Happy viewing

Today I am boring and can't be bothered to describe birthday celebrations (not mine, but good fun), or upcoming plans (film festival, gigs, dinners, parties). I haven't watched the news in days, so no astute or enlightening commentary available from me. I also won't admit that I spent all of glorious Sunday's weather sitting in trying very hard not to finish Season Four Battlestar Galactica (which is as good as if not better than the Wire. Oh yeah. Now you're interested.) I've also neglected to install my rather run-of-the-mill picture editing software, so I still haven't done anything to this really boring layout. Oops.

But, instead, my views on new-ish TV:

After three episodes I'm happy to confirm for you all that Breaking Bad (currently showing on FX) is fantastic and you should all be watching it. Yes, I know it doesn't look sleek and glamorous. Or even uber-gritty. In fact, yes, it conveys all the dry and dusty drudgery of middle-class white New Mexico suburbia. You may also have noticed that it follows the continuing adventures of (fanfare) a middle-aged high school Chemistry teacher called Walter. Played by the Malcolm-in-the-Middle dad. Did I mention Walter also has terminal lung cancer? Sexy starting point, huh? Well, as soon as our teacher decides that he might as well start using his skills to make crystal meth (better than all the other amateurs in town), it gets well...think Falling Down rumbling rage, with a dose of Very Bad Things calamity, and a smidgen of American Beauty frustration and wit. Or maybe, just think about one of those nights we all get once in a while when things just keep getting worse and you have only yourself to blame. If you really appreciate a show that will take the time and energy to portray a hastening descent into chaos of one man with a jet-black sense of humour (episode three opens with the two main characters wrapped up in marigolds and aprons cleaning the floor. Oh wait, they're cleaning up the quasi-liquified remains of a meth-dealer. Which fell through the ceiling when the bath of acid ate through itself. Because someone didn't pay attention in chemistry class), then please tune in. It only promises to get better as episode three introduces flashbacks of vibrant, passionate Walter in his younger days, juxtaposed with his current grim and sober choices of his middle-aged dying self, to fabulous effect. The acting is great, the script is fantastic, and hey you'll learn stuff about Chemistry. And that “coin-flip is sacred!”

John Adams is sweeping us along nicely. The contrast of Adams' blundering attempts at diplomacy in the European political arena, with the rallying passion and defiance that shaped the Declaration of Independence in last week's episode is well played. After watching Adams' rising influence over previous episodes we share his discomfort with suddenly being sidelined from the action. The sense of family sacrifice reaches a well-developed climax.

I read about Eli Stone a while back : Johnny Lee Miller stars as a lawyer with visions. Sans dancing babies, but still with singing popstars. Just more saving-the-world (but not in a pending-apocalypse Dead Zone way). Okay, so yes it's a bit like a Boston Legal/Ally McBeal/Medium mega-mix just with the classic Sci-fi elements thrown in (sidekick with sagely words and advice on the new 'powers', the need for secrecy and the awkward/guess-it's-just-geeky-me-Clark-Kent moments that come when that secrecy is threatened). But despite the slightly annoying presence of Victor Garber playing his usual authority figure, and the question mark over whether a girl who looks like Natasha Henstridge would every really go out with a guy who looks like Johnny Lee Miller (with slicked down hair, and an undeniable geeky air despite his former 'hot shot' status), I like it. Yes I know I like a lot of crap that ends up on Sci-Fi. But this seems very self-aware of it's own clichés, it's got a good pace, and some surprisingly sharp lines and good banter among all the fluff (Episode 3's discussion of how Eli's car had been towed, continued to note that he called it the 'Millennium Falcon' and always made the appropriate 'zooming' noises as he changes lanes. Shamelessly referential, and I like it). I'll keep watching, even if some of the 'visions' and subsequent 'oh shit how do I explain my strange behaviour' moments might be worthy on occasion of the Sky+ fast forward.

Tune in next week. Ha. Ha.