Black Donnellys, The Review

With The Sopranos now retired from our screens, the time is ripe for another smart, gangster-themed drama to take over its turf. Unfortunately for creator Paul Haggis, though, this gloomy look inside the emerald heart of Hell’s Kitchen is far from up to the task. Following the criminal exploits of four Irish-American siblings, The Black Donnellys mixes illegal antics with brotherly strife, as reluctant hood Tommy (Jonathan Tucker) tries to keep his family together and out of the firing line. It’s enjoyable enough, but the storylines rarely offer anything of real substance and the show’s cancellation after 13 episodes mean that even these fail to find a satisfactory resolution. Our advice? Hold out for the box set of the similarly themed and vastly superior Brotherhood, out later in the year.