Misfits

Considering the scenario has been recently done into the ground by numerous TV shows and movies, Misfits has a surprisingly fresh take. I like the realism in the dialog countering the surreal happenings. It's the kind of show that can make you feel like you are really there or it could really happen. The characters work well together, the acting and script are well done so there is nothing awkward or difficult to follow in the face of multiple characters. Very good looks into personal realizations that make the watcher wonder how they would feel in that situation. Much attention to detail, you won't be watching the show and picking out obvious flaws that are so annoying in many shows of this genre. I simply have not found any yet. I hope to be watching for many seasons. Brilliant !

I must admit that not once did I think of 'Heroes' when watching this programme, although now the point has been raised I can see why people would compare the two. What this programme does is show what a fertile ground British TV still is as not only is it very well cast, but the writing, direction and production design match anything that out US friends can do. Along with Skins and The Inbetweeners Channel 4 have now got another great programme that is 'yoof' but also appeals to an older audience. It is very dark, very twisted and quite often very very funny.

Initially I found Robert Sheehan's character 'Nathan' to be really irritating to the point that I thought he would ruin the programme, but as the show progresses he really is the heart of the whole thing and by the end of it I realised he was far and away the best thing in it !

Sheehan is certainly a face for the future, so too Lauren Socha who as 'Kelly' again initially seems like a real 'Chav' before blossoming into a very rounded character who you can sympathise with. Following her work in the Arctic Monkey's 'Scummy Man' promo she could also be one to watch.

If this was US produced I dare say we'd have had a minimum of 12 episodes to season 1, but the six we do get are excellent.

It would be a real crime if this doesn't reappear for a Second Series by the end of the year.

Where DID this show come from? Though it's not the most original concept (freak lightning storm strikes and gives a ragtag bunch of community service workers special powers) this show rises above Heroes and the many clones by bringing enough freshness to the table. Now I'm judging this show having just watched the first two episodes. At first it looks like your average Skins type rip-off but it very quickly establishes an intriguing plot with lovable characters and unexpected twists aplenty. The script is sharp like a razor and offers laugh-out-loud moments and witticisms to rival the best episodes of Friends or Fraiser. All the misfits are perfectly cast and brilliantly acted with just the right amount of cynicism and pathos and the situations don't seem forced like Heroes often does but emerge logically and organically from the characters. Even the powers themselves extend from the character's personas. Fantastic show. I cannot recommend it enough!

Misfits has been described in a lot of reviews as a cross between Skins and Heroes, however, in my opinion, it doesn't contain the biggest flaws of these shows- pretentiousness or unoriginality. I'm *not* slating these shows, I'm just saying that as quite a comic-book fan, it's difficult to watch or read something about characters with superpowers without ripping it apart- getting irritated by the plot lines that are taken, or 'influenced' from other sources and neither does it have an impossibly good looking set of people living a life you can't help but envy, no matter what drama has unfolded in their life due to partying too hard. Misfits is very unique and while you can guess some plot lines of the show, you can never guess what'll happen next episode.

What Misfits provides is a group of interesting, likable and believable characters involved in well thought-out stories that are not over-complicated but still challenge the audience.

To complete the show, the episodes are also full of thick, dark humour.

Overall, it is an excellent show.

Brilliant! People seem to refer to Heroes when talking/writing about Misfits. This isn't valid as Heroes is a very different series. Misfits is about some ordinary late-teenagers getting super powers - Heroes is about Hollywood characters receiving superpowers and saving the world by being superheroes.

The storyline of Misfits is twisted and clouded. Until now no one seems to be using their powers for anything weird and they still do their community service. I like that. They're not suddenly super heroes and nothing fancy is going on.

The more I see of British "telly", the more I love it. The budget is smaller, the realism is more important and the various series seem to be shorter with focus on quality instead of ability to survive a buck load of seasons. Go Britania, go! As the Brits would say: SPOT ON!