Harsh Light News Newsletter

John Bradshaw’s Santa’s Squad, originally titled The Santa Squad, hit television screens in the United States on Monday, 7 December 2020.

Santa’s Squad, with a story penned by Mark Valenti, revolves around unemployed art teacher Allie. Allie, after being hired at the Santa Squad, is given a special assignment.

AMERICAN NETWORK TELEVISION

Big Sky, after a significant break, returned to television screens on Tuesday, 13 April 2021 with two new episodes. The Montana set Big Sky, created by David E. Kelley, is partially based on the C.J. Box written literary series.

Episodes, as series fans have come to expect, have taken us down numerous metaphorical rabbit holes. The various twists and turns, many of the completely blindsiding viewers, have added significant dramatic tension to the narrative.

Previously, in Let It Be Him, Merrilee Legarski (Brooke Smith) finally realised her husband had intended to kill her. …

AMERICAN NETWORK TELEVISION

Painkiller, the latest Black Lightning episode, didn’t deliver. It felt completely disconnected to both this final season and the Arrowverse as a whole. An upside to the episode, with how dreadful the Green Arrow & the Canaries backdoor pilot was, Arrowverse creators learned from previous mistakes.

Khalil Payne / Painkiller (Jordan Calloway), even though he’s capable of significant brutality, is a very likeable character. this is a very different Khalil to the one we were introduced to when he first appeared on Black Lightning. Significant character growth has occurred.

In many ways, depending on your perspective, this could be seen…

NEW ZEALAND NETWORK TELEVISION

The Brokenwood Mysteries is one of those television film series where, when you’ve seen one episode, you immediately want to watch the next episode.

Unlike a lot of American detective crime series, more in keeping with the UK’s Midsomer Murders, The Brokenwood Mysteries is a series of 90 minute episodes. American television series such as Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Chicago P.D., unless it is a two-parter and or a crossover event with another series, only get 42–44 minutes to tell a full story.

Dog Day Morning, directed by Mark Beesley from a story penned by Timothy Balme…

AMERICAN NETWORK TELEVISION

Batwoman (Javicia Leslie) takes her war against Snakebite directly to the False Face Society. Curiously, as the episode progresses, we learn only Ocean (Nathan Owens) and Angelique Martin (Bevin Bru) possess the knowhow to make more of the addictive drug.

Black Mask, an individual not yet formally identified, apparently insisted on keeping the drug formula a secret. The villain, as series fans know, is Roman Sionis (Peter Outerbridge).

The only people looped into the secret, because of Black Mask’s paranoia, were Ocean and Angelique. Whilst Ocean is seemingly missing, elsewhere, Angelique is serving time at a local private prison.

Colonel…

BRITISH NETWORK TELEVISION

The Stitcher Society, directed by Roberto Bangura from a screenplay penned by Jeff Povey, came to television screens on Sunday, 11 April 2021. The film, serving as the second instalment in the current Midsomer Murders series, revolves around a seriously odd post-operative heart rehab club and its members.

Toby Wagner (Peter De Jersey), years earlier, had been controversially acquitted of murder. All Toby wants to do is put the past behind him and move on with his life. That is clearly never going to happen.

Various members of The Stitcher Society, still angered by the verdict, continue to believe Toby…

British Network Television

DCI Joanne ‘Jo’ Davidson’s (Kelly Macdonald), because of recent events and the arrest of their senior officer, reveals she has been promoted to Superintendent.

Meanwhile, elsewhere, DSU Ian Buckells (Nigel Boyle) is interviewed by AC-12 personnel Superintendent Ted Hastings (Adrian Dunbar), temporary DI Steve Arnott (Martin Compston), and DC Chloe Bishop (Shalom Brune-Franklin). Buckells is charged.

It’s difficult understanding how Buckells, extremely indecisive, made it to his rank. Steve correctly observes Buckells couldn’t organise a p*ss-up in a brewery.

DCC Andrea Wise (Elizabeth Rider), frustrated with the AC-12 senior officer, informs Hastings of plans to merge all existing Anti-Corruption units…

AUSTRALIAN NETWORK TELEVISION

The third series finale, Ab Initio, beings the to a close a ten episode narrative that began in the second series finale with the discovery of a dead body. Pater Familias, televised on Sunday, 14 July 2019, closed with a seriously startling revelation.

The episode left us thinking Dr Daniel Harrow (Ioan Gruffudd) had a son. A passport discovered with the body initially pointed to the young man being Harrow’s son. A lot of things have happened since the body was discovered. Nothing, with this being Harrow, is nothing like it first appears. …