I'll come out, as a die hard BBC LoM fan, and say that the pilot didn't turn me off. I have no feels for Jason O'Whatshisname, but he's got a lot to live up to in my book. It didn't seem like he did anything other than a prolonged John Simm impression-sans accent. <---in case it isn't obvious where my loyalties lie, see icon. I love me some John Simm. Harvey Keitel made a good Gene and I can dig it, even if I'm having some trouble figuring out how he can be Gene. Gene's a physical guy, burly, tough, not to be crossed. Harvey Keitel is old. Michael Imperioli and Gretchen Moll were OK, but the original Ray and Annie are burned into my mind. These characters are all so much bigger to me than that one episode allows them to be that I'm uncomfortable saying I like the show. Right now, I do, but if ABC changes something that I consider vital about any of the characters (I'm a little peeved that Annie isn't Annie Cartwright. Who is this Annie Norris person? This episode was almost scene by scene a remake of the original and I wonder how much I projected the show as I know it onto the episode. As far as another city that is an iconic as Manchester, I would think that Akron, OH (or Cleveland or Pittsburgh) would have made a good setting. NE Ohio and Western PA were major industrial cities that were starting to die and become the Rust Belt we all know and (I, at least) escaped. I think that would have fit the mood pretty well. But no one asked me.

First, here is the URL for where you can find a legal copy of the PDF file of the original version of the show. The site in general - BBC Writer’s Room – is kind of a collective writing workshop and always is filled with interesting things. Script URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/insight/downloads/scripts/life_on_mars_ep_1.pdf BBC Writer’s Room Script Archive: http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/insight/script_archive.shtml For the show, I think it works with the US audience. The UK version was a little more refined, but that is probably just because of how the shooting schedule works over there; an entire season is often filmed before the broadcast of the pilot episode, unless they are trying to test-run a pilot (such as the case in Being Human). And the UK seasons are shorter, so we’ll probably get the full series run in the US if there is a full season ordered by ABC. Characterization. Ray works well for the US audience, as does Gene; and they both look the part remarkably well. Annie could be good if she could relax more, and Chris is not buffoonish enough. O’Mara doesn’t really have much chemistry there, but he’s improved. I still miss some of the UK lines, but they were lines that would not make sense to the US audience (“It’s five pm and I’m having hoops for dinner”). I can see where some of the things that define the characters had to be cut to fit the entire episode into the US timeslot, but hopefully with some time, it will be developed. One other thing that bugged me is that some of the production effects that made the original work – the specific music cues and the point where Gene and Sam jumped over the desk – didn’t work here. They were just either too early or at a point where it was almost an afterthought. In the original, when Mrs. Raimes tells Gene and Sam that the music stopped, they jumped over the desk immediately and the music started. Here, not so much. The music starts, everyone moves around a bit, and then the two jump. Why bother by that point when they had obviously moved around the desk already? It’s more like the director decided to put things because they were in the UK version rather than work out a reason for doing it. I did like how the ending of the episode differed. In the original, I didn’t like how Annie’s boyfriend was stalking Sam and playing a prank on him. That was just bad-form. But, this worked much better – both the arrest and Sam stalking Colin as a kid, as well as Maya coming on the “radio” to tell him that she was safe. Overall, this was a huge improvement on the leaked premiere.

I still haven't had the nerve to watch this. It’s five pm and I’m having hoops for dinner Easy enough to plug in Spaghetti-Os and you're good to go!

Come on, Fid! Isn't my glowing endorsement enough for you? Don't you trust my relative lack of disgust? What fun are you?

Someone posted this elsewhere as a response to the US LoM: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v247/Examun/Motivators/motivator3956079.jpg and http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v247/Examun/Motivators/motivator5382582.jpg Easy enough to plug in Spaghetti-Os and you're good to go! What grown US 1973 NY cop would admit to that? Not the Gene Hunt surely!

NBC fires Heroes producers. But they kept Kring. Huh? I've got to admit I only watched about half of the episodes last season, and gave up without even watching all of the first one this season.

What grown US 1973 NY cop would admit to that? Not the Gene Hunt surely! Dude, it was the go-to canned dinner for bachelors in the early 70s. Trust me. Gene Hunt doesn't look like the type of man to cook. ;-)

So who watched Dollhouse? I love me some Joss Whedon, but I found the pilot creepy - it kinda freaked me out. I didn't think it was great, but it has potential. I'm always willing to give JW a chance. Buffy wasn't genius from the first episode either and look how that turned out!

I miss the snappy Whedon dialog. I understand that we can't really expect that sort of dialog from the character of Echo yet, but I wasn't hooked by the plot either. But I'll keep watching because it is Whedon. Maybe it just needs to pick up some steam. Did you catch that white "dress" that ED was wearing in the first few scenes? You could practically see her hoo-hoo! :shock:

I wasn't crazy about it (the show, not the skin, because both Tahmoh and Eliza are hot), but I'll give it a couple more shots. Unfortunately, I'm more interested in Harry Lennix and Amy Acker's stories than anyone else and, save for the curiosity factor of Amy's scars, I suspect those aren't the two characters I'm supposed to be initially invested in. I'm just worried that the show doesn't actually have a POV and is just working things out as it goes along. I know that FOX didn't really do any favors what with all the reshooting and shuffling, but I don't know. I know that there other factors at play (FOX owns ED, JW wanted to work with ED) but it would be nice to see a JW show picked up by a cable net that would have lower expectations and allow more creative freedom. a JW show on HBO? That would be sweet. Related: I spent about twenty minutes on twitter the other night watching an overly invested, overly defensive fan of the show totally lose her shit on people who dared to not like the first episode. It was awesome. They weren't even ripping on it, they were just disappointed by it, but she was having none of that. It was a thing of beauty watching her go back and forth with them, with the name calling and the "you're not worth my time". All in 140 character blocks.

Did you catch that white "dress" that ED was wearing in the first few scenes? You could practically see her hoo-hoo! Shocked I know! I was like "OMG! I'm not your gyno, lady!" That said, she is seriously hot (as is TP) I wish I had seen the Twitter freakout. I was text messaging back and forth with my old roomie. She thinks Boyd's voice sounds like Obama's. :lol: I'll always give any Joss project time.

I'm more interested in Harry Lennix and Amy Acker's stories than anyone else and, save for the curiosity factor of Amy's scars, I suspect those aren't the two characters I'm supposed to be initially invested in. I completely agree. Also, did anyone else think that there was a little bit of chemistry between Amy Acker's character and Echo, or are my slash goggles on too tight?

I liked Harry Lennix's character as well. There was definitely some sort of spark - I wonder how long before the fic starts - if it hasn't already!

I'm sure it started as soon as the two actresses were cast. There was something there, but I couldn't pinpoint what it was. Definite chemistry between them, though. I'd also like to know what the backstory is between Acker and Topher. I couldn't really wrap my head around Topher: is he a mad scientist or a narcissist? Or both?