2012 - A Year In Review

With 2012 near over, here are some of the things that piqued my attention over the last 12 months. I should warn you, there are some different choices/opinions here ...Best TV Show (UK): Doctor Who. I know we only got six episodes so far but Series 7 truly has been incredible.Worst TV Show (UK): TOWIE. Because ITV2 really do need to axe that pointless pile of shite.Best TV Show (US): Homeland. Mainly it’s first season more than it’s second though...

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Festive Treats

Christmas might be nearly over but here's a look at some of the other programmes I managed to watch over the last few weeks.Downton Abbey: Okay - who didn't see Matthew's death coming? Seriously, even if you were unable about the hemming and hawing with Dan Stevens involvement with the show, then the fact that creator Julian Fellowes is incapable of subtlety surely didn't help matters? In the space of two hours during the only non Christmassy Christmas...

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Soap Discussion - December 2012

And here's a look at the events of December in soap land.Coronation Street: So it wasn't really the soap wedding of the year with Nick and Leanne after all then? I think it's a bit unfair that when they start to be kind of enjoyable, we've got the likes of Peter, Carla, Eva and surprisingly even Kylie all being kind of deterrents in this relationship but then again, it is a soap after all and even this show needed something bigger than the ongoing...

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My Review of The Snowman And The Snowdog

Written by Raymond Briggs And Joanna HarrisonDirected by Hilary AudusSequels are a tricky thing to do, especially when the original is such an iconic piece of television that everyone has an opinion on. To this sequel's credit, it waited thirty years before deciding to surface and while it might be a source of tedium for some, I was pleased that The Snowman And The Snowdog followed a similar plotline.This time around, it's a young boy named Billy...

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Doctor Who - Series 7 Part 2 Trailer

The Doctor: Running away with a spaceman in a box, anything can happen to you.Clara: That's what I'm counting on.After The Snowmen a trailer for the second half of Series 7 commenced and it was certainly an interesting one as the mystery of Clara Oswin Oswald looks set to (obviously) be the main arc for the eight episodes due to air in 2013 and is it me or is there definitely some flirting with the Doctor and his new lady friend?We all love Madame...

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My Review of Doctor Who's 7x06: "The Snowmen"

Written by Steven MoffatDirected by Saul MetzsteinThe Doctor: “I never know why. I only know who.”Clara (re TARDIS key): “What’s this?”The Doctor: “Me, giving in.”Is it me or did the Doctor’s attempts to stay out of people’s affairs and the like really seem to backfire on him? Even if Clara hadn’t been interrogated by the Paternoster gang comprising of Madame Vastra, Jenny Flint and Strax (in butler form) and persuaded the Doctor to help her by uttering...

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My Review of Father Christmas

Written by Raymond BriggsDirected by Dave UnwinFather Christmas: "That's that for another blooming year. And a happy blooming Christmas to you and all."It wasn't just The Snowman that was a Christmas classic at the hands of Raymond Briggs. In this particular story, we got something of an in depth look at what Father Christmas himself is really like and let's just say, the word 'blooming' is used at a rapid pace in this 26 minute little gem.I liked...

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Slay Bells

Yes, this one is a little Christmas themed, but hey, appropriate given that we're a few days away from the big day itself.American Horror Story: Asylum: I've been loving the sheer craziness of this season and with the Bloody Face reveals, the role reversal with Sister Jude as well as the deadly partnership with both Arden and Sister Mary Eunice but more importantly, Lana really is coming across as our main protagonist, especially with escaping the...

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My Review of Dexter's 7x12: "Surprise, Mother******"

Written by Scott Buck And Tim SchlattmannDirected by Steve ShillDexter (re him/Deb): “Is this a new beginning or the beginning of the end?”Considering that next season is officially the show’s final year, I’d go for the latter option. I wasn’t sure if this season finale would pull a shocker to topple Deb witnessing Dexter killing Travis Marshall but somehow it managed to do so pretty damn spectacularly.I guess there was always going to be some form...

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Misfits - Season 4 Review

With this current series just finished up on E4 and the promise of a fifth run, it's certainly been an interesting year as all our remaining originals have left the community centre and we've gotten four new characters over the course of the fourth year. Warning, there are spoilers.Episode 1: I hate to admit but I found this opening episode actually quite horrible to be honest. Both Jess and Finn deserved a better introduction than seeing Curtis,...

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Being Human - Series 5 First Clip - EDITED

With the new series of Being Human due to start early next year, T4 decided it was time to interview Kate Bracken, Damien Molony and Michael Socha yesterday morning.The interview was pretty short and I got the impression myself that the presenters didn't even know what the show was actually about but the main cast were fair game in explaining the basic premise of the series while letting us know that Julian Barrett will be guest starring in the series...

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My Review of Dexter's 7x11: ""Do You See What I See?"

Written by Manny Coto And Wendy WestDirected by John DahlHannah (to Dexter): “You should have killed me.”No, Hannah, he really shouldn’t have. Besides, we already did the whole girlfriend killing plot at the end of Season 2 with Lila and she was far more deserving of it than you were. I have to admit, while I expected that Dexter and Hannah wouldn’t get a happy ever after, I’m also a little disappointed about it too.Personally, I don’t believe that...

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Doctor Who In 2013

With The Snowmen another thirteen days away, the latest issue of DWM has some spoilers about the Christmas special and the show's future in the next year.First of all, both SFX and DWM (both out this week) have some gorgeous cast pictures of the Doctor and Clara and while the former is a married man, there could be some flirting with these two during Series 7. We already know there will be a kiss between the pair of them in the Christmas special...

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Back To The Real World

It's been a while since I've done this but here's a rundown of some of the shows I've been watching recently.Homeland: An intense selection of episodes here where just about every character seems to be at breaking point within recent weeks. Brody's constant shifting about the place between his myriad of alliances and desperate attempts of keeping his head above water has been fascinating to watch along with his increasingly complicated relationship...

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My Review of The Snowman

Written by Raymond BriggsDirected by Dianne JacksonDavid Bowie: "One winter I made a really big snowman. He got this scarf for me. You see he was a real snowman."It's been a staple of Christmas repeats of many years and with both a sequel due and Doctor Who using this story as the basis of it's latest Christmas special, I thought it was about time I actually (and properly) watched this beautiful little animation that really both children and adults...

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My Review of Wizards Vs. Aliens 1x06: "The Last Day"

Written by Phil FordDirected by Joss AgnewHelen: "I've been so lucky, Tom, I had one more day with you. One day I should never have had and I'm so glad I did. I love you so much. I love you."Okay, this episode was inevitable. Rarely do genre shows stick with established character deaths meaning that we're unable to see them again and I guess seeing Helen Clarke was bound to happen at some point. To be honest, the only thing that is really surprising...

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Being Human - Series 5 First Trailer/Casting News

With the fifth series of Toby Whithouse's supernatural drama, Being Human due to air in early 2013, BBC3 have released some clips of the new series in their trailer for the first few months of the new year.The clips from the new series seem to be the new gang checking out the antics at Melville Insurance, a shirtless Hal talking about them being at war as well as a chained man surrounded by a gang, Alex looking spooked in one scene and even Hal and...

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My Review of Dexter's 7x10: "The Dark Whatever"

Written by Lauren Gussis And Jace Rochdale And Scott ReynoldsDirected by Michael LehmannHannah (re Clint): “I know he’s done some bad things but there’s good inside him as well. Oh right, you’ve known him for twenty four hours and you think you understand him.”Dexter: “I have a sense for this sort of thing.”Dexter’s senses weren’t exactly wrong either. After all, Hannah told us in the previous episode that her father Clint nearly drown her and this...

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Doctor Who - The Snowmen Airdate/Timeslot Confirmed

With 20 days to go, the latest Christmas special of Doctor Who titled, The Snowmen has got the confirmation of airing on Christmas Day at the timeslot of ...... 5.15pm. Yep, it's the earliest time we've had a Christmas special air but it seems to be in aid of the rating juggernaut battle with BBC1 biggest new hit, Call The Midwife and ITV's mammoth hit, Downton Abbey. I have to admit, even for Christmas Day, it's arguably too early a timeslot for...

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Sherlock - Series 3 Filming Delayed

I was meant to talk about this a few days but between purchasing and rewatching the first two series of Sherlock, it seems apt to meant that filming for the upcoming third series has been delayed. While Tumblr and Twitter may have exploded with the news, it seem that the delay is only by two months.Instead of a January 2013 start, it'll be March before the three episodes that will make up the third run are due to be filmed. Producer Sue Vertue has...

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My Review of Revenge's 2x09: "Revelations"

Written by Ted SullivanDirected by Kenneth FinkPadma (re Graysons): “Why not hit them now?”Nolan: “It’s much easier to destroy a castle from inside it’s own walls.”Okay, for an episode with a title like “Revelations” don’t expect much in the way of an actual reveal because apart from Daniel making the schoolboy error of making it on Nolan’s hit list, very little else in this episode will come across as much as a shock to even the most easily pleased...

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