TV Series Catch-Up

Over the summer, I took it upon myself to try to clear a bunch of stuff of my Netflix queue and for some reason thought that the best way would be to clear off some of the TV programs I had on there. That was a mistake. I didn't get much cleared off and became addicted to some programs that I had missed out over the years.

Spaced - Created by Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg, and Jessica Stevenson, this is a hilarious British comedy unlike most other British comedies. Or American ones for that matter. Most people would find it similar to Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, not surprising since two of the creators are responsible for those as well. Spaced centers around two early 30's slackers who decide to pretend to be a couple in order to rent a room in a house, and the show follows their adventures together. But really the show is about skewering pop culture with jabs taken at Star Wars, comic books, pop art, pop music, and basically the whole idea of slackers in general. Their anarchic rapid fire style reminded me of my other fave British comedy The Young Ones, although this has way more heart to it.

The Mighty Boosh - Recommended by my friend Caz, this huge cult hit in Britain has finally made its way to the US. Julian Barrett and Noel Fielding play Howard Moon and Vince Noir, two strangely opposite best friends working in a zoo, or a curio shop, or not really working at all (depending which season you watch), and the extremely bizarre adventures they get up to. At first I wasn't sure what to make of it, trying to make some sort of logical sense of the show. But logic has no place in The Mighty Boosh, each episode plays like a dream someone has after eating too much Mexican. In my opinion, it's Fielding's multiple characters, from a bizarre she-male lake monster named Old Gregg, or the disembodied head of a wizard named Tony Harrison, or even the moon, that what gives the show its best material.

Prime Suspect - More a series of mini series, Prime Suspect follows the tangled career of Jane Tennison, played by Helen Mirren, a London police woman who challenges the male dominated Metropolitan Police Force. Each mini series follows a specific high profile cases involving serial killers, pedophilia, illegal immigrants, etc. But what makes the show more than just a standard procedural is the conflicted depths that Mirren brings to Tennison, showing that no matter how good she is at her job, she has many faults as well. Forget the police part of the show; Prime Suspect is a fantastic drama, showcasing a woman at odds with her bosses, her subordinates, her lovers, her family, and most of all with herself. The final series showed her finally coming to grips with her alcoholism in some incredibly powerful scenes. This is the role Mirren was born to play.

Dexter - Before this list gets too Brit heavy, here comes that lovable serial killer from Miami, Dexter Morgan. I have wanted to watch Dexter for a while, but as I don't get Showtime, I was always missing out. This summer I tried the first season and all I can say is wow. I immediately got the second season and thought WOW. Then I saw the third series and...well it was more wow then WOW. I really do like the show and find it compelling and juicy. Great drama? No. There have been some severe acting flaws, most surprisingly Jimmy Smits in Season 3 (sorry I just didn't buy him turning killer). Addictive entertainment? Absolutely. Michael C Hall's Dexter is a true wonder, a serial killer trying to follow a code of justice, a man who knows that he will always be an outsider who still tries to find a home.

Battlestar Galactica - This is the show I am kicking myself for missing when it was on the air. It was always one that I knew was supposed to be good, but I missed the first few episodes and never got around to catching up. Now that I have witnessed the show in its entirety, I must add myself to the chorus of those praising this show to the frakking heavens. A science fiction epic, an allegory for our own troubled times, a drama with true grit and edge. The story of the last human survivors as they fight their way across the galaxy in an effort to find the lost planet Earth was at times heartbreaking, at times horrific, and sometimes hopeful. But it was never short of mesmerizing, especially the twin performances of Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell, the heart and soul of the show. I know I have the prequel series Caprica to look forward to, but nothing will be the same s this epic series that I wish could just have continued on forever.