So… TECHNICALLY I shouldn’t put this in a roundup, because we haven’t finished watching it. However it really rates a mention, owing to the fact that in its original broadcast form I believe each episode is movie-length. What Netflix cunningly
Bridgerton
I somehow got talked into this and immediately wondered if I’d made the wrong move, given how tedious I find Jane Austen et al. This was definitely no Downton Abbey though, and by episode 5 was bordering on Game of
The Undoing
Nicole Kidman’s been tackling some really interesting & difficult stuff the last few years, and putting her opposite Hugh Grant who’s also doing similar made for a very compelling if disturbing story to unfold, stripping back layers & lies, and
Billions – Season 5 (1-7)
Seems that the filming of Billions got caught in the COVID trap, because only the first 7 episodes of season 5 have been published. The ongoing dance between Rhoades, Axelrod and Mason sees Rhoades back in the US Attorney’s office
Secret City – Season 2
Drama series centred around CIA-equivalent in Australia (ASD – Australian Signals Directorate), with Anna Torv in the lead role – an actor who I keep forgetting is Australian due to having first seen her in Fringe and Mindhunter. This season
The Crown – Season 4
The show chunters on closer to contemporary times, and one wonders how they avoid libel: such is the unsympathetic lens through which some members of The Firm are viewed. Nevertheless it’s required viewing, and we mainlined the whole thing in
The Queen’s Gambit
Absolute gem of a series – great example of game-based suspense without resorting to bullshit Casino Royale-esque rules-exposition-for-dummies. Great role for Anya Taylor-Joy that has you wondering “why haven’t we seen HER in anything before?!”, and a beautifully shot/visualised setting
Humans – Season 1 & 2
Intriguing drama about a present-day world where synthetic humans are engaged as domestic/industrial servants, until some of them develop consciousness. The characters have depth and dimension, and the synth acting is eerily good. And it explains why Richard Herring’s been
The Comey Rule
This seemed like a really well-told story. Now, it’s going to be a story told from one person’s point of view – based as it was on Comey’s autobiography – but one has to assume none of it’s legally objectionable
Criminal: UK – Season 2
Self-contained police questioning drama; on the whole more compelling than season 1, however some of the performances felt a little like drama school auditions.