BBC America
Release date: January 8th, 2013
I’ve not seen the first series of The Hour (though I will be ordering it now) but after watching this second series I am hooked. Set in 1957 it follows the staff of a weekly one hour news program on BBC, filled with back story and drama and great acting.
Dominic West plays the anchor of the show and he has let celebrity go to his head, hanging out at night clubs and ignoring his wife he ends up putting his career in jeopardy after an incident following a night out has him put in a tight spot. His producer, Bel tries to make things work but when a new news director is brought in he insists on some changes. A former staff member Freddie is back after travels abroad and while living a seemingly bohemian lifestyle his addiction to the news program and getting the story rule his every decision, sometimes having not so pleasant results.
The back drop of 1957 has a cloud of nuclear threat and paranoia, part of which entails some fast and fancy dancing on the part of politicians. As the story progresses a story develops that they need to air but have to develop more fully, police corruption, mobbed up bad guys and blackmail. The balance between the drama of their personal lives and the adrenalin of chasing the story is done just right, too much of either and the show could have gotten boring.
This is a very engrossing program and honestly I don’t think there is a better way to watch it than on disc, powerhouseing through all 6 episodes. It is also a show which will go into the shelf of things we watch over again annually. It’s kind of like MadMen but not trying to be that kind of cool, which for me makes it that much more cool.
Jon Jordan
