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Coffee House => Coffee House Boards => CH / Entertainment => Topic started by: Hyperspeed on February 23, 2007, 07:20:10 AM
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(http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/41493000/jpg/_41493890_mars203.jpg)
Anybody in the UK watching the last series of Life on Mars? I've only watched the last couple of episodes and it's hilarious.
Think Total Recall crossed with Minder.
Every other sentence includes the word "Bastard!" and the banter and bickering between the two cops is highly amusing.
The show revolves around a cop who gets knocked down in a car accident in present day but wakes up in 1973. Is he in a coma or has he been sent back in time?
Similar in vein to the X-Files where different storylines occur each week but the main theme of how he got there crops up each time.
Anyone else following it or a late convert?
(http://www.020.com/webs/020/images/PhotoDB/life-on-mars-bbc-tv1.jpg)
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excellent show i have watched all the episodes and i have not seen a bad one yet. unfortunately i heard this is the last season of this show so the entire run will cover 16 episodes. i have heard there will be a spinoff tho that takes place in the 80's. rumors say gene hunt will be in it but sam will not.
of course there are rumors the guy that plays sam is the new master in doctor who.
edit abc is creating a remake of life on mars for the us audience.
new pilots coming (http://www.tv.com/life-on-mars/show/51334/story/8483.html)
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I've watched one episode where some dude held a few people hostage in an office. I was not very impressed, flawed script, flat characters and lackluster acting. Just another cheap attempt to cash in on the 'coolness' of the seventies.
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i think you might be in the minority (http://www.tv.com/life-on-mars/show/51334/summary.html)
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I love it! It's one of the most intelligent things the BBC has done in recent years.
Is Sam Tyler a delusional 70's cop? Is he really in a coma and dreaming? Is there a sci-fi element we haven't seen yet?
The two series seems ideal, I don't like storylines dragged out (like Lost), but a series of the same characters (except Sam) picking up in 1981 is in the works apparently.
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I had the same experience as Odin. Saw one episode that wasn't very good.
But I'll give it a chance. I'll watch a few more before I make my final decision about it.
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jkirk wrote:
i think you might be in the minority (http://www.tv.com/life-on-mars/show/51334/summary.html)
No wonder, alot of the popular series these days don't tickle me (24, Lost..).
But I do like a semiglorified soap like Gilmore Girls, go figure =).
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watched the first series, now watching the second series, slightly odd ball plot but still very entertaining.
I LIIKE
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No wonder, alot of the popular series these days don't tickle me (24, Lost..).
Yeah.. Even the reality shows are doing good.. :-(
Most of the shows i tend to fall in love with tends to get cancelled due to it not attracting the average viewer. The only shows i follow these days are battlestar galactica and family guy. I look forward to the return of futurama though.
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It's an absolutely cracking show. Got the box set of series one. :-D
Series 2 hasn't failed to disappoint so far..... :-)
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I watched everything they broadcast on BBCAmerica. Love it! Unusual and full of twists and turns.
I hope that whatever gets made will be shown in the US eventually. me likie! :-D
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by jkirk:
edit abc is creating a remake of life on mars for the us audience
Why do American broadcasters feel the need to 'remake' British TV shows?
They did it with The Office too...
Do they think Americans won't be able to handle dodgy accents, shouts of "Bastard!" and peculiar Brit phrases?
I think we should re-make Dallas and fill it with 'diamond geezers', 'wags' and 'chavs'...
:-D
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Hyperspeed wrote:
by jkirk:
edit abc is creating a remake of life on mars for the us audience
Why do American broadcasters feel the need to 'remake' British TV shows?
They did it with The Office too...
Do they think Americans won't be able to handle dodgy accents, shouts of "Bastard!" and peculiar Brit phrases?
I think we should re-make Dallas and fill it with 'diamond geezers', 'wags' and 'chavs'...
:-D
go right ahead (i hate dallas)you can also have falcon crest and knots landing too.
as for remaking it, maybe it won't be too bad. unfortunately when something is remade it is because they like the premise but didn't think the audience will be addicted to the show in it's current form. this usually means re-filming with tons of special effects dodgy camera angle and other gimmicks to hold the audience's attention.
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The only shows i follow these days are battlestar galactica and family guy. I look forward to the return of futurama though.
I even hate Family Guy and Battlestar Galactica (dizzycam...*vomit*). :lol:
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odin wrote:
The only shows i follow these days are battlestar galactica and family guy. I look forward to the return of futurama though.
I even hate Family Guy and Battlestar Galactica (dizzycam...*vomit*). :lol:
I think it makes it more realistic :-P Though i guess it is nt so good for those who suffers from motion sickness.
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Okay, just saw another episode.
I can honestly say that the acting is indeed poor. I guess it's not for me. It's a pity because I like the concept.
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Same here, watched (partly) an episode where the main character ran into his father, with his father involved with a porn movie. It was a bit better than the other episode I saw, but still urine-poor.
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I think you have to appreciate the British sense of humour and nods to 1970s culture to find it entertaining.
It's refreshing to see cops kicking down doors and being politically incorrect.
It's generally tongue in cheek (like Doctor Who). Don't cancel your social life to watch it - but if it's on it'll keep you hooked for some peculiar reason!
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I love Life On Mars. I think throwing someone from the 90s/00s into the 70s is an excellent way of highlighting the inequalities and discrimination which were accepted as "normal" 30-40 years ago, and showing how things have changed.
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moto
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If I want that, I'll watch Austin Powers :-P
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motorollin wrote:
I think throwing someone from the 90s/00s into the 70s is an excellent way of highlighting the inequalities and discrimination which were accepted as "normal" 30-40 years ago, and showing how things have changed.
It's cleverer than that, it's a double edged sword. It's not only trying to tap into our social attitudes in these more elightened times by horrifying us whenever overtly racist/sexist/homophobic attitudes are explored, but also tapping into our rose-tinted nostalgia about life before lawyers, health and safety and various political correctness issues which haven't changed our life for the better.
I like the contrast and the thought-provokingness of it all.
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Yes you're right I picked up on that side of it too, but only being born in 1983 this is a distinction I only understand through studying the "golden age" rather than experiencing it first hand :-p
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moto
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What!? You didn't have the decency to turn up for the 1970s???
Okay, so I was dribbling for most of the 1970s that I can recall (as opposed to me dribbling my way through the 1990s for entirely different reasons), but there exist photos of toddler me in flared jeans and floral shirts.
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"...What!? You didn't have the decency to turn up for the 1970s???..."
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:lol:
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motorollin:
"I think throwing someone from the 90s/00s into the 70s is an excellent way of highlighting the inequalities and discrimination which were accepted as "normal" 30-40 years ago, and showing how things have changed."
It didnt stop an angry motorist calling me a "####ing paki b####" after he nearly ran his car into mine. Never mind that he tried to turn the wrong way into a one way street! If he cant understand a "no right turn" sign I guess distinguishing someone half Bangladeshi from someone Pakistani is going to be a bit too much to ask.
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mel_zoom wrote:
"I think throwing someone from the 90s/00s into the 70s is an excellent way of ... showing how things have changed."
... I guess distinguishing someone half Bangladeshi from someone Pakistani is going to be a bit too much to ask.
"how things have changed" since 70s
"East Pakistan" was province of Pakistan, residents were "Pakistani"
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mel_zoom wrote:
It didnt stop an angry motorist calling me a "####ing paki b####" after he nearly ran his car into mine. Never mind that he tried to turn the wrong way into a one way street! If he cant understand a "no right turn" sign I guess distinguishing someone half Bangladeshi from someone Pakistani is going to be a bit too much to ask.
Hmm... Seems like progress (not to mention driving standards) has passed this knuckle dragging fool by.
I trust you had some choice words in response?
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metalman:
""how things have changed" since 70s
"East Pakistan" was province of Pakistan, residents were "Pakistani""
That changed in 1971 which is some time before I was born. Ive never been pakistani. Also its presently 2007, not 1970. Still dont let that dissuade you from using pedant logic to support his action.
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PMC:
"I trust you had some choice words in response?"
Yes - though I was several hundred metres away by the time I said them...
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metalman wrote:
"East Pakistan" was province of Pakistan, residents were "Pakistani"
Ahem, prior to that they were subjects of the crown - as were you colonials at one time I believe.
Try telling an Irishman he's English by virtue of the fact that Ireland gained independence in 1921 and then count your teeth afterward!
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mel_zoom wrote:
metalman:
""how things have changed" since 70s
"East Pakistan" was province of Pakistan, residents were "Pakistani""
That changed in 1971 which is some time before I was born. Ive never been pakistani. Also its presently 2007, not 1970. Still dont let that dissuade you from using pedant logic to support his action.
try irony,
you were having your own "Life on Mars" moment.
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It might be ironic if I were Pakistani. Im not and it isnt.
"East Pakistan" has always been a misnomer. Bengalis and Pakistanis have different languages, customs and culture. The only thing they have in common is that they are have a majority muslim population. A fact which failed to prevent Pakistan Army invading and commiting atrocities in which a lot of innocent people were indiscriminately killed. Perhaps now you might understand why Bangladeshis appreciate being called "Pakis" perhaps even less than Pakistanis do.
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Exploring the 1970s culture was quite brave. Irish workers, black detectives, Asian families setting up home in the UK, police brutality, political incorrectness etc.
The 70s look akin to the Wild West when looked back on in this way.
It's a very escapist and fascinating show. The incessant swearing, insults and slapdowns not only add humour but polarise how uncompromising the story intends to be with viewers.
There seems to be a love interest in there too... how exciting!
:-D