TV Shows Watched: Skeleton Crew: S1E4 (Disney Plus) with audio description, Shrinking: S2E10 (Apple plus) with audio description, No Good Deed: S1E4 (Netflix) with audio description, Dream productions: S1E2 (Disney Plus) with audio description, The Diplomat: S2E1 (Netflix) with audio description, Frasier: S2E? (Paramount Plus) with audio description
YouTube/Podcasts: None
Movies: Blink (Disney Plus) with audio description, Good one (Screener) No Audio Description, Dear Santa (Paramount Plus) with audio description, Piece By piece (screener) has audio description.
Best Episode Waatched Yesterday: Shrinking- I have to go with this as it starts to wrap up its second season. i was pretty on the fence the first season, seeing some of the supporting cast as standouts, but the second season has really shaped everyone really well. Harrison Ford and Wendie Malick have such a great moments here, and there’s that ending with Alice that took the cake.
The Diplomat- After last season’s explosive finale, I felt that Keri Russell’s Netflix drama (which has already been renewed for a third season) opened big and strong.
Best Performance: Ray Romano (No Good Deed)- there’s a little twist at the end of the third episode, which gives Ray some range dramatically, and then that twists again, and he shows off a different comedic side again. He’s come a long way from his eponymous sitcom.
Runner Up: Harrison Ford (Shrinking)- He had a lot of great moments this week, but he really nailed that last one with Malick.
Another Runner Up: Nicholas Lindhurst (Frasier)- While I haven’t been a giant fan of the new cast, Alan has been one of the brighter spots. In this episode, Frasier tries to stumble into this typical sitcom meet cute by having Alan in the same place at the same time as his long estranged daughter. Alan doesn’t know this is happening, and is at first elated to see her, but she wants nothing to do with him. It is a surprisingly dramatic moment the producers let sit without correcting, giving Nicholas the kind of dramatic range he’s yet to have shown on the show. I couldn’t not mention him, because he’ll probably never get another episode like this.
Best Audio Description: Skeleton Crew- Obviously, a lot to describe. But I really enjoyed the attention to detail, like in a few of the mentions reminding us that these four kids are alien and not all four humans, or the scene where Jude Law was going through the backpack. I know there’s always more they could be describing, because of the nature of science-fiction on screen, but it is about feeling like the team is making smart choices, and using as much available to them as possible. Plus, you gotta know Lucasfilm/Disney has them on a short leash. I’m sure of that.
Runner Up: No Good Deed- A few visual cues this episode, jokes that land only with audio description (like a fridge and freezer containing only vodka), or that scene where the eyes open, or even Linda Cardellini’s reveal near the end. Lots of moments that would have been lost with even lesser audio description, all important to the episode, and the show.
Best Moment Of Audio Description: Dream Productions- The funny thing is, I’d love to push this AD more, since the writing singularly is really good. The sound quality of the audio description is poor, like it is not balanced appropriately, or is in mono. And the narrator is too flat for a kids show. But this writer is solid. I like the way the dreams are described. Honestly, I even liked the little gag of going to Unicorn’s dressing room. This show has a great writer, but something is happening along the way. i watched three things on Disney Plus in the same day, and the quality of sound and narrator is noticeable. Great writer though.
Runner Up: Skeleton Crew- I already mentioned it, but I really liked the backpack sequence, and the little hockey puck size device that turned on a ballerina. It had such depth, instead of just letting us know he was rummaging through a backpack, only letting us know about the specific thing he was looking for. Not the stuff he found along the way.
Worst Episode Watched: Honestly, I could say Frasier, and do the TV thing. I’m not sure when my review for Dear Santa will pop up, but that movie is awful.
Worst Performance: I won’t be shady and say the narrator of Dream productions, because it could just be a sound balancing thing as well. But… like… Dear Santa. Dreadful movie. Jack Black wins this.
Worst Audio Description- Aside from my aforementioned problems with Dream productions, the audio description on Piece By Piece rarely takes advantage of the medium of LEGO animation. I kept hoping they would find more ways of roping that in, but it barely touches it. Not bad audio description, but certainly disappointing. Yes, Dear Santa’s audio description is good, even though the movie is not.
Worst Moment: Can I just say, that in the moment, even though I loved a lot about No Good Deed, that when Lisa Kudrow walks into the house, I wanted more in terms of the description? Like, clearly Lisa is appalled by the decor, but I maybe would have picked something hideous to highlight in that moment. Just a thought. Worst is such a strong word, it is just a moment I felt something was needed.
