As soon as I did so, my vegetative state took on a new guise as one rapt, transfixed by what I saw: glossy visuals, beautiful shots and clever mise-en-scene, stellar acting and a script on a level with Aaron Sorkin’s best work.

Set in early 60’s America amongst an elite community of advertising executives, the show explores politics, socioeconomic issues, sexism and ethnicity with apparent aplomb and proves what a hellish world the office workplace could be for women at the time, unprotected by the sexual harassment laws of today.

Admittedly this is all based on the first episode alone, but this is the first intelligent, high-quality series since ‘The Wire’ that I’ve got really excited about.

Co-created by an ex-Police reporter David Simon, HBO’s crime series ‘The Wire’ (set on the streets of Baltimore, Maryland) boasts a multi-layered narrative framework and an excellent ensemble cast, including British actors Dominic West as Det. Jimmy McNulty and soon-to-be-huge-star Idris Elba as the charismatic Stringer Bell (who in fact was tipped to be a future choice for James Bond in the G2 section of The Guardian a few months back). Not only does the show feature standout realist performances from each and every actor, but the show is brimming with a richness and depth not seen on the small screen in a long time. This may be due to the fact that the show is based on the real-life experiences of both of the show’s co-creators, Ed Burns (a former homicide detective) and the aforementioned David Simon – however, I feel the show’s potency is more than somewhat linked with what it expects from its audience. In comparison with other high-profile television drama such as ‘ER’ which presents the audience with a short recap of footage from previous episodes (“previously on <insert drama series here>…”), not once in its 5 seasons does ‘The Wire’ offer its audience a chance to refresh their memories.

It expects us to keep up with the complex and multi-layered plot strands and character arcs, and if we can’t, well tough. As odd and demanding as this sounds (and even damn right incongruous to the way we approach serialised television), this apparent expectation is certainly to the show’s credit. ‘The Wire’ knows it is an intelligent piece of drama, and therefore expects a certain intelligence and amount of concentration from those who choose to watch it.

Another area that the show excels in is the depth of its characters. Initial viewings may prove difficult, in that the sheer number of characters is slightly overwhelming, but after a couple of episodes it becomes easier to identify character from character and to understand the complex plot. But not only are the plots and narrative strands rich and multifaceted, the character development seen in ‘The Wire’ is next to none. In comparison with various other crime television franchises employing a black-and-white moral environment where the police are the upstanding heroes and the criminals are the ruthless villains, ‘The Wire’ refuses to subscribe to this outdated and essentially preposterous view. Instead, the show deploys a striking vision of moral ambiguity in the presentation of the citizens of Baltimore. In place of valiant and noble police we have a rag-tag group of officers, each with their own approach to their work (which often seems to serve only themselves) – leading to corruption and egotism throughout the force. On the street, the drug dealers and gang members are not the evil blackguards that other media has led us to expect; they often display more integrity and decency than the cops pursuing them. It must be said however, that the show is primarily male focused, which is a definite problem. Arguably the show features Sonja Sohn as Det. Kima Greggs as a key member of the police team, but really this does not make up for a distinct lack of female characters.

As acting goes, performances featured in ‘The Wire’ are second to none. British actor Dominic West (seen recently in ‘Breaking the Mould’ for BBC4 and ‘The Devil’s Whore’ on Channel 4) is excellent as Det. Jimmy McNulty, as are Clarke Peters and Wendell Pierce as Lester Freamon and Bunk Moreland respectively. The only major detraction in terms of the actors’ performances is that the language used by those portraying characters from the ‘street’ tends to be esoteric real slang and dialect specific to the Baltimore area – as a result it is sometimes difficult to understand just what it is they are saying. Therefore it is sometimes useful to watch the show with subtitles on so you can catch every word and keep up with what is undoubtedly one of the best, most sophisticated and engaging television dramas ever made.

Review of British television show ‘Gavin and Stacey’ first published in a January 2009 issue of Spark*, the newspaper of Reading University Students’ Union.

“Oh?! What’s occurring?!?” asks Nessa, arguably the best conceived character of the plethora of offbeat personalities in BBC Three’s Gavin and Stacey. And what exactly is occurring with the show is something short of magical. Gavin is a boy from Billericay, Essex. Stacey is a girl from Barry, South Wales. Together they are the glue that holds together two very different social worlds that collide when Gavin and Stacey’s phone-call romance blossoms into relationship that “stretches across two nations”.

To make a comment on the plot of Gavin and Stacey would give away each series finale, and also it is unquestionably difficult for one reason: nothing much happens (although this is more true of the second series than the first). And surprisingly, this lack of major set-piece event is what makes the show truly inspired. To generate such witty and at times very poignant drama from admittedly day-to-day goings on, like Pam (Gavin’s mum) sending Mick (Gavin’s dad) to Tesco in search of vegetarian food.

Having said this, the sitcom certainly has its share of hilarious and comical situations, but the mileage from it really comes from the characters. Mathew Horne as Gavin and Joanna Page as Stacey are both excellent, giving convincing, sympathetic and wonderfully endearing performances. Despite them being the respective hero and heroine, it is other characters that steal the show – namely Bryn, Nessa and Smithy.

Rob Brydon is on top form as Stacey’s Uncle Bryn, an eccentric who gets very very excited about small things like his new sat-nav or digital camera, “It’s got sepia… although I think it’s faulty because it just makes everything look brown…” The aforementioned Nessa, Stacey’s best friend (played to perfection by the show’s co-writer Ruth Jones) is a wonderful creation, with such a colourful past that it is sometimes hard to keep up with her hilarious back-story. A few gems in Nessa’s past include: dating both Mohammed Al Fayed and Dodi Fayed, being one of the original members of All Saints, travelling the world on a cruise ship and working as a drug smuggler. Fellow co-writer James Corden plays Smithy (Gavin’s best mate) with aplomb, juxtaposing perfect comic timing with genuine pathos.

Gavin and Stacey is a genuinely heart-warming show which is both very sweet (but never overly sentimental) and utterly believable. The dialogue is uncompromisingly real, with none of the stagey sitcom writing seen in shows of lesser calibre, where everything is delivered with awful self-conscious smugness. Although not included in the series 1 and 2 set, the Christmas Special shown in December 2009 was an absolute joy, delivering yet more fresh, witty and wonderful Gavin and Stacey goodness. It’s enough to make you fancy a “tidy” omelette. Fabulous.

Rating: MMMMM

Review of the first season of hit US television show ‘The West Wing’, article first published in October 2008 issue of Spark*, the newspaper of Reading University Students’ Union.

If you thought ‘political drama’ was the veiled attempt at a Labour party leadership bid, or the exhaustive BBC coverage of the Labour party conference, think again. Despite it being almost straight-jacketed into the aforementioned genre label, The West Wing is far removed from those dull notions. Poignant, thought provoking, thoroughly engaging and often hilarious, this is drama at its best. It just happens to be political.

The show’s pilot episode, ‘Premiere’ sets the tone, atmosphere and verbal pace for the rest of the series – and it is this, the verbal exchange that is the jewel in the crown of The West Wing. Aaron Sorkin’s whipcrack dialogue and clever verbal sparring fires from the mouths of his exceptional characters, making for witty repartee rarely seen on primetime television: “the President, while riding a bicycle on vacation in Jacksonhall came to a sudden arboreal stop” – how White House Chief of Staff Leo McGarry (the superb late John Spencer, who in fact sadly died during filming of season 7) describes how the President rode his bike into a tree. Although at times the lines are hard to keep pace with and the policy acronyms too copious (‘POTUS’, ‘DEA’, ‘DNC’, ‘ATWA’ etc), these are minor drawbacks in the face of such compelling viewing.

The primary reason for the show being so compelling (razor sharp dialogue aside)?  The characters. Each one, from aide Charlie Young (Dulé Hill), through to Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman (Bradley Whitford) is exceedingly well cast, bringing humour, pathos and genuine humanity to the screen. Richard Schiff as Communications Director Toby Ziegler shines particularly in the episode ‘In Excelsis Deo’ where a winter coat he gave to charity leads him to organising a funeral for a homeless Korean War veteran. Even the supporting roles (Mrs Landingham, Admiral Fitzwallace) are played to perfection. And with the ‘Leader of the Free World’ himself, President Josiah Bartlet being so well portrayed, US citizens could indeed be forgiven for exclaiming “don’t blame me, I voted for Martin Sheen!”

Unafraid to tackle controversial issues (and matters which still hold sway in Presidential election campaigns), The West Wing pulls no punches. Early in the series, members of the religious right meet with staffers in an attempt to procure an apology for an on-air insult (“Lady, the God you pray to is too busy getting indicted for tax fraud”), and consequently enter into a bargain exchange for a crackdown on pornography, condoms in schools (they say it like it’s a bad thing!) and the implementation of school prayer. Unluckily for the representatives of ‘The Lambs of God’, they don’t get too far:

Reverend: “If children can buy pornography on any street corner for $5, isn’t that too high a price to pay for free speech?”

President Bartlet: “No. On the other hand, I do think that $5 is too high a price to pay for pornography”.

Pure genius. Accused by some for being too liberal (causing the show to be dubbed “The Left Wing”) and criticised for glorifying all things American, you can see how the tone might grate after a while. But with drama this good, you’re too engaged to care!

Rating: MMMMM