Archive: US TV

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US TV

Review: Supernatural 5×1

14 September 2009 Rob Buckley Post a comment

Supernatural

In the US: Thursdays, 9/8c, The CW
In the UK: Moving to Living/Virgin1

This is it – what could be the final season of Supernatural. It’s come a long way over the years, from being a simple horror story of the week series for young adults weened on Scream, Saw, et al, to being a surprisingly effective, funny and even thoughtful musing on the nature of God, angels and devils as depicted in the Bible.

When last we left those pretty Winchester boys at the end of season four (look away now if you haven’t seen it), Hell was about to arrive on Earth and the Apocalypse was about to begin – something that the heavenly host of angels was surprisingly keen to see happen. As a way to end a season, it’s hard to top. So as we enter season five, what can we expect to see?

Oh, it’s that bloke who plays Jacob on Lost.

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US TV

Review: The Vampire Diaries 1×1

11 September 2009 Rob Buckley 17 Comments

The Vampire Diaries

In the US: Thursdays, 8/7c, The CW
In the UK: Acquired by ITV2

I am not a tweenie. I am not a teenager. I am definitely not a teenage girl.

So The Vampire Diaries is not aimed at me. It is not my show. So when I describe it as “very bad”, you might be tempted to think the problem is with me. That I don’t get it.

You might be right, but I do love my Gossip Girl and Privileged and a whole host of other programmes that aren’t aimed at me either. I can spot quality, I think, even in this area.

And I can spot a lack of it, too. Because, you see, The Vampire Diaries is very bad. Not supremely awful, but enough to make you almost want to take your own life rather than watch it.

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US TV

Season finale: 10 Things I Hate About You

10 September 2009 Rob Buckley 1 Comment

10 Things I Hate About You

Just in time for the news that it’s just been acquired to air on Fiver in the UK comes the season finale of 10 Things I Hate About You. As mentioned in previous reviews, this isn’t really much like the movie, with just a few plot elements and characters the same, but it’s not bad in and of itself. Nothing too remarkable, but still reasonably funny with some interesting quirks and characters.

However, things have perked up in the last three episodes, making it a much more appealing show altogether.

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Ooh. Another Heroes Redemption promo

9 September 2009 Rob Buckley Post a comment

Will I ever stop posting promos for Heroes: Redemption? Probably not. Still, here’s a new one that shows us a whole load of new things we haven’t seen before, so at least I won’t be repeating myself this time.

In this one, lots of Tracy (praise God) and a mild spoiler – there’s a returning character in it, by the looks of it. Can you guess who before you watch it?

US TV

Season finale: Royal Pains

28 August 2009 Rob Buckley 1 Comment

Royal Pains finale

Of all the shows arriving on our screens over summer, the surprise big hit has been Royal Pains. A charming comedy-drama about a New York ER doctor who ends up working as a ‘concierge doctor’ to the rich of the nearby Hamptons, it’s as languid as a Long Island iced tea, with no big pyrotechnics, no screaming melodramas, only MacGyver-esque medical procedures and reasonable people having relatively normal relationships – against the general insanity experienced by the rich.

While it hasn’t avoided the occasional escape from reality and House-ian "bizarre diseases of the week" to diagnose, it has remained whimsical fun with a compelling cast throughout. With a second season now assured and with so many sub-plots coming to a head, a cliffhanger ending was inevitable. What was surprising is that the creator of Charmed and the show’s exec producer Constance M Burge managed to avoid Wiccans for a whole season – until now.

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