Television reviews – Page 8

“Tokyo Vice”–Yakuza on Ice

Written by Diana Paul on June 13, 2022. Posted in Television reviews. No Comments on “Tokyo Vice”–Yakuza on Ice

Tokyo Vice, adapted from the titular 2009 memoir, by Jake Adelstein, retells and also fictionalizes the experience Adelstein had as a 20-something American expatriate determined to be a reporter for the largest Japanese newspaper. The first episode details Jake’s (Ansel Elgort of “Baby Driver” and “West Side Story) obsession to pass the competitive entrance exam for one of the prestigious internships at Meicho newspaper. Hired in 1999 into a newsroom with strict rules of journalistic procedures Jake fights the beaucratic...

“Anatomy of a Scandal”–Autopsy of Privilege

Written by Diana Paul on June 6, 2022. Posted in Television reviews. 1 Comment on “Anatomy of a Scandal”–Autopsy of Privilege

Anatomy of a Scandal, a Netflix thriller mini-series created by David E. Kelley and Melissa Gibson, is based on Sarah Vaughan’s novel by the same name. Released on April 15, 2022, Anatomy of a Scandal takes the viewer into familiar territory: the “he said, she said” of a rape trial involving an illustrious and powerful political figure. Handsome and elegant British MP James Whitehouse (Rupert Friend) is a scion of the illustrious and aristocratic Whitehouse family. “Being a Whitehouse means you never lose,” his young son...

“Dead To Me”: A Balancing Act

Written by Diana Paul on May 15, 2022. Posted in Television reviews, Unhealed Wound. 1 Comment on “Dead To Me”: A Balancing Act

Guest reviewer: David A. Kennedy, horticulturalist and author of the thriller, RICOCHET Mortality, deceit, redemption – these are bread-and-butter themes for the storyteller. Add a little meat to them bones, and you might have something special. Netflix’s Dead To Me (two seasons with the third coming this fall.) attempts that balancing act, and as a comedy-drama, no less. And, for the most part, it succeeds quite well. In the pilot episode, Jen (Christine Applegate) meets Judy (Linda Cardellini) at a group bereavement meeting. Jen recently lost husband Ted in a hit-and-run...

“The Gilded Age”—Greed and Betrayal

Written by Diana Paul on March 29, 2022. Posted in Television reviews. 1 Comment on “The Gilded Age”—Greed and Betrayal

The Gilded Age (2022), created and produced by Julian Fellowes (of Downton Abbey fame) opens in 1882 in a small town in Pennsylvania. The penniless but “pedigreed” young Marian Brook (newcomer Louisa Jacobson has little recourse but to move to New York to live with her wealthy Aunt Agnes van Rhijn (Christine Baranski) and her Aunt Ada (Cynthia Nixon). A young aspiring Black writer, Peggy Scott (Denée Benton), lends money to Marian for a train ticket to New York and their unlikely friendship begins. Across the street lives a spectacularly wealthier family,...

Line of Duty—A Killer of a Murder Mystery

Written by Diana Paul on March 21, 2022. Posted in Television reviews. 1 Comment on Line of Duty—A Killer of a Murder Mystery

Line of Duty (2012-2021), a multiple-award winning BBC police procedural, is a gripping crime drama like no other, with a shocking death in episode one, series one (2012), the catalyst for all six seasons which build upon it. This is a killer of a murder mystery. Line of Duty is BBC’s most popular series outperforming both “Dr. Who” and “Downton Abbey.” Detective Sergeant Steve Arnott (Martin Compston) is transferred from the anti-terrorism unit to the internal affairs unit charged with uncovering police corruption—AC(=Anti-Corruption)-12. ...

“The Last Kingdom”—The Final Battle?

Written by Diana Paul on March 15, 2022. Posted in Television reviews. 1 Comment on “The Last Kingdom”—The Final Battle?

This Netlix-distributed series (see my December 27, 2021 review of the first four seasons), ends with the fifth and final season, just released on March 9, 2022. The series is based on Bernard Cornwell’s first ten novels of the thirteen novels in the Saxon Stories series , There is no question of its popularity. The Last Kingdom almost crashed the servers streaming the fifth season. The last season finds Uhtred prepared to retake his homeland fortress and lands, Bebbanburg, Uhtred has dedicated twenty years of his life to leading...