle that is maybe out of fashion or out of favor. And it's really good. But it's going to be a great BBC miniseries. Like it reminds me a lot of Capitol by John Lancaster. I talked to this on Ringerdish as well. And that was a good. BBC miniseries.

That was Toby Jones, right? Yeah. It reminds me of many my favorite contemporary British novels like NW by Zadie Smith. Yeah. And... Kind of really good at

contemporary slice of British life. Yeah. Right. That's like my favorite genre of novel. That's how I feel about Top Boy. I think Top Boy is really reflective of that. I started that, but I wasn't paying good enough attention. I'm going to watch it.

Should I watch both Top Boys on Netflix? So there's Top Boy, they have it divided so that it's Top Boy Summerhouse is the first two seasons that were several years ago. Oh, I see. And then they revived, Drake revived. it for this season and they've separated it for some reason. I don't necessarily know why. I just watched season

three with candidly watching a couple of episodes of the other seasons but really just reading like everything you need to know about Top Boy and I was I felt okay. Okay. Good to know. But I thought Top Boy is one of the best things I've seen this season. I really need to watch it. Juliet, thank you so much for coming by.

Thanks so much for having me, Chris. We'll be back on Monday. Greenwald will be here and we'll also have the audio from number one boys so it'll be fun. Maybe Andy and I'll go to Joker together. You never know. We'll have plenty of stuff to talk about Monday and some fun guests coming up in October, so stay tuned for that. Thanks for listening to The Watch. Today's episode of the Watch is brought to you by CLR. CLR quickly dissolves dirt, calcium, lime, hardwater deposits, and soaps gum that you find all over the house. And CLR doesn't use phosphate, ammonia, or harsh chemicals. In fact,

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