Transparent

We gave up after season 2!

Season 2...

We made no bones about season 1...we didn't get it. Winning the Emmy, the Golden Globe et al...it will - now and always - remain a mystery.

So, obviously, season 2 was not on our must-see-asap list...but, because of professional obligation...we mustered, chilled the Pinot and sat down to watch the 10 episodes that were eye-balling us.

No longer 'trans' exclusive...more lesbian overkill. Ali - with the hideous hair and matching eye make-up - goes full-time sapphic, both privately and publicly...cue: graduate gender studies...and what follows is an excruciating parade of lesbo-stereotyping.

Yawn...!

And then...episode 9 happened....we sat bolt straight up from our communal sofa slump...our eyes collectively widened...what the f**K?!?

Soloway has let the elephant out of the room...trans*women are not allowed at a women's festival...we were howling. What?!?! This festival is for women who were born female...with a vagina and uterus!

No more political correctness, no more playing-it-safe...the big questions are - at last - being addressed.

Maura is incensed, confused...leaves...and bumps into and onto Anjelica Huston!!!

Can this get any better?!?

Yes. There's another little addition, a backstory...1930s Berlin...Maura's mother, her story. Poignant and - truly - touching.

So...season 1 and most of season 2 were the appetisers. Season 3 could be the real deal, the feast we've been waiting for...we can't wait. Bring it on.

Pilot & Season 1...

An Amazon pilot...and, surprisingly, a series to follow.

Billed as a comedy...and, it's not very funny.

A trans father is still yet to 'come out' to his vile (and greedy) three children.

There's a lesbian dalliance, a male nympho and too many scenes involving little or no clothes.

All the characters are wealthy, suburban, loathsome bores...making these 30 minutes seem like an hour.

Not the greatest of starts...some serious re-casting needs to be done...throw in a few likeable characters...oh, a decent script would be appreciated.

That's episode 1...now for Episode 2:

...and nothing has changed...the hideous kids persist. Still, there is an underlying sensitivity - sadly lost amid the irrelevant shenanigans of [mostly] irrelevant characters. Is this not meant to about a parent going through transition?!?!

Right...we're going to stop there...because, we can't see what all the fuss is about.

The trans bandwagon has many more miles yet to travel...however, surely this should be a vehicle for trans actors, trans directors...not just trans consultants lurking in the background.

Although Jeffrey Tambor does an admirable job (and is the only decent character)...he's a he playing a she...and, dare we say, there is a touch of drag hanging in the air.

Still...it's won awards and critical acclaim...but, for us, it misses the point entirely.

Trailer...