dobbinman Reviews

Doctor Who (2023– )

Not exactly the scary Daleks anymore

[2/10 · 21 May 2024]

I pretty much lived for classic Who as a kid in the 60-70's. The later reboot with Ecclestone was a new style and was generally very good with added humour and some modern views like the more assertive girl Rose, the fun Mikey and the charismatic gay character Captain Jack. All seemed to fit with the more intense show and all was good. Female master Missy was brilliant but the rot set in with Whittaker's awful character and terrible storey lines smashing cannon storylines. A quick redemption with the re-introduction of the brilliant Catherine Tate with the equally awesome David Tennant before the appearance of Ncuti Gatwa. Personably he is quite good but the new song-and-dance-violance-free-ultracamp-musical the show has become leaves it utterly unwatchable for me. They should have made a separate spinoff show like Torchwood. I'm out - totally. Seems like most other people are too!

Fallout (2024– )

Brilliance - stunning TV version of the Fallout game series.

[10/10 · 25 April 2024]

OK so I'm not a gamer but I have always liked the look and lore of Fallout, especially Fallout 4. Follow an inhabitant of the nuclear fallout shelter 33 as she goes on a quest outside and encounters sights and lifeforms of extreme diversity. The sandy complex post nuclear holocaust world is far more complex and nuanced than regular post nuke films and the show switches between the past and present to flesh out the characters and plot. Expect surprises - extreme gore, sci-fi stuff, wild plot reveals. On a par with the first season of Westworld and with a great cast this is a rare gem among recent TV.

Bangers & Cash (2019– )

It really is like this - Fantastic classic vehicles and great people.

[10/10 · 2 February 2023]

I live in Pickering, a mile or so from Thornton Le Dale. Matthewsons have now moved the auction cars to the Pickering trading estate. This is a good thing as a classic vehicle owner myself I like to walk my dogs past their (now 2) large units full of cars to see what is around. The other day I saw Paul with a huge truck tractor unit that he owns, polishing away at it up a ladder. He's a great guy and always open to chat, even with annoying dog walkers like me. Often the TV film crew can also be seen filming yet another classic vehicle. Dave is often around, usually trying to sort out cars coming and going and Derek often turns up in one of his amazing classics, last time I saw him he was in a stunning Alvis. People turn up all the time to view lots or just to get a photo of themselves by the sign. The show portrays it just as it is, a fantastic place of genuine people featuring a never ending stream of classic vehicles and memorabilia narrated by comedian Toby Foster who is a perfect fit for this feel-good show of North Yorkshire classic vehicles and the people frequently obsessed with them.

Dexter: New Blood (2021–2022)

Amazing reboot - why are there so many haters?!? THIS SHOW IS BRILLIANT!

[10/10 · 29 November 2021]

I loved Dexter back in the day. When I saw they were doing a new mini series I was excited to see it but then I started hearing about 'bad reviews'. I really felt bad about that and in the end nearly didn't watch the first episode. Hang on - it looked pretty good actually, the music, the inner dialogue, all very 'Dexterish'. Deb is dead but now is back as his conscious replacing Harry. Harrison turns up looking for his absent father and we start seeing some dark tells about him too. Another one with a dark passenger? Only time will tell. This series reminded me of Joker - panned by the critics as being 'off message for the times' but loved by the public and myself. Give a few episodes a go and you could well be hooked as well as I am. I really hope they go on to do much more of this in the future.

All Creatures Great and Small (2020– )

Feelgood factor in period Yorkshire Dales setting.

[9/10 · 2 September 2020]

People like me of a certain age grew up with the wildly popular books and TV series in the 70's so there are some who will never accept a re-filming of this tale of a vet in post WW1 North Yorkshire. I happen to live near there and know people who actually knew Alf Wight who wrote the books in which he renamed himself 'James Herriot'. Channel 5 who made this already produce 'The Yorkshire Vet' reality show which features the same vets practice still working today along with 'The Yorkshire Steam Railway: All Aboard' which features our local preserved steam railway (The North Yorkshire Moors Railway). As such Channel 5 already have a 'track record' (groans) of filming up here and this series has been on the cards for a while. The only question was 'Would this be up to the standard of the original?'. One episode in and I'd have to give it a resounding 'Yes!'. Don't expect complex plots or action chases in this unless you include angry 1 ton+ bulls or roller-coaster local roads traversed in 1930's cars with dodgy brakes. Just instead enjoy the Yorkshire scenery pretty much unchanged since the time it is set populated with little 'feel-good' stories of veterinary life among the very wily Yorkshire folk. It really still is pretty much like this today and the people haven't changed much either...

I Am Mother (2019)

Intellegent Sci-Fi for the thinking viewer

[9/10 · 16 June 2019]

This is not Star Wars or X-Men - this is a slowly building SciFi storyline weaving a web of hints as to what is happening. I looked forward to seeing it despite some peolple complaining about it. The fact is that it is damn near a masterpiece and has the same feel as the excellent 'Moon'. This is a film that needs you to think, no narrator pointing out all the links which are dotted about throughout it. Sit and talk about it over a drink afterwards and you should be able to work out everything. I nice take on the distopian dessolate world of robots future. Would support a decent sequal too.

All Aboard the Yorkshire Express (2017–2018)

Superb feellgood doccumentry.

[9/10 · 25 June 2018]

OK so I live in Pickering in the UK at the base of the North Yorkshire Moors national park through which the NYMR railway runs. Salvaged from the Beeching railway cuts in the 1960's when much of the UK rail network was shut the NYMR was pieced back together over the years by a dedecated team of die-hard railway fans. Now running as a not-for-profit charity the NYMR has a mix of paid staff and unpaid voulenteers. The triains run from Pickering with most terminating at Grossmont while some now run on the network rail on into Whitby where NYMR have built there own terminous next to the port. Steam and heritage diesels run on the line for much of the year and this short series follows some of the many characters working to keep it all going. Plently of steam and laughs keep them going through all the trials & tribulations of keeping the old equipment going and in the process providing a wonderful experience for the many customers who come to ride on it. I understand there are plans to film a follow-on series sometime in the next couple of years. Loved it. *Edit* In September 2018 the film crews were back filming what I'm told is six episodes and a Xmas special for series 2. Long may it continue!

Lost in Space (2018–2021)

Much better than I expected to be.

[8/10 · 25 June 2018]

OK so I grew up watching the origional series which while enjoyable was somewhere between dire and plain stupid most of the time. I think I really just watched it for Dr. Smith and the Robot's hilarious comments. I saw a lot of angry reviews for this show before eventually deciding to give it a go anyway. Whilst the sets and the effects are good from the offset I nearly turned off from the stomach-churning character portrailes. The show puts a new spin on a LOT of the origional show cannon. Dr. Smith is now a woman (and isn't actually Dr. Smith at all), the Robertsons are not a happily married couple, there are a LOT of Jupiter spacecraft of which the old 'Jupitor 2 is just but one and the biggie - the robot is not built on Earth but is some sort of alien drone. The first few episodes were a hard watch but suddenly the new plot lines become interesting. Then VERY interesting. Plently of plot twists and new ideas. In the end I could not wait to see episode 10 which throws by far the biggest plot twist into the whole series to date and leaves it on a pretty decent cliffhanger. Looking forward to series 2!

The Yorkshire Vet (2015– )

A breath of fresh air on TV

[9/10 · 15 June 2016]

In this time of the reality show we have become used to seeing the ordinary, the extraordinary and the plain bizarre people of the world going about their ordinary/extraordinary/ridiculous lives. It can leave you somewhat jaded about the whole gender. This show is one of those gems amongst the masses of the style. It features a North Yorkshire UK vet's practice that was originally set up by James Herriot (real name James Alfred "Alf" Wight , OBE, FRCVS) in Thirsk UK and follows the daily (and nightly) trials and tribulations of him and his fellow staff as they administer to animals pet, farm and wild in the area. There are graphic sequences featuring a number of cesarean operations on cows etc. and heart touching moments when animals such as alpaca have to be put down. Most of the time though the treatments are a success and you see many animals being treated successfully with the gorgeous Yorkshire Dales in the backdrop. A real tear-jerk-er/ hart warmer of a series that is furiously addictive and a must-see in our family.

Tomorrowland (2015)

Brilliant visuals - unfortunately they forgot to write a cohesive plot

[6/10 · 12 October 2015]

OK so along with many who had heard vague misgivings I decided to watch the movie last night. I was deeply impressed with the 60's recreation of the world's fair- was it going to be a 'gritty' or a 'family fun' movie? I suspected and feared the latter after the cringe-worthy opening scenes where Clooney jousts with a woman about his reminiscences of the past and I could see that this was going to be more 'Goonies' than anything else. Lots of strange inconsistencies like the very convincing girl android who is hard to tell being artificial yet the 'ever toothy grinning' robot pursuers are obviously not human yet apparently likely much newer models given 'she' has apparently been around for decades. Visuals are top notch if more than a little silly at times but the film totally abandons all sense of proportion and semi-reality when the Eifel tower splits in two and launches a rocket. I'm still a little confused about the whole plot and where 'Tomorrowland' actually is (5th dimension?!?). With a bit of cleaning up and 'desillyfiying' this could have been a rollicking great movie but instead we get a visual confusion which leaves you thinking 'What?????' Careful about talking your wife into spending the evening watching it or you might get the same 'why did you put me through 2 ½ hours of that?' reaction that I did.

Humans (2015–2018)

Possibly better than the original

[9/10 · 15 June 2015]

As someone who has raved about the original 'Äkta Människor' for some time now I was keen to see the remake. Set in a parallel time line synthetic humans have become commonplace in both the workplace and the home. The programme explores how regular people react with them and how a group of them with modified sentience develop in their own unique ways under the loose leadership of a human. If it follows the original which looks likely then expect some really weird stuff. It also follows the 'life' of an unmodified outdated and somewhat faulty model called 'Odie' who's elderly owner cannot bare to part with him as he has a shared relationship with his dead wife and reminds him of her. Having seen 'Being Human' recently which was dreadful I was prepared for the worst but was surprised to see that the latest version may even be superior to the original. I look forward to the next episode.

Overhaulin' (2004– )

Not so much a car renovation show as candid camera with cars

[4/10 · 13 November 2014]

OK so I love to build motorcycles and cars. And I love to watch shows where they do the same. But this show is all about totally customising the vehicles of unsuspecting owners using 'sponsors' services and parts i.e. the show is largely a marketing opportunity for the suppliers of these parts. That wouldn't be so bad if they focused more on the actual build but in the growing tradition of 'reality' shows it's all about the presenters and in particular the female presenter who spends more time in front of the camera than the vehicle they are supposed to be building. But what really puts it beyond the pail for me would be series 01 episode 02 where not only do they pretend to steal the young guys truck but they keep the deception going by ringing him up and saying that it has probably been cut up for parts and insurance wise is worth very little. Cue phone being put down and maniacal laughter from cutsey girl presenter. Sure the builds are fantastic but the whole show is contrived, sponsor driven and features irritating unnecessary presenters to the now almost obligatory crashing guitars background so beloved of many US shows. Fuse - you've got a lot of talent so please just make a show showing us how you design and build cars not this awful candid camera cum game-show style format.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)

Very very very very dull & crappy film about annoying people.

[4/10 · 7 September 2014]

I watched this film the other night at home. Well I tried to... After several attempts to refocus on the dreary cheesy and complete dirge that constitutes this film I finally fell asleep and missed the last half.

Ridiculous plot (I use the term 'plot' loosely) featuring a Spiderman who doesn't seem to be very clear about what he is doing and a supporting cast of actors who presumably add something to the storyline but as to what this is I can't figure.

I see some people are raving about this film - I can only assume they have a vested interest in it's franchise because I'd rather go gather up the dog doo in the back garden than watch this travesty again.

Under the Dome (2013–2015)

At least watching paint dry would have an ending.

[2/10 · 9 August 2014]

When I first saw this I thought 'A mini series Stephen King style so it won't likely be fantastic but it should be watchable'. Well the first episode looked good and I expected the story to tie up in around 4-5 episodes i.e. what exactly the dome was all about and who created it. Many many episodes later series 1 ended. Series 1 ?!? So there are SERIES of this stuff??? Tried watching the ever more dire series 2 but eventually my brain turned off and I had to give it up as a bad job. I still know about as much or as little about the dome as I did after the first episode and frankly I cannot stomach another episode about cringe-worthy unlikable characters and their daily fiascos. Beginning to wonder if there will actually ever be a proper ending??? - *Update* - there was a THIRD series of this drivel apparently but senses finally prevailed and the fourth series has just been cancelled. The only question remaining is 'did it actually have an ending?' but I'll never know as I'd have to face going back and watching more. BTW- the paint is now dry and looks great unlike the show!