Reboot feels like deja vu
Hillary, 8.30pm, TV One
From his childhood in South Auckland to the plane crash that killed his wife and daughter, this six-part drama aims to provide an in-depth look at the man that conquered more than just Mount Everest. The Kiwi cast includes Andrew Munro and Dean O’Gorman. Agent Carter, 8.30pm, Duke
In the two-hour season two premiere of this Marvel action series, Agent Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) moves to the City of Angels, hot on the heels of a killer. ‘‘Deftly balances atomic-age intrigue with unfailingly bright banter between the witty, resourceful Carter and her platonic partner in crime, Edwin Jarvis,’’ wrote Entertainment Weekly‘ s Gina McIntyre. Lewis, 8.30pm, Prime
Series 8 of this much-loved British detective show kicks off with Lewis (Kevin Whatley) asked to come out of retirement to help newly promoted DI Hathaway (Laurence Fox) with his first murder investigation. It’s a tricky case that bridges the worlds of neurosurgery, blood sports and animal rights. WhatWeDo in the Shadows, 8.30pm, Duke
A 2014 Kiwi comedy in the same vein as The Young Ones and Spinal Tap, this sees a documentary crew follow the misadventures of three Wellington-based vampiric flatmates: Viago (Taika Waititi), Deacon (Jonathan Brugh) and Tonight, 8.30pm, TV2 Thirty years ago, Superman was the only superhero in town. Spider-Man was only seen in cheap Asian quickies and Batman was a campy TV comedy starring Adam West.
But by the time Bryan Singer tried to resurrect the character in Superman Returns in 2006, the cinematic comic-book field was incredibly crowded, while the film’s lighter tone didn’t gel with audience’s desire for darker X-Men or Spider-Man- esque action.
The threat level of Kevin Spacey’s Lex Luthor just wasn’t high enough.
So in the wake of Christopher Nolan’s wildly successful reinvention of Batman, Warner Brothers went for a ‘‘clean reboot’’ of the 80-year-old character in Zach Snyder’s 2013 tale.
However, despite a squarejawed Superman in the shape of Henry Cavill and an impressive supporting cast (which includes the likes of Kevin Costner, Russell Crowe and Diane Lane), there’s an overall feeling of deja vu.
How many times in the past decade have we witnessed an alien invasion that destroys