Doctor Who - Series 7 Press Release/Writers News

And we have lift-off - well, sort of. While Series 7 of Doctor Who doesn't begin filming until the 20th of February, it does start production on the 13th and spoilers are already leaking for the upcoming year.
The BBC have released this press statement ...

It's almost time. New monsters are becoming real, old friends are returning to Cardiff and somewhere in Wales, a tweed jacket is being taken from its hanger and lovingly dusted off. It can only mean one thing... Filming on the new series of Doctor Who begins on 20 February, 2012! The first director to shout 'action' will be the award-winning Saul Metzstein whose previous credits include Micro Men (starring Alexander Armstrong and Martin Freeman), the critically acclaimed Late Night Shopping and BBC Wales' Upstairs Downstairs. For the very first time, Doctor Who will be produced at the new BBC Roath Lock Studios in Cardiff, which officially open in March. The production team includes Steven Moffat (Executive Producer and lead writer), Caroline Skinner (Executive Producer) and Marcus Wilson (Producer). The new series will see Matt Smith return as the Doctor in what Steven Moffat has described as 'the biggest, the best and the most ambitious season we've ever made'. Karen Gillan (Amy) and Arthur Darvill (Rory) are both back, for what will be their final voyage with the Doctor - a thrilling rollercoaster ride which will culminate in a heart-breaking farewell to the Ponds. But there will be more shocks, surprises and adventures to come when the Doctor meets a new friend, in the last very place he could ever have expected... And yes! We've been promised the return of some old monsters, but some new and terrifying ones lie in wait for the Doctor.

I'm not sure what old monsters are exactly returning but I did hear rumours of the Yeti, which would be excellent in a Christmas special, as would the Ice Warriors come to think of it and surely, we're due another Master story. I mean, he's been absent for two full seasons at this point. As for Amy and Rory's heartbreaking exit - surely River is going to factor into this somehow? Looking forward to the new person but I guess we'll have to wait another two or three months before the casting's been announced.

In terms of writers for the seventh series, Moffat will be penning five episodes out of the fourteen scheduled, Mark Gatiss will be submitting another script, John Fay has been rumoured and DWM 444 has confirmed that both Toby Whithouse and Chris Chibnall will be penning episodes as well for the upcoming year. Whithouse's script will be the third one of the season and Chibnall's will feature one of the biggest sets the show's ever used. I'm a huge fan of the former's work and a bit cautious of the latter but I'm hoping for a new writer thrown into the mix as well.

Series 7 begins filming on February 20th with transmission pegged for Autumn 2012.

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My Review of Ringer's 1x12: "What Are You Doing Here, Hoe-Bag?"

Written by Hank Chilton
Directed by Jerry Levine

Siobhan (to Henry): “That’s Bridget. She’s the one living the lie with Andrew, not me. And I’m still pregnant with our child.”

You know how last week’s episode basically felt like nothing of real interest actually happened? Well, thankfully this week’s episode was something of a massive improvement with Henry actually becoming privy with the antics of Bridget and Siobhan but then again, he did more or less back Siobhan into a corner when it came to her end confession.

For that reason, I actually found myself enjoying Henry to a certain degree. I mean, he’s still annoying but at least he didn’t take everything Siobhan was saying to him at face value, actually followed her, set Victor on her and because of all this, he managed to get a confession out of her in the end.

Of course, Henry is still unaware of the fact that Siobhan’s series of lies factored into Gemma’s death but at least he knows the woman playing happy families with Andrew is Bridget and not the woman he loves. Oh God, I actually sound like I care about Henry’s happiness. I apologise – I really don’t but I guess I’m happy that at least one other character knows a bit more than before.

Henry also better hope for his sake that knowing about Bridget and Siobhan’s antics doesn’t result in him being killed off anytime soon as well. It didn’t fare well for Gemma when she became privy to things and given the way things were shaping in this episode, I’m not so sure Henry is going to be thankful to actually have Siobhan back in his life, even if she is carrying his child.

Oh, Siobhan – it’s been twelve episodes of this show and I’m still clueless as to what you’re actually up to. Annoyingly, I believe your feelings for Henry are genuine and I find myself amused that Bridget keeps wrecking your plans without actually knowing she did but at this rate, it would be sort of nice to actually know what the hell you’re up to.

Is all this scheming just a ploy to get at Andrew’s money or ruin him in some way and if so, why? What exactly has Andrew ever done that bad that Siobhan would be motivated to do this to him? This episode made some great character progress but it needs to make more and we need to know what Siobhan is actually up to and fast.

Also, can we please lose Tyler at this point? He’s sweet and I don’t like seeing him being duped by Siobhan, so unless his character is going to take an interesting turn and preferably soon, I don’t think there’s that much point in keeping him around. Still, if he shows some suspicions towards the woman he thinks is carrying his child then that could be fun to watch.

Speaking of fun to watch, I really enjoyed seeing Bridget piecing things together in relation to Siobhan. She realised that her sister was carrying on with Tyler and that Siobhan had actually been to Wyoming prior to contacting her and also came more or less to the deduction that her sister was still dead. Without making the hardest of efforts, Bridget is a far superior at figuring things out than Victor will ever be.

This also gets to my other point – what’s more frustrating than not knowing Siobhan’s motives behind her actions is Victor’s ineptitude throughout this episode. He thought he was being clever with Jimmy but even that guy was able to pull the wool over Victor’s eyes by confessing to the strippers’ deaths. Every time it seems like Victor makes any progress, something seems to undo it.

Even when he had Siobhan in his custody, he couldn’t keep her there. Siobhan did manage to dodge him as best she could and that was despite the false passport and the Charlie/John association as well. Basically Victor sucks at his job and this is becoming an increasingly thankless role for Nestor Carbonell, much as I hate to admit it. Oh and Bodaway can just go away as well. I do not care for that character one bit.

In better plotting, it’s actually looking like Juliet is telling the truth about Carpenter if Tessa’s little confession is anything to go by. I’m finding the twists in this episode in relation to that plot pretty amusing and even the presence of Catherine, who managed to be a Grade A Bitch to both Bridget and Juliet at different points in the episode didn’t deter matters. It still feels too seperate a plot for the show but it’s better than anything Bodaway related or Victor’s uselessness as a character, so points there.

Also in “What Are You Doing Here, Hoe-Bag?”

Bridget was a bit tactless in this one when she was calling Malcolm. Erm, Bridget, security can actually hear you, you know.

Siobhan: “I know it doesn’t make sense but I did it for us.”
Henry: “Did what for us?”
Siobhan: “I ended the relationship to protect us.”

Where are Henry’s kids by the way? Shouldn’t they be one of his main priorities right about now?

Catherine: “What’s your problem, Siobhan? After all, it was my tub first.”

Andrew: “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in an apron before.”
Bridget: “I’m channelling Martha Stewart.”
Andrew: “You know I’ve got a thing for her, right?”
Bridget: “That’s gross.”

We saw courtesy of CCTV that Juliet actually did come to Carpenter but later changed her mind. However, I’m sure Juliet isn’t a virgin. We did see her with a fella back in the “Pilot” episode.

Tyler: “I’ve been thinking about you and the baby. Is it weird to miss someone you’ve never met?”
Siobhan: “I don’t know.”

Catherine (to Juliet, re Carpenter): “What the hell is wrong with you? You try to do him right there in the hallway?”

I liked the word jumble thing that Bridget/Siobhan used to do and something the latter later did with both Andrew and Henry. I guess it beats twin-speak. Also Siobhan’s limo man, Solomon previously appeared in a similar role in Cruel Intentions.

Henry: “Why did you kill Gemma?”
Siobhan: “Why would you say that?”
Henry: “Because I know you did it, Bridget?”

Bridget (re cowboy boots): “I thought I was so cool.”
Juliet: “You weren’t cool, you were a redneck.”
Bridget: “I know, right?”

Standout music: There was an interesting version of “Tainted Love” used in this one.

Bridget: “My sister and I we used to do word jumbles when we were kids.”
Catherine: “Did you sleep behind her husband’s back too?”

Bridget (to Malcolm): “Siobhan lied. She knew where I was before the trial. She knew I was in Wyoming because she was there too. If she was looking for me, why didn’t she contact me?”

Chronology: A few days from “It Just Got Normal” left off.

“What Are You Doing Here, Hoe-Bag?” definitely is a better episode than the previous one but anything that forwards the show is going to be a good thing. Sadly though, good as this episode is, I’m not sure if this show really does have a future, considering that the ratings haven’t been good at all.

Rating: 8 out of 10

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My Review of Being Human's 4x01: "Eve Of The War"

Written by Toby Whithouse
Directed by Philip John

George: “Annie, it’s okay. It’s just the end of my story. I have to be with my Nina.”

And what an end to the story of George Sands this episode turned out to be. I mean, it was beyond obvious that George wasn’t going to make it out of this episode alive but I do like that before he died, he got to save his child and pass the torch off to Tom at the same time while giving his daughter the most obvious of names, considering her future role.

Russell Tovey has definitely flourished with this show and he was on fine form with his last episode here. George had become a broken shell of a man following the deaths of both Mitchell and Nina and for most of this episode, he was both catatonic and unable to think clearly at crucial points, leading to Griffin tricking him and Fergus managing to snare Eve from Annie halfway through the episode.

Both Annie and Tom tried their best to snap George out of his depression and it was fair that only Eve (yes, that’s what she’s called) could be the one to do it. I know, it ain’t subtle playing the father’s love card but who cares? From a narrative perspective, it was a satisfying way of getting George to take a stand against Griffin and he certainly did that.

George had to be the one to end Griffin’s existence, given that the vampire was the one who saw that Nina died in a violent manner – a manner that made me glad we didn’t actually have to see it played out on screen. As a big fan of Nina, I definitely don’t think I could’ve handled seeing her being battered to death by visor wearing vampires but it was enough incentive to make sure that George would be just in his eventual defeat of Griffin.

As a villain, Griffin might not have been as memorable as Herrick or potentially Wyndham would’ve been but he was an adequate enough villain. I actually did think for a moment that he was going to best George until the latter fed him his blood and caused him to die. I’m not sure why now it was needed to point out that werewolf blood was toxic to vampires but it did serve for a good way of getting rid of the character though.

Unfortunately by doing this and by the fact that George only partially transformed, his body wasn’t strong enough to cope and he ended up giving himself live, kidney and heart failure. George knew he was going to die but he made sure the vampire responsible for Nina’s death died first and he made sure that both Annie and Tom were placed as guardians for Eve.

I’m not gonna lie – I will miss George and Nina more than I miss Mitchell as a character and while I have a strong suspicion that regardless of quality that this series could easily be the show’s last (BBC3 have been on an axing spree of late), I’m still confident that as a writer, Whithouse certainly has plenty of material in him to give off an exciting series.

First off all, let’s talk about Eve – she’s a baby bred of two werewolves but human and able to see Annie. We also know thanks to strips of human parchment that she will bring about the end of vampires, so the Old Ones have even more incentive to get rid of her than ever but we also know that twenty five years in the future she’ll get a soldier to kill her so that a ghostly version of herself will go back to undo her existence. Well, that last bit is actually left for discussion because the woman in 2037 isn’t confirmed as Eve, though it’s very likely that’s who she’s supposed to be, character wise. I know some fans aren’t keen on this Terminator style plot and I have my own reservations but I’ll give it a chance before completely writing it off.

Then there’s also the arrival of Hal, whose storyline is independent of the main antics of this episode. Here he’s already living the unholy vampire/werewolf/ghost trinity with Leo and Pearl, both of whom I suspect aren’t long for this show when Hal takes up residency with Annie and Tom. It’s a shame because older Leo’s werewolf antics showed another aspect of the changes and I quite like Pearl, even if she is a bit too similar to Annie though.

As for the vampires of the story – apart from Hal, Dewi (he who betrayed/helped Tom) and Regus (the recorder fella who chose to protect Eve), they’re still a rotten bunch. Fergus had a nastiness to him that was a bit unsettling and Cutler seems to be quite a calculating individual as well. I suppose with Griffin out of the way, both of them will be fighting for supremacy before the Old Ones arrive in Barry.

Also in “Eve Of The War”

There’s a prequel for the Old Ones with Mark Gatiss on the BBC site (and YouTube) that’s a bit of a spoiler future episode. Also, apart from the prequels for Hal and Tom, there will be ones released every week per episode.

Annie (re Eve): “This isn’t good for her, for either of you.”
George: “I’m protecting her.”
Annie: “She needs a father, George, not a bodyguard.”

Since we saw him last, Tom’s been working in a cafe and he wasn’t particularly subtle about trying to live in Honolulu Heights either.

Griffin (re Eve): “Werewolves have only ever been made, not born.”

Tom: “Will you just stop hitting me?”
Annie: “Oh, for God sake’s Tom, I can’t lose anyone else. I’ve said goodbye to too many people, I can’t even process it.”

Annie had an interesting nickname for Eve – Splodge. Not quite Stormaggedon but it’s an amusing one nonetheless. Less amusing was seeing the baby in a pet carrier and on that sand filled bed of skulls.

Hal (re Superman): “Maybe he had special scissors.”
Leo: “Special scissors, that’s ridiculous.”

Pearl: “If you want anything, I’ll be sat outside with my Marie Claire.”
Leo: “Pearl, say goodbye, just in case.”
Pearl: “In case what? You’re not going anywhere. You’re strapped to a bed.”

Okay, can we please have some continuity with Annie’s abilities as a ghost because her confrontation with Fergus definitely should’ve played out differently?

George: “Tom, I am not your fucking father.”
Tom: “You ain’t nobody’s father.”

Fergus (to Annie): “Do you really call it Rentaghost? That’s just stupid.”

Apart from Pearl and Eve/Woman, the only one thing that does worry me for this series is the lack of female characters. I think at least one female vampire would be nice. I miss Lauren and Daisy.

Griffin (re Nina): “She begged, George. She screamed, she wept. I just want you to know that.”

Tom: “She needs a name, George.”
George: “Eve. She’s called Eve.”

I noticed that the building/company owned by the vampires in this one was called Stoker Exports And Imports.

Woman: “I’m going to save the world.”
George (to Annie/Tom, re Eve): “She’s going to save the world.”
Woman: “I’m gonna kill that baby.”

Chronology: I think it’s safe to assume this has taken months from where “The Wolf Shaped Bullet” left off.

Well, this was certainly an impressive episode. It’s hard to know what the future holds for this show but even with the major cast upheavals, “Eve Of The War” certainly shows there’s still some life in the series yet, though now that Annie is our most familiar character, the writers really need to make her a more formidable threat against the vampires. Don’t just leave it all to Tom and Hal.

Rating: 9 out of 10

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My Review of Revenge's 1x10: "Loyalty"

Written by Wendy Calhoun And Nikki Toscano
Directed by J. Miller Tobin

Emily (to Nolan, re Tyler): “Now you sabotage our alliance because you fell for a hooker.”

Emily – ever hear of the phrase, ‘don’t bite the hand that feeds you’? Well, if you haven’t, then familiarise yourself with it pretty fast because even though I believe you could take Nolan down without breaking a sweat, it should be abundantly clear that Nolan could easily do the same to you as well.

I mean Nolan had a good chance of actually doing that this week when Emily decided that Conrad needed to become privy to how Tyler really got Nolan to invest in his company and to be honest, I wouldn’t have blamed Nolan if he had decided to teach Emily a rather expensive lesson. She went too far this week and if she doesn’t watch herself, she’s going to find it a lot harder to get her own back without Nolan bankrolling most of her antics.

Nolan definitely felt betrayed by Emily and acting wise, Gabriel Mann and Emily Van Camp were pretty much on fire with each other when he more or less told Emily that she had gone too far. The comment about David as well was pretty fair too, considering that Emily didn’t exactly correct Nolan when he said her father wouldn’t be proud of her.

I get that Emily is a hardened person but Nolan’s been nothing but kind and trust worthy to her (and for that matter, so have Daniel and Jack), so it actually irked me this week with the way Emily screwed him over. In her own twisted way, she actually did Nolan something of a favour but at the same time, she needs to stop fighting against the guy and realise that he genuinely seems to have her best interests at heart.

Also, if she could control the Amanda situation through kindness and a fact filling diary, then saying so much as a thank you to Nolan every now and then isn’t going to kill her. It’s well and good, Emily lamenting about loyalty and the people who didn’t show it to her father but she’s risking becoming every bit as bad as the people she’s trying to get even with.

That also leads to the presence of Satoshi in this episode and my conflicting views with him. On one hand, he’s right about Emily falling in love with Daniel and how her emotions will be her undoing when it comes to her scheming but at the same time, he was given a rather weak way of departing from Emily’s company after she gotten him to invest with Daniel in the Grayson business. I do hope we see Emily’s sensei once again.

Speaking of business, Daniel has the knack for it but his hatred for Conrad and Tyler might not always work in his favour. He had every right to be frustrated when Tyler wasn’t fired but at the same time, if he only knew about his father’s antics, his reasons for hating Conrad would definitely intensify all the more.

As for Tyler – yeah, I really don’t feel sorry for him in the slightest. He might have managed to make Nolan feel like crap about himself and destroy the sex tape between but he was crafty enough to ensure that Conrad didn’t give him his marching orders and his continued manipulation of Ashley has done a lot to make me less fond of the character than before.

Of course, I have a feeling that Tyler is on the way out nonetheless though. Victoria won’t put up with him for much longer and I’m sure Conrad will find someway of getting him out of the family business if Emily, Nolan and Daniel don’t themselves. In other words, Tyler is more or less on borrowed time as we speak. Oh and the fact that he’s off his meds as well was an interesting reveal too.

Speaking of time, I did love that Amanda was struggling this week with keeping up the pretence. Sammy didn’t recognise her and Jack trying to jog her memory also kept her rather confused until Emily handed over the diary to bring her up to speed, plus the hostility between her and Daniel is rather promising. Of course now that Victoria knows she’s back in town, it can only be more interesting though.

That being said as rushed as Amanda and Jack and as much as their ‘relationship’ is built on lies and big expectations, I quite like the pairing in a way. Both of them need someone (Amanda more than Jack) and to an extent, it actually does work in Emily’s favour. That being said, I don’t envision this pair lasting too long though.

Also in “Loyalty”

I like the slight change they made with the credit sequence. It’s a good look for the show.

Emily: “Amanda, she’s a ticking time bomb.”
Satoshi: “Then you must stay clear of the blast.”

Now that we’ve seen training with Emily and Satoshi, can we please get a sequence where the former gets to use her skills on someone?

Ashley (to Tyler, re Nolan): “You kiss a billionaire, you get 200,000. I’ve been kissing Victoria’s arse all summer and I’m lucky if she lets me call her by her first name.”

Jack: “I can’t tell how good it feels to have you back.”
Amanda: “And I can’t tell you how long it’s been since someone was this nice to me. Thanks Jack.”

For all of Ashley’s complaining, Victoria is obviously softening towards her. Also Amanda managed to win Sammy around and the plot with her and Jack’s sea glass was nice.

Nolan: “You do realise you’re paying me back with my own money, right?”
Tyler: “I’m trying to say thank you. You have no idea the doors you’ve opened for me.”

Satoshi (to Emily, re Daniel): “Do not let the feelings you pretend to have for this boy to grow true.”

Instead of moving in with Declan, Charlotte decided to move in with her father instead. Emily’s also targeting Victoria’s divorce lawyer, Ryan Huntley, who wouldn’t take on David’s case.

Conrad: “Sorry but you’re fired.”
Tyler: “Am I? At least when I do business, people don’t die.”

Daniel (re Amanda): “That girl makes me nervous.”
Emily: “She just seems a little lost to me. Can you imagine growing up the way she had to?”

We got two flashbacks in this one – one with Amanda giving Jack her dog before being taken away and another where she confronted Ryan Huntley.

Tyler: “You’ve been playing me this whole time, setting me up to fail.”
Nolan: “Let’s not mix business with pleasure.”
Tyler: “Funny, coming from the guy who videotaped that sickening encounter.”

Standout music: The Velvet Underground’s “Oh Sweet Nothing’”.

Satoshi (re Daniel): “You are in love with him.”
Emily: “Of course I’m not.”
Satoshi: “When you came to me, you were a little girl. So much rage, so much betrayal. I did not want to train you because your emotions made you destined to fail.”

Chronology: From where “Suspicion” left off.

Now this was bloody excellent. “Loyalty” might have proven that Emily needs to develop a sense of the very thing to someone other than herself but it was also the strongest episode we’ve had in the series as well so far.

Rating: 9 out of 10

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Doctor Who - Series 7 Companion Spoilers

No, they haven't announced the casting just yet but we're gotten a clue about the new person though.

The picture of a Cybermen, Dalek and Silent is from the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular and apparently Steven Moffat has sent them this exact information in relation to the next TARDIS occupant ....

Doctor Who's 50th anniversary is coming. In Cardiff, we're gearing up for the biggest, the best and the most ambitious season we've ever made. There will be shocks, surprises and heartbreak - the Doctor is about to say goodbye to his very best friends, Amy and Rory. And then he's about to say hello to someone very different - the Doctor is going to meet someone very new in the very last place he could ever have expected...

Sounds wonderfully intriguing. Now where exactly could that be because let's face it's, 21st Century England is very much expected, isn't it?

Also, while Amy and Rory are soon to bid adieu, Alex Kingston however has dropped hints that she will in fact be reprising her role as River Song for the show's seventh series, now that she's finished filming her stint in the second year of Upstairs Downstairs. Good, because personally I think River needs to be in the episode that actually departs her parents.

Series 7 of Doctor Who begins production from February 13th and will air on BBC1 from Autumn 2012.

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My Review of Revenge's 1x09: "Suspicion"

Written by Salvatore Stabile
Directed by Bethany Rooney

Tyler: “No con, Nolan, I like you. I thought we had a mutually beneficial thing going on here. You said yourself you have more money than you can wrap your brain around. Besides, I have every intention of repaying you.”
Nolan: “Transaction denied, cash only.”

Now, there’s a rebuff line you don’t get to hear every day. So, after the lack of Tyler and Nolan action in the previous episode, it’s good that this one reminded us that even with these two becoming sleeping and investing buddies, there is no actual love here people. Both men are just doing whatever they can to outsmart the other and that’s rather amusing to watch.

Tyler will literally do anything to stick with the Grayson money train and if he has to make out with Nolan in order to get the eccentric billionaire to invest in Conrad’s business, he’ll do it and no amount of scowling from Ashley is gonna determined. Despite my dislike for the character and the apathy I have with his classism issues, his steely determination is bizarrely admirable at the same time.

Of course, the problem with conmen like Tyler is that they never seem to believe that they can be outsmarted and while Tyler did patronise Nolan by pretending the guy had a brain, he also continued to seriously underestimate him at the same time. No offence Tyler but it does look like you’ve bitten off more than you can chew here.

Not only does Nolan have zero intention of actually handing over 20 million to Conrad’s business but he was also clever enough to video Tyler messing about with Lydia’s original speech and figured out that Tyler was doing some digging on David Clarke to use against the Graysons as well. If Nolan wasn’t my favourite character on this show beforehand, this episode certainly edged things in his favour.

He was clever enough to make sure that Ashley also saw the kiss between him and Tyler as well and he was giving some pretty sensible advice to both Emily and Jack in relation to the problem known as Amanda (or the Real Emily) as well. It’s just too bad that both they and Amanda herself continued to ignore Nolan and his sound words throughout the episode.

And getting to the problem that is Amanda – it looks like that along with Tyler and Victoria, Emily has gotten herself a triad of threats that will not go away in any shape or form. With Tyler looking into her father’s connection with the Graysons and Victoria latching onto her distrust towards all the more, Amanda’s refusal to actually leave the Hamptons could also be part of Emily’s downfall.

Emily might have had good reason to think she could coerce Amanda into doing whatever she wanted (the flashbacks certainly portrayed the woman’s willingness to give up her own identity to become Amanda) but here, it did look like she was out of her depth. I expected Amanda to reveal herself to Jack and I even expected them to become a couple. I didn’t however think it would happen this fast though.

Jack’s fixation from Emily to Amanda does however make me wonder if the man is a good judge of character though. Nolan gave him so pretty sound advice about treading carefully with Amanda and Jack decided to ignore him. Plus it did seem a little too convenient that he brought Amanda to see the porch at the end of the episode with Emily there. The look Emily gave the both of them, I’m surprised they didn’t succumb to frostbite there and then.

As for the rivalry between Emily and Victoria, it’s nice that this episode maintained Victoria’s mistrust of the girl, even if she did try to play nice for Daniel’s sake. As for Ashley, I know there’s a part of me that should actually praise her for giving Victoria more insight into Emily but actually this episode just didn’t paint her in a good light. Yes, Victoria’s a far worse person morally but I’ve lost any respect for Ashley to be honest at this point and her nastiness towards Emily seems to be down to Tyler manipulating her rather than anything Emily has done to her personally.

Keeping with Victoria – I’m not surprised she attempted to break up Declan and Charlotte and I’m also not surprised that her plan failed there but I do like that she’s questioning Conrad more about Frank’s death (his phone was found in their garden) and trying her damndest to keep a hold of Lydia. However, Conrad outsmarted her on the last one but it’ll be interesting to see if Lydia turns on him in the upcoming weeks.

Also in “Suspicion”

Emily’s not being that crafty after all. Daniel has actually noticed that she sneaks off at night, though he didn’t seem that bothered by it.

Emily: “Did you sleep well?”
Daniel: “Better than you I’m guessing. I heard you get up in the middle of the night again.”
Emily: “Yeah, I’m sorry. I’m still getting used to someone sleeping next to me.”

It’s actually been five episodes in a row now since Emily’s extracted revenge on someone and it’s not hurting the show at all.

Amanda: “Who’s Amanda, an old girlfriend?”
Jack: “More like a childhood crush.”

Emily (re Amanda): “Don’t tell me she didn’t leave town.”
Nolan: “Okay but I will tell you she’s got a killer body, no pun intended. Amanda is on the Amanda toasting herself as we speak.”

Looks like Emily has another ally in her corner with Satoshi Takeda (the same fella Daniel was trying to woo, business wise) and in flashbacks, it appears she spent some time in Japan with him.

Tyler (to Daniel/Conrad): “Ambition versus nepotism, game on.”

Emily: “May I ask what it is about me that troubles you so much?”
Victoria: “Call it maternal instinct.”

We got some David and Victoria flashbacks in this episode and some Amanda/Emily ones too. That brown wig Emily Van Camp is wearing is distracting.

Amanda (to Nolan): “In case you haven’t noticed, I do things on my own terms. If Emily wants me gone, she’ll have to consider the ripple effect.”

Nolan: “Between Tyler’s scheming and Amanda’s homicidal tendencies, this is a very dangerous game that we’re playing here.”
Emily: “I told you this is not a game. I never should’ve trusted you to take down Tyler.”

Standout music: The Business’s “Pigs And Pearls”.

Emily: “I fear I’m losing control.”
Satoshi: “As you were warned, revenge is a stony path. Remember, inside the viper’s nest, you must be a viper too.”

Emily: “It’s nice to see you again, Amanda.”
Amanda: “Jack has the nicest things to say about you. I’m happy my home is in good hands. It’s a very special place for me and my father. It’s good to be home.”

Chronology: From where “Treachery” left off.

We’ve had stronger episodes in the run but “Suspicion” was a lot of fun and it’s nice to see that Emily has her work cut out for her with Amanda making herself rather comfortable at the Hamptons.

Rating: 7 out of 10

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My Review of Ringer's 1x11: "It Just Got Normal"

Written by Cathryn Humphris
Directed by Jeff T. Thomas

Andrea: “You need help.”
Juliet: “No, I don’t. I just want to forget it happened and move on.”

And I’d like an answer as to what’s really going on with Juliet and Mr Carpenter as well. Did he really rape her or is she making it up and committing to the lie because he seemed genuinely startled when Bridget smacked him one and Juliet did seem genuinely distressed as in this episode.

As plots go, it’s not the most compelling of storylines but its better than most of what actually did happen in this episode. There’s nothing about Carpenter’s demeanour that seems off or sinister but at the same time, Juliet was noticeably off that Bridget picked up on it and managed to get an answer from her.

The fact that Bridget punched Carpenter so publicly and embarrassed him might not have been the wisest of moves but it’s more than enough proof that she does genuinely care about Juliet’s safety. It also made me wonder if Siobhan would’ve reacted the same way or would’ve chosen to ignore the accusation or simply not believe Juliet at all.

However, it’s also another example of how Andrew seems to be genuinely clueless with Juliet as well. He doesn’t really pick up on her distress and automatically assumed the worst when she was lashing out at the charity (what is it with this show and Revenge when it comes to these functions?) for her public school. At least he came through when Bridget brought him up to speed on thing.

However, this is not a storyline I want to see dragged out for much longer so hopefully within the next episode or two, we actually find out the truth with Juliet and Carpenter. That being said, either way I have a feeling I’m not gonna like the outcome. If Juliet’s lying, then it puts her in a bad light and the same with Carpenter if she’s telling the truth as well.

Speaking of bad light – can someone actually point to me what’s so appealing about Henry because I’m rather at a loss here? I mean, Siobhan loves him so much she came back to New York, has been hounding him for the entire episode and it seemed like this one was going to end with her telling him who Andrew is really with at the moment.

Personally I don’t get it myself. Henry’s a good looking guy but he’s also a rather petulant whiny man child who doesn’t seem to take any responsibility for his actions. He might not have been responsible for Gemma’s death but he was certainly responsible for cheating on her and it seemed like he was too happy just to blame everything on Siobhan here.

On the plus side, at least he actually found himself being suspicious of Siobhan’s motives for wanting to rekindle with him and also about the extent of Charlie’s involvement in Gemma’s death as well. That shows that when Henry isn’t thinking about himself or playing the victim, he can actually use that brain of his.

I take it from the posters the CW have been using to promote the second half of the season that Henry is actually going to learn about Bridget and Siobhan, which should see some nice progression for him as a character and the show itself. However, bearing that in mind, I can also see him actually turning on Siobhan too.

Keeping with Siobhan, having her in New York again means that we actually get to have her in more than two scenes per episode and here, she wasn’t exactly on fine form but at least she wasn’t entirely focusing on getting back with Henry as well. I take it by stealing Bridget’s ring and Andrew’s files she’s got plans to make both her sister and husband’s lives uncomfortable in the next few weeks but we are in the second half of the season and we still need to know a bit more about the character and why she’s doing the things she is.

That also applies to Victor, who is still a cipher character wise at this point as well. However, on the plus side, Victor actually took Henry’s suspicions about Charlie seriously and even managed to make a connection between the dead ex-copper and Siobhan, so if he can do that, maybe there is hope for him as a character after all.

Last but not least, the subplot with Bridget making amends with Siobhan’s old pal Greer during the charity do for Juliet’s school seemed a little tepid too. I thought Greer and her annoyance over knowing about Siobhan’s adultery would’ve offered a bit more tension but she seemed to forgive ‘Siobhan’ a little too quickly for my liking. A bit of a wasted opportunity there, show.

Also in “It Just Got Normal”

I know the show needs to visually distinguish between the sisters but those hideous bangs that Bridget was sporting need to die faster than Bodaway does right about now.

Andrew (re Greer): “Do you wanna talk about it?”
Bridget: “Nah, can we just leave the past in the past?”

I zoned out during Andrew’s business meeting plot but seriously if doing computer for him is the only plot Malcolm can get this week, then I’m worried for the character’s future.

Siobhan: “I miss you.”
Henry: “You know who I miss – my wife? You brought Bridget Kelly into our lives and if it wasn’t for you, Gemma would be here today.”

Andrew: “It doesn’t matter what dress you choose, I’ll only be thinking about tearing it off.”
Bridget: “Hmm, I like the way you think.”

The way Siobhan was staring at Bridget showering before snatching her ring was a little too Psycho like for my senses.

Juliet (to Andrea, re her drinking): “Don’t judge, support. It’s the only way I’ll get through tonight.”

Greer (re Henry): “I hated you for that.”
Bridget: “I don’t blame you and I’m sorry, more sorry than I know how to put into words.”

Andrew’s favourite team seems to be Arsenal, Tyler still thinks he’s going to be a father, there was a lot of discussion of the Pivoine hotel and Henry was seemingly about to get a book deal.

Juliet: “All I wanted was to forget what happened and now the whole world knows.”
Bridget: I am so sorry, I wasn’t thinking. I was so angry, I couldn’t see straight.”
Juliet: “No kidding, just get out.”

Chronology: About two weeks since “That’s What You Get For Trying To Kill Me”.

Given that it’s been two months since the previous episode, “It Just Got Normal” was a bit of a disappointing way to really kick start the second half of the season. I do hope that this is a temporary glitch because it did manage to find a good groove during the first half of the season and I’d hate to it regress.

Rating: 6 out of 10

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