Beware of the Brain Sharpeners
by Philip Curtis; ill. Tony Ross (Anderson Press, 1983)
An underwhelming instalment. The Brain Sharpeners, rather than posing some insidious threat, now play the role of conscientious anti-nuclear interventionists. Their plan is gratuitous and the abducted students have no agency whatsoever. Curtis employs a jocular prose style devoid of actual humour.
Sherlock: The Lying Detective
by Steven Moffat; dir. Nick Hurran (BBC, 2017)
At once a small story (Toby Jones proving disturbingly effective as the Jimmy Savile-esque villain) and a larger, lurching, exceedingly dark character piece where the moment-to-moment excellence serves only partially to cloak the too-fast unravelling and resetting of Watson and Sherlock’s relationship.
The Extraordinary Adventures of Arsène Lupin, Gentleman Burglar
by Maurice Leblanc; trans. Alexander Teixeira de Mattos (Je sais tout, 1905-1906)
audiobook read by B.J. Harrison (B.J. Harrison, 2015)
A collection of the first nine stories featuring Arsène Lupin, the French answer to Sherlock Holmes. Lupin is a loveable, rather-too-full-of-himself antihero whose criminal exploits are related with a bonhomous, artful vivacity. Leblanc pulls much wool over the eyes of all concerned.
The Ghost Grabbers
by Terrance Dicks (Blackie, 1980)
After much build-up as to how realistic the so-called hauntings are, the ease of their fabrication is then glossed over. The multifaceted misdirection is clever enough so far as MG goes, but the scheme is at once painfully transparent and laughably overcomplicated.
The Hour, Series 2
by Abi Morgan (BBC, 2012)
An intelligent drama that builds across six episodes but then doesn’t quite deliver (despite compelling characters and top-notch acting). Perhaps the historical realism, centred around news journalism in the late 1950s, precludes a truly satisfying denouement. Peter Capaldi is a welcome addition.
The Valley of Adventure
by Enid Blyton (Macmillan, 1947)
audiobook read by Thomas Judd (Hodder, 2018)
The Valley of Adventure proves memorable for its setting, its intrigue, and of course for Kiki the parrot. Judd’s audiobook reading continues to make the girls sound like wet dishrags, though in fact they show a bit more gumption this time around.
Murder in the Basement
by Anthony Berkeley (Doubleday, Doran & Company, 1932)
audiobook read by Seán Barrett (Soundings, 2021)
An experiment in form, which sees what appears at first a straightforward murder investigation proceed by way of a fictional manuscript within-story. Unfortunately, this manuscript’s narrative is one that Sheringham himself admits to having grown bored with and abandoned—for good reason!
Sherlock: The Six Thatchers
by Mark Gatiss; dir. Rachel Talalay (BBC, 2017)
The beginning of the end, as Gatiss and Company run out of easily adaptable source material and instead take Sherlock in new, more darkly improbable directions. The Six Thatchers works in the little moments but is overly frenetic, fast-compressing major character arcs.
Blondie: Against the Odds
by Amanda Conner & Jimmy Palmiotti; ill. Montos (Z2 Comics, 2023)
A trippy graphic-novel biopic one-sixth showcasing the squalor of 1970s New York and then the early lives of Debbie Harry and Chris Stein (ignoring the other band members), and five-sixths devoted to imaginative if highly tenuous explorations of fourteen famous Blondie songs.
Good Omens, Series 2
by Neil Gaiman & John Finnemore
dir. Douglas Mackinnon (Amazon Prime, 2023)
Without source material tangling its roots, Good Omens blossoms into a gloriously satirical excoriation of biblical schtick and the whole good versus evil dichotomy. Aziraphale and Crowley make for one of TV’s great odd couples. Michael Sheen puts in a bravura performance.