Archive for the ‘ Reviews ’ Category

Hannibal: Pilot Review

Based on the Thomas Harris novel Red Dragon (most widely known for the Silence of the Lambs film) Hannibal follows the FBIs behavioural analysis team hunting serial killers by working out what makes them tick. They’re assisted by Dr Hannibal Lector. It’s Criminal Minds, they’ve just recruited one of the psychopaths without knowing it. Not a great advert for their capabilities.

The title of this blog post is “pilot review”, but that’s really not true. I would ordinarily review the first episode of a show in complete isolation, not even looking at other reviews. But this time I just couldn’t do that, because I was so very confused by the first episode that I was ashamed to write the review. Having watched the pilot a second time, and watched the second episode, AND read some comments AND talked about it with some friends… I’m still confused about the episode, but have at least come to believe that it’s not just me being astronomically stupid.

The problem is that after all those viewings and conversations, I was still confused about who killed who, why, and how. In the first episode alone, by my count there are at least four crimes. The first we see is a home invasion which is being shown to students as part of Graham’s course, but unless I missed something he never actually finishes explaining who did it and why. The other crimes all have some sort of cannibalistic element, and it’s deduced that at least one of those is a copy cat. But, again, unless I missed something, they seemed to just forget about the original crimes once the copier was apprehended. And again, I’m a bit confused about the copier’s motives, and actually got even more confused when the second episode continued to investigate that crime. Oh, and was the apparent transfer of a pair of lungs supposed to indicate the copy cat was working with the original killer, or was that just a red herring? The more I watch and the more I type, the more confused I get.

The central character is Will Graham (Hugh Dancy, Black Hawk Down, King Arthur) and I’m equally confused about him. In the first episode he says he’s not an agent (implying he wouldn’t pass they psych evaluation, which seems a fair assessment), but then he carries a gun and wonders off by himself to interview a suspect (which ends predictably badly). In the second episode he says he is an agent, and a former police officer, which I really couldn’t see at all. I do like the character, and he’s certainly interesting and well played, but his back-story seems a bit all over the place.

Then we’ve got Hannibal Lector (Mads Mikkelsen, Casino Royale, A Royal Affair). He pootles about with his odd accent, weird obsessions (even before getting into the secret ones), particular clothes, downright creepy demeaner and apparent ability to hide under the nose of the FBI’s wonder-profiler. Even without being a serial killer he is too extreme a character, like a caricature psychiatrist, continually asking “what do you think it means” rather than ever answering a straight question. He added absolutely nothing to the case he was supposedly consulting on and I fail to see why the FBI keep calling him in. Meanwhile Will Graham is equally wacky, with “extreme empathy” leaving him re-enacting events in his head and being about as stable as warm jelly. While the two of them together make for an interesting mental chess game, I’m at a loss as to why anyone trying to achieve anything practical would put them in the same room together and its unfathomable that anyone would let them out into the world unsupervised.

With those two extreme characters I was actually more interested in the normal FBI agent (Lawrence Fishburne, The Matrix, CSI) and profiler (Caroline Dhavernas, Wonderfalls) who at least seemed based on some kind of realistic idea but seemed in a completely different show to the others, not least because they sadly just didn’t share enough scenes. The second episode also featured a small gaggle of agents and CSI types, but I remain unclear about who is a full time character and who’s just background noise. The Criminal Minds trope of gathering the team for briefings in planes, conference rooms and police stations is a bit trite, but at least it lets you know who the characters are and that they form a team, there’s no such sense on Hannibal.

I found the show deeply unsettling, but for all the wrong reasons (ok the mushroom people in the second episode unsettled me for the right reasons, I’m pretty hardy, but that turned even my stomach). Because the story never settled on answers and never made anything clear, I was left completely at sea, nothing to latch onto and build mysteries from. Yet having gone to great lengths to explain to you why I didn’t particularly like the first two episodes, and why I wouldn’t recommend the series to you, I am still going to keep watching the series. I realise that completely undermines my point and I can give you no good reason for my continued viewing beyond ‘inertia’ and the fact that it’s only 13 episodes long. I guess we’ll see whether things become clearer.

2013
05/21
CATEGORY
12-13 Season
Crime Procedural
Drama
Pilot Reviews
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Banshee: Pilot Review

A man gets out of prison, immediately gets into a gun battle in the middle of New York, legs it to Banshee, a small town in Pennsylvania and finds himself assuming the identity of the new sheriff. All because he’s chasing a girl, oh and 10 million dollars worth of diamonds.

This show has a classic problem in that it doesn’t want to give away the central character’s intention. He’s a classic strong silent type, not giving much away about what he’s thinking or feeling. The facts about him seem pretty worrying, but without knowing the why it’s hard to know if there’s more to the story. Why does he take the sheriff’s identity? To win back the girl? To settle down and form a relationship with his daughter? Or just to hide from those chasing him? We see that he has a talent for forming quick relationships, sometimes friendly, oftentimes violent, he seems to take an immediate dislike to the local crime boss but is that moral indignation or just a natural reaction to the competition? With all that uncertainty the character is left as a bit of a bland fence sitter, never giving anything away to either the other characters or the audience. Quiet and mysterious is ok, but it’s also very difficult to form any kind of bond with him.

It also leaves the show floating a bit, because you just don’t know what direction it’s going to go. Shows like House of Lies and The Shield gave it all away in their pilots, giving us characters that are presenting different personas all the time but revealing to the audience where their true allegiances and feelings lie. That’s not to say their allegiances might not change over the course of the series, but at least you know what you’re starting with. In contrast something like Homeland manages to keep you guessing over and over again. Each choice led to an interesting and engaging enough pilot that I came back for more in each case, but somehow it just didn’t work so well for Banshee.

But for all the lack of interest the main character generated, almost all the supporting characters really sparkled – the off the wall computer expert that’s helping with the new identity, the ex girlfriend who’s also been living an assumed identity in Banshee, the amiable but slightly scary bartender and the crime lord separated from his Amish roots. Each is a bit of a trope, but the performances had a depth and charisma that was mostly lacking in the main character. There’s also some originality in the setting and the potential for interesting stories around the Amish community and how they do and do not integrate.

On a technical note the series is well enough put together but there’s nothing particularly outstanding there either. I could do without the cable level nudity and sex which I really didn’t think added anything to the plot, but hey ho, whatever gets them their ratings I guess. All in all, I was left feeling rather ambivalent about the whole thing, there’s nothing to hate but also nothing to love. Whether or not I watch any more will be based entirely on whether there’s anything else on… which isn’t exactly high praise, but it could be far worse.

Banshee has a 10 episode first season which airs on Sky Atlantic on Mondays and it’s already been picked up for a second season.

Huffington Post – It’s a taut, propulsive series with a distinctive atmosphere, and “Banshee” does a good job of letting the mood and visuals tell the story while keeping the plot moving briskly.

TV Addict – BANSHEE will seduce and entrance viewers as it peels back layer after layer of its percolating evil.

2013
05/06
CATEGORY
12-13 Season
Drama
Pilot Reviews
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The Following: Season 1

The FollowingThe Following is possibly the MOST ridiculous show that I’ve seen this year, and I watch a lot of ridiculous shows. It’s even more ridiculous than Grey’s Anatomy’s “we own the hospital” storyline! When I watched The Following’s pilot I likened it to Criminal Minds, but it turned out to be the subject matter and brutality of Criminal Minds, applied to the kind of extreme villain and over the top plots more usually found in episodes of Scooby Doo.

I tried to sum up the plot but I found I really couldn’t do any better than Richard Vine’s Guardian piece that perfectly captures the utter insanity that the first season has been (spoilers in that piece for everything but the final episode). What I particularly love about Vine’s writing is that it exactly captures my attitude toward the series – weary eye rolling on one hand, but joyful abandon on the other.

The Following is just utterly ridiculous. It’s riddled with plot holes, character and institutional idiocy and an abundance of repetitive tropes – oh no, someone’s been captured again! Now someone’s escaped! But somehow rather than making the show frustrating and dull, it all combines into something that I really looked forward to each week. By being so ludicrous, it was also completely unpredictable, each episode had surprises and twists, killing off characters at a phenomenal rate and charging along with gleeful abandon.

How season 2 will work is anyone’s guess. I won’t spoil it, but elements of the final episode really did seem to close things off. I’m a little worried that this will turn into something that I’ll end up wishing had actually only been a one season wonder. But for that one season, what an absurdly enjoyable ride it has been.

2013
05/03
CATEGORY
12-13 Season
Crime Procedural
1 comment

The Politician’s Husband: Episode 1

I love David Tennant. I love love love him as Dr Who and I loved him just earlier this week in Broadchurch. My friend Sarah possibly loves him even more and even does cultured things like seeing him in the theatre. So we both eagerly tuned in to watch The Politician’s Husband. Unfortunately being located in different cities we were unable to watch together in person, so instead co-ordinated our viewing and spent the hour text messaging (god bless unlimited text plans). At the end of the hour I concluded that our conversation would probably be as good a review as I could possible manage. How much sense it makes without watching along, but given that I’ve edited out several “lols” at things that were meant to be serious, and cut down the number of “oh ffs”, you can draw your own conclusions. In the immortal words of Sarah – “utter codswallop”. And she watched the whole series of The Paradise.

Here are some edited highlights:

S: There may be a metaphorical sex scene. I mean it’s Tennant so I didn’t look away, but still.

L: I’m really struggling to get past his accent. And hair colour.
S: It’s weird actual rp. Makes me wonder if a plot point will be that it’s not his actual accent. He doesn’t do it in the home so much.

L: Hang on! There’s Peter Manyon from The Thick of It! I love Roger Allam as much as any sane person, but seems an odd casting choice

S: I could do without damp patch in ceiling allusions too.
L: I could do without having written the rest of the series after just 5 minutes.
S: So she’s leader by end of episode?
L: I’m guessing Deputy to the slime bag ex-best friend. Taken over his [husband's] cabinet seat by end of episode.
S: Oh and sex with betrayer dude and her asap
L: Oooo. I was close, she just got offered DWP. I’m laughing very hard at her expression.

S: Oh good grief this is terrible!

S: Ffs the shoe thing.
L: “A bit Theresa May” made me laugh though.

L: Also on a technicality – no minister caught dead in anything other than a Prius these days surely? Oh and I don’t think the other guy moving DWP to BIS is a promotion.
S: Tories now, they could have orphans pull them on sleds.

L: Even the geese are fleeing the scene!
S: We will not get repeat fees from this they say.

S: Show don’t tell not mean much to these guys.

L: Questionable blouse choice…
S: They couldn’t commit to that blouse being in 2 scenes. It changed colour.
L: What are they doing to her [Emily Watson]? Shapeless blouses, stretched buttons, too much lipstick
S: Think she’s meant to look like Yvette Cooper.

L: This would have been a lot better if he resigned at the end of the first episode and established the characters first. Now Tennant just looks weak and stupid.
S: Also boring

L: Wow Kirsty Wark is annoying even when scripted.

L: Do you think the ministerial drivers wait for you to get in and close the door behind you like parents do?
S: The light to go on inside no doubt.

S: Oh god this is shit. We don’t have to watch next one.
L: Deleting the series link…
S: That’s an hour I could have spent re-watching Castle.

The Politician’s Husband is on Thursdays on BBC and available on iPlayer

The Guardian – The Politician’s Husband isn’t subtle, sometimes to the point of crudeness… Oh, what the hell. It’s melodrama, and a lot of fun, a big boiling pot of hot, lusty power soup, with crunchy croutons of deceit and a generous sprinkling of revenge.
The Metro – The Politician’s Husband gave us an accurate portrayal of contemporary politics, where nobody believes in anything other than their own self-interest but it felt grubby, with all the emotional appeal of a spoiled ballot paper.

2013
04/26
CATEGORY
12-13 Season
British TV
Drama
Pilot Reviews
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Broadchurch: Season 1

bBroadchurchAll over the place people have jumped upon the fact that Broadchuch owes a debt to Scandinavian dramas like The Killing and The Bridge because it comprises just one case which is gradually developed over the space of several hours. But the similarity which really jumped out to me was not the structure, but the fact that like those shows it relied very heavily on red herrings, stupid characters, sudden turnarounds and unlikely coincidences.

I don’t know what a real police investigation would be like, but in order to control the pace of the show this one clearly relied on police asking not quite the right questions and witnesses/suspects wanting to keep secrets rather than truly help with the investigation. For the most part it comes across as characters being dim, rather than writers being stuck for ideas, but it is a very fine line sometimes. As it turned out the journey was also far better than the destination, while I guessed the who (partially), the motive came out of absolute nowhere and felt very weakly explained.

But for all my that, I thoroughly enjoyed Broadchurch, and that’s down to three factors. The first is that it was proper ‘water cooler television’. I could sit and chat about the show with friends over a cup of tea, not just to chuckle over the dialogue or tut over the problems, but to discuss the plot twists and turns and make predictions. The frustration that many of the answers were completely unguessable never overwhelmed the shared experience of making them.

The other two elements that made the show a joy were David Tennant and Olivia Colman who lit up the screen and brought spark to even the flattest of dialogue. Their relationship didn’t fall into any of the usual clichés and they genuinely just felt like a normal couple of people thrown together. The acting through the rest of the cast was a bit more hit and miss, the lovely Arthur Darvill can do no wrong in my book, but Pauline Quirk was laying it on with a shovel.

I’m a bit uncertain as to whether I’d describe Broadchurch as ‘good’, but I have no hesitation in recommending it as enjoyable. There are lines of dialogue that absolutely cracked me up, and moments of silence that had me welling up. But alongside those were moments that had me cringing and an eventual reveal that just left me flat. I’m not sure how a second season will work, but if it allows me to spend more time with Olivia Coleman and David Tennant, than I’ll be there.

The last few episodes are slowly disappearing from ITV Player, but it will be available dvd from May 20th

2013
04/23
CATEGORY
12-13 Season
British TV
Crime Procedural
1 comment

Defiance: Pilot Review

I actually let out a little cheer when the very first shot of Defiance featured a space ship looming in to view. It’s been a long time since we last saw one of those on television. There are no end of series that could make some sort of claim to being science fiction – zombies, monsters, vampires and the varyingly weird and wacky appearing frequently, but spaceships have been few and far between. Syfy channel has finally however put its money where its ambiguously spelled name is and delivers a spaceship.

That said, the ships don’t stay in space very long and we soon move into an entirely earth bound series, but what Defiance lacks in altitude it certainly make up for in sheer numbers of aliens with 9 races apparently cohabiting a terraformed Earth. (Can you terraform Earth? Isn’t terraforming by definition making things more earth like?) So we find ourselves in the town of Defiance, clinging to existence with nervous relations between races and limited resources, it’s sort of Babylon 5 set in frontier land.

In fact you’ll find yourself saying “that’s sort of…” an awful lot during the pilot. The whole thing is a hodge-podge of science fiction staples all thrown together to make a dusty new whole. Fans of the genre will be able to rattle off the tropes that the series is using to build its characters, concepts and plots, but for the most part the originality of the combinations keeps things from being boring. If you watched Farscape you’ll know exactly the type of chaotic yet coherent world that Rockne S. O’Bannon (also of Alien Nation and Seaquest DSV) is capable of creating, and the incredible amount of fun that world is to visit. His writing experience also shines through in the elegant way the world is explained – there’s a minimum of exposition, yet somehow within minutes you just ‘get’ everything. There is plenty of detail hidden away, but if you don’t want to, or can’t be bothered, to pay attention to it, the meat and potatoes of the plot still makes perfect sense.

The cast is excellent, mostly people that I hadn’t seen before but playing fairly familiar characters, most notably Grant Bowler as the leading man who I’d never seen before but was instantly likeable, falling into the Han Solo, John Crichton, Malcolm Reynolds-esque loveable rogue. Julie Benz is more familiar to genre fans (most notably as Darla from Buffy), competent but lacking confidence in her new position of mayor. The two characters play off each other well, each challenging and irritating the other, but also bringing out each other’s strengths. There are plenty of other good performances and characters underneath varying amounts of latex too, and loads of opportunities for interesting relationships to build up.

The effects are a little ropey in places, but the important stuff is all there. The makeup is a fairly standard mix of bumpy noses, tinted skin and weird wigs, but quickly all blends in leaving you to appreciate the characters beyond the hairstyles. The technology that there is to play with also seems fun, again a familiar mix of weapons, shields and funky computer interfaces, but contrasting nicely with the overall shortage of resources leaving people short of food and paper, but with easy access to energy weapons. It makes for a fun mix of dusty frontier town and shiny toy shop.

I was so wanting to like this show, and I was nervous that it would screw up and doom space ships to the television black list for another 5 years, but they pulled it off. I think science fiction fans will like it, certainly myself and my two even harder to please housemates all loved it, but I think even non-fans will find a lot to like in it if they give it a chance. The only miss-step the pilot made was a little too much reliance on the Romeo and Juliet storyline, but the rest of the references were all lightly enough done that they all combined into a fresh new whole that never lost sight of the most important factor – fun. The large price tag for the series and tie-in MMO game (which I have no intention of going anywhere near) mean that it’s gonna need all the support it can get to live beyond the 13 episode first season. But I think there’s more than enough there to tell some interesting and really entertaining stories.

Defiance is on SyFy channel on Tuesday evenings, repeated frequently through the week.

Other reviews:
TV Fanatic – Overall, I’m very pleased with the pilot; the show has done a good job of telling an engaging story IN the future without it being entirely about the future.

Den of Geek – When compared to the opening episodes of such sci-fi or fantasy shows as Battlestar or Game Of Thrones, Defiance isn’t what you’d call knock-out television. But there’s something about its quirky cast of characters and its sense of fun that is entirely endearing.

2013
04/19
CATEGORY
12-13 Season
Pilot Reviews
Science Fiction
1 comment

The Walking Dead: Season 3

The Walking DeadIt’s pretty slim pickings on television for science fiction fans these days, and while I know a couple of fans who refuse to even contemplate watching a zombie show, The Walking Dead is still in my opinion the best thing out there at the moment. It does what all great science fiction does, it makes an adjustment to reality and asks what that means for the individuals caught up in it. The plots the show is working on are not necessarily the most original, but the focus on characters and the superb acting and direction make this one of the most satisfying programmes on the air.

Each season of this show seems to move through different phases of survival, from the most immediate survival after the zombie outbreak through to more long term issues such as finding supplies, shelter and eventually a place secure enough to build a home and community. Rick’s group have spent the winter on the run, but they’ve militarised and under Rick’s dictatorship, and have actually all survived. When they stumble onto a prison they think they have finally found a home, and between that security and their well honed zombie killing skills, life seems relatively settled. Well other than the problems which come from having limited medical expertise, food and ammo and a thrown together group of people who’ve been through massive traumas.

Meanwhile somewhere nearby (facts like distances and travel times aren’t really a strong point of the writing) we are introduced to Woodbury, a town sealed off and defended from the walkers where a substantial community is living in relative comfort under the leadership of the charismatic Governor (the wonderful David Morrissey). But all is not as it seems, and when Andrea (who was separated from the group when they escaped the farm) and her scary new friend arrive, The Governor’s true colours start to show and it’s not long until Woodbury and the prison are clashing.

The similarities between the two groups are obvious and not exactly subtle – both Rick and The Governor take questionable actions in the name of protecting the group. Both are willing to sacrifice outsiders to protect their friends and families who may not see what’s being done in their name until it’s too late. It’s difficult to forgive some of the characters for not opening their eyes, or taking action which would have avoided the inevitable and bloody outcomes, I found myself shouting at the screen more than once when they just stood by and did nothing as their leaders crossed more and more lines.

The pacing of the season was also frustrating at time. While I found The Governor and the situation in Woodbury interesting, I grew bored when we spent too much time there, particularly the episodes exclusively set in Woodbury. I was frustrated that we were delayed at seeing how events were effecting those back in the prison. Similarly there were episodes where we didn’t see a single shot of Woodbury, or even some of the characters in the prison which was equally frustrating. I would have preferred the content was more evenly distributed, which would also have helped to give the new characters momentum, it’s easy to forget about people if you don’t see them for a couple of weeks.

The Walking Dead this season was something that I pounced on as soon as it was available, it really was one of my go to programs. I hated even the few days delay between the US and the UK because I knew I would be unable to resist or avoid spoilers and hence some of the biggest punches of the story were softened. Even then I was still on the edge of my seat every episode, and not just for the action sequences, more often than not it was the quiet conversations between characters that were the really intense moments. The absolutely stunning way the series is shot also adds to the intensity, the beautifully lit and framed shots give a quietness and grace to everything, counterpointed by brutal and phenomenally messy action sequences. I’m hard pressed to think of a series at the moment that I get more excited by or am more eagerly awaiting its return.

2013
04/12
CATEGORY
12-13 Season
Science Fiction
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In the Flesh

In the FleshExpectations for things about zombies are a bit higher these days. It’s no longer enough to just be “grr… brains”, screaming, shotguns and bloody messes, now to sustain a show you need to investigate bigger questions like what it means to be human and what it’s worth giving up to survive.

The concept behind In the Flesh is a fascinating one, clearly building on those questions. It is set after the apocalypse, the ‘risen’ have been defeated and once properly medicated they are being reintegrated into a society that up until recently was liberally applying shotgun pellets. Families are equal parts thrilled and hesitant about getting their previously buried loved ones back. The ‘partially dead syndrome’ sufferers meanwhile are equally conflicted with horror at what they did in their zombie states and joy at the chance of a second life.

So far, so good. Unfortunately though, that’s as good as it gets. There are two massive problems with the show. Well, really it’s only one problem, which is the writer, but his ineptitude manifests in two distinct and unforgiveable ways.

First off the tone is all over the place. Half of the series is played almost as a spoof. The government handling is laughably awful, with hideously cheesy propaganda and bumbling officials and completely unable to stand up against the local militia. The fact that I have no interest in watching a show with that kind of humour is bad enough, but it completely undermines the other half of the show which is trying to talk about exceptionally dark and complicated issues.

The second, and bigger problem though is that this show isn’t about zombies. Oh no, you see it’s about outsiders, a community who can’t understand or even conceive of the fact that some people are different, but they’re still people. But the audience might not have spotted that by themselves, so instead you must be bludgeoned over the head with it through having a separate ‘PDS sufferers’ section of the bar, a hookup between a sufferer and a ‘normal’ person which ends in self hatred and violence. Oh, and as if that weren’t clear enough, two of the characters actually ARE gay and completely avoid talking about it even between the two of them, let alone alluding to it with their families.

In the Flesh is Dominic Mitchell’s first writing credit and it really, really shows, beyond the one paragraph concept I’m not sure there’s a single thing that he managed to get right. The terrible dialogue, inconsistent characters, a too weak lead and gaping plotholes just compound the problems with tone and story. It feels like the kind of thing a student would turn in to illustrate that they’d grasped the key concepts of a lecture on symbolism without having to worry about applying any lessons on subtlety, elegance and actual competent writing. It is so incredibly unsubtle that it is actually offensive. I honestly feel bad because I didn’t switch it off and BBC Three should be ashamed for commissioning it.

In the Flesh is available on iPlayer until 7th April. Please don’t watch it!

2013
04/06
CATEGORY
12-13 Season
British TV
Drama
Science Fiction
2 comments

Eureka: Season 1

eurekaI actually think I watched this season years ago, but didn’t review it at the time. I do remember enjoying it, but I stopped watching at some point because my housemates preferred Warehouse 13 and watching both felt somewhat overkill. I recently stumbled across it again on Lovefilm instant and it turns out it’s perfect telly for baking or ironing too, which doesn’t sound like high praise, but fills a very important slot in my life.

It’s got a cute concept at its heart – what if the US government and military put all of its smartest (and most eccentric) people in one place? Eureka is a town populated by extremely bright people who cheerfully bumble about inventing stuff and creating chaos. Shepherding them along however are various bureaucrats, some well meaning and some more sinister, who manage and direct the chaos in an attempt to… well… that’s the question. Better living through better weapons? More progress through more profit? The pull between these factions is a constant source of secrecy, conspiracy, paranoia and even more chaos.

In the finest tradition of television, thrown into the mix is a normal bloke. His IQ is far from genius, he’s moderately hopeless with technology and he doesn’t know what he’s getting into. But, again in familiar television world, he has a strong sense of justice and a desire to see everyone blow themselves up as rarely as possible, and a way of seeing through the bullshit and the technobabble to solve problems with brute force simplicity. He’s also sarcastic, which instantly endears him to me.

The stories and plots fall into a regular pattern of gizmo of the week, working their way through various standard tropes such as the all powerful AI over-reacting to their programming, paradox inducing time travel, paranoia inducing satellites, escaped nanites creating replicants… all the usual stuff. But it’s not really the stories that are important, they’re just a way to get to spend more time with the characters. Everyone is pure fun to watch, each actor takes a standard character type (dumb sheriff, intellectual snob, whiny teenager, good natured professor, unabashed nerd) and gives them confidence and self-awareness, so they’re comfortable in their relationships with each other and fun to spend time with. Like many sci-fi channel shows the whole thing ends up being about teams and families much more than whatever the synopsis says.

Eureka doesn’t set the world alight, but it is Nice and it is Fun, which a surprising number of shows just fail to deliver. I’d frequently find myself pausing mid-brownie making and getting engrossed in an episode, because I didn’t want to miss the little lines of dialogue and bits of body language that just made the whole thing jump off the screen. I need more excuses to bake (or more ironing to do) so I can get straight to the second season.

Eureka is available on Lovefilm instant and dvd from amazon

2013
03/19
CATEGORY
Science Fiction
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Mad Men: Season 5

Mad MenFirst up a disclaimer. I did not follow my own advice for how to watch Mad Men. I’ve always said that Mad Men is something that you have to just commit to, watch it through steadily (either week by week or in a box set catch up) and it will reward you with gradual and elegant developments of plot, characters and relationships. Unfortunately I watched this season in 3 chunks – 3 episodes, then a month gap, another 3 episodes, then a gap of about 6 months before a marathon of the last 7 episodes over a couple of days. And each time I came back to it I really struggled to reconnect with everything.

However even with that excuse, I do think this season lacked the arc and elegance of earlier seasons. I re-read my review of Season 4 before writing this review and it made me feel even more disappointed about Season 5. Maybe there’s a similar rule for Mad Men seasons as there is for Star Trek films, the even ones are a bit mediocre.

The key example of this from the second half of the season were Lane and Joan’s stories. I really like both these characters and have enjoyed their development over the years, and both had major events in their lives play out towards the end of season 5 (avoiding spoiling any details). However both stories were completely undermined by a lack of screen time in the middle of the season which not only meant I missed them from those episodes, but meant there were no hints at what might lead them to make the decisions they did, leaving my first instinct to question whether it was in character for them to take those paths. It made it hard to empathise and also harder to fully see the impacts of their choices on themselves and those around them. In normal series the stories would have still been considered slow probably, but I don’t watch Mad Men to be like other series.

Maybe those two storylines were just victims of where I broke the season up, other stories were given more time and unfolded in more traditional Mad Men style. I still don’t like Pete, but he’s a great character; he never seems to completely grow up, always complaining about the unfairness of life and managing to alienate absolutely everyone around him. Peggy also continues her fantastic story arc, and unlike Joan and Lane she gets enough screen time that you can see issues developing and bubbling in the background, leaving every action, every sentence entirely predictable and deeply satisfying.

And then we come to Don. One of the things that made me saddest re-reading the season 4 review was how positive I felt about Don and Megan’s relationship, the way that Don had found happiness and would let himself be happy. But as Peggy tells him, he really doesn’t see when things are good and he starts to revert to his usual boorish self. I’ve never liked him, but I hoped that there was light at the end of the tunnel for him and maybe he could become a better person. But he seemingly can’t, and he brings the worst out in those around him.

Mad Men continues to be an acquired taste and almost an exercise in how slow something can go before it stops entirely. That means that having got as far as season 5 I’m not going to let one slightly disappointing season deter me from watching more, particularly as I hold myself at least partly to blame due to the erratic viewing pattern. Given where all the characters find themselves, in fact I think I’m looking forward to season 6 more than ever.

2013
03/16
CATEGORY
11-12 Season
Drama
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