Forbrydelsen (The Killing) -- Season One

Added on by C. Maoxian.

I watched 20 one hour episodes of this only to be furious at the end. Spoilers: It doesn't make any sense. Was he a serial killer or not? Why would he kill Nanna? He had no motive, it made no sense. Was it an impulse killing?  Then what about Mette twenty years earlier? What secret did he and Theis share? It was just maddening. 

I like listening to the Danish language and looking at all these beautiful Scandinavian people with their great names (Theis, Vagn, Pernille, etc.). But it doesn't make up for a terrible, illogical story. What a disappointment. And twenty episodes! Count 'em, twenty hours I spent on this. 

Twitter Pop, Two Minute View

Added on by C. Maoxian.

Looking at the two minute chart here since Twitter active after-hours and my $9.99 data feed can only grab 500 bars ... didn't have the scanner running but assume it would have picked this one up.  "Takeover target" rumor supposedly what drove it. Always interested to talk to the day traders who caught it (there are no day traders anymore). 

StockTwits stream from the moment ... yes, once again, there's OpenOutcrier.

Denbury's Climb

Added on by C. Maoxian.

No pops today, but Denbury was active all day, as were a bunch of other oil & gas stocks ... OAS, RIG, SDRL, WFT, ESV, WLL, NE, NBR, PTEN, etc. The energy sector stocks have all crashed following crude, so they're active every day and have been for many months now. You can see the cycles in the market by what's active: tech, financials, energy, healthcare (specifically biotech). You have to pay attention. 

Motorola Solutions Drop, 1 Minute View

Added on by C. Maoxian.

This was the fast boys' play on Thursday ... Motorola Is Unable to Find Buyers After Months-Long Effort ... "market value of about $13.2 billion" ... news reader bots picked up on keyword "failed" ... you'd have to drop down to the tick chart to find your spot ... probably would have made a good play for those who weren't in a muzzer Russian borscht-induced stupor at the time.  

StockTwits stream at the time ... there's OpenOutcrier again. 

Teck Resources Pop, 1 Minute View

Added on by C. Maoxian.

I do have the scanner results for Monday and it was screaming on old TCK ... would have to drop down to your tick charts to control risk on entry ... hard to say if risk reward would have been worth it in the end ... still, another good one to study if you're a fast boy. 

Screenshot from StockTwits stream ... user "OpenOutcrier" often on the ball when things move, it seems. 

Intel and Altera, 1 Minute View

Added on by C. Maoxian.

Unusual activity late in the day ... news that Intel in talks to buy Altera ... again starting with the 15:32 bar you'd have to shift to your tick charts (not possible with a $9.99 datafeed) ... both good plays for fast boys. Intel on top, Altera on bottom.

Update: I looked at the scanner results from Friday and XLNX was actually as active as Intel ... if you had bought XLNX instead of INTC or ALTR (perfectly reasonable idea) you wouldn't have made any money. I'd love to see a tick chart for the last half hour of trading, but don't have the data.

HOT Heats Up, 1 Minute View

Added on by C. Maoxian.

Unusual activity in Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide (HOT) ... scanner beeped at 12:20 PM ... that 13:45 high should read $86.76 on chart (typo) ... fairly weak into the close so about half the gains taken back, but still should have been a good play for those on the ball. There's no news ... someone called SunTrust apparently said HOT worth $100+ as takeover, but I haven't seen the report, not sure if that's what drove this.

Banshee -- Season One

Added on by C. Maoxian.

Thanks to my Twitter buddy, JackInFlorida, and others for recommending Banshee ... I enjoyed the first season.  The story is a little dumb (ex-con becomes small-town sheriff), and they try to make it more believable by basing it in Amish country (ya know, no cellphones, computers, etc.), but it's still silly.  

And the violence, oh my god, it's just over the top.  It's like X-rated violence, pornographic violence.  Every episode has at least one extended fight scene or gun battle which ends with everyone covered with vast amounts of blood, dripping from heads and mouths.  It's gory, not for the squeamish or sensitive.

But it's also funny.  Lots of clever lines and amusing situations that are well done. It's campy, which balances out the ultra-violence. The lead male isn't going to win any acting awards, but the lead actress isn't bad, a La Femme Nikita type, ya know, eastern European bones. The villains are all good, older guys who are still ripped (they're not Americans, that's why), which is nice to see. Remember my big objection to House of Cards is seeing pudgy, effeminate Kevin Spacey playing a tough guy. Anyway, give it a try if you haven't seen it ... here are my selected screenshots.