Slow Horses
When I first heard of Slow Horses I was totally indifferent to it. A spy show starring Gary Oldman? No thanks. I didn't care that everyone was talking about it and lauding it, I was totally uninterested. And then three things happened in close succession to make me change my mind. First, one of my best friends asked me if I watched it, describing the show as Gary Oldman farting. A lot. That intrigued me. And yes, I have the comedic taste of a preschooler. Second, I saw Kristin Scott Thomas on The Graham Norton Show, admittedly an episode from at least two seasons ago because I hoard them to watch when I decorate for Christmas, and the way she described the show piqued by interest. Personally I don't like tales of espionage, I'm not my Dad, I couldn't watch The Bourne Identity on a loop and be entertained, but hearing that this was about disgraced and dysfunctional spies I was far more interested. Third, and finally, over the years I've kind of developed a dislike of Gary Oldman. I think it's because this man who was the darling of independent cinema was viewed as "selling out" when he campaigned so hard for the Oscar that he won. Personally, in my mind, he sold out earlier when he starred in the Harry Potter films, a role for which I particularly felt he was miscast. For the new season he was opening up about his other roles and mentioned that he only took Harry Potter to support his kids and he thinks his acting is shit in it. That was such a refreshing answer that I thought, you know what, it's finally time to give Slow Horses a shot. And I'm very lucky I waited so long because I binged all three seasons available so quickly I'm still suffering from withdrawal. But hopefully by the time this posts I'll be in the midst of season four. Because thankfully there's a season four. This show is addictive and propulsive. The agents of Slough House are used again and again as pawns by their higher ups and yet because they are basically all basket cases they don't approach anything normally and therefore are able to thwart expectations and come out ahead. I mean, still in a shitty building at the ass end of the service, but they have skills that others don't and that ironically makes them a valuable asset. None more so than Gary Oldman's Jackson Lamb. Lamb is a slob. But it's my opinion that he uses this offensive behavior to make people underestimate him. People are so repulsed they don't pay attention to him. He was once a top agent, he could have been First Desk, but having to kill one of their own broke him. He decided he just wanted a boring job and to keep those around him safe. To create a haven for all the misfits. He might badmouth them all, but the truth is, he cares, probably too deeply, and therefore shrouds himself in a miasma that only the brave dare approach. And while each season is wonderful on its own, this season, based on Real Tigers, is so batshit off the wall you might need to watch it in one sitting. There's plots within plots, but most importantly, we see how Jackson Lamb would have fared in Kevin McCallister's shoes. The answer is very well, and Harry and Marv would have been very very dead. I particularly liked the knife IN the bannister.
Dash and Lily is the perfect cute Christmas series for literary and culture nerds of my generation. That being people born from 1977 to 1982, and no, we are NOT Gen X OR Millennial, we are are own thing so STOP trying to force us into one or the other. Also don't even get me started on Millennials, because really shouldn't they be people born around the millennium not those who graduated high school around the millennium? Would Buffy like to be called a Millennial? Hell no! So maybe I'll just call myself a child of the eighties and leave it at that. The reason I say this show is perfect for people of my generation is that the jokes and references don't work for high school students. The Home Alone jokes in particular work for those who grew up with these films and the cultural impact they had when they were released, which would not apply to kids who were born at least twelve years after the film's release. This isn't an uncommon problem with television shows, Veronica Mars was a big perpetrator of culture references that were out of date. My friend with whom I binge watched the entire first season of Veronica Mars in a day with was the first to point out this oddity to me. Veronica was always giving off quips that would make more sense to someone not in high school. This isn't so pressing anymore if you were to watch it now because all the references are out of date, but at the time it was like an itch you couldn't scratch. I think it just comes from having a writing room that isn't the same age as their characters. I mean David Levithan and Rachel Cohn, whose book this is based on, are firmly Gen X. The only other writer whose age I could discover is also Gen X. The three other writers appear to be far younger, but the truth is this could have been fixed with just having the characters be a little older. Make them in their late twenties and all is solved! See!?! Now I will only complain about the fact that doing product placement for the new Leigh Bardugo series doesn't mean her book should be out of alphabetical order at The Strand! Wait, I will also question how someone into fantasy would never have heard of The Chronicles of Narnia
