220. Web-series Reviews – 67

More web-series reviews…

One of us is Lying – Came out in 2021.  A brain, an athlete, a princess, a criminal, and a "basket case" walk into detention - but only the first four make it out alive.

One of the reviews from IMDB...

"One of Us is Lying" is your typical mid-week teen soap opera dressed up as a murder mystery. When one nefarious teen is impossibly killed during detention, the four students present (each harboring secrets and a motive to murder him) form a fragile bond as they work to unearth who did it and why before they find themselves in jail, or worse.

Along the way, soap elements are drip fed to us, as the "Bayview four" leak their secrets, or lie about them, in efforts to protect themselves. We get the usual good girl gone bad, bad girl going good, drug peddling outcast turning leading man and popular jock with a murky history that may or may not include homosexuality, drug use and violence. You could throw a dart at a wall of tropes, and I bet that's how they chose which character had which personality traits.

Thankfully, to prevent the whole thing being a snoozefest, the producers found an excellent cast of 20-somethings who look 20 something to play high school students. Despite the fact not a single one looks like they've been inside a school for at least 6 years, they are all wonderfully played off of each other, and are at their best when they're working together or fighting over the latest bit of sabotage. The chemistry between Addy, Bronwyn, Cooper and Nate is electric and is more than enough to keep you watching. Add in a strong supporting cast who each muddy these bayview waters and you've got a surprisingly not bad teen thriller from Netflix.

Sadly, the murder victim, despite getting screentime throughout the run of the show, doesn't get the proper treatment. His death, which should have some emotional resonance (if not with the "Bayview Four" who he was days from ruining before his untimely death) with at least a few of the side characters who were deeply involved in his machinations, is completely lacking. There is no real pay off to the main thread that ties the cast together, but with any luck, a second season should up the camp factor and bring more trouble to these impossibly good looking, 20 somethings. It might even be worth watching!

My Take – An ok series.

 

The Umbrella Academy – A family of former child heroes, now grown apart, must reunite to continue to protect the world.  2 seasons have come out in 2019 and 2020 with the 3rd coming out this year.

One of the reviews from IMDB...

These comments are based on watching the first two seasons but avoid plot details which might spoil a viewer's enjoyment of the series.

One day in 1989 forty three babies were born to mothers who weren't pregnant when the day started. Seven of them are adopted by Sir Reginald Hargreeves, a very wealthy industrialist. He raises them and it is clear that they aren't like other children, with the exception of Vanya, they each have a special power. He raises them to use their powers to fight crime but things don't go well and they each go their separate, dysfunctional ways. When Sir Reginald dies five of the children return to their family home, the titular 'Umbrella Academy'... one of them, Ben, died years before and another, Number Five, disappeared after trying to jump through time. The survivors start to doubt that their father's death was as natural as they were told. Later a young Five returns from the future warning that the world will end in a matter of days! As if trying to stop that weren't enough a pair of assassins appear to be after them.

If you like your superheroes to have great powers and fight crime in a distinctive costume this won't be for you. If however you want something different from the genre then this is definitely worth watching. The story is consistently interesting and while some major revelations aren't exactly a total surprise there are some decent twists. Our dysfunctional protagonists are all good characters and the antagonists prove to be fine too as they aren't standard evil super-villains but somewhat ambiguous and definitely more sympathetic, for the most part, than one might expect. The cast does a really solid job; particular stand outs are Robert Sheehan and the camp Klaus, who can see the dead; Aidan Gallagher as Five and Ellen Page as the 'normal' Vanya. The series has a great look with fine special effects; it also employs music to great effect. Each of the first two seasons contain separate season long plots; the characters develop nicely throughout both seasons. Overall I'd say I really enjoyed this and would certainly recommend it... I am already looking forward to season three.

My Take – A worthwhile watch.  Season 2 is better than Season 1 but you have to watch Season 1 first😊!!

 

The Afterparty – When a high school reunion's afterparty ends in a death, everyone is a suspect. A detective grills the former classmates one by one, uncovering potential motives as each tells their version of the story - culminating in the shocking truth.  Came out this year.

One of the reviews from IMDB...

In The Afterparty, a murder is committed after a high school reunion and a cop tries to solve the case by listening to each suspects story, episode by episode.

The cop, Tiffany Haddish, is hilarious as usual, as is the rest of the cast. The episodes are each done in a particularly genre - action, musical, cartoon - based on the personality of the suspect. Through it all, main suspect and mystery-room designer Aniq tries to find the real killer and woo the girl he should have dated in high school.

This is all really funny, and the series does a nice job of character development, as the initial cartoonish characters are proven to have more depth than is at first apparent (at least in some cases).

The weakest aspect of this is the genre thing, which feels very half-assed. While a couple of episodes fully commit - the musical and the cartoon - for the most part all episodes are filmed in the same style with minor adjustments for the genre (a guy kinda slides along his car hood in the action episode, the high school episode has people a little extra angsty.

Tiffany also gets a flashback of her own and it's the worst episode in the series. It's not funny or necessary and feels like they just ran out of ideas for all the episodes. But all the rest is really good.

It would have been great if they had really done it up, with distinct film styles for each episode, but it's still very funny, the characters are generally likable (except the ones who aren't supposed to be), and the mystery keeps you guess and has a persuasive finale.

I loved this and binge-watched it. It's no "Only Murders in the Building" but it's still a great comedy mystery for fans of that genre.

My Take – A worthwhile watch!

 

Chelsea Detective – Arnold, whose lifestyle on a battered houseboat in Chelsea's Cheyne Walk contrasts sharply with the affluent elite whose crimes he helps solve alongside partner D.C. Priya Shamsie.  Came out this year.

One of the reviews from IMDB...

I've been a fan of British TV since 1974 when I was 11. Besides the comedy, I love these gentle, quirky detective shows like Father Brown and Death in Paradise. There have been a lot of new ones lately and I like them all, but especially ones with leads who are well known secondary characters (Roger Allam, Nancy Carroll, Jason Watkins, etc.) But my fav is Adrian Scarborough who has saved many programs from mediocrity. His comedic and dramatic skills are amazing, and I'm thrilled to see him in The Chelsea Detective. I loved the supporting cast and setting, too. Great program!

My Take - A worthwhile watch.  Since this is a new series, not many reviews in IMDB😊! 

Cheers till next time😊!

Daffy Definition

Diplomat – A person who can tell you to go to hell in such a way that you actually look forward to the trip😊!