'Truthseekers': Season One.

A lot of things were meant to happen today but then work came along and put paid to most of them. To be fair though, I did get paid today so felt like I ought to show willing... ;o)

One of the things that I was planning on doing was getting a book review up but that clearly hasn't happened, has it? That was nothing to do with work though and more to do with my watching the hell out of 'Truthseekers' last night. Seriously, I didn't stop until the last episode was done.

Amazon had thrown a few adverts at me, Twitter had recommended 'Truthseekers' and I was in the mood for watching something that wasn't 'The Walking Dead: World Beyond' or 'The Mandalorian'. I settled down, yesterday lunchtime, to watch a couple of episodes and just kept watching...

Gus Roberts is the number one engineer at Smyle, Britain's biggest mobile network operator and internet service provider. In his spare time he's also a keen investigator of the paranormal. Gus is initially disappointed when his boss Dave partners him up with new recruit Elton John, but the two rapidly form a friendship, working together both professionally and in the paranormal, however Elton is less enthusiastic than Gus in this area. What can you do though but help when a strange woman turns up at your house, saying that she is being chased by ghosts?

Seemingly random investigations start to join together and point at something big on the horizon. The Truthseekers will find the truth but can they handle it? If they can't, a lot of people are going to be in a lot of trouble...

I had a lot of fun with 'Truthseekers', almost without realising it to start off with. Each episode gently hooks you with a bit of humour (Nick Frost and Simon Pegg work so well together, they don't even have to try and be funny anymore, they just are) and then just when you think you have a handle on this gentle, slightly eccentric, comedy... BANG! All of a sudden, it's all about the horror and I was hooked all over again. And things get pretty horrifying just in case you were wondering. For me, it's the bits that weren't meant to be scary that freaked me out. Apparently I can handle burnt ghosts, and scary dolls, but needles going into eyeballs... I can't even write it without shivering... Damn that freaked me right out.

If that wasn't enough, there's a hint of sci-fi as well, in the machinations of the villainous Toynbee, but it's not developed as such which is fair enough seeing as the episodes run anywhere between twenty five and thirty five minutes long. There's only so much room, I guess. To be honest though, the horror and the humour were handled very well and were more than enough for me.

I think what I really enjoyed seeing was how everything tied together to give us a story that answered questions that you wouldn't know you were about to ask. This approach skirts on just the right side of being a little contrived (I mean, how often is everything answered?) and gives you this nice little 'what lies underneath the surface' vibe that makes everything that little bit creepier and also gives you a little buzz when you figure something out (well, I did...) And there are so many secrets to be uncovered.

The cast are just on song here. I've already briefly mentioned Nick Frost and Simon Pegg and everyone else ups their game to match. Malcom McDowell was in it! I'm not going to lie, I did a little cheer when I saw him :o) Emma D'Arcy's Astrid has just the right mix of mystery and courage while I think Samson Kayo was the star as Elton John; scared to death but still out to do the right thing. And Gus' quiet determination to find out what happened to his wife... There is so much to see and feel in this show, it's brilliantly done.

'Truthseekers' can be found on Amazon Prime and it's one of those shows where I'd recommend taking advantage of the thirty day free trial so you can watch it all. Things are left fairly open ended so I'm hoping like mad that there will be at least one more season, please?