Tara Ward: Washington Black, The Game, The Hunting Wives

Washington Black  

Follows the 19th century adventures of George Washington "Wash" Black, an 11-year-old boy on a Barbados sugar plantation who must flee after a gruesome death threatens to turn his life upside down (Disney+).  

 

The Game  

Detective Huw Miller is haunted by one case he failed to solve. As he settles into retirement, he suddenly thinks he has found the elusive killer in the shape of his new neighbour Patrick Harbottle (ThreeNow). 

 

The Hunting Wives  

Sophie trades city life for East Texas and falls into a wealthy socialite's magnetic orbit - where a clique of housewives hide deadly secrets (TVNZ+). 

 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:07):
You're listening to this Saturday Morning with Jack Team podcast
from News Talks ATB.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
Screen Time Time Tara Ward is our screen time experts.
She's here with her three shows for this weekend. Hey Tara,
good morning. Let's begin with a show on Disney Plus
tell us about Washington Black.

Speaker 3 (00:24):
Yeah, this is a new drama. There is a show
that's a mix of a lot of different things. It's
a historical drama. It's got a bit of science fiction
to it, and it's got a bit of romance and
adventure as well. It's set in the eighteen hundreds and
it's about a young boy called Washington Black who, at
the age of eleven, is a slave on a plantation
in Barbados. He's accused of a crime and has to

(00:46):
escape to flee and the show jumps between Washington's life
as a child on Barbados and his adult life in
Halifax and Canada. And the adult Washington is an amateur scientist.
He's obsessed with bringing the inventions of his Barbados slave
owner to life while trying to avoid being caught for
this crime he was accused of as a and so

(01:07):
it's quite a serious subject matter, but it's much lighter
than I was expecting. This almost feels like a family
kind of drama. It's quite a sweeping story. It goes
to lots of different countries, and because of the travel
and the nineteenth century inventions, this has quite a steampunk
vibe to it, which it was quite unexpected. It's almost
a bit Jules Vernes. So there's lots of stuff going

(01:30):
on here. If you like a lighter historical drama that's
got a bit of quirk to it, you'll like this.
It's got a great cast as well. Sterling Kate Brown
is in this, and he's always fantastic.

Speaker 2 (01:40):
Nice. Okay, So it's Washington Black. It's on Disney Plus
on three now the Game.

Speaker 3 (01:46):
Yeah. This is a British psychological thriller and in a
lot of ways it's a pretty stock standard British crime drama.
It's not doing anything new, it's not doing anything unexpected,
but it's still an entertaining watch and I think that's
because of the cast. This does Jason Watkins and Robson Green.
Jason Watkins plays a police detective who has forced to

(02:06):
retire after he mishandles a case and he's haunted by
not solving this mystery of a local serial killer. He's
just started his retirement when his neighbor dies unexpectedly. Robson
Green's character moves in next door, and the detective believes
that his new neighbor is the murderer who has evaded
him for so long, and he becomes obsessed with proving

(02:28):
his theory, and so it becomes this game of cat
and mouse with lots of you know, psychological tension building
up as the detectives world starts to fall apart. It
sounds far fetched. It is far fetched. I can't say
this is the perfect drama. You know. The script is
a bit ropye, there's lots of plotholes. But I watched
this last night quite happily. I didn't have to think
too hard about it, went along with some of the

(02:51):
more bonkers moments and just enjoyed it for what it is.
So I think if you're just your expectations a little bit,
you have a fun time, especially if you enjoy you know,
a good, reliable British crime drama.

Speaker 2 (03:01):
Okay, nice, Okay, that's the game that's on three now
and on TV and Z plus The Hunting Wive.

Speaker 3 (03:06):
Yes, this is another drama where if you adjust your expectations.
You're going to have a great time. This is The
Hunting Wives. It's wonderfully soapy and over the top, completely
ridiculous American series that's just come to TVNZ plus. It's
set in Texas and it's about a woman named Sophie
whose family moves from Boston to Texas for her husband's job.

(03:26):
She's feeling quite lost until she gets welcomed into a
group of rich socialite wives who are very different to her.
They all have secrets, nothing is what it seems, and
they become tangled up in a murder. And it's that
whole kind of Desperate Housewives story, but dropped into Texas,
and they have turned the dial right up on the
politics and the wealth and the cowboy boots. They have

(03:49):
chucked almost everything at this show to see what sticks.
You've got, guns, murder of fears, corruption, you name it,
it's in here. It has a great cast, Doomit, mulroney
is in this, Marlin Ackerman, Christy Metz from This is Us.
And again, it's just completely over the top, and I
enjoyed it for what it is. Wonderful, trashy and silly
and soapy, and you know, This kind of TV has

(04:10):
its place every now and here. There's nothing wrong with
a bit of trashy TV, a little.

Speaker 2 (04:13):
Bit of escapism sometimes Tarakat. That's The Hunting Wives. It's
on TV and Z Plus. The Game is on three
now in Washington. Black, which was Tara's first recommendation, is
on Disney Plus.

Speaker 1 (04:26):
For more from Saturday Morning with Jack Tame, listen live
to News Talks ed B from nine am Saturday, or
follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.