The Ice Road and All the Light We Cannot See

Two conditions you probably shouldn't be driving in? :P

The Ice Road

When an accident gets some people trapped in a mine, it is up to down to a few truckies including one played by Liam Neeson to sign up for a dangerous drive against time across a frozen lake while hauling a heavy load of equipment to save the trapped men before their air runs out. Since the writers figured that was too boring, they also decided to make it an action movie which results in some very poor brawling sequences, poor effects, and a questionable plot that is teeming with inconsistencies. It's not very good but it might still appeal for people that like watching big rigs doing things they shouldn't normally be doing.

All the Light We Cannot See

This four episode mini-series follows a blind French girl and a German soldier who have a shared passion for radios during World War II. While there are good sets, acting, effects and an interesting enough story, there's a heavy use of flashbacks (*bum-bummmm noise*) and in some parts you can actually feel the plot armor on some characters. Had this been told chronologically I think I would have liked it better. I mean, all the bits are filmed anyway for the audience but how they are revealed is mostly when someone asks a character about their past. Instead of having a plot that spans however many years, the entire story (the part that matters where all the "stakes" are) just takes place in a few days.

Only in occasions where someone is discovering the past through unrelated characters should flashbacks be considered, like in The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar. Anyway, that's just my little nitpick. It's still enjoyable as it is.

El Cid and World Without End

Two series set in medieval times.

El Cid

This Spanish series follows Ruy (Jaime Lorente, who you might better know as Denver on La Casa de Papel/Money Heist), who despite losing his father to King Ferdinand, works to become the very skilled squire of Prince Sanchio, Ferdinand's son. Mixed with sword fighting, back stabbing and politics is a healthy dose of drama where Ruy must often chose between what he wants and what is right. Good and entertaining story. There are two seasons of this thus far and I'm hoping there are more to come.

Just because he talks to birds doesn't make him crazy.

World Without End

This mini series is the sequel to The Pillars of the Earth and is set mostly in Kingsbridge once more, but don't worry if you haven't seen Pillars yet (though you should, it's very good) because this takes place 157 years later. In it the town is made to suffer by royalty and resident scum bags who are happy to be irredeemable "black hat" wearing villains and make the good characters, the people you root for, suffer ever episode. Excellent story telling, though my the same "people don't age" criticism I leveled at Pillars is the same here as principal characters don't change much appearance wise despite this story spanning several years. Still worth a watch though!

Dead Bits: Walking Dead mini series

The Walking Dead is a popular zombie show that has spawned a number of spin-off series, and I'm not going to talk about any of those here. Instead, this is a review on all the tiny web series currently on offer.

Walking Dead: Torn Apart

This low quality and cheap production is set at the start of the epidemic, and is obviously a trial "add on" for the Walking Dead universe. Some B-class acting abounds from the protagonists trying to decide what to do but it did actually do justice in the jump scare department. Best watched before the main series as it includes characters encountered in season 1.

Walkind Dead: Cold Storage

An obvious upgrade from Torn Apart with better quality everything really. This follows a survivors encounter with a safe haven in the form of a storage building. The decent story is one of my favorites in this set, and is best watched before the main series.

Walking Dead: The Oath

Apart from some poor quality at the start, this one has a decent story that follows survivors looking for a medical facility to treat their wounds. For a change there are some nice surprises here, but I still prefer the story of Cold Storage altogether. Again watch before the main series as the location is visited in season 1.

Walking Dead: Red Machete

Definitely different from the above in that this artistic and almost voiceless series follows the titular red machete from its unboxing and across its many, many owners. The cartoon segment while nice feels a bit forced, and would have been better replaced by actual shots from the main show. Still an interesting watch, but unlike the above three this one should only be seen after season 7.

The weapon is the main character. Interesting...

Fear the Walking Dead: Flight 426

We've had snakes on a plane, so why not zombies? Set entirely in an aircraft on Z-day #1, this story is quite neat though also predictable in equal measure. It definitely has a cooler tie in to the Fear series though, so watch it before watching Fear Season 1.

Fear the Walking Dead: Passage

Following survivors seeking passage to safety, this one is really good in terms of set quality but really weak in terms of story and acting, leading it to be my least favourite of all the shorts. Also some real "wtf" moments like, why did you bother putting that zombie in a hazmat suit? Anyway, best watched after Fear Season 3 I guess.

The Althea Tapes

Best watched after Fear Season 4 this is perhaps the lowest budget of all the series thus far, taking the interview type approach for all of its six episodes. While the acting is decent, which is good since it's literally just people talking at the camera, it simply isn't compelling enough to recommend. There was an opportunity to tie it into Fear itself but it looks like that opportunity was squandered.

The Pillars of the Earth

Wait, this isn't a movie...

I'm bucking the trend today be reviewing a mini-series which basically follows the construction of a cathedral and quite rightfully spans many, many years. At first it might feel a little bit involved (unless you are a Game of Thrones fan) with following the stories of the builder's family,  the priory monks, the noble families fighting for the crown, the lesser nobles vying for Shiring Castle, and one masterfully manipulative and ambitious priest played by Ian McShane. He does a really fantastic job and every scene he is in is great, which is pretty good for the villain! It's also the first time I recall seeing Eddie Redmayne, who also does a decent job in his role.

All the people. :)

There are a few "weaker" actors but for the most part they can be overlooked, and I can't really complain about the wonderful sets they had there despite some "stones" seemingly being made of lighter material. Really the only two negatives for me were some of the very plain names for main characters (such as "Tom Builder" and "Jack Jackson") and that some characters age and some don't.

Also "aging" to some of the cast also just involves putting on a ludicrous looking wig so they get a little funny to look at but all in all it's a decent story which manages to tie up all the threads a little too cleanly at the end. Regardless I highly recommend it and give it four stones out of five. I also wouldn't mind seeing it again.