STACK #158 Dec 2017

EXTRAS NEWS

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There’s something immensely satisfying about discovering a brilliant TV series before it becomes “cool” and the hype machine goes into overdrive. These weird and wonderful gems may have slipped under your radar, but are every bit as enthralling, addictive and worth your time as the big name shows. So stock up and settle in for some major binge-viewing over the holidays.

THE LEFTOVERS This enigmatic HBO drama involves the disappearance of two per cent of the world’s population in a Rapture-like departure. However, the show isn’t concerned with where they all went and why, but rather how the event has affected those left behind. It's a creepy and obliquely plotted mystery that will appeal to fans of Stephen King and David Lynch. Three seasons in total, with the third – and best – set in Melbourne, Australia. Don't miss it. AMERICAN GODS If you only know British fantasy author Neil Gaiman from the family-friendly Stardust and Coraline , you should brace yourself for American Gods . This ambitious adaptation of his 2001 best- seller is a dark and delirious journey into a mystical America, where war is brewing between the old gods of mythology and the new deities of technology, media and big business. One of the best new series of 2017. Season 2 is due next year. FORTITUDE A chilling series, and not just because it’s set in a remote Nordic locale. A grim mood settles over the arctic town of Fortitude following an unthinkable murder, which London cop Stanley Tucci is called in to investigate. In the process, secrets are defrosted and things get progressively weirder. Best described as The X-Files meets Fargo , with lashings of R-rated sex and violence, Fortitude is a spellbinding procedural like no other. Two seasons.

BANSHEE Cinemax’s hyperactive action series is pure pulp fiction and plays like the ultraviolent offspring of Twin Peaks and Justified . Banshee, Pennsylvania, is a town with a seedy criminal underbelly – a place where an ex-con can assume the identity of the new town sheriff and make a major difference. Shamelessly over the top, Banshee features one of TV’s most fearless and resilient anti- heroes, played by Kiwi actor Antony Starr. Four seasons. ORPHAN BLACK This cool sci-fi series about the scientific and ethical implications of cloning is as complex as the human genome, so you’ll need to pay attention. It’s also a conspiracy-laden thriller that consistently delivers surprising narrative twists across five seasons. The real enjoyment, however, comes from watching star Tatiana Maslany playing multiple cloned siblings, and the technical wizardry that allows them all to seamlessly interact with each other. PREACHER Based on the comic book series by Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon, this could become your new favourite show. That’s if you buy into its deadpan humour, gonzo gore, and madcap alternate universe where angels, an Irish vampire, and a conflicted priest with a godlike power coexist in a small town in Texas. If you love True Blood and Ash vs. Evil Dead , this is the show for you. Two seasons, with things firing up big time in the second.

NEW TO BUY ON BLU-RAY TM & DVD AT

NOW

Strong sporting violence and coarse language

jbhifi.com.au

NOVEMBER 2017

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*WHILE ST CKS LAST.

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