Tag Archives: TV

ThePopHub’s Best tv of 2018

December 15, 2018 Anthony Farrell

Another year, another mixed bag of television that saw everything from The Walking Dead and it’s spin-off Fear The Walking Dead kill off some of their main characters, a Bachelor walk away without choosing anyone to love, cooking show My Kitchen Rules run for almost half of the year, A former Olympian win Survivor, the return of classics Roseanne (now re-branded as The Conner‘s) and Murphy Brown in present day reboots, not a single episode of Game of Thrones air on our screens, and a handmaiden give birth solo in the snow.

Check out my list of the shows that I could not get enough of in 2018.

TELEVISION 2018

Fear The Walking Dead – FOXTEL

Time jump! Yay! Nick (Frank Dillane) and Madison (Kim Dickens) killed off! Boo! New survivors! Yay! The June (Jenna Elfman) and John Dorrie (Garret Dillahunt) budding romance! Yay! Morgan! Boo! A lot of ups and downs this year for Fear but this fourth season proved the be the one of the shows best to date.

American Horror Story: Apocalypse – FOXTEL

They literally shoved almost every past AHS season into this single season and yeah, the time jumping between pre and post apocalypse made things hard to follow but getting our witches back, including swamp witch Misty Day (Lily Rabe) AND Jessica Lange returning as Constance Langdon…ahh, it was a good season. Honorable mention goes to the haircuts Evan Peters (as Jeff Pfister) and Billy Eichner (as Mutt Nutter) sported.

Playing for Keeps – Network Ten

So yeah, the ratings for Network 10’s new AFL drama Playing for Keeps were a bit shit but that said, this little Aussie Footballers Wives-esque show was scandalously steamy enough to keep me coming back week after week. A dead football player, cheating, lies, scandals, paparazzi’s and closeted AFL player were just some of the juicy story-lines for Playing’s premiere season.

Sharp Objects – FOXTEL

There’s slow paced television and then there’s HBO’s dark and dreary Sharp Objects that REALLY pushed the limits of just how minimalist with information each episode could be as it propelled itself forward to its conclusion. Thankfully there was ridiculously strong performances from Amy Adams and Patricia Clarkson to make the whole thing work

The X-Files – Network Ten

It took me a while to make my way through all ten episodes of The X-Files‘ eleventh season, not because it was a hard watch, but because there has been just too much to watch this year! That said, season eleven provided some of the best stand alone episodes the show has seen for some time with episodes like Plus One, Rm9sbG93ZXJz and Familiar which showcased the literal best of The X-Files and the unusual and frankly…oddball cases they investigate.

Greys Anatomy – 7Flix

Seriously, season fifteen has been all about Levi Schmitt (Jake Borelli) and his journey of self discovery that is leading him to a sweet romance with ortho doc Nico Kim (Alex Landi). The whole thing, including Borelli is just too cute. Plus, Levi’s sun sword speech in the fall finale was like the one single moment this year in television that caused me to bawl like a baby. Uber feels.

Bodyguard – Netflix

‘Edge of your seat’ is the ONLY way to this fantastic terror-drama that follows police officer David Budd (Richard Madden) as he finds himself delving deeper and deeper into a widening web of political drama where bomb threats and assassination attempts become daily fare. You’ll be hooked within the first ten minutes.

Big Mouth – Netflix

Season one was so wonderfully vulgar and downright crude it wasn’t possible for this very adult animated comedy to go any further, then season two dropped. It was just as brash and ridiculous and even more shockingly funny.

Schitt’s Creek – Netlix

It’s virtually impossible to pick one single standout thing from this years season of the hilariously funny creation from stars Eugene and Dan Levy. From Patrick (Noah Reid) serenading David (Dan Levy) with an acoustic version of Simply the Best to Alexis (Annie Francis) reuniting with former bae Ted (Dustin Mulligan) to the weekly hi-jinks Moira (Catherine O’Hara), Johnny (Eugene Levy) and Stevie (Emily Hampshire) would get get into there is always something to laugh at, feel for and literally love.

Killing Eve – SBS

A beautiful, soulless assassin who travels the globe while being hunted down by Sandra Oh?! Count me in! Killing Eve‘s classic cat and mouse tale re-imagined with female leads offered up powerhouse performances from both Sandra Oh as MI5 security agent Eve Polastri and Jodie Comer as restless assassin Villanelle. While Eve slowed a bit in the middle episodes of the season, the tension between Eve and Villanelle is just too good to look past.

Survivor : Champions Vs Contenders (Network Ten) and David Vs Goliath 9GO!

Our very own version of Survivor pitted every day Aussies against a bunch of *mostly* well known Australians which created another great season of the show that was never short of shocks. Survivor Benji however takes the cake for creating two of the most gasp worthy moments – his blindside of Sharn, convincing her to play her idol for herself, resulting in big player Matt Dyson’s exit and, well I only need to say one word – NACHOS.

Meanwhile American Survivor (currently airing as of writing) has brought forth some unlikely big players such as socially awkward robotics scientist Christian and Kentucky based public defender Nick though it was the tribal council that involved publishing CEO Natalie Cole’s exit that has provided one of the most iconic low-key exists in recent Survivor history. “Natalie….can I have your jacket?”

Black Mirror: Netflix

Technically, Black Mirror’s fourth season dropped in 2017 but like two days prior to the new year so i’m placing it in this 2018 list. And once again, the anthology series put forth a selection of mind bending and truly intriguing episodes including the very very very excellent USS Callister, the highly terrifying Metalhead and this season’s answer to the ultimate episode Black Mirror episode San Junipero – Hang The DJ

Honorable Mentions:

The Handmaids Tale (SBS), Insatiable (Netflix), How to Get Away with Murder (7Flix), 911 (Channel 7), Wentworth (Foxtel)

Comedy, FRONT, Stan, Streaming TV, TV

Eveything You Need to Know about the Will & Grace Revival

September 15, 2017 Anthony Farrell 1 Comment

Since the news broke that NBC were two thumbs up for the Will & Grace revival, a slew of information has been streaming out about what to expect when the show returns for a brand new run in late September (Sept 29th on NBC to be precise). From how THAT original finale plays out into this series to who’s back, who’s missing and who’s stopping by I’ve put everything you need to know about the Will & Grace finale into one single fabulous post!

The Revival: Even before a single episode has aired of this new season, NBC have already confirmed the show will be back in 2018 for another 13 episode round. This new season (officially classed as season 9) has already been extended from its originally announced 13 episodes to 16 while at present, season 10 is sitting at 13.

This revival came about thanks to that hilarious election themed mini-reunion episode with NBC taking note of the huge response from fans old and new and went about ordering a 10 episode season revival.

How will the original finale play into this return?: The original finale that aired back in 2006 saw Will (Eric McCormack) and Grace (Debra Messing) parting ways for almost 20 years, with both characters married (Will to Vince played by Bobby Cannavale and Grace to Leo (Harry Connick, Jr) and each couple with a child. The last scenes in that finale saw Will & Grace eventually reunite after their college aged children ended up living across from each other at the campus dorm.

Even though this return will be classed as the show’s 9th season and takes place only 11 years after the finale, the entire dissolution of the friendship and each couples kids will be ‘erased’ from the Will & Grace history. Talking to EW, co-creators Max Mutchnick and David Kohan said ‘When the decision was made to bring the series back, we were like, well, we left them with kids, right?” And if they have children, then it has to be about them being parents, ‘cause presumably it would be a priority in their lives. And if it wasn’t a priority in their lives, then they’re still parents, they’re just bad parents, right? We frankly did not want to see them being either good parents or bad parents. We wanted them to be Will and Grace.”

The Core Cast: The revival will see Will and Grace living together as the two did for the bulk of the series’ run with Jack (Sean Hayes) living across from them and Karen (Megan Mullally) still a rich boozy socialite living in her mansion. Will is still working as a corporate lawyer, Grace remains an interior designer but with a bigger office and working with current day design technology along with ‘assistant’ Karen while Jack, who flitted from ‘acting’ to retail to student nurse to acting teacher during the shows original run will be back in his latter career teaching the ‘Jackting’ method of acting.

The Recurring Cast: Shelley Morrison who played Karen’s long suffering, viper tongued maid Rosario Salazar confirmed she won’t be back for the revival. Morrison has now retired from acting, with the exception of a small appearance in the 2016 Will & Grace political themed mini episode. Rosario won’t be forgotten on ignored with Mutchnick adding “The audience has come to know and love her — as we do — and we’re dealing with her as a character and we’re writing to it very specifically.”

Along with Rosario’s absence, the revival will touch on Grace’s mother Bobbi Adler played by the late Debbie Rynolds.

Confirmed to return are thee integral characters to the Will & Grace history – Harry Connick, Jr as Grace’s husband Leo, Bobby Cannavale as Will’s husband Vince and Minnie Driver as Karen’s British nemesis Lorraine Finster. Noting that the 2006 finale is being wiped, how Leo and Vince fit into this revival is yet to be seen considering Will and Grace will be back living together.

No word yet on Leslie Jordan as Karen’s best friend/enemy number one Beverly Leslie, Blythe Danner as Will’s widowed mother Marilyn Truman or Tom Gallop and Leigh-Allyn Baker as game night friends Rob and Ellen.

Update Sept 18th: Michael Angarano is a confirmation to return having filmed his scenes last week. Angarano played Jack’s son Elliot for 12 episodes during the original run and is currently tapped for a single episode in season 9.

The Guest Stars: From Madonna to Demi Moore, Cher and Britney Spears, the original series run never shied away from nabbing big named stars to appear on the show and this next season won’t be any different with the recent news that Glee’s Jane Lynch, Girls star Andrew Rannells and 2017 Tony Award winner Ben Platt have all signed on to guest star in season 9.

When and how to watch: Will & Grace season 9 begins Thursday September 28th as part of NBC’s must-see-TV lineup at 9/8c in the states while here in Australia, the series begins on Friday the 29th on streaming service STAN

This post will be updated as news comes about for the sew season.

FRONT, TV

Best of 2016: TV Characters

December 12, 2016 Anthony Farrell

Standing out is hard to do in a television land that is as wide and varied as it is today. In most cases, it’s the lead who takes front and center and other times, it’s those side characters who just pull you in and make you love them.

From an actress and a single mother trying to balance work and home life to a brassy best friend who tells it like it is to a family keeping many secrets to an actress blurring the lines between acting and reality, check out my list of the 12 best TV Characters for 2016.

12: Doris (Ali Wong) – American Housewife [New Entry]

Playing on her ‘non threatening Asian diversity’ within the snooty town of Westport, Doris (Ali Wong) has been able to share the dismissive views of best friend Katie (Katy Mixon) while also being able to mingle with the popular green-smoothie-drinking fit moms, who Katie literally hates. Doris has no qualms about pushing her take-no-prisoners, hands on approach to parenting (which involves lots of yelling and eating strange meats in broth) onto Katie’s children.

11: Marcia Clark (Sarah Paulson) – American Crime Story [New Entry]

Finding herself playing in the big league with the OJ Simpson trial, Marcia Clark (Sarah Paulson) found herself facing a giant brick wall right from the go. From her personal dealings of a crumbling marriage and a nasty custody battle to how she dressed and did her hair for court, Clark, it seems was never going to win. Thrust into the public eye, Paulson’s Clark offered up a deeper and thoughtful look into the most talked about woman of the time that was often overlooked for lesser, inessential topics.

10: The Morgans – Home and Away [New Entry]

When Tori Morgan (Penny McNamee) first appeared in Summer Bay as the new doctor, none of us were prepared for the overloaded baggage she was hiding – her and her brothers (James Stewart, Jackson Heywood and Orpheus Pledger) were in witness protection. Their parents killed by top dogs within a drug syndicate, their covers were blown, had no one they could trust and faced having to run again. The Morgans added a major dash of drama to the bay that has been sorely missing since Charlotte’s (Erika Heynatz) murder last year.

9: Darryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) – The Walking Dead [Re-Entry from 2014]

The confident, lone wolf we’ve all come to love has been through the wringer this season on The Walking Dead. His lash out at Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) resulted in the death of good friend Glenn (Steven Yuen) and subsequently saw him taken into Negan’s custody, thrown into an isolation cell and tortured in an attempt to break him. Holding onto the grief and guilt of Glenn’s death is the only thing keeping Darryl sane while being tortured.

8: Lyanna Mormont (Bella Ramsey) – Game of Thrones [New Entry]

The pint sized warrior, the Lady of Bear Island Lyanna Mormont (Bella Ramsey) proved herself to be a formidable leader as she held the cards to back Jon Snow (Kit Harrington) and Sansa Starks’ (Sophie Turner) attack on Ramsey Bolton to reclaim Winterfell. Her blistering speech to the bickering houses of Manderley, Glover and Cerwyn showed that while Jon may have finally killed Ramsey, Lyanna is the one who has become the people’s champ and a force to be reckoned with.

7: Bea Smith (Danielle Cormack) – Wentworth [New Entry]

With all focus this past season on Joan (Pamela Rabe) entering Wentworth as a prisoner, the side story arc to this season featuring the blossoming romance between Bea (Danielle Cormack) and Allie (Kate Jenkinson) showed a more open yet vulnerable side to the prison top dog. While the relationship was used to expose Bea’s weaknesses to both Joan and Kaz (Tammy Macintosh), this relationship ultimately proved to be Bea’s strength, believing Joan had given Allie an overdose, she sacrificed herself to put Joan behind bars for a very long time.

6: Agnes Mary Winstead (Kathy Bates) – American Horror Story: Roanoke [New Entry]

While the premise for this latest season of American Horror Story was fantastic, the second half of the season became a total mess with one shinning mark – that of Agnes Mary Winstead (Kathy Bates) AKA – The Butcher. Agnes’ became a victim of her own sudden rise to fame after My Roanoke Nightmare became a massive television hit and earned herself a Saturn Award best actress nomination. After delving right into the role of The Butcher, Agnes was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, unable to distinguish between fact and fiction and wholly embodied the woman with a penchant for meat cleavers.

5: Jamie Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) – Game of Thrones [New Entry]

Season 6 of GoT was one full of loss for Jamie Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) as he mourned the death of his daughter Myrcella (Nell Tiger Free) and was removed from his position in the Kingsguard by his own son Tommen (Dean-Charles Chapman) who, later on, also died taking his own life after his mother Cersei (Lena Headey) set alight half of Kings Landing. Discovering that the woman he loves was responsible for the act that pushed Tommen to take his own life looks set to push Jamie into darker personal territory as he struggles with alliance next season.

4: Bonnie Winterbottom (Liza Weil) – How to get away with Murder [#8 in 2015]

We’ve seen Bonnie (Liza Weil) fall back into old habits this past season of How to get Away With Murder as she continuously battled with boss Annalise (Viola Davis) over the treatment of Annalise’s former right hand man Frank (Charlie Weber) now on the run after his murderous past was fully revealed. With Laurel (Lauren Velez) and Annalise trying to find Frank, Bonnie took it upon herself to track him down and try and coax him back after discovering he had killed her abusive father leading the two to spend a very intense and revealing night together.

3: Sam Fox (Pamela Adlon) – Better Things [New Entry]

There’s no high glamour or Hollywood high life when it comes to Better Things‘ Sam Fox (Pamela Adlon). She’s not a struggling actress but she’s also not readily recognized on the street by the everyday person. She’s an actress and it’s her job and it’s this level of fame she attains while also a single mother to three girls, all of whom require a bulk of her attention to make it through each and every day, that makes Sam relatable. Woman on the verge…..perhaps. Woman trying to get a minute to have ‘dirty facetime’ with a recent hookup..seems to fit better when describing Sam Fox.

2: Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder) – Stranger Things [New Entry]

Joyce Byers (in a defining comeback role for Winona Ryder) is a single mother, relatively poor and wanting answers regarding her missing son Will (Noah Schnapp). Her less than affluent standing within the small town of Hawkins, Indiana has the locals not believing her son has gone missing, but despite her lack of influence within the town, she challenges each and every person – right up-to the Police Chief.

When she discovers she can communicate with her missing son through lights, Joyce finds a confidence and a voice to believe in what she is doing is actually real despite the constant knock downs from those telling her, her son is dead.

1: Quinn King (Constance Zimmer) – UnReal [#2 in 2015]

Walking into season two of UnReal (and the new season of Everlasting) shouting the motto “MONEY, DICK, POWER!!” and ready to hand over the reigns of Everlasting to Rachel (Shiri Appleby) Quinn (Constance Zimmer) found herself not ready to let go when former boss Chet (Craig Bierko) returned to the fray looking to take control back of ‘his’ show. Quinn’s battle to maintain a hold on the show all came to a head in the fourth episode when she learns her father has died and only able to internalize her pain for a short while, Quinn literally opens the biggest can of whoop-ass ever seen. No one, not even the studio office was saved from her scathing breakdown that saw her literally throw monitors across the room.

But Quinn is a quick one to recover. She’s a smart ballsy woman who has this inane ability to see the knife coming before it hits her back and has a counter-attack already in play by the time that knife is on it’s way down. By the end of the season, Quinn retained control of Everlasting and her Money, Dick, Power relationship with Rachel was as strong as it started out at seasons start.

Comedy, Featured, FRONT, PayTV, Reality TV, Streaming TV, TV

7 Binge Worthy TV Shows: What to Watch When the Olympics Are On

August 3, 2016 Anthony Farrell

broad-city-abbi-jacobson-ilana-glazer — Broad City’s Abbi and Ilana offer a new level of friendship goals.

If you’re like me, your’e dreading the impending barrage of Rio Olympics television coverage and what it will do to the other free-to-air networks. Seven have already announced all of their FTA and digital channels will be non stop Olympics, Channel nine will probably opt for Big Bang Theory repeats and Network Ten…well they’ll do want they want and continue with their standard schedule.

So then we find ourselves aimlessly channel surfing trying to find something to watch in between episodes of The Bachelor Australia hoping to find a gem we’ve not yet seen. This is where the following list of recommended shows to binge during the Rio Olympics will hopefully come in handy.

Schitt’s Creek / Seasons 1 and 2 / Comedy / 2015 –

Now currently on hiatus after two seasons (season three is currently filming) Schitt’s Creek has a familiar premise of the fish out of water scenario where the fish is the ultra wealthy Rose family and the water being an unscrupulous business manager that left them with nothing but a small middle of nowhere town (and the Roses new home) named Schitts Creek that Rose patriarch Johnny (Eugene Levy) purchased as a gag gift for his son David (Daniel Levy). Forced to forgo all their luxuries, the Rose’s must endure life as they never knew it until Johnny is able to sell the town to nab back some much needed dollars.

Why you should binge: Comedy legends Eugene Levy and Catherine O’Hara back on screen together for starters! Plus it’s funny, heart warming and very ship-worthy, you’ll fall in love with “is he or isn’t he” David and his spoiled sister Alexis (Annie Murphy) will either make you uber jealous or scratch your head in wonderment.

the-jinx-1 — Robert Durst, star of The Jinx

The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst / Season 1 / Documentary / 2015

With the popularity of Making a Murder being so overwhelming, many people might be looking for something just as absurd and something just as intriguing. The Jinx delves into the mystery surrounding the 1982 disappearance of Durst’s first wife Kathy along with the murder of his best friend Susan Berman and neighbor Morris Black. The six part documentary series is told from Durst’s point of view and you’ll be left gobsmacked when things start to unravel and truth’s start to come out.

Why you should binge: It’s like the opposite of Making a Murderer where we all (for the most part) assume Steven Avery’s innocence but are left fuming at the US justice system but here, Dursts’ guilt is obvious right from the go but the police can’t seem to nab him. it’s an incredibly powerful look into how power, money and influence can keep things hidden.

fuller-house-cast-netflix — The Tanner’s are back!

Fuller House / Season 1 / Comedy / 2016 –

Sure there’s some nostalgia that surrounds this updated version of 80’s sitcom Full House that those not yet to watch may think be corny, but in fact, Fuller House is such an easy show to watch, you’ll make your way through all 13 episodes in a breeze. DJ Tanner (Candice Cameron) is back along with younger sister Stephanie (Jodie Sweetin) and best friend Kimmy Gibbler (Andrea Barber) who all join together to live in the house they grew up in. If Carly Rae Jepsen’s updated theme song doesn’t get you, then seeing the return of the old Tanner family (minus the Olsen twins as Michelle) will.

Why you should binge: It’s a very easy show to settle into, doesn’t take itself serious and throws uber shade at the missing Olsen twins plus who didn’t love Full House?! It was staple viewing growing up in the 80’s!

hbo_looking_episode_5_a_l — Richie and Patrick’s relationship take center stage in Looking

Looking / Seasons 1 and 2 + finale movie / Drama / 2015-2016

I’ll be very blunt, the first season of gay themed drama Looking killed me. It frustrated me with its slowness and un-eventfulness but Looking’s slow paced look at the lives of three gay men living in San Francisco is worthy of a binge session. Patrick (Jonathan Groff) has a stable work life but can’t get his romantic life on track, Dom (Murray Bartlett) is trying to clasp onto his youth with younger men and casual work while Augustin (Frankie J Alvarez) is a struggling artist with a drug addiction that’s spiraling out of control.

Why you should binge: It’s probably one of the more honest looks at the daily lives of gay men than we’ve ever seen to date and the acting by the leads – especially Groff – is understated and genuine. Once you move onto season two, the pace picks up nicely from season one and finishes off with the recent Looking: The Movie.

Playing House - Season:pilot — Real life and on-screen best friends Lennon Parham and Jessica St. Clair

Playing House / Seasons 1 and 2 / Comedy / 2014 –

Maggie (Lennon Parham) is heavily pregnant, had just thrown her husband out for cheating and best friend Emma (Jessica St. Clair) ditches her job in Hong Kong to move in and support her. This hilarious look at what best friends will and can do for each other is honest and real and funny. As best friends off screen, Parham and St. Clair bounce off one another with such ease one could be forgiven for forgetting this was a scripted comedy.

Why you should binge: Filled with laughter and outrageous moments, Playing House is just fun to watch. Pure and simple, plus Maggie and Emma’s friendship offers up some major feels that will keep you moving onto the next episode.

012916_The-Staircase — Michael Peterson – cold blooded killer or man of innocence?

The Staircase / Season 1 / Documentary / 2004

Another true crime documentary that falls into the Making a Murderer and the above mentioned The Jinx category where you can’t stop at just one episode. Offering up two main themes – The investigation into a very complicated murder and the defense and prosecution teams who are trying to construct winning cases, The Staircase is told from the viewpoint of worried widow/cold blooded killer Michael Peterson, and details the case around his late wife who was found at the bottom of their family home staircase in a pool of blood.

Why you should binge: While this 8 part series ends rather abruptly, this case of a woman dead at the bottom of a staircase isn’t as clear cut as it first seems. The family secrets and compelling connections that are revealed as time goes on will only leave you questioning your own mind on Peterson’s guilt or innocence.

Broad City / Seasons 1 to 3 / Comedy / 2014 –

Abbi Abrams (Abbi Jacobson) and Ilana Wexler (Ilana Glazer) are best friends in their 20’s living the high life in NYC. Abbi works in a gym as a cleaner but has hopes of making her way up to personal trainer, Ilana works….well we never really find out what she does but it involves lots of sleeping in the toilet and spinning on her chair. With meaningless jobs, a very short supply of cash and virtually no shame, their day to day experiences lead them down some bizarre and unexpected paths.

Why you should binge: It’s like Girls but funnier, and you don’t want to cause physical harm to any of the characters. Broad City is wildly outrageous, crude and shocking in it’s approach to 20-something life in New York and the friendship between Abbi and Ilana will make you wish you had something similar, but with a more stable love life, professional life and cash flow.

FRONT, TV

Best of 2015 – TV Shows

December 29, 2015 Anthony Farrell

One could say that there is too much TV these days. Between network TV, cable, premium cable and now streaming, the choice is endless for what to watch and when to watch it.

This, of course, makes trying to pick 12 shows that stood out among the rest an almost impossible task. That said, of the myriad of ‘best of’ lists floating around, this one doesn’t contain Mad Men, Fargo or The Americans…all of which are worthy shows, but not for me.

Check out MY picks for the 12 best shows of 2015.

12: Orphan Black Season Three

From male clones to Dyad, neolutionists to Topside, there’s a whole lot of heck going on in Orphan Black. But….when you sit back and really take in what is actually happening and to whom and why, Orphan Black becomes a very clear cut twisted cat and mouse game of survival.

While some of the steam that pushed season one and two has gone, season three’s closer involving Sarah (Tatiana Maslany) connecting with original clone, Kendall Malone (Alison Steadman) finally placed all the puzzle pieces together.

11: Scream Queens Season One

Of the two serial-killer-on-campus shows that graced our screens this year FOX’s Scream Queens basically shit all over MTV’s Scream. Put it down to creator Ryan Murphy’s knack of being able to mix witty humor and dark gore, some sharp writing that created some of the nastiest characters to ever come to life and the casting of Emma Roberts and perennial scream queen Jamie-Lee Curtis in lead roles.

The red devil killer mystery was even hidden well enough to keep most viewers guessing until the final surprising reveal which gave Lea Michelle one of the best monologues to spew out this year.

10: Grace and Frankie Season One

There was always going to be a whiff of interest floating around Grace and Frankie when it dropped on Netflix earlier this year – legends Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin playing two ‘frenemies’ forced to put aside their personality and lifestyle differences to unite in the face of their crumbling marriages.

While the uptight wasp and the free thinking hippy aren’t major acting stretches for Fonda and Tomlin, watching the two actresses bounce off one another when sharing a scene is when the magic really happens.

9: Code Black Season One

We all love a good medical drama don’t we? From ER to Chicago Hope, Private Practice to Grey’s Anatomy, the medical drama is a staple on network TV but none have ever been presented to us in such an unglamorous kind of way that Code Black does. The gritty and hurried life within Angels Memorial Hospital in L.A features blood soaked floors, swamped ER’s and not a single sexual relationship between doctors.

It’s a fresh change for the genre that has been swamped with doctors thinking the emergency room is the swimming pool from Melrose Place.

Our damaged-doctor-with-a-tragic-past, Dr. Leanne Rorish (Marcia Gay Harden) doesn’t overplay her past tragedy but will use it when rules need to be bent in order to save a life.

8: Pretty Little Liars Season 5

Over 5 seasons of waiting, we finally got the answer to the question of who is Big A. This bitchy, gossip girl-esque baddie who hides under masks and black hoodies was revealed to be none other than CeCe Drake (Vanessa Ray). Most were surprised, some were annoyed, I was just finally happy to have an answer.

Snaps to the team behind the scenes for keeping such a massive secret hidden until reveal day.

7: Wentworth Season Three

Pamela Rabe’s deranged Governor Ferguson continued to be an absolute cracker for this prison drama’s third season and that’s no easy task when paired with an incredible female driven cast. Danielle Cormack’s Bea Smith took a back seat to allow Frankie’s (Nicole da Silva) emerging relationship with prison psychologist Bridget (Libby Tanner) to take center stage and a battle for baby Joshua revealed just how cray cray Jess (Georgia Chara) really is.

6: Looking Season Two

Even though Looking has officially been canned by HBO, it’s second season showed that no matter how bad your opener was, there’s always a chance to go up – and Looking did just that. Introducing Patrick (Jonathan Groff) into a messed up love triangle that involved his boss Kevin (Russell Tovey) and his ex boyfriend Ritchie (Raul Castillo) and pairing Agustin (Frankie J. Alvarez) with HIV Positive Eddie (Daniel Franzese) allowed Looking to have more of a dramatic edge than the realistic one they were aiming for in season one.

Shame the show was eventually cancelled but at least 2016 will see a Looking feature on HBO that will give fans the closure desperately needed.

5: Playing House Season Two

I’ve expressed my love for this show on many occasions (see here and here) and the love for this show and it’s stars is utterly deserved. Just like Fonda and Tomlin in Grace and Frankie, Playing House is at it’s brightest when leads Lennon Parham and Jessica St. Clair are allowed to vibe off each other – whether that being making bird houses or breaking into houses or sneaking into Kenny Loggin’s dressing room.

BFF’s have never been portrayed so true or so funny!

P.S – Can we please have a season three?!

4: How to get Away with Murder Season Two

Was it possible for Shonda Rhimes’ powerhouse HTGAWM to reach the same highs as season one? The answer was a resounding YES! Starting off with main player Annalise Keating (Viola Davis) lying in a pool of blood, season two jumped back in time giving us a ‘whodunit’ vibe – the complete opposite of season one’s main feature.

And while it seemed everyone including the neighbors dog wanted to put a bullet into Annalise, her past lies and cover-ups revolving around Rebecca’s (Katie Findlay) murder ultimately saw her number one student Wes (Alfred Enoch) pull the trigger.

3: Cougar Town Season Six

Awwww, my Cul-De-Sac Crew! A bitter sweet end to my favorite comedy for the past five years, Cougar Town never really got the love it deserved and that’s just down to it’s silly title. Cougar Town’s final season though continued to be incredibly funny and grounded in it’s roots of family and friendship and even with the absence of Bobby Cobb (Brian Van Holt), the final season remained strong and true to itself.

2: UnReal Season One

What’s this? A Lifetime show sitting at number two?! You betcha! When shit’s this good you gotta respect it. Constance Zimmer and Shiri Appleby, a take on the Bachelor TV franchise, sex, suicide, drama, back-stabbing, lies, tears, moral corruptness…there was a lot packed into this first season but thanks to the strength of the writing and the leads of Zimmer and Appleby, UnReal never felt…farcical or over-the-top yet had the ability to deliciously keep us glued.

Plus the way our feelings were toyed with….we love Rachel, we hate Quinn, we love Quinn, we hate Rachel…it was as if we were puppets just like the women competing on Everlasting. UnReal is a true testament to Lifetime’s ability to actually support quality programming that NEEDS to be watched.

1: Homeland Season Five

If Homeland has shown us anything, it’s that yes, you can kill off your main character, remove any trace of his family (mostly) and still maintain one hell of a show. Granted, the killing off of Brody was so two seasons ago though the show never really felt any backlash from it and continues to grace us with incredible seasons such as the current fifth season. While Carrie (Claire Danes) had moved on from the CIA, she’s never far away from trouble or a murder hit-list and with Saul (Mandy Patinkin) fighting for leadership and recognition while trying to recover stolen CIA documents, it’s the story line involving former Berlin Station Chief Allison Carr (Miranda Otto) and her secretly working with the Russians (for copious amount of dollars) that’s really pushed this season along.

Watching veterans Carrie and Saul traverse around the quick thinking and villainous Allsion while she was always a step ahead has been a pure highlight though her death, while imminent, seemed cheap.

TV, Wentworth

New Faces Revealed for Wentworth’s Fourth Season

October 8, 2015 Anthony Farrell

Recently announced via Wentworth’s facebook page, two new and quite familiar faces have been confirmed to join the cast for the Aussie prison drama’s eagerly aniticpated fourth season.

Coming to season four is Corrections Officer Jake Stewart who is played by Bernard Curry, whom we know as Caleb’s sketchy father Jamie Doyle in Pretty Little Liars and as Principal George Turner on MTV’s Faking It and Kate Jenkinson, better known as bitchy Kendall Quinn from Super Fun Night and as Kate Reid (Patrick’s sister) from Offspring. Jenkinson will be playing new inmate Allie Novak – there’s a typo in the official image above!

No word as yet on how each will be introduced or how they’ll play into the new season and we’re only speculating and secretly hopeful (thanks to this posts header image) that both Frankie Doyle (Nicole da Silva) and Bridget Westfall (Libby Tanner) will be returning after last being seen driving off into the sunset at the end of season three.

Wentworth returns to Australian screens in 2016 on SoHo.

Scream Queens, TV

Series Review: Scream Queens

September 23, 2015 Anthony Farrell

Emma Roberts as Kappa Kappa Tau leader Chanel No.1. Source: Network 10 — Emma Roberts as Kappa Kappa Tau leader Chanel No.1. Source: Steve Dietl/Network 10

When you hear the name ‘Ryan Murphy’ and it’s attached to a new project, viewers these days tend to lean towards one of two ways – either the Glee side or the American Horror Story side. Both brought to us by the mind of Murphy and so vastly different in their approach but so alike in their delivery and cult standing, it’s hard not to wonder which way Murphy’s newest project, Scream Queens was going to end up.

Oddly enough, even I had trouble placing this slasher series…ending up somewhere between Glee but closer towards AHS. While sharing more than a few Murphy project-related faces, Scream Queens takes it’s shine to a more comedic gross out presentation so think Glee with no singing and AHS with fewer tense and dark dramatic moments.

So what’s to expect with Scream Queens? Well the series opens in a flashback to 1995 at a kicking party at Kappa Kappa Tau where “Don’t go chasing waterfalls….” is on blast, alcohol is flowing, there’s lots of long blonde hair…and a co-ed mysteriously dies…..after giving birth. Cut to present time and Kappa Kappa Tau has turned into Clueless on Mean Girl steroids where head sorority sister Chanel No.1 (Emma Roberts) has such a standing within the sorority (basically she’s a right mean bitch) that she has three mini-me minions who have all shed their birth names in favor of being named Chanel No.2, Chanel No.3 and Chanel No.5 (apparently no one knows what happened to Chanel No.4)

Chanel No.1’s life plans are in play but things take a nasty turn when sorority hating Dean Cathy Munsch (Jamie-Lee Curtis) shows up (she enforces Chanel to open up Kappa Kappa Tau to the entire community “even fatties”) and someone in a crisp red devil mask starts killing off those close to her and her sorority.

Of course, Scream Queens will be likened to MTV’s recent (and not so good) Scream series but fear not, the two are not alike. While they may share a masked killer and a victim-of-the-week familiarity, Scream Queens isn’t aiming for emotional deaths, instead optiong to invest you in the bloodshed, and compared to it’s namesake, Scream Queens offers a lot of it…like bucket loads. Not for the squeamish is an appropriate tagline one would assume after seeing the first two episodes.

Between awkward politically incorrect exchanges between sorority sister and maid, standardized stereotyping, pop culture bitchiness and floods of blood, Scream Queens opens itself to be a true entry into redefining what slasher entertainment used to be.

Starring Emma Roberts, Jamie-Lee Curtis, Ariana Grande, Nick Jonas, Lea Michelle, Abigail Breslin, Billie Lourd and Skyler Samuels.

Scream Queens premiere’s tonight, Network 10 at 9:15pm with the second episode airing directly after at 10:20pm on Eleven which will be the show’s permanent home.

Playing House, TV

Playing House Makes my Heart Smile (and needs a third season)

September 10, 2015 Anthony Farrell

PLAYING HOUSE -- Season:2 -- Pictured: (l-r) Lennon Parham as Maggie Caruso, Tatum Conte as Charlotte Caruso, Jessica St. Clair as Emma Crawford -- (Photo by: Robyn Von Swank/USA Network) — PLAYING HOUSE — Season:2 — Pictured: (l-r) Lennon Parham as Maggie Caruso, Tatum Conte as Charlotte Caruso, Jessica St. Clair as Emma Crawford — (Photo by: Robyn Von Swank/USA Network)

Earlier this year, I said goodbye to a group of old friends. They lived in a cul-de-sac, drank lots of wine and made me laugh for 6 seasons, that show, of course was Cougar Town. It was (and still is) my go-to show when I needed a pick-me-up or just felt like checking in with the gang. Looking forward, in need of a new connection, and something else to treasure and join my ‘go-to’ club, I recently re-ignited my love with USA’s original comedy, Playing House. It started last week with a weekend long re-binge of season one and ended today after a week long binge with the finale of season two – and me screaming “you did not just end it there!” (and wanting to be besties with Maggie and Emma and/or Lennon and Jessica.)

The heart warming (seriously, this show makes my heart smile) laugh out loud comedy about two best friends coming together to support each other, showcases the perfect comedic talents of it’s leads in Lennon Parham and Jessica St. Clair and also offers probably the most realistic look at everyday life between two life-long best friends.

I want in on that friendship!

Now, that season two cliffhanger between former-lovers-about-to-possibly-reunite – Emma (St. Clair) and Mark (Keegan-Michael Key) is just begging to be explored and us, the fans, are begging USA to let this tale be told! We’re in the danger zone (Kenny Loggins reference required) and we’re all giddy-up with the possibility of Mark and Emma reuniting – even if it means Mark’s ex-wife Bird Bones (Lindsay Sloane) is permanently taken away from us to which I will accept that fate even though I LOVE BIRD BONES!

So, if a third season was to happen, here’s some notes about what I would like. Please take this as my personal recommendations that are obviously shared by the entire PH fanbase….

*MORE THAN 8 EPISODES! Seriously, in this case, eight is not enough! 8 weeks out of 52 per year is not enough of Maggie and Emma…especially when you binge watch and discover you’ve pretty much just spent a long weekend with them and as PH is joining my ‘go-to’ club, I want to be able to finish gorging my box of Oreos before the season is done with in one sitting!

*The most virile man to ever roam Pinebrook – Bosephus – MUST make another comeback! The fact that Kenny Loggin’s roadies were smitten should be enough fodder to bring Bose back plus we all know Maggie stashed that kicker trucker cap somewhere safe!

*More Zach Woods! We didn’t get enough of Zach this past season and we’re only just beginning to crack the surface of this odd egg Emma calls her brother.

*Bring back Jeanine Willcall or bring back Stephnie Weir! First off, Jeanine Willcall is like the best name ever (right up there with Hotwives of Orlando’s Veronica Von Vandervon) and Stephnie Weir is just plain old funny as fuck. WE LOVE STEPHNIE!

*Give Maggie some more lovin’! Those body rolls and jealous making dance moves need more time off the dance floor and more time in the bedroom!

It was almost six months from Playing House’s season one finale before we were blessed with the announcement of a second season – here’s hoping that (a) the show is renewed (a must) and (b) it’s not 6 months before we get this news!

Fingers crossed

TV, Winners and Losers

Familiar Faces Return to 7’s Winners and Losers

August 23, 2015 Anthony Farrell 1 Comment

Winners and Losers' Katherine Hicks and Jacob Holt — Winners and Losers’ Katherine Hicks and Jacob Holt. Source: supplied

Ok, first off, what’s up with channel 7 pushing the double episodes of Winners and Losers on a Tuesday night? While i’m never one to scoff at a double dose of our Melbourne gals, it is starting to get some fans worried that episodes are just being pushed out so as to finish the show earlier than anticipated.

Well fear not as these double episodes look set to have ended as series four (yes, we’re still in the second half of the season!) draws to a close with the last of the double episodes gone and done with and the final three season four episodes being aired as singles cutting a fresh start for the shows fifth season. It’s a smart move as these last three episodes deserve to be on their own, especially with the amount that’s packed into each one!

While the Carla (Sibylla Budd) and Izzy (Laura Gordon) story line moves to more tepid ground with Izzy making a return from time out in Sydney and Carla learning to deal with the almost kiss between Izzy and Doug (Tom Wren), it’s the fractured friendship between Sophie (Melanie Vallejo) and Frances (Virginia Gay) that continues to dominate everyone’s lives and sets the course for a rekindled relationship for Frances and a possible overseas move for Sophie.

Though it’s not all dark and gloom, with Jenny (Melissa Berglund) and Gabe’s (Nick Russell) upcoming nuptials, which see’s the return of not one, not two but three familiar faces, one of which is the long awaited return of Gross family matriarch Trish Gross (Denise Scott) who has been off in Denmark with Deidre Gross. The other two faces you’ll have to watch to see!

Surprise returns, dream jobs, a wedding, a rekindled relationship, a move back the country – there’s a lot happening in the next few weeks of Winners and Losers!

Winners and Losers airs Tuesday nights, 8:30pm on Channel 7

ANTM, Foxtel, TV

ANTM Cycle 22 is Full of Crowns, Boobs and Blokes.

August 19, 2015 Anthony Farrell

To be fair, I, for the life of me, cannot remember the last cycle of America’s Next Top Model that I actually watched. I’m pretty sure the cycle number was in single digits, Twiggy/Janice Dickinson/Paulina Porizkova along with Miss Jay’s were judges, Mr. Jay was dealing with photoshoots and Nigel Barker was there too. I don’t know why I stopped watching, but it might have something to do with the shows constant failure to actually produce a next top model (unlike our Aussie version – Aussie Aussie Aussie!) So there, in my email sat the first two episodes for cycle 22 and I reluctantly pressed play…

So, to my shock horror, it turns out, Cycle 22 is waaaaaay different from the last thing I remember watching. I don’t know how long this change has been in effect ( I could Google but really….) but silver haired Mr.Jay is gone, no haired Nigel Barker is gone and what’s this? There’s men now in this competition?!

Men?!

Men?! — Alright, who broke Bello’s crown?!

For the most part in cycle 22, there are men, and then there are those more determined to discover what happened to their crown…(just saying). So on the topic of men, it turns out a bloke won cycle 21 (who knew?) which is making these new bitches even more ~~douchier~~ thirstier than ever before to take home their very own ANTM crown, plus a NEXT Model Management contract, an editorial in Nylon magazine and a $100,000 deal with Zappos (here’s their site in case you have no clue like me)

If one thing is still the same, it’s the varied range of ~~crazy~~ models that end up on this show…some of which are of course purposely kept to get under our skin.

Of the ‘men’, there’s Devon who is an unusual creature and claims to be signed to “six agencies” at the time of his casting to the show…

There’s shy Mickey who relies on his hair and literally jumps into testosterone filled puberty by episode two..

There’s also Bryant…but i’ll let the following GIF do the talking about him –

Among the girls this cycle is Ava, your token Jesus lovin’, bible fearing gal

There’s Hadassah, a pageant girl looking to make the move into modelling cause’ she’s not here to make friends..

and we already got to meet Alexa and her twins right at the beginning of this post.

To say I was getting more of a ‘MTV’s REAL WORLD’ vibe from this show would be an understatement.

So the problem with me and these kinds of shows it that while I originally might be less than enthusiastic to watch, when I do, I become very invested, and very quickly and I always tend to root for the one that’s always in the background or the one that somehow manages to get to fifth place or the one where you ask ‘whats her name again?’ or “is she still even in the show?” like Gage, below, who has literally 20 seconds of screen time by end of episode 2 and who i’m pretty sure is still in the show…

Zac Effron anyone? btw – this is all anyone see’s of Gage after two episodes…

You have to give it to Tyra and her model search empire though. 22 cycles in and this show, just like Tyra, is showing no signs of ageing or slowing down.

America’s Next Top Model Cycle 22 begins Thursday night, August 20th, 7:30pm on FOX8.

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