The Walking Dead on Netflix. This completion felt like a real accomplishment. It really is a remarkable series too. The show takes the roots of its George Romero ancestry into the 21st Century. It has a vast array of characters and storylines, almost in a Robert Altman-like style. What the creators are doing with the character of Negan and his trajectory is really compelling and groundbreaking. To make his character, after some of his atrocious, unspeakable acts in previous seasons, into an actually admirable and redeemable figure is quite extraordinary and daring. There has never been a show where so many major characters die either. The show constantly thwarts expectations and breaks new ground in narrative content and character development. I look forward to the final, 11th season when it is released on Netflix next year.
I also just completed Ken Burns' 2-part documentary on Thomas Jefferson. He was a very conflicted, complex and multi-faceted man. I didn't find this 2-parter as fascinating as Jazz, which I also recently completed, but there is something about Ken Burns documentaries that I love. It may be the enthusiasm of his interview subjects or the poetic narration. Still, I look forward to diving deeper into Burns' body of work on Hoopla and Kanopy.
I'm almost finished Netflix's Maid and I can predict that this limited series will get a lot of awards consideration when the time comes. It has great acting, charismatic, endearing characters, engaging writing and sparkling dialogue. this is the best Netflix series I have seen since The Queen's Gambit.
I'm also nearing the end of an HBO series from nearly a decade ago, Enlightened. After seeing Mike White's more recent series, The White Lotus, I felt compelled to investigate some of this earlier efforts. This one isn't as good, but it has its moments. As I'm nearing the end of its 2nd and final season, it seems to be catching some wind in its sails.
So much to watch and enjoy. The life of a cinephile is a rich and rewarding one.