Did anyone see Brian O’Driscoll’s cameo on The Clinic last night?!?
Did it really happen? Am I delusional?!? It all happened so quickly. Blink of an eye stuff.
I really hope he has been getting slated this morning at training! I didn’t see the Wasps game on Saturday but it seems he’s hitting form again. But now he’s injured. Again. His career seems to have gone from a series of match-winning heights to injured lows.
Maybe he has a future in acting? Less chance of getting injured. Mikey Graham, Keith Duffy watch out, the BoD’s about.
More on it here
Raw when new, ripened with age…
There was sex. And lots of it. There were drugs. And there was rock n roll. With some fine electronica thrown in for good measure. All washed down with plenty of booze. There was love, mostly unrequited, lust, fire and rain. And lots of smashing plates.
And so it goes. Raw finished last night. There have been good and great Irish drama series in recent years (Bachelors Walk, Love is the Drug, Pure Mule etc) but I feel Raw has raised the bar. It looked and felt like a proper series. Not perfect I know but no series is (Sopranos, Entourage included!). it’s flaws were what made it human, maybe. It wasn’t strikingly original yet it still felt current and vibrant. Dublin looked fantastic, modern and thriving. Adjectives which could equally be applied to Raw on the whole.
So Mal left his knives behind him, downed a brandy and walked off into the night. Geoff and Pavel finally got it on in public. How romantic. Laura will be delighted! But JoJo and Bobby didn’t. Series 2 anyone?
One criticism is, I feel, JoJo didn’t develop enough as a character, didn’t overcome any obstacles or learn anything about herself. And for that matter Bobby didn’t really either so they’ve a way to go if another series gets the green light.
And Tiny finally spoke. “I told you so”. Great stuff! Give that lad his own series.
I thought the choice of track (Ian Brown’s The World Is Yours) for the culmination of the closing scene was spot on. A great track. Epic but not over the top. Hats off for that choice and for the series’ soundtrack which was generally excellent. Bring slowly to the boil and stir. Indeed.
On the RTÉ microsite, Raw was described as “a warm and exhilarating 6 part ensemble relationship drama set in the most highly charged of environments”. And it did exactly what it said on the tin. It certainly simmered for six episodes. I’m sure it’ll be back. For some it can’t come soon enough.
Watch all episodes here.
Me No Raw…
I didn’t get to see last night’s episode of Raw due to circumstances beyond my control that are way too boring to go into here!
Was it any good? Were there lots of smash bang wallop moments as predicted by the previous week’s teaser? Fill me in!
For those of the Raw variety…
Saw this on rte.ie just now…
‘Raw’ stars Charlene McKenna and Liam Garrigan will be joining Aidan Power on ‘The Café’ later today.
The pair will be chatting about their roles as Jojo and Bobby in the fiery new restaurant-based drama on RTÉ Two.
Olympic boxing medallist Kenny Egan will also be dropping in for a chat with Aidan, as will the drum-playing Cadbury’s Gorilla.
This episode of ‘The Café’ will be screened on RTÉ Two at 7pm this evening.
Shame they’re not bringing Tiny with them.
The Café microsite is here. They usually post the show there a day or so later, just in case you missed the live broadcast and are interested in checking it out.
Kenny Egan versus the Cadbury’s Gorilla. Now that I’d pay to see. My money’s on Egan. But I reckon the gorilla fights dirty. He’s a Phil Collins fan after all. Drumstick to the eye.
Raw? It does exactly what it says on the tin…
From rte.ie (c)
Some dictionary definitions of the adjective raw…
Uncooked. Powerfully impressive. Not processed or refined. Cruel and unfair. Outspoken; crude. Stark. Naked. Fresh.
I tuned in to the new drama series Raw on RTÉ last night. And I was certainly impressed. Maybe not powerfully so but it’s early yet. Raw certainly felt fresh and, in ways, unrefined. And in that same vein, it also felt, at times, crude and outspoken, but that’s in no way meant as a criticism. Drama shouldn’t feel safe and warm at all times. A bit of bawdiness is sometimes necessary to stir up emotion, create tension and drive conflict and Raw doesn’t fall short on of any of those.
RTÉ’s blurb describes Raw as thus…
A six-part drama series set around the heady world of a top Irish
restaurant. Sharp and contemporary, Raw explores the true friendships,
bitter rivalries and unexpected passions that emerge in the
heat of the kitchen of an up-and-coming Dublin restaurant
And it’s not far wrong. Irish audiences want to see Irish settings, Irish characters, Irish stories and naked Irish skin. And Raw ticks all the necessary boxes.
Raw deserves a wide audience. It felt organic, it felt like a real, grown-up drama regardless of its nationality. The direction was spot on, nicely cut and very well cast. Good location work too, Dublin looked great. The music worked, wasn’t overly invasive. In fact the choices of Neo-Supervital and Underworld on the soundtrack were inspired.
There were mostly positives but some flaws. Particularly the unoriginal relationship, and moreso, the lack of chemistry between Bobby and Rebecca. Some plot points were a little loose, some devices formulaic but there were unexpected twists and turns that worked a treat.
I’m not entirely sure if I love the look of the show (ie, the cinematography). There’s lots of high contrast, high key exposures and video doesn’t usually like too much peaking, HD or otherwise. I’ll have to have a look at the second installment before I make up my mind. That said it was nicely shot, framing and shot selection were spot on and the camera moved when it needed to. It was also nice to see some of Maser’s fine work featured. I wonder was he consulted?!?
Home-produced drama has been improving year on year. There have been some duds but plenty of successes, on both RTÉ and TG4. So both must be commended. So much so that I feel, in Ireland, we make better TV drama than we do cinema. But that’s for another post, another day.
We’ll see how Raw develops but for the moment I’m liking the menu. All in all an appetite-whetting starter.
Episode One can be watched here.
On another note, the Raw microsite on rte.ie is really quite cool. Some nice behind the scenes interviews, tracklistings, downloadable ringtones (?) and even some cookery demonstrations. So hats off to those involved for such a professional endeavour.
