Big C a must see

BESIDES cop-shows, sitcoms, reality shows, etc, American TV has recently given us a surprising new popular genre — the cancer drama.

Breaking Bad was the originator in 2008 when Malcolm In The Middle dad Bryan Cranston played a terminally ill crystal meth dealer. The arrival of The Big C (Tuesday, Channel 4, 11.10pm) has doubled the amount of shows in the genre.

This hit series from Showtime — the network which gave us Dexter and Californication — stars Laura Linney as a middle-class fortysomething who has been diagnosed with cancer. Another familiar face here is Gabourey Sidibe, the obese black actress who recently came to the fore in the film Precious.

Needless to say, if this was a series focused on the purely negative side of the illness, it would be filed on the shelf marked Worthy Dramas With Few Viewers.

Instead, this is all about being upbeat and making the most of your time on earth. As soon as she learns of her fate, Linney’s character Cathy decides not to tell anyone, spends recklessly, embarks on an affair and attempts to set some of those around her on the right path in life. Carpe diem, and all that.

It’s a fine balance for anyone delving into such a sensitive area but, on the evidence of the first episode, The Big C also manages to provide quite a few laughs without trivialising Cathy’s affliction.

If you missed last week’s pilot, you have three choices: watch it at Channel4.com; jump aboard at the second episode on Tuesday; or just wait a few weeks until RTÉ also begins broadcasting the series.

Another big show recently launched in Britain is sci-fi drama Outcasts (Monday and Tuesday, BBC One, 9pm). And just like The Deep from last summer, a pretty impressive cast list can’t prevent this one from sinking. It’s actually quite bizarre how bad it is. Take a quality backer like the BBC, a big budget and decent actors, such as our own Liam Cunningham, and you’d expect something fairly decent.

Instead, we’re faced with ropey dialogue and a poor pastiche of every sci-fi show you’ve ever seen. When the refugee ship from Earth is having trouble trying to enter the new planet’s atmosphere, you keep expecting to hear Scotty’s voice blurting, “Ay cannae hold her captain, she’s breaking up!” One for the post-Star Trek hardcore.

Also on the subject of despairing for the future of humankind as you observe strange beings who inhabit a planet that’s far from Earth, the final episode of Fade Street (Monday, RTÉ Two, 11.45pm) approaches.

And yes, it is easy to scoff, but this ‘reality’ show, set at the trendier end of youth life in Dublin, has been a decent effort at putting an Irish spin on the MTV format.

Another series reaching its end on Monday is The Savage Eye (RTÉ Two, 9.50pm). While David McSavage’s arrows don’t always hit the bullseye, the series has provided plenty laugh-out-loud moments to maintain its reputation as the best home-grown comedy programme in years.