Category Archives: Television

HBO Max, Scuttling Content and the Waste of the Streaming War

Posted on August 5, 2022 by Sam Sewell-Peterson

This week the completely dumbfounding news emerged that HBO Max has cancelled two upcoming films that had already been completed; Adil and Bilall’s BATGIRL and animated sequel SCOOB: HOLIDAY HAUNT. It’s not unheard of for studios to pull the plug … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Comment, Television | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Review: The Clone Wars: Season 7 (2020)

Posted on May 9, 2020 by Sam Sewell-Peterson

Going forward, Star Wars movies should be more like Star Wars TV. Whereas the movies have largely become overly self-conscious and uninspired, recently THE MANDALORIAN and especially THE CLONE WARS have shown us how character-driven storytelling in a galaxy far, … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Review, Television | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Review in Brief: El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie (2019)

Posted on October 16, 2019 by Sam Sewell-Peterson

EL CAMINO is a decent epilogue to BREAKING BAD, but is far from the essential viewing its forbear was. Essentially Vince Gilligan has crafted an indulgently extended episode that ties up what few loose ends remained from the rise and … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Review, Television | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Chernobyl: Audience Adulation vs Critical Consenus

Posted on July 5, 2019 by Sam Sewell-Peterson

According to the IMDb, HBO/Sky’s miniseries CHERNOBYL is now the most critically acclaimed TV show of all time. It’s in all the trailers now: “9.6/10”. This does not matter. I’m not one of those “who cares what the critics think?” … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Review, Television | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Review: Good Omens (2019)

Posted on June 16, 2019 by Sam Sewell-Peterson

GOOD OMENS has been a Biblically long time coming. Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman seemed to have given up after years of false starts at adapting their 1990 fantasy novel but Pratchett’s terminal illness and Gaiman’s promise to him finally … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Review, Television | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

TV Review in Brief: American Gods Season 1 (2017)

Posted on July 6, 2017 by Sam Sewell-Peterson

The Brian Fuller-fronted adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s neo-fantasy epic AMERICAN GODS for me is a great take on this material. It vividly recreates many of the weird and wonderful moments from the first stretch of the book, but the series’ … Continue reading →

Posted in Film Review, Television | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

12 for Twelve: The Best of the Twelfth Doctor

Posted on July 4, 2017 by Sam Sewell-Peterson

Series 10 may well be the best DOCTOR WHO series finale of the revived series. It’s certainly one of the darkest stories in the show’s history and a high point for writer Steven Moffat. Now Peter Capaldi’s time as the … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Feature, Television | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Review: Legion: Season 1 (2017)

Posted on April 5, 2017 by Sam Sewell-Peterson

LEGION is bonkers and brilliant. If you were ever disappointed that Chris Claremont’s more out-there comic book stories weren’t adapted into the movies, look no further than this TV show to correct that. Although they still don’t go to space, … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Review, Television | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Review: The Crown – Season 1 (2016)

Posted on February 5, 2017 by Sam Sewell-Peterson

THE CROWN was by far and away my television highlight of 2016. Following the first decade of Queen Elizabeth II’s long reign, it boasts stately performances, sumptuous production design and an intimate examination of real people in a unique situation. … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Review, Television | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Ash vs: or, why Living Dead has already left Walking Dead behind 

Posted on November 3, 2016 by Sam Sewell-Peterson

In 83 episodes over 6 seasons, THE WALKING DEAD has captivated audiences the world over with grim character work, creeping dread and excessive zombie killing. I am no longer one of those captivated – the pilot was great and there … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Feature, Television | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment