Merlin - The Poisoned Chalice, S01E04

The confusion wasn't about whether the chalice from the palace or the vessel with the pestle had the brew that is true, but rather who poisoned the brew in the first place. Merlin (Colin Morgan), preventing yet another attempt on Arthur (Bradley James)'s life, has yet to learn discretion, thus threatening a violent conflict for Camelot as well as causing a deadly consequence for Merlin.

Uther Pendragon (Anthony Head) is utterly frustrating. When Merlin burst in accusing his former enemy, now tentative ally of trying to poison Arthur, Uther's response was more than predictable. He decided that the best thing to do was to have Merlin drink the potential poison so that he would have the pleasure of killing the poisoner himself if Merlin's allegations were true. I suppose it is an indication of how little Uther thinks of his servants, or potentially how much of a pain he has decided Merlin is (despite his track record of saving Arthur's life), but if I were him I would have at least had one of my supposed enemy's servants drink the drink.

Uther must really have it out for Merlin, as, after all the effort Arthur put into recovering the antidote, he still tried to prevent his son from rescuing the boy. Infuriating that he is so unyielding, blind to anyone's perspective but his own.

Arthur, meanwhile, proved himself quite the hero. Not only did he go on the quest for the antidote, but he defeated quite a number of vile creatures handily while he did it. Yes, Nimueh (Michelle Ryan) could have killed him, though she said it was not Arthur's destiny to die at her hands, but he still handled himself honourably and well in the situation. I quite liked the self-doubt he felt, both because he had been spared and because some other force had brought him a light to save him from his difficulty. It also indicates yet another time where Arthur isn't entirely certain that his father's desire to totally annihilate witchcraft is justified.

Finally, we got to witness Gaius (Richard Wilson) use a bit of his magic, but even more so we got to witness Merlin using his while poisoned and right off his nut. The man is powerful and driven.

So, let's hear your thoughts on Uther and whether or not he is in the way of the progress of Camelot.

Being Human - S01E06 - Season Finale

The Season 1 finale ends with the message that self-sacrifice and love are what makes us human, but no matter how hard we try, we'll probably still hurt the people we love at some point in some way. Also, there are things out there that are probably more frightening then a funeral parlor full of vampires. I can't wait to see Season 2.

Mitchell (Aidan Turner) is rushed to the hospital in at attempt to save his life after Herrick (Jason Watkins) stabbed him in the chest with a stake. George (Russell Tovey) and Annie (Lenora Crichlow) accompany him. That's right, Annie decided not to go through the door to the next world, refusing to leave Mitchell in such a state. Although it would have been quite a shocker if she had left the world (and thus the show), I'm glad they kept her. It wouldn't be the same if George and Mitchell had to find a new ghost.

Mitchell, with his vampire abilities, healed rather quickly, but he was not regaining strength at a particularly fast pace. He knew that he had to stop Herrick and the vampire uprising, as did his friend Josie (Clare Higgins). She convinced him that she wanted him to take her blood, her life (which was almost over anyways, due to a terrible cancer) so that he could save them all. Still, he was weak, and most likely Herrick was going to kill him anyway. Trying to save Annie and George, he challenged Herrick to a duel.

The funny thing about a group of such dedicated friends - they are all so willing to sacrifice themselves for each other. Mitchell would die for the chance that George and Annie would continue on without him, and as angry as Annie was about it, George simply went behind his back to do the same thing. Only George was pretty sure he wouldn't be the one dying.

When Herrick arrived for the confrontation, he discovered himself locked in the basement with George, moments before the wolf came out.

Now this could have been enough of a conflict, but who doesn't want more if they can have it? Annie, having gained strange new powers to hear other ghosts and be a focal point, saved all the human victims kept as snacks in the funeral parlor and discovered George's deception. She and Mitchell arrived before he transformed to try to convince him not to. He won out, and Mitchell and Annie pulled back only for Nina (Sinead Keenan), who was rather annoyed about George hiding so much from her, to show up and learn his secret. She saw him transform, saw him kill Herrick, and knew that he was doing it for the people he loved.

So things are looking good. Annie's resolved her death, but is gaining new powers now that she's decided to remain in this world as a ghost (possibly) for good. The vampires have been stopped, and George has become very comfortable with who and what he is, plus his girlfriend knows about it so they have no more secrets. As Mitchell put it, perhaps safety is what follows? Nope! Can't have that.

Not only was Nina scratched by George moments before he transformed, most likely meaning she will become a werewolf herself, something for which George will never forgive himself, but there are also some mysterious men asking questions about ghosts, werewolves, and vampires, and their focus seems to be on our little house.

As we wait for season 2, let me know which of the creatures - ghost, werewolf or vampire - you would prefer to be if you had to choose.

Being Human - S01E05

Watching this episode, I couldn't help but compare it to what will probably happen in the American version. British television practices are so different from American ones, starting with things like episode length and going to what British writers/producers are willing to do and what their actors are able to do.

The penultimate episode of the season, a whole lot of set up happens for the season finale. This is common in both countries, but it is the way it happens that is so different. For one thing, to American audiences, a 6 episode season is ridiculously short. 12 is the lowest order expected, though it is usually 13, and 20-25 is expected for most shows. So to have so much happen in 5 episodes, while each episode was properly contained and worked extremely well is quite impressive.

Then we consider the number of important events that happened in the episode

- Annie (Lenora Crichlow) decides to haunt Owen (Gregg Chillin). She not only confronts him at the house, which does not work out so well, but then tried to convince Janey (Sama Goldie) of his guilt, and finally, after some other events which strengthen her resolve, she confronts him backed by George (Russell Tovey) and Mitchell (Aidan Turner). This time she is successful and he confesses.

- Mitchell, meanwhile, has joined back up with the vampires. He's all for their plan, even introducing to an old friend of his who is dying of lung cancer. She points out to him how wrong the plan is, and then he discovers that the vampires are holding humans prisoner to feed on them. When he confronts Herrick (Jason Watkins), the two prepare for a fight to the death.

- George helped Annie with her haunting plan, and was then warned about Mitchell's involvement with the vampires. He and Annie headed out to help their friend, getting into a fight with Seth (Dylan Brown) on the way. Eventually they find Mitchell, but the three are cornered until Lauren (Annabel Scholey) kills Seth and they escape.

-As they are escaping, Lauren convinces Mitchell to end her sorry existence, and he does. And, when the group has recovered at home and forced Owen to confess, Annie's door to the other world appears. But, as she is preparing to go through it, Herrick arrives at the front door and stabs Mitchell in the chest when he opens it. Cliffhanger.

All that happens in one episode, and in the States would likely have been the subject matter for half-a-dozen - the same number of episode of Season 1.

On top of that, choices like killing off Lauren and Seth would not have been made so lightly, as each probably would have had a decent fan base by this point in time and audiences would not have been so keen on it. British television is far more willing to kill off characters if that's what the story requires.

Also, removing Lauren, Seth, and Owen (as well as Janey) from the story in one episode would also never happen. Each of those events could be the climax of one episode, and it would be a waste considering how often American shows end up with filler episodes where nothing actually happens.

Finally, if this were an American show, I wouldn't be so worried at the junction of this cliffhanger. There is NO WAY an American network would kill off either of its main characters, particularly not after purging so many of the secondary ones. Neither Mitchell nor Annie would be in any danger of dying/disappearing. But this is British television we are watching, and I have seen many a show from across the pond where lead characters are killed off because it's what is necessary.

But which is better? Would you rather watch a show with extra episodes, which, while a little predictable, gives you exactly what you want? Or do you want a show that surprises and follows the storyline because of what makes the most sense rather than what makes the most cents?

Being Human - S01E04

Until now, the focus of the series has been how werewolf George (Russell Tovey), vampire Mitchell (Aidan Turner), and ghost Annie (Lenora Crichlow) can live a life were they are as close to human as possible, but this episode reminded up that being human isn't so very far from being a monster.

Last week, we learnt that Owen (Gregg Chillin) had killed Annie, pushing her down the stairs because he was an abusive bastard with a temper. So far, she had always come across as the most human of the roommates, the only factor of difference being that she is dead. Her anger at her discovery manifested itself into poltergeistism, and, unable to control it, she's about as dangerous as Mitchell and George can be. Not to worry, by the end of the episode, a ritual burning of the possessions which reminded her of her former relationship not only helped calm her but have also resulted in normal people being able to see her clearly again. Confident and powerful, Annie now has the power of reminding her monster boyfriend what really bumps in the night.

George, meanwhile, obsessed continually over his relationship with Nina (Sinead Keenan). Was he wearing the right shirt? Would she prefer the wolf to him? Wasn't she safer without him? He tried to break it off, to protect her, but neither he nor she was completely able to give up on the other. In the end, while George was still not able to share his secret, Nina showed him her stomach. It was covered in scars which looked to be tissue repair after burning. Apparently humans did that to her, so how much worse could a werewolf who genuinely cared about her be?

Finally, Mitchell was living an almost perfectly human life, not even reacting to the sight of blood anymore, but one mistake destroyed it. Granted, people interacting with children ought to be a lot more careful, and if they are hiding pornographic videos in their collection, they should make sure none of those are lent to children, but in the end it was still a mistake.

The entire street turned against the household, accusing them of being pedophiles and refusing to serve them in the local shops. They threw garbage on the doorstep and smashed windows with bricks. Refusing to listen to reason or explanations, the mass turned into a mob, as eager to destroy as the mobs in monster movies.

In the end, it worked out - the death of the child forced the mother to finally listen to what her son had been telling him. But the child was still dead, and Mitchell found himself again embittered towards men.

Fighting one's true nature is never easy, but seeing constant reasons that make the fight seem pointless...well, that's even more complicated. Mitchell has relapsed, again, and Annie is just as set against humans...well, at least one particular human, as he is. With two episodes of season 1 remaining, what will the consequences be?

Being Human - S01E03

Some episodes of Being Human revolve around a story which involves all three leads, and other episodes tell three separate stories but do an excellent job of tying them together through their connection to the house. This was such an episode, accomplishing major developments for Annie (Lenora Crichlow), Mitchell (Aidan Turner), and George (Russell Tovey).

Mitchell sort of kind of fell off the wagon again. Offered the possibility of sex and blood without the risk of harming his partner, Mitchell and Lauren (Annabel Scholey) connected. The colour of their eyes remained black for much of the time, and Mitchell admitted to having watched the vampire porn movie dozens of times. In most mythologies, vampirism is strongly associated with sexual desire, and that is very present in Being Human.

George, meanwhile, finally had dinner with Nina (Sinead Keenan), thanks to Mitchell who arranged the whole thing. When they started getting physical, George panicked as the wolf emerged and he backed off. Nina would have none of it, and the next day, the day of the full moon, she insisted on having a conversation with him about his issues. Gotta love how direct and straight forward Nina is. She sees a problem, she wants a solution, and she gets one. Of course, all her talk about other ways to pleasure a lady got George in such a state that he took her passionately before running to lock himself in the basement for the night. It seems that if he could control himself so soon before his transformation was to occur, then he could control himself the rest of the time too.

Finally Annie had the most important story in the episode. Not only did she meet Gilbert (Alex Price), an 80s ghost who taught her about the importance of resolving your issues so you could cross to the next world, but she also suffered the pain of "living" through what was to be her wedding day. Still, she launched herself into the project of being a proper wife to Owen (Gregg Chillin), assuming that is what she need to do. Instead, she was distressed to discover that Owen had caused her death when he pushed her down the stairs. Makes you think about the previous episode, when Tulley grabbed her arm and she called him Owen. Instead of a romantic association, it was certainly one of being manhandled.

The mystery, of course, is that Annie did not move on after her discovery. For Gilbert, the simple act of meeting Annie, loving her, and telling her so was enough to bring him a door to the next world, but Annie stayed put. At least the plumbing problems in the house, most likely caused by Annie's subconscious connection to the house, are over. Will she resolve her death and be able to move on? And do we really want her to?

Being Human - S01E02

Admitting what you are is the first step to accepting, controlling, and being happy with who you are. Mitchell (Aidan Turner) denies his nature as much as George (Russell Tovey) does; the difference is that Mitchell has to be aware of his denial every single moment, while George's denial temporarily allows him to forget what he is. Annie (Lenora Crichlow) has no problem admitting that she is a ghost, but she has blocked out her reasons for staying behind far more definitively that either George or Mitchell.

When Tully (Dean Lennox Kelly) shows up, offering to help George learn to deal with his problem, George is terrified at first. He's not particularly good at letting people into his life in the first place, and this man, also a werewolf, reminds him every moment of what he is. Yet he quickly starts to see the advantages. Tully knows how to take care of himself in the forest, has tricks to protect the werewolf from detection, and to protect people from encountering it. He's charming and hitting on women comes so easily to him, and he accepts who he is and wants George to do the same. Mitchell, as much as he wants George to admit what he is and to become comfortable with it, does not want George to give in to that nature anymore than he wants to give into his own.

Of course, to those of us with discerning tastes, Tully comes across as a creep. Sure, he's charming, but his seduction is too intent. Any intelligent girl would reject his comments, as Nina (Sinead Keenan) does when George tries to use them on her. It's not just that George lacks smoothness, it's also that those lines only work on someone unused to any kind of flattery.

And when he tries to seduce Annie, an act that comes across far more like assault than romance, well, let's just say that Mitchell should maybe have killed the werewolf rather than let him stick around.

Still, George needed time to realize what a jerk Tully was. He knew that he didn't exactly like what he was turning into, and he knew that he didn't like how comfortable Tully was with what he was becoming, but when he learned that Tully was the werewolf who had attacked him, that his tricks didn't always work and that he was happy to have made another creature in his image, well, that George couldn't stomach at all. That's the problem with a nice guy like George. He's so easy to manipulate and so wants to hold on to things tightly that more often then not he says something he really regrets. Good thing he is able to make it up to his friends.

Meanwhile, Mitchell's attempts to ignore his blood lust suffer as Lauren (Annabel Scholey) refuses to allow him to do so. She shows up, she taunts him, and she sends him a very disturbing vampire-porno movie. And as much as he wants to shut that part of him up in a box, he really can't forget about it...even if Lauren wasn't trying so hard to keep the thought at the front of his mind.

Finally, Annie. In some ways, it didn't seem like her story developed much in this episode. Yet, that assumption would be wrong. Her relationship with Tully and her responses to it may well be very telling, and her decision to leave the house, terrified, because for once she felt safer to be outside than within also show progress.

Three rich characters, each getting proper attention, continue to give us fantastic episodes.

Being Human - Pilot, S01E00

Again, I really think that watching the first episode of season 1 and then watching this pilot makes a lot more sense. What happened in this episode isn't entirely taken back, but much of it is covered again in the proper premiere. It's still entertaining to watch, and it shows us how George (Russell Tovey) and Mitchell (played by Guy Flanagan in the pilot) meet Annie (played by Andrea Riseborough at the time).

In the episode, George and Mitchell decide to find a place to live together. It's not clear where Mitchell is living, but George is staying in a hostel. We get a little bit of humour as George comes across as slightly effeminate and the real estate agent believes that the pair are a couple. Although George is surprise by the assumption, Mitchell is amused and plays it up. I actually thing that Tovey and Flanagan had great chemistry. About as good as that Tovey has with Aidan Turner (who now plays Mitchell).

It turns out that their apartment is haunted by Riseborough's Annie, who comes across as a lot more intense than the Annie portrayed by Lenora Crichlow. Frankly, I found Riseborough exhausting. There is never a moment where she is calm. Perhaps it was the nature of the episode, but I'm glad she was replaced because I think she would have driven me batty.

Other than the discovery of how the 3 became roommates, we also see Mitchell turn Lauren (then played by Dominique McElligott). His uncertainty over whether he successfully turned her shows how little he planned on biting her in the first place, and his guilt foreshadows Turner's Mitchell's decision to let Becka die for her own sake.

The most important arch, and the one that luckily was portrayed by the returning actor, is George's encounter with his ex, Julia (Claire Foy). Mentioned in the premiere, we actually get to see George go through to pain of seeing her again, with the added poignancy of her inability to deal with his curse. Worse, of course, were the moments when he thought she was going to be locked in with him while he turned.

In the end, I do prefer the changes that were made, the world that is presented in Season 1, but it is also a treat to be able to watch some of the events which are only mentioned once the episode is left behind.