i joked a few weeks back that since i have nothing else going on in my life, things were going to be quieter around here, unless you wanted to hear about what shows i'm currently watching. well, murphy's law saw to it that the day that post was published, two travel opps hit my inbox, as well as screener passwords to check out the newest shows on the new sky witness channel, as well as a whole bunch of you messaging me to say that actually, you'd read just about anything i wrote here - especially if it was about what i was watching, so i thought i'd give the people what they want. so here you are: these are the shows keeping me busy right now...
the affair
this was a show i'd overlooked for months before finally biting the bullet and starting it, just about a month ago, and within a few episodes i was hooked. it's a great watch in that the story is told from multiple characters' perspectives throughout the series, so you never really know which version of the story is the truth, and which isn't. it's obviously about an affair, that's not a spoiler - the hint is in the name. but beyond the initial affair, the story lines that flow off the back of it are what keeps the story going. i mean, there are four seasons. you can hardly expect the secret to last that long, right? season two got a little dull (will he ever finish that book?!) around the middle, but three and four are fast paced and full of twists and turns, so stay put for those. i finished all four seasons in under a month - so it's a solid 8/10 from me. you can find it on sky/now tv!
9-1-1
on paper, this show has everything i want in a new crime drama: a diverse and new cast, individual story lines that are brought together by an overarching one, and multiple perspectives of how emergencies are dealt with (in america), and so i was gagggggged to receive screener logins for the first five episodes from sky witness. i binged all five in one go, because i wanted to get a proper sense for it and one episode is never enough. it's not a slow burner - the drama hits straight away, but some of the characters are hard to really understand. five episodes in, and the acting was truly obvious, and it irks me when i watch crime drama and am forced to remember i am watching crime drama. the story follows a 911 operator through calls she's taking, but through the eyes of the first responders; it's cool if you like that sort of stuff. i do, but i also like good acting, so 6/10 for this one.
s.wa.t.
confession time: the film s.w.a.t is one of my guilty pleasures. i could watch it everyday and never get bored. ll cool j and colin farrell and jeremy rinner and michelle rodriguez and samuel l jackson? what more could you want?! anyway, that film's pretty old, but the other day i was scrolling now tv and you'll never guess what i found: a damn tv show with the same name, featuring shemar moore of criminal minds fame, and zero other noticable faces. i spent the first episode trying to figure out who's who as far as the film goes, and i'm pretty sure shemar moore plays the character samuel jackson plays - which is weird as he's old in the film, but.. other than that, it was so fucking rad that at the end of episode one i actually sat up in my bed, laughed out loud, and shook my head muttering "oh america" under my breath to no-one at all. for real, if insane and unnecessary police antics are your thing then you'll love this 10/10 show - trust me.
for the people
this is another one i was lucky enough to get a screener pass for, and so far i've only seen a few episodes. from the get go it's really quite good, as the story follows a new batch of public defenders and public prosecutors in one of new york's federal courts. it's a biiiiit like suits, but the public defenders not the high-flying lawyers in that world. this group of lawyers often line up against each other in cases they're all trying to win, and it's interesting to see how defenders defend clients they sometimes don't even believe are innocent. but then again, there's a difference between innocent and not guilty, right? this is less about the retelling of the crime, and more the defending of them (wordy and clever and whatnot), but it's still pretty good. it's got that little girl who plays sophia in girl boss, but playing an adult, so if you can get past that, it's pretty good. again, only a few eps in, but really liking it. solid 7/10 from me!
power
this was a recommendation from my trainer about a year ago, and i caught up on the first four seasons last year and impatiently waited for the new series to drop. which it did, about two months ago. series five was a slow burner, after the season finale last season, but it's picking back up again. it's the story of a rich and powerful drug dealer-turned money launderer and his family, and the "alternative lifestyle" he leads behind closed nightclub doors. it's pretty heavy of swears and murders and gang bangs, being set between queens and brooklyn, and has a really decent soundtrack - thanks in part to mr. fiddy cent who is a series regular and executive producer, and who also wrote and performed the opening song. big fan of dirty hip hop films and shows (you seen "straight outta compton?" honestly, a great film 11/10 would watch again and again), so this is right up there. it's an 8/10 for sure.
my favourite murder
this not a show, it's a podcast, and it's literally the only thing in my ears lately. it's two semi-well-known american valley girls who sit down for an hour and talk about murders. child murders, serial killers, violent attacks and unsolved crimes, and it's awesome. they also talk shit for a good quarter of each episode, in "bits" they call "house keeping" and "correction corner" and other such nonsense, because - unlike most podcasts, there's little research that go into this one. it's literally two mates, sitting in someone's lounge room, telling each other what their favourite murder is. and, for someone like me who regularly falls down wikipedia black holes on cold cases and serial killers and cult crimes, it is riiiiight up my alley. there are hundreds of episodes, thankfully, and i'm only into the high thirties, so there's no fear of me running out any time soon. if i could sit and listen to these two chat about murder all day, i would. 10/10 great listening guaranteed.
so there you go. there are all the reasons i don't have a life, and probably why i've cancelled on you in the last few months. when i'm committed to a show, i'm committed until the end. these are how i practise relationshipping.. which is totally normal. now tell me, what are you watching?
