Life on Mars was arguably the best British drama of the decade. It was thoughtful and thought-provoking, engaging and entertaining, and was capped off with a near flawless finale. Everything seemed to be wrapped up as neatly as possible when dealing with the story of a time-traveling cop who may or may not be in a coma and/or completely mad.
Of course, if you’re the BBC, struggling a bit to find truly high quality programming amidst various searches for the next West End Star or the world’s most awkward conversations between parents and teens, you can’t actually let the story end — especially when you’ve created a near iconic figure in Gene Hunt. All you need is a new setting, a new protagonist, a new David Bowie-inspired title, and you’re good to go. Whether the end result is a new winning formula or a strong contender for the “Beating a Dead Horse” award is another matter altogether.
Still need to watch the finale of Life on Mars? Then stop reading, cause I refuse to spoil it for anyone. Otherwise, follow the jump to the Ashes to Ashes review.
Ashes to Ashes faced something of a creative hurdle, in that it was asked to create a sequel based on someone else’s coma-induced visions. They couldn’t just move the action eight years ahead; they had to figure out a way to get the new protagonist, DI Alex Drake, into Sam Tyler’s particular land of Oz. Conveniently, Drake is reading Sam Tyler’s notes about his experience (which confuses me greatly, because wasn’t he in a coma the WHOLE time? I mean, sure, we saw him return to the present briefly, but then he jumped off a building to escape it, suggesting he was never even there to begin with. Ow, my head). During a hostage negotiation, she is shot in the head by some baddie who remembers her — apparently from her time in the past — and sends her back to 1981 London, where she is greeted by the one and only Sheriff of Manchester, now divorced and wreaking havoc upon the London criminal element. Still with me?
The problem this show faces is that it will always be compared to Life On Mars, and the simple fact is that it’s not as good. Life on Mars took the viewer on the same journey as Tyler, never clearly stating why or how we were suddenly in 1973. With Ashes to Ashes, the show assumes that both Drake and the viewer know that the entire world is a figment of her imagination. In so doing, it loses the urgency and mystery that made the first series so memorable.
It’s rather unfortunate that the sequel will always suffer in comparison, because on its own it’s quite enjoyable. Drake’s absolute conviction that she is imagining the whole scene allows from some quietly comic moments. She greets her co-workers with a straight-faced “Hello, constructs,” and is constantly amused by the tricks played by her psyche, from exploding dogs to attractive Tories. In addition, the fact that we all know it’s an imagined world allows for minute changes in Hunt’s characterization. He’s a slightly softer, gentler asshole these days, adjusted to fit Drake’s understanding of his character and the needs of her imagined reality.
The 80s setting allows for the exploration of some key British moments: the Brixton riots, the rise of Thatcherism, the royal wedding. Unfortunately, the show frequently dips into parody. Whereas the 70s of Life on Mars seemed to be a loving recreation, this version of the 1980s feels like the writers are occasionally indulging childhood nostalgia, complete with Pacman mugs and cans of Tab. In addition, they’ve scrapped the car and foot chases of 70s TV in favor of Miami Vice-inspired boats and guns on the Thames. The gritty realism of the first show has been replaced by the shiny, shallow 80s. It’s not necessarily a bad choice, if you’re looking for a bit of light-hearted humor, but it does lack the depth of the original.
Another key difference is the audience’s involvement in the outcome. In the first series, no one really wanted Tyler to go home. After all, how could any reality be as entertaining as Gene Hunt’s police squad? This time, Drake has a daughter and is struggling to get back for her birthday. Any conclusion that does not see the two reunited will be unsatisfying. Plus, no one should ever be forced to relive 80s fashion for more than a brief period.
The end result is an entertaining show, if one can enjoy it independently of Life on Mars. Despite the fact that the world seems fully explained this time, and the ending predetermined, it’s still a fair amount of fun. Plus, I rather suspect that the show has a few tricks lined up. After all, the only way she could be shot by a man who remembers her from the past is if she actually traveled back in time. If the writers are able to open up this world a bit and define it as more than a simple coma dream with an electropop soundtrack, it has the potential to stand on its own as a damn good show.
Plus, it’s still got Gene Hunt. Nuff said.
Ashes to Ashes shows on BBC1 at 9:00 on Thursdays. It does not currently have a US air date scheduled.
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February 21st, 2008 at 1:06 pm
It’s ok so far, like you said, independent of LOM it’s not so bad. I don’t like it as much, but it’s quite watchable. Not sure I have taken to Keeley Hawes that much, and I find her constant ‘Hello constructs’ thing annoying. I need to feel like she is in some sort of peril or something, not that this is all la la happy land while she is in a coma. I’m assuming they’re going to try and turn it on its head in some way. Also, where is Annie? I would like a reference of some sort.
And with LOM, I thought Sam was back for a while, and it was dealing with not being in 1970s anymore that made him jump to get back there. The opening titles of him explaining, weren’t they from the suicide tape he made? Not sure, been a while, but I let that slide anyway.
February 21st, 2008 at 3:22 pm
“Conveniently, Drake is reading Sam Tyler’s notes about his experience (which confuses me greatly, because wasn’t he in a coma the WHOLE time? I mean, sure, we saw him return to the present briefly, but then he jumped off a building to escape it, suggesting he was never even there to begin with. Ow, my head”
In the last episode of LoM, didn’t we see him talking – to a tape, but it seemed like some sort of official police psych evaluation at the time – about his experiences?
I suspect – or rather hope – that they’re going to do something twisty with Alex’s whole “oh, I know this is all in my head, la la la” persona. They must be aware that they’ve got to inject some element of mystery or it’ll just get boring.
February 21st, 2008 at 3:39 pm
Carrie and Stellanova, I had interpreted the return to the present as part of his coma — he imagines the return and then decides he doesn’t want it after all. What with the building jumping and the logistical difficulties of putting himself into another coma, it seemed like the easiest explanation. However, based on the AtA setup, I was very wrong.
I think there’s definitely something twisty coming, based on the fact that the man from 2008 clearly recognized her. I only hope they don’t wait too long to give us that twist.
February 21st, 2008 at 9:26 pm
Yeah, he definitely woke up for real. I saw the jumping off as part of his willingness to sacrifice his life in the present for the one in the past with Annie etc. He knew he was going to die. And in dying he lived in the past for another seven years in the time it took him to die in the present. That all sounds so very bizarre written down.
February 21st, 2008 at 9:50 pm
I was really struck by the difference in the use of the time setting – LoM felt very much like a cop show from the 70s, whereas AtA feels like a show produced by people who have candy-coated memories of the 80s. It feels much faker.
February 22nd, 2008 at 8:47 pm
Carrie, yes, but Drake is the one who decided he was there for seven more years. If we are to believe the premise of Ashes to Ashes, that she is in her own space between life and death, then we can’t really trust what her constructs are saying, can we? And WHY am I still trying to make sense of time-traveling plots? Did The Terminator teach me nothing?
Rachel, you’re dead on about the setting. It’s gone from being in the background to being a major character and it really doesn’t work. Of course, it doesn’t help that the 80s were so much brighter than the 70s — they’re a lot harder to overlook.
February 22nd, 2008 at 10:10 pm
Oooh yeah, that is true about the 7 year thing, I was all sucked into her world obviously.
Although I had read the creators/writers say that that’s what they meant by the ending of LOM (that he lived his life in the past in the seconds he died in the present) whether the viewer wished to see it that way or not was up to them.
I thought it was interesting/weird that they chose to say Sam had died and his body was never found. Is that gonna be a point in the future or is that the end of Sam references?
February 22nd, 2008 at 11:00 pm
Carrie, I definitely think that Sam’s storyline isn’t over, given the disappearance of his body from that ravine. Televisionary has a review up of the first episode and also notes the oddness of Sam’s demise: http://www.televisionaryblog.com/2008/02/afterlife-on-mars-ashes-to-ashes.html
There’s got to be some sort of reveal planned for later on in Ashes to Ashes that clarifies this and Alex’s current predicament.