Kidding. But only kind of. I'm clearly great at blogging.
In this episode of The Occasional Blog, we'll visit the oh-so-familiar cop drama, but this time one from our friends across the Atlantic, at the BBC.
DCI Sam Tyler (John Simm), a detective with the Greater Manchester Police, is involved in a car accident in the year 2006 (while listening to David Bowie's "Life on Mars" on his radio). Suddenly, Tyler wakes up from the crash to find himself in 1973, working in the same station but under very different circumstances.
A web of existential questions ensues. Did Tyler die in the crash? Is he dreaming? Has he lost his mind? Or did he really end up 30 years in the past? If he's really there, how can he get back to his life in the present?
Life on Mars had two seasons on BBC One, from 2006-2007. Apparently there was an American remake on ABC in 2009, but, as is usually the case when the US tries to copy British success, it was cancelled before the first season was even over.
It's a bit of a tenuous premise, to be honest, but it does manage to build quite a few complex plots and subplots, ask some interesting existential questions, and add some commentary about the state of policing across the decades.
In 1973, instead of being the chief inspector, Tyler is just regular ol' inspector, and works under the brutish DCI Gene Hunt (Philip Glenister), whose methods are, well, usually questionable, based mostly on gut instinct and often resorting to brutality, bribery, and planted evidence. The two immediately butt heads, Hunt's raging, blustery methods against Tyler's modern, squeaky-clean ones.
Of course, it's not like Tyler can tell the squad he comes from the future, but it's awfully hard to keep this kind of thing to yourself, I imagine. Especially when you're plagued by bizarre visual hallucinations and hearing the voices of your friends and family from 30 years in the future.
Luckily, Tyler finds a friend in WPC Annie Cartwright (Liz White), who faces plenty of problems on her own as a young woman in what is definitively a boys' club. Cartwright becomes Tyler's sounding board as he tries to decide whether what he's experiencing is real or not, while Tyler tries to help Cartwright become more assertive in moving her career forward.
While he tries to figure out how to get... ahem... back to the future (I'm sorry. It's impossible to let that one go), Tyler finds himself—literally—in the midst of his troubled childhood. Adding one existential crisis on top of another, Tyler begins to wonder if his adult self can save his child self from the pain he knows is coming.
Life on Mars does a few things very well. One is undoubtedly the soundtrack; being set in 1973 definitely does the show a great service, with songs from David Bowie (obviously), Thin Lizzie, Elton John, Lou Reed, Blue Öyster Cult, Jethro Tull, The Rolling Stones, Electric Light Orchestra, and, well, you get the idea.
It's generally a gritty, serious show, but it does have its moments of humor, too. With the jump to a different decade, there are obvious opportunities for culture clash scenarios. Frequent jokes about things that would "never happen" that obviously have, e.g., "There will never be a woman prime minister as long as I have a hole in my arse" (Hunt, S1, Ep5). Tyler's accidental slips about technologies, historical events, and policing techniques that wouldn't happen for a couple of decades. Somewhat uncomfortable misogynistic and homophobic comments you can pretend are funny because they're so intentionally outdated.
It also does a pretty good job of balancing its role as a crime procedural with its overarching existential one. Most individual episodes focus mainly on solving particular crimes, with some bizarre moments thrown in to remind you why you're there.
I appreciate how Tyler's struggle to understand what is happening to him really builds him into a complex, interesting character, especially as he becomes more comfortable in 1973. In fact, all of the characters are pretty well developed for such a short series. The ways their relationships with each other grow and change is genuinely interesting, particularly between Hunt and Tyler as they figure out how to work together effectively.
I do love me a well-developed character.
There are plenty of great things about Life on Mars, but, even with just 16 episodes in total, there were a lot of moments that I felt the premise got a little bit repetitive and a little bit stale. Okay, so policing in the '70s—or Tyler's idea of policing in the '70s—is different. Okay, so Tyler doesn't know if he's crazy. I get it. It's interesting. But, to be honest, maybe it would work better in one season, or even a movie.
Something I really appreciate about the BBC, and British TV storytelling in general, is that they know how to tell a story really well and get out before it gets bad. This is mostly due to the fact that British broadcasting isn't based on advertising (which is a completely different conversation for another time). Whatever the reason, I find that British TV shows tend to have a natural story arc that finishes when you want it to, and not when you're just desperate to put a show out of its misery. But Life on Mars was one that I felt took just that little bit too long to get where it was going.
I did really like the ending of Life on Mars, though. I won't spoil anything, but it was interesting, thought-provoking, and generally well thought out. It had all of the elements to be truly great, but in just 16 episodes it started tiptoeing into the LOST abyss of asking questions over and over again that never get answered. I can't imagine how it could have lasted for even a single 22-episode series in the US.
Despite this, Life on Mars is, overall, a high-quality, interesting period piece, with a little bit of sci-fi thrown in, plus some interesting crime solving and a great soundtrack. It ticks a lot of boxes, in a mostly-positive way. With only two short seasons, it doesn't take all that long to watch the whole series, and there's no disappointing ending to greet you when you finish. It's worth a watch, if you like crime dramas but want to venture outside of CBS territory.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Full disclosure: It's been about a year since I finished watching Life on Mars, and at this point I couldn't begin to pick a favorite episode. They were all pretty consistently good, and the larger story arc stood out to me more than any one episode.
Some Trivia:
Stay Tuned For Our Next Episode:
NewsRadio
Previously on Of Sight, Sound, and Mind:
House, M.D.
DCI Sam Tyler (John Simm), a detective with the Greater Manchester Police, is involved in a car accident in the year 2006 (while listening to David Bowie's "Life on Mars" on his radio). Suddenly, Tyler wakes up from the crash to find himself in 1973, working in the same station but under very different circumstances.
A web of existential questions ensues. Did Tyler die in the crash? Is he dreaming? Has he lost his mind? Or did he really end up 30 years in the past? If he's really there, how can he get back to his life in the present?
Life on Mars had two seasons on BBC One, from 2006-2007. Apparently there was an American remake on ABC in 2009, but, as is usually the case when the US tries to copy British success, it was cancelled before the first season was even over.
It's a bit of a tenuous premise, to be honest, but it does manage to build quite a few complex plots and subplots, ask some interesting existential questions, and add some commentary about the state of policing across the decades.
In 1973, instead of being the chief inspector, Tyler is just regular ol' inspector, and works under the brutish DCI Gene Hunt (Philip Glenister), whose methods are, well, usually questionable, based mostly on gut instinct and often resorting to brutality, bribery, and planted evidence. The two immediately butt heads, Hunt's raging, blustery methods against Tyler's modern, squeaky-clean ones.
Of course, it's not like Tyler can tell the squad he comes from the future, but it's awfully hard to keep this kind of thing to yourself, I imagine. Especially when you're plagued by bizarre visual hallucinations and hearing the voices of your friends and family from 30 years in the future.
Luckily, Tyler finds a friend in WPC Annie Cartwright (Liz White), who faces plenty of problems on her own as a young woman in what is definitively a boys' club. Cartwright becomes Tyler's sounding board as he tries to decide whether what he's experiencing is real or not, while Tyler tries to help Cartwright become more assertive in moving her career forward.While he tries to figure out how to get... ahem... back to the future (I'm sorry. It's impossible to let that one go), Tyler finds himself—literally—in the midst of his troubled childhood. Adding one existential crisis on top of another, Tyler begins to wonder if his adult self can save his child self from the pain he knows is coming.
Life on Mars does a few things very well. One is undoubtedly the soundtrack; being set in 1973 definitely does the show a great service, with songs from David Bowie (obviously), Thin Lizzie, Elton John, Lou Reed, Blue Öyster Cult, Jethro Tull, The Rolling Stones, Electric Light Orchestra, and, well, you get the idea.
It's generally a gritty, serious show, but it does have its moments of humor, too. With the jump to a different decade, there are obvious opportunities for culture clash scenarios. Frequent jokes about things that would "never happen" that obviously have, e.g., "There will never be a woman prime minister as long as I have a hole in my arse" (Hunt, S1, Ep5). Tyler's accidental slips about technologies, historical events, and policing techniques that wouldn't happen for a couple of decades. Somewhat uncomfortable misogynistic and homophobic comments you can pretend are funny because they're so intentionally outdated.
It also does a pretty good job of balancing its role as a crime procedural with its overarching existential one. Most individual episodes focus mainly on solving particular crimes, with some bizarre moments thrown in to remind you why you're there.
I appreciate how Tyler's struggle to understand what is happening to him really builds him into a complex, interesting character, especially as he becomes more comfortable in 1973. In fact, all of the characters are pretty well developed for such a short series. The ways their relationships with each other grow and change is genuinely interesting, particularly between Hunt and Tyler as they figure out how to work together effectively.
I do love me a well-developed character.
 |
| Tyler: "We're looking for this woman, Dora Keynes. Approximately 5'2", curly brown hair, hazel eyes, fake topaz necklace..." Hunt: "We're looking for a short skinny bird. Wears a big coat, lots of gob." |
Something I really appreciate about the BBC, and British TV storytelling in general, is that they know how to tell a story really well and get out before it gets bad. This is mostly due to the fact that British broadcasting isn't based on advertising (which is a completely different conversation for another time). Whatever the reason, I find that British TV shows tend to have a natural story arc that finishes when you want it to, and not when you're just desperate to put a show out of its misery. But Life on Mars was one that I felt took just that little bit too long to get where it was going.
I did really like the ending of Life on Mars, though. I won't spoil anything, but it was interesting, thought-provoking, and generally well thought out. It had all of the elements to be truly great, but in just 16 episodes it started tiptoeing into the LOST abyss of asking questions over and over again that never get answered. I can't imagine how it could have lasted for even a single 22-episode series in the US.
Despite this, Life on Mars is, overall, a high-quality, interesting period piece, with a little bit of sci-fi thrown in, plus some interesting crime solving and a great soundtrack. It ticks a lot of boxes, in a mostly-positive way. With only two short seasons, it doesn't take all that long to watch the whole series, and there's no disappointing ending to greet you when you finish. It's worth a watch, if you like crime dramas but want to venture outside of CBS territory.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Full disclosure: It's been about a year since I finished watching Life on Mars, and at this point I couldn't begin to pick a favorite episode. They were all pretty consistently good, and the larger story arc stood out to me more than any one episode.
 |
| The Test Card Girl |
- Rather than admitting he's from the future, Tyler says he was transferred to the Manchester police force from Hyde. Hyde is a town near Manchester, and is also a reference to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; Tyler leads a double life, like the character in the book. Except Tyler is less creepy.
- Tyler has frequent hallucinations of a little girl with a clown doll who gives him cryptic messages. The girl is a living incarnation of Test Card F, an image that appeared on the TV screen after programming had finished for the day.
- Life on Mars is, of course, named for the David Bowie song of the same name. Following the second season there was a spin-off series about Gene Hunt, called Ashes to Ashes, another popular Bowie song.
Stay Tuned For Our Next Episode:
NewsRadio
Previously on Of Sight, Sound, and Mind:
House, M.D.
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