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achilles

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Everything posted by achilles

  1. Danke. I was surprised how much I ended up liking the show. The production values are insane! Oh, I’d seen the trailer for this and was intrigued. Where’d you catch it? It’s not available on Hotstar.
  2. For All Mankind (Apple TV+) If you don't know what the show is about, haven't seen or read anything about it, here's the short version: do not read further and go and watch it. Apple TV app is now available just about everywhere, and the subscription is probably free for now. But even if it isn't, it's a 100 bucks for a month. I suspect the time you'll spend on the show is worth more, or, in other words, the cost is immaterial. ----------------------------------------------- The opening sequence is the reason I don't want those of you clueless to read this. It is feels. It is chills. It is beautifully shot and sets the tone for what's to follow masterfully. The premise is simple: what if the Soviets beat the Americans to the moon and the next-gen arms race, or space race never ended. This isn't without precedent. The Soviets beat the Americans at everything related to advancements in space except a manned round trip to the moon. The execution is sublime. The show takes pains to set-up the characters, their motivations, relationships with this setting of space exploration, NASA, the moon, and a healthy subtext of geopolitics and traversal. The astronauts are portrayed as they should be: goddamn rockstars riding drool worthy Corvettes, flying jets, pulling shots and drinks like Mad Men, and generally being badasses. They are men and women of the 70's, and the actors do a really good job of pulling that off. The shots of rockets taking off, of moon landings, of orbits are perfect. They convey a sense of scale and invoke awe. There's a healthy dose of bts NASA, the Houston life, JSC, and deep-fake period shots of presidents of that time, news broadcasts of things that actually happened, including a terrible Korean Air 007 tragedy etc. The main characters all have a satisfying arc, and the writers do a proper weave of it. The music is just so fitting. I Shazam'd more than a few songs and they're a part of my library. Infact, I'm listening to the playlist as I type this, and its making me remember the sequences and its making me smile. The show does take some weird detours, like side quests in a game, and sometimes seems to go down these side streets for too long, before making it back on course. Some of these are fun, some you want to get it over with. It does get slow in parts, specially in the first season, but by the end you realise it was all a part of the build-up, and it pays off handsomely. It has awe-inspiring shots, it has gut-wrenching feels, it has sweaty-palm tension, glee, poignance, onion-chop trials, and more than enough moments of bad-assery. The season ending scenes, which serve as teasers for what's coming are pitch-perfect. I'll definitely watch S3 when it comes. Fav episode: season 2 finale: Grey Fav character: Molly Cobb Fav song: Well Well Well, John Lennon Fav sequence: (mostly) Watched on: iPad Pro with AirPods Pro and spatial audio Those of you who have this hardware combination, do try spatial audio. One of those little things that truly take the experience a few notches higher. 8.5/10 ----------------------------------------------- For me, this also makes Apple TV+ the best service out there. They're only serving originals, and all the three I have watched are varied and better than anything original by any other service. What a start.
  3. I didn't know this, seems to be a weird limitation on the display part. I remember TVs advertising 24p for movies but I always assumed anything above 30 fps was dynamic. Edit: the iPad Pros have had dynamic refresh rates upto 120HZ (ProMotion) since 2017, so I guess that assumption was stupid :/ Stabilised in what way? If the TV can only output 30 or 60, what is the console doing here? Turning a non 30 or 60 output to 30 or 60 in a non-jarring way? How does it do that?
  4. What's the current and near future use of VRR and HDMI 2.1? What makes them important?
  5. It is a pretty sweet display tho I already have a projector in that room so need the TV for daytime gaming mostly. It is quite a bright room, and I have blackout curtains so prefer not to draw them. Yeah, was afraid of that. What’s a good option for a bright setting? Or should I just YOLOLED?
  6. OLED folks, how well does the display handle a bright room? What would be the best option if not OLED?
  7. Well he knocked out Hooker emphatically so I'd say he's in appropriate company, and by the way he reacted to the loss, he's got a great attitude too. I do think he'll get the belt soon. That was a crazy 6 minutes. I think Chandler just didn't expect Oliveira to come at him like that. That last left from Oliveira when Chandler was on the run right next to the cage was a thing of beauty. Right up Main Street. Felt like Chandler eased up a bit towards the end, I think he could've finished Ol. Though Oliveira did well to get out of that charge.
  8. Prediction. Edit: a bit late, but UFC has been killing it lately. 260 & 261 were absolutely bonkers.
  9. There's a severe version? :| Sure, but conking off within 2 days? Despite medical intervention? I think we're missing something. Also noticed this has happened where one of the parents had already passed due to COVID, so maybe there's a deeper genetic angle? Truly horrid. Yeah, that'll most likely subside in a couple of weeks. A few friends I know didn't have enough energy to even hold a conversation on days 11-15. They're better now. Get well soon man.
  10. Guys, hearing of more than a few cases where despite showing recovery, people are suddenly dropping SpO2 around the 10th day and are not making it. Young, fit people with no history of problems. What’s going on?
  11. Really thin straws here. The key part of the equation you're missing is carrier droplets and volumetric dispersion. I'll be providing citations below. If you can get it sitting inside your car, you can damn well get sitting inside your apartment, house, bathroom, or any place that hasn't been airtight since December 2019. Right, and the way to remedy that is to create more rules, even asinine ones. It really can't. But sure, wear a mask to be on the safe side. No sarcasm intended. Summary article Useful links: 1. Irish study: Outdoor transmission accounts for .1% of 232164 COVID cases; also similar results for data studied in China, Japan, etc. 2. National Lib of Med: risk of outdoor transmission lower From the article: Nooshin Razani, an associate professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of California, San Francisco: "But because little particles floating through the air are a main concern with COVID, the outdoors is very, very safe. Anything you exhale will just be diluted very quickly, especially if you’re moving around. Yes, the coronavirus can spread in other ways. As Razani said, “If you’re right next to someone and you spit on them outdoors, it’s not going to magically protect you from their spit.” But that comment illustrates that the risk of getting COVID while briefly coming within 6 feet of someone outside is so small that your exchange of fluids would almost have to be purposeful" Zain Chagla, an infectious diseases physician with McMaster University: "First, you or the person you’re passing would have to happen to have an asymptomatic infection, he explained, and then everyone would have to be exhaling and inhaling at just the right moment, and also, exchanging enough particles to actually seed another infection: “You’re talking about a probability of getting hit by a car, and being struck by lightning.” Anyway, if you feel that way wear the mask, wear it while sleeping too. But creating rule that really doesn't help in stopping transmission and ties up resources and encroaches on privacy and personal space at the same damn time is a masterful troll job, from a body that has no business doing so, and feels at least wasteful and excessive.
  12. Got challan-ed in Delhi for not wearing a mask while driving. Alone. The High court is a goddamn troll.
  13. There's a psychological bias for everything under the sun. But ignoring the less accomplished and only focussing on the winners, or exceptions, is at the very least inspiring. It's hard, and that's why the winners column is filled with exceptions. Some of them have overcome much more than it took to make someone else give up, or for most others to not even try. Finding favourable reasons for those who did it, and unfavourable for those who couldn't is along the lines of making an excuse. It doesn't help.
  14. I really don't want to come across as trite and insensitive, but this kind of discussion helps no one. When you read about some of the remarkable things achieved by people with all of these issues mentioned, and more, this thought that there are valid reasons for not trying comes across as extremely shallow. A few examples, if you read about Cameroonian Francis Ngannou, the current UFC heavyweight champion and what he had to go through for his desire, ambition, and sheer will to be in a better place, or how APJ and co. developed India's rockets, or how Geeta Phogat became the world champion, the only thing that limits reach is ambition. None of these guys were extra-ordinary when they began. No one is. They chose not to stop. And when you distill it all down, it really is as simple as that.
  15. More than the mask and COVID, this behaviour by the kid's father (?) would affect him for life. Anyway, thread:
  16. Johnny Bench called. Malory, you sexy thing. <3.
  17. Kinda thought she did well with WW. Brought the innocence out really well. She’s got a great smile too. But this whole constipated look to try harder doesn’t work. Not on her, not on cavil. Lol it was extremely overused everywhere. Would be interesting to know, how much of the runtime was extended by slo-mo
  18. Justice League is the most Snyder movie ever. It has the highest highs of the things that he does well, but also the things which i haven’t liked from his earlier works still don’t work. This is a beautiful movie, and apart from wasted real estate on any screen other than the iPad, and sometimes being too dark, the visuals are sublime. Some moments are jaw-dropping-ly pretty. Some visual creative work is right up there with the best. The presentation, the framing, the camera movement, set pieces, colour profile, and visual direction are truly event-worthy. This is Snyder’s jackhammer, and he wields it in full force here, with flair and precision. It’s almost like a cinematographical dance, this movie. The action is good too, though not entirely memorable. There’s appropriate music, and it works. Since these things, the things that he does well are done so well, the rest of the things which he doesn’t have a grip over feel worse. The acting is just bad throughout, by everyone except Affleck, Leto, and Miller. Even Gadot’s work is shoddy. And while Affleck does well, I didn’t like how Wayne/Batman was portrayed. The character just wasn’t cool. The pacing is switched right off. The slo-mo is overused to oblivion, the panning orchestra music used to convey emotion just drags on and on, and makes this 4 hour journey feel much longer. It’s like every goddamn scene has to have this impact, which, in Snyder parlance, is manageable only though slow motion. Then there are the tropes: sacrifice, and “you can be whoever”, and the worst, spit-a-drink-out punt; “I belong to no one”. LOL. There’s many similarities to the other side too. Darkseid is the great one and has “humble servants”, wants to destroy, etc. etc. But I suppose this kind of a snack is fun once in a while. It’s a spectacle, like a well done circus, or fairs we used to go to as children. They didn’t have to make a whole lot of sense, but they were fun. If there were to be follow-ups to this by Snyder, I’d happily pay to watch them. If there aren’t, I’m glad he got to see this out to completion. Would’ve felt nice. Notable moments, performances, and scenes: The joker. What a goddamn punch. Batman’s badass-ery in the final battle. He really was out of his goddamn mind. The football scene in snowfall. So pretty. Flash’s expression, the single best moment from the earlier movie remains. Watched on a rock-solid Apple TV stream. 7/10
  19. Watching this tonight. What's a good break point if I don't have 4 straight hours?
  20. Let's just do a once over: 1. The only Snyder movie I've truly enjoyed is 300 2. True talent with Snyder is in cutting epic trailers 3. Worst bit: extended use of slo-mo and organ music to communicate "emo-ness". But. Has any director ever gotten his version re-released with a tent-pole movie of this magnitude? So I'll give it a watch. With very low expectations. The sound in his movies is severely lacking. Weird because usually impactful LFE accompanies slo-mo shots since at least The Matrix.
  21. Make it anyone, and anything. Just make it worthwhile to watch. --------------------------------------- Logan Lucky The preface is simple. It's a Soderbergh heist. With a few new rules: 1. Decide To Rob a Bank The screenplay, written by an "untraceable person", is what brought brought Soderbergh out of retirement for this. The style is typical Soderbergh, but gritty, without the suave-ness of Ocean's. That's not a bad thing. I couldn't spot a single suit in the entire movie. No smooth jazz. 2. Have a Plan Must be as simple as everyone says it is. 3. Have a Back-up Plan The stellar cast: Channing Tatum, Adam Driver, Daniel Craig, that guy from The Boys whose GF is murdered in the first scene, Katie Holmes, Hillary Swank, Seth Macfarlane, and The Warden. Many and frequent genuine-LOL moments. 4. Establish Clear Communications "They're gonna know what we want them to know". The only gap here was Tatum's imperfect accent. 5. Choose Your Partners Carefully These characters are straight up GTA's alley. You could make GTA6 with these characters and it'll be one of the best GTAs ever. Every scene is memorable in some way, largely due to the characters involved, and the actors have done phenomenally. Sam & Fish Bang are this universe's Robert & Bhalla. If you had any doubts about James Bond's ability to blend in, or be a white-trash gangster, your doubts will be "in-car-ce-ra-ted". 6. Expect The Unexpected How do two simpletons, with certifiable morons, one of who knows "all the twitters", manage a heist? Unexpected-ly. 7. sh*t Happens Like having your real arm hand blow-off in Iraq while on the way back to the airport for your return flight, or having your prosthetic arm hand sucked-in through a vacuum, or.. 8. Don't Get Greedy Movie was made on a modest $30 mn budget which allowed for the makers to have full creative control. But watching it feels like it could've been a better film with more money to enable better camera work, better sets, better audio, better post-production, and overall - just better quality. 9. Remember, sh*t Happens Your promising career in sport could come to an abrupt end due to an injury, and the same injury could prevent you from keeping your mining job as you've become an insurance liability, or the inmates could continue to hold up the prison because the warden couldn't get the latest Game of Thrones books for the library, or.. 10. Hang Up and Know When to Walk Away Fav character: Fish Bang Fav line: "This kind of stuff don't happen to normal folk'" Fav hand: the one on your body Fav Mustang: V8 stick-shift Fav condiment: salt substitute 8/10
  22. This was different. Meddy was playing better, and Djokovic had injury concerns. Today was a big match MasterClass. He did not allow Medvedev into a rhythm, and made him hit more shots per point than anyone else on tour. Respect. Like the action movies where the male lead is usually a lot older than the female lead. Medvedev was in murderous form. He’s the most “AI-like” player but trips up when things don’t go according to plan.
  23. Hi. Need a way to extend the length of the power adapter cable. The inelegant and messy way would be to use an extender towards the power-outlet side. A cleaner way would be to have a USB-C extender to use towards the dock side. Any pointers?
  24. Yeah, it’s non-DVR. Plus I don’t want another box in the house that I’d have to connect to the internet, specially one that’s Powered by Google™
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