Life on Mars premiered last night on ABC and so far so good. I liked Jason O’Mara in the lead as Sam Tyler though his being bigger than Harvey Kietel changed the dynamic from the UK original where part of the power of the dirty detective in charge was his physical presence. What he lacks in size he makes up for in determination and nerves of steel. Was it me or does Gretchen Mol look too old to be a fresh out of college police woman? Whatever- the core storytelling was good. Really stuck to the original but added some US touches. I liked the Twin Towers looming over the city as the point that keeps Sam rooted in 1973. The Twin Towers were officially completed in April of 1973 so they act as a real marker in Sam’s world.
Michael Imperioli as the comic relief- his dialog was hysterical! Where did the writers come up with the off the wall comments for him? Really clever and fun- and kudos to him for sporting the stache! Grant Show did it for Swingtown this summer- it takes a very secure man to wear facial hair like that today- yet look through any family’s 70s photo albums and you will find one man with similar styling in there somewhere.
The soundtrack was AWESOME! This has to be costing Fox a fortune (Fox is the production company for the series that airs on ABC) , I hope this doesn’t cause problems when it comes time for DVD releases. Using Baba O’Reilly by the Who to show Sam feeling lost and disoriented while on the streets with Annie trying to desperately get him to see that what is around him is real while he is certain he is on the Yellow Brick Road….refering to Dorothy and her adventures in Oz seeming real but being all a dream.
Here is the trailer for the next episode and two behind the scenes look at the series and how they achieve the look and feel of 1973 New York City.
