The Almighty Johnsons

I came across this program by accident and what a find it was. I had been watching No Ordinary Family at the time and when I saw the synopsis of what this was about I thought it would be similar. Boy I was wrong. This is more true to life , out with the main subject matter, than most things on TV. There is swearing, but no more than in normal life, nudity, the same and plenty of adult humour. You could also say informative as it does educate about Norse gods. It's difficult to say much more without spoilers but I'll try to say briefly what it's about. There are people living in NZ who are the basically the Norse gods. They currently don't have all their godlike powers and so begin a quest to regain them. If you liked Heroes, No Ordinary Family and especially Misfits then you'll most likely love this, baring in mind this is decidedly adult with swearing, nudity and drug taking.

It took me ages to get to see this show and it has exceeded my expectations. As a comedy drama it works on both of those levels. The main characters are likeable and as a fan of Norse mythology, I like the dilemmas they face as modern day Aucklanders who happen to be the vessels of gods and goddesses. I can't praise the cast enough but Shane Cortese as Colin/Loki is wonderfully sleazy, and Ben Barrington as eternally young grandfather Olaf/Baldur is believable as the Johnson who uses getting stoned as a means of coping with immortality.There is pretty good character development and the myths are used as a good inspiration for some of the storylines. I'm almost through all three seasons and I will miss it when I have finished watching it, although I very much feel that it is a show that will go out on a high. Earlier episodes show that the budget may not have been huge, but everything else makes up for that and you can see it has been made with love.

So basically it does not have the production values of Supernatural or some other show from the US but I have been brought up on the cheap sets of Dr Who which requires a more interesting storyline and in that respect if you go into this show with low expectations you will actually end up impressed.

Going through the list of actors you can see that there is not much experience but they all pull together really well, I especially like Anders character as he adds a certain amount of lightness to the darker back stories and the Thor character from one episode was laugh out loud funny. I would certainly not classify this as a comedy but more of a light hearted supernatural drama.

I have just watch the first series through in three day and can't wait for the second season to air and really hope the good story pace and sharp writing is continued.

This show is really well put together. It is a perfect blend of fantasy and reality and explores Norse mythology in a compelling way. The main premise is that four brothers belong to a family of people that are living reincarnations of Norse gods. Upon his 21st birthday, Axl finds himself being told that he is Odin the All-Father, and is given a quest to find his Frigg. All four brothers - Ty, Mike, Axl and Anders - have distinct personalities. Alongside the main story line, the show also deals with how Gods interact with mortals and the grey-area that is prophecy.

This is a great show that is witty and quirky. There is quite a bit of nudity, but overall the characters drive the action forward and the mythological elements keep things interesting.

I'm impressed that the majority of reviews so far have been from outside New Zealand - good on you for giving it a go! The storyline is interesting, most of the acting is great - if a little flat from some of the younger guys, especially Odin.

I recommend it, if you're not from NZ you may not understand all the humour (it is similar in a sense to Outrageous Fortune - another Kiwi production) - but it's enjoyable nonetheless.

I'm not going to go into the plot, as others before me have summed it up nicely. I'm just going to add a few comments.

With regard to Odin not being charismatic - he's a 21 year old male, part of the storyline is for him to find himself, to grow up if you will. I don't know exactly what it's like in other countries, but I think this is one of the best depictions of an average 21 year old out there. He's awkward, still trying to find his place in the REAL world and now he has the 'you're a God' thrown in on top. Given the acting is a little flat at times, I think it often fits.

Also, I'm glad samiester is enjoying the show, but Netball is not the Kiwi version of Volleyball - it's a completely different game. Called Netball :)

The Oracles are brilliant. I think Olaf brings a life and humour to the show.

All in all the show is not about Gods and Super powers, it's a drama about how the family reacts to each given situation. It brings it down from the likes of Heroes and Supernatural and gives it a life of it's own.