Comic-Con 2013: Game Of Thrones

The second of my Comic-Con related blogs and this one is focusing on current HBO juggernaut, Game Of Thrones ...

Attending this year again was showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff, writer George RR Martin and actors Richard Madden (Robb), Michelle Fairley (Catelyn), Emilia Clarke (Daenerys), Peter Dinklage (Tyrion), John Bradley (Samwell), Kit Harrington (Jon) and Rose Leslie (Ygritte) and once again, the crowd definitely loved them in abundance. In terms of spoilers, it doesn't seem like we got too much compared to last year. Discussion mainly seemed to stem on the events of the Red Wedding, with Madden himself admitting he "cried a lot" during the making of the episode.

Other stuff that was mentioned on the panel included George RR Martin himself mentioning the possibility of continuing the series beyond the last two books he has in store for us. By that he meant exploring the series far distant past rather than a prequel though. In terms of visual content, we managed to get a deleted scene between Pycelle and Tywin as well as an in memoriam of many of the deaths we've seen on the show over the last three seasons.

Last but not least - it was leaked this week that Doctor Who and Sherlock actor Mark Gatiss will be appearing in the upcoming fourth season of the show. However it seems that while Mark's role in the fourth year hasn't been leaked, the actor has revealed that he has already filmed his role for the new season. Let the speculating on what the role begin.

Comic- Con 2013 Panel: http://www.spoilertv.com/2013/07/game-of-thrones-season-4-comic-con-2013.html

Game Of Thrones fourth season is currently being filmed and will air on HBO and SkyAtlantic in March 2014.

Comic-Con 2013: Sherlock

First of a few Comic-Con related blogs you can expect from me over the next few days and the first one to go is Sherlock ....

The panel in San Diego was headed by writers/creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss (who was confirmed this week to appearing in the fourth season of Game Of Thrones) and Sue Vertue. At least ten interesting things were leaked about the upcoming third series.

1: A fourth series will definitely happen but of course, it'll depend on when Benedict and Martin are available for filming.

2: Benedict has been described as the "goofy" one with Martin as the "dry, sardonic" one. I would've thought it was the reverse.

3: Mark Gatiss is still surprised that we haven't figured out that cliffhanger. I think I might have done.

4: Sherlock and Watson's reunion is definitely going to appeal to the slash fans in a big way. It's been described as "beautiful" and will "make your hands stand on end".

5: Benedict's spoilers for the cliffhanger have included two toy monkeys, teabag and cabbage. He might not be entirely serious though.

6: For those who ship Sherlock and Molly, well, they won't be kissing anytime soon.

7: Moriarty is definitely dead. And Watson is married.

8: The ending for Series 3 is going to outdo the second series ender to the point where you'll wonder how the show can continue.

9: Mark Gatiss still wants a Roger Moore cameo in either Sherlock or Doctor Who. Then again, so does Roger Moore himself.

10: Don't expect a Sherlock movie anytime soon.

They're not the most revealing of spoilers but they're definitely something to whet the old appetite. The filming for the final story in the third series, written by Steven Moffat and directed by Nick Hurran will begin later this month and before we know it, it won't be long before Series 3 kicks in and we're watching. I'm betting it might air during December with the finale airing around the Christmas period.

EDIT: All the titles for Series 3 have been revealed. They are The Empty Hearse, The Sign Of Three and His Last Vow.

Comic Con Write Up: http://www.digitalspy.ie/tv/s129/sherlock/news/a499716/sherlock-at-comic-con-10-things-we-learned.html

Sherlock's third series will air in late 2013 possibly.

My Review of Dexter's 8x03: "What's Eating Dexter Morgan?"

Written by Lauren Gussis
Directed by Ernest Dickerson

Dexter (to Galuzzo): “I consume everything I love.”

However on the plus side – at least Dexter isn’t serving brains in garlic or fingers in a stew. We haven’t had a memorable minor kill for Dexter so far this season and Ron Galuzzo thankfully broke that trend with his kitchen being a kill room. Even Dexter was grossed out by the thing and that was something to see alright.

Of course Galuzzo’s main purpose in this episode was just to be another one of Vogel’s psychotic former patients who wasn’t the Brain Surgeon. Also, if this episode was anything to go by, Vogel herself might not be the brain surgeon either but I still don’t trust her and the fact that Dexter has involved her more won’t end well either.

I’m not surprised that Vogel managed to get some insight into Dexter’s relationship with Deb but once again, why aren’t some alarm bells going off for him? Once again, she seemed to encourage his darker side and was it me or did she seem not to like the bond that he actually had with Deb as well?

However she was there when Dexter needed to get Deb out of the station and made sure that she was the one to help Deb as well by telling Dexter he couldn’t do it. Even Dexter agreed with Vogel that he was unable to help Deb anymore in spire of his attempts of reaching out to her this week.

I thought Dexter had managed to make a breakthrough with Deb when he purposefully showed her the man whose life she saved a few seasons ago had turned out. It was a nice gesture and seemed to reach Deb until both her client and Elway soured things by pointing out the habits of living in denial.

Deb confessing to Quinn that she killed LaGuerta though has to come back to haunt her. Quinn might have bought Vogel’s “survivor’s guilt” spiel for a bit but even he’s going to eventually realise that Deb wasn’t lying about killing her former superior though. Much as I generally dislike Quinn, this was a good episode, namely for his concern about Deb but other plots however detracted a little from things.

It’s three episodes in and I still couldn’t care less about Quinn and Jamie as a couple and her lack of sympathy towards Deb kind of seems out of character for Jamie a bit. It also doesn’t help that Angel seems more interested in Quinn becoming a sergeant than Quinn actually does himself. I think Angel needs to focus his energies on something other than his sister and Quinn at the moment.

Also in “What’s Eating Dexter Morgan?”

The opening sequence with Harrison eating too many lollipops was good but we’ve had better fake out moments than that though and Vogel got more brain pieces delivered to her in his and her boxes.

Masuka: “Ah, suicide. Makes our lives so much easier.”
Miranda: “You should put that on a T-shirt.”

Masuka seems to be developing a similar rapport with Miranda that he used to have with Deb. I like Miranda, even though she’s ridiculously underused.

Vogel (re Deb): “Is alcohol an issue for her?”
Dexter: “I’m an issue for her. She’s acting this way because of me.”

Deb (to her client): “Don’t look at me. I think the truth is overrated.”

I’m pretty sure this is the second episode in a row that Elway has had a hangover cure for Deb. I did find his teasing about Briggs and Quinn amusing enough too.

Dexter: “I would never kill Debra. She’s my sister, I love her.”
Vogel: “What do you love about her?”

Deb (re her client): “Is she fucking kidding? That’s obviously her husband.”
Elway: “She just didn’t wanna see it. People get used to living in denial. It’s just easier you know.”

I really didn’t like Deb getting an injection from Dexter and for a moment, it did look like Quinn might have seen him do it as well. Vogel’s reaction was interesting as well.

Deb: “I don’t want some coffee. I want to confess.”
Quinn: “You want to confess to what?”
Deb: “I killed LaGuerta.”

Dexter: “Vogel was right. I am perfect at one thing.”

Chronology: From where the previous episode left off.

“What’s Eating Dexter Morgan?” – definitely a solid episode, though not an appetising one if we’re going by the contents of Galuzzo’s fridge, that’s for sure. That being said though, I do hope we get the identity of the Brain Surgeon and pretty soon.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Doctor Who - Top 50 Companions: Part 3

Sorry for the delay with this blog but last week was a bit hectic, so to make it up to people, there will be two blogs (the second one on Friday or Saturday) to make up for the lack of posting. Anyways, onto the third part of my Top 50 companions of Doctor Who ...

36: Susan Foreman (Carole Ann Ford)

There have been many important people who have travelled with the Doctor and surely the most important of them all has been his own granddaughter. I know there are some who kind of don't believe that Susan is actually related to the Doctor but I definitely do. Like with Ian and Barbara, Susan was the first companion we've had on the show and while we've had stronger companions, her impact on the series has never been forgotten. Plus her exit in The Dalek Invasion Of Earth is still one of the best companion exits the show has done in it's 50 year history.

37: Molly O'Sullivan (Ruth Bradley)

Or the woman known as 'Dark Eyes' as well. It's amazing that it's taken Doctor Who so long to actually have an Irish companion in any medium and casting Ruth Bradley in the role of WW1 nurse, Molly O'Sullivan is making me wish she'd appear on the actual show itself. As a companion for the Eighth Doctor, Molly is certainly one of his best yet and exactly what he needed following the departure of Lucie. And thankfully for us with recording on Dark Eyes 2 starting up, we should hopefully be having more adventures with this wonderful Irish lady very soon.

38: Polly Wright (Anneke Wills)

She might have started off with the First Doctor but like with her fellow companion (and probable love interest) Ben, Polly certainly felt more associated with the Second Doctor and while I wish she had lasted a bit longer, she was a great companion to watch. Definitely one of the show's most underrated of companions I'd say.

39: Bernice Summerfield (Lisa Bowerman)

Remember the days where the Doctor had an archaeologist travelling with him who wasn't River Song? Well, it did happen and has been happening on and off since 1992 as Bernice Summerfield has made quite an impression on both his Seventh and Eighth incarnation. More to the point, Bernice herself has even bagged her own ongoing spin-off, which has been going pretty fine for over a decade now. 

40: Melanie Bush (Bonnie Langford)

And the award for the most polarising companion (who isn't Adric) would probably go to this lovely redheaded lady. Melanie might have literally taken the screamer aspect of being a companion too far at times but for a series and a half, she was a decent companion to both the Sixth and Seventh Doctor. Plus, if you ever get the chance to listen to her on audio (particularly The Juggernauts), you'll realise that a) the writers did Bonnie Langford a massive disservice and b) Langford can actually act and pretty damn well too.

Part 4 will be up either Friday or Saturday.

Glee - Season 5 May Be Delayed

I didn't really want to write this blog because I still can't believe it but sadly, I have to.

It's been two days since the news broke about the death of actor Cory Monteith and like so many people, I am definitely shocked and saddened to have heard the news. I'm not going to make any speculations here but my thoughts most definitely go out to his family, friends and colleagues. 31 is no age to die and he will be missed from Glee and in general. I've not always been the biggest fan of Finn as a character but Monteith always struck me as a nice guy though.

Because of the untimely passing of actor, it seems that production is rightly going to be delayed for a month to give everyone some time to breathe. This will now mean that the show will more than likely return in November when filming begins.

More News: http://www.spoilertv.com/2013/07/glee-season-5-production-possibly.html and http://ontd-glee.livejournal.com/tag/actor%3A%20cory%20monteith

Glee is currently being repeated on Sky1 and E4 at different points during the week. EDIT: Season 5 will now air September 26th on FOX with production beginning in August.

My Review of True Blood's 6x05: "Fuck The Pain Away"

Written by Angela Robinson
Directed by Michael Ruscio

Pam (to the shrink): “You humans just love pain, don’t ya? You just love being in it. You even consider it a virtue.”

Now, that is the Pamela Swinford de Beaufort I missed watching. Not the whiny one we’ve had for the last few episodes whose bitchiness has been more of a source of tedium but the one whose bitchiness is more a source of observation and amusement and she was certainly swinging in this episode.

Pam at a therapy session has been the best thing that has happened with the character this season and watching her challenging the patronising shrink who was trying to get into her mindset was wonderful. This is easily Pam’s best episode this season and the observation she made on humans indulging in their pain was neat to watch. I wonder what she makes of the phrase ‘tortured artist’.

Of course, while Pam thought she was being clever and besting the shrink in question, it didn’t stop Vampire Camp from outsmarting her and placing her in the position of having to fight Eric at the end of the episode. For all her bluster, I can’t see Pam ever trying to kill Eric and I certainly don’t think he would do the same to his own progeny either.

It was nicely stinging moment though for the pair of them, all brought together by Steve and Sarah being their treacherous selves and Burrell wanting his own payback for what happened to Willa as well. More to the point, Bill’s prophecies really have come to fruition considering that him and Warlow are the only vampires not at the camp at the moment.

However getting back to Eric – he wasn’t thinking straight this week. He let himself get captured in the hopes of having the upper hand on Burrell but twice in this episode, Eric was put in his place. He was shocked that Burrell turned on Willa and even more so that Pam was sent to fight him. It’s going to be interesting to see how he gets out of this one to be honest.

As for the rest of the vampires at camp – is anyone shocked by Steve being a turncoat? I thought his actions were pretty in character but it’s the scenes with Tara and Jessica and the new vampire lady that are intriguing him. I’m sensing an unholy alliance in the next episode if any of them stand a hope of getting out of that camp alive because honestly it really does look like someone is going to die in there pretty soon as well.

This was certainly not Jessica’s episode though. Her remorse over killing three of Andy’s fairy kids (one of them survived) saw her do something reckless with Bill and Sarah Newlin of all people got the upper hand when visiting Jason didn’t exactly go to plan either. I did like that Tara did her best to look out for Jessica though in the episode. Tara was pretty fantastic in this one throughout.

As for Warlow/Ben – of course Bill can control him. It did make sense given that Lilith is coursing through his veins but more to the point, Ben’s story kept getting interesting in this episode. His feelings for Sookie seem genuine enough and he wasn’t actually lying when he dropped that bombshell about Corbett and Michelle trying to kill her but Sookie would be a massive fool to be taken in so easily by him.

I loved the flashback scenes to Ben/Warlow’s turning as a vampire by Lilith and the interactions with him and Bill were brilliant to watch as well. I’m guessing if Bill can synthesise Warlow’s blood, he could be onto something with saving all vampires but again, do they deserve to be saved? Even Jessica was starting to have her doubts in this episode.

Also in “Fuck The Pain Away”

Where was Nora in this episode? We were at vampire camp for ages and I don’t think she was seen once.

Ben: “You are my intended. I wandered the Earth for millennia in misery and solitude waiting for you, dreaming only of you.”
Sookie: “Fuck you.”
Ben: “It’s our destiny to be together.”
Sookie: “Fuck destiny.”

It’s been three seasons since Lafayette can communicate with the dead and yet again, he got possessed by Corbett who ended the episode by trying to drown Sookie. Get some control already, Lafayette.

Sookie: “Oh, great, now you wanna save me too? I thought I was dead to you, Bill Compton.”
Bill (re Ben): “I didn’t come here for you. I came here for him.”

Pam (re experiments): “All in the name of science?”
Guard: “Shut up.”
Pam: “Care to explain the scientific value of this?”

Sarah Newlin has become quite the bunny boiler, wanting Burrell to get her pregnant and sleeping with Jason in this episode. How was she able to rescind Jessica’s invitation though?

Lilith (to Ben): “You are destined to save vampire kind.”

Sarah: “You’re a demon whore.”
Jessica: “Oh, you take that back.”

Terry wants to kill himself? Jesus, can the writers not come up with a better way of writing his character out of the show? As for the Sam/Nicole and Alcide/Jackson scenes – only meh can describe them.

Shrink: “What value do you place on my life?”
Pam: “None.”

Jessica: “Where are we?”
Tara: “We’re in hell.”
Jessica: “Thought so.”

Standout music: Peaches “Fuck The Pain Away” funnily enough.

Ben (to Corbett/Michelle): “I’m a prince. I’ll make Sookie a princess. It’s the way our tribe has done things since the beginning of time.”

Chronology: From where “At Last” left off and 3496 BC during the Warlow/Bilith scenes, which were also suitably homoerotic as well.

This season is halfway done and it’s arguably shaping up to being one of the best going. “Fuck The Pain Away” was hard not to enjoy as an episode (despite some boring subplots) and with that ending, I really want to see the next episode almost immediately.

Rating: 9 out of 10

Batman: The Animated Series

What can I say? I'm a big kid at heart and if there's one cartoon I loved, it was Batman: The Animated Series.

Sure there has been many Batman related cartoons over the years and I've enjoyed the majority of them (though I have yet to see Beware The Batman) but for me, The Animated Series was kind of the pinnacle of them all. Running for a total of 85 episodes, the series just started off with Bruce Wayne (Kevin Conroy) as the Dark Knight taking out most of Gotham's deadliest of villains before the likes of Dick Grayson/Robin (Loren Lester) and Barbara Gordon/Batgirl (Melissa Gilbert) also joined to help save the day from the likes of the Joker (Mark Hamill), Catwoman (Adrienne Barbeau), Bane (Henry Siva) and Ras Al Ghul (David Warner) to name a few.

More to the point, my own enthusiasm for the Caped Crusader in many of his mediums will result in a few blog posts about him over the next few months as well. Not only will I do some postings about the animated adventures and the live action Adam West series but I also intend to actually get around to watching and reviewing the movies from Tim Burton, Joel Schumacher and Christopher Nolan as well. I hope you enjoy folks.

Revenge - Season 3 Casting Spoiler

It's been some time since I've posted a blog in relation to Revenge but it seems now is the perfect time as the casting for Patrick, the first born of Victoria Grayson has been revealed as ...

 ... Justin Hartley of course. The former Oliver Queen on Smallville and from the shortlived Emily Owens, MD has been cast in the role and will first appear in the third season premiere episode, titled Fear. Patrick will also be popping up in several episodes of the new season as a recurring character as well. I just hope for his sake that he fares better than Jennifer Jason Leigh did as Kara in the previous season. Personally, I think is fab casting and if he cops off with Nolan, it'll be even better too. What, one can dream right? I can't wait to see Patrick and Victoria clash/interact with each other.

Casting News: http://www.spoilertv.com/2013/07/revenge-season-3-justin-hartley-joins.html

Revenge Season 3 will air on ABC, Sundays at 9pm from September 29th.

My Review of Dexter's 8x02: "Every Silver Lining"

Written by Manny Coto
Directed by Michael C. Hall

Dexter: “You’re wrong about me. I’m a mistake.”
Vogel: “You’re everything you need to be, Dexter. You’re perfect.”

And with those words, alarm bells really should be ringing in Dexter’s ears about now. With the exception of Lumen and Deb, anyone else who has been privy to Dexter’s bloodlust has not turned out to be good for him and it’s pretty obvious that Vogel is going to be joining that line up as well.

I’m not sure if I entirely buy the idea of Vogel being responsible for Harry giving Dexter his code but the maternal streak she showed Dexter alone in this episode certainly means that her chances of manipulating him for a bit are pretty good. Already in this episode she sent him after someone she assumed was the Brain Surgeon and stalking her.

I liked the reveal about Lyle Sussman being more of a victim of the Brain Surgeon as well, even if he was responsible for a victim’s death in this episode before being killed himself. Is it too much to assume that Evelyn herself is the real surgeon and she’s preying on certain psychopaths to do her bidding? I don’t think so.

Evelyn knows about psychopaths in a pretty detailed manner and she knew exactly what to say to Dexter at various points when it looked like he was going to snub her requests as well. She’s definitely an intellectual threat for Dexter and he really hasn’t had one of those in a long while, has he?

This week certainly wasn’t Dexter’s best one. With Vogel getting under his skin and Deb continuing to distance herself from him, it was a little hard not to feel bad for Dexter a bit in this episode.

Speaking of Deb – I’m disappointed that she killed El Sapo (assuming she did, in spite of her fuzzy memory) but the downward spiral has been nicely played by Jennifer Carpenter nonetheless though. Deb made some valid points again to Dexter but at the same time, it was him who managed to save her bacon from being identified as El Sapo’s killer though.

Of course the scenes at Miami Metro still had their moment of tension though. Deb could barely look at Angel or Tom and she couldn’t even snap back at Masuka like she would do in the old days. Even her questioning with Quinn about El Sapo saw her only being inches away from confessing to murdering the guy.

Also in “Every Silver Lining”

This was the first time Michael C. Hall directed for the show. He previously directed the penultimate episode of Six Feet Under’s final season.

Vogel: “Sooner or later somebody’s going to be holding a piece of my brain in a jar. I want you to find him, Dexter and I want you to do what Harry and I taught you to do.”
Dexter: “I don’t take requests.”

Angel admitted to being aware about Quinn sleeping with Jamie but seemed more fixated on Quinn taking the sergeant’s test.

Dexter: “Miami makes more corpses than sunburns and I’m thankful.”

Dexter: “You never felt guilty about what I was doing.”
Vogel: “No, all I ever felt was pride.”

Elway seems to be harbouring some romantic feelings for Deb and Quinn’s feelings for her have been noticed by Jamie as well.

El Sapo (to Deb): “You’re lucky I don’t kill people unless I’m paid to.”

Deb: “Nobody’s coming after me, Dexter.”
Dexter: “How do you know that?”

Standout music: Mama Cass’s “Make Your Kind Of Music” was played in this episode during a gruesome scene.

Dexter: “What if I weren’t here to cover your ass.”
Deb: “Do you really wanna play the ‘what if’ game?”

Chronology: I assume from where “A Beautiful Day” left off.

Although not quite as good as the opening episode, at least “Every Silver Lining” moved things along nicely. Michael C. Hall did a good job with directing the episode and Vogel is certainly proving to be a whole new kind of problem as well.

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of True Blood's 6x04: "At Last"

Written by Alexander Woo
Directed by Anthony Hemingway

Sookie (to Ben): “Get the fuck off me or die, Warlow.”

Aren’t closing moments like this almost an anti-cliff-hanger of sorts? Not that I didn’t enjoy it but Sookie nearly getting naked with Ben before letting him know that she was aware of his real identity was certainly the opposite of the usual type of cliff-hanger we’d get on the show.

It’s a nicely gratifying moment though as we saw in the episode how Sookie pieced things together with Ben being Warlow and how she went to good lengths to trap him as well. I do think informing both Jason and Niall of her master plan might have been a good idea too but at least Sookie was on a roll this week.

The reveal about Ben being Warlow was hardly a shock but it actually was quite satisfying to watch. In this episode alone, he got both Jason and Niall out of his hair but in a merciful way. He made Jason forget everything instead of killing him and he spared Niall yet again, even if he did shove him into that dimension he was trapped in for the last twenty years himself.

Now I’m really curious as to why Ben/Warlow actually wants with Sookie. She basically asked him the question as well and he gave her some spiel about wanting to belong but obviously there has to be more to it than that, right? More to the point – a fairy/vampire hybrid?

Personally I think it’s actually rather a neat twist and given that previous episodes alluded to it, not one that feels off about Ben/Warlow either. In some ways, he’s got the best and worst elements of being both but at the same time, he’s going to be massively hard I assume to get rid of over the coming weeks as well.

This season has certainly breathed a lot of new life into the characters but for the vampires, it’s almost like this episode went out of it’s way to prove that Burrell has a point about wanting them dead. Eric more than proved this point when he decided to make Willa into a vampire and send her back to Burrell.

It was nice that Burrell showed some genuine conflict upon seeing Willa being turned (times like this, I like being proved wrong) but with Sarah in his ear and Willa trying to attack him, it doesn’t look like Burrell will be giving up his vendetta towards those with fangs anytime soon. Thanks to Eric, Burrell will probably be a lot worse in the remainder of the season.

I mentioned in my previous review about the double standards in fandom surrounding Eric and this episode highlighted it again. I get that people adore the character but the fact that some did try to rationalise what he actually done to Willa, yet berate Bill for his similarly reckless actions this week does smack of hypocrisy to be honest.

Speaking of Bill – he was both right and wrong in this episode. His idea of trying to synthesise fairy blood in order to save vampires isn’t a bad idea but using Andy’s daughters in order to do it wasn’t too smart either. I really did think that it was going to be Bill who would drain the girls dry. Having Jessica do it after her desperate attempts of trying to keep the girls safe only made it more sad. And I’m saying this as someone who doesn’t actually like Andy’s daughters. The teenage versions we had in this episode were super annoying that I hope we never see them again but I have a feeling they’re not dead though.

Last but not least – Ginger, Pam and Nora were snatched by Burrell’s goons a little too quickly, weren’t they? I guess the pieces of Bill’s doom laden prophecy are coming true and it won’t be long before Eric, Jessica and Tara are next on the list. Why do I get the feeling one of these characters might not make it out of this season alive?

Also in “At Last”

Ben gave Jason some of his blood to drink and we got a delightfully homoerotic shaving dream with the pair of them.

Burrell (to his men): “Get those choppers in the air. I want this town to light up like a Christmas tree.”

The annoying clerk from “Strange Love” was in this episode when Jessica acquired Andy’s daughters.

Andy (to his daughters): “No telepathy. It’s illegal in these parts and that’s coming from the Sherriff of this parish.”

Ben: “You haven’t done this before, have you?”
Jason: “No, not really.”
Ben: “Just relax. Do it like you do it to yourself.”

Ben can’t seem to drink fairy blood and he also seemed immune to silver (which Sookie laced in his dinner). I wonder when he dies if he’ll go to dust or goo.

Willa: “Why did you choose me?”
Eric: “You deserve to be one of us.”

Ben: “It’s a date.”
Sookie: “I didn’t say that, now did I?”

Sam and Nicole had sex in this episode and it seems that Sarah and Burrell are sleeping together as well. There’s some speculation that she’s pregnant too. Also, what’s happened to Steve?

Ben: “Go to work, do your job.”
Jason: “Okay.”
Ben: “Stay away from Sookie’s place tonight, we have plans.”

The werewolves are getting increasingly boring this season and I’m not liking Alcide too much either, though I did appreciate him taking Rikki down a peg or two.

Willa: “You did this to me to get back at him. You took my life.”
Eric: “Just as he’s taken so many of ours.”

Standout music: Etta James’s “At Last” of course.

Niall: “No, there, no.”
Ben: “I survived twenty years. I’m sure a King can survive longer.”

Chronology: Pretty much from where “You’re No Good” left off.

“At Last” lived up to it’s title and delivered the Warlow plot with some aplomb. I can’t wait to see where he’s going to go in the next few weeks and with the likes Bilith and Burrell, surely Warlow/Ben is going to face off with them soon, right?

Rating: 9 out of 10

First Look: Sleepy Hollow

There's not many new shows coming this upcoming season that are intriguing me but one of FOX's latest ones, a retelling of Sleepy Hollow certainly seems to have some potential ...

A modern retelling of the story, The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow, the series sees Tom Mison's character, Revolutionary soldier Ichabod Crane plucked into the present day version of Sleepy Hollow where an old enemy is currently wreaking havoc on the town. With Crane then being implicated in the murder of a sheriff, it's up to him and a rather sceptical detective, Abbie Archer (Nicole Beharie) in order to stop the Headless Horseman (Richard Cetrone) from claiming more victims. Other characters include Captain Frank Irving (Orlando Jones), a father like figure for Abbie and Katrina Crane (Katia Winter), the former wife of Ichabod, who is also a presence throughout the series and a a witch to boot.

Executive produced by Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci, Sleepy Hollow definitely looks like it could be a hit for FOX. The mashing of historical and modern for both Ichabod and the Horseman works nicely and the backstory between the two of them also seems to be developed nicely as well. It also looks gorgeously shot and genuinely dark in some places too with a stellar cast. It's definitely one new show I'll be watching this autumn season.

Season 1 Trailer/Behind The Scenes: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7LfRNJloR0
Season 1 Cast Shots: http://www.spoilertv.com/2013/05/sleepy-hollow-first-look-cast.html

Sleepy Hollow will air Mondays 9pm on FOX from September 16th. A UK broadcaster hasn't been confirmed yet.

Dates - Episodes 8 & 9 Reviews

Fourth and final week of the dating saga and while I did usually place these reviews on a Thursday, I had to delay this one to catch up with a few other shows but I have watched the last two episodes of Dates first series and well, here are my thoughts on them ...

Episode 8: Jenny & Christian

It's been a while since we've seen the kleptomaniac Jenny (Sheridan Smith) and with other characters being seen more than once this series, it was only fair we'd get a return from her too. This time around she's on a date with the somewhat religious Christian (Andrew Scott), who's got the Perfect 10 (commandments that is) and it's a date that goes well for them. So well, they end up sleeping together and having a very adult and mature conversation in relation to their respective beliefs and then things go to crap. Yeah, it seems that Christian has a wife called Helen (Amanda Hale) who's fed up of his wandering eye and turfs him out before Jenny tells him to fuck off as well. It's a good story with some nice moments between Smith and Scott but it also seems that a lot of Jenny's lingering issues (her stealing and inability to get over being ditched by her ex) are still holding her back. Other than that, a fantastic episode though, 9/10.

Episode 9: Mia & David

Well the series did start off with Mia and David, slotted them in the middle along with Ellie and Stephen, so it makes sense that it would end with three of the characters, doesn't it? In this episode Mia manages to annoy both David and Stephen over her erratic behaviour with children but she does manage to end up with at least one of them while the other resolves to be a better parent to a kid we meet for a few minutes. It's a great final episode with some nice moments from both Chaplins and Mellor but it also kind of feels that if the show returns for a second run that Mia and David are probably two characters we might not need to see more of. Stephen on the other hand could be up for discussion though, 8/10.

After nine episodes, we've had a great series with Dates. A nice mixture of stories, interconnecting and otherwise, great performances and some interesting debates on what can bond or drive people apart from each other as well. Channel 4 - commission a second series, please. Give Heidi, Callum, Jenny and Ellie other episodes with new characters, an episode with two guys on a date without the usual cliches and another episode for Erica and Kate, told from the latter's POV. You know you want to.

You can watch the series on 4OD right now if you've missed it.

My Review of Dexter's 8x01: "A Beautiful Day"

Written by Scott Buck
Directed by Keith Gordon

Deb (to Dexter): “I shot the wrong person in that trailer.”

It’s the beginning of the end and there’s a part of me that wants to prolong this season as much as possible. While I’m definitely of the belief that now is the right time for the show to conclude, I am certainly going to miss this series and this opening episode reminded me of why to be honest.

Dexter’s journey has gotten messier and messier over the years with his actions always having consequences and last season, Deb’s protection of his secret compromised her in a big way and has now widened the gap that was growing between her and Dexter. Watching her in this episode alone was quite sad in it’s way.

Deb’s always had a good head on her shoulders but shooting Maria has resulted in her leaving Miami Metro to work for a private detective agency with Elroy (who didn’t really do much in this episode), sleep with the same creep that she was hired to bring down in a sleazy motel and numb the pain through booze and drugs while activating avoiding Dexter like the plague.

Much as I sympathised with Dexter for being rejected at several points by Deb and more so when his attempts of protecting her resulted in her target being killed by him, there’s no denying that this is all his fault. She killed Maria to protect him and now she can barely live with herself. On top that, Deb also managed to get a hit on her head with El Sapo, who was also meant to kill Andrew Briggs.

I’m not sure if Dexter and Deb can repair their relationship or even should be able to either because right about now, I can’t see either of them getting out of the series either alive or scot free from their actions and adding Evelyn Vogel into the mix only seemed to add to my suspicions on that matter.

I liked Vogel from the off – the neuro-physiatrist with a speciality in serial killers. I knew she was going to be trouble for Dexter and I liked that this episode didn’t waste any time in having her reveal to him that she knew about his code and macabre childhood drawings too. If anything she’s clearly being designed to be a part of Dexter’s undoing and he’s got every right to be worried about her.

I have a feeling this season is going to result in more people becoming suspicious about Dexter. Maria’s death got Angel back into Miami Metro and there’s no doubt he’ll want more answers and even Matthews seemed a little too nonchalant about Vogel being a presence in the brain surgeon case as well.

I like the whole thing with the victim of the week having the part of his brain where empathy comes from being removed. It might have been a little obvious along with the needling Vogel gave Dexter but it’s an interesting plotline and an appropriate one too for the show’s final season. However I don’t think I’d be too shocked though if it turns out that Evelyn herself is the brain surgeon considering that she’s just returned to Miami and she certainly seems to have a bit of a Dark Passenger herself, doesn’t she?

Also in “A Beautiful Day”

Aimee Garcia (Jamie) and Geoff Pierson (Tom) are regulars while Charlotte Rampling (Vogel) is a special guest star.

Dexter (to himself): “There’s nothing like a crisis to help define who you are.”

The opening sequence saw Dexter flying kites with Harrison, coaching his soccer team, setting up the bowling club again, sleeping with a blonde woman and Hannah’s flower wilting.

Harry (re Deb): “She asked you to leave her alone.”
Dexter: “For how long? I haven’t talked to her in a month.”

Dexter (to himself): “Is this how I’m gonna find Deb – dead and alone?”

Angel sorting out through Maria’s things was a lovely gesture, though I don’t think he should’ve asked Miranda about taking Maria’s clothes though.

Jamie (re Maria): “That’s who she was, Angel – a cop.”
Angel: “That’s who she was.”

Vogel: “I look forward to working with you, Dexter Morgan.”

Jamie and Quinn are now sleeping together. I really cannot make myself even remotely interested in this storyline.

Deb (to Dexter): “So why don’t you go back to your little life and pretend everything’s fine but I can’t do that because I am not fucking like you.”

Vogel: “You can’t kill me.”
Dexter: “Why?”
Vogel: “Because I don’t fit Harry’s code.”

Chronology: Six months since where the previous finale left off.

“A Beautiful Day” probably was a misleading title for this episode but it was certainly a great opening for a show that definitely seems determined to deliver one hell of a final season. Will anyone get out of this alive?

Rating: 9 out of 10

The Sarah Jane Adventures - CBBC Wanted A Gay Character

You heard right. In relation to the no longer with us The Sarah Jane Adventures wanted a gay character and the character in question ...

Luke Smith as played by Tommy Knight (who is now a regular in Waterloo Road). In the commentary for the story Death Of The Doctor on The Green Death Special Edition DVD it seems that Luke's friend Sanjay (mentioned in the story) would've been revealed as Luke's boyfriend and according to writer Joseph Lidster, the fourth series opening story The Nightmare Man would've had a line where Luke might have suggested his preference for men as well but it was cut at the last minute.

I have to admit there were times in the show when I did wonder a bit about Luke so the fact that CBBC themselves were keen on having a gay character on The Sarah Jane Adventures is rather encouraging. Perhaps maybe we'll eventually see one in the likes of Wizards Vs. Aliens or Wolfblood or something else down the line but either way, it's an interesting reveal and a further example of how The Sarah Jane Adventures really was ahead of other shows in it's genres.

More Information: http://blogtorwho.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/cbbc-wanted-sja-gay-character.html

The Green Death Special Edition is available on DVD from August 5th.

Doctor Who - Top 50 Companions: Part 2

And here's the second part of my Top 50 companions of Doctor Who list where this segment at least has two on-off guest companions in the mix.

41: Mickey Smith (Noel Clarke)

Being the boyfriend of one companion (Rose Tyler) and the eventual husband of another (Martha Jones) might be something of an unique selling point but when Mickey Smith started off he was a bumbling, cowardly idiot of sorts. Of course that was mainly in his first episode and since then, he's grown nicely as a character, becoming more a hero than a zero throughout his time with both the Ninth and Tenth Doctors.

42: Ben Jackson (Michael Craze)

Well, who doesn't love a man in uniform, eh? This show has a knack for coming up with some great male/female companion team up with respective Doctors and for a small while, Ben was a brilliant addition along with Polly and both the First and Second Doctors as well. He's possibly one of the most underrated companions as well.

43: Grace Holloway (Daphne Ashbrook)

She might have only been in one movie and legal ramblings may have hindered her from being in any of the Big Finish productions (though Daphne herself has played another character) but long before Martha Jones appeared on the scene (and after Harry Sullivan of course), Grace was the perfect doctor for the Eighth Doctor in a movie that IMO is a lot better than other stories I can mention. Plus, she did start the whole companion kissing trend too.

44: Jackson Lake (David Morrissey)

If anyone could be the Doctor, then Jackson Lake certainly had the memories and potential to do it. The Next Doctor was something of a clever idea, nicely done around the time we knew the Tenth Doctor was heading towards his Eleventh incarnation and Morrissey played the role with a genuine heart and spirit in one of the show's best Christmas specials as well. He's also one of those one-off companions I wouldn't mind seeing have an adventure with another Doctor at some point too.

45: Canton Everett Delaware III (Mark Sheppard)

Another one-off companion of sorts, only this time around one from the Series 6 opening two-parter The Impossible Astronaut/Day Of The Moon (and keeping with Steven Moffat's love of timey wimey - we met the older version in 2011 before the younger one in 1969), Canton certainly made a great impression as he did his best to help the Eleventh Doctor, Amy, Rory and River defeat the Silence. Canton was also one of a few impressive LGBT companions/characters that we've seen within the series as well and he's definitely a character I wouldn't mind seeing one more time too.

Parts 3 and 4 of this countdown will be up next week. Hope you enjoy and let me know what you think of the rankings so far.

All Grown Up

This is somewhat shorter than usual but here's a roundup of some shows I've watched over the last few weeks ....

Banshee: Not a bad finale. In actual fact probably one of the better episodes of the series but I'm not sure if this is a show I'll bother really watching next series. It's not been bad but it's not been as gripping as I had hoped it would be either and while Lucas and some of the characters have grown and we've had decent antagonists (Proctor more than Mr Rabbit), I realise that I don't really care enough with the series to keep with it. Anyone else feel the same way or is it just me?

Skins: The seventh and final season started last night on TV and the first part of Fire certainly was an interesting return to form of sorts. I know some fans might have trouble getting used to the new format but personally I found it easy to get into. Effy was both more sensible than she was in fourth series and yet at the same time on the verge of making some blunders with her sleazy new boss and the company she was working for. However, it was Naomi's plot that ended up being the shocker of the episode even if the moment was ruined by a terrible use of music but at least Emily will be back for the second part of this saga. Overall, an interesting opening episode for the series.

The Americans: Five episodes in and while this show might not be as gripping as Homeland for instance, it's definitely great viewing. I still think it's unwise for ITV1 to be relegating this to a Saturday night and it probably wouldn't kill them to promote it a little better. Gripes aside there, at least Philip and Elizabeth's complicated web of lies seem to provide some interesting scenerios for the two of them as the lines between their cover and actual feelings for each other keep getting blurred. Another pleasant surprise is how the show has managed to make one of their most potential threats in neighbour Stan one of the more sympathetic characters too, especially given his protective relationship with Nina. Overall, this is a show that is shaping up quite nicely.

The Returned: Sunday nights have become a better place with this show. I know the critics are perhaps gushing a little too much about it but the last few episodes have not only built on the impressive opening episode but actually surpassed it as well. The backstories for the likes of Simon, Julie and Victor have been impressive to watch as has the growing rivalry and strangeness surrounding both Camille and Lena (what is causing that gash on the latter's back?). Plus, the gruesome moments in this show manage to be genuinely unsettling, especially with that stomach eating serial killer. Easily the best thing on television for the time being.

- Melissa George will be appearing in the fifth season of The Good Wife in a major recurring role.
- Chilean actor Pedro Pascal has been cast as Oberyn/Red Viper for the fourth season of Game Of Thrones.
- Mare Winningham will be guest starring in Revolution.
- Happy Endings is indeed over as the search for a new network has ended.
- David Bowie has been offered a role on Hannibal.
- Marvel's Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. will have lots of crossovers according to actor Clark Gregg.
- Brian Austin Green will be a regular in the next season of Anger Management.
- Expect to see more DC characters in the second season of Arrow.
- Neil Gaiman has shot down rumours that HBO are adapting American Gods for a TV series.
- Rhys Ifans will be playing Mycroft Holmes in the second season of Elementary.

My Review of True Blood's 6x03: "You're No Good"

Written by Mark Hudis
Directed by Howard Deutch

Sarah: “Don’t bullshit a bullshitter. I’m in politics now.”
Steve: “Seriously?”

I think in terms of revelations Sarah Newlin being in politics isn’t that much of a stretch and this episode was a nice reminder how much fun she can actually be as well as a character too. The glamorous look for the former wife of Steve certainly seems to suit her new vocation in life and the current situation he’s in was a nice display of role reversal here too.

Steve really has no-one in his corner, does he? The main vampires of the series hate him and the humans are probably glad to have a high profile figure to experiment on and get information out of, so in a bizarre way I actually feel a little bad for Steve but just a little though. However I certainly don’t blame him ratting on Eric in order to avoid being tortured either but I’m also hoping that he’s not a goner just yet though.

It’s nice to see that the human threat actually does more than the Authority did last season. Here, they dragged in a bound and gagged Steve and got him to squeal while at the same time upping their laws against vampires, spreading more dissent and even tracking Eric when he took a captive Willa Burrell to Ginger’s place.

Now getting to the Eric side of things here. I notice with him there’s an alarming double standard within fandom. Throughout this episode Eric threatened to kill and have his way with Willa and yet certain segments of fandom acted like it was the hottest thing ever. Of course this would be the same segment of fandom that would’ve gone apeshit if it had been Bill holding Willa prisoner and threatening all kinds of violence on her. It’s stuff like this that does make me a little worried about this show’s fan base in general.

This however isn’t an Eric bashing review and I do get the impression that he probably has no actual intention of hurting Willa given that he neither bit her nor allowed her to ingest any of his blood but at the same time, Willa turning out to be a vampire sympathiser did seem a tad predictable, didn’t it?

I’m not really sure if I totally believe that Willa is for the vampires but I definitely believe she’s got a strained relationship with her father. The same father in this episode who seemed less concerned for his daughter’s safety and more fixated on just capturing Eric. The funny thing was that it was Tara who ended up defying both Pam and Eric and taking Willa away to safety.

I like that Tara’s compassion for humanity hasn’t disappeared even her feelings for Pam have intensified a little more here. Tara was probably the only person who was being sensible about what the gang should do with Willa and I actually don’t blame her for taking matters into her own hands as well. Maybe Eric and Pam should actually listen to Tara instead of being so impulsive with Burrell and company too.

Keeping with the vampires – not sure how to feel about Bill in this one. It was kind of funny that he nearly roasted alive when he thought he could walk in the sun but his scenes with Sookie stirred some mixed feelings for me. On one hand he behaved like a royal asshole when he wanted to synthesise her blood to save everyone but on the other hand, he did actually back away when Sookie made it clear that she wasn’t going to help him this time.

Of course it seems now though that the solution to Bill’s problems comes in the form of Andy’s ever growing daughters. I won’t be sad to see them go to be honest (and I’m not condoning Bill’s future actions here) but you think Andy would’ve kept his mouth shut instead of blabbing about his new parental role, wouldn’t you? Especially when Bill himself really does have a whole new set of handy tricks as demonstrated by his altercation with Sookie and Jason in this episode.

Last but not least – can we please meet Warlow already? Unless we already have and it’s Ben who seemed more suspicious with his interactions with Niall and Sookie in this episode but if Ben isn’t Warlow, can we just please meet him already? I want to get a good look at the guy now and see what really does set him apart from all other vampires we’ve had on the show at the moment.

Also in “You’re No Good”

Anna Camp has been added to the credits again, so I guess Sarah will be sticking around for a bit. Not surprised that she was damning of Steve in her book as well.

Jason (re Warlow): “Did I get him?”
Niall: “No, hotshot, you didn’t get him.”
Jason: “Did you get him?”
Sookie: “No, sweetie. The king of fairies did not get him either.”

I guess with Niall and Ben, we had to lose all of the fairies and that club from last season but Claude deserved a better exit than this one.

Scientist: “Ungag him will you? I’m curious to hear what he has to say.”
Steve: “Do you even know who I am? I’m the spokesvampire for the AVL. If you don’t release me, you’re gonna have vampires crawling up your asses.”
Scientist: “On second thoughts, let’s keep him gagged, shall we?”

Eric: “The world is changing Pam and we have to change with it.”

The werewolf plot continues to be dull with Rikki being a bitch to Emma (who Sam manages to get back), Alcide being an inept leader and the Vampire Unity Society getting slaughtered by the pack, though Nicole managed to escape.

Kevin (to Andy): “It’s called glamouring. My dry cleaner’s a vampire. She likes to talk.”

Willa (to Eric): “To answer you question, I do like vampires very much.”

Burrell’s wife cheated on him with a vampire, Jessica went after the scientist who came up with the synthesised blood, Andy gave Holly some shooting lessons and Jason kept getting bad headaches in this one. At least he addressed his extreme behaviour in this one though.

Sarah: “Oh, that’s good, you’re funny as a vampire. You were never funny as a human being.”
Steve: “We had some good times.”
Sookie: “How are you doing this?”
Bill: “I play by a different set of rules now, Sookie.”

Standout music: The Plasticines “You’re No Good”.

Bill: “You’re dead to me, Sookie Stackhouse.”
Sookie: “I’m good with that.”

Chronology: From where “The Sun” left off.

Three episodes in and it’s brilliant to see how much of an improvement this season has become. “You’re No Good” may not have given us a direct reveal of Warlow (and both Lafayette and Nora were underused) but it’s definitely the best we’ve had this season.

Rating: 9 out of 10

Glee - Season 5 First News/Airdate

Well filming for the fifth (and possible penultimate) season of Glee has begun and thanks to Lea Michele, we've got a glimpse of a season cast with the gang in both McKinley and New York ....

It's been revealed that the fifth season will be promoting Melissa Benoist (Marley), Jacob Artist (Jake) and Becca Tobin (Kitty) as regular for the new season while Alex Newell (Unique) and Blake Jenner (Ryder) will have expanded roles in Season 5.

More to the point (and perhaps not as shockingly) it's also been revealed that Heather Morris (Brittany), Mark Salling (Puck), Amber Riley (Mercedes) and Harry Shum Jr (Mike) will not be regulars for the new season. Given that they barely factored in Season 4, it's not that much of a shock and Morris herself was given a pretty decent exit in All Or Nothing. They will pop up as guest stars in the fifth season as will Dianna Agron (Quinn).

While it's nice to have some news about the upcoming season, I was hoping for something a little more surprising though. Then again with production for Season 5 already in and an airdate confirmed for it's return, I'm sure more news will surface soon.

Casting News: http://www.gossipcop.com/glee-new-cast-melissa-benoist-jacob-artist-becca-tobin/

Glee Season 5 will air on Thursdays 9pm from September 19th.

Soap Discussion - June 2013

And it's been an interesting enough months in the main four soaps, hasn't it?

Coronation Street: Mainly it's been about the surrogacy plot gone predictably sour with Tina deciding to keep Izzy and Gary's baby and renaming the boy from Jake to Joe after her father. I'm glad that the show isn't trying to make us side with Tina because while I'm not liking the likes of Anna and Owen making her life a misery, I do think she's in the wrong here over the baby situation. Meanwhile, I'm loving the return of David's evil side even if he seems to be mostly venting rage towards Nick instead of Kylie but perhaps that isn't the worst thing to do. Well, aside from that recently upcoming spoiler but evil David is rather entertaining at the moment. And the plot with Roy beginning to lose it is another masterstroke for the show at the moment.

EastEnders: This has been the most talked about month the show has had in a while. In tonight's episode and after seven years, Tanya Branning/Cross/Jessop will leave the show and Lauren's spiral into alcoholism will play it's part in that. Lauren's been both frustrating and compelling enough to watch over the last fortnight and the arrival of Kirsty's volatile ex-boyfriend Carl and the exposure of her pregnancy lie has added a little to the story as well. Plus we've had the sixth incarnation of Peter Beale, a bizzare snake plot with Dot, Bianca and Alice both charmed by Carl, Michael spilling the beans about Tommy's parentage, Danny's returning and Janine being her usual scheming self and the opening of Scarlett's as well. The only real dull plot has been Sam and Ava to be honest.

Emmerdale: A solid enough month. I'm all for Debbie getting her comeuppances and all that (let's face it, she's been in need of a smackdown for a while now) but not at the advantage of someone like Robbie. That guy is one of the worst characters on the show and it's mystifying that he's still here at this rate. Can't Cameron y'know, just kill him off? I don't think anyone would hold it against him. Other than that, it's been storylines involving Belle being a bitch to her mates and necking dodgy vodka and Katie getting her own back on Declan by shagging Adam.

Hollyoaks: It might not have been a Red Wedding but Mercedes and Browning's special day was always going to be as volatile as those two combined and this month didn't disappoint, did it? I don't quite like the idea of Myra knowing that Browning killed Lynsey (when he wasn't attempting to rape the other Lindsay), mainly because her hammy acting really has become more and more off putting with each episode but I am liking Mercedes/Browning more and more as a couple and they've been one of the better storylines this month along with the reveal of Vincent's backstory, Anna's return (and the consequences it's had for Patrick, Sienna and Will) and Tony's battle with cancer. Better plotlines that Ste's drug dealing and Sinead taking up too much screentime as per usual. Or Sienna's creepy behaviour with the Osbournes. Oh and some nice John Paul/Doug and Esther/Tilly moments this month as well.

Dates - Episodes 6 & 7 Reviews

Third week of the dating saga and sandwiched between shows about asking why two people are singles, Dates has continued to be an interesting viewing experience as the stories become more and more interlinked with each other.

Episode 6: Erica & Callum

This was a strange episode to watch. The last thing I wanted to see was Erica being shoved back into the closet to appease her homophobic family and having her brother choose her a boorish date in Callum (Greg McHugh) meant this episode could only go down. Callum certainly had his moments in this episode, that's for sure. His "zero tolerance" policy mostly involved him being rude to waiting staff, questioning Erica about her sexuality and nearly losing the plot when she told him that he was arrogant. On the plus side, he did get her to come to terms with being gay and the episode managed to end on an encouraging note that she might pick up where she left off with Kate. Sadly Kate did not briefly cameo in this one though, 8/10.

Episode 7: Stephen & Heidi

Okay, this episode is actually called Stephen & Mia but given that the latter isn't in the episode at all (bar an offscreen phone call where she dumps Stephen), it seems more appropriate that it should be called Stephen & Heidi, given how prominent Sian Breckin's character is in this episode. In some ways, I kind of felt like this episode retreaded similar ground with Stephen that his previous one did and Heidi's anger when she realised that he had lied to her about his name and job was justified enough. However, it was a pretty fun episode though Heidi seems to have a similarly free spirited nature (though not as caustic) as Mia, who kind of proves that Stephen seems to be attracted to a certain type of woman, 8/10.

A good bunch episodes here and definitely some lively performances from Greg McHugh and Sian Breckin in their respective ones as well. Hope the last two installments cap off the series nicely and that we get a second run.

Reviews for the last two episodes will be on the blog next week.

Doctor Who - Top 50 Companions: Part 1

With various blogs and what not doing their own little things in relation to Doctor Who's upcoming 50th anniversary episode and with the second half of Series 7 finally aired and reviewed on my end, I've decided to do something else.

Namely a rundown of some of the fifty most interesting companions that the Doctor has traveled with or encountered for a certain period of time. However given the extensive media there is out, this list will also factor some of the companions that perhaps a mainstream audience isn't entirely familiar with but overall, I hope you enjoy it. Without further ado, here's 46-50 on the rundown  ...

46: Thomas 'Hex' Schofield (Philip Olivier)

The Eleventh Doctor wasn't the only incarnation to travel with a male nurse as the Seventh Doctor and Ace beat him to it as early as 2004 with the arrival of Hex Schofield. From the year 2021, Hex travelled with the Doctor and Ace for several audios over the years, being placed into many a danger before an interesting encounter with a former foe of the Seventh Doctor took him out of the mix quite permanently. Or did it?

47: Evelyn Smythe (Maggie Stables)

If ever there was proof (and we've had plenty in the show itself anyways) that an older companion works brilliantly within the show, then surely Evelyn Smythe proves it, doesn't she? A chocolate fixated, fifty something professor who proved to be more than a match for the softening Sixth Doctor and she got to meet the Seventh Doctor as well. More power to her.

48: Dodo Chaplet (Jackie Lane)

Maybe not always seen as the most fondly remembered of companions from the First Doctor era, but was Dodo Chaplet really that bad? Not even close to be honest. She might have gotten a terribly rushed non event of an exit (not the first time this'll happen to a companion) but her teaming up with the First Doctor and Steven was still fun to watch, especially during The Celestial Toymaker in particular.

49: Adric (Matthew Waterhouse)

Has there ever been a companion so polarised in fandom (cough Rose/River/Amy)? I'm not gonna pretend that Adric is the greatest companion ever or that Matthew Waterhouse gave a BAFTA winning performance during his two series on the show but he did work nicely with the Fourth Doctor and his death in the Fifth Doctor story, Earthshock still ranks as one of the series most shocking of moments. And he's not that bad in some parts too.

50: Kamelion (Gerald Flood)

I almost pity Kamelion as a character. Sure, he's made it into my Top 50 but at the same time, he felt like the show's attempt of another K9 and one that only made it to two stories before being conveniently taken out of the equation. On the plus side, at least in both stories he played a part in the Master's scheming going wrong, even if he was used in both stories by the Master. Maybe in another universe he would've been great.

Part 2 will be up next week.

First Look: Orphan Black

Okay, so the first series has aired completely on BBCAmerica and a second one is in the pipeline but for UK viewers, Orphan Black is going to be pretty new when BBC3 start airing it during the summer months.

The 10 episode series starring Tatiana Maslany sees the actress playing a number of clones all born in 1984 to various women through IVF. The main focus however seems to be on Sarah Manning, a con woman who comes to the startling discovery that they are various clones out there with all different names and lives. Clones that include a policewoman named Beth Childs, a soccer mom named Alison Hendrix, a biologist named Cosima Niehaus , as well as an unknown in the mysterious Helena and the Russian clone, Katja Obinger who figures out Sarah pretty early in the run of episodes. It's quite a feat for Maslany as an actress but given the bits I've seen, she does an excellent job in seperating each of the characters she has to play in the series.

The show features quite a supporting crew as well with The Commitments actress Maria Doyle Kennedy appearing in the series as Mrs S, the woman looking after Sarah's daughter, Kira but other main players in the series include Beth's boyfriend, Paul who seems to be suspicious of his girlfriend's change in attitude (seems that Sarah has a thing for changing her identity) and then there's also supporting character such as Cosima's mentor/lover, Delphine (Evelyne Brochu) and Alison's neighbour, Aynsley (Natalie Lisinska) to watch out for as well during the first ten episodes of the season.

Of course the main supporting character I think will interest most people though will be Jordan Gavaris's Felix - Sarah's foster brother, confidant and all round quipping machine and dubious moral compass for the main clone of the show. The show itself raises some interesting discussion on the nature of cloning and personal identity and given that the main arc itself seems to be involving Sarah bringing down the very company that are responsible for multiple versions of her (the Neolutionists), it's certainly got enough going for it to make for gripping viewing.

Season 1 Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=do_BCA-vR9E

Orphan Black will be airing soon on BBC3.