Screen Babble podcast: Kaleidoscope, Love Island, and Oats Studios - episode 9

Screen Babble is your essential guide to everything on television, from the mainstream to the marginal. NationalWorld’s podcast producer Kelly Crichton, news and trends expert Steven Ross, and critic Alex Moreland discuss what is – and what isn’t – worth watching. This week, we’re also joined by Digital Journalist Heather Carrick, who joins us for a chat about Love Island.

As ever, we begin by discussing what we’ve been watching. Steven reports back on new ITV documentary series Britain’s Strangest Prisons, Alex has been watching Maternaland Slow Horses, and Kelly has more than few thoughts on the Netflix true crime documentary The Hatchet-Wielding Hitchhiker. Meanwhile, Kelly compares That ‘90s Show to That ‘70s Show, and Alex has finally started watching Happy Valley (finger firmly on the pulse, here).

We all decided to check out Kaleidoscope, a new heist drama with a twist – according to Netflix, you can watch the episodes in (almost) any order. There are 5040 potential combinations of episodes, and the streaming service offers a different viewing order to everyone – so it’s only a coincidence, surely, that Kelly and Alex were served the same sequence. Does this non-linear approach improve the viewing experience? Is the series as innovative as it says it is? And underneath all that, is Kaleidoscope actually worth watching?

Next, Heather joins us to take a closer look at the new Winter Love Island. It’s early days yet, so we don’t quite have a picture of who will find a place in each other’s hearts (or, more importantly, the hearts of the public), but Heather gives us a rundown of what to expect this year. What’s Maya Jama like as host so far? Will new social media rules change how the Islanders are perceived – during their time in the villa and afterwards? And should we all be watching it too?

Finally, Steven takes us back to the future with Oats Studio, a series of short films from sci-fi director Neil Blomkamp. Where does the series fit in Neil Blomkamp’s career? How does this anthology series compare to the likes of Black Mirror? Have you ever pointed at the screen while watching Chappie and whispered “that’s Chappie”?

Don’t forget to check back tomorrow for Steven’s Weekend Watch Mini-Babble, previewing all the best TV to watch over the next few days.

Listen to Screen Babble #9 here…

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