"Quicksand"/"Storst av allt" (Netflix), perfect binge material - no spoilers

With only six episodes (each around 45 minutes), this Swedish mini-series is an easy binge-watch.
There is a lot to like: glamorous south of France locations (Episode 1), lifestyles of the Stockholm's upper class, tense courtroom scenes, socio-economic tensions, untangling the puzzle of the high school shooting (you don't discover the truth until the final minues of the series).
Being based on the best selling novel means you get to say bye to the ritzy suburb of Djursholm at the end of the series - no needless Season 2 (like "Big Little Lies").

"Kingdom" 2019 Best series on Netflix at the moment?

Think an Oriental "Game of Thrones" meets "The Walking Dead".
With sumptuous production design, sweeping cinematography and suspenseful direction, this six part series is a winner. No wonder Season 2 is in the works. The show is adapted from the web-comic series "The Kingdom of the Gods".
The third episode's mass-zombie chase through the forest track was nail-bitingly good. The final episode in Season 1 was a mere 43 minutes, concluding with a cliff-hanger.

"Love Death and Robots" mini reviews

Alternate Histories - top episode, naughty but nice

Ice Age - delightful tone, nod to "Night at the Museum"

Zima Blue - high concept, shades of "Silent Running" (Hi, Dewey)

The Secret War - mini epic movie

Three Robots - jokey, black, written by a dog-person?

The Witness - pervy Hitchcock goes to Hong Kong, high art

Lucky 13 - sentimental, but gets away with it, looks like a computer game

Helping Hand - nod to "Gravity", incredibly suspenseful

Suits - enjoyable hokum "Starship Troopers" meets "The Real McCoys"

When the yogurt took over - high culture?

Good Hunting - steampunk porn

Fish Night - visually stunning

Shape Shifters - predictable but still impressive

The Dump - not rubbish, satisfyingly silly

Blindspot - for Speed Racer/Transformer fans

Sucker of Souls - Indian Jones meets Van Helsing 

Sonnie's Edge - grisly, for 13 year old boys?

Beyond the Aquila Rift - gorgeous to behold, but not much substance, welcome to Netflix.

"Love Death and Robots" episodes - ranked from best to worst (1 -18)

1. Alternate Histories
2. Ice Age
3. Zima Blue
4. The Secret War
5. Three Robots
6. The Witness
7. Lucky 13
8. Helping Hand
9. Suits
10. When the yogurt took over
11. Good Hunting
12. Fish Night
13. Shape Shifters
14. The Dump
15. Blindspot
16. Sucker of Souls
17. Sonnie's Edge
18. Beyond the Aquila Rift

Tiring of Scandi noir? Try some Gallic noir...

French television is full of juicy crime thrillers. Many have surfaced on streaming services like Netflix in the last couple of years.
The French seem to enjoy serial killer-related dramas served with a large serve of revenge. Currently on Netflix you have :"Le Chalet" (murder most foul in a scenic village in the French alps), "La Foret"/"The Forest" (disappearing teenagers in the Ardennes forest), "La Mante" (a female Hannibal Lecter helping the police catch her a copycat killer), "The Frozen Dead"/"Glace" (murky deeds set around a psychiatric facility perched high in the Pyrenees).

Thankfully, these limited mini-series contain only 6 episodes, rather than some inflated English language productions that are dragged out to 10 - 13 instalments.

"The Chalet" Netflix's hidden gem

What a relief to watch a 6 part miniseries (each episode is around 50 minutes) where all is resolved so there's no chance of a second season. This French murder mystery is wildly improbable but after the first half hour you are hooked. The glorious scenery around Chamonix in the French alps contrasts with the dastardly doings of the villagers.
The chilling nursery rhyme and the model village (with rivers of blood in later credits) telegraphs to the viewer that things are going to get nasty. Alternating between two timelines (the summers of 1997 and 2017), we see what has happened to the villagers and their children. No spoilers here. Just enjoy the ride.

70's - 80's film references in Netflix's "Stranger Things" Season 1

• Stephen King's "Stand By Me" (train track scenes, being hassled by older bullies)
• Stephen King's "Firestarter" has a girl with telekinetic powers, likewise King's 1976's adaptation "Carrie".
• Opening titles are a homage to 80's graphics accompanied by John Carpenter-esque electronic music ("Hallowe'en", "Escape from New York")
• The monster is a cross between "Alien" (tube down Will's esophagus) and  John Carpenter's "The Thing". 
• Teenage romance and misfits - John Hughes comedies, take your pick. The Duffer Brothers chose great English alternative music, too. But this is another matter.
• "E.T." - BMX bikes, El(even) is hidden in a bedroom closet, a garden shed, shown Star Wars models by her new friend, a mysterious government agency is pursuing her. She even points (E.T.like) in on scene.
• Film posters on kids' bedroom wall: "'The Evil Dead"
• The monster's shape making a wall elastic-like ("A Nightmare on Elm Street")
• Dustin refers to El as the "weirdo on Maple Street". Am I drawing a long bow with the last one?

My past is now my present - being a carer

1965

2016

Fifty-one years later, I am back living in the family home. My 92 year old dad is living here. He has mobility and incontinence problems so I have taken on the role of carer. When he stays (for respite care, 4 weeks a year) at an aged care facility, he comes home worse than when he was admitted. 
I arrive at his place around 6:30 a.m. and leave before 5 p.m. This means I don't miss "wine o'clock" with my wife. A valuable unwind session.
I have routines in place to ensure he has an easy night - automatic lighting, light dinner set out on his tray before I leave, personal alarm pendant, commode in his bedroom, nighttime Lipitor on bedside table, heater to switch on/off.
If he has a bad day, I'll stay over. Sleeping in the bedroom I slept in 51 years ago. 
I cycle to my father's place. Travelling along the same streets I walked to primary school and high school on. 
I don't know how long this arrangement will last, but at the moment it's working.

Tape on carpet shows way to the bedroom

Things that make my life easier at the moment:
1. Split system heating/cooling with auto on/off timer.
2. My dad's electric tilt/lift chair
3. A Carpet Shampooer
4. "Piss mats" in front of toilet and commode (for bad aims). I cut up old Manchester that has been in the linen press since the 60's and 70's. Disposable. Saves on washing.
5. Netflix - finding TV shows that my dad enjoys - "Fawlty Towers", the  British "House of Cards" Trilogy, "Father Ted", "Doc Martin".

Lilyhammer Season 3: As quirky as ever

Warm, quirky characters (Roar and the lovable Torgeir are back), black humour, crazy crims, cartoonish violence (e.g. the flare gun scene) and great locales from wintry Norway to steamy Rio - it's all there in the third season of "Lilyhammer".
It's great when shows don't go 'off the boil' after return seasons (unlike "Banshee", "Bates Motel").
The final episode, "Loose Ends", features Maureen Van Zandt, Steven (E Street Band) Van Zandt's real wife, as Frank's ex-wife and Bruce Stringsteen, as Joey the Undertaker. Don't turn off during the closing credits, either.
Season 4 must resolve poor Sigrid's bathroom predicament with her dead ex-boyfriend (Milk pervert).

Is Season 2 of "Lilyhammer" as good as Season 1?

So far I'd have to say "Ja".
It's just as quirky. Take Episode 5's hair-removal interrogation in the spa or Episode 6 featuring the Bieber bank heist follow-up, sheep rape and the f-bomb as Bjorn's first word. Some of the Norwegian humour and cultural references might be lost on some viewers, like me (e.g. the integration of migrants).
Loyal but thick Torgeir (Trond Fausa) has more to do in this series. The bi-curious bit with the new African chef was delightful. Bespectacled, grinning Jan (Fridtjov Saheim) is always good value. We have a new ball-busting female cop, Silje Torp (Mette Hansen) to keep Frank on his toes. The photography is movie-quality and the locales are still stunning. Episode 5 saw the rogues travelling to Oslo.
I miss the interplay with Frank's Norwegian girlfriend and her teenage son in Series 1. There are some new villains - loved the English hardman in the first episode of the new series. Use of music is spot on, even a bit of Springsteen and the E Street Band (for obvious reasons). You never tire of Steven Van Zandt's character - the charmer - foul-mouthed, wise and brutally honest. Loved the final scene with the twins asleep on Frank's lap.
Episode 8 being set mainly in New York brought everything to a head. Hitmen, Norwegian tourists in Manhattan, a Glee-tribute and reindeer racing. What's not to like?
Badabing badaboom. The show has come full circle. Frank/Johnny has come "home" to Norway. A nice way to close what has been a great ride.
Producers, please stop at Season 2, end on a high.

"House of Cards" BBC 1990 vs "House of Cards" 2013 Netflix

Granted - Netflix's "House of Cards" is terrific television with Kevin Spacey commanding each scene. But check out the original "House of Cards"(1990), set in post Thatcher Britain. The BBC version comprised four episodes, each lasting 55 minutes. I think in Australia it was shown over two nights, 2 hours each night.

Ian Richardson (playing the Chief Whip of the Conservative Party) does his marvellous bit addressing the camera, outlining his machinations, just as Kevin Spacey has fun with the audience.

Michael Dobbs (later Baron Dobbs) was the Deputy Chairman of the Tory Party then Chief of Staff in the Thatcher Government. He wrote a trilogy, later adapted for television: "To Play the King" (1993) and "The Final Cut" (1995). Andrew Davies was on board in both "House of Cards" adaptations. Both versions chronicle F.U.'s rise to power, Francis Urquhart becoming Prime Minister in the final instalment of the BBC series as Francis Underwood is President in Season 3 (2015). Francis's wife has a more important role in the Netflix version (brilliantly played by Robin Wright).
Creator and head writer of the US series, Beau Willimon, has enriched and deepened "House of Cards", creating nearly 39 hours (3 seasons, each with 13 episodes) of engrossing television.