Braver

Episode 1: Ghost Cop (2014)

Max Qayyum

Braver, the pop-punk band, have created a comedy miniseries (also called Braver.) The first episode is called "Ghost Cop" and shows the start of the band's journey as they embark on tour…. All goes well(ish) until a dead police officer ruins the fun.

The main thing that stands out about the show is the great production quality for the sort of show that it is. It's clearly not your usual tour documentary or a music video. It's a fully-fledged miniseries. The band didn't reach their Kickstarter goal, so I'm not entirely sure what that means for the future of the show, but it's obvious that a ton of work has gone into the crafting of this episode.

As for the acting, and comedy: it's a bit ropey. Some of it is improvised, and the acting isn't too bad, but at times it's really cheesy. The opening five minutes are really weak, coming across as amateurish. But once it starts to focus on just the band members, it picks up. They're fun to watch and their comedy chops are really good.

The band have gone to loads of work for this, and throughout the 16-minute pilot, that is evident. It's not a fantastic show, though, it needs some work; cutting out the cheesy parts (the bosses screaming at them, etc) would be a good start. But it's something, and hopefully they can get the rest of the episodes funded and released. It's worth a watch if you like the band, or if you want something funny to kill a bit of time.