"Penny Dreadful" Season 3 Highlights

Great to see the quality has been maintained in Episode 1, as well as the tongue-in-cheek tone.
The camp Professor of Antiquities (so pleased he's back) sets the scene with this exchange to the tortured Vanessa (the smoky voiced and sexy Eva Green): "I like what you've done with the place!" This leads to a return visit from Patti LuPone, now reincarnated as the savvy shrink. Her secretary is Renfield (an inspired way of introducing a new character). More fun in a disused factory with scuttling-choreographed minions of Dracula.
John Clare, alias the Creature (Rory Kinnear), has a poignant scene in the stranded Arctic ship.
In New Mexico we have a terrific Sergio Leone/Tarantino-esque train shoot out. More new characters with Doctor Jekyll (an old school chum of Victor F). Jekyll looks Indian (a link with ITV's recent confusing reboot of "Jekyll and Hyde"?).
John Logan plays with time here. Mary Shelley's novel was published in 1818. While R. L. Stevenson wrote his short story in 1886. Any way it's now 1892 and London is decked out in black for the death of Tennyson.

Episode 2 features a delightful magic lantern show recreation.
Dorian and Lily create havoc in a Hellfire Club setting. Jekyll has a nifty laboratory in the basement of Bedlam (where else?) with a barber's chair for his subject (a nod to Sweeney Todd?).
The American Indian belief in Shapeshifters is cleverly integrated with the story of lycanthrope, Ethan. His family name of Talbot is the same as Universal's Wolfman from the 1940's (Lon Chaney Jr played Lawrence/Larry Talbot).
The final reveal of Dracula's identity ensures fun and games for Vanessa in the coming episodes.

Episode 3
Renfield gives a nod to "The Shining" when he produces reams of "Vanessa....." instead of "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy".
Vanessa reprises her sexy medium bit from Season 1, this time with her shrink.
Sir Malcolm verbally rips a red neck train passenger to shreds. The one scene that isn't strewn with gore.
Dorian and Lily's new protege, Justine, resembles a 1950's Shirley Maclaine (think "The Trouble with Harry"). Incidentally, you have to pity their maid. The blood-drenched parquetry floors and sodden bed sheets!
It is hard to see Henry Jekyll as Clem Fandango in "Toast of London".
That Hall of Mirrors scene has fun with the vampires and reflection malarkey.

Episode 4
An ambitious two-hander between Vanessa and orderly John Clare (pre-The Creature) with most of the action confined to the padded cell. Eva Green and Rory Kinnear are consummate actors, so the hour never drags. I particularly liked the reference by Clare to "the frozen North", so important in his next life as The Creature.
I suppose next week we are back to flashy sets, the Wild West, laboratories and buckets of gore.
Unfortunately we have to wait until Episode 6 to see the return of scene stealer Ferdinand Lyle (Simon Russell Beale).

Episode 5
What's better than one 'mad scientist'? Two, of course. But how long will the Frankenstein/Jekyll dream team last?
Back  'out West' we have a novel sand castle building technique and a campfire scene (minus Mel Brooks' baked beans). How come super-witch can command myriad serpents but can't conjure up a canteen of water for her parched throat?
Brian Cox (Talbot patriarch) has a terrific scene in the family chapel with the prodigal (evil?) son.

Episode 6
Farewell Prof. Lyle. You will be twuly missed.
A lovely scene with John Clare and his ailing son ("Are you an angel?").
Lots of knives (a spot of fencing) in this episode. Very 'Go sisters'. Lily's self-defence lessons for the ladies of the night (Justine is a little too keen). Vanessa teams up with the indomitable Catriona Hartdegen for future vampire-hunting. An eventful steak dinner at Chez Talbot and a rootin' tootin' gunfight. Even though John Logan is not writing these current episodes, they are truly satisfying.

Episode 7
Lily's "Rise up!" speech to her sisters crawling along Dorian's vast dining table.  Dorian Grey, Frankenstein and Jekyll (representing Victorian males) kidnap Lily (the voice of the new woman, new in more ways than one) to force her to be a 'proper woman'. John Logan's script this episode.

Episode 8
When was the last time you saw the word "miasma" on cable TV?
Samuel Barnett's Renfield is a delight. Being born in Whitby must have looked too good to be true on the actor's resume.
Dracula gets to do the "children of the night...what music they make" line.
Lucky there was a full moon in the last few minutes. Great final scene.

Episode 9
The series went out on a high. Loved gun-slinging LuPone ("I'm a native New Yorker").
All loose ends tied. Did I miss what happened to Renfield? John Logan even got some pathos from Dorian Gray ("I'll always be here.").
Classy closing scene.

"Plebs" Series 3 - As good as ever

It's pleasing when a TV show can maintain its standard into its third season. Okay, with "Plebs" I use the word 'standard' loosely, there's still the required willy, bum and poo jokes. I was impressed by the first episode of the series, "The Beasts". It was consistently funny and cleverly structured. Good to see the writing team (Tom Basden and Sam Leifer) stays the same.
The clever CGI in the exteriors makes the show look terrific. The scene with the lion The lion was real, the crowds weren't) in the Collesseum was a standout and achingly funny. Grumio (Ryan Sampson) again has the best lines.
Having scene-stealer Maureen Lipman as the landlady is the cherry on the cake.

Episode 2 had its moments (Women's volleyball intro), but wasn't as good as first episode. Poor Grumio/Justin, always getting abandoned "on a hill".

Episode 3 skilfully links Vestal Virgins, blue cheese and hand-knitted jumpers.



Observation:
It was weird to see Joel Fry playing it deadly serious (as Hizdahr zo Loraq) in Seasons 4 and 5 of "Game of Thrones".

Is "Ray Donovan" Season 3 better than "True Detective" Season 2?

Both set in L.A., both about crime and corruption.
But "Ray Donovan" has more heart and less pretence. The stunning aerial shot across the Hollywood sign, zooming down to Mickey in the motel pool, to the stains of "On the Good Ship Lollypop", was enough for me to confirm that Season 3 is going to maintain the standard of the rest of the series. David Hollander as the writer is certainly kicking goals. Episode 1 was a ripper.

P.S. That being said, the shootout scene at the end of "True Detective", Episode 4 was f**king amazing.

Why "Hannibal" deserved to be cancelled

One of network television's innovative, stylish and creative dramas in the first two seasons, Season 3 was a big disappointment. Beautifully shot and designed but it's no fun any more. No more devilish dinner parties and psycho-of-the-week.
Sure, Florence looks gorgeous and Gillian Anderson is very watchable as the ice-queen (like in "The Fall") but it's same-same after that.
Episode 2 dragged painfully. Will is becoming a bore. Lots of torrents of blood and the stag-critter is back (looking like some hybrid-beast from "The Thing").
Why do US series drag out over so many seasons (10-13 episodes each)? The Brits keep things short and sweet (6-8 episodes a series).

Things I liked about "Bates Motel" Season 3

• Norma's mugging of the camera - extended reaction times/frozen expressions (usually after one of Norman's revelations/confessions).
• Norman's facial expressions are getting creepier (Highmore is metamorphosing into Tony Perkins episode by episode).
• It ALWAYS rains in White Pine Bay - adds to its gothic charm 
• The nutty/evil hippy/psycho (Dylan's dad's neighbour in Episode 2)
• It's much better (and funnier) than Season 2 (e.g. the wifi password at the motel is MOTHER)
• The moody Bernard Herrmann-inspired musical score (particularly effective during Norman's interview with the sheriff in Episode 3).
• Emma in her VW/ganja-mobile to the strains of The Specials' "A Message to you, Rudy".
• Norman in another creepy bathroom scene (towards the end of Episode 3).
• The family dynamics are deeper in this season (e.g. Norman's resentment/jealousy of Dylan in Episode 4).
• The script writers have beefed up Olivia Cooke's character, Emma. She  is sexier and gutsier in Season 3. It's funny that both Cooke and Highmore are English.
• Episode 5 was the strongest ep since early in Season 1. Norman sniffing mom's dress, Norma's rant about White Pine Bay about 2/3 into the episode. More please.
• Norman being mom making French toast for Dylan in Episode 6 (the best eps so far seem to be written by series co-creator, Kerry Ehrin)
• A tender scene with Dylan and Emma: "Sorry I got phlegm on the floor."
• Episode 7: Norman's chat with the psychologist in the basement. Probably not a great idea to conclude the session by strangling the therapist.
• The way Norman (Freddie Highmore) breathes heavier as he gets more unhinged.
• The view from Dylan's shack, across the water to mist-shrouded mountains - reminiscent of New Zealand's "Top of the Lake".
• The season finale was disappointing except for the inspired final few minutes: Bradley's murder, "Mother, what have you done!", the slowly submerging car (a nod to "Psycho" where Norman pushes Marion Crane's car into the swamp).

"Bates Motel" Season 3, Episode 1, "A death in the family", review

After the disappointing, all-over-the-shop second season, I vowed not to watch another season of "Bates Motel". The producers (also wrote the first episode of Season 3) have stated they wanted more focus on "Psycho" and less on the town's business this time around.
I was pleasantly surprised, although Dylan is still a sad sack (perhaps because it never stops raining in Oregon, well, British Columbia actually).
Highlights:
Norma's weird reaction to hearing of her mum's death; a Stephen King-like cafeteria scene; Norman's first shower scene and the intriguing final scene with Norman nonchalantly getting out of the escort's Porsche.
The two leads make this show a cut above the usual cable-fodder. Highmore's creepy, quizzical smile is worth 43 minutes of your time.
I think the producers may have given the show a much needed shot in the arm.

Lilyhammer Season 3: As quirky as ever

Warm, quirky characters (Roar and the lovable Torgeir are back), black humour, crazy crims, cartoonish violence (e.g. the flare gun scene) and great locales from wintry Norway to steamy Rio - it's all there in the third season of "Lilyhammer".
It's great when shows don't go 'off the boil' after return seasons (unlike "Banshee", "Bates Motel").
The final episode, "Loose Ends", features Maureen Van Zandt, Steven (E Street Band) Van Zandt's real wife, as Frank's ex-wife and Bruce Stringsteen, as Joey the Undertaker. Don't turn off during the closing credits, either.
Season 4 must resolve poor Sigrid's bathroom predicament with her dead ex-boyfriend (Milk pervert).

"Ray Donovan" Season 2 Better than ever? F**k yeah.

You think you had a bad day?
Spare a thought for our hero (anti-hero):
In the first episode: a buried-alive nightmare, angry early morning sex with the wife, followed by marriage guidance/psychologist meeting, his son is suspended from school, hounded by the Feds/daughter arrested for possession, tricky shooting cover-up for a client followed by a quick night drive to Mexico for his boozed, sociopath daddy. At least he had a clean shirt for the Parent-Teacher meeting (which he changed out of before brandishing his baseball bat in Baja).
Cracking season opening. Bonus: Hank Azaria as FBI officer and scrabble/wife swapping fiend. Bit weird seeing Agador Spartacus from "The Birdcage" in this part.
Tequila-soaked Mickey swimming with talking Flipper (Rosanna Arquette) was the cherry on the Showtime cake.
By Episode 3 you realise that family is the core of this show, not sex and violence.  The resemblance between mother and daughter is uncanny. Elliott Gould is a trick in this show, stealing ever scene that he is in.
Nice to see Ann-Margret as the former Hollywood goddess.
Episode 7: possibly the worst 14th birthday party ever, saved by Ray and birthday boy dancing to "Walk this way".
Episode 8 guest appearances by /60's/70's star Richard Benjamin (weird hearing him say "couldn't find a clit in a forest of clits) and Paul Michael Glasser (Starky) as the sleazy producer. Knockout final scenes: bedroom fireworks at Chez Donovan and brutal street slaying. No wonder David Hollander (script writer) has been 'promoted' in Season 3, booting out producer, Ann Biderman.
Episode 12 season finale: series creator, Ann Biderman, wrote this one, lots of loose ends tied up, a classy swansong.

Has "Da Vinci's Demons" run out of puff? Season 2 finale, Episode 10

Season 2 of "Da Vinci's Demons" has been all over the shop. Running half way around the world in search of The Book of Leaves, Leo's momma, the fall of the House of Medici and the naughty Labyrinth boys popping up to enlist Risario.
Risario saw a nifty salt water torture device, this time on (especially his eyeballs) the receiving end (shades of "A Clockwork Orange"). It was fun to find out that chubby young Nico will become sanguine, political strategist Niccolo Machiavelli. In reality, he was 17 years younger than Da Vinci, both from Florence and later did work with Leo (see the Borgias and for fun, "Assassin's Creed"). Machiavelli would make a great mini series.
The finale (with Leo about to demonstrate his latest military invention) was merely a warm-up for Season 3.

"Banshee" Season 2 finale, "Bullets and Tears", Episode 10, Cinemax

By the first 10 minutes, all the boxes have been ticked. Nasty murder (check). Sex scene (check). Drag act/fight scene (check).
This show resembles a graphic novel, helped by the way it is shot. Note the use of colour, lighting and the Tarantinoesque shootout in the church.
The cutting between past and present was effective. Job frocked up as Marie Antoinette was welcome comic relief. RuPaul, eat your heart out.
Interesting to spot the Twin Towers in the Soho scene. Bit of a gore fest ("I am the ThunderMan!") in the last 10 minutes. Don't mess with little Rebecca.
The add on scene: the return of the Indian warrior (Chayton)  in the New Orleans fight arena was gratuitous and sloppy. Sheriff Hood's Season 3 nemesis is one dimensional, unlike Proctor (next season, he looks like he's going to have his hands full with his naughty niece, if you get my drift).
I think the producers are pushing their luck with Season 3.
3 words - jump/the/shark.

PS Remember that nice British/Jewish chap (played by Mr Rabbit, Ben Cross) in "Chariots of Fire" (1981)?

"House of Cards" BBC 1990 vs "House of Cards" 2013 Netflix

Granted - Netflix's "House of Cards" is terrific television with Kevin Spacey commanding each scene. But check out the original "House of Cards"(1990), set in post Thatcher Britain. The BBC version comprised four episodes, each lasting 55 minutes. I think in Australia it was shown over two nights, 2 hours each night.

Ian Richardson (playing the Chief Whip of the Conservative Party) does his marvellous bit addressing the camera, outlining his machinations, just as Kevin Spacey has fun with the audience.

Michael Dobbs (later Baron Dobbs) was the Deputy Chairman of the Tory Party then Chief of Staff in the Thatcher Government. He wrote a trilogy, later adapted for television: "To Play the King" (1993) and "The Final Cut" (1995). Andrew Davies was on board in both "House of Cards" adaptations. Both versions chronicle F.U.'s rise to power, Francis Urquhart becoming Prime Minister in the final instalment of the BBC series as Francis Underwood is President in Season 3 (2015). Francis's wife has a more important role in the Netflix version (brilliantly played by Robin Wright).
Creator and head writer of the US series, Beau Willimon, has enriched and deepened "House of Cards", creating nearly 39 hours (3 seasons, each with 13 episodes) of engrossing television.