Monday 26 December 2016

Doctor Who: The Return of Doctor Mysterio

Doctor: 'I've been away for a while, but I'm back.'

After the emotionally replete ‘Last Christmas’ which saw Clara flip the middle finger at her haters and stay on for another year, and ‘The Husbands of River Song’ which brought a satisfying end to a storyline eight years in the making, tonight’s episode was always going to be up against it. How do you inject the same level of pathos into a story with no main returning characters (save the Doctor), minimal follow through narrative, and a premise as worn as Russell T. Davies’ plot devices? Simple, you bring back Nardole. You remember Nardole, the completely unremarkable character from last year’s Christmas special? Yeah, that guy.

Saturday 5 March 2016

Shows to Look Out for in 2016.

When I first heard the premise of Grantchester—local vicar develops an interest in sleuthing—I remember thinking: dear God, not another do-gooding religious character solving mysteries. Hasn't this been done before, like, a dozen times? And whilst 'a dozen times' may be something of an exaggeration, anyone who's seen Cadfael, Father Brown, or The Father Dowling Mysteries must surely sympathise. This just isn't a novel concept. I mean, it is the concept for some novels (if in doubt, check out Ellis Peters, Ralph McInerny, or G.K. Chesterton's bibliographies), but this really shouldn't have been the foundation for such an outstanding show.

Saturday 2 January 2016

Sherlock: The Abominable Bride.

Moriarty: 'It doesn't make sense, Sherlock, because it's not real. None of it.'

I suspect we're going to have to start viewing Sherlock specials in the same way we view Doctor Who Christmas specials. Despite being cut from the same cloth as a regular season, there's just so much more space to muck about in. Half of tonight's episode played like a Victorian chiller, the other half was like watching panto. Still, with the festive season still in full swing, that was probably the effect they were hoping for—and it kind of worked.