Life on Mars? Who's gonna watch?

[lavahot]

So I've seen the trailers for Life on Mars on ABC and being a fan of the BBC version I think that they entirely miscast it. It's nice to see Harvey Keitel in something, but I think he's miscast. I'll probably watch the pilot, but i really don't expect much.

[straylightrise]

I'm kind of required to watch - I LOVE John Simm and the BBC and anything he's in. I've seen the pre-air (its supposedly totally different now) and I think maybe - MAYBE - harvey keitel can be the US Gene Hunt.

I will watch - and I will probably be disappointed.

Everyone go buy or find the UK Life on Mars and be blessed with the awesomeness that is John Simm and Philip Glenister.

Night all

[popltree2]

Haven't seen the trailer. Is it actually about people on Mars?

[tokenuser]

Its a reference to the song by David Bowie, and is used to set the transition to the time, not the place.

[wideawakewesley]

I'll be watching, I just hope they don't kill it.

Wes

[tokenuser]

IF you hadn't seen the UK original, you would have thought that the first US pilot would be a success. It had an "original" storyline, and interesting characters.

Problem is, we have seen the original UK series. It was a great series, and since the original US pilot wasn't as good as the UK version, its hardly surprising it got yanked (although Colm Meeney as Gene was perfect casting - hope Kietel carries it off as well).

This is an important series for ABC this year, since it is their only new drama. They want to make it a success.

God I hope they succeed.

[tv-geek]

The UK one was good. I'm looking forward to the ABC remake tomorrow night. Was somewhat skeptic, but after watching the clips on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEWpWM7Iyhc&feature=related I'm now really excited. Especially since the set has changed from LA to NYC - NYC in the 70's is gritty and cool.

[tokenuser]

I liked the idea of it being set in LA, but it is far easier to "age" NYC than find locations in LA.

[tsmith15]

I am definitely going to watch it, did I miss the premiere? It seems like I've been missing the premieres of everything. I didn't know it was a remake of a British version, so maybe I'll go out and get the UK one once the USA one gets cancelled or is concluded.

[nobeaner]

So am I right in assuming that unlike Journeyman, he is actually stuck in one time period?

[wideawakewesley]

So am I right in assuming that unlike Journeyman, he is actually stuck in one time period?

He appears to be stuck in one time period, that's all I'm saying.

[tv-geek]

tsmith15 - the premiere is on tomorrow night (thursday) at 10 my time (EST). so you haven't missed it.

I think NYC is much more interesting since the 70's in NYC was really screwed up (lots of crime and what naught). the clips i saw (in the same YouTube user's list as the one i posted earlier) have some on the set and the cast. pretty neat. I was a little taken aback by all the cast changes, but i think the final cast will be great - Keitel, Imperioli, Mol are all amazing actors.

[tokenuser]

So am I right in assuming that unlike Journeyman, he is actually stuck in one time period?If you enjoyed the premise behind Journeyman, I think you really enjoy Life on Mars.

[lavahot]

(although Colm Meeney as Gene was perfect casting - hope Kietel carries it off as well).

Wait, Chief was going to be Gene Hunt? OMG! THAT IS PERFECT! Why WHY!?

[tokenuser]

Wait, Chief was going to be Gene Hunt? OMG! THAT IS PERFECT! Why WHY!?Yeah, I thought it was great casting too (you might be able to still find the "leaked" pilot out there on the intarwebs if you look hard enough).

[tsmith15]

tsmith15 - the premiere is on tomorrow night (thursday) at 10 my time (EST). so you haven't missed it.


Woo, thank you! I'll probably even watch it live, as I don't think I have plans.

[tv-geek]

I think ABC is doing a live twitter of tonight's premiere. I'm following them now to see what they will do. check it out if you're on twitter. http://twitter.com/LifeOnMarsABC

[tokenuser]

I think ABC is doing a live twitter of tonight's premiere. I'm following them now to see what they will do. check it out if you're on twitter. http://twitter.com/LifeOnMarsABCAnd to think that all this time I have been following @MarsPhoenix to get my Life on Mars updates :)

[wideawakewesley]

And to think that all this time I have been following @MarsPhoenix to get my Life on Mars updates :)

I know! Who knew?

[satori]

I have to see what they've done to it. After watching the original leaked trailer set in California I was a little sad. Changing the location and the cast may be enough to set the show up as something completely separate.

[straylightrise]

I think it did fine - in 3-4 episodes I hope they start writing original episodes so we can see the 'new' writing. I liked it enough to give it

B-

[tsmith15]

I know it's early but I'm going to put my neck out here and say I loved it. Too tired to go into it, but maybe I'll throw in a couple-hundred word reply tomorrow.

[mybigtoe]

I have to see what they've done to it. After watching the original leaked trailer set in California I was a little sad. Changing the location and the cast may be enough to set the show up as something completely separate.

they changed some of it?
cool.. ill check this one out

i loved the original, and its probably the only remake by an american tv company i can actually see the reason for remaking. So i had high hopes for it

[rabidbadger]

I had no clue what it was gonna be at all, just heard it mentioned on twitter, so turned it on (I hardly ever watch tv) And I got sucked in and enjoyed it very much, even though I missed the first five minutes and the last ten. Can I rewatch it online anywhere? I wanna see what I missed so I can watch it every week.

[dgg3565]

Solid. 7/10. Definitely better than the original LA-based preair pilot (which I laid into here (http://revision3.com/forum/showpost.php?p=386105&postcount=44) and here (http://revision3.com/forum/showpost.php?p=386127&postcount=45)). It doesn't rise to the level of the British version yet, but it has the potential, especially since pilot episodes, for American TV, are usually the rough draft/dress rehearsal for the rest of the series. I'm also interested to see how the longer seasons will affect the show. The two eight-ep. seasons of the UK version had the virtue of tightening the pace and moving the plot along, but it's a double-edge, where character development can be a bit forced and truncated (such as with Primeval (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primeval)).

[rabidbadger]

yay, abc website has full ep streaming. Needed a proprietery plugin unlike cbs that just uses flash. BUt hey, loading now...

[satori]

as bad as I thought the US version set in California was I actually like the New York version. This may be because after seeing total crap I'm a bit more open, but I felt like it actually worked. The actor playing Sam Tyler is likely the weakest link, and I think he may of been hired for his lost puppy effect. Still, with Harvey K on the job maybe some skill will rub off.

[rabidbadger]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9W_KKvY9Rg&eurl=http://www.crooksandliars.com/

[rokov]

It was good, but a bit to obvious for me. The two times when the present bled through to 73 proved (to me) that he was in the hospital in 08 and 73 was all in his head. Unless they do something to contradict that and present some other possibilities, I doubt I'll be watching for long.

[damnedeyez]

It was good, but a bit to obvious for me. The two times when the present bled through to 73 proved (to me) that he was in the hospital in 08 and 73 was all in his head. Unless they do something to contradict that and present some other possibilities, I doubt I'll be watching for long.

Yeah, me too. I've never seen the BBC original, but from what people kept saying about it, I was expecting it not to be clear what was going on, exactly. But, the TV and car stereo scenes made it obvious...also the scene with the sounds and light earlier in the station.

It's possible that they intend not to follow the 'what's happening?' aspect, and so got that out of the way in the first episode...either that, or focus groups were confused and they added things that beat them over the head with it.

[wideawakewesley]

The BBC show made it obvious what was going on also.

I just watched the pilot tonight and I have to say I thought it was really good. Admittedly it'll never be as good for me as the original, purely because I don't get a lot of the references now it's set in the states and there's something weird about having Sam be so much taller than Gene (even as menacing as Keitel can be).

The one thing this show has made me realise, is that American TV producers really must think their audiences have no brain at all. They make everything so much more obvious than UK shows by reinforcing points with visual cues.



Best part of the first US episode was when he saw the twin towers for the first time.



The most interesting thing I'm looking forward to is how the show handles racism, homophobia and sexism. In the UK they were very authentic with how attitudes were at the time, but I have my doubts a US show would be so brave.

Wes

[decepticon]

I didn't initially watch the pilot, but I think I'm going to go back and through the magic of BitTorrent watch it. It's sounding interesting now. I saw, and LOVED the UK version, but decided to just skip the US version...thinking now it sounds kinda good.

[satori]

I didn't initially watch the pilot, but I think I'm going to go back and through the magic of BitTorrent watch it. It's sounding interesting now. I saw, and LOVED the UK version, but decided to just skip the US version...thinking now it sounds kinda good.

ok hang on, I'm talking it up a bit, and while I like it, it doesn't hold a candle to the UK version.

[tokenuser]

ok hang on, I'm talking it up a bit, and while I like it, it doesn't hold a candle to the UK version.The second (aired) pilot was much better than the LA one, but I have to agree it wasn't as good as the UK pilot.

I am enjoying the US cultural references though. I guess that being Australian, and heavily influenced by both UK and US culture and music growing up, the references are both pretty cool.

Given that the UK series was 2 series x 8 episodes, and the US have a season run typically of 13, I am looknig forward to when they start adding in original scripts ... or will they just pull in Ashes to Ashes scripts?

Definately a keeper.

Oh yeah, loved the "WTF" moment Sam had when he looked up at the buildings at Liberty & Church.

[mybigtoe]

Given that the UK series was 2 series x 8 episodes, and the US have a season run typically of 13, I am looknig forward to when they start adding in original scripts ... or will they just pull in Ashes to Ashes scripts?


probably a different IP, so itll be a case of having to make up their own 70s crime stories with less of the main story arc going on

[mybigtoe]

It was good, but a bit to obvious for me. The two times when the present bled through to 73 proved (to me) that he was in the hospital in 08 and 73 was all in his head. Unless they do something to contradict that and present some other possibilities, I doubt I'll be watching for long.

its not AS straight forward as that, and this is essentially a direct rip of the UK pilot.. so its the same hints as you get from the UK one.

The main idea for it though isnt the full story arc though.. its an excuse for a stereotypical 70s world to be on tv again

[dgg3565]

The BBC show made it obvious what was going on also.

I just watched the pilot tonight and I have to say I thought it was really good. Admittedly it'll never be as good for me as the original, purely because I don't get a lot of the references now it's set in the States...


Give it time. You'll pick up 90% of it and the other 10% won't matter. My occasional problem was trying to listen to some of the actors speaking with a pronounced accent, mumbling half the time, and then throwing a half dozen slang words to really confuse me.


...and there's something weird about having Sam be so much taller than Gene (even as menacing as Keitel can be).
Agreed. Philip Glenister's Gene Hunt is really what made the show. I really have to get used to Keitel's take.



The one thing this show has made me realise, is that American TV producers really must think their audiences have no brain at all. They make everything so much more obvious than UK shows by reinforcing points with visual cues.
It's more often the TV executives saddling the producers with inane requirements. It's an old habit that a more discerning and vocal audience are slowly breaking them of.



The most interesting thing I'm looking forward to is how the show handles racism, homophobia and sexism. In the UK they were very authentic with how attitudes were at the time, but I have my doubts a US show would be so brave.
Having sat through a few too many preachy episodes of Law and Order, that isn't my concern at all. On the contrary, I worry that they're going to go overboard and show everyone with white bedsheets among their dress uniforms and flipping through copies of the Turner Diaries when they're on break.

[jaxom92]

Not having been alive in the 70's, I can't make much comment towards the cultural references of the time, though I'm thinking of enlisting my parents into watching the show - having come of age in the 70s. And if I watch it with them, I'll get the references through osmosis or something. Hehe.

I also haven't seen the UK version, so my opinion is based purely on the pilot that aired last Thursday...

I really enjoy Harvey Keitel as the Lieutenant of the precinct. It doesn't matter to me that he's shorter than the Sam Tyler character. His attitude and acting ability more than make up for it.

Gretchen Mol is great in her role, along with Michael Imperioli. And I don't think Jason O'Mara is bad at all. Believable in his situation, good acting, etc.

Having the Bowie music in there really helps ground the series in the time-frame they chose, and the choice in year really has a lot of significant things happen in the country that they can play with.

The premise is what hooked me into the show, and the production value, storyline, setting, and acting is what will keep me in the show - pending they continue with the quality work they're producing and writing now. I don't agree that having the three moments in the pilot where the 2008 world came through to the 1973 world was an obvious explanation to what's going on. Sure, it might be straight up he's in a coma, but there are other things it could be. I don't know what they are, but that's the point - it could be anything the writers choose to cook up (but within reason of course). I think there's enough ambiguity and mystery there to keep that part of the story intriguing. And again, I haven't seen the UK original, so I don't know what that premise and explanation was.

I overall greatly enjoyed this pilot and will continue to watch. Hopefully they'll have the episodes online for the entirety of the season because I'm out of the house on Thursday nights at that time slot.

[rabidbadger]

Jaxom, I agree with everything you said, also having not seen the brit version or the original pilot.

I was alive in the 70s, and so far looks like they got most things right. A few too many cliches in the first ep, but they kinda had to to "insist" it's the 70s. Hopefully they'll lighten up on that in the future, 'cause like you said, there was a lot of "real shit going down" then that they can play with.

[jazza]

Watched it last night. It was ok, I think that I might miss alot of the cultural references, but also the pilot really wasn't different from the UK. I might watch the next episode to see what they do, but if it's too similar, I'll give it a miss.

[tv-geek]

I think ABC did a pretty good job remaking the show. It was really interesting to see New York in the 70's. I also absolutely loved the music. I'm looking forward to seeing what else they will do since I heard that they are veering off from the original down the line.

[Bret]

I have never seen the original but I liked the pilot. Its on my "DVR" haha

[tokenuser]

Like Marty changing the future in BTTF2, the Life on Mars pilot might have followed by the BBC script, but it looks like the time lines are going to diverge (http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/TV/10/16/life.on.mars.ap/index.html) ... and the US version might not play out quite the same way.

I'm good with that ... I hate the sense of deja vu you get when you watch a show with recycled scripts - even if the settings are different.

[nshady]

It's cool to hear they had 13 different concepts for what is happening, and that they've picked something different from the UK original.

[tv-geek]

did you see it last night? what did you think? i thought it was really entertaining. Gene is growing on me for sure.

[straylightrise]

When this show starts going off on their original episodes I will be able to judge this show fully :-D

[tokenuser]

OK, I'll say it ... I am enjoying this just as much as the BBC original.

[satori]

damn, I was liking this show until they threw god into the mix... really? Did they really need to do this? I liked it better as an existential exploration... putting god into the mix in no uncertain terms completely slants everything that will happen after. I'm sad about this and hope that it's just a fuck up that they don't revisit at any time in the future or I'm done with this show.

[damnedeyez]

damn, I was liking this show until they threw god into the mix... really? Did they really need to do this? I liked it better as an existential exploration... putting god into the mix in no uncertain terms completely slants everything that will happen after. I'm sad about this and hope that it's just a fuck up that they don't revisit at any time in the future or I'm done with this show.


They could still play it off as his mind created that aspect...but I was thinking the same thing. As an unknown, sure...but to come out and say "hey look", it's a bit much.

[straylightrise]

They've been touching on most of the religious aspects (the hindu/Nirvana stuff a few episodes ago)

I think their going to give us a lot of possible options. As a fan of the UK show I already know how the UK version ended so I want something different in this show. (fingers crossed)

And does this show seem too much like a ABC family drama than a cop show at times? It does to me

[tokenuser]

damn, I was liking this show until they threw god into the mix... really? Did they really need to do this? He is exploring all options. Its still all in his mind (as far as we know).

Last episode focused on the little martian rover things crawling up his nose. Alien abduction was another theory that was on his board in Ep2.

I'm still liking the story. The little flash forwards in this one were great.

Anyone figured out of the hippie chick in his apartment is real or a construct of his psyche yet? We have only ever seen her interact with Tyler - noone else so far. Is she the barman in the UK series? Then again, the detectives all got drinks in that bar, and he interacted with them.

Why is there no bar in this version? Surely they can find a bar in NY that looks as seedy now as it did back in 1973.

[tokenuser]

BUMP.

After last night's Life on Mars, I am finding myself liking the series more and more. It might be based on the UK series, but this is taking it in a different direction with a different feel.

As the only new drama ABC had this season, they had a lot riding on its success, but I think the results have been worth it.

Unfortunately, ABC doesn't agree (http://blogs.courant.com/roger_catlin_tv_eye/2009/03/life-on-mars-cut-short.html) :(

[cole-w]

I quite like it also...

It sucks that they are canceling it, but at least they let the people involved know in enough time so can they wrap up the story.

[damnedeyez]

BUMP.

After last night's Life on Mars, I am finding myself liking the series more and more.


Haven't watched the last one, but I'm glad to hear it was better. I was liking the series until the one last week...I spent most of the episode dumbfounded that they made him basically do a 180 in personality, and the explanation wasn't enough to convince me he'd be that blatant about things unless he went off the deep end without hope of coming back.


Edit: not to mention the crap they did with switching around two episodes when it came back from hiatus.