Knightmare (1987–94)

Knightmare (1987–94)

8 Seasons, 112 episodes, approx 25 mins each.

As a young Faustus I loved all things fantasy and supernatural: HeroQuest gaming sessions; Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone's Fighting Fantasy books; the many Dragonlance and Forgotten Realms novels; etc, so it's no surprise that Knightmare fit perfectly into my life.

Four adventurers (kids under sixteen) entered the Castle of Confusion in the hope of conquering its dungeon. One wore the Helmet of Justice, which limited what he/she could see, and entered the dungeon proper. The remaining three stayed behind to act as guides, able to see on a screen where their Dungeoneer friend was, to direct and attempt to keep them from falling into imaginary pits of doom and suchlike.

The rules of the game were overseen by a Dungeon Master named Treguard of Dunshelm (pictured right), a noble(ish) born Saxon knight, he would give occasional clues and hints to either encourage a train of thought, help solve a puzzle or feed the team's nervousness. Among Knightmare fans, Treguard rocks!

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation: Grave Danger (2005)

CSI: Grave Danger (2005)

Dir. Quentin Tarantino | Season 05, Episodes 24 + 25

I don't usually watch Crime Scene Investigation, it's not the kind of police/crime drama that I enjoy, but I made an exception for the Grave Danger episodes because they were directed by Quentin Tarantino. I'm not a QT fan-boy, either, but I was curious to see if he could make me care about a show that I otherwise disliked.

The short answer is no, he didn't, but it was okay overall and the level of bullshit coincidences and deux ex machinas wasn't as overblown as I feared it would be – that is, once it was explained to me by an actual CSI fan that one of the characters had a specialised interest in something that was instrumental in the team solving the case.

I don't know if the regular characters were respected and/or faithful to how they usually are in the standard weekly episodes, but anyone familiar with the director's work will be able to spot his trademarks, such as the overly-staged scenes, the round the table dialogue, and people toying with guns while chatting; there's even a victim in the trunk of a car and a sly QT nod to other filmmakers (including Eli Roth and Lucio Fulchi, although classifying Roth as such is a kindness at best, a misnomer at worst).

The Girl with All the Gifts (2014)

The Girl with All the Gifts (2014)

Author: M.R. Carey  |  Page Count: 460

'Sometimes he cries, and says he's sorry – not to the children, but to someone else who isn't really there, and whose name keeps changing.'

I stumbled upon TGwAtG in the autumn of 2014, before the promotion surrounding the movie adaptation made me more aware of what it was actually about. The only thing I knew regarding the novel prior to picking it up was that the author, M.R. Carey, was a pen name of Mike Carey. Because I'm a huge fan of Carey's work in comics, I bought it. I didn't even read the blurb on the back cover, not that it would've helped much anyhow.

Furthermore, if I'd known at the time of my stumbling what genre the novel was a part of, then I'd maybe have placed it quietly back on the shelf and continued toward the music section of the store, which was my original destination before deciding to check out the book aisle. But if I'd did that then I'd have missed out on a novel with solid worldbuilding and some interesting characters that had more to say than it seemed at first.

Jonathan Creek: Series IV (2003-04)

Jonathan Creek: Series IV (2003-04)

6 episodes, approx 60 minutes each.

The first three series of JC can be seen as one collective era because they share the same two principal actors, Alan Davies and Caroline Quentin.

But Caroline chose not to return after Series III, which left a gap needing to be filled, because Jonathan's character needs an ancillary to bounce ideas off and to get (unintentional) inspiration from.

That gap was filled by Carla Borrego (Julia Sawalha) and, happily, Carla made the show even better. She's a wonderfully rounded character who brought a similar kind of resourcefulness and determination as Maddie had shown but with a whole new self-important attitude supporting it. She's sometimes vulnerable beneath the hard outer shell, but goes to great lengths to hide that fact from the world.

She got her introduction in the 2001 Christmas Special. It's not necessary to have seen it, but it's advisable because it shows the genesis of their relationship and helps explain the boundaries that exist from the offset in Series IV.

The Tempest (c.1610-11)

The Tempest (c.1610-11)

Author: William Shakespeare  |  Page Count: 128

"Hell is empty, and all the devils are here."

Reading Shakespeare for pleasure, outside of an academic environment, takes considerable pressure off a reader. You won't be asked to give an opinion or answer difficult questions. Maybe you don't need to know what every little nuance in the text represents, or you care little about sociopolitical context and postcolonial concerns. Sometimes all you ask is a good story be told in a language that's praised for its beauty, and there's nothing wrong with wanting that.

The Tempest isn't a play that gets chosen often by people who just want to dip a toe, but it's one that I return to time and again. Many of the themes within its pages he's used before, but in a different way.

A shipwreck gets the players to where they need to be, as in Twelfth Night (c.1601–02). Someone who's been wronged seeks revenge (too many too mention). The fantastical is there, but it's less comical than his other famous work that uses it, A Midsummer Night's Dream (c.1590–96). There's still a lot of laughs to be had, however, because it does after all have elements of tragicomedy, but there's a lot of weight to it, too. It's also a romance, proving that one thing can be many if the author intends it.

Star Trek: The Next Generation: Season 6 (1992-93)

Star Trek: TNG: Season 6 (1992-93)

26 episodes, approx 44 minutes each.

Something I noted in a previous TNG post rings true again here: that a common theme serves as the basis for a number of different episodes throughout the entire season. This time it's 'transformation'. There's the emotional growth kind, of course, but there's also social, temporal changes (such as ageing), and even a number of actual species transformations!

It begins by concluding the Season 5 cliffhanger, Times Arrow. Thereafter, things progress steadily.

Overall, it's not the most memorable season for fans of TNG, but there are some notable episodes that need to be watched. I don't feel that any of them are actually the best the season has to offer, but they each have lasting consequences. Some examples are:

Ep. 20: The Chase, an episode that explores a question that a great many observant Trek fans have been asking themselves since the TOS days.