The Interceptor

Well, we recorded this as we would otherwise have missed the first two episodes. And then, seeing the poor reviews it had, I thought about deleting it....

One evening last week we decided to watch episode 1. Seven nights of one-episode-a-night later we've finished it and all I can say is I am so glad I didn't press the delete button.

So what if it's a rip-off of an older programme? There's scarcely a decent show these days which isn't. At least it's one where I feel I don't need a Mensa-type IQ to understand the convoluted plot....and it's British. And above all it is very well acted particularly in respect of the two main characters....Ash and Roach....which is as it should be. Trevor Eve in particular is superbly cast as the villain.

As I say....very enjoyable!

Channeling his inner Luther via many an EastEnders grimace ,our hero sets out to cock up the best laid plans. Procedurally unconvincing,overacted and not a patch on most US dramas. Fights were staged with the brio of The Chuckle Brothers. Computer usage was way beyond capabilities and a mere plot device. Bad guys not bad enough Good guys implausible. This show does not warrant the 10 lines of text that IMDb insists that I write. I hope that it gets better but I have seen too many British shows that have been stymied by bad writing , poor effects and stilted acting to remain convinced.As other reviewers will point out the protagonist comes across as a petulant toddler with control difficulties. Indulged by his all new "Top Secret" task force bosses he still manages to stuff it up. I am not very confident in this shows future.

Come back Bonekickers, all is forgiven.

The publicity for this show made reference to The Professionals and Spooks. Ash is a committed customs officer who is frustrated by his bosses reluctance to go after the big fish. He is someone who as a kid saw his drug addicted father kill someone.

A former colleague introduces him to the head of a shadowy surveillance unit called the Unit which pursues some the most ruthless criminals like Trevor Eve who cheats at golf and threatens committee members in the nineteenth hole.

Two episodes in and The Interceptor is badly written drivel and it never improved by the final episode. Clichéd characters, even the casting looks uninspired with a lead that gets mistaken for Craig David.

The only plus side is that the chase scenes looked good.

The shows premise is based on "Stingray" technology. Yes this technology does exist, fooling your phone into believing it is connected to a cell tower and subsequently allowing all voice and data to connect. I found it compelling viewing and enjoyed the plot twists. The programme is about a covert police operation to uncover the Mr Big in a drug operation. Ash is our hero who wants to believe that they are making a "difference" rather than just going through the motions. This may cost him his marriage and sometimes going it alone to get the results that will unmask the man behind it all. Interdepartmental rivalries abound as 'Stannard' the police chief, wonders where this covert band of crime fighters get their funding and does his best to undermine their operation, relying on a mole on the team to feed him information.

Leads to expect real gripping stuff, but fails on every level. Insultingly stupid occurrences, poor acting and a plot that just leaves you feeling you have wasted another hour of your life. initially looked really good, and then you know it is falling apart, when a stupid scene containing a fight results in the "Hero" crashing through a glass wall of a walkway over a motorway. Yep, those glass wall walkways are just normal glass, so they expect us to believe. I have now watched 4 of these in anticipation of something good, but nothing improves,in fact it gets worse. If you have nothing better to do, give it a try and see for yourself.