Reviews

Not sure why others are rating so highly. There's very little to like about this. 3 intertwining plots; the main plot is basically Peter Pan for adults (yes, it is) and the other two; one just drifts along with no clear connection other than a brief connect at one point; the other starts connected and then goes off on a tangent. The whole thing seems to have been written by someone who hates fairies and magic. Along the way spot characters from Narnia being racially abused, the faeries from NeverLand being exploited, Harry Potters elves get caged up and deported and Studio Ghibli's Howls Moving Castle gets a scene that I don't recall. The demon-monster is a big let down (it's the Crocodile from Peter Pan) and the careful watcher will realise who Pan, Wendy, Tinkerbell, Hook & Smee characters are. Scenes drag dreadfully (with one scene in a hospital/orphanage dragging on forever). On the upside, nice SFX & good performance by Cara (although too little of her character). It seems to be Steampunk.....it seems to be more puffing billy.

I think that some reviews say more about the reviewer! This show is certainly a good watch and highly entertaining and rather more intelligently written and produced than some may have realised. OK, let's deal with the negatives. It is using some known formulas and storylines. You can't help think of Jason Bourne. Jungle book/Tarzan elements are in there and a bit of Frankenstein, amongst others, and many a teen coming of age drama (Sabrina, etc.). Hanna is a Dorothy type character, as can be found in so many other shows (Stranger Things, et Al). There are a few plot line gaps that grate (how does Erik know Hanna is in the hotel at Heathrow?). But overall, the story runs very well, well written, very cleverly paced with some very careful use of light and shade in the plot, which seems to have been misinterpreted by some reviews as a slowing/tiring plot. Be careful, we need those quieter more personal scenes to close with the characters and allow them to build and explain motivation. Anyone who decided to give up at episode 5 will have missed a interesting plot development and a top notch couple of combat scenes in episodes 7 & 8. I can see why some are confused as to whether it's a thriller or a teen drama. It is both. Episode 5 is rated rather low, which sad. It's really quite good and clever. Sympathetic and delicate and thoughtful filming of Hanna & Anton, the opening scenes of Episode 6 are especially poignant and deep. Some US viewers may find this a difficult watch at this point (age of consent differs across nations and let's be honest, eh) and more action motivated viewers may be bored. But, be careful. The intelligent viewer will appreciate the tone and cinematic art and understand the honest debate about awakening sexualities and identity. It's a bit more developed than the usual suggested ways seen in some US shows. The really intelligent and careful viewer may pick up a very, very subtle sub text in the plot in Episode 5 that's been buzzing distantly all the way. cleverly they continue the subtly of this bit of the sub text right to the end. And it's not the slightly evident suggestion regarding lesbian feelings. There's something else hidden here.......! Bear in mind that elements of this story are rooted in actual historic activities of MK ultra and there is a Canadian connection to the original writing of the story... The activities of Dr Cameron come to mind. Is there more to Hanna than mad skills and hinted lesbian feelings?

Watched every episode of all seasons. Think Starsky & Hutch meets Buffy the vampire slayer (just no vampires - anywhere - and Huggy Bear isn't a bear, he's a dog - of some kind). The format is a Detective can see monster forms of people that no-one else can. Each episode features part of a story arc mixed in with that weeks adventure mystery (which may or may not be linked to the story arc). So, the negatives first. The Juliette/Eve character doesn't work. She does, a little, initially. but then she becomes, as a character, quite annoying, for some reason. Then they change her character completely, which is just so weird! S1 & 2 are pretty good. Then something starts to go wrong in S3 and bottoms out in S4. S5 starts to pull it back, S6 gets better, but doesn't get back before S7 kills the franchise. If I was guessing I would say that the budget was getting tight by S3 and the producers were hoping it would trade from it's initial success. There are some elements that just don't work and annoy (can a DC3 really fly around half the world?). And they start to get tight on filming budget in S3 as can be seen by the Royal Castle moving to a FX version!! Also, they do seem to, quite literally, loose the plot! Several times! The Royals are never properly explained and then they just drop that whole story arc in S6 and do something else. And what's with the conveyor belt of Royal Princes? Why do they keep changing?! Finally, the mixture of story arc and episode adventure mystery theme starts to disconnect by S3 and gets really bad in S4. It is possible to skip through the arc linking segments and watch the adventure mystery part without loosing any understanding of that episodes plot! And then you find that the whole thing is just a little too formulaic - and they know it as they start to joke about it! But, the positives...... Actually, the whole idea is really quite good. Lifting Grimms fairy tales and putting them in a modern context. Some of the episodes are very clever with this. The spin on the 3 little pigs is very clever! The episodes are each good little adventures and the early episodes where the lead character can't explain what's happening are especially good. The rocking adventure and thriller of S6 & 7 are different to S1 &2, but really enjoyable. All in all, I actually really enjoyed watching the program and can recommend - just keep your finger on the fast forward button!

OK. There's two ways of looking at this. Is it good Sci-fi and is it a good member of the Star Trek franchise. Answers: no &, er, no. This doesn't really work either way. As a Star Trek spin off there's an awful lot wrong with it. Having not read the previews I ended up being very confused in the first series as to where it actually fits in. And then, when I figured it out, it just didn't seem to make sense. If you look at the supposed chronology of Star Trek, this program seems to be technologically more advanced than the original ST. And Spock seems to be a totally different character than any other version of Spock from movie or TV. At first I thought that this was a piece of completely different Sci-fi that someone had not been able to market without dressing up as a Star Trek sideline. But, then, by S2 I decided that it must be written by desperate Star Trek fans who are thirsty for a new fix of Star Trek and have got so desperate that they'll put up with this. Then, just to please the marginal viewer groups, they've filled the inclusivity holes. Really filled them. With a galatic wheelbarrow! To the point that it actually grates on you as it is so un-subtle. Now I'm not being un-PC here.....it's just too obvious and spoils the show (or rather spoils it even more!). Some people are saying that it works on it's own as a separate piece of Sci-fi and to watch it on that basis. That, to an extent, is true, if you've never watched or read any other Sci-fi! There are some good scenes or segments. But the whole thing just does not work and some parts are largely, well, ridiculous. The mushroom based star drive is absolutely ludicrous! I know that Sci-fi pushes the bounds of imagination. But this is just too much. The story lines are just too far fetched, sometimes they drag, the style jumps around. It makes the whole thing very bizarre. I watched all of S1 & S2 and the vast bulk of S3. But, it was just too bad by then to watch anymore. Really regret the time wasted watching it. 3 stars -1 for the FX, 1 because I feel bad for the low score and 1 for the sheer bravado of the show runners and creative team in getting this signed off!

OK. This is far better than some reviewers are giving credit for. This is, was, a really, really good attempt to bring a Douglas Adams story to life. So, the so-called 'Purists' may not be happy that the book plots have been 'left on the shelf', so-to-speak. But, I think that this may be what Adams intended anyway. The radio stories of Hitch Hikers Guide deviated from the books (or was it the other way), as did TV and film productions. By Adams own hand. And, in this case, I think that DG on TV would have been along the lines that we see here had Adams been involved. The plots are really different to so much else on at the moment as to almost be refreshing. There really isn't anything else quite like it. Insanely funny in places, some seriously dark humour and some genuinely funny laugh out loud moments. Great characters, even among some of the minor characters. A few characters struggle and S2 has a few problems. But not enough to gripe about. The plots are mad and, for those who don't like to think too much, may be a little hard to follow. But that;'s the fun of it. You've got to have a bit of an 'English' sense of humour at times (Monty Python et al), to really get it! But the best part is spotting all the homages, especially to Hitch Hikers! There are A LOT. And it's fun spotting '42' and 'Hoopy Frood' and the odd 'Don't Panic', amongst many others. Got a 'Prisoner' vibe in places and even got a real 'Avengers' feeling. Sadly, though, someone cancelled this show. But, perhaps that was no bad thing. I think that S3 may have been about to take a bad turn and go a little formulaic (not sure about the 'broken universe' thing). Where were we going with that? Getting a bit arc-ish? Best stopped when the going was good. But, think again Aunty Beeb and bring Dirk back.

Perhaps this is a little unfairly underated by others. It is quite amusing and very entertaining. Suspect that some may have been expecting a more Simpsons-like or Futurama-ish programme as it is from the same creators (as they remind us quite a lot). And this may have set expectations. But Simpsons or Futurama it is not. This is it's own thing. Rather like the lead character (perhaps intended?). Never-the-less, there is humour in here, some of it quite dark, with some very good writing. There are a few lower quality episodes. But, even then, they're not that low. Art work is impressive and gets better as the series progresses. S1 does have some Scooby Doo type scenes, but the latter part and S2 are improvements. They also start to develop a novel underlying plot theme which is actually quite enjoyable. You do start to get invested in the characters. There is a lot of fun poking at the entertainment industry in here. And you cannot help feel that the main target of fun is GOT. There's a lot of very silly similarities, along with the worlds of Mr Tolkein and his Hobbits. However, more subtle, I think, is a slightly smiling homage to the world of Ghibli and Japanese Anime. There's a few bits that feel very 'Porco Rosso', 'Cat Returns', 'Spirited Away'. 'Kiki' and 'Howls Moving Castle' (S2 Electric Princess seems to have that kind of vibe, for example). Good fun, most watchable and looking forward to more of the same. A credible 8 score for me on the way upwards.