JBLOSS

The finale nicely wrapped everything up but did it really need to? Maybe I'm the only one who thought the previous "ending" was a far superior way of leaving things than the 2024 episode. The finale was a decent episode but probably not the best one they've ever written but I guess for people who need everything nicely wrapped up in a bow it was satisfying. I've also realised just how many cultural references there are that would mean nothing to anyone under 30 (maybe even 40!) and also I'm not surprised that overseas viewers don't pick up on the nuances that a Brit would do. All in all I feel it didn't really add that much but you can't be sad seeing Alison Steadman or Rob Brydon going through their paces, they really are so so good.

Dark starts out as an intriguing supernatural drama. It's refreshing to watch something not from the US or UK for a change and the first season sets up some very interesting storylines. The acting is good and what's also nice is the human element to the characters is not forgotten about. However, the execution of the second and third series undermines the promise of the first. Plots get forgotten about, the "logic" of the world doesn't always appear to be consistent. What is worse is it gets so darn complicated with too many characters and too much jumping around between time and place. The narrative,as in the golden or red thread, gets lost and we continually have characters having to explain what is or isn't happening. As a viewer you then start to care less about the dilemmas the characters face. I am glad I watched it but when I see it compared to something like Twin Peaks that is not a favourable comparison.

Having watched the first episode I feel pretty misled by the title. It offered no great insight into the Ottoman Empire and frankly concentrated on some very peripheral sites which may well be photogenic or interesting in their own right but are they integral to the Ottoman Empire? The answer is an emphatic no. A very frustrating and pointless programme, marketed as history but more akin to a travelogue. I don't think that based on the first episode that this is going to provide any great revelations about anything really. All in all a disappointing foray by Alice Roberts into an area ripe for showcasing to the public.