2013: Television To Look Forward To

Happy New Year! It's 2013, which can mean only one thing: lots of brand new and returning television shows! Below is a list of some notable shows that are soon to be hitting the airwaves (or internet in a few cases!) I'm sure I've forgotten some, and a few premiere dates may change, but this chronological list should give you a pretty good idea what to expect over the next six months or so. Feel fee to leave a comment about my choices, and add some of your own! (Updated: 09/01/13)

New Year's TV Picks: 31 December 2012 – 6 January 2013 (Africa, Alan Carr's New Year's Specstacular, Celebrity Big Brother, Charlie Brooker's 2012 Wipe Out, Glee, Mr Selfridge, Room 101, etc.)

Below are my picks of the week's most notable TV shows, debuting or returning to British airwaves. As usual, the New Year heralds lots of new programming to get 2013 off to a good start...

Trailer: SPARTACUS - WAR OF THE DAMNED (Starz)

The trailer for the third and final season of Spartacus was released over the weekend, and it's full of exactly what you'd expect: violence, geysers of blood, granite jaws, nudity, big speeches, violence, huge armies, swords, Julius Caesar, more violence, spurts of blood, the usual thing. I'm still an admirer of this show on a technical level and have always found it supremely entertaining, so I hope they can finish the story on a high note. There will always be a part of me that misses the late Andy Whitfield in the title role, but I'm more concerned they've now killed off every popular character except for Spartacus, Crixus and Gannicus. Hopefully the influx of new third season characters will capture our hearts quickly, otherwise it could be a strange season if we're just awaiting the inevitable (I doubt the show will diverge too much from historical fact, so the fates of the lead gladiators appear sealed). What are your hopes for this show in its final year?

SPARTACUS: WAR OF THE DAMNED premieres 25 January 2013 on Starz. A Sky1 premiere in the UK hasn't been announced yet, but it's usually not far behind.

Movie Review: THE HOBBIT - AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY (2012)

The decision to trisect an adaptation of J.R.R Tolkien's The Hobbit (likely clocking in around nine-hours in total) appears to be misguided and foolish, but I actually didn't have a problem with how Peter Jackson stretched the first epic instalment's plot (which only covers six chapters of the classic book). It gave everything a grander feel and the whole ambition felt closer to The Lord of the Rings trilogy's, which this also works as a prequel to. What I'm saying is that, yes, they could easily have split The Hobbit into two films (as originally planned), but I don't see the issue with spending longer in Middle-earth if there's enough material to sustain an elongated adventure. And by expanding on Tolkien's appendices and aiming to have The Hobbit explain some of the mythology and background of Rings along the way, I can well imagine the nine-hour opus being justified in retrospect.

Dan's TV Awards 2012 (including a Top 10)

It's December, which means most entertainment blogs and websites will be indulging their readers with extensive Top 10 lists. I've done exactly that myself for most of the seven years Dan's Media Digest has been online. But this year I thought I'd offer something different: an awards ceremony! Of sorts. You can call it the "Danos", or something. It's basically a run-down of television shows that I thought pulled off something particularly good or bad this year. And if you still prefer a more traditional Top 10, I've included one at the very end.

DOCTOR WHO – 'The Snowmen'

written by Steven Moffat / directed by Saul Metzstein

The Christmas specials of Doctor Who have a unique potential to make fans of those who don't give the show a moment's thought during the year, as most British households containing Whovians will force their entire families to watch this seasonal episode. The eighth such festive special since Who's revival, "The Snowmen" was easily its best. There are various reasons for this, but it probably helped that the Christmas schmaltz was kept to a minimum (it was more of a winter-themed episode than anything trying to get us drunk on holiday spirit), and writer Steven Moffat tends to be at his best when an episode has a clear goal and intention. Here it was the introduction of a brand new companion in sassy barmaid/governess Clara (Jenna-Louise Coleman), whose first encounter with The Doctor (Matt Smith) echoed that of any newcomers to the series...

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER, 3.7 & 3.8 – 'Revelations' & 'Lover's Walk'

Giles: I won't remind you that the fate of the world often lies with the Slayer. What would be the point? Nor shall I remind you that you've jeopardized the lives of all that you hold dear by harbouring a known murderer. But, sadly, I must remind you that Angel tortured me... for hours... for pleasure. You should have told me he was alive. You didn't. You have no respect for me or the job I perform.

Naturally, given the title, there was no surprise that "REVELATIONS" gave us some big disclosures. The biggest was Xander (Nicholas Brendon) discovering that Angel's (David Boreanaz) alive and well, doing Tai Chi with Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar). This has been threatened all season, and I'm relieved it's finally out in the open. At the moment Angel feels like a vestigial piece of season 2's jigsaw, so I just hope the character is allowed to re-enter Buffy's clique without wasting more time. I'm also not entirely convinced by everyone's reaction to Angel being alive—except for Giles (Anthony Head), whose girlfriend he murdered. Everyone understands that Angel only started behaving in an intolerable manner because his soul was removed, so it feels like there should be more compassion from a group of friends who deal with supernatural oddities every week.

MERLIN, 5.13 – 'The Diamond of the Day: Part 2'

written by Julian Jones / directed by Justin Molotnikov

After five years, Merlin finally closes the book on its formative take on the Arthurian legend. The good news is this was a conclusion that didn't entirely disappoint, although there were undoubtedly a handful of moments that flopped when they should have soared. However, a lot could be forgiven because the core relationship between Merlin (Colin Morgan) and Arthur (Bradley James) took centre stage for the majority of the hour, and both actors elevated the iffy material—which has been their recurring skill on this show. Make no mistake about it, without Morgan and James in these key roles, the finale and the entire show would have been much poorer.

FRINGE, 5.10 – 'Anomaly XB-6783746'

written by David Fury / directed by Jeffrey Hunt

I don't have much time to write a full review of the latest Fringe, so a few brief thoughts will have to suffice. I really enjoyed this episode, despite its unusual pace and a feeling of frustration that the Observer child Michael took up an entire episode as the gang struggled to communicate with him. Why didn't the boy's guardians tell them it's impossible before they took him away? "Anomaly XB-6783746" was therefore another episode where Walter (John Noble), Peter (Joshua Jackson), Olivia (Anna Torv) and Astrid (Jasika Nicole) had to find something to aide their mission—this time a headset "ecog" that can translate an Observer's complex thought patterns—but I didn't have too much of a problem with that. Why? Simple: because the story gave a great deal of screen time to excellent villain Windmark (Michael Kopsa), and had a clear focus on the even better Nina (Blair Brown).

TV Review: BBC1's MR STINK

This hour-long adaptation of David Walliams' best-selling novel was a pleasant surprise; taking many inspirations and weaving them into something that stood on its own two feet. It told the story of 12-year-old Chloe Crumb (Nell Tiger Free), who strikes up an unlikely friendship with local tramp Mr Stink (Hugh Bonneville) after taking pity on him and inviting him to live in her family's garden shed. They're both victims of bullying (Chloe by her school friends, Stink by society) who find strength together, and naturally this leads to life-changing events for them both.