Contagem Regressiva

Granted, it isn't a whole lotta sci-fi... but it does do what good sci-fi does best which is explore humanity.

Really liked it, probably a bit too much cliche in there to go above 8 though.

The British are great at writing crime, this serie is another proof of that. While crime is not usually my favorite genre, I do like Luther and that series comes from the hand of Neil Cross. Since this mini-serie is written by him too I decided to give it a go, and I wasn't disappointed.

Agyness Deyn, who plays the role of Elaine Renko, was originally a model before she got into acting. When I read that I almost couldn't believe it, because she puts down a very convincing performance, that seems to come natural to her. Her character is a tough cookie and it's definitely not one you'd like to pick a fight with. As we get further into the series we do see more depth added to her character, which makes her all the more interesting.

The other lead role is played by Jim Sturgess. He portrays the character of Charlie Hicks, a cop with a rogue edge but otherwise a good man. Or at least, he thinks he is, but the story itself leaves the viewer to make up their own mind about that.

And that is not the only issue on which the viewer gets to fill in the blanks. A lot is left unanswered, but not in an annoying way. Or at least to me it wasn't irritating, but some people may not like it. I however, think it was done in a good way and with a satisfying ending.

The writer, Neil Cross, has said he was interested in doing a fiver year story arc, but to the best of my knowledge the series hasn't be renewed. It's a shame, because it's rare to see doomsday genres combined with crime, and it's even more rare to see it being done with this level of quality.

The first episode was good and I was excited, thinking that I had found a decent series. However, as the series progressed, character development ground to a halt and scenarios silly/unrealistic. The female lead is charismatic and plays the part well - but all the other characters are so flat and dull. The relationship between the female lead and her son could have been really interesting and layered - yet the writers completely missed the mark with it. There were so many times throughout the series where the characters escape danger - when realistically they would have just been killed or captured. Also, there is little exploration of the 'impending doom' that forms the backbone of the story which is a shame. Overall, the plot holes, flat characters and other irregularities detract from the series to such an extent that it becomes frustrating to watch.

The end of the world is nigh, and the criminals are still at it, even when the world comes to an end we are still need cops and spooks to put the bad guys away. Fortunately this serial was better then the premise suggested, what sounded daft was actually very good viewing, an unlikely pairing of Agyness Deyn and Jim Sturgess worked incredibly well together, two actors I absolutely love, so wonderfully talented, Sturgess for his recent work on Close to the Enemy. I'm just glad to see a drama serial on the box on a Saturday night, Taboo showed that it can work, we don't have to be made to switch off with only reality TV on. Bravo BBC again.

I have never understood why people are so quick to jump to the 1/10 score. The 1970 Film 'Trog', arguably one of the worst films ever made, gets an average of 3.6 so, even if you are hyper critical of some of the shortcomings of this series, it is clearly not 1/10.

Without giving another plot synopsis, the story is a London police drama underpinned by the knowledge of the protagonists, of the inevitable extinction of life on earth in 5 years.

I tend to be quite critical of procedurals that have outlandish and unbelievable plot elements. With this one though, as long as you buy the main premise (and that requires a certain suspension of disbelief), the extremity of the situation takes the focus off most details that could trip up the more nit-picky mind. So I for one was generally swept along.

What helps this is the pace and intensity of the programme. It is undoubtedly a high-adrenaline drama, with few gaps to take a breath. The music criticised by some commenters have for being too noisy (really?!) was well matched to the unrelenting tempo of the plot.

The casting and acting were both suitable to the drama, with a really convincing performance from Agnyess Deyn. Stylised it certainly was, but it was stylised well, so I really cant see that as a criticism.

There were a few niggles. I don't think the editing was brilliant. The various serial killer sub-plots were very variable in detail and the one in the last episode seemed almost throw-away. I got the feeling that they had had to scrunch the series down to 6 episodes having originally filmed for more.

Also how silence about such a life ending event could be maintained at all, and the ease with which the newspaper release in the first episode was quashed, strain the credulity a bit.

Anyway that's my tuppence worth. There's no accounting for taste, but I wish people would avoid rushing to unnecessarily harsh scoring. It ruins the system as a guide.