Top Ten TV Shows 2017

It's that time of year again. Not going to lie, I haven't seen as much TV this year as I would have liked to and some shows that had the potential to be on this list haven't all been caught up with yet. So here are the top ten shows I've had time to watch this year. Read on and enjoy.

10. Silicon Valley (Season 4)

Silicon Valley goes from strength to strength each season, the comedy is unlike anything else on TV at the moment. It has some brilliant people involved and I love how the storyline and characters evolve each season with new and hilarious scenarios. 

9. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 4)

After Iron Fist, The Defenders and Inhumans it might have seemed like Marvel had a bad year with TV but their original series Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. has been the gift that keeps on giving. Each third of the season had it's own great storyline, each better than the last, creating some very powerful moments for the team that loyal viewers have grown to love. I haven't caught up with the latest episodes yet but I am very much looking forward to!

8. Girls (Season 6)

In it's final season, Girls, subverted expectations like it always has. The characters are (slowly) starting to grow up and were all given a great send off, even if some of them were less showy than expected. I have loved this show from the beginning and although it's had its ups and downs, I am sad to see it go. 

7. Jane the Virgin (Season 3 & 4)

This result may have some recency biased as I have only just binge watched the two and bit seasons of this show. My girlfriend introduced me to it and I was unsure as to whether I would enjoy it or not but to be honest, I absolutely love it! I've never seen a show more comfortable with what it is and it is a joy to watch. 

6. Game of Thrones (Season 7)

The end is near for Game of Thrones and you can definitely feel the show speeding towards closure in the penultimate season. There was a lot of great stuff going on this season even if some elements did feel rushed. It's still unclear as to whether we'll see the end in 2018 or 2019 but either way, I'm excited to see how this epic closes. 

5. The Expanse (Season 2)

After a slow start with season one, The Expanse started to find its stride in season two. The characters feel like family now, the stakes are starting to stack up and the story has kicked into gear. It's great to see how faithful the show still is to the source material and if they continue doing so we'll be in for one hell of a season three.

4. Stranger Things (Season 2)

After a near perfect first season, I was a little worried that Stranger Things 2 might not have been able to recreate the magic. Thankfully I was wrong and this season brought back our favourite characters, developing them further and even bringing about new and hilarious duos. I love these characters and I can't wait to see what they get them to do next.

3. Halt and Catch Fire (Season 4)

2017 also saw us say goodbye to what I consider one of the best TV shows this decade, Halt and Catch Fire. Not a lot of people caught this one and once again I urge everyone to seek it out, it has some of the best characters created for television and each one of them was given closure in powerful and emotion ways. You really should have been watching this one.

2. The Handmaid's Tale (Season 1)

As the year got very political, so did the media content that was produced. It's probably just a coincidence that The Handmaid's Tale seemed to represent the Trump future we're all worried about, especially since it's based off of a book written in the 80's. This show was not just a brilliant and gripping story but it was also a great jumping point to kick off discussion about society in the present. And Elisabeth Moss is awesome.

1. American Gods (Season 1)

I was worried when I heard that American Gods was going to be adapted into a TV show, the book is crazy and I was unclear how it would translate to the medium. Well, it translates very well indeed with the series staying very faithful to the book as well as expanding upon even more ideas, giving fans of the book and newcomers both a sense of originality. It's unlike anything I've ever seen on TV before and it takes some very crazy and incredible turns as well as being a visual delight. I'm interested to see whether it can carry on the ultra high quality storytelling in the second season because it has unfortunately lost its show runners, hopefully it will top my list next year as well.

That's all for TV shows this year, be sure to check back soon for my top ten list of films. 

Thanks for reading!

Top Ten TV Shows 2016

It's that time of year again when everybody likes to put everything into lists! And while I'm desperately catching up on as many 2016 films that working in a toy store in December will let me, for now here is my top ten favourite TV shows of 2016. Read on and enjoy.

10. Black Mirror (Season 3)

After a long wait Black Mirror is back and now on one of the best content creators out there; Netflix. The show got a bit more American-ised this year but that didn't stop it from doing what it does best; telling great creepy stories about the dangers and ethics of technology. Every episode is worth the watch.

9. Transparent (Season 3)

This show has been at the top of my list for the last couple years but having it at number nine does not mean this show took a bad turn, but instead highlights the quality of shows we got this year. Now yes, this wasn't my favourite season but it was still able to keep me hooked on the emotional journeys of its well developed characters, and of course brought a few tears to my eyes along the way.

8. Preacher (Season 1) 

I fell in love with the weird and wonderful nature of this show. I'd never read the comic so I didn't really know what to expect from this show. It was really creative with it's approach, darkly funny and featured some of my favourite moments and lines of the year. I can't wait to see what they do next in this world they've created.

7. Togetherness (Season 2)

It was a sad year for Togetherness as the show was cancelled on HBO. Why didn't you watch this one people!? It was brilliant, a great drama with great relationships and some exceptional performances from its leads. Its send off was bitter sweet but didn't leave any threads hanging, it was almost as if the Duplass brothers knew this was the end. Catch up with it if you can.

6. Orange is the New Black (Season 4)

After last season left a lot to be desired, this year it really felt like Orange is the New Black was back. This was possibly even it's best season yet, with many interesting story lines and lots of emotional heartbreak along the way. More of this please. 

5. Game of Thrones (Season 6)

Every year I fear that Game of Thrones might have run its course and have bad season. This year they proved me wrong yet again with one of their best yet. They really know how to make quality shows over at HBO and considering this is very much taking a detour from the books now, its good to see it standing on its own two feet and presenting some of the best TV of the year.

4. Westworld (Season 1)

What's HBO without Game of Thrones I hear you ask? Well HBO is now also this. One of the only shows to increase its audiences every week. That takes some doing. Westworld is one of the best new TV shows of the year and man oh man is it good. So good that it feels like a part of TV pop culture history all ready. By the end of episode one it was the watercooler show of the year with anybody and everybody giving their two cents about what on earth was going on. This is seriously good TV people, if you haven't seen it you're a fool.

3. House of Cards (Season 4)

This was Beau Willimon's final season as showrunner and what a send off it was. For me this show has gotten better and better every season and this did not halt that feeling. There are so many great moments and scenes woven into an exciting and intriguing story that it really felt like a bit of a conclusion this time round. If this was the end I wouldn't be sad but I still can't wait to see what happens to the Underwood's next, even if they now kind of pale in crazy to the current president elect.

2. Stranger Things (Season 1)

I did not see this one coming. Everybody started raving about this one and I knew I had to watch it. Believe the hype, this one is good, really good. I may not have grown up in the 80's but I have a lot of love for films from that era, I grew up on a lot of them, so my nostalgia was pretty high still when watching this. It's not all nostalgia though, a creative and intriguing story is the heart of this show, it's so good that I don't want them to make a second season in fear that they tarnish the first. Fingers crossed they carry on the top notch quality storytelling.

1. Halt and Catch Fire (Season 3)

I think I may have mentioned this in a previous blog but, who thought the history of computing would make a good TV show drama? Halt and Catch Fire has only gotten better each season and boy oh boy was it good this year, so good in fact that I think it was the best show on TV. They've really developed these characters into interesting and layered people, I tuned in every week just to watch them interact with each other. I can really not fault this show, every episode was outstanding and it ended so strong that it could have been the final episode ever and I would have been more than satisfied. Thankfully though, we've still got more of this great TV show to come. Every actor on this show should be working more. I didn't expect this one at the start of the year to top my list but it really was that good! Start watching it now!

What were your favourite shows of the year? Let me know in the comments below.

Thanks for reading! 

My Game of Thrones Tour

Last month my girlfriend Emma and I took a city break to Belfast. As well as wanting to look around the sights of the city, one of our biggest reasons for going was so we could do a tour of  some of the filming locations for one of our favourite TV shows, Game of Thrones. We booked our tour with Game of Throne Tours, specifically the 'Belfast Winterfell Locations Trek' and come the morning of the tour we were ready to see the sights of Westeros.

Monday morning, 8:45, we arrived at Belfast Top Shop after a quick sausage and egg Mcmuffin to find our tour bus. We waited in a queue along with about thirty other fans before getting our names checked off the register and onto the extremely comfy bus. We're talking soft leather cushioned seats and I was worried I would fall asleep but after we met our tour guide Brian, I knew that wouldn't be the case.

The obligatory 'Start of the Tour Selfie'.

Brian, our tour guide, was/is a glorified Game of Thrones extra, and I say glorified in a good way, not only has he worked on four seasons of the show but he also knows how to use a sword and has been part of some of the stunts and fight choreography as well which leads to him constantly being called back by the casting department. His work on the show meant that he had some brilliant insight into the behind the scenes and his own hilarious anecdotes to keep us entertained as we travelled throughout the tour. Most of all though, you could tell he was one of us, a fan, and like a few of us on the bus, a reader of the books as well. As we were driving through the beautiful Irish countryside I was almost disappointed when Brian took a break to show us some Behind The Scene's videos, I could listen to him talk about Game of Thrones for hours and by the end of the tour I had! It's a credit to his ability has a guide to make this all seem new and fresh even though he had given the same tour loads of times.

Our first stop was non-Game of Thrones related but a chance to pause and take a look at our amazing surroundings. We were to cross the sea (which is also used for The Trident River in the show) by 

ferry from Portaferry to Strangford, from where we would make our way to Winterfell.

One of our views whilst waiting for the ferry.

Back on the bus we took a short trip to Winterfell, also known in real life as the Castle Ward, a great big estate that a lot of the filming for the first season took place.

Castle Ward aka Wintefell.

Now I'm not going to lie, it is hard being there and feeling like you're at Winterfell because it looks so different. The courtyard we're standing in is where they filmed a lot of the introductions to characters like Ned, Jon, Bran, Cat and Arya but it was very covered up by sets to hide some of the more modern architecture. They don't call it movie magic for nothing! The tower that you see in the photo is used many times digitally in the makeup for Winterfell, especially the side facing the courtyard as the opposite had a big clock face on it! Maybe it would have helped if it wasn't so sunny! Throughout the tour Brian had large snapshot images of the show to show us the small details that revealed we weren't having our legs pulled, this was in fact where Game of Thrones was filmed!

The obligatory 'Winterfell Selfie'.

We then began our first 'trek' of the day. Don't be put off by the word trek, it's barely a couple of miles, anyone could do it! Half a mile away we found the basis for the Frey towers, a small tower positioned high above the water, ready for the show's post production magic to enlarge it slightly and copy and paste it onto the other side of the water.

One Frey Tower.

Where the other one should be.

So it ends up looking like this:

Screenshot from the show. Look, same sexy tree!

It was starting to feel more and more real as we went along. Just around the corner from this was another filming location! The seafront where Brienne escorted Jamie in Season 2 and then encountered three women hung on a tree by Stark men.

This is said tree.

Things started to feel a lot more real when Brian showed us the same clip from the show right where it was filmed. This was such a cool aspect and it really brought the surrounding to life. For anybody wondering which scene, go to Season 2 Episode 10, the awesome one where Brienne shoves her sword into a soldiers crotch.

After this we took a closer look at the Frey tower before returning to the bus. We then travelled to a nearby pub called The Cuan which gave us our lovely lunch for the day. As well as supplying us with lovely meals, The Cuan was also one of the places used during season 1 to host many of the cast members and most notably, Sean Bean. They are also famous for hosting one of 12 Game of Thrones doors, a selection of doors made by fallen tree's of the Dark Hedges that have been carved into these amazing pieces of art inspired by the show.

A very cool door.

After lunch Brian had arranged for us to see some very special guests. These special guests were Odin and Thor, two of the dogs used in episode one of Game of Thrones that became the Direwolves, Summer and Grey Wind.

Couldn't tell you which one this was but... I stroked a Direwolf!

The owners of the dogs were also there and were telling us how their lives had been changed by Game of Thrones and how they had all been involved in the show now, appearing as extras and even getting their  boat used by Jon Snow as his escape from Hardhome in season 5! We were fortunate enough to get a picture with one of the guys who was seen as a Dothraki Slavemaster in the show.

#BeardGoals

When we were finally pulled away from the Direwolves, we made our way to Inch Abbey a castle ruin used in Game of Thrones to camp Robb Stark and be the stage for the iconic scene where he was declared King of the North. 

Inch Abbey

Again, we were able to watch the scene right where it was filmed and it felt even more real this time, because now we were dressed up...

A couple of loons...

That's right, the tour provided everybody with a cloak and a handful of replica swords were available for us to use and act like idiots with. This was great fun and everybody got involved, it really did feel like you were part of the Game of Thrones world, the weather wasn't as sunny now so that helped as well! I even got to attempt a Jon Snow impression...

I know nothing.

After spending our time at Inch Abbey we took another drive to Tollymore, a massive garden estate that homed quite a few scenes from season 1 of the show. The first location we went to was the campsite that Jon and Tyrion set up on their way to the wall. Jon took a seat on a tree stump, and once the tour began to move on, I knew this was my chance to touch Jon's wood!

'What do I know?' I wondered...

Once fully satisfied with Jon's wood, we made our way to the next location, which is thought to be a pit created by a meteor and also a the setting for some White Walker Wildling art. You may remember it from the very first opening scene of the show's run.

The show.

Real life.

Brian also let us know how most of the first episodes budget was blown on fake snow in order to give the scene it's chilly opening feel. It's crazy how far the producers will go to make the show feel authentic!

Next we came to our final two locations of the tour, the bridge where the Stark's found a dead stag, only to find that underneath the bridge was a dead Direwolf and its newly born pups. The crazy thing was, was that this was only 100 metres away from the last location, the show really makes the most of the space it finds and the production values truly make it look like these are two completely different forests on different sides of the wall. 

Where the dead stag was found.

Where the Direwolf pups were found.

This was the final stop in out tour and from here we were taken back to Belfast city centre, on the way we were treated to a sing-a-long of the show's theme tune followed by a screening of the pilot episode, which allowed us all to point at the screen and say 'been there'.

I really enjoyed this trip, as a fan it was great to see some of the amazing places the show decided to film, as a tourist it was brilliant to go out and see some of the Irish countryside, which was truly beautiful and I now know why they call it 'the emerald isle'. At £40 a ticket I thought that we really got our moneys worth and more, it was a great day out and I think the whole group had a great laugh, thanks to our brilliant tour guide Brian and our driver Dennis.

I highly recommend this experience to any Game of Thrones fan, and if you're not one then at least you can enjoy the countryside!

Thanks for reading!

Group shot!

My Top 10 TV Shows of 2015

It's coming to the end of the year which means it's time for top ten lists. Lets start with my favourite TV shows of the year, where this time round Game of Thrones is not number one, read on to find out what is...

10. Jessica Jones (Season 1)

The second of Netflix's Marvel TV shows to come out this year and once again proving that Marvel has some of the most interesting roster of characters at their disposal. Many people had not heard of Jessica Jones, unless they had read the brilliant Alias comic book series by Brian Michael Bendis, the show has now changed this and have made yet another unknown character a household name. The show itself stayed true to the tone and style of the comic book and did an amazing job of bringing a darker side of the Marvel universe to the big screen. The big bad played by David Tennant absolutely stole the show and had you yearning for him in every scene. There were parts of the show that I felt went over the top nearer the end but it still held its own over the Marvel films we saw this year.

9. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 2/3)

When this show first aired I never thought it would get as good as it has gotten right now. Season 2 showed a dramatic improvement over its last season and then the third went and blew the lid off with every episode we have seen so far being damn near perfect. Now that we love and know the characters it is a lot easier to get emotionally invested and the show has played on this aspect a lot this season. We have had shocking twists, turns and revelations which I hope continue into the next half. Marvel have turned this piece of coal into a diamond and I can't wait to see more!

8. Togetherness (Season 1)

I absolutely love the Duplass brothers films and was very excited to hear they were making a show with HBO. They did not disappoint. Like their films they gave us a show full of very real characters embarking on some very true to life problems. It featured some amazing performances and a bitter sweet ending that gave me the chills and has had me clambering for more ever since. Thankfully we won't have to wait too much longer as the show returns in February! If you want to read more about my love for the show and its directors take a look at the feature I wrote about them for WOWii here.
7. The Last Man on Earth (Season 1/2)

I have loved Will Forte since his hilarious film Macgruber.  I have loved directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller since their brilliant 21 Jump Street reboot. When I heard the three were making a new and original comedy TV show together that was serialised unlike many others of its kind, I had to watch it. If you haven't seen it yet then I don't want to spoil anything for you as the show literally changes from episode to episode, It's about the last man on earth and it is really funny. Go watch it now and catch up on all the goodness!
6. Halt and Catch Fire (Season 2)

Ever since one of the showrunners did a skype Q&A at my University I have been watching his brilliant show, Halt and Catch Fire. I am so glad I have been able to as well because Season 2 built newer and better things on top of its first season. The show changed its style a bit but still brought a brilliant point of view to the computing world in the 80's as well as some interesting and original characters to the small screen. The show also features some amazing actors that you will definitely be seeing a lot more of in the future if their performances in this show are anything to go by.
5. Bloodline (Season 1) 

Netflix are quickly becoming a TV show powerhouse and Bloodline is no exception in their original show line up. I came to this one later than most but was completely blown away by the incredible cinematography and superb performances, particularly from one of my new favourite actors Ben Mendelsohn. The story plays like a storm, slowly brewing and drawing ever nearer to its explosive climax. It will be interesting to see where they go next with these characters as this season felt like its own self contained thing. I for one won't mind returning to see where this troublesome family goes next.

4. House of Cards (Season 3)

This is the season of House of Cards we have been waiting for. Francis Underwood is now President, lets see what he can do. The show packs a punch with its twists and turns, it features a brilliant and scarily realistic social commentary on our relations with Russia, but the most powerful storyline here is the underlying tension of the presidents relationship with his first lady, played by the true star of the show, Robin Wright. It took me a weekend to finish and I have been dying for more ever since.
3. Game of Thrones (Season 5)

Just because Game of Thrones isn't number one this year doesn't mean that the show is failing. In fact it created a brilliant season that stands up to its name but didn't quite peak what had gone before. It was an interesting season for book readers like myself because we were finally going past certain points in the book and some storylines were being completely changed. I for one am happy with the changes and know that not everything from books is easily adaptable for TV. The next season will be the big test for the show as we finally go into the dark and book readers and non-book readers will have no idea what will be coming next...
2. Transparent (Season 2)

At the start of this year I finally got around to watching the critically acclaimed first season of the show Transparent. I was blown away by it, not only is it brilliant looking and extremely well performed, it also pushes the boundaries on topics we have rarely seen addressed on TV before. I like that it never strives to be likeable or happy or play into audiences expectations, if anything it's truly quite a sad show about people trying to discover themselves. Season 2 pushes this further and even though it has only just come out, as soon as I finished it, it went straight to number two on the list. This is the kind of material I would love to write one day, oh and it has Jay Duplass in it, did I mention I love the Duplass brothers?
1. Daredevil (Season 1)

The first of Netflix's Marvel TV shows to debut and it debuted with an absolute bang. It stayed close to its source material but also allowed itself to be its own thing. The cast were perfectly chosen and embodied the characters like none had before, It was the start of a darker side to the Marvel universe and also allowed for more realistic and grounded story telling in a world of Avengers and alien invasions. Daredevil defied all expectations and to me was the best thing Marvel Studios has made so far. Charlie Cox's Matt Murdock/Daredevil and Vincent D'Onofrio's Kingpin stood out among the amazing action, cinematography and story telling. A true masterpiece of a TV show that I haven't stopped thinking about since I finished it. If you haven't seen this yet then go watch it now because if you don't you are truly missing out. Its also the only show that had me so excited I wrote a review on it, which you can read here.

Honourable mention goes towards The Flash whose final few episodes of Season 1 had me crying like a baby. I was sad to see it go unnoticed in the list so I had to give it some kind of shout out. I also want to mention that I have yet to see the second seasons of Fargo and The Leftovers both of which I loved last year and I hope I will again, I will catch up on them soon! And one last thing, a show which has just started on SyFy called The Expanse,based on the books of a same name which I have read, is shaping up to be all kinds of awesome, so go give it a watch!

Do you agree with my list? What were your favourite shows of 2015? Let me know in the comments below.

Thanks for reading!