Cable Forum - life on mars

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Re: life on mars

Quote:

Originally Posted by SMHarman (Post 34608498)

If they are not careful, setting it in NY and the tweaks to the format you could end up with another New Amsterdam.

I kind of liked New Amsterdam :/

Re: life on mars

Quote:

Originally Posted by v0id (Post 34609951)

I kind of liked New Amsterdam :/

So did I but it ended totally abrubtly. I wish when they did that they published the future scripts

Re: life on mars

Hmmm, the first proper episode of the US version is now out. It is a lot better than the pilot, I think I'll give it a few more episodes before giving my opinions on it.

Re: life on mars

Quote:

Originally Posted by cimt (Post 34651491)

Hmmm, the first proper episode of the US version is now out. It is a lot better than the pilot, I think I'll give it a few more episodes before giving my opinions on it.

Wow - your fast - I didn't even have to go find it - it came to my TV in lovely HD.
Yes the first proper episode is now out. The lead Jason O'Mara reminds me of a young Mel Gibson and I think the characters need a couple more episodes to grow into their roles (or maybe I am used to seeing John Simm play the role) but it was a good opener and pretty faithful to the original script.
The NYC location plays well and the nice use of the twin towers. Timing wise this actually works (compared to the slight twist of time in the UK one) as the towers were completed in 1972 and ribbon cut in April 1973.
Gonna keep watching but my damn DVR chopped the end of it - grrr.

Re: life on mars

Thinking more about this now I have seen it in a less sleepy state. Sam has the same sort of awareness as Alex Drake did in Ashes. It could work - it did in Ashes.

Re: life on mars

Hmm, not sure about Life on Mars US. They seem to have created a more authentic, well populated 1970s, but the fun and warmth seems to be missing, not just from the environment, but also from the characters. Keitel is a fine actor, but Glenister's Gene Hunt was an instant classic, and on first impressions, there's no real comparison the two. The guy playing Sam is kind of wooden, and although he seems less smarmy than John Simms, he doesn't really have much chemistry with either Keitel or Gretchen Mol, and in almost every scene, I kept thinking the guy from Journeyman would have been much better in the role. The only character that really caught my attention was The Sopranos' Michael Imperioli, and it was kind of nice to see Lisa Bonet back on TV as well.

I thought it was disappointing how closely the pilot followed the UK version, and as a result made many of the same mistakes, and even found room for some new ones. They rushed the setup, and the opening car sequence looked cheap and felt forced, which might not have seemed too important in the grand scheme of things, but it gave a bad first impression. They were sensible enough to cut the mind-numbingly stupid rooftop scene, although, it did serve the purpose of setting up the ending of the UK series, so hopefully this means future episodes will start to take a different route. The Office US was also off to a comparatively weak start, but eventually managed to not only match, but completely surpass the UK version, and certainly in terms of plot, that shouldn't be too hard for Life on Mars, but I do have my concerns about the characters.

First impressions: A resounding "meh".

Re: life on mars

Quote:

Originally Posted by supremus (Post 34651970)

I thought it was disappointing how closely the pilot followed the UK version, and as a result made many of the same mistakes, and even found room for some new ones. They rushed the setup, and the opening car sequence looked cheap and felt forced, which might not have seemed too important in the grand scheme of things, but it gave a bad first impression. They were sensible enough to cut the mind-numbingly stupid rooftop scene, although, it did serve the purpose of setting up the ending of the UK series, so hopefully this means future episodes will start to take a different route. The Office US was also off to a comparatively weak start, but eventually managed to not only match, but completely surpass the UK version, and certainly in terms of plot, that shouldn't be too hard for Life on Mars, but I do have my concerns about the characters.

First impressions: A resounding "meh".

I read something a couple of days ago (no idea the source) that said it will, Office style, take a different route going forward. Wait and see...

Re: life on mars

The second episode also is like the second episode of the UK version. 5 of them run out of a swimming pool, wearing nothing but swimming trunks etc.

Re: life on mars

wonder who will pick up the uk right's for the us LOM bet it's itv 3 or 4 :D

Re: life on mars

The second episode was not an improvement, once again following the original much too closely, and making more or less all the same mistakes.

It's funny, as crap as the British version was, it was still some of the best stuff you could hope to catch on British TV, but this is so far below the standards of US TV, you've gotta wonder how long they'll put up with this charmless, banal, heavy-handed crap. Maybe the 40% drop in ratings this week at least partly answers that question?

Re: life on mars

ABC has cancelled this after just one season which will end at 17 episodes.

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/ustv/a14...ne-season.html

Bloody hell, ABC will have no more shows left by May time. :erm:

Re: life on mars

watched this the first time round 2yr's ago i enjoyed it but did not like the other one they did with a woman copper

Re: life on mars

Wow, I couldn't think of an ending that was more different to the original.

Re: life on mars

Are you talking about the American remake? How did they end it?

Re: life on mars

Spoiler:

Some of it may be wrong.