Eleventh Hour

I must say, I am somewhat surprised that my favourite PS has allowed such an "arty" medium to be applied to a not very apparent replacement for the highly respected Morse detective series. The characters although new, remain totally impersonal and I really do not want long shots of many more car-washes, camera moves around cars with just a few words spoken,shots of railings with darkened views of walking main cast. Make this a proper sleuth show asap! gimme clues, gimme insider info on the characters, gimme some more anger/emotion, and gimme a hard hitting next episode that brings me back for more!. I know new shows need time to develop, to mellow the characters and give them time to make them their own, but this appears stunted, strained and cold with minimal vocabulary to give me the viewer and a fan of the more intelligent detective shows, much to hold on to other than modern but not altogether interesting camera work...come on Patrick, inject some pizazz!!!!

Watched the first episode tonight.

Patrick Stewart brings the gravitas and presence that he brings to all his roles (on stage and screen). The first storyline is interesting and well developed, as well as asking some interesting questions about the morality issues involved (many Americans will hate part of this programme).

I think this show will run well, as long as it keeps interesting story lines and brings forward one or two strong support characters.

I suspect this show will even get picked up in the States (which means the Yanks will get to see the British version of White Trash...we have them too!!).

Good job to the production team, and you'll be pleased to know this is the first original show I've watched on ITV in about 4-5 years, keep em coming.

Is Ian Hood the 21st Century Professor Quatermass ?

I'm actually enjoying the series, as a sci-fi fan. After years of being subjected to British broadcasters being more concerned with producing period dramas, and endless detective shows - it's good to see some sci-fi back on the screen. And I for one think it's pretty well written, and of course the presence that Patrick Stewart brings, adds to the appeal.

Am I right in thinking that only 4 episodes have been made in this season ? I hope it's done well enough to given a shot at a 2nd season, with Stewart on board for that too.

This flashy po-faced hokum has clearly been built to milk the appeal of Sir Patrick Stewart to the bobble-hat brigade, and it's not as terrifyingly bad as some of writer Stephen Gallagher's other work. But why-oh-why-oh-why hasn't anybody flagged the significant debt to other and - in my nostalgia-loaded opinion - better series?

It obviously re-treads ground covered in the equally watchable but improbable perils-of-science 1970s BBC melodrama "Doomwatch" - created by Doctor Who writers and Cybermen creators Kit Peddler and Gerry Davis.

"Eleventh hour" writer Stephen Gallagher is also a former Doctor Who writer. What, then, do you think inspired the format of a slightly unworldly trouble-shooting "Government Scientific Adviser" with a younger and slightly feisty but unthreatening girl "companion"?

There's a certain amount to enjoy here, not least Jean Luc Picard trying to pretend he's not posh, as he flattens all his vowels and clearly has to be restrained from saying things like "Ay-up", "By 'eck", and "Ah grew oop round ear". That he's supposed to be a boffin is probably funnier, as in last week's episode which had him talking about quantum probability and Chaos theory to a Government accountant before charging off to put down a virus pandemic.

That girl from "Extras" as his sidekick also gets to wave a gun and run down endless stairs in Lycra tops without the benefit of a sports bra, which may offer younger male viewers some light relief.

Despite the slick presentation and casting coup, this isn't ever going to be great and memorable TV. The man who gave us budget-shy early nineties genetic engineering scare-fest "Chimera" (aka "Monkey Boy" - the clue's in the title) and international drugs corporation paranoia in "Oktober" is clearly going to carry on grinding out un-taxing soft-target science-gone-wrong potboilers. The only real social issue in the second story about a killer virus loose in England's Manchester, was the obvious question, "Well, would they really bother?"

I've just seen a couple of Episodes of "Eleventh Hour", but I must say that they were enough to impress me. This series is just so impressive and interesting... I'm definitely going to follow it.

First of all, I must say that the acting is top-notch. Patrick Stewart plays his character - Ian the scientist - believably and coolly, and he makes the audience believe in the character. Other characters, such as Rachel, are also believable, and, although they sometimes are a little cold - due to the way the series is filmed - they're interesting.

The stories told by this series are also interesting. For example, one of the episodes I saw was about cloning, and a man who was trying to clone humans. The way the Episode was developed, and how Ian - Stewart - kept following clues and saving people was amazing. In addition, it made you think about ethics and how good or bad could this be.

Anyway, I think this is one good TV shows. I just hope it keeps going on like this - interesting, thought-provoking and with good acting. Even though it's filmed in a kind of cold way - little lightning, cold photography, lots of close-ups - it never stops being interesting. Highly recommendable.