INTELLIGENCE Questioned

Article first published as TV Review: INTELLIGENCE on Seat42F.

Today, NBC’s new streaming service, Peacock, premiered (among other things) a British comedy series called INTELLIGENCE. First airing on Sky and posted on streaming Now TV in the UK, the six-episode series (first installment free to non-subscribers) follows an intelligence agency investigating cyber crimes who has just received an obnoxious NSA agent as liaison.

The first thing that strikes me is that INTELLIGENCE feels tonally similar to Netflix’s Space Force. There are very amusing bits and a great cast that is totally committing, but the show isn’t all that funny on its face. Which doesn’t mean it couldn’t be hilarious; all the key ingredients are there. It just isn’t yet, going through some weird, awkward humor that doesn’t quite land.

The Steve Carell of INTELLIGENCE is NSA agent Jerry Bernstein (David Schwimmer, Friends). Jerry clearly was not appreciated nor accomplished in the United States, despite what he says. But he’s exotic enough to the English that many seem to hold him up quite high, and he leans into that, pretending to be the hero. Unlike Carell’s Space Force commander, Jerry isn’t actually in charge. He also lacks the heart, caring about boosting his own profile, rather than helping others succeed, determined to be looked up to in this new environment where no one actually knows him.

The true boss of the office is Chris Clark (Sylvestra Le Touzel, The Crown), a no-nonsense leader whose underlings rarely meet her expectations. It feels quite strange that someone as put together as Chris has allowed this team of misfits to flourish while bucking her authority and seeming inept at almost all times. One has to wonder if she has no control over office staffing. Or perhaps this team is very effective and the audience just hasn’t seen it yet. Either way, Jerry clashes with Chris, even though Chris is bending over backwards to be accommodatingy, while stopping short of letting him run all over her.

The rest of the department (besides extras) is made up of fanboy Joseph Harries (Nick Mohammed, The Martian), cool hacker Tuva Olsen (Gana Bayarsaikhan, Wonder Woman), airhead secretary Evelyn (Eliot Salt, Normal People), and clueless mess Mary (Jane Stanness, Sally4Ever). All four seem to be some sort of stereotype. Mary looks like she could be Professor Trelawney’s sister. Only Tuva acts like she can accomplish things, but her role in the pilot is mainly to be hit on by Jerry. Hopefully, she won’t sleep with him. But given the type of show INTELLIGENCE is, it seems likely she will.

The office itself is much more The Office than Alias or any other spy show. It would be at home in a business park, mostly anyway. While there is great-looking technology, there’s also stained, threadbare carpet and dull walls. The HR department takes a week to even issue a pass, and the lobby is less than impressive. There’s a bureaucratic drabness that works well and takes away from the high tech setting one might expect in a delightful way.

Now, I’ve only seen the first of six episodes as I write this, but if the other five are anything like the pilot, we’re in for a season that has a few authentic, earned laughs each installment, but never really takes off. Which is a shame, because all the actors are really giving it their all, and there isn’t a weak link among them. All deserve to be on a solid series, so hopefully this will get there in its already-ordered second outing. Or maybe even its first, past episode one.

INTELLIGENCE is streaming now on Peacock, which you can watch via phone, browser, and only a few other devices, not including popular options like Roku and Amazon Fire.

Catch THE CAPTURE

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

NBC’s new streaming service, Peacock, launched today with a handful of original series. One of them is THE CAPTURE, a six-episode drama (with the first installment free to non-subscribers) in which a military officer, just cleared of a crime during wartime, possibly commits murder against the barrister that defended him. Did he do it? If he did, was he sane at the time, since he doesn’t seem to remember it? If he didn’t do it, who faked the CCTV footage showing him do it and why? The last seems far-fetched, but it is a very interesting story.

My first thought about THE CAPTURE was that it feels like a British crime drama. Unsurprisingly, it is, having aired on BBC One last fall. So by saying it’s a Peacock ‘original’ series, that only means it’s original on the platform here in the States. In my opinion, Peacock doesn’t deserve much credit for buying it, although the show certainly deserves an American run. If the streaming site (not available on most streaming devices, a major knock against it) is seeking to set a brand for itself, this doesn’t do it any favors, being obviously someone else’s borrowed style.

At the center of THE CAPTURE is DI Rachel Carey (Holliday Grainger, The Borgias), a fast-rising cop who needs to oversee a major investigation to move up the next rung on the ladder. The case mentioned above may just be it. Not everyone who works with her is happy about her rapid ascension, but the ones that seem smart apparently respect her, so she’s a Good Guy; a typical driven, strong hero. Grainger fulfills the role very nicely.

Shaun Emery (Callum Turner, War & Peace) is the soldier who spent time behind bars and then was cleared, just before being arrested again. This character is the complex one, and surely will be given the most thought by audiences. It seems extremely likely that he did commit the murder, given that the CCTV stream was witnessed as it ran live, even if he doesn’t have any memory of it. And he has no explanation for what is shown. As long as you believe Shaun is telling the truth as he knows it, there definitely appears to be mental issues key to the issue at hand. Shaun’s lack of memory could be an act, but it doesn’t feel likely.

What’s more, knowing he could do something like this calls into question if he was innocent of the other crime, which was chalked up to bad technology. But maybe the tech wasn’t flawed. In fact, camera advancement is as much a character as the two leads. CCTV is shown quite a bit, as is the body cam Shaun wore overseas. Most of the evidence in both cases hinges on this footage. How reliable is it? Given that it is called into question right away, it certainly seems to have its fair share of flaws. So can it be trusted at all, even when what it’s showing seems like an obvious crime?

There have been other shows with a similar hook as THE CAPTURE uses cameras. There have also been plenty of other British crime dramas in this vein that are widely lauded and highly entertaining. This could indicate that THE CAPTURE isn’t needed, given that it fits very firmly into already established molds. And yet, it is compelling, with solid direction, writing, and acting that mean, even if you’ve seen a bunch of the others, it may be worth it to watch this one, too.

Admittedly, I’ve come out against American crime procedurals in the past. I don’t know why I find British six-episode formulas better than a case-of-the-week format, but I do. THE CAPTURE is a great example of this.

Watch THE CAPTURE on Peacock now.

Not-So BRAVE NEW WORLD?

Article first published as TV Review: BRAVE NEW WORLD on Seat42F.

Peacock, the new NBC streaming service that launched today, wants to take you to a BRAVE NEW WORLD. The book by Aldous Huxley gets a nine-episode television adaptation, with two episodes free to everyone and the other seven for subscribers only. For this review, I watched only the first two.

BRAVE NEW WORLD is one of my favorite books, though it’s been a little while since I read it. Many of the familiar elements are present in this version, such as the extreme caste society. On the higher end, everyone is connected at all times by a network, and are barred from any privacy, monogamy, or pregnancy. Children are genetically engineered from birth and raised in groups, rather than by parents. Out in the desert live the ‘savages,’ or people closer to what we have today, who still marry. But they’re violent and miserable, while the ones in the New World are happy. If they’re not happy, there are plenty of drugs readily available to make them so.

Most of the main characters are there, too. Bernard Marx (Harry Lloyd, Game of Thrones) is near the top of the food chain as an Alpha Plus. But he’s a little off. He soon becomes taken with B+ Lenina Crowne (Jessica Brown Findlay, Downton Abbey), who experimented with a single partner for a while. Together, they journey to the Savage Land and meet John (Alden Ehrenreich, Solo: A Star Wars Story), who is being raised by single mom Linda (Demi Moore, Empire). But revolution breaks out while they’re there. While back at home, the Director (Ed Stoppard, Knightfall) and Mustafa Mond (Nina Sosanya, Good Omens) try to figure out why CJack60 (Joseph Morgan, The Originals) is acting funny after the death of his friend.

But there are quite a few differences, too. The character of Helm (Hannah John-Kamen, Killjoys) is quite a bit different from her literary counterpart. And the Savage Land is a lot more developed and fleshed out, with more action going down there. I’m not sure if these additions are designed to build a world that can keep going past the initial adaptation of the novel, inevitably a one-season project, or if they’re just meant to enhance aspects of the story that aren’t explored all that much on the page.

Neither the Enlightened nor the Savages have it all that good. There are pluses and minuses to both worlds. Sure, the Savages have more freedom, but they also have less overall, and are treated like dirt, made to play for the amusement of the advanced society. Either one of these two worlds could make up a post-apocalyptic landscape, and combining them is both interesting and a bit confusing because it’s hard to know which side to root for. Don’t we want things to get better? But at what cost? With more focus on the Savage place, this springs fully to light.

What might be remarkable is that the main ideas presented in BRAVE NEW WORLD no longer feel new. There have been so many dystopian series, especially as of late, that have borrowed elements from the source material that this one almost feels like a repeat of what’s come after the book. I’m not sure if that’s a testament to how far Huxley could see into the future, or just proof that good ideas are often stolen and done to death. With Westworld, Altered Carbon, Black Mirror, and so many others, does BRAVE NEW WORLD stand a chance of breaking through?

I guess, maybe. There’s some fine acting, though it stops short of breathtaking (which I’m not sure is fully the actors’ fault). The obligatory sex and danger is present in this iteration of BRAVE NEW WORLD, and that keeps the pacing moving. I’m not sure these particular ideas are begging to be explored again on screen, but they are always relevant. I liked it, but didn’t fall in love the way I expected to. Still, I want to finish watching.

The biggest obstacle BRAVE NEW WORLD faces is the platform it is on. Peacock rudely launched without much access for those who don’t enjoy watching TV on a phone or browser. Certain Smart TVs can access it, and it works with Chromecast. But it lacks an app on Amazon Fire, Roku, TiVo, or other streaming devices. Personally, I was very annoyed at the hoops I had to jump through to watch, and hope Peacock gets its act together if it wants to succeed. Then again, at a too-high price tag ($9.99/month for the ad-free version without nearly the catalogue that Netflix or Hulu boasts), do we even need another streaming service? Maybe it would be easier for another streamer to absorb the content.

BRAVE NEW WORLD is available now exclusively on Peacock.

UnCROSSING SWORDS

Article first published as TV Review: CROSSING SWORDS on Seat42F.

Hulu recently premiered CROSSING SWORDS, an animated series in the style of stop-motion featuring little round people with no arms nor discernable legs. It is set in a silly medieval world, the type that could only exist in a cartoon unconcerned with realism, and follows a young squire who is on a quest to be a brave and noble knight. This is all the more challenging when everyone around him, from the monarchy, to his parents and siblings, to his neighbors and friends, have not an ounce of morality in them.

Nicolas Hoult (The Great) stars as Patrick, the squire who so desperately wants a life he can only dream about. His skills are not good, but he does have tenacity. Somehow, despite being the only one around trying to do good, Patrick keeps failing. Thankfully, his buddy Broth (Adam Pally, Happy Endings) will stick by him and show him how to have a good time, even if Broth isn’t helpful at all.

Of course, Patrick is used to not be helped. His sister, Coral (Tara Strong, The Powerpuff Girls), is a pirate queen; his brother, Ruben (Adam Ray, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power), is a forest outlaw; and his other brother, Blarney (Tony Hale, Veep), is a clown. All three tormented him mercilessly as a child, getting him into trouble and sometimes causing bodily harm. Patrick’s parents, Glenn (Breckin Meyer, Franklin & Bash) and Doreen (Wendi McLendon-Covey, The Goldberg), weren’t sympathetic or protective, either. So you see, Patrick has had a rough life.

But like any young, naïve, eternal optimist, Patrick is determined to overcome. Which has led him to seek employ under King Merriman (Luke Evans, The Alienist) and Queen Tulip (Alanna Ubach, Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce), whom are depraved and horrible to one another, as well as their subjects. It’s a small enough kingdom that these rulers immediately know who Patrick is, though they often forget any past dealings with him as soon as he leaves their sight. Or so it seems.

There’s also a wizard, Blinkerquartz (Seth Green, Family Guy), though it’s unclear if he actually knows any magic.

CROSSING SWORDS is created by John Harvatine IV and Tom Root, whose names might be familiar to you if you’re a fan of Robot Chicken, another vulgar stop-motion animated series. Although CROSSING SWORDS isn’t made up of shorts, instead featuring full-length episodes and an ongoing plot, it contains many of the same dick jokes and similar types of humor. People often get kicked in the balls, puked on, and have chum thrown at them. Boobs and dicks are frequently on display on the toys. Death seems to have little meaning.

One might say CROSSING SWORDS is a more complex version of Robot Chicken, as if spun off of one of its shorts. However, the fact that continuity only applies when they feel like it kind of goes against that, even if other animated shows often do the same thing. Most scenes from this new series would feel right at home tucked into that veteran program.

CROSSING SWORDS is not going to earn these guys any new fans, but if you already like their style, then you’ll probably be happy. There’s an all-star voice cast, and although the special effects are jenky (like fire made out of cotton), it fits very well with the toy style. The images are pleasing and cute, contrasting nicely with the comedy. Details are paid attention to, with great visual gags, and the characters even look like their wood is aged and paint is chipping. So it looks fantastic. But people will tune in most likely for the jokes, which only appeal to specific viewers.

CROSSING SWORDS’ first season is available on Hulu and it has been renewed for a second season.

Take a Boat to HIGHTOWN

Article first published as TV Review: HIGHTOWN on Seat42F.

Starz’s most recent drama is HIGHTOWN. Jackie Quiñones is a National Marine Fisheries Service agent, loves to party hard and hook up, both things easy to come by in Provincetown, Massachusetts, a gay-friendly tourist town. But when she finds a dead body, and lets her vices take a little too much control, she ends up battling demons both inside and out.

Monica Raymund (Chicago Fire) stars as Jackie, and could not be a more compelling lead. Jackie’s behavior is abhorrent, but Monica finds the humanity and sympathy, as well as the driving motivations. It’s easy to see why Jackie’s partner, Ed Murphy (Mike Pniewski, Madam Secretary), likes her, and viewers will, too. Despite her substance abuse and womanizing ways, she seems to be a good person who cares about people and isn’t too strict on the rules, seeing the humanity in others. Though, she doesn’t seem to see it in her sexual conquests. The murder victim forces Monica to examine herself, and the audience gets the privilege of watching that introspective character arc.

Obviously, an antihero is nothing new. But there are many types of them, and Jackie feels fresh. It’s not just the fact that she’s not white, straight, or male, though that’s certainly welcome. It’s that her outlook feels a little different than most of the others I’ve seen, her attitudes being realistic and relatable as present. Aside from one big action-related thing, Jackie seems pretty darn authentic. Her pain seems real.

There is a great supporting cast that fills out Jackie’s world and plays varying roles, all of which will surely come together, even if it’s not obvious how right away. Amaury Nolasco (Prison Break) is a kingpin behind bars who is still pulling the strings outside. Riley Voelkel (The Originals) is his exotic dancing girlfriend who is much more capable than she first appears. James Badge Dale (The Pacific) is a police detective who takes his job a little too personally. The three of them are introduced in the same thread in the pilot, but I’m eager to see Jackie interact with them.

The setting is great, with the beauty of Cape Cod and the ocean grounded in grimy reality, a place both lovely and dirty. Much of the series was filmed on location, and it shows. It helps to move a show away from Hollywood and to somewhere more visually interesting, or at least diverse in its look, and HIGHTOWN looks great. I hope more productions keep up this trend of getting away from Southern California, a vista we’ve seen enough of for awhile.

HIGHTOWN is also well-written. I don’t want to give too high praise to a series just getting started, and I’ve only seen the first episode. But immediately, I drew comparisons in tone and style to The Wire Season 2 (which I also happen to be finally watching right now). I’m not going claim HIGHTOWN is as good as The Wire, but the fact that it didn’t suffer for the comparison says something.

The murder and drug plots are far from novel, making up a large percentage of television programming today. I review a lot of these cable or streaming pilots with similar goals and themes, and haven’t been taken in by very many of them. However, there’s a magnetism to HIGHTOWN greater than the sum of its laudable parts, and I found I had a hard time resisting its call. I hadn’t planned to renew my Starz subscription again until Outlander returns for another season, but I’m curious enough about the rest of this one to go ahead and give it a binge.

Check out HIGHTOWN on Starz now.

STARGIRL Flies a Little Lower Than Peers

Article first published as TV Review: STARGIRL on Seat42F.

The CW has yet another series based on DC Comics characters running right now and this one’s called STARGIRL. It’s a show about a teenage girl who discovers the father she never knew may have been a superhero, and she may have inherited his powers. But the group that killed her maybe-father is still around, and she’s not strong enough to handle them on her own. So she decides to revive the Justice Society of America and staff it with youngsters, intent on stopping the much older baddies.

Brec Bassinger (Bella and the Bulldogs) stars as Courtney Whitmore. As the series begins, her mother, Barbara (Amy Smart, Justified), has just married Pat Dugan (Luke Wilson, Enlightened), who has a son of his own, Mike (Trae Romano, 555). The four move back to Barbara’s hometown, where she has gotten a job. But when Courtney finds Starman’s staff among Pat’s things and the staff responds to her, she decides Starman (Joel McHale, Community) must be her father and decides to follow in his footsteps. This is much to the chagrin of Pat, Starman’s former sidekick.

The premise doesn’t feel too coincidental, though Barbara’s employer verges on that trope. Pat and Barbara found each other in a sweet, simple story. Teaming Courtney up with her step-father is relatively novel for a television series, leaving Barbara to bond with Mike in more mundane plot threads. Though the separation can’t possibly last long.

A lot of the running time of the first six episodes doesn’t dwell on much character development. Instead, it sets up all the heroes and villains, as Courtney quickly recruits a diverse team to help her out. Pat, of course, isn’t pleased, but gets dragged along for the ride as Courtney ignores his instruction again and again. At the same time, we see the villains come back together and further nefarious plots, conveniently not having made much progress in the past ten years. Small skirmishes abound, but the season seems poised for a large battle at the end.

STARGIRL is unique in CW’s superhero lineup in that it isn’t directly tied to the Arrowverse. Made for the DC streaming app (which premieres episodes a day before the CW, and at least for the first two installments, longer versions of those episodes), Stargirl made a cameo in last fall’s big event, but is said to currently exist on a new Earth-2. But has the Arrowverse even established that there is a second Earth again?

Those logistics aside, STARGIRL is its own thing. A teenage drama with superheroes isn’t a new concept, nor is an origin story. The fact that the kids involved are assuming identities once held by adults makes it a bit of a ‘junior’ type situation. Kids battling adults also makes it seem like a made-for-kids show. At least, that’s what similar properties have been geared towards in the past.

Honestly, a lot about STARGIRL feels made for a younger audience in a way that the rest of the CW’s DC lineup does not. While there is death and destruction, the emotional implications of them aren’t dwelled upon, rushing onto the next big thing. Part of this can be attributed to Courtney and her mindset at present, but overall, it makes the series feel weaker than it could be. Romance doesn’t even really play in much, either, the focus more on butt kicking than crushing. McHale is wasted in a cameo, and thus far, Wilson and especially Smart haven’t been given much more than typical television parent stories in a kid show, either. Which, when taken all together, makes STARGIRL the least developed in the lineup.

Of course, kids grow, and a show can mature. So perhaps STARGIRL will move beyond its childish beginning as it continues. For now, though, I recommend taking it at face value. If you don’t mind a heavy teenage bend on your dramas, then this one’s for you.

At the time of this writing, STARGIRL is six episodes into a thirteen-episode run. New episodes run on the DC app Mondays and air on the CW Tuesdays at 8PM.

What Are BARKSKINS?

Article first published as TV Review: BARKSKINS on Seat42F.

Recently, National Geographic aired the scripted drama BARKSKINS, based on a small part of the Annie Proulx novel of the same name. Now available on Hulu, the eight-episode drama follows French (and a few English) colonizers in the so-called New World, or New France as it was known, in the late 1600s. What would become the United States and Canada is still a wilderness, and the people portrayed live far away from their familiar civilizations. Their best connections back to their homeland are the new arrivals, but those newcomers must adapt quickly to the harsh life of the forest or die. Native Americans fight for their land, while the Europeans bicker amongst one another. It’s a wonder our current society came out of it.

The title BARKSKINS refers to indentured servants who labored three years in return for freedom and a chance at prosperity. Two of the characters in the series, Rene Sel (Christian Cooke, Witches of East End) and Charles Duquet (James Bloor, Shoplifters of the World), are in the titular position. Though, Charles has no intention of serving out his time. They work for Monsieur Claude Trepagny (David Thewlis, the Harry Potter films), who has dreams of building an everlasting city. Will they help him?

It’s actually quite easy to miss that Rene and Charles are supposed to be the leads. Yes, there is a quite a bit of screentime with them, but there’s plenty without them, the show boasting a sweeping cast. Among the most recognizable are Marcia Gay Harden (Code Black), who plays innkeeper Mathilde Geffard, Matthew Lillard (Good Girls) as the sleazy Gus Lafarge, Zahn McClarnon (Longmire), Aneurin Barnard (The White Queen), and Thomas M. Wright (Outsiders). But there are plenty of others besides, representing a wide swath of people that make up the residents of the area.

BARKSKINS is trying to be a sweeping drama, but lacks the feel of one. Quite honestly, most of the characters blur together, and after watching the premiere, it’s hard to actually sit down and pick out each player and actor (sans beards in their IMBD photos). It’s not confusing, exactly, since the same players tend to stay in scenes together. But picking up names is difficult, and without the context and backstory as the show begins, harder still. Lots of these characters have pasts, but they are slow to reveal them to the audience.

The production looks fantastic, of course. This is clearly a show with a budget, or at least they spent it on look. Period costumes and miles of actual wilderness help BARKSKINS feel like it’s another time and place, nature only beginning to be spoiled by man. But it lacks the epic feel that compelling characters and a sweeping score could lend it to kick it up a few notches. There are a number of recent shows that have achieved a similar thing with a lot more filled out than BARKSKINS presents, leaving this more like a cable also-ran than an awards contender. It doesn’t feel like a show that’s going to amass a following and run for very long.

Also confusing, while it is a National Geographic series, and NatGeo’s website boasts that you can watch your favorite shows from them on Disney+, don’t look for this one among the offerings on the new streaming app. Surprisingly, it IS on Hulu, so you can find it if you want it and are up on your streaming subscriptions. It’s just not in the obvious place.

All in all, I can’t say BARKSKINS is disappointing because I’d heard almost nothing about it and no expectations had been built up. But it doesn’t feel like the type of series that will be a sleeper hit, either. It’s fine, no major complaints other than the size of the cast and lack of distinguishing characteristics and personalities (at least initially). Just nothing special.

As mentioned, you can watch BARKSKINS now on Hulu.

Who Is THE GREATest?

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

Last month, Hulu premiered THE GREAT, a series about Catherine the Great and her combative marriage to Peter in Prussia during the 18th century. Far from a straight period piece, though the costumes don’t look modern, it’s an outrageous, cartoonish take on the scandals, with huge liberties drawn in events and lineage. Despite the complete lack of accuracy, which the show does not disguise, it’s a fun, salacious romp in the vein of Gossip Girl or other teen dramas. But do the kids want to watch this genre in a foreign land and time? If they won’t, I will.

I’ll admit, I loved Gossip Girl, and a few other shows like it. I have also thoroughly enjoyed what I’ve watched of THE GREAT. It’s not high-brow, but it is high-quality in the way its made. The plot makes sense, and the characters are well-developed. The acting is delightful. Yet, something about the way it leans into the messiness and away from facts makes it seem less-than the sum of its parts. This doesn’t affect the glee to be had in watching, but it does keep it out of a list of prestige television. Even though, from the standpoint of originality and its production, it might just deserve to be up there. There’s a certain superficial sheen over the whole thing, which is not a complaint, but a stylistic choice.

Elle Fanning (Super 8) stars as Catherine. Elle plays her as intelligent, but prone to giving in to emotion. She can fake her way along at court, but is so self-righteous that she struggles at first to do so, even when it endangers herself and others. THE GREAT doesn’t spend too much time dwelling on this, but just enough. Layers are added as the piece unfolds, such as her surprising taking to Leo (Sebastian De Souza, Medici), the lover her husband ‘gifts’ her. But her best moments are when she plots with her lady’s maid, an out-of-favor noble named Marial (Phoebe Fox, Eye in the Sky). (It must be said, Fox steals every scene she’s in.) Fanning may be at her best when Catherine runs roughshod over counselor Orlov (Sacha Dhawan, Iron Fist), whom she wants to help kill her husband, while he just wants to bring modernity slowly and safely to the country, one beard at a time.

Speaking of the husband Catherine is locked into a mortal battle with, Peter is played by Nicolas Hoult (X-Men: First Class). It’s easy to underestimate what Hoult is doing with the childish dummy, a petty tyrant who embraces pleasure and demands love and devotion while giving none in return. This isn’t Peter the Great; this is his son (grandson in real life) who cannot live up the shadow of his father, and is too consumed with love for his dad to see that everyone else has perceived the failing. It’s a thankless role, one viewers will root against, but upon later reflection, Hoult is killing it in the part, certainly a contender for best performance in the show.

There are also plenty of players at court. Like Peter’s lover, Georgina (Charity Wakefield, Wolf Hall), who has more depth than you might expect. Georgina’s husband, Grigor (Gwilym Lee, Midsomer Murders), doesn’t like sharing his wife, but has to take that out on others than the man who is to blame. The Archbishop (Adam Godley, Breaking Bad) is like a Rasputin at first, though far less effective. Drunkard general Velementov (Douglas Hodge, Penny Dreadful) is in control of practically nothing.

If you’re trying to learn about Catherine and Peter, it must be noted that they were married many years before he was in charge, though in this series, he’s already ruling when she arrives. Instead, his Aunt Elizabeth (Belinda Bromilow, Doctor Doctor) was the competent leader, portrayed in this as a crazy, though kind, nut. And once Peter did ascend, Catherine deposed him within six months. I don’t think that’s the path THE GREAT will take, as the battle between them is too much a part of the fabric of the show.

I find myself reluctant to praise THE GREAT too highly purely because of the zaniness it embraces without trying to be an obvious comedy. Yet, as I’ve said, I find much joy in watching it. If you want something that is both deadly and light, silly in its seriousness and serious about its silliness, or just a grounded period romp, then check it out

THE GREAT’s entire first season is available on Hulu now.

New Look for PERRY MASON

Article first published as TV Review: PERRY MASON on Seat42F.

HBO brought back a beloved character of literature, radio, and television this week with their new PERRY MASON show. This is a prequel story, set before the titular man becomes the defense attorney he’s been portrayed as in the past. Set in Los Angeles 1932 during the Great Depression, Perry is a noir private eye working for a lawyer and taking care of his family farm, which he should probably unload, given it boasts a mere two milk cows and is at an airport. How does the drunk absentee lawyer become a hero in the court room? Keep watching to find out.

Matthew Rhys (The Americans) stars as Perry Mason. Rhys is an extremely talented actor, as many already know. His performance in this is as impressive as it customary for him. There’s plenty to sink his teeth into for this role, as Perry is deeply troubled, mostly legitimately. His entire past isn’t revealed right away, so there are still some unanswered questions, such as why did he leave the military dishonorably? But the things we can see make him as sympathetic as he is tortured, so substantially.

Rhys is surrounded by other fine performers. John Lithgow (The Crown) is a lawyer Perry is working for named Elias Bichard Jonathan. Juliet Rylance (The Knick) is Jonathan’s more-than-capable assistant, Della Street. Shea Whigham (Boardwalk Empire) is Pete Strickland, Perry’s co-hort. Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black) doesn’t show up in the premiere, but is playing a religious leader named Sister Alice that promises to be compelling. Chis Chalk (Gotham) is similarly absent from the pilot, but will be a good cop among the bad. Plus, Nate Corddry (Mom), Robert Patrick (Terminator 2), Eric Lange (Lost), and a slew of less recognizable, but no less skilled, actors join them in smaller roles.

The design, costumes, and sets are no less impressive. Every item of clothing, prop, and vehicle is beautifully recreated and sets the scene brilliantly, though we should expect no less from a big budget production like PERRY MASON. In particular in the pilot, the original Angels Flight train is recreated in its previous location. This is noir, but realistic looking noir.

As good as everything looks, a lot of the characters are total scum of the Earth. The cops we see are like a gang, more interested in lining their pockets than protecting and serving. The Hollywood execs aren’t any better, trash looking after trash with violence and threats. There are good people in this world, like Perry Mason, and they can even thrive without doing too many bad things. But they do have to exist in the muck alongside the worst of humanity, and that informs their characters, making the whole piece rather depressing.

This is where fans of the old PERRY MASON may have an issue with the new version. The old Perry was a shining beacon, while this one isn’t separate from the baddies. They are often the people he works with and for.

The biggest obstacle, though, might be just how disturbing some of the visuals can be. I’m no stranger to violence and gore, and who can be in today’s prestige television landscape? But PERRY MASON finds new depths in a single hour. A dead baby, rendered in stomach-churning detail, is only briefly on screen, and yet it feels like too long. I won’t go into anything further, but if child violence is a trigger for you, steer clear of this show. And even if it isn’t, it’s extremely hard not to be affected by its portrayal here.

Is the world ready for a gritty PERRY MASON? Will subsequent seasons grow him into someone a bit cleaner, or is this destined to be a one-off miniseries experiment? Either way, it’s a very well-made, well-acted series, and unless they do worse than the baby, I’ll be tuning in to see how it turns out.

PERRY MASON airs Sundays at 9PM on HBO.

Enlist in SPACE FORCE

Article first published as TV Review: SPACE FORCE on Seat42F.

Greg Daniels, who adapted The Office for American audiences, has been busy, with new two shows hitting streaming services in as many months. One was Upload, which I reviewed back in mid-May, and the other is SPACE FORCE on Netflix. I’ve had the chance to watch all ten episodes, but will talk about the show mostly generally to avoid spoilers.

SPACE FORCE stars Steve Carell as the manager of a department, just like The Office, but this series isn’t nearly as funny as that one was, or even as amusing as Upload (despite sharing the delightful Owen Daniels in underrated roles). Though, I’m not convinced it’s meant to be. There are outrageous things that happen and eccentric characters. Yet, the tone the lead character sets for the piece and some of the events of it keep things more reigned in.

As the series begins, General Mark Naird (Carell) is promoted from the Air Force to lead the new branch of the military, Space Force. And while his fellow branch heads (Jane Lynch, Patrick Warburton, Noah Emmerich, and others) make fun of him for it, Naird takes the job seriously and does his best. He finds ways to work the scientists who have such different mindsets than he does, and struggles to be a good father to his daughter, Erin (Diana Silvers, Ma).

But it’s not easy. As mentioned, the generals rag on him endlessly, as does their boss, John Blandsmith (Dan Bakkedahl, Veep). Not to mention, the unnamed POTUS is likely the same one we have today, temperamental and petty, though with the events of this year out of the mix (for now, anyway). Mark’s assistant, Brad Gregory (Don Lake, Zootopia), may have saved his life once, but is woefully incompetent. The social media guru, F. Tony Scarapiducci (Ben Schwartz, Parks and Recreation), is more hindrance than help. And last, but far from least, Mark’s wife, Maggie (Lisa Kudrow, Friends, The Comeback), is in prison for the next 40-60 years for reasons not revealed to the audience in season one.

As mentioned, the SPACE FORCE base is comprised of scientists, who you might think are cold and unfeeling based on stereotypes. One could also say the same about military officers. Yet, while outward displays of affection are rare, possibly one of the elements that keeps this series low key, we see some very sweet moments. There’s great stuff between Mark and his daughter. There’s arguably even better stuff between Mark and the head scientist, Dr. Adrian Mallory (John Malkovich, Billions, Being John Malkovich). The two have a terrific bond that is often awkward, but really makes up the emotional core of the series. A secondary romance between Mallory’s second, Dr. Chan Kaifang (Jimmy O. Yang, Silicon Valley), and Captain Angela Ali (Tawny Newsome, Bajillion Dollar Propertie$) is also touching.

This human companionship, the scenes where characters connect, is SPACE FORCE’s redeeming quality. Amidst the chaos and the colossal screw ups and the infighting and competitiveness, there are people with hearts who are trying to do a great job. That provides an in for viewers to connect to, and with excellent acting, it’s easy to forget about how few times you’ve laughed out loud.

Which is not to say SPACE FORCE isn’t funny. It’s just more strange funny than obviously humorous. I wouldn’t call its style subtlety, necessarily, but it is a bit sneaky. It’s clever, but not overly so. More just bizarre, really.

Reviews for SPACE FORCE have been mixed, but honestly, I’m fully on board. The ensemble is terrific, the storytelling is interesting, and the acting as absolutely fantastic, as you would expect from this cast. Go in expecting The Office and you’ll be disappointed. But go in with an open mind and withhold judgment, and you may agree.

The only regret I really have is that Mark’s father, Fred (Fred Willard, Modern Family, Jimmy Kimmel Live), won’t be able to return for a second season, and will have to disappear off screen.

Other than that, and especially with the giant cliffhanger of an ending, I’m ready to re-enlist for another mission. SPACE FORCE’s first season is available now on Netflix.