In "An Ordinary Man", it was time for Louis to do his "going secretly amongst the people" routine, a rite of passage all kings of note must endure. But of course everything went wrong, because otherwise there wouldn't be an episode. Kidnapped with d'Artagnan to be sold into slavery, it was time for Louis to actually listen to the common folk and see how little his rank means in the real world. Would that lead to a change in worldview, causing Louis to become a wiser and gentler king? Not so much.
by Helen Langdon
In "An Ordinary Man", it was time for Louis to do his "going secretly amongst the people" routine, a rite of passage all kings of note must endure. But of course everything went wrong, because otherwise there wouldn't be an episode. Kidnapped with d'Artagnan to be sold into slavery, it was time for Louis to actually listen to the common folk and see how little his rank means in the real world. Would that lead to a change in worldview, causing Louis to become a wiser and gentler king? Not so much. by Graham Osborne HBO have, yet again, shown their talent at telling stories with Boardwalk Empire, tackling the American Prohibition Era, focussing on the organised crime syndicates of the East Coast and the fragile alliances that were forged between the various crime lords. The show centred around Enoch “Nucky” Thompson (played by Steve Buscemi) and Atlantic City though encompassing Chicago and New York as well, ran for five seasons before bowing out of the ring with its head held high in November. Today sees the release of the final series of the show on Blu-Ray and DVD. by Gemma Williams If you’ve seen the musical trailers for Galavant that have been making the rounds on the internet since Christmas, or heard the main theme for the show, you will have a pretty good idea of what it is about. The theme gives a quick synopsis of what happens in the show before the story starts to a quirky and cheesy tune. It will probably annoy you at first, but you will soon learn to love the song, or at least try to as it is likely it will get stuck in your head. by Gemma Williams So, American Horror Story is back from its break and the season may be turning itself around. Are we finally heading towards an epic conclusion that will make the season as a whole a strong plot? Have they got their mojo back? by Graham Osborne It’s been pretty hard to fault Marvel for their turn on the silver screen so far. They may have had a few wobbles with Iron Man 2, and the ending to Captain America: The First Avenger may have needed some improvement, but ultimately they’re riding a wave of successes on the big screen which they’ve seen cross over to the small with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Joining this is Agent Carter, following on from the events of The First Avenger and the Marvel One Shot on the Iron Man 3 DVD. by Cookie N Screen Sometimes, a bit of a break from a television series could do you some good. After all, your initial audience have blinked a couple of time and refreshed their eyes. You’re writers have shaken their wrists and come up with some new ideas. Your actors are all chilled out (I gather this was probably all filmed before the holidays but you get the sentiment). Generally, picking up where you left off has its merits. Gotham had a whole month to put its gigantic plot hammer down and start delicately weaving background, exposition and really enhance its characters that, in case you missed it, were soon to be Batman characters. Instead, with it picked up an even bigger hammer and went smash, smash, smash on audiences head. by Cookie N Screen Last year, we were all gripped by this quite yet ferocious drama Broadchurch. Some of us (me) were heavily late to the party. But whenever someone descended onto the murderous beaches of the idyllic British town, torn apart by the death of child Danny, they left feeling their entire spirits pulled through the ringer such as the characters on the show. As the final reveal of the killer, we were biting our nails to the stubs. And when a second season was announced, we were wondering just how they were going to follow up the phenomenal television series. And last night, they delivered, enhancing on the drama and taking us down a new spiral of emotions. by Cookie N Screen Sometimes, you may miss a certain acclaimed film or television show. Perhaps the initial teasers didn’t enthral you in a way that it did everyone else. There was no sense of urgency with Broadchurch, it seemed like some waify ITV Drama that focused on a sad plot point. Not even Doctor Who’s David Tennant and the always excellent Olivia Colman seemed to titillate me enough to watch it. Even when it had come and gone with critical furore and many many awards, I was too damn dumb to not go back and find it. Until recently, where I chomped through the drama and my nails within a few days, diving into the tentative and wrought drama headfirst. I was wrong not to watch it the first time around. Now as we sit, poised for a second dosing of this truly magnificent series, it’s could to remind ourselves of how phenomenal the first season was. by Helen Langdon The musketeers are back! The perfect antidote to the cold, rainy evenings of January, Athos, Porthos, Aramis and d’Artagnan are back on BBC One to get your blood pumping and your face grinning as they swash their buckles. The Musketeers might have lost its main antagonist to Doctor Who, but in this first episode of season two, that didn’t seem to be holding them back, with a story combining political intrigue with daring rescues. With the Cardinal causing trouble from beyond the grave, and a treacherous new villain on the scene, it’s all systems go! |
TV Editor: Graham Osborne
TVReviews on the best TV has to offer, as well as retrospective looks at the shows of yesteryear we miss so much. Email: [email protected]
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