Bonekickers

Bonekickers is a poor man's Indiana Jones, but with less action and a lot less believable (and that's saying something if you seen Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls). The programme is about the fictional University of Bath archaeology department (the department not the university), and somehow this team find amazing discoveries and come across major conspiracies. The problems with the show are numerous. Firstly the programme takes itself too seriously and make out that it is a gripping thriller: it's not. The show is not well written, full of plot holes, bad dialogue and stereotypes. Whilst the West Country does have a rich history involving things from Stonehedge, King Alfred, the Rome Baths and the English Civil War, it is unbelievable that its involved with American conspiracy and having items like the true cross. What surprises me about the show is that Adrian Lester is in it, and he is a very good actor. He has been in Primary Colors, the Day After Tomorrow and Hustle. Some people have criticised the acting in the programme: I personally think that it is okay, nothing special. The show is not the worst one ever made, but there is a lot better around. The only good think about the show is it is made in the West Country which is under-representated in television, but it needed a stronger vehicle.

It had it's moments and I think they were all in the trailer. Hubby fell asleep through it and normally I would save it on Sky+ for him.

I didn't.

The cgi was dire, the acting was dire (even the rather yummy Adrian Lester couldn't save it) - oh and what was with the re-dubbing of Paul Nicholls??? I will give it a second chance next week but I am not holding my breath!!!

A lot of things I love are a little far fetched but usually have at least one toe in the waters of believability. This fell flat, the characters were all over the top, the lines in places were cringe worthy to say the least, and the storyline, possibly not the best choice for the first episode.

Having read the comments on here to see if this show was worth watching i very nearly deleted it without even giving it a chance. You would think that the academics with a professional interest who have slated the show from the very first episode would welcome the exposure and interest in their field. What would they prefer 6 hours watching someone unearth a broken pot with a paintbrush? If you like ancient mysteries and alternative history theories and don't mind if the truth is embellished and exaggerated to help the story along then you will enjoy this. I have watched all 6 episodes in about 1 week which tells me i must have enjoyed it. Well done to the Beeb for doing something away from mainstream drivel. It will be a shame if there's no second series as i am looking forward to it already and with a bit more thought this could go from OK to very good there's certainly the scope.

Pretty good series. Too bad they did not do another couple seasons. Good premise. Little bit of history brought to life. Peaks your interest. The naysayers that rated low are people that like reality TV and never read a history book before, fact or fiction. Entertaining enough to enjoy. Imagination is awesome.

Okay, I'm a professional and not an academic, but even so. I've managed to avoid this series up until now, but last night featured the Roman Baths Museum and I had to watch it for the background. Pity the actors got in the way..... Not going to comment on the archaeology side (yeah I know it's fiction) but the whole thing was just nuts. And not in a good way either. I could have assembled a better plot from an Ikea flat-pack and the dialogue sounded like they'd shredded the script and picked up random lines off the floor. And the big surprise at the end? - anyone not get it before the programme was half over? And in answer to cake-26, I know of a few black archaeologists and worked with people from various ethnicities when doing work with the public, so the presence of Adrian Lester and Gugu Mbatha-Raw is valid but they are so under-drawn as characters as to be 2-dimensional. Hugh Bonneville played his part as if he was half-cut and I really wished I was too.