2025: Year In Review

My last blog of 2025 and of course, it was going to be a look back at some of the shows I've watched.

Doctor Who (BBC1): Ncuti Gatwa's time as the Fifteenth Doctor might have been abrupt but at least he got to meet the Rani and regenerate into Billie Piper.

The War Between The Land And The Sea (BBC1): Our first spin-off in the Whoinverse had Russell Tovey and Gugu Mbatha-Raw embark on an interspecies romance in the midst of a global conflict.

Monster: The Ed Gein Story (Netflix): 2025 hasn't been Ryan Murphy's year but his continued foray into true crime still gets an audience and a hell of a performance from Charlie Hunnam to boot.

Peacemaker (HBO Max): Season 2 might not have stuck the landing with it's ending but for the most part, I do think it was actually a good follow up from it's first season.

Pluribus (Apple TV): A late entry for me but this sci-fi hive mind show with a lesbian protagonist absolutely warranted the hype it received.

The Last Of Us (HBO): Season 2 only went and killed Joel off and a good portion of it's audience. It still managed to produce some good moments in spite of that.

Adolescence (Netflix): The most talked about miniseries this year tackling the issue of knife crime and a star making performance from Owen Cooper.

Big Boys (Channel 4): Series 3 marked a poignant final outing for Jack Rooke's vastly underrated show. It ended on a lovely note.

Only Murders In The Building (Hulu/Disney+): Season 5 might have been weaker compared to past glories but there was some fun to be had and moving to London next season opens up some great casting possibilities.

The Traitors - UK/Irish/Celebrity Versions (BBC1/RTE1): The biggest reality show on television and one that continued to expand with even the Irish version being able to hold it's own. 

The Bear (FX/Disney+): Season 4 might have shown signs that this show can't go on forever but it still gave us that wedding episode with Brie Larson.

It - Welcome To Derry (HBO): Talk about a redemption arc for Andy Muschietti. This eight part prequel series for Pennywise might have been one of the best horror shows of the year.

Heated Rivalry (Crave/HBO Max): Who would've thought this adaptation of two rival hockey players falling in love would've gripped everyone in the last month? I didn't see it coming.

Harley Quinn (HBO Max): Season 5 saw a relocation to Metropolis, Brainiac at his most sympathetic, Harley and Ivy nearly at odds and sibling rivalry with Lex and Lena.

Daredevil: Born Again (Disney+): While this sequel series didn't quite hit the heights of its Netflix predecessor, it was a nice reminder of how brilliant Charlie Cox is in the title role.

Towards Zero (BBC1/BritBox): Unfairly hated by some, I actually found this three episode adaptation fairly enjoyable. Oliver Jackson-Cohen's hairy chest alone was a highlight.

Yellowjackets (Showtime/Paramount+): The third season killed off both Lottie and Van, made Shauna even more psychotic and revealed Melissa to be alive. Misty and Taissa almost seemed normal by comparison.

Dexter: Resurrection (Showtime/Paramount+): While the really good prequel got renewed and then cancelled, this sequel show produced some of the best material since the original show's fourth season in 2009. What a glorious comeback for the character and Michael C. Hall.

The Sandman (Netflix): Season 2 brought one version of Dream to an end while issuing in the arrival of another. It was truly a family affair for this show's last outing.

The Death Of Bunny Munro (Sky TV): Matt Smith proving yet again that he's an incredible actor with this brilliant adaptation of Nick Cave's book of the same name.

And Just Like That (HBO Max): Several characters were lost, Carrie dumped Aidan and the show just ended. 

All's Fair (Hulu/Disney+): Sarah Paulson's venomous Carrington Lane was everything good about this messy show.

EastEnders (BBC1): The 40th anniversary was undoubtedly a highlight in a divisive run.

Toxic Town (Netflix): That other Jack Thorne miniseries that might have gone under the radar. Give it a go if you haven't already.

The White Lotus (HBO): While not as strong as the first two seasons, the move to Thailand still managed to be as chaotic and bloody as ever.

Prime Target (Apple TV): Leo Woodall as a cute and gay maths expert could've worked in a much better paced and sexier show than this one.

Mid Century Modern (Hulu/Disney+): A gay version of The Golden Girls was never going to work but this show at least tried.

House Of Guinness (Netflix): Steven Knight's take on one of Ireland's most famous of families was certainly something to behold.

SAS Rogue Heroes (BBC1): Watched both seasons and loved Jack O'Connell's performance as Paddy Mayne.

Big Brother UK (ITV2): The 25th anniversary gave us a deserving winner among some horrible and mediocre housemates.

Boots (Netflix): This eight part military themed show with a gay protagonist and a lot of hunky guys fell victim to cancellation. It deserved better.

Overcompensating (Amazon Prime): Benito Skinner served some 2010s nostalgia with this mostly fun comedy series.

Stranger Things (Netflix): Season 5 has been rocky but here's hoping tonight's episode will end it on a high note.

Juice (BBC3): Mawann Rizwan's zany show came back for a second series with Russell Tovey as the more straight laced boyfriend again. Some sexy stuff in it.

Wednesday (Netflix): Wasting Lady Gaga to one side, I did like this second season. The new characters mostly worked as well. 

Poker Face (Peacock): Season 2 might have been it's last but it certainly upped the guest stars and their rapport with Natasha Lyonne.

That's it for 2025. Yes, there's some shows like Severance and The Pitt that I missed out on but in general, I did watch a lot and even caught up with some older shows as well. Here's to 2026 and the TV moments it'll bring.

I Turned 40 So Here's An 1985 Post

Yeah, turned 40 as of today and I thought a fun way of passing that milestone would be a blog talking about media events that happened in 1985.

Thinking of it as my less serious take on Reeling In The Years. 

Seeing as I talk about DC Comics quite a lot on this blog, of course one of things that sprang to mind was that this month also marked the 40th anniversary of Vertigo/Black Label/DC bad boy bisexual occult detective John Constantine. The character debuted properly in Issue #37 of Saga Of The Swamp Thing and became so popular, he ended up having 300 issues of his own comics from 1988-2013. Since then, he's had other runs for both the Black Label and mainstream DC, been on the Justice League Dark team and popped up in other characters and groups books, including Birds Of Prey recently. In live action, we've had the likes of Keanu Reeves, Matt Ryan and Jenna Coleman provide different takes, Taron Egerton through audio and we've had animated movies and shows too. Not too shabby for the character, eh?

Debut a few months before my birthday and the only soap that I consistently watch nowadays would be EastEnders. I start watching this around the mid 90s and I have been since then. Like all soaps, it has definitely had it's highs and lows but it's the one soap that I always find myself the most drawn to. I enjoyed the 40th anniversary celebrations back in February and the aftermath to that has been mostly entertaining since then. On the other side of the world, Neighbours also debuted the same year and will be ending for good towards the end of this year.

Are you really a gay man if you haven't watched The Golden Girls at some point in your life? Again, caught some of it as a kid and have rewatched it over the years as an adult. As a show, it never fails to make me laugh with Dorothy (Bea Arthur), Sophia (Estelle Getty), Blanche (Rue McClanahan) and Rose (Betty White) being the most entertaining foursome on the planet. Later in the year, to line up with this show's 40th anniversary, I'll do a blog about the show and it's short-lived spinoff, The Golden Palace.

1985 was also a very interesting time for Doctor Who. It was the proper debut season of Colin Baker's Sixth Doctor, paired with Peri Brown (Nicola Bryant). In their debut year, they'd face Daleks and Davros (Terry Molloy), the Master (Anthony Ainley) and the Rani (Kate O'Mara), Cybermen, Sontarans and the odious Sil (Nabil Shabam). Oh and there would be a rather nice team up with the Second Doctor (Patrick Troughton) and Jamie McCrimmon (Frazer Hines) but that wasn't all. The show's future would be in doubt, following a hiatus for the next season and the unforgettable (for all the wrong reasons) charity single, Doctor In Distress. Go and listen to it, I dare you. Also, 2025 Doctor Who looks like it could be heading down a similar path.

And then there were movies. 1985 gave Disney fans, The Black Cauldron (tomorrow's blog) and horror fans such sequels as A Nightmare On Elm Street: Freddy's Revenge and Friday The 13th: A New Beginning. It also gave audiences Back To The Future with Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd as Marty McFly and Doc Brown respectively. One of my favourite childhood movies includes Return To Oz while other movies from this year include The Breakfast Club, Desperately Seeking Susan, The Goonies, Cocoon, St. Elmo's Fire, Fright Night, Teen Wolf, Santa Clause: The Movie, Clue and Legend to name but a few. Most of these I've seen, some I've reviewed and others I need to catch up on.

As for music, 1985 was a good year for it. A list of some of the best songs from that year, so to speak.

• Kate Bush - Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)
• Tears For Fears - Everybody Wants To Rule The World
• Eurythmics - There Must Be An Angel (Playing With My Heart)
• Madonna - Into The Groove 
• Wham! - I'm Your Man
• Dead or Alive - You Spin Me Around (Like A Record)
• David Bowie/Mick Jaggar - Dancing In The Street
• Whitney Houston - Saving All My Love For You
• Bronski Beat - I Feel Love 
• Lionel Ritchie - Say You, Say Me

Well, that's a brief-ish on some noteworthy media things in the year of my birth that pertain to my interests. Hope you enjoyed reading it.

My Review of EastEnders 40th Anniversary Week (February 17th-20th 2025)

In 1985, BBC1 launched a soap called EastEnders, created by Julia Smith and Tony Holland. Forty years later, it gave us one hell of an explosive week.

Written by Bryan Kirkwood And Simon Ashdown And Kevin Rundle And Lauren Klee

Directed by Lance Kneeshaw

Sonia: "Welcome to the world, Julia. It's all about to begin."

In the space of four episodes, which included an hour long Wednesday episode on the actual anniversary itself and a live episode on Thursday, there was a lot of plots to cover. Stories that have building up for months but within these episodes, we got plenty of resolutions. Let's break them down.

Phil's Mental Health: Steve McFadden who plays Phil Mitchell has been given plenty of heavy stories in the thirty plus years he's been on the show but the character's battle with depression might be the best one yet. Over the last few months, Phil's isolated himself from everyone, had hallucinations of his mother, Peggy (Jamie Winstone) and during this week, he came close to ending it all. Had it not been for the interventions of Linda Carter (Kellie Bright) and Nigel Bates (Paul Bradley), Phil could've taken his own life. This story also involved Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean) and Grant Mitchell (Ross Kemp), though the latter struggled to effectively help his younger brother. Easily the best story of the week.

Who Whacked Cindy?: It was Kathy Beale (Gillian Taylforth). She was sick of her treacherous daughter in law (Michelle Collins) constantly making a fool out of Ian (Adam Woodyatt) and had Cindy not gotten a little gun happy, Kathy might have kept that secret to herself. Cindy not only shot Ian but she also pushed him in front of a certain car and her antics ended up causing said car to crash into the Queen Victoria pub. In a funny twist of events, Kathy ended up saving Cindy's life, though she wasn't particularly grateful about the save. I had convinced myself the last few days that Peter Beale (Thomas Law) who committed the act and I'm really mixed on it being Kathy. Saying that, I'm actually relieved that Elaine Peacock (Harriett Thorpe), George Knight (Colin Salmon) or any of the Knights did the deed. Now where will Cindy go as a character, considering she's burned every bridge, except for Junior (Micah Balfour) of course?

The Death Of Martin Fowler: A lot of people on social media actually called this one. I certainly didn't. I genuinely thought the show wouldn't have the balls to kill off a legacy character and even when it became apparent that Martin Fowler (James Bye) was a goner, I still thought there was going to be a last minute save for the character. Just when the live triangle between Martin and two of his big love interests Stacey Slater (Lacey Turner) and Ruby Allen (Louisa Lytton) was about to be resolved, he had to go and die. His death certainly packed an emotional punch with James Bye proving to be one of the most successful soap recasts in the eleven years he played the fruit and veg family man. While the show can survive without Martin, there's something rather sad about the last of the original Fowlers no longer being on the show. I mean there's still Hope and Roman to carry on Martin's legacy though.

Julia or Toni?: It wasn't just deciding on a certain outcome for a love triangle that viewers had to do their due diligence but also the naming of Sonia Fowler's (Natalie Cassidy) baby girl. In the end Julia won out as Sonia had to give birth to her daughter in a crumbling pub with both Bianca Jackson (Patsy Palmer) and Lauren Branning (Jacqueline Jossa) as her midwives. Oh and the troublesome baby daddy/wife killer/sister kidnapper Reiss Colwell (Jonny Freeman) getting his just desserts, courtesy of a bathtub crashing down on him. I think we were all happy to see Reiss get a rather brutal but campy death but Sonia will also be departing soon after this anniversary week. Who will end up in her house once she leaves with Bianca and Julia?

The Viewers Decided: Oh, they certainly did. For weeks, UK viewers has a choice in which Denise Fox (Diane Parish) could reunite with estranged husband Jack Branning (Scott Maslen) or continue her relationship with bad boy Ravi Gulati (Aaron Thiara). Personally, there should've been a throuple option but at the start of the live episode, it was made clear that Denise had in fact chosen Jack over Ravi. The viewers might have decided Jack but a lot of social media were Team Ravi. Can Denise and Jack work for a third time or will they fall into the same patterns that have broken them up over the last few years?

There Was A Wedding: It wasn't all misery on the Square. There was the wedding of Billy (Perry Fenwick) and Honey Mitchell (Emma Barton) and while it wasn't the first time those two went down the aisle, it was a bright spot in a very explosive week. In terms of plots, it might not be the most compelling but Billy and Honey have always been a likeable pairing and giving them the anniversary wedding was a nice touch. The second wedding of the year, following the similarly disastrous one between Suki Panesar (Balvinder Sopal) and Eve Unwin (Heather Pearce) on New Year's Day. Weddings in Walford are not off to a good start in 2025.

- It only took thirty seven years but wasn't it brilliant that Anita Dobson briefly appeared as Angie Watts to give Sharon the strength to fight to survive?

- The title sequence was made to nearly mirror the original one but the river was red. Rubies are associated with 40th anniversaries.

- I got the impression that Linda herself will get a new love interest towards the second half of the year given her conversation with Denise.

- BBC3 hosted a lock in with the cast on Tuesday, presented by Joe Swash (who played Mickey Miller) while the theme's creator appeared on Wednesday's episode of The One Show on BBC1. Ross Kemp also hosted 40 Years On The Square documentary and Lacey Turner had Anita Dobson on her podcast.

- Lacey Turner was pregnant while filming the first three episodes of the week but came back from maternity leave to film the live episode.

- Chronology: February 19th 2025.

The 40th Anniversary Week of EastEnders was certainly a triumph with all the episodes certainly packing a punch and keeping audiences entertained. Overall, while I think I might have preferred the 20th and 30th Anniversaries, this 40th had plenty in its favour. Here's to the next decade of the show. Chris Clenshaw helped to deliver a brilliant week along with the cast and crew.

Rating: 9 out of 10 

2024: Year In Review

Funnily enough, this won't be my final blog for 2024 but it's probably the most important one I'll do as this year edges to the end.

Doctor Who (BBC1/Disney+): I'm not gonna pretend it was the show at its best but Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson made for a great duo as the Doctor and Ruby Sunday and I'll never not want this show to succeed.

House Of The Dragon (HBO/SkyAtlantic): It did have difficult second album syndrome and it also delivered on some genuinely shocking moments to boot. Both things are true.

Black Doves (Netflix): Kiera Knightley, Ben Whishaw and Sarah Lancashire in a six part Christmas set spy series and some unapologetic gay storylines. Of course this made the list.

Monsters: The Lyle And Erik Menendez Story (Netflix): I don't know if this show has fully made future stars out of Nicholas Chavez and Cooper Koch but there's no denying that both of them delivered here nonetheless.

Douglas Is Cancelled (ITV): Steven Moffat managed to deliver one of his best works with this four part drama, backed up by brilliant performances from Karen Gillan and Hugh Bonneville.

Lost Boys And Fairies (BBC1): This compelling three part series about a gay couple wanting to adopt was another surprise hit during the summer. 

Ripley (Netflix): Andrew Scott can do no wrong and this black and white miniseries cemented that even when he was taking over another man's life.

True Detective: Night Country (HBO/Sky Atlantic): Although it could be a bit hit and miss at times, the long awaited returning detective drama managed to give Jodie Foster plenty to do in such a cold and murderous environment.

Mary & George (Sky Showcase/Starz): Julianne Moore and Nicholas Galitzine as a scheming mother and son duo? Tony Curran never stood a chance as King James.

Bridgerton (Netflix): The third season of the show really delivered with the Penelope and Colin love story. I was gripped with it. Oh and bisexual Benedict.

The Jetty (BBC1): Jenna Coleman's foray as a world weary detective got off to an intriguing start with this flashback heavy/socially relevant four part series. Expect seconds, given the ratings for this one.

Fallout (Amazon Prime): Video game adaptations really are the rage and this one gave star turning performances from both Ella Purnell and Walton Goggins respectively.

The Penguin (HBO/Sky Atlantic): Colin Farrell and Cristin Milioti have earned their nominations with this sublime spin off series. Sofia Gigante, the icon you are. Oswald too, in his own way.

Baby Reindeer (Netflix): Star making performances from both Richard Gadd and Jessica Gunning in this unforgettable miniseries, especially the penultimate episode.

Shogun (FX/Hulu/Disney+): Not the easiest show to watch but undoubtedly one of the most fascinating and gorgeously shot shows of the year. I'm wary about it returning though.

X-Men '97 (Disney+): Behind the scenes stuff to one side, I'm impressed this show worked as well as it did as a sequel to the popular 90s animated series.

Dexter: Original Sin (Showtime/Paramount+): For a prequel, it's not amazing but it's definitely worthy of expanding the franchise for the moment. Patrick Gibson certainly has made the character his own.

Sweetpea (Sky Showcase/Starz): Ella Purnell on even better form as the meek Rhiannon Lewis turned serial killer. It's always the quiet ones.

Agatha All Along (Disney+): If ever there was a Marvel show made for the gays, it was definitely this one with Kathryn Hahn on fine form as the mischievous title character.

Gavin & Stacey - The Finale (BBC1): Yup, that last episode ended a seventeen year love story on a beautiful note. Cracking. The love story being Smithy and Nessa of course.

Superman & Lois (CW/BBC1): The fourth and final season delivered brilliant for our main couple and for a relentlessly vindictive Lex Luthor. That last episode made me cry.

Big Mood (Channel 4): Both Nicola Coughlan and Lydia West were on fine form in this underrated but not exactly laughs a minute sitcom. 

The Boys (Amazon Prime): Season 4 got super political, Frenchie got a boyfriend while Homelander and Billy Butcher continued to cause mayhem in their wake.

Big Brother UK (ITV2): Though not as quite as gripping as the 2023 series, at least Ali won the damn thing. I didn't mind the celebrity version either.

Grotesquerie (FX/Hulu/Disney+): It might not be the most original thing Ryan Murphy has ever devised but it's slow burn quality and leading performance from Niecy Nash-Betts certainly helped.

The Bear (FX/Hulu/Disney+): I'm not gonna lie, I found to be the weakest season yet but episodes like Napkins and Ice Chips were among the best television this year.

Interview With The Vampire (AMC/BBC2): The second season of this show really delivered with the Louis/Armand relationship, Daniel's new fate, Claudia's demise and Lestat re-entering the fray.

Dead Boy Detectives (Netflix): Perhaps a bit too YA for its own good, I did enjoy this spin off for The Sandman. Unfortunately, it's cancellation didn't come as a surprise to me.

Only Murders In The Building (Hulu/Disney+): Season 4 had fun with it's movie theme as Charles, Oliver and Mabel resolved to get justice for Sazz.

Creature Commandos (Max): If you enjoyed The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker then this R-rated animated show should appeal too. The needle drops can be a tad intrusive but it's a decent appetizer for the DCU.

Big Boys (Channel 4): Series 2 of this heartfelt sitcom certainly strengthened the friendships between Jack, Danny and company while letting other characters have their moments too.

Doctor Odyssey (ABC/Disney+): A nautical night time soap had the potential and it's there but more can be done with besides the triangle between the three leads. Needs more gay.

Say Nothing (FX/Hulu/Disney+): Talked about it yesterday but this miniseries on the Troubles was rather good.

My Adventures With Superman (Max): The second season introduced Supergirl and set up Lex Luthor nicely. 

What If (Disney+): It ended, introduced Byrdie and had some interesting team ups and consequences for The Watcher.

Feud: Capote Vs. The Swans (FX/Hulu/Disney+): Sublime performances from Tom Hollander, Naomi Watts, Molly Ringwald and Demi Moore in this brilliant second season of the anthology show.

Honourable mentions also included other comic book shows like Kite-Man: Hell Yeah! and the noir themed Batman: Caped Crusader. Both 911 and 911: Lone Star had their moments while both American Horror Story and American Horror Stories were on the disappointing side of things. There was Kaos at Netflix but rather short-lived, like many of their shows this year as EastEnders dealt with the fallout of Sixmas while setting up the 40th anniversary storylines. Not to mention Chucky ending on a cliffhanger as did the second series of Wreck and the salacious soapy antics of Rivals to boot. I enjoyed the final series of Inside No. 9 and Mr Bates Vs. The Post Office. I also plan to catch up with Industry, seeing as HBO keep renewing it.

What the hell will 2025 bring?

2023: Year In Review

My final blog for the year and yes, it's a look back at some of the shows I've watched or have started watching to make this list. Here goes.

Doctor Who (BBC1/Disney+): The show really came back swinging triumphantly for its 60th as David Tennant played the 14th Doctor before Ncuti Gatwa debuted as the 15th Doctor. Both utterly sublime.

The Last Of Us (HBO): Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsay brought the popular game series to life with their widely acclaimed portrayals of Joel and Ellie. HBO also bagged themselves another successful genre series.

Only Murders In The Building (Hulu/Disney+): The third season gave us both Paul Rudd and Meryl Streep in sizeable roles and certainly put Charles, Oliver and Mabel through the motions.

And Just Like That (Max): This show still has a way to go but the second season was mostly an improvement on its divisive first run. Less of Che though, the better.

Poker Face (Peacock): Natasha Lyonne's streaming renaissance continued with this delightful Columbo inspired piece. A fun but flawed protagonist and cool guest stars made this worth watching.

Doom Patrol (Max): The final six episodes took too long to finally be released but the wait was worth. Especially for the Immortimas extravaganza to boot.

The Bear (FX/Hulu): I binge watched two seasons of this highly addictive but seriously stressful show and loved every minute of it. Jeremy Allen White is a revelation.

Yellowjackets (Showtime/Paramount+): Again, I binged two seasons of this crazy show, following the events of a high school soccer team that barely survived nineteen months in the Wilderness. 

American Horror Story: Delicate (FX): The show might be losing the general audience but who would've thought that Kim Kardashian's Siobhan Corbyn would be a surprisingly entertaining character?

Superman And Lois (CW): The third season sensitively tackled a cancer storyline for Lois while Superman finally faced up to Lex Luthor and Doomsday. 

Loki (Disney+): Season 2 offered a strong conclusion to the god of mischief while also providing the MCU with the means not to continue with Kang. 

Chucky (SyFy/USA): The writers strike might have forced the third season into going the split season route but fun was had with Chucky in the White House and the camp absurdity of Tiffany's trial.

Fellow Travelers (Showtime/Paramount+): A McCarthy era led miniseries with Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey and some of the sexiest sex scenes between two men. Of course this is on the list.

Queen Charlotte (Netflix): This prequel series to Bridgerton turned out to be so fantastic, that I hope it gets a second run. Netflix struck gold with that show

Archie (ITVX): A four part miniseries examining the life of Cary Grant with a brilliant performance from Jason Isaacs as the iconic movie star.

Nolly (ITVX): I knew little of former Crossroads actor Noelle Gordon but Helena Bonham-Carter gave a terrific performance from a great miniseries by Russell T. Davies.

Juice (BBC3): Marwan Rizwan's quirky comedy which included his own family and the always hunky Russell Tovey was one of the better comedy offerings this year.

What If (Disney+): Season 2 of what was my least favourite MCU show (Secret Invasion now has that honour) really managed to up it's game at the eleventh hour. Still though, this show really wants Captain Carter front and centre.

EastEnders (BBC1): The only soap to make this list and yes, it's because of the Six storyline. That storyline really breathed life into the show.

Big Brother UK (ITV2): A genuine return to form from a much missed reality series that can still work in today's environment. I was happy that ITV2 got this right.

Abbott Elementary (ABC): I didn't stick with this as I should've but what I did watch, I enjoyed so I might catch up with it again in the new year.

Ghosts (BBC1): After five series and a US version (which is decent enough), this show bowed out during Christmas. It'll be missed but at least it was smart enough not to outstay it's welcome.

My Adventures With Superman (Max): The anime style took some getting used to but this turned out to be a charming take on the ever iconic DC hero.

A Ghost Story For Christmas (BBC2): Kit Harrington and Freddie Fox delivered in the spooky Lot 249. 

Honourable mentions of course go to other DC shows such as The Flash, Titans and Harley Quinn. Love And Death gave Elizabeth Olsen a real life killer role while David Tennant and Michael Sheen also came back for seconds with Good Omens. The Idol had the perfect set up for a biting commentary for the music industry but fumbled the bag while Succession delivered a final season that was enjoyed. Anime fans also got a win with Netflix's adaptation of One Piece and Mike Flanagan scared up another hit with The Fall Of The House Of Usher. I also binge watched the likes of The Tourist and Wilderness and would consider both American Horror Stories, Vanishing Act and So Help Me Todd as guilty pleasures. 

Now let's see what 2024 has to offer, shall we?

2022: Year In Review

Final blog of the year and fittingly enough, it's one where I run down some of the shows that piqued my interest. 

Without further ado, here goes. It's not in a specific order and yes, there are some shows that didn't make my list because I didn't like them or watch them, lol.

House Of The Dragon (HBO): Easily my favourite show of the year. This prequel series breathed some old life into George RR Martin's ongoing Fire & Ice saga.

American Horror Story: NYC (FX): This season might have shamelessly ripped off Cruising with a side order of Angels In America but it also delivered one of the best seasons in it's eleven year run.

The White Lotus (HBO): Moving from Hawaii to Sicily certainly proved this series wasn't a flash in a pan with this season proving to be even better than the first one. 

Stranger Things (Netflix): The fourth season saw the gang going up against Vecna and delivered their best season yet. 

Interview With The Vampire (AMC): A beautiful retelling of the classic book/movie, which managed to up the gay content and then some. 

Pam & Tommy (Hulu): Lily James and Sebastian Stan both  delivered with their performances as the consequences of a sex tape played out for the world.

Doctor Who (BBC1): Specifically The Power Of The Doctor. An excellent bit of fanservice to end Jodie Whittaker's era while providing a nice lead in the 60th anniversary specials for 2023.

The Boys (Amazon): The Twitter memes might be exhausted at this point but this show delivered a hell of a third season, especially with Soldier Boy and the Herogasm episode. 

Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story (Netflix): Evan Peters. That's all I'm saying. Give the man his Emmy already. 

Chucky (SyFy): A bunch of killer dolls, a Catholic school, a murder mystery, a meeting of survivors both past and present and a very bloody Christmas finale made this second season a must see.

Only Murders In The Building (Hulu): Our intrepid trio of podcasters back for a second season solving the murder of their landlady with Paul Rudd providing a hook for the third season.

Wednesday (Netflix): Another gothic treat from Netflix with Jenna Ortega providing a new spin on the deadly but cynical teenager.

The Sandman (Netflix): This gorgeously gothic fantasy series might have taken a long time to make it to live action but the wait was definitely worth it.

Doom Patrol (HBO Max): Immortus might be taking their time to rise but this season has hit it's stride with the groups dynamic and a potential romance between Negative Man and Mister 104.

Legends Of Tomorrow (CW): Alas, the show ended on a cliffhanger never to be resolved but those last few episodes were nothing short of enjoyable, especially for Gwyn Davies.

Superman & Lois (CW): Not quite as impressive as the first season but the use of Bizarro world was a highlight throughout the season.

Peacemaker (HBO Max): I wasn't expecting a show with one of the most annoying characters from The Suicide Squad to be so good but both John Cena and James Gunn really delivered with this one.

Titans (HBO Max): This show has always been a mixed bag but this season has surprisingly stepped things up with the Brother Blood and Mother Mayhem storyline.

Big Boys (Channel 4): This lovely coming of age series focusing on the friendship of a gay man and his straight best friend provided plenty of laughs and some rather heartfelt moments.

Derry Girls (Channel 4): The third series of this Northern Irish show ended with the Agreement and in between that saw our leading girls grow up as they headed into the big world. Oh and Liam Neeson too.

Neighbours (Channel 5): The only soap highlight with a jam packed final episode, only for Amazon to pick up the show a few months later.

Wreck (BBC3): A nautical horror slasher on a cruise liner and several LGBT leads. BBC3 really justified their terrestrial return with this one.

Welcome To Chippendales (Hulu): Although yet to finish up, this series focusing on the rise and fall of the Chippendales creator has been an interesting one nonetheless. 

Ms. Marvel (Disney+): 2022 wasn't a great year for the MCU on streaming but this show was probably the best of a mixed bunch.

Some honourable mentions also would be Bridgerton, Love Victor, Harley Quinn, Werewolf By Night, The Gilded Age and The Watcher.

Yes, there are some omissions from the list but this year had a lot of shows to watch and by the looks of it, so will next year. 

2020: TV In Review

2020 undoubtedly has become the year that many of us would rather not have to live through again and while next year isn't going to get off to a great start, at least we can say that we watched a lot more television than usual, right?

UK soaps really did have to combat the restrictions of COVID like no other genre and were some of the first shows to resume filming after the first lockdown. The likes of Hollyoaks, Coronation Street and EastEnders all celebrated anniversaries specials while Emmerdale managed several lockdown themed episodes amongst some of the more divisive stories they've had this year. None of the soaps outmatched each other and all seemed to be on the same wavelength of some good stories and some rather poorly thought out ones to boot.

Reality TV - well, we did endure one more series of Love Island before first lockdown but were spared the summer series but it didn't stop the likes of I'm A Celebrity, Strictly Come Dancing, Great British Bake Off and The Masked Singer all from happening nonetheless. 

I didn't watch a lot of UK TV dramas this year. In fact, if I'm being perfectly honest, the only few shows actually bothered to watch were of course the twelfth series of Doctor Who, which definitely had it's moments, but the less about the Timeless Children arc, the better. Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss's take on Dracula, which despite a disappointing third episode, at least saw some excellent performances from both Claes Bang and Dolly Wells, so that was something.

The only UK TV drama that actually gripped me was I Hate Suzie with Billie Piper seemingly playing a character that heavily drew from some of her own personal life. It was a sublime performance and a further reminder how extremely talented an actor Piper is. Similarly David Tennant managed to impress with both Staged (featuring Michael Sheen and their real life wives) and the chilling Des, one of the few bright spots from ITV this year.

US television was once again dominated by cable and streaming shows coming hard and fast and with far too many to catch up on. HBO probably scored with the likes of The Undoing and the Christmas special of Euphoria, the latter likely to bag Zendeya another Emmy nomination/win while some of Netflix's most talked about shows included the likes of The Queen's Gambit, The Crown and quite recently as last week, Bridgerton. HBO Max has not quite hit anywhere close to the levels of other streaming platforms and it might be a while before it does but The Flight Attendant was a highlight and some of their upcoming content for the next two years certainly looks promising. 

I'm not much of a sitcom person but this year saw the end of Schitt's Creek and in my case, the discovery of it, if I'm being candid. I've blitzed through the first two seasons over the last few weeks and will be watching the remaining seasons as well as needing to catch up with the remainder of The Good Place - another show that's fallen victim of E4's terrible scheduling. Still though, both are shows I will likely finish up in the first quarter of next year and seeing as they've both ended this year, at least I know how much I need to catch up on.

This was also the year of some shows coming to an end as well. How To Get Away With Murder might have lost a large portion of it's initial audience as it went on, but it actually had a rather strong last season and it's series finale was a good way to bring Annalise Keating's story to a natural conclusion. Empire also seemed to end with little fanfare while both Arrow and Supernatural's endings certainly seemed to mix viewers.

With the likes of American Horror Story, American Crime Story and Pose all having to sit out 2020, you'd be mistaken in thinking that the only Ryan Murphy content you got this year was both 911 shows on FOX but Netflix had you covered. Out of the shows on the streaming site - The Politician and Ratched were entertaining but lacking in parts while Hollywood indulged in fantasy retelling of 1940's Tinseltown and was probably the strongest of the bunch. Of course I'm glad Murphy's FX shows will return in 2021, hopefully refreshed and I'm intrigued by at least two of his other upcoming Netflix offerings as well.

2020 wasn't much for Marvel content as none of the promised Disney+ shows were completed in time, so it was the last season of Agents Of SHIELD and the rather short lived Helstrom to barely fill that void. DC on the other hand came out swinging with Stargirl and hopefully the show's permanent move to the CW won't affect it's quality. Meanwhile Batwoman lost it's title character, both The Flash and Supergirl lost the plot at times, Legends Of Tomorrow embraced the Thong Song, Black Lightning prepped for a final season for next year and Arrow ended this year on a strong note. Doom Patrol kicked off an impressive second season, Lucifer continued to expand it's lifeline on Netflix and Harley Quinn did the very thing the comics cannot commit to by actually making Harley and Ivy a bonafide couple. With a slew of upcoming shows for HBO Max and Superman And Lois for the CW, TV and streaming will continue to be the most successful area for DC content.

2020 was also the year where The Boys seemed to properly blow up, It felt like from September onwards, the show was unavoidable so I bit the bullet, watched the first two seasons and yeah, I can see the fuss behind this one. The second season was certainly the strongest with Stormfront being one of the more abhorrent villains seen on TV/streaming this year. The Umbrella Academy also had a particular strong second outing, making great use of the main characters 1960's setting and the game changing cliffhanger should be interesting to see explored next season.

Genre TV wise, the second season of The Mandalorian seemed to be fan pleasing event from start to finish with many Star Wars shows guaranteed by Disney+. HBO and HBO Max also delivered with the likes of Westworld, Lovecraft Country and Raised By Wolves. Netflix might be ending Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina but it's last season certainly is a good way to conclude the year for the station while His Dark Materials continued to perform well for BBC. 

In terms of LGBT TV, there was a lot of it this year. More than I could possibly highlight but if I had to pick a few underrated gems, I'd go with Spanish Netflix miniseries, Someone Has To Die, starring Alejandro Speitzer as well as Hulu series, Love Victor, the spin-off a certain 2018 movie. A lovely feelgood series with a great central performance from Michael Cimino, it was a highlight in a year that personally didn't have that many. 

2020 was certainly a year for television and streaming content. There's probably some things I've forgotten or simply did not watch but those were some of the highlights for me. What were yours? Is there any upcoming show you're looking forward to in 2021?

2019: TV In Review

It's been another year of highs and lows in terms of television. We had some endings, some beginnings, some premature cancellations, obvious highlights and of course, moments of frustration and things that only went and became memes.

So without further ado, here are some of those highs and lows in television 2019.

Soap Of The Year: For this year, EastEnders truly managed to bounce back after years of mediocrity. Under the watchful eye of both Kate Oates and Jon Sen, the show rediscovered it's groove and created a new ship for a fan base to obsess over with Ballum while the fallout of the Sheanu affair has been interesting to watch among other returns and character turns.

On the other hand after several years of excellent storytelling Emmerdale probably had it's worst year in quite some time while Coronation Street seemed to be largely hit and miss and Hollyoaks ventured into topical issues such as radicalization and flash forwarded to New Year's Eve 2020 with some interesting developments for next year to have fun expanding on.

Reality TV: Yeah, I watch so little of this nowadays but the likes of Love Island and The Circle have become natural successors for Big Brother while Strictly Come Dancing and Dancing On Ice provided the weekend entertainment for millions yet again. The X Factor took a break, only to give ITV audiences two underwhelming spin-off programmes that saw them abandoning the station in droves, so there's that.

US Television: Again, there were so many shows on the air, so little time to catch up with most of them. As usual, the majority of the most talked about ones were of course belonging to cable and streaming services with Netflix dominating with the likes of Stranger Things, The Politician, Orange Is The New Black, The Crown, Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina, You, a brief return of Breaking Bad in movie form to name a few while HBO also kept people on their toes with the likes of Succession, Big Little Lies and a certain final season of a show that divided a lot of viewers. Also kudos to BBC2 for airing both seasons of Pose, which might be a niche show but damn if it's not watchable at all. Not to mention that in spite of losing both Sarah Paulson and Evan Peters, American Horror Story: 1984 turned out to be one of the show's strongest seasons yet.

Final Hits: Notably the likes of Game Of Thrones and Orange Is The New Black (but also shows such as Gotham and Mr Robot). The latter seemed to have a more satisfying ending to it's seven year run while the former unfortunately rushed through some major plot points, butchered Dany's character and put Bran of all people as ruler of Six Kingdoms. I didn't hate the final season as much as other people did but there's no denying that Benioff and Weiss dropped the ball big time here. As for Targaryen based spin-off, here's hoping the producers of that won't make similar mistakes when it goes into production next year.

UK Television: I should watch more UK dramas but admittedly, very few engage me nowadays and too many of them feel a bit too formulaic at times. The best one for me was clearly RTD's miniseries, Years & Years and I did catch up a bit with Line Of Duty, though I don't love that show anywhere near as much as Twitter seems to do. It's good though. I will give the BBC some praise in lieu of Doctor Who being only one episode this year that they made an attempt with more genre TV with the likes of His Dark Materials and The War Of The Worlds (and Good Omens will get an airing on BBC2 next month) but neither show really gripped me either. On a disappointing note, I hate how underwhelming the second season of Killing Eve turned out to be. Here's hoping the third season will be made of stronger stuff.

Iconic Character Of The Year: I'm not the biggest Star Wars fan out there but for the last eight weeks, it was hard to ignore the existence of The Child or Baby Yoda from Disney+'s The Mandalorian. It was adorable, ate frogs and messed with buttons on the lead character's ship and that's all it needed to do in order to make a positive impression on a fandom that constantly rips itself apart over everything and most recently over the likes of Rian Johnson and JJ Abrams. Long may this Child bring peace to a very, very splintered fandom.

Comedies: I'm not the biggest watcher in this genre as such but the likes of Fleabag and Derry Girls definitely put female led comedies back on the map, especially as Phoebe Waller-Bridge has become quite the powerhouse in such a short space of time. Gavin & Stacey came back after a decade off the air for a special that generated controversy over the use of a certain Christmas song. Personally though, I'm still playing catch up with The Good Place, which only has so many episodes left to go before it ends, once and for all.

Comic Book Shows Dominate: They really, really, did and especially DC. Bitch and moan about them all you want but you couldn't move for DC comic shows this year. The best of the bunch for me was actually Doom Patrol as Swamp Thing turned out to be short lived and Titans still has teething problems it needs to sort out. Gotham ended on a rather nice note while Pennyworth felt like it was scraping the barrel in terms of what should be allowed for a comic book series. Krypton ended after two seasons as did Preacher with four seasons, iZombie with five seasons while Lucifer will end after five seasons next year and Harley Quinn went all animated on us for a rather amusing, Adult Swim inspired cartoon series as Watchmen saw a career defining performance from Regina King.

As for the Arrow universe - let's see: getting rid of Felicity has done wonders for the main show's final season and I'm certainly looking forward to the return of Legends Of Tomorrow and whatever mayhem it can bring. Both The Flash and Supergirl are somewhat floundering, Batwoman is mostly underwhelming and Black Lightning is finally a part of the family, thanks to the events of Crisis On Infinite Earths. Oh and by this time next year, we'll have three new shows in the mix, including Stargirl at this rate.

Away from DC, Marvel's time in the sun has come to an end (at least until 2020 when their Disney+ shows finally get underway). Farewell to the likes of Jessica Jones, The Punisher, Daredevil, Cloak & Dagger and soon enough, Agents Of SHIELD as it's seventh season will see the show end. Also the likes of The Boys and The Umbrella Academy also proves you don't need to be either DC or Marvel to do a compelling comic book series as well.

LGBT Television: From a reality/light entertainment point of view, both Queer Eye and Drag Race continued to expand their franchises while Will & Grace's second time to shine will end next year. The L Word went for a sequel series as did Tales Of The City and you can't move for a Greg Berlanti or Ryan Murphy production that doesn't have a prominent LGBT character in the mix. I think the most important LGBT series was definitely Pose, which really came into it's own in it's second season while the short lived Now Apocalypse was a fun, hedonistic series which might have struggled with making it's apocalyptic alien themes make any sense but certainly had no problem with it's lead character, Ulysses (Avan Jogia) copping off with as many fit blokes as he could per episode. It's a shame though that Starz canned it after one season. Netflix also deserves kudos for prominent LGBT content this year with the likes of Orange Is The New Black, The Politician, Special, EastSiders and Tales Of The City while both the CW and ABC led shows seem to continue to utilise LGBT characters and themes as did the BBC, HBO and Showtime. On a negative side, Dynasty dropped the ball with losing James Mackay's Steven Carrington and American Gods also for dropping both Salim (Omid Abtahi) and the Jinn (Mousa Kraish) for it's upcoming third season but that show has generated a lot of bad PR in the last few weeks.

In terms of LGBT content, we've definitely been spoiled for choice in the last several years and going into a new decade in less than 24 hours, I have a feeling that will only continue to be honest.

Overall 2019 has been a very interesting year for mainstream television and I don't doubt that next year will be too. What were your highlights in the last twelve months?

EastEnders Gets It's Gay On Again

Okay, bit of a loaded headline there and in the first of a few LGBT themed blogs for the Month of Pride, it's time to have a look at the UK soaps and LGBT coverage over the last while, in particular with EastEnders.

You have to give Kate Oates her due. When she likes a storyline, she'll do it again and again and here she's only gone and done it on EastEnders. It was obviously that Ben Mitchell No 6 (Max Bowden) in between laughably stupid wannabe gangster storylines was going to get with an established male character on the show instead of a new one and the guy in question has turned out to be Callum 'Halfway' Highway (Tony Clay) and while I don't think this relationship will ever hit the social media popularity of Robron or Kana, it does manage to feel surprisingly believable. Halfway is probably the only male character currently on the show they could've done this with and while we're in the early stages of this particular pairing, including Halfway's own denial about his sexuality, it's off to an interesting enough start, story wise. Add to the fact that Halfway and Stuart's (Rick Champ) own father will be joining the show soon (and he seems like a right bastard, going by the summer trailer), not to mention a budding wedding with Whitney Dean (Shona McCarthy), this is going to get very peak soap fairly soon.

Halfway and Ben's budding relationship also comes around the same time that Walford managed to get itself a gay bar. Well, Ben's mother, Kathy Beale (Gillian Taylforth) came into some money, bought the Albert and renamed it the Prince Albert with Tina Carter (Luisa Bradshaw-White) being appointed as manager, getting her out of the Queen Vic for good measure too. For Tina, this should be a good venture as the show's treatment of the character over the last few years has been rather appalling from time to time. It's also nice that Oates seems determined to try and modernise the show as she did with both Emmerdale and Coronation Street and it's good to see the BBC not try and stop her either.

In terms of LGBT characters and stories, it's nice to see in a short space of time, how much of a positive impact Oates has made. Yes, we have the Halfway/Ben pairing, the arrival of a new gay bar and purpose for Tina, the show due to celebrate Pride and even Bernadette Taylor (Clair Norris) getting a brief love interest with Brooke (Ria Lopez), even if she still has feelings for best mate, Tiffany (Maisie Smith). Aside from the increased prominence in LGBT storytelling, the writing overall has taken a turn for the better and the show feels as exciting as when Dominic Treadwell-Collins had the reigns from 2013-2016. Hopefully this renewed quality will be around for a while to come.

Of course, it's not just the Square that's been prominent with LGBT storytelling for the last while. Coronation Street has had a slew of LGBT characters, storylines and relationships and the current stories are a mixed bag. Earlier this year, we saw the death of Rana Habeeb (Bhavna Limbachia) and it seems her partner, Kate Connor (Faye Brookes) will be exiting the soap soon while Sophie (Brooke Vincent) has had her own relationship ups and downs with lawyer, Paula Martin (Stirling Gallacher), not to mention Billy (Daniel Brocklebank) getting together with former jailbird Paul Foreman (Peter Ash). Elsewhere Sean (Anthony Cotton) has had a brief storyline concerning homelessness that was a bit rushed while a new family arriving this month - the Baileys will have a gay footballer son, James (Nathan Graham) who befriends Bethany Platt (Lucy Fallon). Either way, it's nice to have another new family on the cobbles and the issue of homophobia will also be explored with James.

Moving over to the most dangerous village in the land of soaps, there's still the power couple of Robert Sugden (Ryan Hawley) and Aaron Livesy (Danny Miller) in Emmerdale. Yeah, I've never been a fan of this pairing and while I'm more lukewarm on them nowadays, I do keep wishing the show would give us another gay/bi male character and for said guy not to be a plot device or spare part but I think I'll be waiting a while there. There's also Charity Dingle (Emma Atkins) and Vanessa Woodfield (Michelle Hardwick), who are enjoyable enough while the show has furthered explored Matty Barton's (Ash Palmisciano) transitioning in a respectful manner.

Last but by no means least, there's also Hollyoaks, who have always been varied with their LGBT characters and storylines. In recent months we've had departures from Kim Butterfield (Daisy Wood-Davis) and Farrah Maalik (Krupa Pattani) as the latter was also involved with Grace Black (Tamara Wall). The strongest characters aside from Farrah have been the show's school principal, Sally St. Claire (Annie Wallace), a transwoman whose relationship with Myra McQueen (Nicole Barber Lane) ended, even though they still have a son with John Paul (James Sutton). Sally has been one of the strongest characters on the show along with gay lawyer, James Nightingale (Gregory Finnegan) while Scott Drinkwell (Ross Adams) and Kyle Kelly (Adam Rickett) have had hit and miss storylines as well as Harry Thompson (Parry Glasspool) in recent times. Currently the show is exploring a far right storyline with long term regular Ste Hay (Kieron Richardson) being groomed by Jonny Baxter (Ray Quinn) and Staurt Sumner (Chris Simmons) that has definitely had the desired effect in being both compelling and uncomfortable viewing as we've seen them terrorise the Maalik family over the last few weeks to the disgust of everyone in the village.  Of all the UK soaps, this has always been the one with the most eclectic and diverse of storylines.

Well, that's a round up of the current soap goings on for LGBT storylines and characters. Any of these stories that you're enjoying/not enjoying? Anything you wish these soaps would cover or do less of too?