The Borgias.

I’ve just had the pleasure of watching the latest episode of The Borgias, ‘Lucrezia’s Gambit’.

The King of France demands that Cesare locates and murders Ludovico Sforza and Caterina’s son Benito, so that he is the sole claimant to Milan. The Pope instructs him to bring them in alive. Micholetto has been sleeping with a Milanese man, who instructs him in the ways of Leonardo. One of these is a rifle with a dual sight. Cesare uses this to ambush the Sforza’s, and to kill Ludovico after Micholetto has killed Benito. The Pope is angry that the Sforza’s are killed, and there is tension between he and Cesare. It’s also revealed that the man Micholetto is sleeping with is a spy for Caterina Sforza.

In Naples, Lucrezia fails to convince her husband to go for the throne, as he is only 3rd in line. After speaking to one of two half-brothers vying for the throne, Rafael flatly refuses to accept Lucrezia’s child. Lucrezia then meets with the other brother, and seems to like him better. This brothe ris poisoned, but saved, and Lucrezia uses this as a weapon against Rafael, who bows out of the running so that his half-brother can become King, but says it will be entertaining to see her fail. At the coronation, she tells Alfonso that they are safe, but the new King of Naples receives a message from the man sleeping with Micholetto, as he is also conspiring against the Borgia family.

It was abrilliant episode, full of plenty of twists and turns. I love the way the season is playing out, with so many things up in the air. I can’t wait for the next episode.

Thanks for reading.

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Peter & Alice.

On Friday night I had the absolute pleasure of watching the superb Peter & Alice at the Noel Coward Theatre.

When Alice Liddell Hargreaves met Peter Llewelyn Davies at the opening of a Lewis Carroll exhibition in 1932, the original Alice in Wonderland came face to face with the original Peter Pan. In John Logan’s remarkable new play, enchantment and reality collide as this brief encounter lays bare the lives of these two extraordinary characters.

From the moment Peter comes on stage, the audience were captivated. Once Alice came on stage, they were hooked. What followed was 90 minutes of theatre at it’s very best. The stage set was excellent in it’s apparent simplicity and beauty, the way the show was put together was great, and the entire thing flowed spectacularly. The writing and the plot were as good as any I’ve ever read, and the acting was a excellent as any I’ve seen.

Stefano Braschi, Ruby Bentall, Derek Riddell and Nicholas Farrell all gave strong performances, and Olly Alexander was great as Peter Pan. Dame Judi Dench was brilliant as Alice Hargreaves, showing off her wonderful talent, and giving a masterclass to the audience. The outstanding performer, from me, was Ben Whishaw as Peter Llewellyn Davies, who gave an emotional and moving performance, giving a masterclass of his own.

The show was an absolute joy to watch, and if any of you get the chance to go and see it, you should certainly take it. Seek it out and savour it for the spectacle that it is.

Thanks for reading.

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Nikita.

I’ve just had the pleasure of watching the season finale of Nikita, ‘Til Death Do Us Part’.

The episode begins with an image of the President dead, and Nikita in the room with her. It then goes back to 12 hours previously, with Amanda forcing Nikita to kill the President. Nikita leaves clues for the rest of the gang to piece together before heading off to complete her final mission. The gang figure it out, and manage to intercept her. She tells them the real reason, and they go to find a cure for Michael whilst Nikita plays out the mission for the watching Amanda.

Michael and Alex locate another scientist who tells them that short of dying, he’d have to work on a cure with a living subject. They go to leave with him, but he drops dead from the neurotoxin – and it’s revealed that The Shop had implanted it to ensure he could never cure it. It’s also revealed that The Shop is headed by the mysterious man that Percy was trying to get in league with before his death, a memeber of The Group. Without the cure, they head back to Division, with Michael telling Nikita it’s ok (just as she’s reached the oval office, with some help from one of Amanda/The Shop’s agents).

She tells the President what happened, and the President picks up the gun and shoots herself. Nikita is then arrested and escorted by security, who are killed by The Shop’s agent. Birkhoff runs interference with some tech, giving Nikita enough time to kill him and escape. As they try to revive Michael, Amanda sends the rest of the Dirty 30 to attack Division and kill them all.

Sonia stays to try to revive Michael, whilst the rest defend each other. Birkhoff gets the most kills in, until eventually they are outnumbered. They are about to be killed when Nikita arrives and dispatches all of the remaining Dirty 30, before heading down to medical to see Michael. Everyone gathers as it appears Michael won’t wake up, but he eventually does. The gang leave Division behind and finally blow it up.

Amanda has now officially joined forces with The Shop and The Group, and it’s revealed that the real President is being held by them, and it was a copy that killed herself. The gang are all together in a hacker bunker, and watch as Nikita’s image is shown on global tv. They vow to fight it together, but as they’re discussing it Nikita slips away. Michael goes after her and finds her engagement ring. He tries to call her, but she throws her phone and drives off into the city to face her future alone.

It was a fantastic finale, that rounded off a lot of storylines, finally got rid of Division, and left just enough mystery, intrigue, and cliff hanger for the final season of 6 episodes. I can’t wait to see the story come full circle.

Thanks for reading.

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Beauty And The Beast.

I’ve just enjoyed the season finale of Beauty & The Beast, ‘Never Turn Back’.

The episode began with JT discovering that the medication Vincent took is actually curing him permanently. Catherine goes to meet her Dad, who gets run over, and she gives blood to heal him should he need it. However, it turns out later that she is not his biological daughter. Catherine is then taken prisoner by Gabe, to assure Vincent’s compliance with the procedure to cure him. Vincent goes to save Catherine, but not before he’s told by Gabe’s now-ex-girlfriend (Vincent tried to use her to barter for Catherine, but Gabe told him to kill her) that an injection to activate his immune system will counter-act the cure. However, he still wants to do it the human way. Gabe’s ex escapes, but is shot dead by a mysterious man who’s been hunting for Gabe.

He gets there and gets Catherine out, but Gabe (in full beast) attacks. Catherine injects Vincent with a flu jab, and he beasts himself, and the 2 fight on even footing. However, Gabe gets the upper hand, and is about to kill Vincent when a chopper arrives and Gabe is shot dead. They capture Vincent, and the sniper is about to shoot Catherine when the mysterious man stops him, and says that it’s his daughter.

It was a great finale, rounding off the Gabe storyline, whilst adding plenty new mystery to unravel during season 2.

Thanks for reading.

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The Vampire Diaries.

I’ve just had the pleasure of watching the season finale of The Vampire Diaries, ‘Graduation’.

On Graduation Day, Mystic Falls is overrun with ghosts intent on settling old scores and fulfilling their supernatural destinies. Kol has raised an army to seek revenge, and is intent on attending graduation. Damon’s life is in danger after an encounter with Vaughn, who used werewolf venom on a bullet to hurt him, while Matt and Rebekah join forces to battle Alexander, who is also determined to find the cure.

Everyone gathers for the graduation ceremony, and once the awards are given out, the witch ghosts attack.Help comes from an unlikely hero – Klaus. He beheads one with a graduation cap, before threatening the others, who run off. Caroline receives a touching and unexpected graduation present – Klaus frees Tyler, stating that Tyler is her first love, but he wants to be her last, no matter how long it takes.

Ric dispatches of Connor, who is about to blow up the Grill, and then takes care of Vaughn. Klaus’ blood then heals Damon. Rebekah out-smarts Alexander to get rid of him and save Matt, who promises to go travelling with her. Bonnie’s plan leads to the closing of the veil, with each ghost getting the chance to say a final goodbye. Jeremy, however, does not disappear – the spell Bonnie performed in the previous episode working and bringing him back. However, he then realises that she is a ghost.

Elena makes a decision about the Salvatore brothers – and chooses Damon, and she then takes the cure to give to Stefan, for him to do what he wants with it. She then goes to the school to look for Jeremy and Bonnie. She is attacked by Katherine, and as she is about to die, we get a flashback of Stefan returning the cure to her. She grabs it, forces it into Katherine’s mouth and then hits her to make her bite down. Katherine is now human!. Finally, Stefan discovers a horrifying clue to the mystery surrounding Silas. Bonnie’s spell on him wore off when she died, and he’s back. He shows himself to Stefan as Elena/Katherine, and informs him that he does have a weakness – as he has a doppelganger. Stefan is that doppelganger, and Silas locks Stefna in a safe and drops him into the bottom of the quarry.

It was afantastic episode, made all the more brilliant by having so many ghostly characters returning. The overall plot was interesting, it helped to further set up The Originals, and left enough open for season 5. I can’t wait to see it.

Thanks for reading.

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Supernatural.

I’ve just enjoyed the season finale of Supernatural, ‘Sacrifice’.

Crowley has decided his next victim is Jody Mills, who was close with Bobby while he was alive. Sam and Dean stop him from killing her however, by calling Crowley and promising the demon tablet in exchange for the angel tablet and to stop the trials. The Winchesters then retrieve the tablet for the trade from Kevin Tran, to whom they then give the key to the base/lair of the Men of Letters. Sam, Dean, and Crowley then meet up at Bobby’s old house, where the brothers pretend to make the deal, then capture Crowley in demon-binding handcuffs so they can use him for the third trial.

They take him to an abandoned church (consecrated ground), where Sam confesses his sins to purify his blood. Elsewhere, Castiel and Metatron try to complete the second Heaven trial by retrieving the bow of a cupid, but Naomi and her men kidnap Metatron and leave Castiel behind. Castiel asks Dean for help in completing the trial, while, against Dean’s better judgment, Sam stays behind to purify Crowley using his own purified blood and complete the third demon trial. Dean and Castiel convince a cherub they encounter to give them her bow, promising they will restore peace to Heaven. During his purification process, Crowley bites Sam’s hand and takes a mouthful of his blood, which he then uses to make a “call” to his demons, for help.

However, Abaddon arrives in an attempt to kill both of them and rule Hell herself. Crowley stalls while Sam douses her in Holy Fire, and Abaddon leaves her vessel and the building. Crowley then begs Sam to stop, saying “All I want is to be loved” causing them to realize the cure is working. Crowley also expresses some regret for his actions, wondering how he can even begin to ask for forgiveness and willingly goes along with the cure. In Heaven, Naomi has been torturing Metatron, but, upon learning the Winchesters have completed the second trial, leaves to find Dean and Castiel. Naomi warns Dean and Castiel that Metatron is lying, and really wants to expel all angels from Heaven as revenge for his own expulsion.

Naomi expresses regret for her transgressions, musing that the angels were supposed to protect humanity and lost sight of that somewhere along the way. Naomi also tells Dean that completing the demon trials will kill Sam; telling him that it was what God wanted as the “ultimate sacrifice”. Upon learning this, Dean demands to be taken back to Sam and Crowley. Before leaving, Naomi also offers Castiel the chance to return to Heaven. Castiel brings them back to the church where Sam and Crowley are, but then teleports back up to Heaven. Upon arriving, Castiel discovers Naomi’s dead body, killed by her own torture device. Metatron then ambushes him and tells Castiel that Naomi was right.

At the church, Sam does not care that this will kill him, telling Dean his greatest sin was letting his brother down, multiple times. Dean assures Sam of his love, and they stop the trial before its completion. Dean also says that with the information they’ve gained from the first two trials, they can turn the war of hunters against demons. Back in Heaven, Metatron extracts the strapped-down Castiel’s grace, the final component needed in the spell he is really working. He tells Castiel that he is now human, and asks him to live a full life, and when he dies, to find Metatron and tell him how it was.

Castiel is sent back to Earth, and Sam begins to collapse having given up on the trials. Dean carries him outside to the Impala. Meanwhile, Kevin is about to leave the base when the alarms start blaring, and an electronic map on a table is highlighting practically the entire world in supernatural activity. Dean, Sam, Castiel and Crowley look up into the night sky as thousands of angels begin to fall, and get ripped of their grace during the fall to Earth.

It was a great final episode, bringing the entire season of storylines together into one tight episode. The were twists, turns, surprises – and a whole lot of great moments. I can’t wait for next season to see how this particular story continues.

Thanks for reading.

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Arrow.

I’ve just had the pleasure of watching the season finale of Arrow, ‘Sacrifice’.

Malcolm imprisons Oliver and leaves him to die, but he manages to escape and return home. In a flashback, Fyers fires a missile at an approaching airliner, but Oliver and Shado manage to override the coordinates and destroy the missile. Afterward, Oliver kills Fyers – the first person he manages to kill with a bow and arrow.

Back in the present, Oliver confronts his mother about the Undertaking, which prompts her to hold a press conference and reveal to the city her involvement with Malcolm and the plan to destroy the Glades – she is arrested for conspiracy to murder, but also gave the people a chance to escape. Tommy sees the press conference, and Malcolm reveals that he is the other archer, much to the dismay of his son. Detective Lance, with help from Felicity, is able to dismantle the earthquake device, which is located in the subway tunnel where Malcolm’s wife was murdered.

Diggle and Oliver go after, and eventually defeat, Malcolm, who reveals that there is a second device shortly before he dies. The device activates and begins to level the east side of the Glades. Thea goes into the Glades to save Roy, who works to help others who are trying to escape the earthquake. hey admit that they love each other, before Roy tells Thea to escape. Laurel is trapped in her office, but Tommy arrives to rescue her. Laurel escapes, but Tommy is caught by falling debris. Oliver arrives too late; Tommy is mortally wounded and dies after Oliver lies and tells him that he did not kill his father. The episode ends with the camera panning upward to show the devastation caused to the Glades.

It was a fantastic episode, with plenty of twists and turns, some excellent character development, and enough left over intrigue for a brilliant season 2. I can’t wait!

Thanks for reading.

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