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Tv Review : Outcasts – Series 1, Episode 7

7 Mar


source:totalscifi
by:Paul Simpson

TV episode review
UK airdate 6 March 2011 (BBC One)

Cass is the key suspect when a woman goes missing in Forthaven…

A moderately entertaining episode, which moves the ongoing plotlines forward considerably to ensure that everything is set up for the grand confrontation promised for the final week.

However, it suffers from some crass plotting. If Cass is so worried that his past will be revealed, why does he keep a full file with his entire hidden history in a cupboard in his quarters?! And when he’s placed under arrest, suspected of murder, who’s interrogating him? His partner. Good for drama, not for credibility.

Tate’s decision to go into the mountains to talk to the ACs seems equally dictated by the necessities of the plot: he’s the only one who knows Cass’s true identity, so of course he has to be out of the way when Cass is under arrest. And if he wants to get the ACs on-side, surely Fleur, who has a good relationship with them, would be a more logical choice to send to talk with them?

This isn’t to detract from Daniel Mays and Amy Manson’s performances: their scenes continue to be one of the highlights of the show. Primeval and Survivors director Jamie Payne gets some new angles on the standing Forthaven sets, shoots the scenes in the mountains well, and makes one particular horrific scene almost feel banal (a compliment, since it could easily have been overly melodramatic.)

For those who have stuck with Outcasts this far, it seems as if we may get some answers before the show’s enforced end, but the suspicion has to be that it’s going to be a very limited resolution.
Rating: 6/10

Tv Review : Outcasts – Series 1, Episode 6

28 Feb


source:Totalscifi
By :P aul Simpson

TV episode review
UK airdate 27 February 2011 (BBC One)

A survivor of a lost expeditionary force arrives back – but somehow she has changed…

The first episode in Outcasts’ new timeslot unfortunately justifies the BBC’s lack of faith in the show, exemplifying its faults without some of the redeeming features that have kept the series watchable.

Much hinges on Juliet Aubrey’s performance as the returning survivor, but any hint that she might not be normal is destroyed by incredibly unsubtle direction and music score (a fault of the whole episode). If you hadn’t guessed it’d be a Body Snatchers rip-off from the throwforward last week, everything about its development, from the children’s reaction to her to the ominous way she’s lit, gives it away.

Unfortunately, there’s little by-play between Cass and Fleur, or even between President Tate and Julius Berger, while Tipper gets just one small scene, and there’s no sign of Lily Isen at all – odd in an episode whose B-plot focuses on the effect that the impending birth of a new member of the Carpathia community has on her mother. Even Berger misses a trick in not playing on her maternal sensibilities at an appropriate time.

There’s some slight movement forward in the general plotline, but otherwise, this is a pretty disposable episode.

Rating: 5/10

Tv Review : Outcasts – Series 1, Episode 5

22 Feb


source:totalscifi
by:Paul Simpson

TV episode review
UK airdate 21 February 2011 (BBC One)

A face from Carpathia’s past reveals some of the planet’s secrets…

Beginning with a cliché from old Westerns – the grizzled prospector coming into the bar, scattering wealth instead of money, and taking on any challengers – this episode veers into different territory, as we learn more of the backstory of humanity’s arrival on this alien world.

These revelations are counterpointed with the continuing insidious rise of Julius Berger, and it’s interesting to note that it’s not just Tate now who sees through him. However, the final moments promise to up the ante for the remaining three episodes.

One of the key storylines for the show is the developing relationship between Cass and Fleur, which gets a lot of airtime, as they’re the two who chase after the visitor to Forthaven. It’s just a shame that, as keeps happening with this show, the dialogue veers into the trite – and anyone who’s seen American Pie is bound to add their own line to the end of Fleur’s reminiscences about her teenage years!

But it holds together well, with some stunning South African scenery and unobtrusive use of computer graphics to emphasise the alienness of the world. It’s unfortunate that it won’t get the audience that, after a bumpy start, it deserves.
Rating: 7/10

Tv Review : Outcasts – Series 1, Episode 4

17 Feb


source:Totalscifi
By:Paul Simpson

TV episode review
UK airdate 15 February 2011 (BBC One)

The arrival of an AC in Forthaven leads to a crisis of conscience for Fleur and Cass…

A ticking clock of a different sort in this episode, as another of Tate’s sins comes back to haunt him – in the process, giving Julius Berger another opportunity to start building his powerbase.

It’ll be interesting to see if the discussion between Berger and the first person attacked by the AC leads to anything when Berger finally makes his move, as he’s starting to drop the façade on occasions and showing his true face to those he needs on his side.

The Stella/Tipper relationship takes on a new edge thanks to Lily’s attempts to hurt her mother, while Fleur and Cass reveal more similarities than differences – the scenes with Amy Manson and Daniel Mays are the strongest yet, as both realise that there’s much more darkness at the heart of their new community than either feels comfortable admitting, or dealing with.

The ending of the plot involving the AC may be a little predictable, but it’s right dramatically both for the storyline and for the episode’s placing midpoint in the series – particularly with the revelations in the final 10 minutes promising a different direction for the second half.
Rating : 7/10

Outcasts Cast Out To Late Night Sunday Slot

17 Feb


After last night’s episode pulled in just 2.6 million viewers

The Guardian has confirmed that the BBC’s new sci-fi show, which only began airing last Monday, is to be moved to a late night Sunday slot after “disappointing” ratings. There will one more episode shown next Monday on BBC 1 at 9pm, then the next episode after that will be on at 10.25pm on Sunday 27 February. The final two episodes will then follow at a similar time on the next two Sundays.

Last night the show, which launched with 4.4 million viewers, fell to a new ratings low against tough competition from Channel 4’s ratings juggernaut My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding – just 2.63 million viewers.

BBC drama controller, Ben Stephenson, said the move did not signal that the BBC does not want to take risks and said the show had attracted a “loyal, core audience… BBC1 and BBC Drama support creative risk. Sometimes this means that talented people make shows that don’t engage enough of the audience. I have so much respect for any writer who has the nerve and confidence to create their own original world and serve it up to an audience. It’s highly important to me to support them no matter how the project is received, whilst primarily always trying to engage the widest possible audience.”

Let’s just hope the BBC realise that the reason Outcasts failed to find a wide audience was because it was a little bit dull, and not because there isn’t a big audience out there for adult sci-fi.

Tv Review : Outcasts – Series 1, Episode 3

15 Feb


Source:totalscifi
By:Paul Simpson

TV episode review
UK airdate 14 February 2011 (BBC One)

A natural disaster threatens the settlement on Carpathia…

A good blend of ongoing plotlines – the attempted genocide of the ACs, the haunting of President Tate, and the gradual rise to power of Julius Berger – with the story-of-the-week continues to bode well for Outcasts.

The creators of the original Star Trek pointed out that writers could create stories around the many people to be found on the Enterprise, and a similar effect is seen here – although, as with Trek, inevitably the focus is on the guest stars’ interplay with the lead characters.

Alongside the engineers and psychiatrists we meet for the first time, there’s a strong focus on Tipper, the mathematical genius whose apparent wasting of his talents is explained. His relationship with Hermione Norris’s Stella Isen may have begun a little incredibly, but is turning into one of the strengths of the show.

There’s also a strong performance from Daniel Mays as Cass Cromwell, whose actions in episode two have multiple ramifications, both for Forthaven’s relations with the ACs, and for his own peace of mind. Like Jamie Bamber’s character, he’s clearly on more of a knife-edge than might seem advisable.

But it’s the relationship between Tate and Berger that bears most watching, especially in the final scenes…

Rating : 7/10

Outcasts Struggles In The Ratings

15 Feb

Episode three sees another drop in viewers

Episode three of the BBC’s lavish new sci-fi series, Outcasts, only drew a worryingly low 2.95 million viewers last night, beaten in the 9pm slot by ITV1’s The Biggest Loser (which proved not to be). Tonight, the fourth episode could be in for an even rougher ride, because, as writer Ben Richards rather ironically pointed out on his Twitter Feed, “Still tonight we’re only up against Big Fat Gypsies and The Brits so I’m confidently expecting a lift.” The man deserves a brave face award. My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding is, if you hadn’t heard, attracting audiences in excess of seven million on Channel 4.

It’s a shame, because for all its faults, Outcasts is improving, and there are even better episodes on the way. But this seems like a low from which it would be impossible for the show to bounce back sufficiently to guarantee a second season which is especially irritating as (spoiler warning) the first series ends on a cliffhanger.

Read more: Outcasts Struggles In The

Tv review : Outcasts – Series 1, Episode 2

10 Feb


source:totalscifi
By:Paul simpson

TV episode review
UK airdate 8 February 2011 (BBC One)

Newcomers arrive at Forthaven with various agendas to pursue…

Take out a small element of one of the plot strands in this episode, and there would be no need for Outcasts to be set away from Earth, which is both a strength and a weakness of the format.

Once again there are a number of science fiction clichés being reinvented – the Star Wars visual references are almost overwhelming at the start of the episode, along with a healthy amount of Mad Max.

Hopefully future episodes will add a bit more ambiguity to the character of Julius Berger. At times, it’s as if he’s wandering around with a sign round his neck saying “I’m the bad guy – watch me looking scheming!”, but Eric Mabius imbues his conversations with both Liam Cunningham and Hermione Norris with so many layers that you do start to wonder if there is more to his character than meets the eye… Especially when various revelations come to light about Cunningham’s President Tate, and the C23 virus that wiped out the children.

With some other interesting elements thrown into the mix – a possibly-abused teenager with a score to settle, yet more family dysfunction, and some weird poltergeist activity – Outcasts is finding its feet nicely.

VERDICT: 7/10

Tv Review : Outcasts – Series 1, Episode 1

7 Feb


source:Totalscifi
By:Paul Simpson

TV episode review
UK airdate 7 February 2011 (BBC One)

The mid-21st Century: humanity’s last chance is to move to a new world. But Carpathia has its own problems…

There are various distinct ways of approaching the opening episode of a genre series: throw your audience in at the deep end so they pick up information as they go along (as Bedlam has done); introduce an audience identification figure who is the guide to learning about the situation (cf Doctor Who’s opener, Rose); or swamp your characters with dialogue where they’re telling other people stuff they already know – but which the audience needs to hear.

Unfortunately the last is the route that Outcasts has taken, and it’ll be a shame if its potential viewership is put off by the sheer weight of exposition in the opening 20 minutes. It doesn’t seem as if Liam Cunningham and Hermione Norris can have a proper conversation without something cross-referencing to a past event that must be seared on all their minds!

The scenes with Jamie Bamber as the slightly unhinged member of the Expeditionary Force arriving back a day early and throwing everyone into chaos are the important ones, as is the dialogue with the transport captain. Those throw the rest into sharp relief (perhaps making them look weaker than they really are out of context), and the second half of the episode is a tense affair, with Daniel Mays and Amy Manson’s characters on Bamber’s trail, and the transport coming into land with heat shields not working at optimum…

Not afraid to push the audience – one scene in particular with Bamber and his son is so well played that you do wonder how dark this show will get – Outcasts shows a lot of promise. Paul Simpson

Rating : 7/10

BBC’s ‘Outcasts’ Transmission dates confirmed

2 Feb


The BBC has confirmed that its new science fiction ‘Outcasts’ will launch on BBC1 on Monday 7th Febuary , with the second episode following on Tuesday the 8th , both at 9pm.

The series tells the story of survivors of the planet Earth, as the few who made it from the planet settle on the gloomy world of Carpathia,and try to make a new life for themselves ,thereby continuing the human race.

The 8 episode first series stars Jamie Bamber(Battlestar Galactica)& Eric Mabius(Ugly Betty/Resident Evil)

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