Life on Mars

Stumbled on this series on BBC America and miss it terribly now that the first season is over.

Great over-arching conflict (Is Sam imagining he's from the future? Is he living inside his coma-induced reality? Or did he really travel back in time?) intermingles well within each episodes crime to solve. Loved when promises a witness complete anonymity if the guy will agree to finger the perpetrator in a line up; handled in a way that recognized the humor without diminishing the seriousness.

Plus, even though it's promoted as Sam's story, the series would suffer greatly without the Guv (DCI Gene Hunt). In the US, Philip Glenister's character would too easily be a cardboard-flat, corrupt, irredeemable cop. Here he's written and played with many shades letting you cheer for him at times, loathe him at others, pity his neanderthal ways, respect his desire to be a "good cop" while shaking your head at his twisted definition of a "good cop." He's a smart and unpredictable foil for Sam. They're each a better man for having to deal with the other even as they resent the complication and will never fully agree on their methods. There's a grudging respect building between them.

It's Sam's and Hunt's push me-pull you relationship that makes this must-see for me.

I've not watched this before as I had got a bit jaded with too many productions with John Simm. Now I want to marry him. This is just brilliant, great concept, terrific characters, plenty of action and it is fall off the sofa funny. Love it!

A couple of days ago I watched the Italian Mafia film 100 Feet, which featured Ballroom Blitz by the Sweet in the soundtrack. The very same song popped up in Life on Mars two days later. I'm now expecting it to hear it in Poldark series 5 which has come to Netflix UK this week and is my next up.

This British series, which made it's trek to the States, Has proved to me to be one of the best series on BBC America this year (the other being Hex).

The commercials for the series don't do the justice of what the series entails. The commercial make you think that the show is basically your run of the mill Sci-fi series working with a weak plot. I have always said that marketing is just as....if not more...important than the actual subject.

You have probably already read the synopsis from other comments presented here, so I won't bore you with the background too much. However, as I watch this series (currently have watched the first 2 episodes) I can't help but be reminded of another British export from many years ago...The Prisoner.

During each case that our hero is involved in, things come into play about where he actually is. He has no idea whether he's delusional, transported in time, or in a coma. This twist, put into the plot line, is what sets this show apart from the others in a very refreshing way.

Overall, I was quite pleased with how this series has turned out and I hope to see much more of it as well as being able to buy the DVDs if they released here in the U.S.

This series harks back to the best of BBC drama, and is cast and designed to perfection - although one or two anachronisms do creep into the script from time to time. As if the accuracy of the Seventies setting wasn't enough of a draw, however, there's also the 'mystery' element, the fascinating question of whether or not the other characters all exist in Tyler's imagination - and, if so, what they represent. It would be easy (and I suspect too glib) to suggest that Gene Hunt is a personification of Tyler's aggressive nature (I mean, as names go *Gene Hunt* seems a bit of a heavy clue - maybe too heavy!) but if that *is* the case then presumably the two of them will have to be reconciled in order for Tyler to recover from his injuries. The most disturbing aspect of this as a theory is that it would make the series concept a finite one and by definition preclude a second series, and I'm already a life member in the Gene Hunt Fan Club - I think he's one of the most delightful new creations to appear on British television in a long time.

With 'New Tricks', 'Jericho' and now 'Life On Mars', the traditional British cop show seems to have received a new lease of life in the last couple of years. This was long overdue, but it's a thrilling prospect that we now have a new generation of heroes to set against the Bergeracs, Taggarts, Regans, Barlows and Dixons of earlier times. And if we *are* heading for a new Golden Age of British TV I would like to go on record, here and now, nominating Gene Hunt as one of its brightest ornaments already!

The BBC have always been streets ahead of other stations when it comes to police dramas but this is one of the best ones for a long time. Young DI Sam Tyler is hunting a killer in 2006 when he is hit by a car and wakes up in 1973. The interesting thing about this show is how Sams modern police methods clash with the policing methods of the 70,s. Sams superior ,played superbly by Philip Glennister,is the sort of copper who arrests first and asks questions later.He cant quite get to grips with Sam's modern thinking and this often leads to fist fights between the two. This drama also has an interesting cast of supporting characters.They include the Jamacan barman who puts on the accent for the other coppers but speaks to Sam in proper language,the barman seems to know more than he is telling. There is the young WPC that seems to be a possible romantic connection but as of yet nothing has developed in that area, There is also the creepy little girl who comes out of the TV at night and tells Sam things. At certain times Sam can hear voices from the hospital in 2006 and this adds to the mystery.Is Sam really in a coma or are the voices in his head just his imagination. We have had three episodes so far and this drama is so compelling and addictive that i can't wait till the next episode to have more of my questions answered. Classic British drama deserves 9/10

Update- Coming up to the final episode and I wonder if this series will finish on a high note oo end up being a disappointment.Will just have to wait and see