So they've been showing MERLIN again on the BBC. My brother said about it that 'it's not quite as bad as being punched in the face'. Now see, I have to question that particular statement, since it relies on whether or not you're just being punched in the face that one time, or repeatedly throughout the run-length of each episode. Because if it's the first one, I'll take that.
Merlin is the kind of television that makes you question just why you're watching it, while at the same time wondering when the next episode is on. It's really, really, really bad... but I still want to watch the next one. It kind of makes you wonder why people like Anthony Head and Richard Wilson actually do it... except that at the end of the day a job's a job and a paycheck is a paycheck.
Just one point about stupidity that I noticed in the second episode of it, however (entitled Valient and guest starring WHITE VAN MAN and TWO PINTS OF LAGER AND A PACKET OF CRISPS' Will Mellor). Why on earth would you get a magical shield that has the ability to make snakes shoot forwards from it and bite people? Especially to use it in a tournament that's gonna be watched by a king that hates all magic and has made this publically known? Seeing as how it's a bit difficult to hide three magical big-ass snakes... argh... it's just not very well thought through, is it? But then it does stuff like making Mordred's first appearance actually interesting.
And it's got John Hurt in it. Or at least his wonderful, wonderful voice. Oh well, when's the next one up?
JONATHAN CREEK
(Continued)
I don't want to be one of these people who constantly says 'it was better back in the old days', but I can tell you that in terms of the Creek, it was definately better before Maddie left. Carla as a replacement assistant was much more irritating that Maddy with a whole new method of calling Jonathan daft that just didn't really work. Despite being played by the sumptuously gorgeous Julia Sawahla, I never really got on with the character of Carla, especially since it involved dragging Adrien Edmonson around, and I'm pretty sure that he had better things to be doing with his time (like being on the dole).
The series took a decidedly darker note with all the serial killing and illegal immigration that became the focus of several episodes, as well as the brutal revenge murders in Carla's first Christmas special. I can't say as I enjoyed this later stuff as much as I did the more classic Creek, but it's hard to fault the continuity since every single episode of this series has been written by the same pen, that of David Renwick, the creator of the show. I've said this before, but perhaps having a different perspective sometimes may help smooth things along in terms of viewpoint. I've said that before and I'm sure I'll say it again.
With Carla as the assistant, the show lasted only one more season, which was split into two parts of three episodes each. A number of specials followed, with Carla no longer appearing and replaced with Joey (played by TWO PINTS' Sheridan Smith). So far Joey's only been in two specials and both of them suffer from what every Creek special has suffered from, they're just too long, too overly complicated and too elaborate to draw the interest in. The Judas Tree in particular needed a hell of a lot of editing and altering, but didn't recieve it, not even the guest starring of Paul McGann could save it.
The Judas Tree was back in Easter 2010 and I don't really expect to see the series resurface, especially since it was five years in between Carla and Joey's stints. I don't hold great hopes for the future of the series, if there even is one.
Well, that ended on a downer, didn't it?
Next time I talk about: Actually I don't know.
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