Hidden Gems

Well, hidden from me, up until now, anyway.


I somehow missed the Veronica Mars TV series while it was originally on the air, but heard so much about it that I've picked it up through Netflix. I haven't finished it yet (I'm most of the way through the first season), but what I've seen so far is excellent. It's well plotted, well acted, and creates an engaging over arcing mystery even though individual episodes still hold up well on their own, for the most part. Unfortunately, the Netflix reviews suggest that the second and third seasons were disappointing compared to the first, but I'll need a break after binging on this one for the last couple of weeks anyway. The one thing that bothers me is how Veronica constantly tweaks local law enforcement without being taken away from her father's care. It just stands to reason that when someone takes as many chances as she does, it should catch up with her sooner or later. There's also a character thing bothering me about one of the supporting characters that I'm going to wait out and see if it's eventually explained before commenting on it. Highly recommended.

The British series "Jekyll" was also a pleasant surprise. This is a powerful modern take on "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde". I don't even remember how I found it, though I think I spotted it in a catalog of British TV series DVDs. It was written by one of the people behind recent seasons of Doctor Who, Steven Moffatt. The writing is sharp, scary where it should be and occasionally funny to break the tension, but the strongest reason to rent this one is James Nesbitt as the lead character. You can really believe this one actor is two entirely different people in the blink of an eye. I won't spoil it by telling you anything more, other than that there are several differences from prior versions, and every one of them is there for an entertaining reason. If you like horror as much as I do, rent this one as soon as you can.