TV Series

[Rath Darkblade]

I wanna watch The Queen's Gambit, I keep hearing good things about it.

Hmm ... I haven't seen (or heard) much about this show, but I've played chess for decades, so I know the opening you mean.

As for the show itself -- after googling a bit, I can definitely say the main character reminds me a little of Robert James "Bobby" Fischer, the American chess grandmaster who became World Champion in 1972. Unfortunately, his story ended in disgrace and tragedy. Hopefully this show will end better.

[MusicallyInspired]

Wife and I recently finished The Office and now we're on Parks & Recreation. The Mandalorian is as spectacular as always and I'm looking forward to the new Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka Star Wars series. Nothing else I'm really following at the moment.

[DeadPoolX]

I wanna watch The Queen's Gambit, I keep hearing good things about it.

Hmm ... I haven't seen (or heard) much about this show, but I've played chess for decades, so I know the opening you mean.

As for the show itself -- after googling a bit, I can definitely say the main character reminds me a little of Robert James "Bobby" Fischer, the American chess grandmaster who became World Champion in 1972. Unfortunately, his story ended in disgrace and tragedy. Hopefully this show will end better.

TQB also takes place way before Fischer was ever known. The time period really adds to the show. I also liked that it was a limited series (based off a book) so it had a definitive ending, instead of the storyline spiraling out of control as is the case for many TV shows.

Wife and I recently finished The Office and now we're on Parks & Recreation. The Mandalorian is as spectacular as always and I'm looking forward to the new Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka Star Wars series. Nothing else I'm really following at the moment.

I'd like to watch The Mandalorian, but I can't justify subscribing to Disney+ for one show. I've seen the list of TV shows and films on Disney+ and for what little the service offers it's not worth the price. It's basically a subscription version of The Disney Channel, which I haven't had the slightest interest in since I was a kid.

[MusicallyInspired]

I wouldn't say this most other places, but just stream it somewhere like Putlocker. That's honestly what we did at first right up until about a week ago when I actually pulled the trigger on Disney+ anyway as there's so much great past content on there for the kids....and admittedly my own personal nostalgia. lol (I was a sucker for the old Disney Afternoon cartoons)

[Rath Darkblade]

I wanna watch The Queen's Gambit, I keep hearing good things about it.

Hmm ... I haven't seen (or heard) much about this show, but I've played chess for decades, so I know the opening you mean.

As for the show itself -- after googling a bit, I can definitely say the main character reminds me a little of Robert James "Bobby" Fischer, the American chess grandmaster who became World Champion in 1972. Unfortunately, his story ended in disgrace and tragedy. Hopefully this show will end better.

TQB also takes place way before Fischer was ever known. The time period really adds to the show. I also liked that it was a limited series (based off a book) so it had a definitive ending, instead of the storyline spiraling out of control as is the case for many TV shows.

Actually, no. I just looked up "The Queen's Gambit" in wikipedia - they say it "...begins mid-1950s and proceeding into the 1960s, the story is about an orphaned chess prodigy on her rise to the top of the chess world while struggling with emotional problems and drug and alcohol dependency."

This is exactly when Fischer was beginning to make his mark in the chess world. He burst onto the scene in 1956, winning the Game of the Century against GM (Grandmaster) Donald Byrne in the US Championship of that year. (He was just 13 at the time). The next year (at age 14), he became the youngest ever U.S. Chess Champion. At 15, he became both the youngest Grandmaster (GM) up to that time, and the youngest candidate for the World Championship.

It took him another 15 years to become World Champion, due to various circumstances -- among them were Soviet intrigue and his own difficult personality -- but he was certainly a remarkable player. Unfortunately, after that, he became a virtual recluse. Since the 1960s, he was anti-Semitic (which worsened in his later years, when he also became virulently anti-American). He never finished school, devoting his whole life to chess -- so personally, I believe that Fischer was essentially simple, associating all Jews with his relationship with his mother and sister.

There are other parallels, I think. Like the heroine of "The Queen's Gambit", Fischer struggled all his life with unresolved emotional problems against both his mother and his father. In his 30s (after he won the world title), he developed a persecution complex and feared he was being persecuted by American State. He was never formally diagnosed, but there has been widespread comment and speculation concerning his psychological condition, based on his extreme views and unusual behavior.

Unlike her, though, Fischer never had any drug or alcohol dependencies. So TQG will be interesting to watch.

(Sorry if the above is long. I did say I've been playing (and studying) chess for decades. But no need to worry - I'm not obsessed about it, like Fischer was).

[Tawmis]

I'd like to watch The Mandalorian, but I can't justify subscribing to Disney+ for one show. I've seen the list of TV shows and films on Disney+ and for what little the service offers it's not worth the price. It's basically a subscription version of The Disney Channel, which I haven't had the slightest interest in since I was a kid.

I wouldn't say this most other places, but just stream it somewhere like Putlocker. That's honestly what we did at first right up until about a week ago when I actually pulled the trigger on Disney+ anyway as there's so much great past content on there for the kids....and admittedly my own personal nostalgia. lol (I was a sucker for the old Disney Afternoon cartoons)

I can't say enough good things about the Mandalorian. It really is a fantastic show.
And because of Mandalorian, I am now watching STAR WARS REBELS which I never watched. But aspects of things in Mandalorian have ties to it, so I began watching it - and surprisingly (because when I first saw the art style I didn't like it) - I actually love the show. So much so, it's going to allow me to watch CLONE WARS next (I know I am watching it out of order, and that CLONE WARS is before REBELS - but you know what? We watched the movies out of order too, seeing IV, V an V before I, II and III ever came out!)

And like MI, there's other cartoons they have on there, that I loved (Spider-Man & His Amazing Friends, Gargoyles) both of which I've already powered through once - X-Men: The Animated Series is on there (I own the DVDs, but nice background "noise" sometimes), and I've watched some of the other Marvel cartoons I didn't bother watching before (some of the Spider-Man ones, the FF ones are horrid).

I don't work for any of them, but there is a Disney +, Hulu and ESPN bundle if that was interesting.

[DeadPoolX]

Actually, no. I just looked up "The Queen's Gambit" in wikipedia - they say it "...begins mid-1950s and proceeding into the 1960s, the story is about an orphaned chess prodigy on her rise to the top of the chess world while struggling with emotional problems and drug and alcohol dependency."

This is exactly when Fischer was beginning to make his mark in the chess world. He burst onto the scene in 1956, winning the Game of the Century against GM (Grandmaster) Donald Byrne in the US Championship of that year.

Huh. Okay, that's weird, for some reason I thought Fischer was only notable during the 1970s. Maybe I got it wrong because he became the World Chess Champion in 1972 or maybe I was thinking of someone else.

Whatever the case, I'd definitely look into The Queen's Gambit if you have Netflix. If you've never subscribed to Netflix before then the first month is probably free. I say "probably" because I don't know for sure. Maia and I subscribed to Netflix a long time ago and their practices could've changed, and even then, it may be different for Australia.

I wouldn't say this most other places, but just stream it somewhere like Putlocker. That's honestly what we did at first right up until about a week ago when I actually pulled the trigger on Disney+ anyway as there's so much great past content on there for the kids....and admittedly my own personal nostalgia. lol (I was a sucker for the old Disney Afternoon cartoons)

Can't say I really trust Putlocker or other illegitimate streaming sites like it, but it's an idea nonetheless. It might be worth it to check out the first episode of The Mandalorian. No point in subscribing if we don't like the show.

Other than that... I could see the value of Disney+ if you're on a nostalgia kick or you have kids (which Maia and I do not).

I can't say enough good things about the Mandalorian. It really is a fantastic show.
And because of Mandalorian, I am now watching STAR WARS REBELS which I never watched [...] it's going to allow me to watch CLONE WARS next (I know I am watching it out of order, and that CLONE WARS is before REBELS - but you know what? We watched the movies out of order too, seeing IV, V an V before I, II and III ever came out!)

We might look into Disney+ once we've completely exhausted everything we're interested in watching on Netflix and Amazon. Maybe by then there will be some other Star Wars shows on there, and possibly some MCU shows as well.

And like MI, there's other cartoons they have on there, that I loved (Spider-Man & His Amazing Friends, Gargoyles) both of which I've already powered through once - X-Men: The Animated Series is on there (I own the DVDs, but nice background "noise" sometimes), and I've watched some of the other Marvel cartoons I didn't bother watching before (some of the Spider-Man ones, the FF ones are horrid).

I remember Spider-Man & His Amazing Friends as a kid, and it always confused me because Spider-Man sounded exactly like Bumblebee from Transformers. There was a good reason for that: they were played by the same voice actor, Dan Gilvezan.

On that note, it also confused me — again, as a kid — when Cobra Commander and Duke (from GI JOE) sounded exactly like Starscream and Prowl (from Transformers). It never occurred me to at the time that they were voiced by the same actors, Chris Latta for Starscream and Cobra Commander and Michael Bell for Duke and Prowl.

Fun Fact: Frank Welker, the voice actor who plays Fred Jones in Scooby-Doo also voices Megatron in Transformers. He changes his voice for the two characters, but if you listen closely, you can hear Fred at times when Megatron speaks. It's weird.

I don't work for any of them, but there is a Disney +, Hulu and ESPN bundle if that was interesting.

You shill!

I'd look into that if Hulu was available in Canada. According to Wikipedia, Hulu felt the market was too small to bother with in Canada.

Admittedly, Canada has a relatively small population (roughly 30 million people, which is less than the state of California) on a huge land mass that's second only to Russia in geographic size, so sometimes supply-chain difficulties alone can be enough dissuade companies.

Target, for instance, briefly came up to Canada but failed because they didn't understand the inherent supply-chain challenges in an immense country with a smallish population.

[MusicallyInspired]

I'm still sore about Target buying out The Hudson Bay Company (like, the oldest company in Canada that traded furs with First Nations people when it was first colonized). I'm glad Target never made it here. Also, I miss Zellers, even if most of their stores ended up looking run down by the end. "Zellers, where the lowest price is the law!" (Pre-Walmart).

[DeadPoolX]

I'm still sore about Target buying out The Hudson Bay Company (like, the oldest company in Canada that traded furs with the Natives when it was first colonized). I'm glad Target never made it here. Also, I miss Zellers, even if most of their stores ended up looking pretty dumpy by the end. "Zellers, where the lowest price is the law!" (Pre-Walmart).

Target never bought out HBC, they bought Zellers.

HBC was, however, purchased by an American investment firm called NRDC Equity Partners back in 2008. NRDC made HBC their primary company, so technically Saks Fifth Avenue and Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th (both of which are in NRDC's portfolio) are owned by The Hudson's Bay Company. It looks like they're trying to make HBC more upscale as Saks is considered even higher-end than Holt Renfrew.

Interestingly enough, the only original HBC store that exists today is The Bay because Home Outfitters was shut down all across Canada in 2019. I didn't know that until now because I never went to Home Outfitters or any of those Bed, Bath & Beyond-like stores if I could avoid it.

[MusicallyInspired]

The big Hudson's Bay Company building here in Winnipeg is being closed down. One of the oldest buildings in Winnipeg. :'(

[Rath Darkblade]

I've never even been to Canada, but even I know of the Hudson's Bay Company. Wasn't it founded by (or named after) Henry Hudson, the famous explorer? I've read quite a bit about him.

Just curious -- why is the company being closed down?

[DeadPoolX]

I've never even been to Canada, but even I know of the Hudson's Bay Company. Wasn't it founded by (or named after) Henry Hudson, the famous explorer? I've read quite a bit about him.

Just curious -- why is the company being closed down?

HBC isn't being closed down in its entirety, just the building in Winnipeg. HBC has been tightening its belt the last few years by closing down some stores and shutting down other businesses it owns, like Home Outfitters.

Given the issues involving COVID-19 and how many more people shop online anyway (even for clothing because it's easy to return items to a physical HBC store), I imagine a decent way to save costs is to close some physical locations.

[MusicallyInspired]

WOW what a finale!! Loved it!! (Re: Mandalorian season finale)

[Tawmis]

WOW what a finale!! Loved it!! (Re: Mandalorian season finale)

Stay past the credits.

[MusicallyInspired]

Oh I did.