ABC
(Season 1, Episode 2)
What’s real, and what’s not real?
As you’ll recall from the screenshot above, this episode wasted no time at all in telling us that the mystery surrounding Sam’s predicament is fresh on his mind and not shuffled off to a comfortable back seat already. Viewers are going to be invested in this show to learn what the heck is going on. As long as we’re constantly getting fed information and clues, everyone should be happy. It’s when the clues lead to nothing new that gets viewers pissed off (see: Lost).
Joel posted last week how much he liked the Life on Mars pilot and how we both made the mistake of liking a show too early with The Nine some time ago. Thankfully the second episode of Life on Mars has followed through brilliantly, and I’ve got high hopes that it will continue to not disappoint.
What Sam was writing on the chalkboard (and, as we saw later, the mirror in his apartment) shows that Sam is thinking like us. People who will follow this show and discuss it with friends will likely make their own mental lists of what could possibly be happening to Sam. He seemed to have it pretty well covered. Do the creators have one of those possibilities in mind for an ending, or are we already not thinking hard enough?
I’m loving the ’70s references and especially the soundtrack. The multiple references to how police business was done over 30 years ago adds some great detail to the show. What’s a little strange is that drinking on the job, the treatment of suspects and planting and tampering of evidence in the ’70s is so shocking to Sam. He knows what year it is and is old enough to know how it was done “in the old days,” so why so surprised?
Something that took me by surprise was Ray Carling’s attitude toward Sam. I just never got a feeling that he didn’t like Sam, but it all came out tonight. It’s too bad, as I think Ray and Sam as a team feels more natural than them as enemies at this point.
Then, of course, there’s the visions Sam saw in this episode. Two times he saw the “Red Rover”-like robot, and later saw a reflection of the 2008 department in Gene’s door. I’ve got a couple of observances about these:
Other points:
“I’m sick of this cosmic joke that everyone seems to be in on but me!” – Sam
Songs in this episode:
“All the Way from Memphis” – Mott the Hoople
“Get Down” – Gilbert O’Sullivan
“Life on Mars?” – David Bowie
“I Am a Rock” – Paul Simon & Art Garfunkel
Clacked by Keith McDuffee 
on Oct 16, 2008 @ 23:40 EST5EDT
Well, I for one still feel that Harvey Keitel isn’t as good as Philip Glenister. I think, though, that it may be less of an issue as the series continues to move away from being a direct remake. While the new series continues to take scenes directly from the original, Harvey Keitel has to play pretty much the same Gene as Philip Glenister did and I don’t think he’s a good fit for that part. But as the two series part ways, Keitel’s Gene should get a chance to become a slightly different character.
Already I would have to say that Jason O’Mara’s Sam and John Simm’s Sam have become different enough that I can move away from comparing the two actors (which is all to the good, because it’s a comparison Jason O’Mara would have lost everytime). Between the pilot and this episode, there have been enough moments for the American Sam that differ from the original to allow him to develop a rather different personality from the British Sam. The same can’t be said for Gene yet.
This episode was interesting because it sort of started with the same scenario but took it in a different direction. Which just made it all the odder when there were scenes taken line-for-line from the original. Part of the problem here is that I think the shows have different tones. (I’ve spent a while trying to come up with the right words to describe the difference, but I either can’t pinpoint it or I’m too tired to come up with the right words.) I don’t know whether or not I’ll like the show the US version becomes when they finally get to the point where they aren’t doing these straight remake scenes, but at least it will be less jarring.
For me, the jury’s still out on this one. I know it will never hold the same place in my heart as the original, but I’m not sure whether or not it’s something I’ll continue watching in the long term. I am still willing to give it at least a couple more weeks to come into its own.
Harvey Keitel isn’t up to Gene Hunt in the original because, as Saavik says, the tone is different. There was a touch of something almost whimsical in the original, and the US version is a bit more heavy. Keitel does fine in his own right, but he will never have the magic that Glenister had, the funny moments and lady-killer wantitude (I say that because it was more what he wanted to be than what he was). He was hard as nails when he needed to be, but easily allowed others to think he was not; then he would let it rip when the guys got too comfortable.
The scene between Sam and Gene in the hospital was better in the original because of this whimsy (can’t think of a better word at the moment). They respected each other, kept their distance, but you would almost expect them to erupt in slap fights at any given moment. They were like brothers, trying to one-up each other, but it was because of that respect and almost a jealousy of how differently each worked, but they still go the job done.
Anywho – I’m still loving the show. Mostly because it’s no longer on in the UK. LOL Okay, that’s not true. I do like this show in it’s own right, and I also know I have another series of Glenister coming up in Ashes to Ashes series 2. Yay!
The story was basically the same as a uk episode, but they are adding personal touches now. Such as the neighbor hippie gal. I seem to recall a small part for a neighbor, but she never made an impact like the girl last night. I liked the dancing scene, and the lamp. Did you catch the hanging swag lamp between the dance and the mirror? I’ve been trying to win one on Ebay for ages. Looooove it!
The chase scene at the beginning is a favorite, because it shows how different our lives are today than then. Except mine, of course. People are fit, run to keep healthy. Ray Carling running was too funny. In the original version, they were very adversarial in the beginning of the series. by the end, there was more respect and a budding friendship. Keep your hopes up for that!
Finally, they have stayed true to the idea of the soundtrack, as well. Keeping it a bit grittier than what today’s generation thinks of when they imagine the 70s (it wasn’t all disco and the Village People!). I look forward to seeing what they do with next week’s episode, as in the original Sam ran into some people from the past (Marc Bolan from T-Rex, for example) and it made the 70s come even more alive.
I see some similar kind of dialogue in this that was in October Road. The hippie neighbor is a hotter version of pizza girl. The showrunners must have brought over some of their writers with them from OR. It’s too bad I really like this show because that means they are gonna start moving it all over the schedule and then abruptly cancelling it in a few weeks with no story wrap-up.