The Almighty Johnsons

Update: binging 3seasons, somewhere in the 2nd season it lost some of it original appeal. 3rd season felt mostly like couples tv drama wt sex happening all the time and fastforwarded some...i give it a 7 +1 for a conclusion that terminated the series properly.--------------------------------------------- Recommended. good cast. not a children friendly show( sex,drugs...) interesting take on the Norse mythology . humor is quirky, sarcastic, misognistic .give it 2 episodes ....you may end up binging like idid. Too bad budget was low for locations and special effects . yes it ca have been better but also worse. thanks .

Other reviewers have compared it with several other shows - I think the most relevant comparisons are with Misfits and Northern Exposure. Don't expect a Heroes style epic adventure, the stories are on a smaller (more human) scale, but very engaging.

The character development is nicely handled and by the end of the season I was really interested in all the characters - even the ones that annoyed me at first.

Some of the acting is a bit soapy hence my lower rating but it's a great concept, well executed and the story gets better and better as it develops. I can't wait to see where they take it next season!

UPDATE: Having watched and re-watched all the episodes of the first 2 seasons and having just finished and digested watching season 3, I felt I really needed to update my review, written after watching season 1. I have upgraded my vote from a 7 to a 9. I only marked it down (from an 8) originally because I thought some of the acting a bit soapy, but on reflection it wasn't the acting, it was the lighting, and this improved by season 2. The stories are creative and compelling and human; the actors play their parts really well. It just gets better and better as the seasons progress. I was worried at the end of season 2 that it would jump the shark if it continued, but season three was just utterly AWESOME! That is what pulled it up to a 9. There are very, very few shows out there as good as this one. It ended beautifully, but with a sneaky little something to leave a door open to continue and I really, really hope they do.

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.

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.