So, in all seriousness, my TV Show of the Year (2011). Tough one this as I watch a LOT of TV, so decided to settle on a top three.
Honourable mentions go to Season 4 of Burn Notice for being great fun, Life's Too Short for being incredibly funny and tragic at the same time, Season 3 of Fringe for being brilliant Sci-Fi and In Treatment for just being brilliant.
So, my top three (in very particular order):
3) Boardwalk Empire. Steve Buscemi is outstanding as Nucky Thompson in this prohibition-era drama. Michael Pitt is also ace and Gretchen Moll is the definition of yummy (and slightly too possessive) mummy. Michael Shannon (soon to be Zod) steals every scene he's in, and Kelly MacDonald provides the heart to this gangster crime drama. What else could you want? Al Capone? Good, as he's in it too.
2) The Walking Dead. A zombie show that isn't really about zombies. Firstly, who knew Andrew Lincoln could do a convincing American accent? Secondly, who knew Frank Darabont would get involved in TV. This was consistently gripping and had me hooked from start to finish. Alternating between gloriously slow character development and intense yet understated horror (does anyone remember the deserted streets of Atlanta?) this would have been number one if not for...
1) Game of Thrones. Yes, I was into the TV show before the books. No, I really didn't see the end of the penultimate episode coming. Truly magnificent television, which captured all the epicness of Lord of the Rings, with the grit and grime of the Sopranos. Loved watching the Starks and the Lannisters plot against each other, even if you did get the sense that they weren't really the ones playing the titular game. Sean Bean was brilliant although Peter Dinklage as Tyrion quickly became my (and clearly everyone's) favourite character. Well plotted, well scripted, well filmed. Everything about this was television at it's best and has become the new yard-stick for other shows to measure themselves against.
Showing posts with label The Walking Dead. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Walking Dead. Show all posts
Wednesday, 4 January 2012
Wednesday, 2 November 2011
Zombie Cardio
So I'm caught up with Season Two of The Walking Dead (by UK standards anyway), which for the uninitiated amongst you means I'm up to Episode Two.
So far it's been a good start, although Episode Two was much weaker than Episode One. Maybe that's just because Episode One got off to such a kick arse start with the herd of walkers (spoiler alert, sorry), all the way through to the EPIC cliffhanger ending (which I'll purposely not spoil).
The only thing that jarred slightly is the fact that in this season the zombies seem to be a lot faster than last time. Not sure if they've been hitting the cross-trainer or have been warming up on the running machine, but their cardio has improved greatly. Which is a real shame, because one of the things I liked most about the first season was the fact that they had Romero zombies rather than Snyder zombies. Yeah, fast zombies provide a more immediate threat, but I like the idea that zombies are slow, silent and surround you. The terror shouldn't be that you can't outrun them, the terror should come from the fact that they corner you, and then lumber slowly towards you like something out of your nightmare. Either way, the annoyance comes from the fact that the producers have seemingly changed the rules of their universe between seasons. Somewhat inconsistent.
That aside, it's still a wonderfully slow (the pacing not the zombie) and it's great to see a show that takes its time. All in all an incredibly tense spectacle. The character interactions are believable and the scenes where the zombies are attacking have me on the edge of my seat.
In my humble opinion, it's been the second best show on television this year. Because let's face it, nothing will be better than Game of Thrones.
So far it's been a good start, although Episode Two was much weaker than Episode One. Maybe that's just because Episode One got off to such a kick arse start with the herd of walkers (spoiler alert, sorry), all the way through to the EPIC cliffhanger ending (which I'll purposely not spoil).
The only thing that jarred slightly is the fact that in this season the zombies seem to be a lot faster than last time. Not sure if they've been hitting the cross-trainer or have been warming up on the running machine, but their cardio has improved greatly. Which is a real shame, because one of the things I liked most about the first season was the fact that they had Romero zombies rather than Snyder zombies. Yeah, fast zombies provide a more immediate threat, but I like the idea that zombies are slow, silent and surround you. The terror shouldn't be that you can't outrun them, the terror should come from the fact that they corner you, and then lumber slowly towards you like something out of your nightmare. Either way, the annoyance comes from the fact that the producers have seemingly changed the rules of their universe between seasons. Somewhat inconsistent.
That aside, it's still a wonderfully slow (the pacing not the zombie) and it's great to see a show that takes its time. All in all an incredibly tense spectacle. The character interactions are believable and the scenes where the zombies are attacking have me on the edge of my seat.
In my humble opinion, it's been the second best show on television this year. Because let's face it, nothing will be better than Game of Thrones.
Monday, 24 October 2011
Through the Ringer
So I'm still persevering with Ringer, primarily because it means that I get to keep make puns based around the word "Ringer".
Three episodes in and it's just holding my interest, however with The Walking Dead starting back now it may fall off the radar. I'm beginning to find Sarah Michelle Gellar annoying, which is a shame as I really liked Buffy. Plus, I can't quite understand why Hornblower (and he is Hornblower, except when he's Mr Fantastic) has put up with her all this time.
And then there's the ending epilogues, which each week sees the "evil" twin taking phone calls in Paris only to tell the person on the other line "she's ruining THE PLAN. We must KILL HER." It's beginning to turn into a real life version of Inspector Gadget. If "Evil" twin starts screaming "I'll get you next time Bridget!" I'm out right there.
That's not true, that'd probably pull me back in.
Three episodes in and it's just holding my interest, however with The Walking Dead starting back now it may fall off the radar. I'm beginning to find Sarah Michelle Gellar annoying, which is a shame as I really liked Buffy. Plus, I can't quite understand why Hornblower (and he is Hornblower, except when he's Mr Fantastic) has put up with her all this time.
And then there's the ending epilogues, which each week sees the "evil" twin taking phone calls in Paris only to tell the person on the other line "she's ruining THE PLAN. We must KILL HER." It's beginning to turn into a real life version of Inspector Gadget. If "Evil" twin starts screaming "I'll get you next time Bridget!" I'm out right there.
That's not true, that'd probably pull me back in.
Thursday, 20 October 2011
Burn baby burn
The thing I like about Burn Notice (besides the fact that it's got THE Bruce Campbell in it), is that it's episodic and an easy watch.
Whilst there's a different ongoing story-arc every season, you can watch one episode and know that whoever Michael's client is, they'll have a happy ending and the bad guys will get punished.
In a world full of Game of Thrones, Boardwalk Empire and The Walking Dead (all of which I love but require diligent watching), it's nice to have some light, casual entertainment.
Whilst there's a different ongoing story-arc every season, you can watch one episode and know that whoever Michael's client is, they'll have a happy ending and the bad guys will get punished.
In a world full of Game of Thrones, Boardwalk Empire and The Walking Dead (all of which I love but require diligent watching), it's nice to have some light, casual entertainment.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)