Dollhouse
Buffy and Firefly creator Joss Whedon has always had a thing for butt-kicking women with flawless complexions. His latest offering is Dollhouse – a blend of The Stepford Wives and Charlie’s Angels – and he’s cast one of his favourite actresses as the lead, Eliza Dushku. She stars as Caroline, code name Echo, a former student and now inhabitant of The Dollhouse – a weird organisation in LA offering wealthy clients an experience beyond their wildest dreams. 'Actives', including Eliza's Echo, have had their minds wiped and imprinted with totally new memories, experiences and desires, turning them into anything the client desires, from their dream date to a highly trained assassin. However, Echo has traces of her old personality left behind and the arc of the story is her struggle to work out who she is and what identity means. Meanwhile, her handler, a former FBI agent, battles with his guilt. OK, so it’s basically a slightly twisted thriller with a froth of moral debate, but then some of the best satire-lite uses the same template.
By Stephen Armstrong
Small Island
If you’ve read Andrea Levy’s award winning novel, Small Island, you might think it’s not an obvious choice for a prime time TV drama. It takes 1940s Jamaica and London during the Blitz and stirs in themes of empire, love, passion and prejudice, then boils it all up with complex and beautifully drawn characters. The BBC has done Levy proud. For a start, the cast is beyond compare, including British A-listers Naomie Harris and David Oyelowo as well as TV stalwarts Benedict Cumberbatch and Ashley Walters. Writers of the screenplay Paula Milne and Sarah Williams have drawn out the book’s essence, whilst director John Alexander splashed out on Caribbean locations and hundreds of extras. At heart, however, it’s the gentle story of Jamaican couple Gilbert and Hortense (Oyelowo and Harris) that makes this so heartbreaking and uplifting. The young idealistic lovers, who served Britain in World War Two, hope to build a happy life in London’s rain drenched streets but find baffling hostility countered with random acts of kindness. One to watch.
By Stephen Armstrong
Hung
OK, the premise of this new comedy drama from HBO is a little odd. It’s about a guy who’s hung. As in, um, has a sizeable manhood. But, as you couldn’t spin a 12-part series out with that one-note joke, it gradually develops into a warm, sexy comedy about what women want. Thomas Jane (left) plays lead Ray Drecker, a former high school hero who hits his 30s having lost his job, his home and his family. His old school almost-sweetheart Tanya (Jane Adams) talks him into a little gigolo work, using his assets as a revenue earner. Adams is hilarious as a hippie chick trying to make it as a lady-pimp and Ray learns over the course of the series that it's listening that counts. This first episode is the darkest of the bunch – setting up his lonely jumping-off point – with more jokes coming as the series goes on.
By Stephen Armstrong
True Blood
Yes, it’s a show about a blonde and vampires. No, it’s not Buffy. From Six Feet Under creator Alan Ball, this sensual piece of Southern Gothic is based on the Sookie Stackhouse series by American author Charlaine Harris. About the life of a Louisiana barmaid after vampires come out of the closet, it's been a huge hit in the US for HBO and is already airing here in the UK on FX. But, if you missed the start, don't worry, season one begins on Channel 4 this week. Sookie is played by fast-rising talent Anna Paquin – if you haven't read ELLE's interview with the star in the October issue grab a copy while you still can – is a virgin who falls for British actor Stephen Moyer’s brooding bloodsucker. The sexual references are intentional and the resulting mix of erotic tension, horror and comedy makes this TV well worth staying in for.
True Blood is released on BLU-RAY and DVD by HBO on 26 October 2009
By Stephen Armstrong
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FlashForward
Channel Five has been missing out on the great US shows recently, but FlashForward is a return to form. The 13-episode ABC drama could almost be a British show starring, as it does, Joseph Fiennes, Jack Davenport, Dominic Monaghan, Alex Kingston and Sonya Walger. Lost fans will notice the healthy cast crossover, and there’s a similar high concept feel to the show. The story starts with everyone on the planet – for reasons not yet explained – simultaneously blacking out and having a vision of their life in six months time. Some are with different partners, some are homeless drunks, and some are even dead. Episode one is a little rushed as it tries to take in this strange happening across the entire world, but it settles down towards the end focusing on poor Fiennes who discovers his wife will leave him. As the season progresses, expect plenty of emotion to keep you hooked, as the ensemble cast try to deal with their revelations in various ways.
By Stephen Armstrong
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