Hello world! Welcome back to another blog. Today I will he taking you through three tv shows I’ve been watching recently. One was a well known period drama, that was probably one of the most sauciest seasons yet, one was a ground breaking drama about an all female band, and the other was a children’s show where as a neurodivergent individual, it’s proud to see something on our screens to show that autism isn’t something you have but something you are! So without further ado here are my reviews!
Bridgerton:
The first show I’m going to talk about is series 3 of Bridgerton casted by Kelly Valentine Hendry.
This series focused on the long awaited relationship of Colin Bridgerton and Penelope Featherington, and it’s safe to say the world was waiting for it!
The growth in both characters were huge. For Penelope (played by Nicole Coughlan), her transformation gave her the confidence she needed to seek a husband and not be known as the wallflower everyone labels her for, but her secret of Lady Whistledown really hanged in the balance. And for Colin (played by Luke Newton), his glow up from his travels made him quite a different person. At first only trying to help Penelope with her mission to find a husband, he soon realises that he himself has feelings for her. And that’s a classic case of not knowing what you have until you've nearly lost it! And even with the secret about Lady Whistledown revealed, yes there was some tension, but he still managed to stand by her through all of it!
I also saw other characters grow throughout the series. Anthony and Kates relationship (played by Jonathan Bailey and Simone Ashley) grew stronger, Violet (played by Ruth Gemmell) may have seeker a new love interest, despite a few obstacles in the form of Lady Danbury (played by Adjoa Andoh), Benedict (played by Luke Thompson), explored a hidden world outside of society, and Eloise (played by Claudia Jessie) got to discover Cressida Cowper’s different side to her. With Cressida herself (played by Jessica Madsen), I can see why she is the way she is after seeing her home life but it’s no excuse to put down others. I also got to see more developments in Francesca (now played by Hannah Dodd) who she and John Stirling, Earl of Kilmartin (played by Victor Alli), may have traits of autism in them. And we may be looking at a whole New Romantic storyline completely when Kilmartin's cousin comes into town.
My only downside is that there won’t be another series until 2026! Yes it’s upsetting but I can also see a positive in it. As Bridgerton is so diverse in its cast (as there was someone who did BSL) and a show I would really like to be on. So this would be the perfect opportunity to but the graft in and keep in touch with the casting director so they can keep me in the full front of their mind!
Overall I would give the shoe a full house! It was saucy (possible one of the sauciest series so far), dramatic and it was a show I’ve been eager to see back on our screens!
We Are Lady Parts:
The next show I’m going to review is series 1 of We Are Lady Parts, casted by Aisha Bywaters.
This follows the story of an all female Muslim group making it into show business! What I liked about this show is that not only is each episode 30 minutes long but it’s also breaking societal norms which I shall mention in just a moment!
Amina (played by Anjana Vasan) is the main protagonist as she aims to achieve her dreams but also doesn’t want to be judged by her friends after making it her mission to find herself a husband! I also love her development and growth from the first episode until the last, as despite a slip up in the last one, she knew that the band is where she wanted to be!
The other cast each had their own stories as well! We had lead singer Saira (played by Sarah Kameela Impey) who is often reserved at times due to her past, and I can see why her relationship with Abdullah (played by David Avery) was up and down! We also had Bisma (played by Faith Omole) who I feel is the mother of the group, and then Montaz (played by Lucie Shorthouse) who manages the band and never gives up on her dreams, and finally Ayesha (played by Juliette Motamed) who is abit short tempered but only because she wants the band to do well! And also given the fact she is LGBTQ+ is incredible as for some families of the Muslim culture, it would be classed as a sin. But she’s shown that you should embrace who you are! We also have Ahsan (played by Zaqi Ismali) who at first says to Amina that he just wants to be friends, but as the series progressed, he may have wanted to be more than it.
I think my only downside to it would be that there were some moments that were meant to be comedic but they didn’t quite land for me personally. However it made up with heartfelt moments like Amina's first concert with the band and also standing up for herself to her best friend Noor (played by Aiysha Hart) who gave her the ultimatum of supporting her or ending their friendship!
Overall I would give the show a solid 4. Despite some of the comedy moments not really landing for me, I could see why it won a bafta and as mentioned before the heartwarming moments really made it up! And with another series to catch up on I can’t wait to see the bands development in their careers!
A Kind Of Spark:
The final show I’ll be reviewing is series 1 of A Kind Of Spark, with the original novel by Elle McNicoll, casted by Sue Needleman and directed by Matt Holt!
This follows autistic girl Addie who wants a memorial for the witches of juniper who were killed for simply being different! What I liked about this show is that yes it was on a children’s channel but because it’s highlighting the topic of autism within the main story I think is a real achievement! As then it’s giving kids an early understanding of what it is and how they can help those who have got it!
Addie (played by Lola Blue) is a fine example of how just because you’re autistic it does not mean to say you can achieve anything you put your mind to! I also how it goes back in time where ancestor Elinor Fraser (played by Ella Maisy Purvis) would do anything she could to protect her secret to avoid being killed! I won’t give away all spoilers of what happened in the past but let’s just say that the witch Hunter (played by Ben Willbound) was on a mission to go after Margaret Fraser (played by Hattie Gotobed).
Other characters in the show really made it all come together! These included Addies twin sisters Keedie (played by Georgia De Gidlow), who tries to hide her autism after fears of being judged, and Nina (played by Caitlin Hamilton) who tried to make something for herself! I also admired how she is neurodiverse in real life which goes to prove that we can play both neurodiverse and neurotypical characters. And two characters that support them is Nina’s boyfriend Frank (played by Zac Looker) who at first Nina gets cautious incase what he has to offer is deemed as uncool but is in fact what every girl wants in a guy, and new student Audrey (played by Eve Midgley) who supports Addie and is with her when times get tough! I also hated Jenna (played by Evie Elgie) for abandoning Addie for new girl Emily (played by Grace Wood) who yes I can see why she might be jealous of Addie but it’s not excuse to treat her the way she did! But that’s when you know that an actor is panting their part well!
I don’t think I have any downsides to this show (mainly because I’m abit bias), but one thing that annoyed me was how Miss Murphy (played by Amy Marston) spoke about Addie and Keedie at the end of the series! That really annoyed me but then again this show is also showing the reality of autism, and that some people like her are still judgmental towards it due to a lack of understanding and also has old fashioned values!
Overall I would give the show a full house! It was adventurous, heartwarming and it made the people of juniper, including the chairman of the council (played by John Draycott) see that being different is a good thing! And I can’t wait to watch series 2 when Addie has an adventure linking to an old book shop!
And those were my reviews of the most recent shows I’ve seen! Let me know what your thoughts of these shows are and if you have any other shows for me to watch and review!
See you soon for another blog. Until next time...
This is The Autistic Actress signing off :)
Comments