Back To Prison And Tripping Into The 80s

It's been a while as I've been a little too DC focused at the moment but here's a run down of some of the stuff I've managed to catch between then.

Daredevil: Last month I talked about the show unsurprisingly being renewed for a third season. Now, as for the final three episodes, they were something else altogether. A part of me was a little surprised that Fisk didn't properly re-enter the fray but the Yakuza plot played out reasonably well with Elektra truly coming into her own while the Punisher storyline came to a satisfying conclusion as well. It was though disappointing to see Matt, Foggy and Karen so distant with each other but hopefully they can mend fences in the next season (which will be a wait for us all). Overall, a fantastic season.

Orange Is The New Black: I've been catching up with this one a little later than usual. Four episodes into the fourth season and it's an improvement on the previous year. Sure, Piper seems to be pissing off people left, right and centre and both Sophia and Nikki need to be properly reintroduce into the general populace but the arrival of new inmates, celebrity chef Judy King, the loveliness of Brooke and Poussey's growing relationships, stronger flashbacks and Alex and Lolly's dynamic has been fascinating to watch as well. A very promising start to the new season.

Stranger Things: Remember last year when everyone was raving about Sense8? Well, this year, Netflix have managed it again with this delightful 80's nostalgia fueled series. I've only watched the first four episodes and aside from giving Winona Ryder and Matthew Modine's careers a much needed jolt again, it's really the kids who shine on this show. Authentically written and acted, the children and teenagers are the driving force of the series in light of the disappearance of a young boy named Will and the arrival of a mysterious, powerful girl named Eleven as well. If you haven't tuned in yet, you should do very soon.

The Catch: Recently finished up on SkyLiving, the last four episodes of this daft but entertaining show certainly upped the ante a little. Casting Mrs Patmore from Downton Abbey as Margot and Rhys's mother was a genius moment and it was blast having her, even if it was for two episodes. I'm still not hugely compelled by Alice and Ben as a couple but they did have some good moments, especially in the finale and I certainly liked seeing both Alice and Margot trying to outwit the other as well as Alice's encounter with Rhys too. Also while we got the tired trope of Ben and Rhys pretending to be a couple for a con job at least the show made it clear where Sean swings when he asked a surprised Danny out. I'll give the next season a go.

- Katie McGrath has been cast as Lena Luthor for the second season of Supergirl. A musical crossover between the show and The Flash will be happening.
- Savitar will be the second main villain of The Flash's third season alongside Dr Alchmey. Wentworth Miller will reprise his role as Cold in the fourth episode. Joey King will guest star as Magenta.
- Gotham may feature a version of Harley Quinn at some point. The Mad Hatter and Court of Owls are the main antagonists for the first half of the third season.
- Charisma Carpenter will be appearing in an episode of Lucifer's second season.
- Mr Robot has been renewed for a third season.
- The CW are planning a reboot of The Lost Boys.
- UK viewers will be able to watch the US version of Dirk Gently on Netflix from December. BBCAmerica are airing it from October 22nd.
- Will Traval will be appearing in Arrow as the Human Target.
- The creators of Gossip Girl will be bring Marvel's The Runaways to Hulu next year.
- Robert Knepper will be appearing in the sixth season of Homeland. The show has been renewed for a seventh and eighth season respectively.

A Con Or Several

There's certain shows I do need to catch up on but here's a look at what I've seen for now though.

Daredevil: I have three episodes left to watch and right now, I kind of don't want this to end. The second half of this season has intensified both the Punisher and Elektra arcs so well and the returns of both Stick and Fisk have also added nicely to the mix. While it is a tad frustrating to see Matt, Karen and Foggy drift further apart from each other and the show continues to underuse Claire, this season is arguably stronger than the first one and I'm definitely looking forward to seeing how things end before we delve into Netflix's other Marvel shows.

Game Of Thrones: Season Six has been without a doubt one of the best seasons we've had from the HBO megahit and the last two episodes really upped the ante. The epic, battle filled penultimate episode which finally saw the much deserved demise of Ramsay was one thing but the finale where Cersei effectively wiped out all of her enemies and became queen was certainly another. Between those events, Sansa/Jon reclaiming Winterfell, Arya ticking another name off her list, Bran learning more of his family history and alliances made with Olenna/Ellaria/Daenerys/Yara, next season cannot come soon enough.

Gogglebox/Gogglesprogs: I have to admit that over the last while I haven't been actively watching the former show as much as I had been and when I found out that Channel 4 were going to be doing a junior version of the show, I was sceptical at best. Having watched at least two episodes of the younger version, I was somewhat hasty. Gogglesprogs might sound terrible on paper but onscreen, it genuinely seems to work. It helps that the kids in question seem to watch the same programmes the regular version does and it's also amusing seeing the younger generation rightfully comment on the Brexit situation when they weren't watching the likes of Made In Chelsea and The Lion King.

The Catch: The latest Shondaland show might have debuted on ABC back in Spring but on SkyLiving, they're nearly done with. The first six episodes have certainly had a similar level of Scandal and How To Get Away With Murder style OTTness with leading lady and private investigator, Alice Vaughn trying to get back at the man who conned her. The man in question being Christopher or Benjamin, who was also working with the charming Margot. And then the show added John Simm as Margot's volatile and trigger happy brother, Rhys and suddenly things got a whole lot more crazier. Certainly one to catch up on over the summer period.

- Taylor Lautner has been cast as Dr Cassidy Cascade for the second season of Scream Queens.
- Cheyenne Jackson will return for the sixth season of American Horror Story. The theme for the upcoming season is due to be revealed soon.
- Tom Felton has been cast as a regular for the third season of The Flash. He'll be playing CS Julian Dorn.
- Lynda Carter has been as the President of the US for the second season of Supergirl.
- Maggie Geha will play an older version of Ivy Pepper for Gotham's third season while James Carpinello has been cast as Mario Falcone.
- Maisie Richardson-Sellers will play Amaya Jiwe, the original Vixen and grandmother to Mari as a regular in Legends Of Tomorrow's second season.
- True Blood is returning as a Broadway musical.
- NBC still aren't giving up on having a Cruel Intentions series just yet.
- Felicity Huffman will be returning for the third season of American Crime.
- Netflix are planning a reboot for Lost In Space, due for release in 2018.

First Look: 2015-2016 US TV Season Upfronts Part 2

And here's another look at some of more upcoming series for the 2015-2016 TV season with both NBC and CW also coming up with some interesting forthcoming series.

1: Legends Of Tomorrow - CW (Mid-season, TBC)

It's not just Supergirl that we've got to look forward to as the Arrow and The Flash spin-off finally has a proper name, a confirmed set of episodes (thirteen to air from January 2016) but it also released a pretty fantastic trailer in which Arthur Darvill's time travelling hero, Rip Hunter rounded up Ray Palmer/the Atom (Brandon Routh), Kendra Saunders/Hawkgirl (Ciara Renee), Martin Stein/half of Firestorm (Victor Garber) along with the newly resurrected Sara Lance/White Canary (Caity Lotz) and the slightly turned a new leaf duo of Captain Cold (Wentworth Miller) and Heatwave (Dominic Purcell) as the band together to save the world from Vandal Savage. Looks like the CW have another massive future hit on their hands with this one.

2: Heroes: Reborn - NBC (Thursdays 9pm)

One of two shows being revived for the current television season, this mini-series might be returning the likes of Jack Coleman and Masi Oka as their most famous characters, but it's mainly a new cast with former Chuck actor Zachary Levi leading things. I have to admit that I'm still a little iffy about the show returning (it had an amazing first season but Seasons 2-4 were very hit and miss) but perhaps with a new cast and a five year distance, maybe lessons might have been learned and the trailer did tantalise though with hints of dark events to come.

3: The X Files - FOX (Sundays 9pm, Mid-season)

A trailer has yet to be released (then again, filming doesn't begin til summer, so it's gonna be a while) but we do know that David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson are reprising their iconic roles over the course of six episodes that will comprise of both monster and myth driven arcs. We also know that several other popular characters are returning (Skinner! Cigarette Smoking Man!) and that we can catch the series again from January 24th. Actually come to think of it, that's a fair amount of information there.

4: The Catch - ABC (Thursdays 10pm, Mid-season)

Another television season and another addition to the growing roster of Shonda Rhimes involved series (made by her production company, created by Jennifer Schurr), the series will star The Killing's Mirelle Enos as a woman used to catch out con artists whilst unaware that she's being scammed herself until it's too late. I don't know if this show will end up being a mega hit in the same way that Grey's Anatomy, Scandal and How To Get Away With Murder (it will take the latter's slot mid-season) but all the writing tropes that you would be used in a Shondaland show are definitely there.

5: Containment - CW (Mid-season, TBC)

This one is interesting enough. From producers of both The Vampire Diaries and Arrow and starring the likes of Claudia Black and David Gyasi, the focus here is on a widespread epidemic in Atlanta while local and federal officials desperately search for a cure. It's somewhat different for a CW show and like the upcoming Legends Of Tomorrow, one that's being left for mid-season as well. Possibly worth watching the pilot episode alone.

6: Blindspot - NBC (Mondays 10pm)

A series about a Jane Doe (Jamie Alexander) covered in mysterious tattoos and discovered naked in Times Square, I think it's a little obvious what this upcoming conspiracy series might be influenced by. The trailer was intriguing enough but it's one of several new shows that has a premise that you can't see being sustained organically beyond an initial first season though.

NBC Trailers: http://www.spoilertv.com/2015/05/nbc-new-fall-2015-shows-promos.html
CW Trailers: http://www.spoilertv.com/2015/05/containment-first-look-promo.html

Overall there does seem to be some interesting new shows on the way. I haven't covered them all but with the links in this blog and the previous entry, you'll be able to see the trailers and decide for yourself what you intend to watch over the next twelve months.