You may remember the short lived American series of the same name. The American series was a cheap rip off of the original. When the American version aired, I avoided watching it because the plot didn't really appeal to me. About halfway through the series, however, I picked it up and got hooked. I have watched part of the American series again after watching the British and I was really disappointed (You have no idea how I cringed when I thought Harvey Cartel might come out of the pool in a speedo in the second episode. Phillip Glennister is no hottie, but I'd already seen way too much of Harvey Cartel thanks to the Piano.) While the British version is the best written television show I've seen, the American version is definitely not. The American version suffered from bad casting, copycatting, horrible pacing, and a complete lack of edginess. The British version excelled because it had an amazing cast and never relented in pushing the series as far as it could go.
Life on Mars stars John Simm as D.I. Sam Tyler and Phillip Glennister as D.C.I. Gene Hunt. LoM is basically a cop show with a scifi twist. In 2006, Sam is hit by a car and he wakes up in 1973. He doesn't know if he's a time traveler, insane, or in a coma. Throughout the series, we see a lot of evidence for options two and three. Sam often receives calls from 2006 and hears the beeping sounds of a heart monitor. He has hallucinations of a creepy little girl and her stuffed clown and also of people taking to him through his television set. Through his bouts with madness, he has Annie Cartwright to help him. She is a police officer in the woman's unit and the most patient person you can imagine. She listens to all of his ranting and becomes his friend (their relationship is the sweetest I've ever seen in movies or television). At the station much of the tension is concerned with Sam adjusting to the old way of doing things. He has no computer, it takes two weeks for finger prints to come back from processing, and people mishandle evidence without a second thought. He brings about some changes like he always records interrogations and he begins protecting crime scenes. These changes aren't enough, however, to combat the violence and unconventional methods of his superior officer, Gene Hunt.
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| Sam, Gene, and Annie |
The most important relationship in the series is between Gene and Sam. They each have very different methods when it comes to their profession. Sam is by the book and Gene, well, he has his own way of doing things. Gene beats up those he interrogates, he threatens, he makes deals with bad guys, and he covers up evidence. Obviously, they clash constantly. It is really difficult to get Gene Hunt across properly in writing. He's racist, sexist, and about any other 'ist' you can think of, but still you can't help but like him. He's unapologetically himself and the viewer appreciates this about him. Sam, thankfully, is the one who has to deal with him and not us. These characters slowly gain a mutual appreciation for each other. The final conflict of the series revolves around their relationship - Sam is given the choice to betray Gene and return to his old life or stick with him. Its a harder decision for Sam than you would expect. These two men have a very unusual bromance.
After rewatching the first episode of the series, I was surprised to find how much it ties in to both the season one finale and the series finale. In the first episode, we are given a brief glimpse of a woman in a red dress running through the woods. We see this image repeatedly throughout season one, but it isn't until the final episode that we discover why this image/memory is so important to Sam. The final scene of the first episode is also very telling. Sam is standing on a roof preparing to jump. He believes that in jumping he can return to his real life. In the final episode of the series, he stands on the same roof with the same dilemma. I really don't want to give anything away. The treat of the series is seeing how everything fits together.
I could go on and on about how much I love this show, but I've written enough for now. I'll probably go into more specifics another day since I am excited to work my way through the series once again. The entire series is short (not even the length of your average American season) but its worth every minute. The series finale, in particular, is absolutely amazing - perfectly paced and wonderfully executed. The ending is open to debate but, as there is a spinoff series called Ashes to Ashes, it couldn't have had the starker ending it probably deserved. (Gene Hunt returns in the spinoff, but Sam does not. Keeley Hawes is the "time traveler" this time. The series hasn't yet been released in the U. S. but I'm hoping it will come out soon since its just finished its run on BBC America.) All I can say is that LOST could have taken some pointers from Life on Mars.
P.S. Just so you know, as Life on Mars is a British show, the content can be iffy at times, but most of the series would be rated PG-13.
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