My Review of The Last Witch

Written by Sally Wainwright
Directed by Robin Shephard

Alice: "I'm a witch as well."
Daniel: "I don't suppose you can prove that?"

I guess it must be because Halloween is coming around the corner but when I haven't been watching various documentaries on witches (thank you, Nat Geo, BBC4 and More4 respectively) or getting myself enamoured with American Horror Story: Coven, then the fourth of SkyLiving's Drama Matters pilots has similarly been a little spellbinding.

Since leaving Coronation Street in 2012, Katherine Kelly has come under the same fate as other former wife of Steve McDonald, Suranne Jones (who popped up in other pilot, Lawless last week) and never been off our screens for too long. Mr Selfridges was already a massive hit for her this year and if this pilot manages to get picked up, it could be something of a hit for her too. The ingredients are certainly there already.

Kelly plays a 500 years old cursed witch named Alice Lister who we learned pretty fast was doomed to walk the Earth alone and kill any man she falls in love (at least sixteen of them have perished so far) after trying to kill her out of control sister, Jane. Of course just because Alice might have to walk the Earth alone, doesn't mean that death was an actual deterrent for Jane as we soon found out here.

Within the hour Jane was jumping from the body of a dog to kindly Matilda (played by Anne Reid) and then landing in the body of a comatose journalist named Kate (Maimie McCoy), setting up a very modern day rivalry between the warring sisters should this get picked up for a series.

Like most of the pilots, The Last Witch is definitely a very female oriented one with Kelly, Reid and McCoy getting the most screen time and characterisation throughout - not a bad thing, mind. Gregg Chillin (DaVinci's Demons) as Daniel and William Ash (Waterloo Road) as a grieving husband are somewhat underused by comparison. The former himself is presented as a love interest for Alice while the latter is Kate's husband. Hopefully both characters themselves are more developed should the show being picked up for a series.

- Alice went through at least three different aliases while being hanged for murdering some of her lovers.
- I liked the method in which Alice was able to get people to do what she wanted - a nice masterclass in subtlety there.
- Alice's general curse isn't that dissimilar to Zoe's one in American Horror Story: Coven, though presumably it will be depicted in a less graphic way though.
- The makers of Switch could've learned a lot from this pilot alone.

Out of all the pilots that SkyLiving have, I really do think this is the only one that could run for at least a series. It has all the potential and scope and it would be a shame if SkyLiving didn't pick it up and aside from In The Flesh, we don't have that much in the way of UK supernaturals dramas, do we?

Rating: 7 out of 10

Doctor Who - Missing Episodes Recovered

It's been speculated for a while and after months of evasiveness from the BBC and certain uber fans antics on Twitter, it's been finally confirmed that two Patrick Troughton stories have been found at a television station in Nigeria.

The episodes in question (nine of them in fact) now means that both The Enemy Of The World and The Web Of Fear are completed and UK fans can now download the episodes on iTunes to watch. The find was made by Philip Morris, director of a company called Television International Enterprises Archive and with any luck, perhaps more will be uncovered if they have not been already. A DVD release for both serials is due to happen fairly soon as well.

Press Release: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-24467337

Recap/Review: American Horror Story: Coven - Bitchcraft

I really did try. I told myself I was going to relegate American Horror Story: Coven to the realms of TV jumble blogs but I've decided to do a review for opening episode, Bitchcraft. Well, a hightlight of the five most important things from the episode at least.

Written by Ryan Murphy & Brad Falchuk
Directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon

Exceptional Girls: If you're a witch nowadays and running scared, then you can always join Miss Robichaux's Academy for Exceptional Young Ladies and Hogwarts it's thankfully not. You'll be collected by a rather camp sounding Myrtle Snow (Frances Conroy), be served by a mostly mute Spalding (Denis O'Hare), have a calm and collected headmistress in Cordelia Foxx (Sarah Paulson) and also have the pleasure of visiting Delphine LaLaurie's house, courtesy of youth obsessed Supreme Witch, Fiona Goode (Jessica Lange). As for the girls themselves - the episode made sure our four ladies stood out - Zoe Benson (Taissa Farmiga) with her killer ability, movie starlet/spoiled brat Madison Montgomery (Emma Roberts), human voodoo doll, Queenie (Gabourey Sidibe) and clairvoyant Nan (Jamie Brewer). Nan so far has emerged as the most likeable of the bunch with Zoe not far behind her. I'm still unsure of both Madison and Queenie for the time being.

Humans Suck: They really, really do and when they're evil, racist and sadistic Greek mythology/youth obsessed women like Delphine LaLaurie (Kathy Bates) in 1834 New Orleans, they're the very worst kind. Playing an actual historical character is certainly a risky thing but Bates certainly wasted no time in making LaLaurie every bit the monster that her reputation preceded her, not only with the controlling manner of her children but also in relation to her evil treatment of her slaves. Of course with the character being a regular this season, there was going to have to be some trick in bringing her into the present day and Fiona's methods of introducing LaLaurie into the new world does look set to bring it's brand of hell in the remaining episodes of the season. There's also a brief scene in recent times in Lafayette where necromancer Misty Day (Lily Rabe) is set alight as well by her fellow villagers. It's a shame if that's Rabe's only contribution to the season.

Mother vs. Daughter: In this battle - I already side with Cordelia over Fiona. So far, she seems to actually care what happens in relation to her students while Fiona seems more happy to undermine and ridicule Cordelia's basic beliefs in relation to magic. Both Sarah Paulson and Jessica Lange have always played off well with each other and this season seems like it won't be the exception either. There's a fractured relationship and conflicting attitudes towards magic with both Cordelia and Fiona that's fascinating to watch and one that can definitely be sustained this season. That being said, in spite of Cordelia's caution towards magic, it was nice to see her brewing some concoction before she was interrupted by her mother. I have a feeling this is going to be another role for Paulson where I'm going to enjoy seeing her on a regular basis.

Pick Your Enemies Carefully: If there's anything that should be learned in this episode, it's don't mess with witches. It's obvious really and this episode made it more so. Misty vowed that the people who burned her would pay for it before her death, Fiona turned on a doctor (Ian Anthony Dale) and literally sucked the youth out of him when he refused to help her stay young while both Madison and Zoe dealt with gang rapist frat boys in their own ways. LaLaurie herself tortured her slaves/drank the blood used their organs to sustain her youth in some hamfisted attempt to keep her husband from straying (don't think it worked, considering how frequently she tortured her slaves) but it was Marie Laveux (Angela Bassett) who really showed us why she's the wrong witch to mess with when she drugged and buried LaLaurie alive. Something tells me if she's in the present day, she is not going to be a happy camper with Fiona digging up the woman who tortured her lover, now is she? Seriously though, this lot would make Emily Thorne run for the hills when it comes to getting some old fashioned revenge.

Frat Boys Go Splat: Why is it that American television seems keen to continuously depict frat boys as either jerks, piss heads or serial gang rapists? Surely some of them must be decent members of society, right? Well, the episode did make a fair attempt with Kyle Spencer (Evan Peters) who warned his fraternity mates to behave themselves and was generally kind to Zoe. Kyle also earned some points by saving Madison from being gang raped by his mates before being killed in a bus crash then caused by a vengeful Madison. I have to admit, I'm not entirely crazy on a whole Zoe/Kyle romance but if their respective characterisations are anything to go by (coupled with Kyle's interesting fate in this one), then it at least won't be a desperate rehash of Violet/Tate, so that's something to think on. Overall, the male characters on this show do seem be a little sketchy but hopefully that will improve over the next twelve episodes.

Now I might do these recaps every week if I can or just for certain episodes but either way, you can rest assure that I will be examining this coven for the rest of it's season.

Sherlock - Best/Worst Bits

Following The Backlot’s best/worst list in relation to Sherlock, I decided to do my own one, so here it is - my best and worst bits from the hit series …

Best Things
1: Sherlock/Watson dynamic. They’re friends, nothing more. Regardless of what certain shippers like to think.
2: Moriarty being a great villain. He really was and I'll kind of miss not seeing Andrew Scott in Series 3.
3: The show’s knack for a solid cliffhanger.
4: Irene Adler - maybe more for Lara Pulver’s performance than the actual characterisation.
5: Molly, Lestrade, Mycroft and Mrs Hudson. All excellent supporting character, though it took me a while to warm to Mycroft.

Worst Things

1: Spacing between series. I have a feeling at some point this show is going to end up like Jonathan Creek.
2: Fans who go about about Moffat’s writing being shit on Doctor Who and yet act like it’s better on Sherlock. There’s not much difference in the writing for both shows.
3: The Johnlock fans who insist on their ship being real. I’m gay and I don’t ship them or care that they (Watson mainly) get female love interests.
4: Irene being written as a gay character when it made no fucking sense to the story she was in.
5: The middle episodes usually being the dull ones. Sorry but they do lack compared to the opening and final episodes of each series.

Sherlock Series 3 will air soon on BBC1.

My Review of Revenge's 3x02: "Sin"

Written by Joe Fazzio
Directed by John Scott

Emily (to Conrad): “I’ve always believed in the natural balance of things.”

It’s so nice that after last season that the writers really are going out of their way to get things back on track and the fact that we’re focusing on Emily’s red sharpie antics means that we get a different type of story this week.

We’ve seen plenty of people get what they deserve for contributing to David Clarke’s downfall and the odd one here and there showing some traces of guilt for it. Mason was one of them in his own slippery way and Paul Whitley turned out to be another. However Paul also turning out to be a priest was something of a surprise.

This episode could’ve gone down the predictable route of having Paul’s religious calling being a front but through the episode, his desire to atone for his actions actually were genuine and it was a bigger surprise that Emily ended the episode by actually regretting getting her revenge on him.

I think this also lead to the interesting point of Nolan’s as well – Emily needs to assess each of her targets. Paul might have played a role in destroying her father’s life but he proved to be a good man with his present actions and I liked that Emily seemed determined to atone for striking him down as well as using him to get Conrad to confess as well. I don’t imagine the latter will work out so well for her though.

Getting to Conrad though – I am loving that Emily is determined to make him suffer by playing with his health this season. It’s even better to watch when she charms him with a basket of Nolan’s muffins and has deep conversations with him inside a church of all places as well. Basically the more one on one interactions we get with Emily and Conrad this season, the better as far as I’m concerned.

This wasn’t really Conrad’s episode though. His attempts of spiting Victoria and undermining Patrick at dinner backfired on him and Charlotte ended up turning on him after Jack let her know about Conrad’s part in Declan’s death. This might all be deliberate to let him play into Emily’s hands all the more but it’s certainly satisfying to watch as a viewer though.

Another thing that was satisfying to watch was Emily and Nolan’s scenes in this episode. She might not have liked him for reading her the riot act on her vendetta towards Paul but she learned something from it and at least apologised to him as well. It’s just too bad that she seems to be unaware of Aiden switching teams and that Charlotte no longer trusts her as well.

Charlotte’s hostility towards Emily did seem a little rushed in this episode but I suppose it’s a way of setting her up as a future suspect in a certain shooting while Aiden’s new alliance with Victoria is genuinely confusing. Is Aiden really that mad for being cast aside by Nolan and Emily or is he really just playing a long game with Victoria? Right now, it does seem rather hard to fully guess, doesn’t it?

Also in “Sin”

Daniel is now working for Margaux’s magazine and she tried to seduce. Contrary to what she told Daniel, I have a feeling Margaux will try it again.

Victoria: “Trust is difficult without proof.”
Aiden: “Then you’ll have it.”

It was smart of Emily to leave her Infinity Box at Nolan’s. The fact that Aiden could’ve given it to Victoria was a bit worrying, wasn’t it?

Emily: “Not even learning names now?”
Nolan: “Less mess, especially after my PTSD.”

Daniel: “What a coincidence.”
Father Paul: “I don’t believe much in coincidences.”
Emily: “I couldn’t agree more father.”

Nolan learning to bake muffins in prison, sleeping with a fit bloke and his interaction with Victoria were priceless this episode. She knows who bought Nolan his house.

Nolan: “If you can’t forgive Paul, how do you expect to be forgiven?”
Emily: “I don’t.”

Patrick (to Victoria): “”Never doubt those instincts of yours, they’re always spot on.”

I quite like the fact that Patrick seems to be somewhat wary of Emily. I think there’s some good story potential there as well because of that. Jack and Emily also spoke in the same spot where they met in the “Pilot” in this episode.

Nolan: “I dabble.”
Victoria: “In many things no doubt, some quite possibly unforgiveable.”

Conrad (re Patrick): “Who’s this?”
Charlotte: “Our brother.”

Standout music: Camera Obscura’s “Do It Again”.

Emily: “I brought you into this because I thought you loved my father.”
Nolan: “I do love him. I also love his daughter and I want to protect her.”

Chronology: A few days since “Fear”.

“Sin” was certainly some good old fashioned fun that the show produced nicely in it’s early days. I liked that Paul’s story put Emily into a bit of a dilemma and the writing this season has certainly felt a lot sharper and more concentrated.

Rating: 9 out of 10.

My Review of Atlantis's 1x02: "A Girl By Any Other Name"

Written by Howard Overman
Directed by Justin Molotnikov

Jason: “You’re not Demetria?”
Medusa: “No, my name is Medusa. Why do you look at me like that?”

Okay, so far on the female character front we’ve got Pasiphae as the crazy villainess in the making, a rather underutilised Ariadne and an Oracle that seems to be potentially doomed to be a cryptic mouthpiece if not also the mother of Jason (it’s being rumoured at the moment). I guess what I’m trying to say is – is it any wonder that Medusa fared a little better in this episode by comparison?

I already like the casting of Jemima Rooper as Medusa. She’s always been in a few hit and miss type of things such as Hex and Lost In Austen and in both cases has always given some rather charismatic performances. This bodes well for Medusa who was already made instantly likeable by Rooper’s casting alone. The writing in this episode however did help as well.

Like Morgana, the Medusa we meet her is a kind woman far away from home who managed to be abducted by the Cult of Dionysus and resisted their various attempts to initiate into their dangerous religion. More to the point, she risked her life several times to save Hercules, Pythagoras and Jason and ended up getting cursed by cult leader Anysia as a result of it.

I liked that Jason’s immediate reaction upon learning Medusa’s identity was to try and figure out if it were a common name and then to feel actual sympathy for her future plight. While it might be better to see if Jason can prevent Medusa’s ultimate fate, I did like that for the time being he chose to focus on her kind nature but then again, the episode certainly did that as well.

Medusa just didn’t save the gang from the Cult of Dionysus, she even lied to the fallen Demetria’s father, Itheus by pretending that instead of perishing, the girl moved to Helios and fell in love. It was an act of kindness to a man who was desperate to be reunited with his daughter and one that she did a better job of than Jason trying to find Demetria in the first place.

I did like that Jason, Pythagoras and Hercules’s quest for Demetria ended up with them meeting Medusa instead and that the latter will be a more prominent character for the remainder of the series. I also hope that Medusa does inevitably go evil, it is better handled than Morgana’s own descent into the dark side of things.

As for the Cult of Dionysus and the monstrous looking servants themselves – they were decent enough antagonists, though the monsters fear of Jason was rather intriguing and only Anysia was truly effective but that might have been more for cursing Medusa than anything else in the episode.

In terms of the tone, the show does seem to be struggling a bit though. Hercules’s subplot with the Frankincense being stolen wasn’t half as funny as Overman thought it was and while I enjoy him with Jason and Pythagoras, the only real highlight with the character tonight was during his scenes with Medusa. I think maybe she brings out the best in the character for the time being.

Also in “A Girl By Any Other Name”

This episode managed to retain five million viewers. If the remaining episodes can keep it up, it should get a second run.

The Oracle (to Jason): “It is only when we accept we’re lost we find our true path.”

The opening credits/theme to the series is nice enough but Merlin did do a better job on that front.

Hercules: “It’s dried goat’s saliva.”
Pythagoras: “Oh, you will kiss anything once you’ve had a few drinks.”

Jason (to Itheus): “I know what it is to search for someone you love and not find them.”

Ariadne’s only contribution to this episode was to wish Jason luck in finding Demetria. Wouldn’t it have been better to actually have her involved in looking for the serving girl?

Pythagoras: “I’m not even sure I can grow a beard.”
Hercules: “Then you’re on your own, Pythagoras.”

Hercules: “What are you doing?”
Medusa: “Saving your life. Pray that this works or they’ll both kill us.”

Both Minos and Pasiphae were missing from this episode. I imagine we’ll have episodes that won’t feature Ariadne, Medusa or the Oracle either.

Jason : “She has done no wrong. I will not see her harmed.”
The Oracle: “Medusa can no more escape her destiny than you can escape yours.”

Chronology: A few days or maybe weeks since “The Earth Bull”

Not a bad second episode. “A Girl By Any Other Name” did a good job with introducing Medusa and the Dionysus cult did work better than the Minotaur as an enemy but although I am enjoying the show I can see why it might not be luring others in. It’s great for a Saturday night telly but later episodes are going to have to up their game though, drama wise.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Welcome To The Team

It's that time of the year again when a lot of show have returned/debuted and here are some of the ones I've been watching over the last fortnight.

Bates Motel: I'm glad I've stuck with this show. Having watched the first four episodes, I feel this series has added greatly to the whole Norman Bates mythology, even if both Norman and his mother have deliberately been made more sympathetic to gauge with viewers. The addition of Norman's half brother has also added nicely into the mix as his attempts of prizing both mother and son's twisted bond hasn't worked so far but he's a great character and it's nice to have him on board as he does seem to genuinely care for Norman's well being. Antagonist wise, Zach is certainly shaping up to be one the more he gets involved with the Bates family.

Downton Abbey: I've got to admit - the first two episode of the fourth series hasn't been the show firing on all cylinders. It's nice that Mary's grief has been touched on, Edith is getting to feel loved and Rose is settling in reasonably okay but some of the other plotlines aren't that interesting. Does anyone really care about Daisy/Alfred/Ivy/Jimmy or Edna being a manipulative partner in crime for Thomas or Robert once again feeling threatened by change? I didn't think so. So far, it's not a bad start to the series but it does feel like it's trending water at the moment.

Glee: It's back and the show's penchant for tribute episodes now means that we get a two parter with music from the Beatles. The problem is, much as I like them as a band, not all of the songs were that great to listen. Of course the highlights from the first two episodes had less to do with the music and more to do with Blaine/Kurt getting engaged, Sue becoming principal, another Cheerio rising from the mist to make New Directions lives crap, Kitty admitting she was dating Artie, Tina getting the Carrie treatment, Rachel getting her role and of course, Santana hooking up with Dani. The second episode was the stronger of the two but the upcoming tribute episode to Cory Monteith will make for uneasy viewing.

Homeland: Oh dear. I still love this show but I hate to admit, I actually found the opening episode to Season 3 a tad boring. My mind literally kept wandering at times and the lack of Brody actually didn't help matters. On the plus side, I suppose Carrie's unravelling will provide some great drama, Quinn is a better character than before and the last scene with Saul was a pretty shocking moment as well. Other than that, this was a little too hit and miss an opening episode for me.

Marvel's Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D: I'm gonna say it - I probably will never love this show as much as I did Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Angel but for the time being it's on a par with Dollhouse and better than Firefly and while we'll have to wait a while to see how Coulson really did survive, at least he's got an interesting enough team on board. Well, Melinda and Skye are the most interesting but the second episode certainly helped to make me warm to geek duo Fitz and Simmons and the rather pretty Agent Ward as well. Plus a certain cameo or two in the first two episodes was a nice way of confirming that this series isn't exactly a separate entity from the various movie franchises. The writing is a little choppy in parts though but hopefully that's something that will be sorted as the series progresses though.

Once Upon A Time: Now this was something of a dark opening episode. I don't just mean the tone, I mean visually, it was dark from start to finish. As for the rest of the episode, it was mainly predictable but interesting to watch. Neal predictably ended up with Aurora, Philip, Mulan and the new Robin Hood, Hook predictably ended up revealing in his own cocky way he fancied Emma, Regina and Snow predictably picked a bad enough time to air their hatred for each other and of course, Peter Pan revealed himself in a predictable manner to Henry as well. On the plus side, all of these plot lines actually worked, Greg and Tamara were thankfully killed off and we got a preview of the Mermaids as well. Overall, I'd say it made for a successful opening episode in the regard.

- A&E are developing their own version of The Returned, making this the third version of the show as a UK version is also in development.
- David Tennant will be appearing in the US version of his own show, Broadchurch for FOX.
- The Simpsons has been renewed for a 26th season and a big character will die this season.
- Nathan Fillion will be guest starring in Community.
- Expect a major twist in tomorrow night's episode of Downton Abbey. I wonder who's being bumped off now.
- Both Sleepy Hollow and The Blacklist have been renewed for second seasons respectively.
- Watch have bought the rights to JJ Abrams upcoming drama, Believe.
- Leslie Bibb will be appearing in the second season of The Following.
- Joel Fry will play Daenerys's Mereen contact Hizdahr zo Loraq in the upcoming season of Game Of Thrones.
- ABC are developing their own version of No Angels.

My Review of The Psychopath Next Door

Written by Julie Rutterford
Directed by Kieron J. Walsh

Eve (to Marianne): "Only bad girls win."

I have to admit that despite the odd US import here and there, I'm not really partial to SkyLiving. After all, some of their own original programming can be questionable (who the hell does Mount Pleasant appeal to and why?) but like BBC3, I did find myself intrigued by the fact that they're road testing five pilots (as part of a Drama Matters season) to see which one will be suitable for a series. One of the others, titled The Last Witch will be another one I'll be looking into in a future blog.

In The Psychopath Next Door Anna Friel (Brookside, Pushing Daisies) stars as meddling shrink, Dr Eve Wright who moves to a random suburb, befriends a trio of ladies - Marianne (Eva Birththistle), Imogen (Kathryn Drysdale) and Catriona (Claire Keelan) and sets about causing some havoc within their inner circle in a bid to gain control over them with mixed results.

Eve as a sociopath character is certainly an interesting one to watch and Friel certainly seems to revel in playing the character, partially in a caricature manner but also with some little nuances here and there. Eve's penchant for ruining people's lives was established early in the pilot by the fact that she had driven some woman named Elaine into a psych ward and the fact that she then managed to cause the woman to be shocked was a pretty bold move.

Of course, it wasn't just Elaine that knew Eve was a wrong one. There was talk about a woman from Connecticut as well as Marianne's daughter, Katie - the only other character outside of Eve with a modicum of intelligence. Of course, Eve got her own back at the girl by flashing her and wrecking her telescope but eventually Katie's words managed to sink in as Marianne seemed posed to provide an actual threat to Eve should this pilot actually get picked up as a series.

However, I should point out that despite Eve's crazy antics (arranging Marianne to be ran over by a stolen car), the pilot did try to inject some sympathy for her with revealing that Eve had an estranged relationship with her elderly mother. I'm not sure if this will be enough to make Eve a slightly sympathetic character and if this does get picked up for a series and more people begin to see through Eve's facade, how long will it be before she resorts to murder?

Overall,  as a pilot, it was certainly an enjoyable one to watch but it definitely feels like a centre piece for Friel more than an ensemble piece. None of the other characters really came alive, except for Marianne at virtually the last minute when she wouldn't let being near crippled be a means for Eve to take over her group, so I guess a battle of wits with those two could sustain a series. I wonder how long we'll have to wait to see from SkyLiving if this Dexter-esque pilot can run as a series.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Recent Irish Comedies

Well over the last fortnight, there has been four of them and they've been spread out through RTE2, BBC1 and Channel 4 respectively. The question is - are they funny? Well, kind of in a way.

1: Father Figure (Mondays 9pm RTE2/Wednesdays 11.35pm BBC1)

How to describe this show? Well, it's almost like an attempt from comedian Jason Byrne to do a bizarre mashup of Mrs Brown's Boys and Malcolm In The Middle where he plays a hapless stay at home father named Tom, who is constantly at his wits end with his family - a family that includes Pauline McLynn playing his interfering, Strictly Come Dancing (like that show needs any more plugs, BBC!) mother. Having watched the first three episodes and given the bad timeslot awarded to it by BBC1, I don't think Brendan O'Carroll has anything to worry about for the time being.

2: The Mario Rosenstock Show (Mondays 9.30pm RTE2)

Sometimes I forget that the first time I've actually seen Mr Rosenstock was when he was playing a dopey doctor in Glenroe (no sniggering) but over the years he's been doing various impressions of Irish celebrities and politicians on radio series Gift Grub and now in the second series of his own show. Not every sketch works and some are dragged out but overall, it's still a wonderfully entertaining series and Rosenstock's takes on the likes of Joan Burton, Trappatoni and Miriam O'Callaghan doesn't fail to entertain.

3: Damo & Ivor (Mondays 10pm RTE2)

I have to admit, I've been that fond of Andy Quirke's sketch with chavvy Northsider Damo and his (not surprisingly revealed) secret twin brother/Southsider Ivor on The Republic Of Telly, so I was a little skeptical about them being awarded their own half hour show on RTE2. Funnily enough, they're actually more entertaining on the own as Damo seems determined to do anything to save his Grano (Ruth McCabe on fine form as Dublin's oldest prostitute) and distance himself from former girlfriend, Tracy while Ivor deals with his adopted parents abandoning him by becoming a model and generally behaving as obnoxiously as humanly possible. I was surprised with how much I found the first three episodes amusing, especially with the thinly veined Jeremy Kyle spoof in the recent episode. Now all we need is both Damo and Ivor to cross paths and that looks like it's going to be happening fairly soon.

4: London Irish (Tuesdays 10pm Channel 4)

Now this is a rather strange one for me. On one hand - I like the main cast - sister/brother duo Bronagh (Sinead Keenan) and Conor (Kerr Logan) and their friends Niamh (Kat Reegan) and Packy (Peter Campion) and a lot of the Irish stereotyping has some element of truth behind it but the characters themselves are in need of some depth. Two episodes in and it has been them mostly drinking and getting into bizarre scrapes, including taking someone's child and kissing a corpse at a wake. The humour is certainly juvenile but there have been worse programmes out there. It's all good fun but some depth with our four Irish folk in the next few episodes would certainly give it a boost though.

All these programmes can currently be seen on RTE2, BBC1 and Channel 4 respectively.

My Review of Revenge's 3x01: "Fear"

Written by Sunil Nayar
Directed by Kenneth Fink

Nolan: “What are you gonna do?”
Emily: “Have the wedding of the century. Take Victoria down, once and for all.”

This show might have had something of a patchy second season in parts but it’s finale certainly promised a lot and the opening episode to the third season certainly delivered. If you call erasing nearly every plot from the last season a delivery that is.

Within the forty five minutes of this episode, Charlotte was no longer pregnant (a miscarriage while in Europe), Nolan was no longer in prison, the Initiative was gone and Conrad’s term as governor came to an abrupt end. Anyone would think that perhaps new show runner Sunil Nayar was almost a little too determined to pretend the last season didn’t happen but I actually think it will work in the show’s favour in the long run.

Of course the big thing about this episode was the setting up the mystery. We’ve already done murders at engagement parties and at sea, so this time Emily getting shot on her wedding night and diving into the ocean was a nice way of opening things up. The obvious question now has to be who shot her and why? There are some suspects here alright.

One of the first ones could easily be Ashley, who managed to get the red sharpie treatment in this episode by trying to blackmail Emily. Ashley has proven time and time again that she’s hopelessly out of her depth playing with the big leagues and forcing Emily and Victoria to team up with each other proved to be her undoing. While the character’s exit certainly came across as a tad rushed, it has provided her with an excellent motive for wanting to shoot Emily. I certainly think she’s a good candidate for being the shooter

Another candidate though could be Charlotte. I know on the surface both Charlotte and Emily have a civilised relationship but the former’s certainly come back a lot bitchier than before (mostly towards Victoria and newly discovered brother, Patrick) and apparently later episodes do see her becoming suspicious of Emily’s treatment of Daniel, so she’s another character that I think could be the shooter.

The third and other likely candidate could be Patrick himself. I know both him and Emily have not interacted with each other but in this episode he did seem very close to Victoria almost too quickly (in spite of the time jump here) and even by this show’s standards it wouldn’t be too far fetched to think that he could do it.

Last but not least – there’s both Victoria and Aiden themselves. Having Aiden show up at the last moment offering to take down Emily was unexpected. I do want to assume that he’s a trick but what if it’s not? What if Emily really did burn her bridges with Aiden like she seems to have with Jack and possibly Daniel in the near future too? Perhaps Emily’s shooter really is one of her three signature love interests after all.

Moving away from the shooter plot for the time being, this episode did feel like the series of old to be honest. I liked that both Emily and Nolan used their wits together in order to send Ashley back to Croydon and even get Conrad to believe that he has Huntington’s disease. It was a pretty cold thing for Emily to do but it certainly delivered on the producers promises that the character’s quest for revenge would be renewed. If they can keep this standard up all season we could be for some interesting times in the Hamptons.

Also in “Fear”

Nolan had something in Carrion that allowed him to be exonerated. The fact that Emily didn’t want to mention the Initiative again felt like intentional fan service.

Emily: “I’m not a Grayson yet, Daniel.”
Daniel: “Why don’t we finally set a date to make you one?”

Daniel seems to be unemployed but less hostile towards Conrad than he was last season. I’m not sure what to make of his French friend, Margaux just yet either.

Emily: “If memory serves, I still owe you a house.”
Nolan: “I guess sometimes payback’s not a bitch.”

Ashley: “Knowledge is power, Emily.”
Emily: “I thought you had power, Ashley.”

While Jack has a right to be mad with Emily, I did think he was a massive dick for both kissing her, rejecting her and then trying to get her to leave town in this episode.

Charlotte: “Who the hell do you think you are?”
Patrick: “I’m your brother.”

Victoria: “Trust me, I have very little of interest to say.”
Emily: “Doesn’t look like Ashley has that problem.”

I did find Conrad’s reaction to his painting rather amusing but I’m surprised we didn’t get either him or Daniel interacting with Patrick in this one.

Margaux: “And what do you do besides throwing lovely parties?”
Emily: “Well, I work in a lot of different charities. Making sure people get what they deserve.”

Emily (re the Graysons): “I am not killing anybody, Jack but I will make them suffer. These are terrible people doing terrible things. This is what they deserve.”

Standout music: “Hey Now” by London Grammar during the beach scene with Emily and Nolan. I liked that she bought him a house.

Ashley (re Emily/Victoria): “You two are evil.”
Victoria: “What we are, like it or not is family.”

Chronology: August 8th at the start of the episode and then June again for the majority of the episode. Six months has passed since “Truth”.

“Fear” was a pretty confident opening episode for the new season. An excellent way (if quick in some parts) of getting rid of the plotlines that didn’t work last season and setting up more interesting ones in their place. A great start to the new season.

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of Atlantis's 1x01: "The Earth Bull"

Written by Howard Overman
Directed by Justin Molotnikov

Hercules: “Whoever heard of a hero called Jason?”

Okay, let’s get some basics out of the way first, shall we? If you’re looking for a historically accurate show about Greek mythology, you’re going to have to avoid this one like the plague. It’s going to play fast and loose and pretty much merge various myths and do some rewriting of it’s own. In other words, not quite unlike it’s predecessor Merlin there.

Leading to the second bit – the comparisons between this show and it’s predecessor are hard to ignore and watching this episode will certainly give you a sense of déjà vu or whiplash, depending on your levels of patience. Aside from that, this was actually a decent enough start to what the BBC are hoping will be another success story for them in terms of Saturday night tea time dramas.

Jason himself (Jack Donnelly) pretty much enters the show by being from the present day, going down into the ocean in a submarine in a quest to find his father’s wreckage and then gets transported to the mythical city of Atlantis. Once he’s there and getting into scrapes, he’s also making friends with both Pythagoras (Robert Emms) and Hercules (Mark Addy) respectively.

The dynamic between the three is certainly played for laughs with moments of seriousness as both Pythagoras and Hercules seemed to be at odds with Jason staying with them while the former and Jason then ended up saving Hercules from deserting the city on the night before being forced to pick between being spared or sacrificed to the Minotaur itself. Again, best not to expect historical accuracy here folks.

The Minotaur plot is an oddity for this opening episode. Personally I’m not bothered that it’s being reworked so that Jason, Pythagoras and Hercules are the ones facing it but despite all the hype with the black (sacrifice) and white (spared) stones, the Minotaur itself was actually dispatched with too quickly and only served to add some more mystery into Jason being in Atlantis in the first place.

I have to give the episode credit for not wasting time in revealing some stuff, thanks to the Oracle. While I hope Juliet Stevenson is given more weighty material as the series progresses I did like that the Oracle informed Jason that he was originally from Atlantis and that many people will try to kill him if they realise who he actually is. I guess we’re going to have to wait a little longer before finding out who his parents are though.

When the episode wasn’t dealing with various prophecies, discussions on destiny and Minotaurs, we also got to see the rulers of Atlantis as well. Pasiphae (Sarah Parish) definitely seems to be the tyrant of the bunch compared to her husband (Alexander Siddig) while Ariadne (Aiysha Hart) seemed more sympathetic to the civilians’ plight with the Minotaur while barely concealing her attraction to Jason.

None of the characters aside from the three leads – Jason, Pythagoras and Hercules seem to be drawn out just yet but it’s the first episode and there are twelve more to see how layered the likes of the Oracle, Minos, Pasiphae, Ariadne and by next week, Medusa will be. Hopefully the show won’t let us down on that front.

In terms of the friendship between Jason, Pythagoras and Hercules, it’s clearly going to be the heart of the show and the dynamic between Jason and Pythagoras in particular will inevitably drawn comparisons to Merlin and Arthur. Though whether or not it will be as hyped as theirs was remains to be seen. I think it will be a success though.

Also in “The Earth Bull”

Jason’s necklace was the symbol seen in the Oracle’s temple and guess what the submarine was named as well? Ariadne also gave him hers to guide him in the Labryrinth as well.

Pythagoras: “You’re in Atlantis.”
Jason: “Atlantis? As in the lost city of Atlantis?”

Amazing how Jason wound up naked and there was a set of clothes handy for him to change into upon his arrival to Atlantis.

Jason: “You’re the triangle guy.”
Pythagoras: “How did you know I’ve been thinking about triangles?”

The Oracle (to Jason): “You have many enemies here in Atlantis. You must tell no-on that you’ve journeyed through the gateway.”

In case you were wondering – Pythagoras/Jason have been given the name of Python.

Pythagoras: “They’ve released the hunting lions.”
Jason: “Hunting lions? Who the hell has hunting lions?”

Pasiphae: “How dare you question your father! You bring shame on your family.”
Ariadne: “It is not I who bring shame.”

This episode managed to pull in over five million viewers for BBC1 during the weekend. It’s a good start, hopefully they can keep it going.

Ariadne: “Do you believe you can succeed where so many have failed?”
Jason: “I cannot explain it but it was as if for the first time in my life I am absolutely certain of what I must do.”

The Oracle: “The earth bull has been slain.”

Chronology: Present day for about two minutes before Ancient Greece of course.

As an opening episode goes, “The Earth Bull” won’t go down as the most innovative of introductions and perhaps the over familiarity of certain tropes from Merlin will not work in the series favour but I plan to stick with Jason and the gang at least for the next few months.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Soap Discussion - September 2013

Penultimate blog of the month, so here goes ...

Coronation Street: The show is in a great place at the moment with it's storylines. Hayley's ongoing battle with cancer and her determination to complete a bucket list of things (including getting Roy to drive) has been both touching and amusing in parts. Other great storylines this month has included wrapping up Karl's general plot as he was finally exposed (September seemed to be a month for this in soaps) and David having to deal with the consequences of nearly trying to kill Nick. Overall, a great month for the show.

EastEnders: Not the worst month going but hardly the show at it's best either. Ronnie's return, Peggy's brief appearance and David Wicks showing up to interrupt both Carol and Masood were the highlights because honestly, everything else sucked here. I don't care about Alfie, it's hard to be bothered about Tamwar and Alice and Carl continues to be a rather unconvincing baddie as well. Maybe the critics are reveling a bit too much in taking the show down a notch but it's hard to deny that it's in need of an overall. Various axings and characters returns aren't enough - it's better writing/plotting that is overall needed here.

Emmerdale: I liked this month but mainly Cameron finally being exposed as a murderer and getting his comeuppance and as for Steve being exposed as a creep and having to leave the village after he caused devastation with Bernice, Nicola and Jimmy - good stuff, though I think they could've gotten a bit more mileage with the character. Also the fallout of Rhona's pill addiction and Amy reuniting with her son by deceiving his adopted grandmother had it's moments as well.

Hollyoaks: An okay month here - Will killing Anna, Fraser getting more prominent, the Darren reveal and Browning getting his comeuppance all had their hit and miss moments. The show is still great but there are too many moments where it can feel like whiplash at times, especially given the recent fire set by Freddie and the obvious connection made between Fraser and Clare as well. The Roscoes and the Osbournes did seem to be the dominating families of the month and there has been some good fallout with them as well.

Doctor Who - Series 7 Minisodes Review

Okay, so we're got an interesting conundrum - Series 7 of Doctor Who is finally released on DVD completely and it's got extras but it's only been released in the US since Tuesday. UK and Irish viewers have to wait until next month to get their hands on it and this is the cover we get ...

The set includes every episode from The Doctor, The Widow And The Wardrobe up to and including The Name Of The Doctor, along with four episode commentaries (The Snowmen, Cold War, Hide and The Crimson Horror), behind the scenes videos, episode prequels, the Good As Gold/Pond Life minisodes, a Creating Clara feature and several BBC America features focusing on companions, science and Comic-Con to name a few. Plus these three scenes which have leaked online ...

Minisode 1: Clara And The TARDIS (Steven Moffat)

Clara (to herself): You think you've got problems? We've got to share a bed.

Steven Moffat certainly loves to revisit a trope and while that tends to generate a certain level of derision from some fans, can you really complain when it's confined to a tiny scene? Well, it might not stop some fans but this little gem is a lot of fun, even if it rethreads old ground such as multiple Claras (holograms I think) and Clara getting a crash course in some of the previous occupants in the TARDIS (her reaction to Amy alone is amusing). It's also a nice reminder that the TARDIS doesn't actually like Clara all that much either as she takes great pleasure in annoying the current Miss Oswald. Good fun, though not for Clara of course, 8/10.

Minisode 2: Rain Gods (Steven Moffat)

River (to the Doctor): We should be burning on the stake right now. It's lucky for you you're pretty.

For those of you hoping that we'd get another appearance from River Song, well I hope you liked this one. Clearly it's set between The Angels Take Manhattan and The Name Of The Doctor and more to the point, it's a scene that originally featured Amy and Rory when it was intended for The Doctor's Wife. It's a fun scene where the Doctor and River nearly get sacrificed to the Rain Gods before they're saved by lightning and head back into the TARDIS. The married couple bickering actually worked pretty well in the scene's favour too, 7/10.

Minisode 3: The Inforarium (Steven Moffat)

Info Man: Who the hell are you?
Doctor: How could you forget? I’m the Doctor, and this is the Inforarium…

Has anyone wondered how the Doctor managed to delete all the information about himself in the universe? It's one of  few things Steven Moffat seems intent on answering before the Doctor regenerates into his Twelfth form and here we get the answer - the inforarium. It's a place with all top notch info on the Doctor that the hapless guards have been giving to his enemies and without barely blinking, the Doctor quickly deletes by following the Silence's example. It's probably the weakest of the three minisodes but entertaining enough though, 6/10.

Series 7 Minisodes: http://www.doctorwhotv.co.uk/rain-gods-dvd-minisode-53349.htm

Doctor Who - The Complete Seventh Series is out now for US buyers and will be available for UK/Irish buyers from October 28th. The Day Of The Doctor airs on November 23rd for both BBC1 and BBCAmerica.

American Horror Story: Coven - Cast Pictures/Character Details

With only less than a fortnight to go, FX have finally released some cast shots and character details from American Horror Story: Coven. Without further ado, here they are ...

Fiona Goode (Jessica Lange): A Supreme Witch in the series, a mentor to some of the new witches in the series and the mother of ...

Cordelia Foxx (Sarah Paulson): Fiona's daughter and possibly a witch herself, though not confirmed yet.

Madame Delphine LaLaurie (Kathy Bates): based on a real person, LaLaurie is a socialite, serial killer and rival to Fiona. Brought to modern times in the series.

Marie Laveau (Angela Bassett): A Supreme Voodoo queen who is working with Fiona to bridge the gaps between the magic rivalries.

Spalding (Denis O'Hare): A butler at Miss Robichaux's Academy for Exceptional Young Ladies and also a mute.

Joan Ramsay (Patti Lupone): Another adversary for Fiona and also a character who has lost a husband in mysterious circumstances.

Myrtle Snow (Frances Conroy): Not much is known about this character at the moment.

Misty Day (Lily Rabe): A rumoured to be prominent character in the new series, it's also rumoured that Misty is a witch.

Zoe Benson (Taissa Farmiga): One of the main young witch characters in the school that Fiona is running. Zoe is also harbouring a dark secret secret and gets romantically involved with ...

Kyle Spencer (Evan Peters): A frat boy who develops a crush on Zoe. Has been described as a bit of a Romeo as well.

Nan (Jamie Brewer): A recurring character/witch at the school for exceptional girls and also described as enigmatic.

Madison Montgomery (Emma Roberts): Another recurring character/witch, she is also described as a party girl and teen pop star.

Queenie (Gabourey Sidibe): Another witch at the school and described as a tough girl.

Overall, not the most descriptive of character details but certainly enough to keep us going and with the exceptions of both Spalding and Kyle, this is definitely going to be the most female centred television for the next few months.

Season 3 Promo Posters: http://www.spoilertv.com/2013/09/american-horror-story-season-3-cast.html
Season 3 Title Sequence:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdTU0CgOY6E

American Horror Story: Coven airs Wednesdays at 10pm on FX from October 9th and will premiere on FOX for UK viewers in the same month.

Batman: Gotham Origins Pilot Commissioned

With the likes of Smallville and Arrow being massive successes over the past decade, could it be that we're finally getting some live action Batman TV series after all? Well, kind of.

It seems that FOX (what, not the CW this time?) have landed the rights to Gotham from Bruno Heller (Rome, The Mentalist). The pilot, which has the potential for a series will actually focus on Commission Gordon (who is unlikely to be played by Gary Oldman) and will explore his origins along with some of the city's most infamous of villains.

However the show if picked up will not feature Batman himself. The Caped Crusader as the show will be more focused on the younger years of Gordon but if the show is a success, I wouldn't rule out seeing Batman at some point. I hope this series takes off.

Press Release: http://www.denofgeek.com/tv/gotham/27432/new-live-action-batman-spin-off-tv-series-gotham

I'll post more information when it becomes available.

Glee - Season 5: Beatlemania, Proposals & More

Yes, that means there's some spoilers as we get closer and closer to airing of Glee's fifth season for both US and UK viewers.

I've looked around and so far I have not managed to find any prominent cast shots for the upcoming fifth season or any individual ones of the characters. I do hope that FOX intend to release some fairly soon but until now, here's one (including the late Cory Monteith as Finn) until I can find some.

Here's a nice picture of Darren Criss (Blaine), Jacob Artist (Jake), Blake Jenner (Ryder) and Chord Overstreet (Sam) as opening episode, Love, Love, Love is focusing big time on Beatlemania. Various songs that will be performed in the episode (which is getting it's own album - no surprises there) include Help (Blaine/Sam), Go To Get You Into My Life (Blaine/Kurt) and Yesterday (Rachel) to name a few but there are more than will be spread out over the second episode, Tina In The Sky With Diamonds.

Songs in that episode will include Santana and Dani (Demi Lovato, playing the former's love interest this season) perform Here Comes The Sun. Other spoilers for the upcoming season include a resolutuion to Blaine's attempted proposal to Kurt, Sue returning to McKinley in a new role, the return of Roz, the departure of Emma, a new mean girl in Bree (Erinn West), a love interest for Sam named Penny (Phoebe Strole), Tina bidding for Prom Queen, Rachel and Santana working in a Broadway diner and of course the third episode titled, The Quarterback will be a tribute episode to Finn and actor Cory Monteith before the show goes on break for a bit (it's back in November). Overall, it looks like there's quite a bit will be happening in the first three episodes of the season.

Season 5 Promo: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZKwH-2tz0U
Season 5 Spoilers: http://www.spoilertv.com/search/label/Glee?updated-max=2013-09-10T09:28:00%2B01:00&max-results=20&start=20&by-date=false

Glee's fifth season will air Thursdays at 9pm on FOX from September 26th and Fridays at 8pm on Sky1 from October 4th.