Tag Archives: Daniel Ings

The Gentlemen: The Road To Kingdom [S2E1] – TV Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – A delightfully terse and messy return to a fascinating series.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that I used to view this series.

The Price to buy a Cash-strapped Lord.

The Gentlemen Review –

Back in 2024, when I heard that they were going to make a spiritual homage to the movie The Gentlemen on a vibes level while keeping the title, I was a touch concerned. I shouldn’t have been, because Guy Ritchie’s works tend to be interesting if nothing else. The first season was full of style, but a bit uneven; it was absolutely enough to make me want to see where they go in a second outing.

So, to set the scene, we open with Edward “Eddie” Horniman, the 13th Duke of Halstead (Theo James), having a very, very, very bad day. Three months earlier, things are looking a lot better for the Duke, as he starts his manipulations for Susie’s (Kaya Scodelario) father, Bobby (Ray Winstone). All he has to do is grease Lord Richard Hawthorne (Hugh Bonneville) to get a peerage in the House of Lords, and keep his new Italian fixer Cico (Michele Morrone) in line. What is the worst that could happen? Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.  

Continue reading →

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: Season 1 – TV Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – A concise, character-driven return to Westeros that proves how powerful focused storytelling can be.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the HBO Max service that viewed this series.

A horse walks through a forest at dawn.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Review –

I am going to admit up front that I came into this series quite cautiously. The Game of Thrones universe has brought me much joy in the past. However, we have seen in the past with Season 8 of GoT and Season 2 of HotD that it is a very precarious world that can fall apart at short notice. Was I willing to let my heart be broken for a third time, because I think that makes it shame on me? Well, like a fool, I gave it a go, and I think that was the right choice.     

So, to set the scene, we open with Duncan (Peter Claffey) burying his Ser Arlan of Pennytree (Danny Webb) in the ground, now all alone, no real skills to call his own. While he may not have skills that would earn him honest employment, he could be a knight. Taking on the moniker of Ser Duncan the Tall, claiming that his master knighted him in his dying moments. There is a tournament in Ashford, which is a substantial risk, because he does not have the money to ransom back his horses even if he fails once. But maybe the young, orphaned Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell), whom he meets along the road and cons his way into being a squire, might bring the luck he needs. Or a complication that will completely change his life. One of the two probably … or, more likely, both. Now, from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.  

Continue reading →

The Gentlemen: Season One – TV Review

Posted on by
4

TL;DR – While the characters are a delight in this wacky world, the story struggles in the end.  

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that viewed this series.

Eddie looks out on his estate.

The Gentlemen Review –

It wasn’t all that long ago that I sat down to watch a truly bonkers yet very rough film called The Gentlemen. I hadn’t thought in a while, but as I was watching, snippets came back to me, and I remembered how genuinely wild it was. Well, the first episode, Refined Aggression, worked very well.

So the question is, can this promise last the whole season?     So to set the scene, we find ourselves on the Türkiye/Syrian Border at a United Nations manned checkpoint. It is just an ordinary day until the Unit Leader Eddie (Theo James) discovers that his father is gravely ill and he is needed at home. A world of luxury awaits, a far distance from the rural Middle East. It should be a short trip because 600 hundred years of tradition means that the title and lands go to the first-born son, Freddy (Daniel Ings), which makes the will reading all that more perplexing. I sure hope no one has any significant debts that could complicate things. Nor what Susie Glass (Kaya Scodelario) is doing under the stables. Now from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.  

Continue reading →

The Gentlemen: Refined Aggression – TV Review

Posted on by
1

TL;DR – This was a weird, odd, yet profoundly compelling opening to a series.  

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that viewed this series.

Eddie Halstead meets Susie Glass.

The Gentlemen Review –

It wasn’t all that long ago that I sat down to watch a truly bonkers yet very rough film called The Gentlemen. I hadn’t thought in a while, but as I was watching, snippets came back to me, and I remembered how genuinely wild it was. The question then becomes, can you improve on the first by transforming/ spinning it off into a television series on Netflix? Well this is the question that I find myself asking today.   

So to set the scene, we find ourselves on the Türkiye/Syrian Border at a United Nations manned checkpoint. It is just an ordinary day until the Unit Leader Eddie (Theo James) discovers that his father is gravely ill and he is needed at home. A world of luxury awaits, a far distance from the rural Middle East. It should be a short trip because 600 hundred years of tradition means that the title and lands go to the first-born son, Freddy (Daniel Ings), which makes the will reading all that more perplexing. I sure hope no one has any significant debts that could complicate things. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.  

Continue reading →