New Blood - Tod in London

In this era of hardly ever being able to turn on almost any television programme be it drama,comedy,even daytime shows such as This Morning and Loose Women without sex the main focus to get attention then I'm afraid I'm going to be in a sad minority of really enjoying something that is obviously not to be taken seriously but nonetheless has entertainment enough in the dynamics between two very different,very handsome guys who are neither full of ego or muscle....simply gradually working toward a friendship that was not easily attained at first but is definitely growing because of their intertwining adventures bringing them both into both dangerous and also at times,hilarious predicaments.

I have to impress upon anyone taking time to read my review that I'm VERY far from being a prude....I've watched and been enthralled with the entire six series of GOT....loved Breaking Bad...currently watching House of Cards and Versailles...adored Happy Valley,Line of Duty et al.

However,I have mind enough to recognise a wonderful bit of escapism and bromance which is watchable by pretty much anyone without causing offence and embarrassment if a family settle down for an evening together; let's face it,that is becoming increasingly difficult now.

Surely there is room enough with all the many,many channels available and online viewing,too to make the odd hour available for some outlandish,fun,attractive guys bringing smiles and heartwarming moments during their adventures!

If I'm alone in this,I really don't mind.....but I hope that by some magic both actors and others who genuinely agree with me might just read this and nod their heads even if only in quiet acceptance!

What's not to like??! Two handsome,utterly likable men get into scrapes during their investigations and are gradually,grudgingly forming a friendship that is obviously going to be cemented eventually.

One has twinkling eyes and a truly engaging,winning smile...the other,dark brown serious eyes,the kindest of hearts and intelligence that more than aids in every case.

Both more or less pretend to themselves they're unsure of the other,especially Rash...but in truth they are so drawn in on every investigation that it all intrudes upon their personal lives,too.

A great little series and leaves you feeling good. That means success so I suppose it also means the death knell once the series finishes.....not hard enough,violent enough,"realistic" enough. Ho hum........

This new series is totally different to many of the dour and depressing TV productions usually shown. With a visually stunning production (superb photography of London) and a marvellous score, it has two young leads - Ben Tavassoli and Mark Strepan - who are especially convincing in their parts whilst the talented Mark Addy and other wonderful character actors complete the excellent cast. Both Tavassoil and Strepan show great potential and I look forward to seeing them in future productions.

The stories are logical and relevant to today's world and show a quite different aspect to the usual cop drama.

I can understand why it would attract a young audience but we are already grandparents and thoroughly enjoyed it (on cable TV in the Middle East). I really hope that the BBC will consider continuing this series which has excellent potential.

'New Blood' is a lively new television drama, about a pair of young, somewhat reckless and egoistical men who work respectively for the police and the Serious Fraud Office, who find themselves inadvertently working together on a series of cases, in defiance of their bosses and any common sense. The plots are a little silly, to be honest, offering a simplified vision of how the world works, and the programme's style uses lots of sped-up footage, look-aheads and flashbacks, but it's nicely paced and there's some merit in the portrait of a pair of young Londoners, trying to enjoy their lives and get ahead in the world. It's not exactly deep, but it's certainly not boring. The formula may get tired if there are subsequent series; but the first series at least has been entertaining and fun.

You could tell after watching this for a bit that it was penned by Anthony Horowitz, it's wonderfully creative, energetic and loaded with humour, he's a terrific writer.

It's two young stars, Mark Strepan and Ben Tavassoli are excellent, they both bring heaps of exuberance to the show. Some great experienced actors, Mark Addy, Anna Chancellor and Dorian Lough, all add something special, it's a great character driven series.

On the whole the quality of each episode is very good, the opening part I have to say was outstanding, it worked as a great hook. There's enough mileage for more episodes, I'm just not sure we'll get more.

Very good, very watchable. 8/10.

Re-run is available on Netflix for those that missed it. I've no idea why there hasn't been a second series. I'm very disappointed about that.