Archive: US TV 2008

In the US: Thursdays, 9/8c, Fox. Starts January

In the UK: Not yet acquired

You may be aware of the phenomenon of “TV a-holes”. There’s a lot of them about. We’re talking about TV shows, such as House and Shark, that revolve around brilliant but obnoxious professionals. They get the job done better than anyone, but not before they’ve told you that your mother was a hamster and your father smelled of elderberries.

In all these cases, you’ll notice two things

1. They’re still the hero and you still kind of like them
2. They’re all blokes

Now we have what looks like a prima facia case of “you’ve come a long way baby, but just how far?”. Canterbury’s Law stars ex ER star Julianna Margulies as a defence attorney prepared to do whatever it takes to prove her client’s innocence, even if that involves breaking the law herself. And she’s a complete a-hole. The question is, will we like her as well?

Continue reading “Preview: Canterbury’s Law”

In the US: Fridays, 9pm, Fox. Starts February 22 2008

In the UK: Not yet acquired

Ah, the Danes. What a bunch of wrist-slashers hey?

Okay, bit of a dodgy cultural stereotype*, but I’m pretty sure someone in a US casting office somewhere thought to themselves: “Script about a clinically depressed immortal who’s yearning to meet the love of his life just so he can die? Get Denmark on the line, now!”

Hence the casting of Nikolaj Coster-Waldau in New Amsterdam, in which a Dutch settler of the region that was to become New Amsterdam and then New York does a good deed, ends up immortal and then mopes around a lot for four centuries.

Continue reading “Preview: New Amsterdam”