AUS Television: Possible Second Season for Rake?

While there is no official word from ABC1 just yet, there is hope that the awesome legal drama/comedy Rake will return for a second season.

In a 5th November, 2010 article on throng.com.au, the excellent numbers for Rake's debut are detailed.  The show debuted with a 20% five city share, an audience of 900,000 which peaked at 938,000.  The numbers were an increase of 9% over the same time slot the previous week.

The article quotes ABC1 Controller Brendan Dahill who said:  “I am thrilled with the audience response to Rake and we are already in negotiations with the producers for a second series.

“Scheduling Rake on a Thursday night was risky, as it is a long time since the network aired a drama on that night. But I felt viewers wanted some fun later in the week and this wonderfully irreverent drama series fitted the bill perfectly.”

This is an older article, I know, but it is the only thing I've found thus far about the possibility or no of a second series for Rake.

Being a massive fan of Rake, I think it's wonderful news that ABC1 has been speaking with the producers of the show for a second series.  It has been a brilliant summer show that hasn't failed to deliver excellent entertainment a single time.  Each episode has been a pleasure and this Australian program is just as strong, if not superior, to most shows from the United States or even the UK.

Here's hoping we will be getting official word that a second series will indeed be on the way.  If that announcement is made, I'll most certainly have to share the good news!

Source, Full article:  http://www.throng.com.au/rake/new-comedy-rake-proves-winner-abc

AUS Television: Rake, Episode 1.7 "R vs. Tanner"

Rake
Season One, Episode Seven, R vs. Tanner
Original Air Date:  December 16, 2010

Cleaver is bashed during an unsuccessful robbery attempt at a chemists shop and must testify at the trial of the young man accused of the robbery, bashing and death of his fellow robber.  Joe Sandilands is outed as one of fourteen politicians who frequented Club Jules.  Tired of the stress of the situation, Joe commits suicide.  Cleaver is given the case of Travis Tanner, a young man accused of bashing and robbing "Glebe woman".  Cleaver learns some shocking truths about Missy that have the ability to change the relationship between the two of them forever.  Fuzz hits some relationship woes with Fiona.  Barney deals with his separation from Scarlett.

Barney spends a sleepless night without Scarlett but, oddly enough, finds himself smiling as he stands by the pool drinking his coffee the following morning.

Joe Sandilands is outed as one of fourteen politicians who frequented Club Jules, the brothel where Missy used to work.  Video of him leaving the Club was put on YouTube leaving Sandilands no choice but to issue a statement expressing regret and remorse to his family, colleagues and supporters.

Cleave, who is suffering from a lion of a hang-over begs Nicole to find something to "kill the bastard behind my eyes" but, alas, she cannot find anything that will do the trick.  Two men go through their last minute preparations for a robbery.  Unfortunately, they have chosen to rob the exact same chemists shop where Cleaver has gone to get something for his "step-mother of all headaches".  They enter the shop while the chemist has gone to the back to fetch something for Cleave's headache.  Poor Cleaver, who can't stop telling the young men that they are on "candid camera" and that they should bolt before getting caught ends up getting bashed in the side of the head.

Idris Elba Nominated For a Golden Globe!

The amazing Idris Elba has received a Golden Globe nomination for his work as John Luther in the BBC series Luther.  His nomination is in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television category. 

Ian McShane (Pillars of the Earth), Al Pacino (You don't Know Jack), Dennis Quaid (The Special Relationship) and Edgar Ramierez (Carlos) are also nominated in the same category.

Congratulations, Idris!    Hopefully, come January 16, 2011, Idris and all of his fans will be celebrating his win!

If you would like to see the entire list of nominees for this year, you can visit the Official Golden Globes web site.
http://www.goldenglobes.org/nominations/

US Television: Vampire Diaries, Episode 2.11 "By the Light of the Moon"

Vampire Diaries
Season Two, Episode 2.11, By the Light of the Moon
Original Air Date:  December 9, 2010

The full moon arrives and Caroline is right by Tyler's side as he embarks on his first transformation.  Jules, a mysterious woman arrives in town looking for Mason Lockwood.  Could Jules be more than she appears and could she be bringing danger with her?  Bonnie and Luka work a spell together but both are hiding secrets from the other.  Elijah returns to make Elena an offer she can't refuse.  Life changes for Rose.

Tyler, growing more anxious about the approaching full moon, starts preparing.  He tries calling Mason but gets his voice mail and leaves a message.  The message is heard by an unknown woman.

Elena questions Bonnie about the moonstone.  Bonnie knows if she can figure out how to remove the spell from the stone it will be useless.  Elena wants Bonnie to focus on getting Stefan out of the tomb instead of focusing on the moonstone (which is what Stefan wants Bonnie to do).  Jeremy interrupts their conversation and, when Bonnie leaves to get a coffee, he asks Elena why she's on a suicide mission.  Elena doesn't want those she loves to get hurt but he doesn't accept that.  When he leaves, Elena takes the moonstone from Bonnie's purse and tries to leave.  She tells Bonnie she is going to see Stefan but Bonnie knows Elena is lying.  Jeremy, finds that his sister took the moonstone.  Elena protests citing that Klaus killed Katherine's family because of her having crossed him.  Bonnie steps aside and when Elena tries to leave the house she finds that Bonnie has set up a spell to trap Elena in the house.

AUS Television: Rake, Episode 1.6 "R vs. Langhorn"

Rake
Season One, Episode Six, R vs. Langhorn
Original Air Date:  December 9, 2010

Radio personality Eddie Langhorn is arrested for inciting racial hatred because of controversial comments she made on her radio show during an interview with Joe Sandilands.  She turns to old friend Cleaver Greene to represent her.  Cleave makes another appearance in tax court.  This time, it doesn't end so favorably for him.  Missy gives Cleave some expected, but unwelcome, news.  Cleave must deal with a family emergency when his father has a stroke.  Barney comes to Scarlett's aid during a trial she's prosecuting.

Radio personality, Eddie Langhorn (Rachel Griffiths) interviews Joe Sandilands and pulls no punches in her questioning of him.  She wants to know what will be done about crime, particularly a series of rapes that haven't been solved.  She blames him for the vigilantes who have starting working in some of the neighborhoods.  A group of young men with ball bats brutally attack and bash another group of young men and leave them where they fall.

Scarlett is still not home with Barney.  Her sister comes into the nursery to feed the baby and tell Scarlett that she received a phone call from her boss, Warrick (the Director of Public Prosecutions).  Cleave is awakened by Nicole as he was sleeping beneath his desk.  He gets up to get ready for court and is caught buck naked in the men's room washing up.

The police place Eddie Langhorn under arrest for causing a riot and inciting racial hatred.  She isn't bothered by the charges in the least and the officers that arrest her are quite star-struck.  David, Missy and Joe, on the campaign trail, spend some time with some of the "less controversial ethnic groups" and even do some dancing for the cameras. 

AUS Television: Rake, Episode 1.5 "R vs. Chandler"

Rake
Season One, Episode Five, R vs. Chandler
Original Air Date:  December 2, 2010

Dr. Bruce Chandler is in need of the stellar legal services of Cleaver Greene when a DVD hidden in the good doctors briefcase is discovered following the theft of said briefcase.  Barney doesn't want anything to do with Cleaver.  Scarlett shows up at Cleaver's flat after Barney kicks her out of their house.  David Potter starts his political run but will it cause problems between he and Missy?

Cleave tries to get Barney to talk to him and wants Barnyard to even give him a good hit.  Barney keeps his cool until Cleave tells his friend he has too much respect for him.  He accuses Cleave of never giving respect no matter how much he talks about it and of being a selfish turd.  Things don't go too much better when Cleave drops by Wendy's.  Fuzz will not let him in the house because neither he or Wendy want him there.  He pleads his case to Wendy (and Fuzz) in that he thought his son was seeing a girl his own age and not a 28 year-old woman.  She tells Cleaver to not come back until he feels he can shoulder some of the responsibility of raising their son.  Cleave walks away grumbling about how their conversation should have gone.

Dr. Bruce Chandler's (Sam Neill) briefcase is stolen as he is at the check out at the market.  A policeman later finds the briefcase on the curb and takes it back to his desk to look through it where he finds a DVD hidden in the case.  The police pay a visit to Dr. Chandler at the hospital about his stolen briefcase (and the contents of the DVD).  Chandler ends up at the police station.  When his wife, Jan (Heather Mitchell), comes to visit him, he whispers to her that they found the DVD.  She's angry he didn't keep the DVD in their home safe.  That wasn't an option because their daughter, Bec (Brooke Harman) has the combination to the safe.

US Television: Vampire Diaries, Episode 2.10 "The Sacrifice"

Vampire Diaries
Season Two, Episode 2.10, The Sacrifice
Original Air Date:  December 2, 2010

Damon and Stefan have a plan to get the moonstone from Katherine but Elena wants no part of it.  She has her own plans.  Elena convinces Rose to take her to see Slater as neither woman knows he is dead.  When Elena's plan isn't what Rose thought it was, she calls Damon for help.  Jeremy gets in trouble and Stefan makes a sacrifice of his own to save him.  Tyler and Caroline make a discovery about the Lockwood Curse that terrifies them both.

Elena awakens to see her bedroom door open.  Thinking nothing of it, she rolls over to go back to sleep.  We see Jonas Martin looking around a door and a sound startles Elena and she jolts up in bed to look around.  She goes out into the hall to check out the house, and as she is getting ready to look into a room with an open door, a shirtless Alaric startles her (startles them both, actually).  While Jenna and Alaric are uncomfortably telling Elena that what she heard was them (!), Jonas Martin is in Elena's room taking hair from her hair brush and some of her jewelry as well as a photograph.  Elena goes back to bed and Jonas Martin slips out of the house without anyone knowing he was there.

After going to see Katherine, Damon and Stefan pay a visit to Elena.  The brothers went to see Katherine to ask her for the moonstone.  She agreed to give them anything they wanted if they had their witch hocus-pocus her out of the tomb as she's reconsidered staying there where Klaus cannot touch her.  They free her and she turns over the stone and disappears from Mystic Falls forever.  They can destroy the spell Klaus wants Elena for by releasing it from the moonstone.  Their plan is for Bonnie to be able to break the tomb's seal long enough for the Salvatores to get in, get the stone and get out.  Elena tells them there is only one problem with their plan:  she doesn't want them to do it.  She doesn't want Klaus to kill everyone she cares about, including Damon and Stefan. 

UK Television: Law & Order: UK, Episode 4.1 "ID"

Law & Order:  UK
Season Four, Episode One, ID
ID, Original Air Date:  November 4, 2010 (Canada)
ID, Original Air Date:  March 21, 2011 (U.K.)
Based on Law & Order (US) "Promises to Keep", Season 3, Episode 14 (10th February, 1993)

A young doctor is brutally murdered in the car park of the hospital where she works.  The case takes on a dramatic twist when the prime suspect turns out to have a shocking identity.  As the investigation continues, even more details emerge and the case takes on a complication that could potentially threaten the legal system.

In 1997, Billy Wells (Matthew Loreti) is given a sentence of 12 years for his part in the killing of teacher Yvonne Macy and her unborn child.  In the present day, at the Royal Hampton Hospital, Alice Cullen was murdered.  The murder wasn't caught on CCTV has it happened between cars and the cameras didn't pick it up.  Nothing was missing with the exception of her keys.  Brooks feels Alice Cullen knew her attacker.

When Brooks and Devlin search Alice Cullen's flat, they find that whoever killed her had already used her keys to get in and ransack the flat.  Matt Devlin finds an ultrasound that had been done of the child Alice was carrying and post-mortem confirmed she was 10 weeks pregnant.  Two dark hairs found on her clothes were sent in for DNA analysis.