Blood

No one does family tragedy like the Irish. The cast is superb as is everything in this series, including the traditional music.

Season One is enthralling viewing. It keeps you guessing throughout and all is finally revealed in the final episode. Season Two goes off in a completely different direction with occasional references to the first season. This is a different story altogether, but I found it held my attention nevertheless. Well written and impeccably acted. I enjoyed it, though season one was better.

This happens too much in TV, both British and American. A good, well-plotted and well-acted show is stretched out and stretched out until it becomes unbreakably slow. There was no reason whatsoever to make this program twice as long as the plot supported. As a result, you end up fast forwarding through the endless scenes of funerals and speeches and sunsets and so much pretentious camera work that you can barely get to the final sixth hour -- which really is a shame because if shortened, this would have been quite good -- except, perhaps, for the fact that the heroine of the show is possibly one of the most unpleasant characters ever portrayed on tv.

No problem giving this a 8/10 rating, but I feel thats maximum I can give. If some loose ends had been gathered it would have been an 9/10.

Unlike some recent serial dramas, this doesn't let you down in the last episode, everything that has gone before seems to fit. Why was everyone, especially the main character, behaving so strangely? Who did it and why? A logical and very emotional conclusion which will strike a chord with a lot of people. Well worth a watch and Adrian Dunbar is brilliant, as always.