Oz

[IC Champion]

Saw it a few times when I was younger, but decided to sit down and watch the whole thing about a week ago, I'm just about done. Raw, gritty and great. I regret not watching it before.

Anyone else love this show?

[Triple A]

It is probably my favorite show of all time. So incredible. I loved that show so much.

[IC Champion]

Yeah, I just finished the Episode where Beecher gets sent back to Oz.

[Boondock Saint]

One of my favorite shows ever. HBO's best show after The Wire.

[Juan]

Loved this show.

In fact, thanks to you IC, I think I might start re-watching it :y:

[ct2k]

Simon Adebisi

[IC Champion]

Ryan O'Rielly

[Inadequacy]

Been watching it a lot on HBO Canada and I have the first season on dvd.

Kareem Said.

[ct2k]

Show is fuckin WAY depressing though, like on the same level as The Wire in that regard imo, mainly because it doesn't pull any punches in trying to address the big 'issues' surrounding its subject matter, but thats probably what makes it such a good show.

[IC Champion]

Yeah, it is despressing as fuck. Even more than The Wire, I'd say.

[IC Champion]

Kareem Said.

Is my favourite character on the show.

[Russenmafia]

The best TV show ever made.

[PapaGeorgio]

Fuck you probably going to make me rewatch it again now. I usually stop rewatching after season 4.5 For one, the obvious happens if you seen it, and from that point onwards def downhill major.

[PapaGeorgio]

FUCKKKK DONT WANT TO COMMITT MYSELF TO IT BUT IT IS LITERALLY STARING ME IN THE FACE, PUTTING THE DISC IN FOR S1 D1. WHY DID YOU DO THIS TO ME

[PapaGeorgio]

I once had to do a monologue for something in school and we were allowed to pick anything. I picked one of Hills monologues, well combined like two or three of his. Class was rolling, hold up let me find it.

When Napoleon died in Exile, the doctors cut off his dick. They put his dick in an ornate jar and gave it to his priest; don't ask me why. Over the years, Napoleon's dick was sold and sold again to the highest bidder. To this day, at least three people claim to own Napoleon's dick. But you see, it's not important who owns the real dick. The big question is, well... who the fuck do those other two dicks belong to?

Napoleon's final defeat came at Waterloo. Must've been embarrassing. You're the fucking emperor. You conquered all of Europe, only to lose in a place with a stupid name like Waterloo. Or Watergate, or Whitewater. Note to politicans: Stay on land.

[Destor]

what Triple A said...

[IC Champion]

Seinfeld goes to Oz

<div><object width="480" height="348"><param name="movie" value="http://www.dailymotion.com/swf/k1876Zx5xX7h2K8J5a&related=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.dailymotion.com/swf/k1876Zx5xX7h2K8J5a&related=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="480" height="348" allowFullScreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always"></embed></object><br /><b><a href="http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x18kvo_seinfeld-in-oz_people">Seinfeld in Oz</a></b><br /><i>Uploaded by <a href="http://www.dailymotion.com/renzo433">renzo433</a></i></div>

[IC Champion]

Anyways, just finished watched the final episode. What a great fucking show.

[Danny Electric]

Got all the seasons on DVD, my favourite show ever.
As has been discussed many times before :)

[IC Champion]

Who do you guys think was the best actor on the series?

[Triple A]

Fav character was always Adebisi just because of his ridiculousness. Also always loved Schillinger... and Keller actually. Whatever, every character was amazing.

[PapaGeorgio]

I agree with AAA. Adebisi was amazing. The Schillinger/Beecher storlyline was AMAZING. I legit hated Keller, like he played the character so great and fucked over Beecher more than Schillinger in some ways. Like I am just now getting over what Keller did and semi able to watch SVU without some hate. I was also big fan of Kareem Saide too. So many great characters.

Plus they'd have a bunch of good cameo type characters too.

Least favorite is def the asian priest, always wanted to punch him in his stupid face.(Note his face being stupid has nothing to do with the fact he is asain, only a stupid face cause i hate him soooooo much)

[Inadequacy]

It'd be nearly impossible for me to pick a favourite character. Luckily between the O'Reilly brothers, Beecher, White, Morales (just to name a few) I don't think I have to nor should I.

But the best actor for me would be a toss up between Eamonn Walker and Harold Perrineau. Walker because he played Said perfectly and Perrineau because he practically carried the show.

"Carried the show" might not be the correct phrase, but I think you know what I mean.

[Inadequacy]

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That needed to be posted

[Boondock Saint]

Jia Kenmin

[Boondock Saint]

Actually one of the characters I hated on the show (aka loved to hate) was Robson. But he got his comeuppance.

[Triple A]

Yeah Robson was amazing as a pure evil sidekick to make Schillinger seem kinda good. Also love the shot of Schillinger playing pool whenever he was Up To No Good.

[Danny Electric]

Robson and his black gums :)

[Danny Electric]

Loads to choose from but probably Kirk Acevedo, from his relationship with Father Ray to his time in solitary and his battels with the other Hispanics.

[Krimzon7]

loved the them song...


HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUAH!

[Inadequacy]

I hated Robson at first, but the guy who played him was so awesome I've now come to like him.

I think it was the way he said "strike fuckin two" when him and some other Aryan were killing the young muslim. It was priceless.

[IC Champion]

Eaamon Walker and Kirk Acevedo were both pretty awesome on the show.

Why do people hate on the 5th and 6th seasons?

[Gonzo]

I love this show.

[Krimzon7]

Oz was so great. My favorite scene

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[XL]

I was so gonna start a new Oz thread but thought I'd get shit as there is/was one on here from not so long ago.

I bought the first 4 seasons on DVD since they started coming out over here in the UK but then I lost my job and have been out of work since, got no money and thus I'm still having to wait to get seasons 5 and 6. First things on the list once I have any kinda expendable cash though.

I lent the Season 1 boxset to a friend to watch, he returned it having watched 2 episodes. Fucking philistine/retard.

[Jeritron]

lol when Rudd watches this the night before he goes to jail in Role Models

[Confused]

Loved the show even though it was on ridiculously late on a Thursday night over here.

How can anyone fail to love Adebisi' little hat?

[ct2k]

lol @ the beecher/schillinger duet:love:

One of my favourite scenes was when Beecher finally snapped and took a dump on Schillinger. In fact every time Beecher went off the rails was brilliant. Also honourable mention to Chris Keller for seducing Sister Peter Marie, Miguel Alvarez for teaching the guide dog Spanish and Kareem Said for "ADEBISI LIVES:mad:"

[Mr. Nerfect]

Oz is ridiculously awesome. It's so awesome that you almost want to complain about why other things aren't as awesome as it. The writing, the acting and just the general outlay of the show were fucking fantastic. Tom Fontana writing (or co-writing) all 56 episodes of it just blows my mind.

My favourite character had to be Kareem Said. The older I get, the more I appreciate him, too. Such a wise, yet extremely scary man. When he loses his temper, it legitimately sends chills up my spine. I've also got to say that the Omar White character won me over. He eventually became a rather warm character, despite starting off so cold. And seeing him writing up quantum physics on the white board towards the end of the season six was awesomely hilarious. There was true redemption in that character.

Enrique Morales also won me over. But that's probably more to do with David Zayas than the character. But I loved how Zayas played him as if he were honourable and someone you could actually approach and talk to. He almost seemed humble until he was shoving a power drill into your throat.

Erik King's Moses Dyell character (or whatever his name was) was pretty funny. I am yet to see too much earlier than season four, but some of his exchanges ("Yes, genius, yes,") were pretty hilarious, and any man that sings Amazing Grace before punching through a brick wall and choking someone gets a few dozen thumbs up from me.

As far as the best actor on the show goes -- while it is hard to pick just one guy based purely on acting, I'd really have to narrow it down to some of the following:

Chris Meloni as Chris Keller. The way he played Keller was just chilling. It was often funny, scary and you actually felt confident that he was one of the few guys in Oz that was actually safe. You didn't want to fuck with Keller. That Meloni made the character seem so confusingly warm and cold almost at random was fantastic. He was also playing a fictional detective that was pretty much the inverse of Keller on Law & Order: SVU simulataneously, too. And just the raw power of his physical acting. Meloni was fantastic on this show.

Lee Tergesen as Tobias Beecher was also fantastic, and J.K. Simmons is always a god. Thank you for posting that Variety video, Inadequacy. Thank you so much. But both those men did so well with their roles, purely as actors, and not just as well-written characters.

Another guy who really deserves credit, is Scott William Winters. Cyril O'Reily was one of the hearts of the show, and although he needed his brother to survive in Oz, you also got the impression that Ryan would have given up if Cyril hadn't have been there. The character had a good heart, but was not harmless, and whenever Cyril got into a fight, someone was bound to be getting fucked up. Scott William Winters disappeared into the character, to the point where he is almost unrecogniseable when he leaves it, I've found. When Sister Peter Marie gave him the sock puppet, Jericho, and a more confident Cyril started to come out from it, it was damn chilling to hear the change in voice, posture, etc.

But I'd have to go with Eamonn Walker as the best actor in the show. Kareem Said was so likable and so terrifying at the same time, and that really drew off Walker's power as an actor. I think he just narrowly pulls in front of Christopher Meloni.

I'll need to go back and watch some of the earlier seasons to truly inform my opinion, though.

[Mr. Nerfect]

What was everyone's favourite sort of story arc? You know, besides the obvious Beecher/Schillinger thing. Personally, I really liked the relationship Tim McManus had with several characters. The "not giving up" on Omar White thing, as well as his stuff with Jackson Vahue and Dave Brass.

[XL]

It's seems that Oz is pretty much universally loved by most that have seen it. So why I am having such a hard time getting my friends to borrow the DVDs from me?

I have one friend who you might say I'm "educating" in good TV shows. First I got him into Lost, then Curb Your Enthusiasm. Oz is next on the agenda.

[IC Champion]

Why are you making him watch Lost? Did he sleep with your mother or something? Poor Bastard.

[ct2k]

Lost is actually a pretty good way of introducing people to shows with long story archs imo

[IC Champion]

I never liked Lost because it was so over the top, with black magic or whatever. I watched the first season I think, and it started getting all crazy in season 2.

[Boondock Saint]

lol black magic

[IC Champion]

I dont know what to call it, things stared getting all crazy and becoming a Sci-Fi show. Not my cup of tea.

[ct2k]

Oz kinda jumped the shark imo with the whole '90210 angel talks to the guy from biohazard' arch imo, but still:y:

[IC Champion]

OZ NEVER JUMPED THE SHARK. AGING PILLS WILL BE THE WAY OF THE FUTURE.

But seriously, what was the '90210 angel talks to the guy from biohazard', or is that like 3 rolled into one.

[XL]

Why are you making him watch Lost? Did he sleep with your mother or something? Poor Bastard.
I enjoy Lost, but I am a Sci-Fi fan (well, X-Files fan).

And like ct2k said, it's a good way to get people into long story archs. Bare in mind thi sis a guy who would rate Harry Potter over The Dark Knight, I need to bring him along slowly.

[Danny Electric]

:)
You can't beat the extended season 4 and the 'how many characters can we introduce and kill off in the same episode.'

[Mr. Nerfect]

OZ NEVER JUMPED THE SHARK. AGING PILLS WILL BE THE WAY OF THE FUTURE.

But seriously, what was the '90210 angel talks to the guy from biohazard', or is that like 3 rolled into one.

I'm thinking he might be referring to the arc with Luke Perry's character, but I'm not entirely sure. I've got to give Luke Perry credit for doing Oz, actually. It didn't seem like a show that sort of actor would do, but he did it. And he even took a naked stroll for it.

Also, I didn't mind it when Oz went a little crazy with some of their concepts. The aging drug and the whole apparition thing didn't bother me too much. It was such a smart show that I didn't care if it took liberties with reality like that. It was always in control.

[Mr. Nerfect]

:)
You can't beat the extended season 4 and the 'how many characters can we introduce and kill off in the same episode.'

I felt really sorry for that French guy in the first episode of season four. :(

On the topic of Lost: While I did start to watch it, I lost interest pretty fast. I could never watch it when it was on, so I used to record it, but then never got around to watching it, because it just didn't demand my attention. My family still watches it, but I felt justified in my decision to stop watching when the writers pretty much admitted they make the whole thing up on the spot, and that they had no clue where it was going.

It might be one of those shows I go back and check after its completely finished, and I know if the journey is worth it.

I'm trying to get some of my mates into higher level television right now. Going to try and get some into The Wire, some into Oz and some into Arrested Development (not drama, but damn brilliant). A lot of them have open minds, and have already seen bits and pieces from around the place. But there is nothing harder than initially helping someone cross that original barrier that mainstream film and television has put over their eyes.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Something I've noticed about this show, and I'm not sure if anyone else would give a fuck, but it's to do with subtitles.

To my understanding, I believe the scripts are submitted to the people who program the subtitles into the discs, so often when you're watching a movie or a television show with the subtitles on, you'll notice that a word is different, or that the actor ad-libs something in there. I have never noticed that in Oz. Maybe they just went about doing the subtitles a different way from the norm, and actually transcribed them, but one possibility is that Tom Fontana is very protective of his scripts.

I think that man is legendary for writing or co-writing every single episode of that show.

[IC Champion]

Something I've noticed about this show, and I'm not sure if anyone else would give a fuck, but it's to do with subtitles.

To my understanding, I believe the scripts are submitted to the people who program the subtitles into the discs, so often when you're watching a movie or a television show with the subtitles on, you'll notice that a word is different, or that the actor ad-libs something in there. I have never noticed that in Oz. Maybe they just went about doing the subtitles a different way from the norm, and actually transcribed them, but one possibility is that Tom Fontana is very protective of his scripts.

I think that man is legendary for writing or co-writing every single episode of that show.

Yeah, he gets major respect from me for being involved in writing every episode, and the majority he wrote by himself.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Especially considering how consistently great the quality of the writing is. With all those characters floating around, and the way you never really get a faux pas in the series. I was also a big Homicide: Life on the Street fan, which also had Tom Fontana involvement.

I'm actually thinking about checking out St. Elsewhere, just because Fontana used to write on it. Has anyone seen that show? Is it any good?

[Good Ol JG]

I am so happy that there are people like me in the world that love this show. I followed it from the time it first came on til the 5th season, when my mom canceled HBO and I had to miss out on season 6. I was SO pissed. I had to wait until season 6 came out on DVD and I bought that shit at midnight the day it came out.

In my opinion it's the greatest drama ever. The characters and writing are brilliant. I think Fontana went a long way to show how every character on the show is human. Evil men like Schillinger still loved his sons (albeit he killed Hank) and his grand daughter. Good characters like Beecher and Said still did terrible things. Most of the storylines were also excellent. There were some goofy things, like the age drug, Cloutier appearing to Hoyt (btw - earlier post of "90210 guy and Biohazard guy" meant Cloutier and Hoyt, who was the bassest for Biohazard, Evan Seinfield), and others.

Favorite Characters
Beecher
Said
O'Reilly
Adebisi
Hill
Schillinger (evil dude but had the best one liners in the series)
McManus

Least Favorite
Querns
Claire Howell
Clayton Hughes
Scott Ross