The Halcyon

Article first published as TV Review: THE HALCYON on Seat42F.

Ovation has imported the ITV series THE HALCYON, premiering tonight in the states. Set in a five-star hotel in London England in 1940, early in World War II, the show follows people of all classes, from the owner of the establishment and his family, down to the staff that keep things moving. The premise obviously sounds like Downton Abbey, but THE HALCYON is more gritty, with those coming to stay there engaged in a variety of scandalous, and in at least one case, Nazi-supporting, behavior that makes it more drama-filled than that former series.

At the center of things is Richard Garland (Steven Mackintosh, Luther), the general manager of the titular waystation. Richard is very customer service oriented, working to keep his employer, Lord Lawrence Hamilton (Alex Jennings, The Crown), happy, even when that goes against the wishes of Hamilton’s wife, Priscilla (Olivia Williams, Manhattan). Things get more difficult when Hamilton’s outspoken mistress, Charity Lambert (Charity Wakefield, The Player), decides to take on a more public persona. This does not go unnoticed by American reporter Joe O’Hara (Matt Ryan, Constantine), who is staying at the hotel. And then there’s Garland’s daughter, Emma (Hermione Corfield, xXx: Return of Xander Cage), who has a flirtation with Hamilton’s eldest son, RAF pilot Freddie (Jamie Blackley, If I Stay), who is in a relationship with someone else.

That is just the tip of the iceberg of events at THE HALCYON, which boasts a sprawling cast and many plot lines. It’s a classic soap opera, with lots of drama, too much at once to be thought realistic. The pacing is quick, moving through various threads, and it’s hard to keep track of everyone and their relationships to one another at first viewing.

It’s a very beautiful show, the production design and set decoration superb. Part of the joy of watching the series is just to imagine oneself in the hotel. Most of the characters, despite their bad behavior, adhere to the classiness of the setting in outward manner, painting us a picture of a specific place and time, or at least a fictionalized version of it. The world is enticing enough to quickly get sucked into the plot.

While not as high-quality as Downton Abbey in terms of storytelling, there’re enough elements to satisfy most. The lack of believability hurts, but the actors play the roles earnestly enough to keep viewers interested and invested. Coincidences may stretch the bounds, but there aren’t any big or obvious plot holes in the first hour.

In fact, my only complaint about the premiere is that it starts with the end of the season, then jumps back seven months. This has become overdone enough that I automatically roll my eyes at any series that dares still do it. However, for THE HALCYON, it’s less annoying than in most because with the density we’re about to jump into, it does provide an intriguing hook to get the audience to expend the effort learning all of the players.

My main caution with this show, though, is that it has already been canceled, and does not contain a definitive ending. Because it aired early in the year in Britain, you can google fan reaction, and a very vocal group are calling for its return to, in part, resolve major cliffhangers. As pretty as THE HALCYON is, knowing it is incomplete and extremely unlikely to be concluded is enough to make it a pass for me in the age of so many other options. Were it airing simultaneously and its future in doubt, I’d be tempted. As it stands, I don’t see the point of spending my time on it.

THE HALCYON premieres tonight at 10pm ET on Ovation.

ARROW "Haunted" By Canceled Hero

Article originally written for Seat42F. 

 
It seems like Oliver (Stephen Amell) is no longer “Haunted” by his past on this week’s ARROW, as he finds a way to get along with everyone. This is a great example of how he’s changed, and how being in a relationship with Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards) has made him softer, in a good way. But not everyone is so lucky, as two dead characters destined for a 2016 spin-off deal with the aftereffects of their deaths in various ways, and a canceled DC television character crosses over.

Let’s start with Sara (Caity Lotz), who is on the loose and murdering people. Her bloodlust has her targeting Thea (Willa Holland), which makes sense because Thea killed her, even if Thea wasn’t in control of herself at the time. A run-in between the two leaves Thea hospitalized and Laurel (Katie Cassidy) feeling bad. But in the end, Oliver (with help) is able to catch Sara, and has a plan to restore her soul.

Enter John Constantine (Matt Ryan, Constantine). Having met Oliver in yet another pointless flashback, Oliver gets the hero who communes with the supernatural to come to Star City and help him rescue Sara’s soul. Constantine is a fun character who effortlessly slides into “Haunted,” serving an actual purpose, his appearance anything but gratuitous. Given ARROW’s penchant for touching the other side from time to time, I think Oliver should keep Constantine’s number handy, even though it seems a little weird he hasn’t been called or mentioned before. I feel like he needs an arc, not just a guest spot.

In the Constantine sequence, we see Oliver getting along with the abrasive man, giving him warm thanks for his help, even though Constantine isn’t exactly behaving in a manner that would trigger warmth. We also see fuzzy moments between Oliver and Thea, and while Oliver and Laurel have it out regarding Laurel secretly bringing her sister back, Oliver brokers peace between them. Oliver even shoots down a political strategist’s (Parker Young, Suburgatory) advice to stand by Laurel. So “Haunted” proves Oliver’s transformation from cold dictator into understanding team player is complete.

Laurel and Thea also have a little moment when Laurel says losing Thea would make bringing Sara back not worth it. Thea and Laurel have been acting like sisters, and it’s satisfying to see Laurel does have a limit as to what she will do for her soulless sister.

Now the question is, how will restored-soul Sara and Thea deal with their bloodlusts, and is this something that can be cured? Obviously, Oliver won’t let them kill people to work out their feelings. How can he help them stop it once and for all? Maybe Constantine can help? But if so, why isn’t he asked in “Haunted”?

Speaking of people back from the dead, Curtis (Echo Kellum) decodes Ray’s (Brandon Routh) message and it turns out the former CEO is alive! He doesn’t give Felicity clear instructions on how to find him yet, but it’s nice to know another favorite character will be coming back, if only briefly before heading to the Legends of Tomorrow spin-off with Sara. How Felicity can save him is put off for another day, but as I said last week, I’m digging her solo plots this season. And I love her speaker voice.

The final subplot of the week involves Captain Lance (Paul Blackthorne) obtaining Diggle’s brother’s file from Damien Darhk (Neal McDonough). The file says Dig’s bro wasn’t as noble as Diggle (David Ramsey) believes. Is Darhk possibly lying and forging evidence? It doesn’t seem so. But I do wonder why Darhk handed over this paperwork. Is he just trying to get Diggle to stay away, one less distraction for Darhk?

“Haunted” is a decently solid episode of ARROW. As usual, the flashbacks are wasted screen time, but it’s cool to see Constantine survive beyond his short-lived series, and I’m very happy with the
interactions between the core characters of late. It’s about time they have some happiness and harmony, even if I’m sure it’ll be short-lived.

ARROW airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on the CW.

CONSTANTINE Yet Another Hero

Article first published as CONSTANTINE Review on Seat42F.

FOX has Gotham, ABC has Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Carter, the CW has Arrow and The Flash, and now NBC has CONSTANTINE. It’s getting very crowded for superheroes on the television airwaves. And those are just the ones directly based on the comic books, as Sleepy Hollow, Grimm, and others could be considered in this genre, too. How does the latest, inspired by a DC character spun off of Swamp Thing twenty-some years ago under the comic title Hellblazer, stack up with its competition?

Well, for starters, CONSTANTINE has a different tone than most of its peers. While other DC series have gone to dark places after the success of Christopher Nolan’s Batman films, CONSTANTINE is a horror title, so it necessarily doesn’t have a lot of fun in its DNA. The world is shadowy and washed out, and the titular character and his friends, what few of them he has, all struggle with their inner demons as much as the literal ones invading the world.

John Constantine (Matt Ryan, Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior, Layer Cake) begins the series in an institution. Once mired in the supernatural world, he has distanced himself from all that junk and tried to clean up his life. We soon learn this is because he feels responsible for something that happened to a little girl awhile back, but whatever his reasons are, he’s out of the business and working on bettering himself.

However, just because Constantine is done with demons and such doesn’t mean they are done with him. After all, the show isn’t called Demon Hunter Rehab. So Constantine is forced out of hiding when a threat comes to town that requires his unique skill set. Will he continue to resist, or step up and be the hero that the world needs him to be? Take a wild guess.

Constantine isn’t alone, of course. An angel named Manny (Harold Perrineau, Lost, Sons of Anarchy) is assigned to watch over him, much as Constantine is given the task of protecting Liv (Lucy Griffiths, True Blood), a young woman whose father he knew. Constantine’s best bud, Chas (Charles Halford, True Detective), lends a hand and a taxi, and while not a main character, a reluctant Ritchie Simpson (Jeremy Davies, Lost, Justified) is roped into joining the gang, at least temporarily.

What unfolds is not a standard procedural tale, but rather, an involved narrative that is both scary and dire. I could compare CONSTANTINE to shows like Grimm, Hannibal, Dominion, Arrow, Gotham, and more because it borrows from all of those in tone and style, though isn’t a carbon copy of any of them, either. CONSTANTINE stakes out its own piece of the landscape, and it does manage to feel somewhat unique.

I can’t say it’s among my favorite programs, though, at least not from the pilot alone. It’s not that the pacing is slow, because a lot happens, but I still felt my attention wandering. It’s a bit boring, perhaps because it puts bringing the fright ahead of making one care about the characters, even as it doesn’t commit fully to an action piece. It’s pretty consistent and decently enough made, but just doesn’t grab me the way others have. And it won’t help DC unseat Marvel as Comic-to-Screen King anytime soon.

I will say, CONSTANTINE isn’t really predictable. One of the characters mentioned in this review (not Simpson) isn’t sticking around, at least not full-time. They are neatly written out of the story, kind of making them feel like they’re in a case-of-the-week guest star situation, but with a role that is developed more than most, as if intended to be a main character, then dropped. There is a replacement coming to the story soon, which may change my overall opinion of the show, depending on how the dynamic could shift. So the jury remains out, for now.

CONSTANTINE premieres Friday, October 24^th on NBC.