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Partners
WHAT IT'S ABOUT:
Jovial comic Jack Whitehall and his stuffy father, Michael, take unusual and amusing trips to foreign lands in an attempt to strengthen their bond.
WHAT WE THOUGHT:
Jack is back and this time he is taking on Europe with his father.
In the first season of Jack Whitehall: Travels with My Father we saw the rather odd duo exploring South East Asia as an energetic Jack attempted to fulfill his lifelong dream of taking a gap year.
The result was surprisingly hilarious as we saw a prim and proper Michael Whitehall struggle to keep up with his son’s youthful and sometimes totally obscure adventures.
In season 2 the tables are turned and it’s Michael taking his son on a culture tour across Europe – from the snow-capped mountains of the Bavarian Alps to the rustic corners of Romania. But instead of seeing the best parts of the continent the two travel down some side streets and end up in pretty dismal locations that time has clearly forgotten about.
The duo dip their toes in the “dark tourist” waters when meeting some gun-toting Cossacks in Ukraine, checking out the ruins of Hitler’s holiday home, and visiting the site of the Chernobyl disaster. The only problem is that this has been done before…and better – like New Zealand journalist David Farrier’s brilliant Dark Tourist series, which is also available on Netflix.
What is left are some really bland tourist attractions that hardly offer enough to fill the flimsy five episodes.
There are some glimmers of authenticity when Jack gets real about his relationship with his father and the fact that he’s growing older. It’s a welcome change from his usual flamboyant school boy humour that sees him constantly making dick jokes.
The show is definitely still watchable and there are a few moments of delight, but for the most part it doesn’t live up to the grandeur of the first season. Sometimes a joke just isn’t funny the second time around.
WATCH THE TRAILER HERE:
