Once Upon A Time, Season 2: First Look

Last year one of my favourite shows was Once Upon A Time. It had the right amount of mystery and drama with a nice amount of humour thrown in. It also had memorable characters which is so important to a successful show. You can have the best story in the world but if you don't have the characters to carry that story then you don't have a very good show. This 2nd season of Once Upon A Time has really hi the ground running in my opinion. In the first 7 episodes we've met Sleeping Beauty, Mulan, Captain Hook, The Giant from Jack and the Beanstalk, Lancelot and (perhaps bizarrely) Dr Frankenstein. We've also seen Emma and Snow White/Mary Margaret transported to fairy tale land, found out that Rumplestiltskin was the 'Crocodile' who took Hooks hand and found out what came of Jack the Giantkiller. It has certainly been an interesting first quarter to season 2. First I'll delve abit more into the new characters we have met. Mulan and Sleeping beauty were introduced to us in the first episode. Mulan is very much the warrior although her past is still very much a mystery. I think it may be linked in with Jack and the Beanstalk and the Giants. With the Giant (Jorge Garcia) coming back at some point, may it be in a Mulan-centric episode? Sleeping Beauty is perhaps a little annoying. I liked Sarah Bolger as Princess Mary in The Tudors but she comes across as a little annoying in Once. Saying that, next to Snow White it's nice to have a different take on the role of a fairy tale princess. Lancelot was different to what I expected. Being English myself, I was perhaps a little disappointed that Lancelot was given an American accent. The story of King Arthur and the knights of the round table is one of our most famous and enduring legends and I personally didn't like it being given the Americanised treatment. Saying that, the character actually came across rather well. He hinted at a troubled history so I have no doubt that we'll see him again.

My favourite of the new arrivals has to be Killian Jones, otherwise known as the infamous Captain Hook. His arrival in Once was hinted at in the various teaser trailers before the start of the season and it certainly has not disappointed. His origin story was linked in with a Rumple-centric episode with Rumple being revealed as the 'Crocodile' who took Hooks hand. This has provided us with a great revenge story as Hook is desperate to get to Storybrooke to kill Rumplestiltskin! This has already brought him into contact with Emma and Snow and his dynamic with Emma is brilliant. The most bizarre new character is someone who we actually met in Season 1. Dr Whales identity has been a closely guarded secret and was something that was heavily discussed on the various forums. He was the Whale in Pinnochio, Wizard of Oz, Peter Pan, Bellfire (Rumplestiltskins Son) and The White Rabbit. In the end (timed perfectly with Halloween) he turned out to be Dr Frankenstein. Now this annoyed me a bit but I can understand his inclusion in the show. To most people, Once is a show about fairy tales. Ultimately though it is a show about stories and this stretch beyond fairy tales. The writers have already said that they want the likes of The Wizzard of Oz, Mary Poppins and Sherlock Holmes to make an appearance so why not Dr Frankenstein. In my eyes it's the Horror element as well as the other characters we may now meet. If we've got Frankenstein, why not Dracula or The Wolfman or even The Mummy. Criticisms aside, it was nice to finally find out who Dr Whale was and he actually played the part well. Now onto the Story side of the show. The season begins at the moment Season 1 ended, with the arrival of magic to Storybrooke. I liked the fact that the 'flashback' we saw, of Sleeping Beauty being awoken, was actually a 'flash-sideways'. It provided a neat twist to start the season on. This shows main strength has been its ability to refresh and reinvent the stories we all know. I loved the Beauty and the Beast episode from season 1 for example. I loved how the beast was actually Rumplestiltskin. This season has kept up the standard and I loved the Rumplestiltskin/Captain Hook origin episode. It is great how the writers aren't afraid to take liberties with these centuries old tales, story's that are ingrained in our minds from childhood. It works though and I love it. Not many writers could get away with it, that is for sure. Despite the many new things we learn about the show one thing remind constant, it's themes. The opening scene in the pilot set the main theme for the entire show with Snow White being awoken by true loves kiss. True love continues in Season 2 with Rumplestiltskins relationship with Bella, Snow and Charming being parted again, Reginna and the dead stable boy and Emma and Henry's father. Another ongoing theme is that of heroes and villains. In season 1 we had Rumple and Regina. Rumple seems to be mellowing abit as his relationship with Bella progresses while Regina is undergoing her redemption. That leaves the door open for two more protagonists and so enter Cora and Hook. Cora will be the main baddie, I'm sure of it. With her being Reginas mother (and as rumoured, The Queen of Hearts) it should be exciting to see her in Storybrooke at some point. Hook is definitely playing Rumplestiltskins role. Like Rumple, he is firmly in it for himself and his 'side' still hasn't been properly revealed yet. I kinda hope he comes good but I don't think that that would be in keeping with his character. So there you have it, my first review of Once Upon A Time of season 2. I'll review it again in the new year as the season gains momentum.

The Walking Dead Goes Nuclear!!!

Recently, a number of big American shows have returned with their respective seasons. Once Upon A Time has really hit the ground running with its 2nd season while dexter is as good as it's ever been. One show which has really changed the game is The Walking Dead. This is a show which has been abit of funny one over the past couple of seasons. Season 1 was superb but lacked something. It was only 6 episodes long, which was kinda enough. It had plenty of zombie action while also having the time to focus on the human element. Season 2 took it down a notch as the group settled at Hershels farm. Many within the tv critic community have dubbed it as a post apocalyptic Emmerdale Farm. It had shocks, sure. It was too slow though and gave the impression that there were genuine sanctuaries within this world that had gone to hell. The moment it turned was (ironically) when Shane turned. That in turn led to the farm getting overrun forcing our survivors onto the road. This season began 3 months later with the survivors still on the road. They soon found the prison and set about clearing it out. Andrea meanwhile has found herself in a heavily defended town called Woodbury. Fans of the comic book will be loving this 3rd season. The Prison and Woodbury are both iconic settings within the comic book universe. The Governor (the man in charge at Woodbury) and Michone (Andrea came across her after getting split from the group) are also two hugely ionic characters in the comic. The great thing about this show though is that it only really uses its source material as a base. It would've been so easy to follow the comic story line to the T. It would've kept the the hardcore cult fan base happy while having enough about it to keep the rest of us hooked. In deviating away from the source material, the writers have done a very smart thing as it means that even the hardcore amongst us are often surprised. This season has been the most surprising yet, despite the presence of the most iconic features from the comic book. In the comic book the prison is a place of safety where the walkers are kept at bay outside of the prison compound. It's a place where our group live for some time before they are forced back onto the road. The governor is a genuine madman, an evil psychopath of the highest order. On screen, he is more of a thinker, more of a manipulator. You can see the man he may eventually become but he is very much a psycho in the making. The one thing that needs to be noted as regards to the comic book is that that universe is based in a different reality. The tv show is a reality that we can maybe relate to more, even though it's a reality few of us can really imagine and it is that which is the genius behind the show. So, onto this season and how the group has evolved. This season picks up 6 months after the end of season 2. In that time the group have moved around and got through winter as best they can. Andrea has been experiencing life away from the group who think she's dead. From the off we can see how the group had evolved in the way they go about the dispatching of walkers. Now they are more of a unit, more disciplined. They opt for the silent kills and make use of ambush techniques. They also know when to make a quick exit. They are a more together group too, no doubt in part due to the absence of Shane. I will actually take a moment to talk about Shane because for the first 2 seasons he was a pretty integral part of the show. Cult fans of the comic book will have known his days were numbered as he dies in issue six! For fans of the show though who aren't familiar with the comic book, his death will have come as a bit of a shock, especially so soon after Dale's death. Although his presence is still being felt in regards to Rick and Lori's marriage, his absence is pretty much unnoticed. That is yet more testament to the fantastic writing as you get the feeling that any character could die and the show could carry on. That feeling that anyone could die has certainly not been eased by the first 4 episodes, especially episode 4 and it's episode 4 that I'm going to talk about now.

T-Dog has been criminally underused throughout The Walking Dead. His imminent death has been the subject of speculation since the 1st season finale as he was essentially a spectator throughout season 2. His self sacrifice to protect Carol was a fitting end for the character although by the end of the episode, his death was quickly forgotten. Another character who's death has been widely expected is Lori. Many people will have cheered in the 2nd episode when it looked like Hershel had turned and attacked her. This cheer will have quickly turned into a groan when it turned out he was just hugging her. For some reason she had been hated by the majority of viewers. Saying that, she redeemed herself when she died in the way she died.

In the comic book, she dies in a shoot out when the prison falls. In the Tv show, she died in childbirth in a harrowing hark back to the Pre-modern era of child birth. Insisting that Maggie perform a caesarean to save her child she gave an emotional speech to her young son Carl. In the end It fell to Carl to shoot his mother in the head before she came back as a Walker, something that will surely affect the character for the remainder of the show. Ricks reaction when he realised what had happened was unbelievably heart wrenching. I've been impressed with Andrew Lincolns portrayal of Rick on numerous occasions throughout the show. His portrayal of a father who had just found out his wife had died then that his son had had to shoot her in the head was absolute brilliance of the highest calibre that should earn him an award or two. Of course, with the events at the Prison, as well as the addition of The Governor, it would be easy to overlook a major cast returnee. Merle was a guest character back in season 1. He ended up handcuffed to the top of a roof, courtesy of Rick, after being racist towards T Dog. When the group went back to rescue him he had gone, leaving behind his severed hand. Despite a brief dream appearance last season he was presumed gone

forever. He is back now though having been taken on by The Governor and his reunion with Daryl (his brother, now Ricks right hand man) is surely only a matter of time. It will be interesting to see where Daryl's allegiances lie then. It will also be interesting to see the confrontation between Rick and Merle. With this first 4 episodes packing so much in, it will be interesting to see where the season goes from here. We have maybe been spoiled somewhat and surely there has to be some respite. That may come from the mid-season hiatus which is a couple of weeks away although I'm sure that we'll be left with the mother of all cliffhangers!

The Inbetweeners U.S.A. - First Look

America has a habit of remaking some of our best shows. Shameless, The Offfice, Red Dwarf and Life on Mars are just some of those shows to experience the conversion treatment. The trouble is that there is a fine art involved in converting something so uniquely British into something the American public can appreciate. Shameless is so successful over here because we can relate to the Chatsworth Estate and lets face it, we all know a Frank Gallacher. Life On Mars triggered a nostalgic urge in us for the classic 70's Police series while Only Fools was just so utterly English. These things don't necessarily translate well to the American viewership which is why Life on Mars was cancelled after just one disastrous season and why Only Fools didn't get past a pilot. Shameless, on the other hand, is due to air it's 3rd season next year and The Office has just begun it's 9th season!

     The latest Brit show to receive an American makeover is The Inbetweeners. The UK version followed 4 friends as they negotiated 6th form life in a comprehensive. The 4 friends were different and each had their own 'thing'. Will was the geek, Jay the compulsive liar, Simon the hopeless romantic and Neil the stupid one. I guess that we could relate to them as they got into all kinds of scrapes and situations. The series is one of my favourite comedies of recent years and so I was slightly apprehensive when the idea was sold to the states. How could this series translate to the American audience without liberties being made with the idea. The answer is that it translates rather well.

The Yellow Car is a
welcome familiarity

     The basic premise is still the same and it does work in an American setting. It's very SuperBad in style and that's not a bad thing. There are one or two niggles I have with the characters though. Simon and Will are far too good looking and Neil is more stoner than lovable idiot. Jay is the best transfer of the 4 without a doubt which I'm pleased about because Jay was my favourite character in the original. Another problem I have is that some of the stories have been copied almost scene for scene. The theme park episode is almost an exact copy as is the one where the group go to a club. Despite these small niggles, the series does work and it has got legs (providing the American public stick with it). Some of the familiar things in the show (such as Simons yellow car) are very welcome. One off the arts required in a successful cross-pond conversion is the ability to strike the right balance. It's important to be familiar as not to take liberties with the original idea while being different. While The Inbetweeners U.S.A. strikes the right balance, just, it will need to up it's game and I believe it can. Whether it's got the ability to match the success seen by The Office remains to be seen. I'll write up a series review at the end of it's run.

Dallas - First Look

In 1991 Dallas came to an end. During it's time it had spawned 14 seasons and a mammoth 357 episodes! For those not in the know, Dallas centred around the Ewing family, in-particularly the warring Ewing brothers J.R. and Bobby. The Ewings were ranchers and oil tycoons and lived in the family home, Southfork Ranch. The show was known for its wealth, intrigue, sex and power struggles and was huge on both sides of the pond. It made a star out of Larry Hagman who played J.R.

The new breed of warring Ewings in
Christopher and John Ross.

     Now, 20 years after it last aired, Dallas is back. The basic premise is the same and the show seems to retain alot of what made it big in its previous incarnation. J.R. is now in his late 70's and brother Bobby is in his early 60's and although they still have huge roles to play it is their respective sons now at war. Christopher Ewing shares his fathers (Bobby) belief that alternative energy is the future. He is also honest and likable, much like his father. John Ross (J.R.'s son) shares his fathers greed and cunning and also his determination. This puts him instantly at odds with Christopher and even his uncle Bobby. In-fact he's even at odds with his own father, J.R. as he attempts to con him in the first episodes.

They may be older but the old
battles are recommencing between
J.R. and Bobby Ewing

     It would've been easy to reboot the show in a similar way to Hawaii Five-0, to have even excluded the original characters. The show hasn't been on screens (bar a couple of tv movies) for 20 years and now there's a whole different tv audience. The makers have decided that there is still room for the likes of J.R, Bobby and Sue Ellen though and (in my opinion) that is a masterstroke. Larry Hagman is 80 and fighting throat cancer so his casting alone is huge! It is a show for a new generation though and the new generation of Ewings show this. It looks like the makers are looking at Dallas as a long term thing rather than a short term revival and that is great.

     Can it stand the pace in this new time though, that is the question. I think it can. In the 1st couple of episodes there were that many double crossings that I began scratching my head on numerous occasions. That is no bad thing though and it kinda lends itself well to the characters. In Christopher and John Ross we have two siblings to rival the greats of Bobby and J.R. In fact John Ross possibly has the ability to become an even bigger villain than his father and that would be some achievement. The show has evolved to the new era whilst still remaining true to it's roots and that is great. Alot of the old characters have already made brief appearances and mention keeps being made of Southforks past and J.R. and Bobbys history. Although the jury is out at the moment as it's still early days regarding this revival, I have reasonably high hopes for Dallas. If it continues along the same lines as it's strong first episodes, the future is pretty bright for Dallas and the Ewings.

Once Upon A Time - Season Review

Over the course of it's first season, I've posted a couple of reviews of Once Upon A Time. For me, it's been a big show and definitely fills the void left by Lost. That's not really any surprise though as two of Losts writers thought up Once Upon A Time before working on Lost. Back then the show was deemed a pretty big risk, that is until the phenomenal success of Lost. After that,  Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz could do pretty much anything. So they pitched the idea for Once Upon A Time and got an immediate air date. In essence the idea for the show is intriguing. Fairy tale characters trapped in our world with no memory of their true selves is a really good concept. I don't know if it could've worked under any other writers though. Those who have seen Lost will know what I mean. The basic premise of that show is that a plane crashes on a mysterious island. That particular show is much much deeper than that though. Whenever people ask me what Lost is about I have real difficulty explaining it and the same can be said about Once Upon A Time. The mysteries of the show are many. That doesn't make the show complicated or confusing. The original premise still stands, just with added extras.

Prince Charming finds that famous Glass Coffin.

     The show begins with Prince Charming galloping across the fairy tale land to save his beloved Snow White who has eaten the enchanted apple. The scene that greets Charming is one we all know. Snow White in her glass coffin surrounded by the seven dwarfs. We then see that kiss that wakens her and the following wedding ceremony. What follows is something we don't know. The evil Queen striding through the crowds, threatening to unleash a curse so that there will be no more happy endings. That curse is a cloud of black smoke that engulfs all of fairytale world, sending them all to this world and a town called Storybrooke. Meanwhile a young lady called Emma Swan is celebrating her 28th birthday alone. That is until she gets a surprise visitor in the form of her son, who she gave away as a baby. We quickly learn that Emma is the child of Snow White and Prince Charming and that they got her into this world before the curse struck making her the only person who can break the curse.

Snow White and the Evil Queen in
the real world.

     This first season mainly dealt with the love story between Snow White and Prince Charming. 'Flashback' sequences showed their fairy tale world back story while their present day story played out. The main thing that this show gave us was the stories we didn't know. How Snow White and Prince Charming got to know each other and why the Evil Queen hated Snow White so much were the two main stories that were explored. Interspersed were the back story of the dwarfs, Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, Red Riding Hood and Rumpelstiltskin's back story. These episodes provided a break from the Snow White/Prince Charming/Evil Queen story and were often the better episodes.

And their fairy tale selves

     The influence of Lost is evident with a few tributes to that show being carefully placed. A few of these are....

+ The town clock being stuck at 8:15 is a clear shout out to Lost. The plane that crashed on the island was Oceanic flight 815.

+The mayor of Storybrooke, Regina Mills/Evil Queen lives at number 108 the same number that the famous Lost numbers equal when added together.

+Apollo Candy Bars feature heavily in both shows.

+MacCutcheon Whiskey also features heavily in both shows.

+Jefferson/The Mad Hatter lives at number 316. This is a clear reference to the 6th episode of Season 5 of Lost. In that episode, titled '316', the Losties find their way back to the island. This is a clear nod to Jefferson's quest to get back to his own land.

+Upon arriving in this world Pinocchio is surprised by an Oceanic airlines flight overhead, an obvious nod to the fictional airline featured in Lost.

+The numbers play a big part in both shows.

There are many other references with some of Losts lines being borrowed as well as the odd prop. This may seem like Once Upon A Time is trying to emulate Lost but it isn't. Both are very different shows and in many ways, the creators have learned from their experiences on Lost. While Once Upon A time still has mysteries, these mysteries are often solved pretty quickly.

     I know I've been raving about Once Upon A Time and that is probably because I'm a pretty big fan of the show. It does have it's flaws though, the main one being it's seeming lack of progress during it's middle episodes. Your resilience during this time is paid off though during it's final episodes. The penultimate and finale episodes in particular are standout episodes. .

GOOD POINTS

+ This is definitely a show dominated by strong women which is quite refreshing. Snow White is portrayed as a strong woman able to defend herself while the Evil Queen is scary without being too much of a pantomime villain. In the present day, Emma Swan is a bonds collector and later sheriff of Storybrooke.

+ Child characters can quite easily become irritating but Henry (Emma's biological Son) is actually really good. He is a well rounded character and a vital and welcome part of the show.

+ The fairy tale world is quite simply beautiful. It is a truly magical place and you get the feeling that it is endless. The shows depiction of Wonderland is also fantastic.

Little Red Riding Hood,
only not so little.

+ The show has a good balance of evil and good. There are also characters that can shift either way which keeps us guessing.

+ The evil characters have a good reason to be evil. It would've been too easy to make the characters pantomime villains. Instead the writers have given them pretty valid reasons for why they are like they are. King George wants the gold to keep his kingdom rich, The Evil Queen lost her love via Snow Whites actions and Rumpelstiltskin was tricked into becoming The Dark One.

Belle and her 'Beast', otherwise
known as Rumpelstiltskin!

+ The way they reworked the fairy tales was fascinating. Making Rumpelstiltskin the Beast from Beauty and the Beast was a masterstroke that gave Rumpelstiltskin a bigger back story and more substance. Making Red Riding Hood the Wolf was also a great way of retelling Little Red Riding Hood in a way which actually made it a better story.

BAD POINTS


+ The lack of progress during the middle episodes. This possibly points to the uncertainty over the shows future and can be forgiven due to the terrific finale.

+ The lack of certain characters. I wanted more Pinocchio back story and more Cinderella. I got a little tired of the Snow White back story.

+ Emma Swans refusal to believe in the curse became a little tiresome even when presented with a lot of evidence. True, most of us would have trouble believing we were the child of Snow White and Prince Charming but her constant lack of belief was perhaps hard to believe.

STAR OF THE SHOW

Rumpelstiltskin!!

     This is an easy one. There were many good characters in this 1st season. Emma Swan was great as was Regina Mills/The Evil Queen. Ruby/Red Riding Hood was fantastic in both worlds and her back story bred one of the best episodes of the season. The star of Season 1 has to be Mr Gold/Rumpelstiltskin though. As Mr Gold he was a truly mysterious individual and one whom you could never quite judge. Sometimes he came across as a good guy, other times he showed a cunning and conniving streak. As Rumpelstiltskin he was a massively complex character. Although he was evil (his habit of turning people into snails before stepping on them proves this) he had his reasons for being who he was. He was the Darth Vader of the fairy tale world in that he did have a glimmer of good in him. This was shown during the Beauty and the Beast episode in which he fell in love with Belle. His love for Belle provided one of the most touching scenes in the whole season when (as Mr Gold) he was finally reunited with Belle in the finale.

Mr Gold!!

     If you read Rumpelstiltskin then you can see how much the writters thought of Robert Carlyles portrayal of him. The real story (as told by the Grimms) is quite simple in that he does a deal with a young girl who has been forced to spin gold. He spins it for her in return for her jewellry. The girl and Rumplestiltskin keep doing deals until he proposes that she give him her first born child. She accepts and sure enough she becomes pregnant with a child. Rumplestiltskin comes to collect and offers her a reprieve. If she can guess his name then she can keep her child. She guesses right (after cheating by getting someone to find it out) and Rumplestiltskin runs off defeated. The writers have really expanded on his story in which he deals with many of the other fairy tale characters. As well as being the Beast, he appears in Cinderellas story in which he kills the Fairy God Mother before offering Cinderealla her happy ever after in exchange for her first born. He also shows up countless times in Snow Whites story and actually helps Prince Charming to find Snow White in the lead up to the season opener.

     It is doubtful that any other actor could've played Rumpelstiltskin as well as Robert Carlyle. It is without a doubt Carlyle's finest hour and he revels in it. As Rumple he is such a good character and his laugh is so funny. It is as Mr Gold that Carlyle really stretches his acting muscles though. Mr Gold is so cunning and has so much mystery about him. He is perhaps one of the most layered characters in the show.

7.5/10

   

Spartacus:Vengeance - Season Review

     Back at the end of January I posted a First Look post on Spartacus:Vengeance. Now that the series has finished it's time to write up a series review and look back on another bloody and sex filled series of Spartacus. You can check out that First Look post here if you'd like.

The 1st season of Spartacus was a huge hit for the Starz network in the USA so it wasn't a shock to see the series renewed for a 2nd season. What was a shock was the sad death of star Andy Whitfield to non-Hodgkin Lymphoma in January last year. It wouldn't have been a suprise to see the show cancelled at this point but the show creators decided to recast the role of Spartacus instead. In came Liam McIntyre and the show, as they say, went on. I'll be honest in that I didn't have huge hopes after the change in main cast member. Although he only played the role for one season, Whitfield pretty much made it his own. Now though I stand here corrected as McIntyre was superb in the title role. By the end of the series I found it difficult to even remember anyone else playing Spartacus. That is a pretty remarkable feat considering the huge shoes McIntyre had to fill. 

The end of Spartacus:Blood And Sand saw the slaves and Gladiators escape the ludus after massacring everyone within it's walls. This series could be compared to the 2nd season of Prison Break as the rebels evaded capture by the pursuing roman army. Spartacus and Crixus shared a kind of leadership over the rebels although Spartacus was perhaps the overall leader. That's not to say that Crixus was any less important. The character of Crixus has perhaps gone on the biggest journey throughout the show. It was a journey that we were told more about in the prequel series Spartacus:Gods Of The Arena and as such we perhaps cared about him more. That series also introduced us to the back story of the Syrian Ashur and as such we learned why he became the nasty snake he was in this series. 

This season was all about Vengeance as Spartacus finally got revenge on those who enslaved him and those he saw as responsible for the death of his wife. It wasn't only Spartacus who saw Vengeance though as a number of other characters seeked out their own brand of revenge on those who wronged them in the past. Lucretia played the biggest con in history as she eventually got revenge on Llithyia in the finale. You may remember that it was Llithyia who locked the ludus doors in the finale to Blood and Sand thus preventing Lucretia's escape. This in turn caused Lucretia to loose her baby at the hands of Crixus. This season saw Lucretia insane after the events in that finale yet she conned her way back into Llithyia's life by pretending to be sane only to get her revenge by leaping to her death with Llithyia's own newborn child. That may seem crazy but that is in keeping with the nature of the show. If the finale proved anything, it proved that anything can happen as 5 characters I considered important to the continuation of the show all found themselves in the afterlife.

GOOD POINTS

+ Liam McIntyre was a revelation as Spartacus. It must've been the hardest job in the world to follow in Andy Whitfields footsteps but McIntyre managed it. In fact he didn't just manage it, he nailed it which is a truly superb achievement.

+The return of Gannicus was something that I expected but it still was a masterstroke by the writers. Gannicus was the first champion of Capua and his unfinished business with Oenomaus provided one of the seasons best story arcs.

+The death of Ashur was perhaps expected as he became a truly hated and evil character. His raping of Lucretia as well as his past misdemeanors all came back to haunt him in the blood soaked finale as he met his end at the hands on Naevia. It was a truly fitting death and definitely one of the high points of the season.

+Oenomaus was one of the stand out characters of the season as he remained honorable to the end. The fact that he was even given his own flash-back episode shows how big a role he played through-out the series. Although his death happened true to history (well true in the fact that he died at the battle of Vesuvius), it was still a shock.

+Lucretia's scheming had me completely fooled. Yes, I should have expected it, but Lucy Lawlesss proved how good an actress she really is. Playing insane realistically is abit of a skill in itself but playing insane pretending to be sane is really hard. Also, she had one of the best lines of the season when she said to Llityia in the finale (referring to the baby Llityia was carrying) 'You were merely a vessel, now let's see it unwrapped!'

+Full credit has to go to the Post-Production team for all of their computer magic. They have created a world that we can believe existed. Their work in producing the skies alone deserves awards.

BAD POINTS

+I still find the way the characters talk to be really annoying. It does help with the realism but I still have to concentrate on what they are saying which can take your mind away from the action when it occurs.

+I found some of the scenes to be a tad uncomfortable. Ashurs rape of Lucretia was one such scene. The torture of the slave by the Romans was too Saw for my liking as they drew lots before each cutting a bit off him. The final scene of Lucretia falling to her death with the newborn baby was really uncomfortable and will remain with me for some time.

STAR OF THE SHOW

This season of Spartacus produced many memorable turns from it's extensive cast. Special mentions have to go to Lucy Lawless and Manu Bennett (Lucretia and Crixus respectively) but the star of the series is undoubtedly Nick E. Tarabay who played Ashur. For an actor to make a character so hated and despised is a talent. In this series Ashur proved what a snake he was as he taunted the rebels right up to his expected death. No one else could've played Ashur in the way which Tarabay did which is a huge testament to the actor. 

Although his death was expected, even required, he was a character I would've loved to have seen back for the 3rd season. It would've been interesting to see how low he could truly sink. He was given a good death though and did get what he truly deserved as he taunted Naevia before she cut off his head in a final act of Vengeance.

FINAL OPINION

As I said at the beginning of this post, I was pretty worried about how this season would progress without Whitfield in the title role. All of those concerns were gone by the 3rd episode though as McIntyre settled into the role. Despite being called Spartacus though, this show is far from being about one character though. It's a true ensemble piece as all characters are given ample screen time. It would be easy to forget about some characters but the writers give us opportunity to care about all of the cast. Oenomaus, Crixus, Gannicus, Ashur, Lucretia, Mira, Llithyia, and Glaber were all given equal story and allowed to shine. This season also saw many of those characters die and in any other show it would be difficult to see a continuation. To make a comparison, imagine if Lost had killed off Sawyer, Hurley, Locke, Ben and Kate in the season 3 finale! Or how about if Prison Break had lost T-Bag, Sucree, Michael and Sarah all in the season 2 finale! That's how big those characters were to Spartacus. Not many shows could continue with that loss but Spartacus will and it'll continue to build on it's success.  

All in all this was a huge season in the history of the show for many reasons. The recasting of Spartacus had to be spot on and putting the rebels on the road had to work. The characters had to grow too while still keeping to how  we know them. This season ticked many boxes and in my opinion is the strongest season yet of Spartacus.

9/10

Living In A World Ruled By The Dead

***SPOILER ALERT***

The Walking Dead, what a show, what a couple of episodes. I'll do a proper season review at the end of the month, this is a bit of a pre-review if you like. If you're watching the show in the UK and are reading this before the 16th March 2012 then you may not want to continue because I'm going to talk about the most recent episode. It aired in America yesterday and is (in my opinion) one of the finest episodes of any show so far this year. Last week we witnessed the shock and brutal death of Dale. It was so unexpected and that is what The Walking Dead is all about this year.

     When you are adapted from something as The Walking Dead is then you need to be careful. You need to stick to the source material while also offering something different. I've read the comic books (or at least I'm in the process of doing) and there are many differences. I don't think that liberties have been taken though as things such as Otis being sacrificed by Shane and Dales death have only gone onto round off certain characters and make the story better. In the comic books Shane is shot dead by Karl after the 6th issue (very soon in the grand scheme of things). Actually as a side note, Robert Kirkman (the creator of The Walking Dead comic) has always said that his biggest regret is killing Shane off that early. That is something that the writters of the TV show took on board and as such the character of Shane has been brilliant. His clashes with Rick have been amongst the standout scenes in recent weeks. Otis is a character that actually survived in the comic books. Shane was killed before the group even got to the farm so he couldn't leave Otis for the walker as he did in the TV show. Another big storyline that was tackled in the early part of Season 2 was the disappearence of Sofia and the subsequent hunt for her. That in turn showed how good a character Daryl is as he was given an episode on his own pretty much. It also provided us with a truly shocking scene as Rick was forced to shoot Sofia in the head. She was in Hershels barn and was now a 'walker'.

    Despite these big moments, The Walking Dead is still a relitively slow show. There are a lot of scenes of talking and some episodes are a bit Zombie lite for a show about a Zombie Apocylypse. The Walking Dead is a show about the living though, it's about the characters and how they react with each other. They have been thrust into this most absurd of situations and they are forced to do things in order to maintain that that most of us take for granted, survival.

     Maybe the reason why recent episodes seem to have exploded is that we became used to the slow character building nature of the show. I mean, I've commented before on this very blog that The Walking Dead's genius is it's ability to suprise. I've also commented that no one feels safe in the show. The Walking Dead proved both of those points within the past 2 episodes as two main characters were killed in gruesome fashion. The first was Dales shock death at the hands of a walker last week. Okay, so it was Daryl who technically did the deed but that was after said walker tore Dale open. Dales death was a true suprise in that I doubt anyone really it saw coming. This week it was the turn of Shane to meet his maker, killed by Rick. In the comic books Shane has a confrontation with Rick and tries to kill him before Karl appears and shoots Shane dead. In the TV Show the confrontation still happened but it was Rick who (after tricking Shane into lowering his gun for a second) stabbed Shane in the heart. Karl appeared soon after and still shot Shane although at this point Shane had Zombiefied. If Shanes death had been expected (an advert for the DVD boxset confirmed it) then his reanimation had not been. Of course the first Zombie couldn't have been bitten so it was entirely feasible that the all the dead came back. To have it confirmed was still a bit of a shock though.

     So, as we head to what looks like an amazing finale next week, what can we take from this series of The Walking Dead? The characters have grown and the story has moved on in dramatic ways. Sure, the survivors have been at the farm for the most part but that has worked. We have also seen a fair bit of foreshadowing. The scenes involving the shootout at the bar have given us a glimpse at a different threat Rick and his people will face, that of other survivors. Karl has perhaps grown the most and the fact that he has to live with Dales death will surely only lead to a more interesting character arc. Daryl has also grown and with Shane out of the way he has a chance to shine. All in all this has been a great season for The Walking Dead and I have such high hopes as the show continues into it's 3rd season.

The Shows I'm Enjoying

It’s been a while since my last post. I guess that life kinda got in the way. It’s a real shame actually because there has been some fantastic shows airing both here and across the pond. This post is therfore going to be a bit of an update about some of the shows I’ve been enjoying recently.

Grimm began airing in America at the end of October but it's only since it began in Britain that I've given it a go. It's currently 2 episodes in and I have high hopes. The story centers around Nick Burkhardt, a cop in Oregon. In the 1st episode he finds that he is a Grimm, a person who can see supernatural beings behind their human disguises. Basically, the fairystories we all know and love such as Red Riding Hood and Goldilocks And The Three Bears all happened and it was these supernatural beings which were behind them. It sounds more complex than it actually is. I compare it to Supernatural.

Prisoners Wives is about halfway though it's run and I've been really enjoying it. It's set in Sheffield and surrounds the lives of 4 women who all have one connection, that being that they each have a man in prison. For 3 of them it's a husband or fiance, for the 4th it's a son. It's been a really good series so far with plenty of drama and gritiness.




Once Upon A Time is a show that I've repeatedly championed on this blog. It's had a few slow episodes but it still continues to keep me hooked. I do think that that is largely down to the superb Robert Carlyle. As Rumplestiltskin he is absolutely fantastic. He is equally as good in his 'real world' role of Mr Gold and fully deserves any awards heading his way. On the whole this show is proving itself to be a very strong series in it's own right. It has the 'Lost' stamp all over it but that's no bad thing. It's due to begin airing in the UK on Channel 5 in the Spring.

This is a show that I only began watching today. It's been showing in the US for a while now but only recently came to Channel 4 in the UK. It centres around CIA agent Carrie Mathison and her suspicions over Marine Seargeant Nicolas Brody. Brody has recently been rescued after 8 years in captivity in Iraq and Mathison soon begins suspecting that he may infact now be a terrorist. It looks like it's got legs and the leads (Claire Danes and Damien Lewis) are brilliant in their roles. I'm only 1 episode in at the moment so I'll try and post a more substantial review at a later date.


This show is already laying claims to 2012 show of the year and we're only in February. Despite a pretty slow start, this 2nd season of The Walking Dead has really picked up the pace. Rick and his gang of survivors are still battling to live in a world ruled by the dead but this time, zombies aren't all they have to deal with. Infact, recently zombies have taken a bit of a back seat as the survivors begin battling against themselves with Shane the really standout charcater at the moment.

This is another show that's really picked up the pace recently. This series, the gladiators (led by Spartacus and Crixus) are on the loose which has given them free roam to cause havoc. It's more violent and has a lot more sex than the previous seasons and I've found myself being forced to look away on a few occasions. That is really the only criticism I have though and I am pretty much hooked.


I'll post another quick update in a few more days. In the mean time be sure to check out the shows I've mentioned.

Spartacus: Vengeance - First Look

Plot
The series picks up soon after the events depicted in 'Blood and Sand'. Spartacus and his band of rebels are terrorising Capua and so the Roman Republic dispatch Praetor Claudius Glaber to deal with it.


Reasons To Be Excited
+ This is history in it’s rawest form and it seems that the shows makers are keen to shock. There’s certainly no pussy footing around.


+ Liam McIntyre is great as Spartacus having taken the role formaly played by the now deceased Andy Whitfield.


+ From the get go there is action as Spartacus and his men go on rampage after rampage.

Spartacus goes to war!

+ There are a lot of familiar faces from ‘Blood And Sand’. Crixus is back and fighting alongside Spartacus. Oenomaus also makes a very welcome return. He was a big part of Blood and Sand as the trainer of Gladiators at the house of Batiatus. Another shock returnee is Lucretia Batiatus. She was last seen watching her husband die after the rebels masacred everyone at the end of ‘Blood And Sand’. Others due to return are Ashur and Gannicus. Gannicus was the main gladiator in the prequel mini series ‘Gods Of The Arena’.


+ There are signs that the series is going to shock as it continues. In the first episode alone there were 5 truly shocking moments that you won’t see coming.


Things That Might Let It Down
+ There is a lot of sex and at times it got a bit uncomfortable.


+ The gore factor might not be to everyone's tastes. There were times when I grimaced and almost looked away.


+ While attempting to be as realistic as possible, the strange dialogue began to annoy me. Saying that, it did in both ‘Blood And Sand’ and ‘Gods Of The Arena’


+ The native accents of the actors comes through now and again. While Manu Bennett is one of the best things about the show as Crixus, he struggles to hide his New Zealand accent despite the fact that Crixus is a Gaul.


My View

The late Andy Whitfield

When I heard of Andy Whitfields sad death last year I honestly couldn't see how the series could carry on. Spartacus was such a central character to the show that recasting him seemed unthinkable. Could you imagine anyone playing Dexter other than Michael C Hall for example or how about Jack Bauer being portrayed by a different actor besides Kiether Sutherland. It just wouldn't happen. Had Andy played Spartacus for longer than one season then I have no doubt that the show would've ended before the role was recast. It has worked though and although Andy Whitfield made a great Spartacus, Liam McIntyre does the role the justice it deserves. Spartacus has changed since Blood And Sand. He is harder and has a sense of weariness and McIntyre plays those things to perfection.

Spartacus and Crixus are on the same side this time.

     The series has certainly began in the right way. The action is plentiful with 3 big battle sequences in the 1st episode alone. As I said at the beginning of this review though, this is history in it's rawest form. There is flesh aplenty with on big sequence being set at a huge orgy portraying all manner of sexual exploits. 


     It's the scenes with Spartacus and Crixus that are what makes this show what it is. A lot of the supporting cast are easily forgotten aside from the brilliant Oenomaus and I literally cheered when he first came on screen. Spartacus and Crixus are 2 huge characters though and it's great to see them teaming up in battle. Their relationship is a complex one though and it will be interesting to see how it plays out in the coming weeks, especially when Gannicus makes his return to the show. 


First Opinion - 8/10


Potential - 9/10

The Telly Addict Hall Of Fame - Brookside 1982 - 2003

On the 2nd November 1982 the British public got a 4th television channel in the shape of Channel 4. It also got a new soap set on a cul de sac in Liverpool and it is that soap that I am inducting into the Telly Addict Hall Of Fame. Brookside deserves a place in The Hall of Fame for many reasons. It gave us some of the hardest hitting scenes ever seen on a pre-watershed soap opera as well as giving many big names their first break.

     The soap was originally conceived by Phil Redmond and was intended to be called Meadowcroft. It was different from other soaps at the time as it was filmed in real, brand new houses on it's own purpose built set. This was so that the show would look authentic while also giving Redmond total control over his creation. At first there were just 16 characters with the Grant family providing the main focal point. Ricky Tomlinson and Sue Johnston played Bobby and Sheila Grant respectively. At first, viewing figures were far from positive. They stabilised at 1 million before changes were made which ironed out the initial teething problems. The language was toned down and various technical issues were resolved. More humour was introduced with the arrival of Harry Cross. Certain low performing characters were also written out.

Sheila and Bobby following the rape

     In 1983 Brookside played out it's first high profile storyline after George Jackson was wrongly convicted of a robbery. This caused massive media hype with a full on Free George Jackson campaign. Although George Jackson ended up staying in prison, the media coverage helped the soap to record viewing figures. These viewing figures rose again during 1985 when Brookside Close became the setting for a hostage situation when 3 characters were held by gun point. The seige ended, after a 3 episode run, with one of the hostages (Kate Moses) being shot dead before the gun man turned the gun on himself. The controversial storylines continued into 1986 with the rape of Sheila Jackson and the Heroin overdose of Nicholas Black. This made Brookside the first soap to seriously tackle Heroin addiction and it would return to the subject a number of times during it's long run.

Sue and Daniel after they were pushed

     By 1990 most of the original cast had left. These were replaced by families such as the Farnhams and the Dixons. By this time Brookside had reached it's peak in terms of viewers. It was regularly pulling in 7 million and this made it Channel 4's flagship show. This increased viewership led to the construction of a paraded of shops called Brookside Parade as the scope of the soap increased. It was Brookside Parade that played host to the most controversial storyline in the soaps history with the double murder of pregnant Sue Sullivan and baby Daniel. This storyline turned into a grim 'Whodunnit' and ratings soared. 

Trevor is dug up!

     In 1993 Brookside began what would become it's most famous storyline ever with the introduction of the Jordache family. Mandy and daughters Beth and Rachel arrived on the close shrouded in mystery. Soon after their arrival shocking details began to emerge. It turned out that Mandy had been abused by her husband and that even Beth and Rachel had suffered from sexual abuse. The abuser in question eventually arrived in the form of Trevor Jordache and before long he had wormed his way back into the family household. The abuse resumed and Beth and Mandy began a plot to kill Trevor by poisening. After this failed, Mandy stabbed him in the kitchen and the pair buried him in the back garden before having a patio laid over him. His body remained there until early 1995 when it was discovered by Eddie Banks who had been investigating a burst pipe. After going on the run Mandy and Beth were charged with murder and a campaign began similar to that of the one started by George Jacksons wrongful arrest 11 years earlier. This storyline helped the soap gain it's highest ever ratings of 9 million as well as ensuring that the Jordache's became one of the soaps most popular families. As well as the body under the patio, Beth was responsible for British Televisions first pre-watershed lesbian kiss after she shared a kiss with the Farnhams nanny, Margaret Clemence. 

That lesbian kiss!

     After this hugely popular period, the soap began it's decline as it persisted with more and more sensationalist plots. These included a cult brainwashing a number of popular characters before blowing up number 5 and  a mystery virus killing off a number of guest characters. It was the arrival of the Simpson family in 1996 that provided the biggest critiscism though after the brother and sister of the family began an incestuous relationship. This heralded the beginning of the end for Brookside with viewers becoming more and more disillusioned with the unbelievalbe plots and character arcs. An example of this is Lyndsy Corkhills transformation from a single mother working in a chip shop to a formidable bisexual gangster. 

    In it's final years Brookside became synonymos with explosions and guns and it finally came to an end on the 4th November 2003, 21 years after it began. Despite it's sad demise it is still remembered as a great soap in it's day. It gave breaks to people such as Anna Friel, Amanda Redmond, Sue Johnston, Ricky Tomlinson, Jennifer Ellison, Raymond Quinn, Lisa Faulkner, Paul Usher and Claire Sweeney. It also tackled subjects that soaps had rarely dared to tread such as homosexuality, drug addiction and gun crime. 

     Personally, Brookside was a huge part of my child hood. I grew up watching it and it taught me many things with it's hard hitting approach to storylines such as drug abuse and crime. To finish off below is that famous scene when Eddie Banks discovered the body under the patio.

Alcatraz–First Look

 

Plot

     The story that we all know is that in 1963 Alcatraz closed. All of the prisoners and guards were transferred to other prisons across America. According to this new show, that’s not what happened. Apparently one rainy night everyone in Alcatraz disappeared. This was all covered up of course with death certificates being forged etc. Now everyone is coming back, un aged and with no idea where they’ve been. They are still as bad as they were and need to be caught. That’s down to a new team that’s been set up.

Reasons To Be Excited

+ JJ Abram's has an impressive track record with the likes of Alias and Lost to his name. He has quickly become a true heavy weight alongside the likes of Steven Spielberg and Jerry Bruckheimer.

+ JJ Abram's isn’t the only one with a Lost background as Jorge Garcia has a starring role. He played Hurley in Lost and his role in Alcatraz is pretty similar. In Lost, Hurley essentially became the voice of the audience by questioning the absurd. He does a similar thing in this and is reason alone to watch.

+ One thing that turned a lot of people off Lost was that you had to start from the beginning. This show looks like it’s going to run along a much more episode led line. There is still the big mystery over where everyone's been and why but each episode should be able to stand on their own. There’s going to be a baddie to catch each week with the bigger mystery taking a back seat.

Things That Might Let It Down

+ It’s always going to draw comparisons with Lost with the mysteries and the island setting, not to mention the involvement of Abram's and Garcia.

+ Some of the cast were a bit miscast and wooden. Rebecca Madsen seemed uncomfortable in the lead role while Sam Neil is a little unconvincing.

My View

I’ve been looking forward to this show for a while and on the whole it didn’t disappoint. It’s got Abram's hallmark all over it and at one point when one of the characters referred to Alcatraz as ‘the island’, I could’ve sworn I was watching Lost. I’m not entirely sure how far they can take it either or if they even have an endgame. That being said, I’m eager to find out all of the mysteries. For those who aren’t bothered about the mythology it’s still worth a watch. The baddie a week thing has been used to good effect in shows like Supernatural and I’ve no doubt it’ll work here too.

     Having seen it, the hype was perhaps a bit over the top but some of it was justified. Garcia is perfect in his role despite it basically being a Hurley Clone. Despite Sam Neil being a tad unconvincing, given time I’m sure he’ll grow into his role. The same can be said about Madsen. Once this show get’s into it’s stride it has a lot of potential and in taking a first look at a new show it’s important to see that.

First Opinion – 6/10

Potential – 8.5/10

The Telly Addict Awards 2011–PART 5

 

The Peoples Choice Telly Addict Show of the Year 2011

So here we are, finally, after nearly 2 months of voting across a number of different websites we have a Show of the Year. I’ll announce the winner shortly as well as those shows that came close before falling at the final hurdle. First though I’ll say a few things about the vote. Overall there were 100 votes exactly with these votes being split over 48 different shows. That gives you some kind of idea over the diversity of the shows we all enjoy. There were shows from all genres ranging from Downton Abbey to the Carling Cup Final that people voted for. There were one or two surprises, the biggest being that none of the soaps received a single vote. Despite the spread of voting the winner received 12% of the vote with the runner up coming in close with 10%. In fact between 1st and 3rd place there were just 4 votes! Anyway it’s time to announce 3rd place which received a respectable 8% of the vote.

3rd Place

DOCTOR WHO

   After David Tenant left, the show experienced a bit of a reboot. All of the old characters we’d grown to love such as Captain Jack, Martha Jones among others were all written out as new show runner Steven Moffat put his own stamp on things. It is fair to say that the show is far different to the one which Russell T Davies left. It’s not just the doctor that changed, it’s the whole show. The episodes are often more confusing with each one moving the series along to it’s thrilling confusion. This series opened spectacularly with an America set episode that saw the doctor die, killed by the impossible astronaut. That set the series up as we followed it on to the conclusion and the answer to the mystery. We knew that the doctor couldn’t die but how could he cheat his own death?

     The doctors death wasn’t the only mystery. We finally found out who River Song was. She had popped up repeatedly over the past 3 or 4 years as hers and the doctors timelines criss-crossed. All in all, this was a good series and hopes are high for the next one.

 

2nd Place

THE BIG BANG THEORY

     When Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady pitched the idea for The Big Bang Theory there must have been one or two sniggers in the room. By rights, The Big Bang Theory shouldn’t really work these days. Not only does it work though, it works to perfection. Set around the lives of 4 geeks and the ‘hot’ next door neighbour it possibly belongs in the 70’s. To clear it up, I’m actually a huge fan of the show. Although it maybe shouldn’t work, it does and that’s testament to it’s brilliance and the characters. There’s Howard, a Jew with a funny haircut who thinks he’s got the gift of the gab. Sheldon is the ‘brains’ who suffers from a lack of understanding of irony while Rav will only speak to girls if he’s had a drink. Holding it all together is Leonard who has a long running on-off thing going with Penny, the next door neighbour.

 

1st Place

FROZEN PLANET

     In 2004 filming began on what would become one of the biggest shows of 2011, namely Frozen Planet. It was a joint venture by the BBC, the Discovery Channel and the Open University and was huge in scope. Let’s not forget that the Artic is perhaps the most inhospitable place on earth. It’s little wonder that it took so long to film.

     When you watch a show like this though it’s as much for David Attenbourgh than anything else. His name alone virtually guarantees a big audience. It’s quite hard to believe that he’s 85 years old as he still shows such passion for the subject he talks about. The fact that he actually did a bit of filming himself in the Artic is slightly astonishing.

     The series was broadcast in 7 parts from October to November and focused on the changing seasons of the Artic. It also showed whales hunting and the polar bear family unit. All in all it was a fascinating series and worthy winner of the first ever Telly Addict Show of the Year Award.

Notable Mentions

     As I said earlier, there were 48 different shows voted for in this vote. A lot of these only received 1 vote but there were some that I thought should’ve done better. Some of the schedules traditional big hitters such as Out Numbered, X-Factor, Strictly Come Dancing, Curb Your Enthusiasm and Never Mind The Buzzcocks only got 1 mention each. One of my favourite shows, Billy Connelly's Route 66, only received 2 votes which surprised me somewhat.

     At the other end of the scale Downton Abbey narrowly missed out on a place in the top 3 while Spooks, Top Gear and The Walking Dead all got respectable scores. My Transsexual Summer looked like it could gate-crash the medal places before it fell by the wayside. One thing that this vote did show is that despite the influx in American shows on our screens, we still enjoy home-grown with 3/4’s of the shows voted for being British.