'Gogglebox'
With the winter period starting to kick in, more and more of us are escaping the cold and staying in front of the television. Channel 4 has taken this one step further by filming inside the homes of some diverse and opinionated people. This second series of 'Gogglebox' seems to be growing in popularity with it becoming the talk on social media every Wednesday. Each week, viewers get to see and hear the opinions of these people and at the same time giving us an insight into their lives.
Best friends Sandra and Sandy from Brixton are two very loud mouthed and out spoken women who have been friends for over forty years who are unemployed and devote their time to family and television. When they are not tucking into their takeaway or drinking out of an empty pot noodle they are speaking their mind on the latest shows and generally on the money with their views.
Married high end Bed & Breakfast owners Steph and Dom are your stereotypically posh snobs, living in Kent. They enjoy having a few glasses before delving into their television shows to pass their comments and judgements on the people on their television screen, as well as reminiscing on the good old times. I could go on about all the people that feature on this show but not all of them are as entertaining. I find the others that appear on the show are just trying too hard to impress and have no minds of their own. Now of course I understand that 'Gogglebox' tries to show a range of families but I am sure they'd be better off showing different views rather than hearing five of the same opinions.
'Gogglebox' is quite a fun show to watch in general and I do agree that it is the ‘Ultimate Television review show’ because no other channel could get away with such a show. This show is like a weekly catch up of the past weeks worth of television with bits of tears and emotions mixed in which arguably could just for the television but I will take the benefit of the doubt on that. I hope for series three, as there will clearly be a series three and probably even a Christmas Special in the works, they cut down on some of the people on the show. They could easily afford to cut half of the dead wood and cast some new people that could give the show a nice face-lift.
Catch 'Gogglebox' every Wednesday at 10pm on Channel 4 or catch up on 4oD.
'Devious Maids'
Last year we said goodbye to 'Desperate Housewives' after eight years of scandalous behaviour from these women. After this loss I did wonder if anything would try and fill the void of this show or if the creator Marc Cherry would come back with something completely different. So while holidaying in Miami, I was quite surprised and taken back to see the trailer for 'Devious Maids'.
'Devious Maids' stars Ana Ortiz, Dania Ramirez, Roselyn Sanchez, Edy Ganem, and Judy Reyes, as five maids each with their own secrets as well as keeping their overdramatic client’ secrets. They bond over their issues and wanting their own dreams however Marisol Suarez (Ortiz) is a fraud and has her own agenda for becoming a maid. When her son is accused killing another maid, Marisol makes it her debut to get to the truth even if it means tricking the other maids.
These other four maids are not as innocent as they seem especially Rosie Falta (Ramirez) who claims to be a religious woman just wanting her son. As the series goes on and working for Spence Westmore (Grant Show) Rosie starts develop feelings for him even though his poisonous wife Peri Westmore (Mariana Klaveno) is constantly driving them both round the bend.
There is also Carmen Luna (Sanchez) the aspiring singer that will not allow no man to stop her reaching her goals after being in a relationship with an abusive partner. She now works as a maid for one of the biggest Latino stars while hoping for her big break. Finally we have Zolia Diaz (Reyes) and her daughter Valentina Diaz (Ganem) who are both maids for Genevieve Delatour (Susan Lucci). When Valentina starts to fall for Genevieve’s son Remi (Drew Van Acker), Zolia makes it her mission to stop Valentina from falling into the same trap as she did many years ago.
'Devious Maids' is something of a spin off show of 'Desperate Housewives', it follows the same format that Marc Cherry is known for. I guess it also helps that he has former housewife Eva Longoria as executive producer who can give the show the Latin feel it seeks. With 'Devious Maids' already renewed for a second series in the US, I am interested to see what else they can bring to the show.
Catch 'Devious Maids' every Wednesday at 10pm on TLC.
Read previous Telly Text columns here. Find more from Jordan at @jrory.
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