There have been TV highs and lows at Crafty Chai towers this month. We tried three new shows (Versailles, New Blood and Outlander) in a short space of time and all three left me despairing for the state of TV. With GoT promising only two more series and The Good Wife waving a very sad and less than stellar goodbye (seriously, what went wrong there?!), it makes me worry for the state of TV to come. All the good shows are coming to an end or having a limited shelf life (I’m pretty sure I’m going to need therapy when they announce that TWD will be coming to an end), there’s not a lot coming up that’s really grabbing my interest. Hence the appearance of The Gilmore Girls below.

[Outcast – Fox via NowTV || Billions – Sky Atlantic
Gilmore Girls – Netflix || Orange is the New Black – Netflix]

Outcast is made by the same guy who makes The Walking Dead. When I found this out, I perked right up. Creepiness, gore and tortured characters ahoy. Sadly no walkers, but plenty of good ol’ fashioned demonic possession and what’s not to love about that? So far, it hasn’t disappointed. There’s plenty of tension, a few creepy characters and a tortured main character who just wants to protect his family. Not really ideal for the faint hearted, so if you’re a bit squeamish, then maybe avoid this one, but if, like me, you enjoy a dabble in the darker, weirder aspects of life, then take a chance on Outcast.

We stumbled across Billions (or Billionaires as I insist on calling it!) one night on Now TV and thought we’d give it a go, mainly because of the cast lineup. After every scene change, we’re like ‘Isn’t that such and such from what’s it called?’ or ‘What were they in?’. This is because Billions is where actors from other TV shows all come together. It stars Damien Lewis as a billionaire who runs a hedge fund management company (I think, this area of the financial world is a complete mystery to me!) and Paul Giamatti plays the US attorney who is out to get him. There’s tension, a lot of swearing and a lot of financial talk which is lost on me, but it’s good enough to keep me entertained for now.

I know Gilmore Girls isn’t new, but all seven series are now on Netflix in preparation for their return for a one off series (though I’m sure many GG fans have everything crossed that it’ll be so hugely successful that they’ll have to make more). Despite having them all on dvd, this means I can watch them all in any room in the house on my iPad, which I’ve already started doing. I plan to watch all seven series over the summer. We all need goals!

I have to admit that the last series of OITNB didn’t enthrall me as much as other series have. However, this series was not like that and a delightful return to form, albeit with a dark twist. Okay, a few dark twists. This series had me guessing  at every turn and there were tears when something horrific happens to one of the main characters. No spoilers here! I don’t know how much longer it can go on, but if the next few series are of this standard, then I for one will be looking forward to their return.