reviews

So yeah, we’re TV-on-DVD junkies. After wrapping up Ashes to Ashes, season 1, which I thoroughly enjoyed despite it not being a patch on the original Life on Mars, we moved on to a couple of birthday presents provided by my sister. I chose these titles myself, even though one of them, Spooks Code 9 came with a dire warning: DO NOT WATCH THIS CRAPPY SHOW UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.

But being that my particular set of circumstances require me to suck up any and all instances of post apocalypse, we did start watching it and we’re still watching it despite it being completely and utterly ridiculous. Spooks Code 9 is a kids show, yeah? Here’s the premise: London gets nuked. In response, MI5 decides it needs to be staffed entirely by hip young 20-somethings with awesome haircuts because" terrorists are getting younger". When not on the case, the crack team of juvie spies pictured above hang out together in their share house, spending their downtime in ultra-chic nightclubs where they proceed to get hammered and snog each other.

The remake of Terry Nation’s Survivors, however, is post-pandemic drama of the highest order. I’m a big fan of the original mid-70s show. The producers have remained true to the spirit of the original while updating it to address contemporary issues and concerns.

Gripping stuff, folks. Check it out.

10 Comments

  1. I’ve only seen the first episode of the new Survivors but I liked what I saw.

    Did you see the complete 1970s version is out on DVD in Australia now? Whopping big 10 disc 39 episode mega-set.

  2. A remake of Survivors? Oh wow! I loved this as a young teen – my dad encouraged me to watch it when they re-ran it in the 80s. Obviously I’d been too young to watch it when it was originally aired (ie it was on too late) unlike Space 1999 et al that had 7:30pm airtime. (I think, maybe my parents were really cool and let me stay up for 8:30pm programs. Yes, maybe they were).

    Never saw the end of the series though.

  3. Our local PBS station in Dallas ran the original The Survivors several times in the late Eighties and early Nineties, when they realized that returns on running Doctor Who paid the entire station’s budget for the year as of about mid-May. I was very impressed (especially with the fellow who explains the particulars on farming), and now I’m going to have to see if I can get the new show over here in the US.

    As for Spooks Code 9, I’m kinda reminded of US television 25 years ago, when everybody was desperately trying to create a show just like Miami Vice but that couldn’t be sued for plagiarism. At least this means that someone’s watching Torchwood and Primeval

    • If Spooks Code 9 contained even one character over 30, it’d probably work…

    • Oh, so much. Code 9 was BBC3’s attempt to replace Torchwood when it moved to BBC2 — straight-up doing to Spooks what Torchwood did to Doctor Who. *pauses for punchline*

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