Recbox for nowrunalong

[beyondthealgorithm_mod]

Username: nowrunalong

Preferred Genres: comedy, rom-com, drama, fantasy/sci-fi, slice of life, mystery/detective, procedural

DNW Genres: violent/gory horror

Preferred Media Types: live action TV, movies, cartoons, comics, graphic novels

DNW Media Types: video games that take more than ~20 hours to play

General Likes: nuanced/morally grey female characters, women being heroes, women being villains, female friendships, romance of any gender configuration, slow burn, found families, comedy, feel-good stories, drama/conflict driven by characters, symbolism, outfits/costume design being a major part of the visual look of the series

General DNWs: torture porn, primary focus on abuse/rape stories, relentless angst/suspense/darkness

Fandom Preferences: femslash shipping potential!

Requests for Content Warnings: please warn for graphic violence, rape/non-con, child abuse, and death of bi/lesbian women

Examples of Media Enjoyed: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel & Faith comics, Lucifer TV, DC Extended Universe, Superman: the Animated Series (and the rest of the DCAU), Doctor Who, The Mandalorian, Lost Girl, Carmilla, She-Ra 2018, Legend of Korra, Scott Pilgrim (movie & graphic novels), Person of Interest, Elementary, Castle, The Mentalist, The Good Wife, Schitt's Creek, New Girl, Forever 2018, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Bob's Burgers, Much Ado About Nothing (every version I've seen!), The Raven Cycle, Tales From the Borderlands. If you want to see what movies I've watched, I have a list on letterboxd!

Examples of Media to Avoid: Torchwood/Class, extreme cringe humour like Curb Your Enthusiasm and the Office UK, fandom juggernauts like MCU (exception for Star Trek, feel free to rec individual shows!), soap-opera-type dramas (like Grey's Anatomy or Jane the Virgin), and the following sitcoms because I've already seen them: The Office, Parks and Rec, B99, Community, Seinfeld, Friends, One Day at a Time, Never Have I Ever, Scrubs, Silicon Valley, The Good Place.

Streaming Services I Can Access: Netflix, DC Universe, Amazon Prime, Disney+

Languages I'm Comfortable With: English, French, potentially other languages with accessible English subtitles

Comments

[tarlanx]

You may have already seen these but:

Comedy Movies:
Due Date - Peter Highman must reach Los Angeles to make it in time for his child's birth. However, he is forced to travel with Ethan, an aspiring actor who frequently lands him in trouble. It's a fun road trip.
The Pacifier (Vin Diesel) - A Navy SEAL unused to children/teens has to protect the family of a scientist lost during a rescue that went wrong. Lots of fun shenanigans.
Scooby Doo movie - Live action movie with the guys all meeting up again after several years apart to solve a mystery on an island.
Snow Dogs - an adopted Miami dentist ends up in Alaska after his birth mother names him in her will. It's more slapstick comedy but still fun, and with great scenes and a love story.

Drama Movies:
The Fugitive (movie with Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones) - Dr Kimble is found guilty of murdering his wife and is sentenced to death. He escapes and tries to prove his innocence while being hunted by the US Marshals. Lots of drama and action, and a satisfying ending.
The Guardian (Kevin Costner) is about rescue swimmers, who save people in trouble at sea. Ben is asked to train the next set of recruits and later go out on rescues with those that make it through the punishing program.
Hours - about a man trying to keep his premature newborn alive during Hurricane Katrina after the hospital is abandoned, contending with failing power and looters.
K2 (with Michael Biehn) - about two friends who get the chance to ascend to the summit of K2. They have to contend with bad weather, the cold, crevasses, altitude sickness. It's based on character development and has great climbing sequences and beautiful scenery.
Silver Wolf (Michael Biehn) about a boy who goes to stay with his Forest Ranger uncle after his dad is killed in a freak skiing accident. He befriends a wolf, and drama ensues.
Unstoppable - about a runaway train based on a real event. Really good for drama and the last half hour is edge of your seat, with a wonderful ending.

Fantasy/sci-fi Movies:
2001 A Space Odyssey and it's sequel, 2010 The Year We Make Contact - these are quite old movies, and 2001 is a little surreal but the second movie makes sense of it. Both are set in space, heading towards an anomaly just beyond one of the outer planets at a time when the Earth is in political turmoil and on the brink of world war due to population explosion.
The Abyss (I'd recommedn the Special Edition) - about an undersea drilling platform that encounters an alien lifeform in the Abyss below them. A Navy SEAL team arrives to locate a downed nuclear sub but the leader is showing signs of depth sickness, making him unstable.
Apollo 13 (with Tom Hanks) - the movie is a fairly accurate account of the disaster that befell Apollo 13 and all the work that went into bringing the astronauts home safely.
Enemy Mine - humans and the Drac are at war and two fighter pilots from each side crashland on an alien planet. The story is how they go from being enemies to friends and how that friendship eventually brings an end to the war. Based on a book called Manifest Destiny.
Jumanji and Zathura - very similar and both good movies about kids who find a mechanical like board game and start to play, only to find the each move has consequences, and the only way to save themselves is to finish the game. Jumanji was set in the jungle and has a couple of great sequels. Zathura was set in space.
The Martian is well worth watching about a mission to Mars where one man gets left behind and is believed dead until he finally makes contact. It's about how he survives and how the world comes together to rescue him. It has drama and comedy and tense moments.

TV:
Boston Legal is a clever and often funny court drama show about a Legal Firm and the cases they handle. The main character is ALan Shore who uses sometimes unethical means to win civil rights cases alongside his mentor, Denny Crane, who is in the mid stages of dementia.
Eureka is another fun show about an average sheriff living in a zany town filled with mad genius scientists. It's all about the problems he faces while trying to save the town from themselves. It is a mixture of comedy and some drama
Warehouse 13 is similar to The Librarians (also a great TV show) about finding magical objects before they can become problematic. It shares the same universe as Eureka with at least one crossover in later seasons of Eureka. All the magical objects are stored away in a huge warehouse, whereas in The Librarians they are stored in a huge Library :) Both of these shows have great comedy and drama, and the magical element makes it intriguing and fun to watch.
Death In Paradise is a UK detective show set on a tropical island. It starts with a 'fish out of water' UK detective coming to investigate the death of the previous Inspector and then being forced to stay on. It has lots of interesting cases. Other detectives replace the first one over the seasons but all add their own unique quirkiness to the cases.
Shetland is another UK detective show set in Scotland on the Shetland islands. It's about a police officer/detective who has to keep the peace and solve cases while dealing with his personal problems. The scenery is beautiful.
A Gifted Man is about a doctor who helps out at a free clinic after being asked by the ghost of his ex-wife, who in life was an idealistic doctor who worked with those who couldn't afford medical care. It's how this impacts on him and the people around him. It was only one season but had some great episodes.
Haven is about a town under a centuries old curse and delves into the various curses and how it all came about. It starts with the arrival of an FBI agent who looks identical to a woman who comes back to the town every 27 years when the curse (Troubles) begin again. It has love, friendship, drama, supernatural elements, and an intriguing back story.
Terra Nova is about a family trying to make a new life away from an overpopulated Earth by 'escaping' through a manmade rift inot a prehistoric world to join a group of colonists. It's about how they are building a new future while being hampered by those in the old Earth who want to stripmine this new world of its resources.

Most are on Amazon Prime at the moment, as far as I am aware.

[nowrunalong]

Oh my goodness, so many suggestions, you are wonderful. I will definitely be referring to this list the next time I'm trying to pick something for movie night.

Of this whole pile, I've only seen Death in Paradise (loved it! although I never did finish it!) and the Scooby-Doo movie. I've had WH13 and Haven recced to me before... I should really get around to those, I'm almost positive I'd enjoy them.

I'd never heard of Eureka before now - adding that and The Librarians to my list as well! Such fun premises. :D (If you happen to have any additional thoughts on this, if I were to pick between WH13, Eureka, and The Librarians to start with, which might you nudge me toward? I know that WH13 has a popular f/f ship, but I know nothing of the other two fandoms.)

I very much appreciate you giving me a little synopsis of each title here. Thank you for the recommendations!

[tarlanx]

I really enjoyed all three series for different reasons, though if I had to choose between The Librarians and WH13 I might be swayed more towards WH13. It seemed a lot less zany. The f/f ship in WH13 is definitely a plus point too :)

Eureka is different to other two in that it is SCIENCE rather than MAGIC even though Eureka shares the same canon universe as WH13. I love all the science in the episodes and how the problems are resolved. Plus I am a huge Jack/Nathan fan so that makes me biased :)

All three shows have strong female characters but WH13 showcases it best, I think!

[nowrunalong]

Amazing - thank you so much again. I can't wait to investigate these recs further!