Summer is in full swing which means you hopefully have more free time in your life to watch a lot of TV that you've been missing out on. I'm sure a bunch of you are trying to fill a void that Game of Thrones has left you and I'm here to offer a solution to that hole. I'll apologize upfront for my recommendation's lack of dragons, but how do you all feel about vampires and werewolves in Victorian London? If you like the sound of that, then I would like to draw your attention to Showtime's "Penny Dreadful."
If you've seen the movie "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" then you'll understand the vibe that "Penny Dreadful" has; if you haven't then I'll elaborate on the plot. Basically, this show is a conglomeration of all of the most popular Gothic horror characters. You have Dr, Frankenstein, Dorian Grey, Dr. Jekyll, Dracula, and more throughout the various seasons. Thrown in with these classic figures you have the characters Vanessa Ives, who is a woman with powers and a lot of dark secrets, Sir Malcolm Murray who is Vanessa's benefactor and a great adventurer trying to find his lost daughter, and Ethan Chandler who is a sharpshooter from America who is recruited by Vanessa because of his special talents with guns. The plots vary by season but they all ultimately involve insanity, the devil, magic, myth, and why characters are the way they are.
Something I love about this show is how well crafted all of the backstories are for the characters. Almost all characters are sympathetic including the "villains" because you get to see what shaped them. Think backstories a la "Orange is the New Black." The combination of actors they got for these roles was slightly bizarre but it works so well. Timothy Dalton, who you may know as James Bond, plays Sir Malcolm, the insanely talented Eva Green plays Vanessa Ives, Billie Piper aka Rose Tyler plays Brona/Lily. There are some more unknown actors in this as well who I hope gain a more attention from their performances.
I'm going to be honest with you all, as much as I love the show I didn't think it was going to last as long as it did. I thought it would be a one and done type show but it ended up being three seasons. However season three just ended and it was revealed right before the season finale that it would also be the series finale. I'm heartbroken because that ending destroyed me and now there is really no coming back from it. However, the show won't be too much of a commitment for you all since season one is eight episodes, season two is ten, and season three is nine. Each episode is an hour or less so you're only looking at a 27-hour commitment max. Not too bad for an amazing show like this.
