I sincerely hope this show gets another season as I really enjoyed it's debut. The Hour was a real "don't miss" for me with it's mixture of suspense, drama, romance and occasionally a laugh. *Caution, spoilers.* The show's setting in such a fascinating political time added to it's appeal, and coupled with a subtle exposure of the abuses of power as demonstrated by Britain's MI6 made for a very intriguing mixture.I enjoy British TV and film, as it seems to rely less on slapstick, sex, toilet humour and car chases. This is an intelligent series that made me want to refresh my memory on the history of the era, with Suez, the Hungarian Uprising and British spy scandals.I thought the entire cast did a great job, with special nods for: * Ben Whishaw's nervous intellectual * Romola Garai's professional woman trying to walk the line between career and personal life * Anton Lesser's subtly menacing manager * Dominic West's upper class, prep school type working to be accepted as a part of the mostly working class teamI thought the show demonstrated a skillful blending of personal interest with political events. And the tone and scene was very well set, with the BBC's offices slightly darkened atmosphere and wonderful period feel.Applause, and please give us more.

The Hour is an intriguing new drama, created and written by Abi Morgan, that spans several genres and weaves them together cleverly and effectively. There is espionage, murder and suspense on the one hand; romance on another hand; comedy on yet another hand; and political drama on the final hand. The central emphasis is on the characters, however, of Bel Rowley (producer of The Hour), Hector Madden (its presenter), and one of the best characters of recent years, the funny and confident Freddie Lyon, one of the show's journalists.The acting is uniformly excellent; Romola Garai ('Atonement'; 'The Crimson Petal and the White') and Ben Whishaw ('Perfume'; 'Criminal Justice I') especially shine as Bel and Freddie. There are other superb performances from the seedy Julian Rhind-Tutt ('Green Wing') and the suave Dominic West ('The Wire'), along with my personal favourite Anna Chancellor ('Four Weddings and a Funeral') as Lix, an acid-tongued feminist in the newsroom. The story does start off a little slowly, but prepare for a roller-coaster ride later on, particularly in the extremely tense final episode, where the drama is perfectly pitched. The loose ends are nicely tied up, and the conclusion is suitably ambiguous, ready for the second series which has been commissioned. The only quibble is the sometimes anachronistic dialogue; but one tends not to notice this as everything else is so good.So, overall this is an intriguing, intelligent drama with plenty of strands, twists and turns, and fantastic acting all round. I await series two eagerly.

I have to say that I have loved this show obsessively from the moment Ben Whishaw's Freddie Lyon stepped on the screen. Performances like his are why some television shows are superior to most movies being made these days. I cannot recall the last movie that made me really appreciate the hard work actors put forth in their art. It's inspiring. Freddie is the kind of character I will remember years from now and that is a testament to how new and exciting this show felt to me and a testament to Ben Whishaw's talent. He portrays more passion with only his eyes than even the best writers can convey with words. It only happens with great characters on great shows. Take away all the Mad Men comparisons ( I consider myself a Mad Men fan) and this show truly stands on its own because it is much better. The spy-thriller element was compelling because we got to go along with Freddie, but all in all I couldn't help but feel let down with the story's conclusion. With a second season I may change my mind.I will say I was a bit disappointed with the character of Bel Rowley. Romola Garai is incredibly powerful in her subtlety, and coupled with her great looks she has everything it takes to be a knockout, memorable and distinctly female voice on television. Her affair with Hector would have been more tolerable and believable if this weren't a miniseries. To show the beginning and end (if it is the end) of an affair in six episodes is a bit much to take on if it's not poignant and precise, which I didn't think it was. The sixth episode really didn't feel all that satisfying because I just kept seeing the potential for this show to be really brilliant. That's where the script needs a little work.I really think that with a second season we will see an evolution of the characters Bel and Freddie and it will hopefully be moving the way a good story should be. Their relationship is honest and natural, something picked right out of life, and I do believe in it, so I cannot wait to see what Abi Morgan will do with their story. She does an amazing job of giving these two characters the perfect witty banter to keep it entertaining all while giving the audience touching flashes of what it is to know someone inside and out and what it means to be willing to do anything for that person, even if you never tell them that. Ben and Romola have an underlying chemistry that I think many actors on television lack. To wrap a greater story arc around a relationship that feels so real is the challenge for Abi Morgan. Some writers get great characters but don't have the right story to place them in. But if the next season only improves upon these first six episodes (oh how I wished it went on for ten!), I cannot wait until the premiere.

Behind the Machinations of BBC: A Debut Series from the Brits, August 18, 2011 By Grady Harp (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER) (VINE VOICE) (REAL NAME) This review is from: Hour (DVD) Summer seems to be test time for new series for the television audience and so far the shows that are coming out of Britain look the most promising. First we had the abbreviated 3 episode appetizer ZEN which in its short run got progressively more interesting and promising and now come THE HOUR from BBC America. The series just debuted in what appeared to be prolonged trailer for the long series that hopefully will continue: the title refers to a television news broadcast that is created before our eyes, the final scenes being a toast to this new venture acting as an overture to what is to come. Overtures to operas usually introduce themes that will appear in the opera that follows once the curtain opens and that is how THE HOUR comes across. This is a time piece set in the 1950s when Cold War-era England was awash in the news of the Suez crisis, one of Britain's sharpest intimations of loss, with a more intimate look at sex, ambition and espionage in the workplace along with the world wide speculation of JFK as a vice presidential candidate in the US. It's a time of unsettling change, except at the BBC, where even driven reporters are assigned to do feel-good newsreels about débutante balls and royal visits. The series opener, written by Bafta Award-winning Abi Morgan, takes us behind the scenes of the launch of a topical news program in London 1956, and introduces a highly competitive, sharp-witted and passionate love triangle at the heart of the series through the lives of enigmatic producer Bel Rowley (Romola Garai) and her rivals, journalist Freddie Lyon (Ben Wishaw) and anchorman Hector Madden (Dominic West): we will begin to see the decade on the threshold of change - from the ruthless sexual politics behind the polite social façade of the Fifties to the revelations that redefined the world for a new generation. Aside from the behind the scenes views and devious workings of the BBC we also see the beginning of a crime element in which the victim is touted as being part of a robbery while the ever-suspicious and career climbing Freddie sees it as a murder to be investigated. There are 1950s reminders of Debutante Balls, the universal cigarette smoking habits, the 'gentlemen only clubs' where women are not allowed (secondary citizens, you know!), and all the clothes and hats that reek of the 50s. The cast is rich in fine British actors (Juliet Stevenson and Tim Pigott-Smith appear briefly in roles that will likely be expanded, Anna Chancellor is the acid tongued foreign correspondent, Burn Gorman is the suspicious, hatted man, etc), but if were only Ben Wishaw and Romola Garai and Domenic West every week the show would sail. There is a lot of style and sophistication and just the right amount of British intrigue and humor that almost sure that this series will fly. Grady Harp