I caught up writing on some TV shows experienced recently commencing with the lurid Spartacus. To recap in this version Spartacus is motivated to become an effective gladiator to regain his wife who has been sold as a slave when they were both captured. In episode three the main aspect is the man’s arrogance and stupidity thinking he can defy and knows better than the trainer at the Gladiator school, resulting in him being sent down into the shit hole to learn the error of his ways.
The other development, anticipated from previous episodes is the attendance at gladiatorial games by the wife of the Roman general responsible for the plight of Spartacus and his wife. We are led to believe that protected by her husband from visiting gladiatorial schools or the social events attached to gladiatorial contests she was ignorant of their sexual abilities and availability until being groomed by the wife of the gladiator school master. So far in we have learned that that the wife and husband use slaves to get them aroused before they indulge in matrimonial hanky panky and in this episode we learn that she is also partial to private sessions with principal gladiator Crixus. She notes Viva Bianca’s interest in her man and takes her away to witness Varro, the Roman citizen who sold himself to the arena in order to win money to get his family out of debt, service a slave twice in succession before other guests at the reception.
The low point of the episode for Spartacus occurs when after provoking Crixus into a brawl at the reception the two are chosen to fight the main bout at the end of the gladiatorial contest. Spartacus is soundly beaten by Crixus and with the crowd and principal guests baying for blood he begs for his life which is granted by Lentulous the Training school master and contest entrepreneur. However there is a price to pay for this which Lentulous exerts at the commencement of the fourth episode on Monday evening which I viewed on early rising on Monday. Having lost favour with the crowd he is sent to fight in the pit which is a kind of semi legal games fought to the death for lower classes but which is also subject of betting by others, Lentulous pressed by his creditors decides to speculate in favour of Spartacus and forcing him to kill several men over a few days while the odds are favourable.
Whereas the third episode is well described as lurid with the now obligatory nudity and sexual athleticism obligatory the fourth episode was dominated by blood lust. There was time for Crixus to serve his mistress and express his affection for her principal slave woman but as with the previous episode it is evident that the story is being padded out with gore and bore which after the initial wow losses all appeal.
This is not so for the Sopranos with the second episode of the second series Do not Resuscitate. This has Tony visiting Uncle Junior in prison and advising that he will still have some income but that he taking over most of his earning activities. Junior is released because of his heart condition but under restrictions. Junior tries to convince Tony that his mother was not responsible for the attempt on his life and that the owner of the nursing home is saying that Tony attempted to kill his mother. The owner is dealt with.
Tony’s sister visits her mother in hospital and a nurse asks if they should attempt to resuscitate if Livia needs to be kept alive artificially. A J, Tony’s son, hears Janice discussing this with Tony who offers Janice the opportunity to use her mother’s home to look after her if she wishes. Meadow, Tony daughter has passed the driving test and seeks permission to take a family car to visit her grandmother with A J. This is a pretext to meet someone leaving A J to visit his grandmother on his own. He asks her about DNR and if it anything similar to DNA. This convinces Livia she is in danger from her family and Janice in particular, and she reacts negatively when Janice announces she is going to look after her in her family home. Junior slips in the bath room and badly injures himself and calls one of his officers who in turn alerts Tony who carries his uncle to the car to take to the hospital emergency.
There is also a secondary story about the extent which construction workers and their union are part of the mob business. One of the firms is having problem by employing only whites and Tony is involved in breaking up the demonstrations against this by making a financial deal with a local civil rights campaigner who appears to be strengthening the protest but is turning a blind when the demonstration is broken up by violence.
The main development of the episode is the revelation that Pussy Bonpensiero has been working for the FBI for sometime but feeding them false information.
The latest episode of Blue Bloods covered the perils of communicating on line and the arranging to meet someone with whom one has established an emotional attachment. The action commences at an international upper class social event where debutante dressed in white evening gowns dance with eligible young men before being officially presented. One of the 50 girls jokes with her partner that none of them are virgins and suggests they go outside to get high on a smoke which she has in her purse. Outside in the back yard of the hotel they find the body of a young girl who cannot be identified as she has not been reported missing and there is no other record to help. Eventually by some clever detective work, of course, she is identified as the daughter of a responsible couple who believed she was on some official activity.
From her lap top they work out that she appears to have been in communication and making an arrangement to meet with one of the young men attending the debutants ball. Although he and his father are obnoxious and uncooperative it becomes evident that neither was involved and that the culprit was the tutor of the young man.
The are two sub stories, The daughter of the assistant DA is having meal with her uncle talking about her interest in joining the force when she older while getting him to tell her stories as part of a school project. She then persuades him to let her go in the car to the crime scene and gets out to see what is appending only to traumatise by the sight of the dead girl. Understandably this upset her mother but the main worry for the teenager is that she is not tough enough to become a cop. A talk with her grandfather persuades her that if she wants a career when she is older the reality of the work is something which she will be tough enough to cope with.
The Mayor wants to make Regan, the Commissioner of a Police, into a media hero to help his re-election campaign but he is resistant although his father and other members FO the family suggest it is an opportunity to move from the past and enjoy himself with the attention.
In a third secondary story, the youngest son and his senior partner are summoned to look at the shutter of a city centre store which has been decorated with caricature of the shop owner. The work is signed and they are able to identify the individual responsible and where he is lives and discover he is a talented young artist on his way to college. The Sergeant shows he has a good heart in deciding not to prosecute the offender on the basis they are not called out to deal with a complaint about his work again. A short time afterwards they are again called by the owner of the store to see the handiwork of the artist. This time there is a full size coloured mural showing the police men with a giant slogan, Thanks. Both are thrilled.
Monday was a mixture fo a day with a good swim first thing and then the decision to experience a documentary on the life and loss of Dr Woo the remarkable 36 year old mysteriously executed in Afghanistan along with nine others from the USA and Europe who were on a medical and social education and help mission to a border area in August of last year when they were all killed. The programme upset me greatly and later I devoted the afternoon to reading about her life from material available on the Internet. I will devote my next writing to her.
With visiting various parts of the house attending to the art work project last week I noted that the property is in desperate need of a good clean and yesterday morning I concentrated on the kitchen with good effect. Later I commenced to view recorded episodes of the Game of Thrones which I will continue if time is available during to day although my primary attention will be on the first day of the game between Durham and Warwickshire at Edgbaston. I made a quick shop at Morrison’s on the way home from the swim buying a kipper which enjoyed this morning, three jars of curry, a medium salad made up from a good selection of high value items that were available, feta cheese, black olives, spicy salami , some prawns and some ham pieces as well as lashings of coleslaw. The main purpose of the visit was to buy a stir fry to accompany the remains fo the chicken breast from yesterday’s lunch and which I enjoyed in the evening after a lunch of the second made chicken and bacon layered pasta salad, I also could not resists a few crackers with jam from little pots given at Christmas.
The day ended without being affected by the storm force winds which had swept from the west across Scotland felling some trees and causing the death of one woman driving her car as a consequence. In the USA a freak Tornado of sudden great force devastated a town with its half a mile wide force, killing some thirty people. The scene afterwards was similar to that of a Tsunami, earthquake or bomb. Nature rules.
The other development, anticipated from previous episodes is the attendance at gladiatorial games by the wife of the Roman general responsible for the plight of Spartacus and his wife. We are led to believe that protected by her husband from visiting gladiatorial schools or the social events attached to gladiatorial contests she was ignorant of their sexual abilities and availability until being groomed by the wife of the gladiator school master. So far in we have learned that that the wife and husband use slaves to get them aroused before they indulge in matrimonial hanky panky and in this episode we learn that she is also partial to private sessions with principal gladiator Crixus. She notes Viva Bianca’s interest in her man and takes her away to witness Varro, the Roman citizen who sold himself to the arena in order to win money to get his family out of debt, service a slave twice in succession before other guests at the reception.
The low point of the episode for Spartacus occurs when after provoking Crixus into a brawl at the reception the two are chosen to fight the main bout at the end of the gladiatorial contest. Spartacus is soundly beaten by Crixus and with the crowd and principal guests baying for blood he begs for his life which is granted by Lentulous the Training school master and contest entrepreneur. However there is a price to pay for this which Lentulous exerts at the commencement of the fourth episode on Monday evening which I viewed on early rising on Monday. Having lost favour with the crowd he is sent to fight in the pit which is a kind of semi legal games fought to the death for lower classes but which is also subject of betting by others, Lentulous pressed by his creditors decides to speculate in favour of Spartacus and forcing him to kill several men over a few days while the odds are favourable.
Whereas the third episode is well described as lurid with the now obligatory nudity and sexual athleticism obligatory the fourth episode was dominated by blood lust. There was time for Crixus to serve his mistress and express his affection for her principal slave woman but as with the previous episode it is evident that the story is being padded out with gore and bore which after the initial wow losses all appeal.
This is not so for the Sopranos with the second episode of the second series Do not Resuscitate. This has Tony visiting Uncle Junior in prison and advising that he will still have some income but that he taking over most of his earning activities. Junior is released because of his heart condition but under restrictions. Junior tries to convince Tony that his mother was not responsible for the attempt on his life and that the owner of the nursing home is saying that Tony attempted to kill his mother. The owner is dealt with.
Tony’s sister visits her mother in hospital and a nurse asks if they should attempt to resuscitate if Livia needs to be kept alive artificially. A J, Tony’s son, hears Janice discussing this with Tony who offers Janice the opportunity to use her mother’s home to look after her if she wishes. Meadow, Tony daughter has passed the driving test and seeks permission to take a family car to visit her grandmother with A J. This is a pretext to meet someone leaving A J to visit his grandmother on his own. He asks her about DNR and if it anything similar to DNA. This convinces Livia she is in danger from her family and Janice in particular, and she reacts negatively when Janice announces she is going to look after her in her family home. Junior slips in the bath room and badly injures himself and calls one of his officers who in turn alerts Tony who carries his uncle to the car to take to the hospital emergency.
There is also a secondary story about the extent which construction workers and their union are part of the mob business. One of the firms is having problem by employing only whites and Tony is involved in breaking up the demonstrations against this by making a financial deal with a local civil rights campaigner who appears to be strengthening the protest but is turning a blind when the demonstration is broken up by violence.
The main development of the episode is the revelation that Pussy Bonpensiero has been working for the FBI for sometime but feeding them false information.
The latest episode of Blue Bloods covered the perils of communicating on line and the arranging to meet someone with whom one has established an emotional attachment. The action commences at an international upper class social event where debutante dressed in white evening gowns dance with eligible young men before being officially presented. One of the 50 girls jokes with her partner that none of them are virgins and suggests they go outside to get high on a smoke which she has in her purse. Outside in the back yard of the hotel they find the body of a young girl who cannot be identified as she has not been reported missing and there is no other record to help. Eventually by some clever detective work, of course, she is identified as the daughter of a responsible couple who believed she was on some official activity.
From her lap top they work out that she appears to have been in communication and making an arrangement to meet with one of the young men attending the debutants ball. Although he and his father are obnoxious and uncooperative it becomes evident that neither was involved and that the culprit was the tutor of the young man.
The are two sub stories, The daughter of the assistant DA is having meal with her uncle talking about her interest in joining the force when she older while getting him to tell her stories as part of a school project. She then persuades him to let her go in the car to the crime scene and gets out to see what is appending only to traumatise by the sight of the dead girl. Understandably this upset her mother but the main worry for the teenager is that she is not tough enough to become a cop. A talk with her grandfather persuades her that if she wants a career when she is older the reality of the work is something which she will be tough enough to cope with.
The Mayor wants to make Regan, the Commissioner of a Police, into a media hero to help his re-election campaign but he is resistant although his father and other members FO the family suggest it is an opportunity to move from the past and enjoy himself with the attention.
In a third secondary story, the youngest son and his senior partner are summoned to look at the shutter of a city centre store which has been decorated with caricature of the shop owner. The work is signed and they are able to identify the individual responsible and where he is lives and discover he is a talented young artist on his way to college. The Sergeant shows he has a good heart in deciding not to prosecute the offender on the basis they are not called out to deal with a complaint about his work again. A short time afterwards they are again called by the owner of the store to see the handiwork of the artist. This time there is a full size coloured mural showing the police men with a giant slogan, Thanks. Both are thrilled.
Monday was a mixture fo a day with a good swim first thing and then the decision to experience a documentary on the life and loss of Dr Woo the remarkable 36 year old mysteriously executed in Afghanistan along with nine others from the USA and Europe who were on a medical and social education and help mission to a border area in August of last year when they were all killed. The programme upset me greatly and later I devoted the afternoon to reading about her life from material available on the Internet. I will devote my next writing to her.
With visiting various parts of the house attending to the art work project last week I noted that the property is in desperate need of a good clean and yesterday morning I concentrated on the kitchen with good effect. Later I commenced to view recorded episodes of the Game of Thrones which I will continue if time is available during to day although my primary attention will be on the first day of the game between Durham and Warwickshire at Edgbaston. I made a quick shop at Morrison’s on the way home from the swim buying a kipper which enjoyed this morning, three jars of curry, a medium salad made up from a good selection of high value items that were available, feta cheese, black olives, spicy salami , some prawns and some ham pieces as well as lashings of coleslaw. The main purpose of the visit was to buy a stir fry to accompany the remains fo the chicken breast from yesterday’s lunch and which I enjoyed in the evening after a lunch of the second made chicken and bacon layered pasta salad, I also could not resists a few crackers with jam from little pots given at Christmas.
The day ended without being affected by the storm force winds which had swept from the west across Scotland felling some trees and causing the death of one woman driving her car as a consequence. In the USA a freak Tornado of sudden great force devastated a town with its half a mile wide force, killing some thirty people. The scene afterwards was similar to that of a Tsunami, earthquake or bomb. Nature rules.
