Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with series

please help me i.d. this photo(series) and the artist

Baby_Balrog — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:13:55 -0800

Argh! Can't remember the name of this series of bizarre photos. I think it was something like, "What's the matter with Jonathan" or something like that. It's making me crazy. Please help.

Name that book series I barely remember

nomisxid — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 15:41:18 -0800

Back in the 70's/80's, I remember seeing a series of scifi/fantasy books, where the cover art for all the books had a consistent theme of a red/orange sun that figured prominently. What was it? I remember there seemed like a lot of books in the series.
As I recall, most of the covers were pictures of a character, with the omnipresent red dot in the background sky. At the time, I shied away from them because I was more into hard sci-fi, and it looked likely to be very fantasy-y.

PS3 franchises with story but little backstory?

Riki tiki — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 14:01:21 -0800

What video game franchises in the current generation would be good to pick up for the first time? I like games with a decent focus on story or lore. I just bought a PS3 and am looking to build up my library a bit. Problem is, I look around and see a lot of those types of games with large numbers at the end of their titles... Metal Gear Solid 4, Resident Evil 5, Devil May Cry 4. Not having played the earlier titles in these series, I'm hesitant to buy them for fear that the plot will make little to no sense to me or that I'll end up with a cruddy cash-in sequel that only appeals to people who had their minds blown by the early entries.

Which franchises justify that fear and which don't? Of the ones that have a rolling storyline, do the earlier games hold up well enough to be worth playing now (and would I be able to play them on a new PS3)?

The above were just examples, I'm open to any other franchises you can think of. Also feel free to assume a fairly loose definition of "story", I just mean it to exclude franchises where the plot is just a flimsy framework to justify the gameplay, like Street Fighter.

(also no need to talk about the following: Fallout 3, Oblivion, GTAIV, or the Final Fantasy series)

Fourier series confusion and pre/post-integration substitution dilemmas.

PuGZ — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 01:10:41 -0800

Asking for a friend: With the use of Fourier series, I'm trying to solve an ODE of the form L*y'' + R*y' + y/C = r(x), where r(x) = 1 - x^2 for |x| <= 1, i.e. has a period of 2. To do so I need to represent 1 - x^2 as a Fourier series. In doing so I have to integrate e^(-n * i * pi * x), but I've reached a stumbling block. I'm stuck because I noticed that substituting n = 0 before the integration yielded a different result to substituting post-integration (ie. Divide by zero). What am I doing wrong? Both in regards to what I'm trying to achieve overall and as a stand alone problem, how would I deal with the such integrals when substituting in for the case n = 0?

Short BBC dramas

IanMorr — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 06:58:26 -0800

What great <10 episode British dramas, such as State of Play, have I missed in the last 10 years? I just finished watching the 6 part series State of Play, which reminded me how much I used to enjoy that format. I left the UK 10 years ago, so I'm hoping that I've missed lots of other great short drama series that I can now catch up on.

There are some excellent suggestions here, but most of them have too many episodes for my current limited TV watching time.

I'm not looking for procedural types where there's a new problem to solve every hour. I also prefer dramas set in the present day. State of Play was ideal and is exactly what I'm looking for more of: a great story that unfolds over 6 hours, 2 DVD's, 2 weekend evenings at home while the kid's asleep.

Identifying a British TV series

Riki tiki — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 13:37:41 -0800

Trying to identify a British television program about a doctor that used to be broadcast on PBS. Here's the information I've been given from fuzzy recollections:

It was British, possibly syndicated from the BBC.
It aired Sunday nights on PBS during the '90s or early '00s.
It was a comedy/drama.
It was about a doctor and his wife.
One of the storylines involved the wife cheating with the doctor's intern.

Anyone have any idea what that might be? Thanks in advance.

Operation Scattered Spies:

JaredSeth — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 20:59:00 -0800

Help me put this series of "The Spy Five" books in the appropriate reading order for my niece. Originally published by Scholastic, The Spy Five books are now out of print. Although they're "by" Spencer Strange, the main character, they appear to be written by Andrea Menotti (credited with "words") and illustrated by Kelly Kennedy ("pictures"). The ten books we've given her, which I believe comprise the entire series, are:

Operation Kung Fooled You - pretty sure this really is the first one
Operation Night Fright
Operation Fowl Play
Operation Super Five
Operation Master Mole
Operation Code Red
Operation Phantom Dribbler
Operation Kangaroo Trap
Operation Wise Disguise
Operation Billion Gazillion

I'd like to know either the publication order or, if anyone knows it's different, the recommended reading order. I'm also just guessing that these are all the books, as I've found no mention of any other titles on the net, so if anyone knows otherwise that would help too.

I did find an Andrea Menotti who works as a Senior Editor at Chronicle Books now, but I have no idea if she's the same person who wrote these.

Barchester Chronicles?

pilibeen — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 10:52:21 -0800

Any recommendations for smart TV comedy which'll suit my taste? I feel like I've run out of great TV comedy, and am resorting to rewatching old series. Do you have any new (or old) suggestions? Netflix is failing me.

Here's my list of shows I've absolutely loved:
The Thick of It
Spaced
Arrested Development
Peep Show
Fawlty Towers
Mr. Show
Dr. Katz
Freaks & Geeks
Always Sunny in Philadelphia
The Office, UK
Extras (minus special)

Stuff I've liked, not loved:
Northern Exposure
Curb Your Enthusiasm
The Office, US
Shameless

I feel like there're probably some other British gems I've missed, and definitely some older shows I should track down. I'll try anything though - any ideas to suit my taste?

Thanks!

The reluctant hero reluctantly survives

specialagentwebb — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 16:56:44 -0800

Help me identify this fantasy book, about a man who becomes a hero for the money. I read a book a few years ago from my local library. It was a fantasy novel (part of a series), and it involved a reluctant hero. His family was poor (maybe they'd had a few crop failures or something?), and there was a certain position within the kingdom that paid well, but was essentially a suicide role. The man travels to the capital city, knowing that he's probably going to die, but willing to do it so that his family would be set for life. He goes through some kind of interview/audition/trial period, and is appointed to the role. I forget what happens in the rest of the novel, except that (much to his chagrin) he survives, and completes his quests.

Things that I may or may not be remembering correctly:
-The man's name could have been something like Devon or Daven. Could also be the author's name?
-The cover might have had a painting of the main character, holding his fancy sword.
-The title might have included the word "King" or the word "Blade". Or maybe the position he applied for was something like "King's Blade". I know it's not "The King's Blade" series by Dave Duncan.

Lec-a-ture.

LSK — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 10:11:12 -0800

Finding a place to hold a lecture series? A few of my high school friends and I want to have a lecture series over the summer, just for fun. How do we go about finding a space for this? We don't have a large amount of disposable income, and don't want to charge for entry (though donations might be workable)

Lost: I'm Lost!

crossoverman — Thu, 21 May 2009 19:51:48 -0800

Can someone tell me what the hell is happening on "Lost"? I understand what is happening from episode to episode. I pick up the internal references and pretty much see where each flashback/forward fits into the general scheme of things.

But can someone give me a general overview of what this story is even about? The Lostpedia is just a tad too comprehensive. And after the fifth season finale, I'm not sure what, if anything, needs to be accomplished by the end of next season - the final year of the show.

I'm not looking for a high concept answer (Buffy is about a girl fighting vampires) or even a one line logline (Battlestar Galactica is about fighting off the Cylons while searching for Earth), but a general summation.

I tend to think this can't be done, but I'm interested in how people are approaching this show. Most arc-story series I've enjoyed have had an end game that was understandable at least by the final year. (Babylon 5 was about the new alliance by the last year; Deep Space Nine was about war with the Dominion; Supernatural is shaping up to be about taking out Lucifer.)

But what does the island need of these characters? Do the characters need to be on the island, why? I understand why the scientists would want to harness its strange energies, but to what end? And if - as the season five finale implies - these characters aren't on the island, what happens?

Can't remember the name of this French-canadian children series

blithecatpie — Fri, 08 May 2009 17:12:25 -0800

Salut! I'm trying to figure out the name of an educational (and meant to be entertaining) French-Canadian children series that featured a clown (of some sort) in the title. I’m pretty sure it was made and produced in the 90s. I was enrolled in a french immersion program in Nova Scotia, Canada, in the 1990s and we would often watch this series of French-Canadian videos—they featured skits and maybe some songs, the actors were regular and one of the main characters was a Ronald McDonald-type clown character (who didn't speak). I've googled and googled, but nothing has come up.

Hope this rings some bells!

Books for the Middle of Nowhere

jschu — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 17:11:11 -0800

Novels/ book series suggestions? I'm going to be in the middle of nowhere with limited internet access for six month. I would like to hear your suggestions for (hopefully paperback) books that I can bring with me.

I like historical fiction like the Outlander series and Pillars of the Earth. I really like interesting non-fiction such as The World Without Us and The Omnivore's Dilemma. I like time-travelly and post-apocalyptic sci-fi.

I have read and enjoyed His Dark Materials, the Harry Potter series, and Tracy Chevalier's novels.

I would especially appreciate suggestions of series, because I'll have a lot of down time. Outlander was what kept me sane during some lonely, boring, tv-less times a few years ago. I'd love to find something comparable.

Stand-Alone Fantasy Novels?

Jaybo — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 11:46:02 -0800

Stand-alone fantasy book recommendations? So many fantasy books are parts of series so I'm looking for suggestions of fantasy books that are engaging, stand-alone works.

Bonus points if they have medieval settings and characters who use magic.

Finally, although it *is* part of a series, the person I'm asking on behalf of cites "Ink Death" as an example of the type of book they're looking for.

UK TV Dramas

Secret Life of Gravy — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 10:31:47 -0800

Recommendations for British television dramas. My husband and I have gone right off American TV, so lately we have been watching mostly British comedies. We got so many great suggestions in this previous AskMe, that I decided to ask for suggestions on dramas, preferably made in the last 10 years or so. We do not care for:
1. Science Fiction. That includes Life on Mars.
2. Supernatural. That includes Hex.
3. Police or detective shows. That includes Prime Suspect and Wire in the Blood.

Anything else goes, bearing in mind that I have seen just about every Masterpiece Theater ever aired, so if it is a costume drama, I have probably seen it. If it helps, our favorite American dramas are:
1. The Wire
2. Deadwood
3. Mad Men
4. Big Love
5. Six Feet Under

Notice the loose definition of drama-- Big Love and Six Feet Under are dramodies or comical dramas. The line between drama and comedy is sometimes very thin so we aren't pedantic. I'm just looking for shows you think are really worth watching.

Looking for an old South African TV mini-series...

timpollard — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 13:31:56 -0800

Does anyone know where (or even if) I can get hold of a copy of the 1980's SABC (South African TV) series 'The John Ross Story: An African Adventure', made and set around the same time and locations as their excellent 'Shaka Zulu' series? I know it exists but I can find no mention of its availability in any format, or even at the IMDB... Thanks in advance!

What should I read if I love Clan of the Cave Bear?

melodykramer — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 11:06:14 -0800

I love The Clan of the Cave Bear series by Jean Auel, and am looking to read other series in the same vein (i.e. historical, fact-filled, plot driven awesomeness) What would you recommend?

To Book or not to Book?

Xurando — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 12:13:58 -0800

How much of book one do I have to explain in book two, if book two is part of a series I'm writing? Last year I started writing an epic novel and got through part one and eighty thousand words. Then I got busy and put the writing down expecting to pick up part two any day, but I haven't.

To get motivated again I signed up for NaNoWriMo. The problem is I can't use any previous writing in NaNoWriMo. I have to start part two like it's book two even though eventually they will be part of the same novel.

How much of book one do I have to explain? It's a complicated plot, but my preference is not to explain it all. Will this approach hurt the writing?

Wiring my scooter I fried my brain. Little help?

TomMelee — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:34:43 -0800

Wiring diagram, can you help me sort this out plz? So I'm back to working on the godzilla scooter. I've modified a 24v schwinn into a 48v beast. I'm finishing fabrication of the custom deck and platform, and I'm trying to make it so that I can stop taking this thing apart to charge it.

Scooter runs 4, 12v 10A batteries. I run it in series for day to day operation, 48v at 10A. I can't charge that though, and I'm not going to cough up the cash for a 48v 10A charger, and besides that's no fun. So, for charging, I pull the tabs off and rewire it as parallel and let the car charger go at it, 12v at 40A.

What I WANT to do is make this a switchable operation, but every time I start to draw it I confuse myself. I thought I had it figured out, but then I realized that because wires were touching each other at the battery, it would always be series, so I'm assuming I have to break the hot parallel leads between each battery, rather than in one place in the circuit (otherwise it's series by default.)

I realize that makes no sense, so I've added some pictures.
Picture 1 is the current setup. Very simple.

Picture 2 is the wiring setup, again very simple.

Picture 3 is where I want you to draw the lines for me. I've drawn it out about a zillion times. The switch is of the on-off-on variety, ideally one side is parallel and the other series. Of course, I'm going to need two parallel leads that I can surface mount to connect the charger to.

Again, I've got an gotten myself so confused that I can't even decide for sure what leads go to the breakable sides of the switch, but I've been assuming the constant/load point of the switch is going to be for neutral. I'm probably wrong.

Do I need to break the hots between every battery w/ the parallel side of the switch in order to prevent it from defaulting to series? (since there are only 2 contact points per battery, and they all have to plug in...even if they're not switched on they'll still be in contact...)

ALSO, help me maximize wire here and get rid of redundant cable if any. Your help is appreciated.

The next step for this scooter is to take a torch to the frame and stretch it a good foot or so to take it up to 72v, with a bigger controller and motor and rear wheel of course...and a bigger sprocket naturally. I think anything I do here is transferable though, it's the theory that's bogging me down.

(Yes this thing goes fast, no it doesn't overheat, and yes I'm marginally insane.)

Yea I realize this isn't a wiring diagram per se. If you respond with one, it might just confuse the hell out of me. But, you can certainly try! Thanks!

Where can a Philly kid watch his team in the World Series in Europe?

Blandanomics — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 05:18:30 -0800

Where can a Philly kid watch his team in the World Series in Europe? With my genius I decided to backpack through Europe right as the Phillies make the World Series. Ill be in Budapest, Vienna, and Prauge when the games are being played. Does anyone know of any expat bars in those cities where I can catch some of the action? Even if it is taped?

Name this children's book and TV series from the 80's

ticktockdoc — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 11:18:49 -0800

Name this children's book and TV series from the 80's...? It's Lord of the Flies meets Follyfoot. Kinda. Plot: Three (?) children [definitely two boys, maybe a girl too...] are living in their grandfather's/stepfather's/some dude's(?) massive house and estate/lands. For some reason(?) they decide to run away, but instead of actually going anywhere, they instead hide out in the land/forrest of the estate. They manage to hide out there for YEARS, within sight of the massive house all the while. They evade many search parties [something about a hollow tree...?] and it becomes rather Lord of the Flies, with them making clothes out of animals and eventually their escapade ending with one of the boys [dark-haired one] returning home to the big house [can't recall if he rats out the other two]. Maybe the dark-haired kid got sick, so that's why he had to go back...?

This was a book , but was also a TV series shown in the UK in the late 80's with similar production values as 'Famous Five' and 'Follyfoot'. I remember it being full of awesome. The closest I can come to remembering the actual title is: 'The Boys of Brendan Green'. But fruitless Googling and Amazon-ing(?) prove useless.

Help me find an old fantasy book?

brindel — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 00:09:28 -0800

I'm desperately trying to remember a fantasy book I read back in the 1980's or early 1990's. This may actually have been part of a series of two or three books. As I recall, the protagonist was a wizard of indeterminate skill who had secured a position as Court Wizard in a small outlying Kingdom/Duchy. He tried to downplay his 'abilities' as much as possible, but he did have some random skill. At some point he invents something like a 'glass telephone' that more easily communicates with the 'Wizard University' than any other method. My tenuous memory also has this story as something of a murder mystery? A Duke or somesuch dies and Our Hero tries to figure out whodunit. The Court Priest/Monk/Holy Man plays a role as foil to Our Hero too, he's also trying to figure out whodunit, but is morally opposed to wizards. I think I'm remembering them developing some sort of uneasy truce by the end.

The 'glass telephone' device was a part of the book's artwork, which I recall as somewhat cartoony, in bright yellows and greens. Does any of this ring any bells for anybody?

Random snippits of memory I also associate with this book:

The 'glass telephone' was goof made by mixing several spells, but it worked better than anybody expected. You could see an image of whoever you were 'calling' inside the body of the phone, that's why it was glass.

The 'Head Wizard' at the local 'Wizard University' seemed to be involved in some kind of plot around Our Hero. The impression was he believed Our Hero to be much more talented/powerful than he let on, as proven by the glass phone, and there was some kind of conspiracy regarding that.

The wizard's power has something to do with demons?

There was also some jealousy towards Our Hero because of his position as Court Wizard, even if it was a small Kingdom/Duchy.

Our Hero uses his ability at one point as Court Entertainment by making sparkles/lights in the Great Hall as well as moving images of people/things. This was a scene that illustrated his iffy ability, because others could have done the same, but with sound added.

The Queen/Dutchess of the Small Kingdom/Duchy was quite power-hungry and ruthless. (I think I remember *her* as being the one who dun it.)

The Court Priest/Monk/Holy Man had a secret in his past, something to do with a scar or brand on his arm?

Our Hero dies and comes back while saving someone's life, possibly the Priest/Monk/Holy Man? (This was the source of the truce between them.)

Hope these snippets actually help as opposed to muddying the waters. Thanks!

Make Small Money Sound Big

my homunculus is drowning — Tue, 20 May 2008 02:09:07 -0800

I need a really great, somewhat poker related prize (or a couple of prizes) that will cost less than $1200. I'm giving it away in early August (somewhat flexible on the date). Right now the best I can think of is a trip to Vegas for 2 and a $500 gift card. . . but I'd like something even better/cooler/more expensive sounding than that. I'm also considering a trip to Commerce Casino in LA with Disneyland tickets and stuff, so anything is possible. Travel anywhere is definitely an option, local events are an option. . . it just really needs to sound good.

Best TV Series Blog?

IZ — Thu, 15 May 2008 00:26:18 -0800

What is the best blog or site on TV Series to find the latest news on things like new season start date, ending of series etc. I'm looking for news on Lost, Grace Anatomy, Desperate Housewives etc (you know, the popular stuff).

Looking for Emma Thompson TV series

bartleby — Mon, 05 May 2008 15:11:46 -0800

Emma Thompson TV series? Late 80's? Did I hallucinate this? I could swear that in between between presenting episodes of A Bit of Fry and Laurie, French & Saunders, and Alas Smith and Jones for me 20 years ago, my magical televisual display unit once showed me several episodes of Emma Thompson's own series (likely short-lived). I think it might have just been called "Thompson", and used Brubeck's "Unsquare Dance" as its theme music.

Did I imagine this? Are recordings available? Region 1 preferred.