rustywriter-292-501345 Reviews

Life After Life (2022)

Unannswered questions leaves some frustration and missed potential

[7/10 · 12 July 2022]

I really like the concept of this groundhog day concept where a women is reborn again and again to change her life. Episode 2 got so drab I began to wonder if she was going to get another chance to change things. Thank God she did!

Killing Hitler is of course always the time travelers' dream but unfortunately we never saw the consequences of her action as she died almost immediately afterwards. It would have been good to see an alternative reality without Hitler's war even if it was changed back again in the next life. That is frustration number one, a missed opportunity.

Then there was a question of Ursula's abusive husband and her mysterious sister that no one remembered. I suspect she had the same last name because she was actually his ex-wife or maybe he was a bigamist but this was never cleared up, just a question left unanswered. Maybe it is explained in the book; I don't know, I haven't read it. Frustration number two.

Also the unecessary fight between him and Teddy when all Teddy had to do before he was pumelled was blurt out that he was Ursula's brother is the third frustration although it hardly mattered as that is when Ursula died.

Then there is the rather odd ending where Ursula seems suddenly resigned to not saving Teddy but this is not made clear, or if she will be reborn and try to change things again. Is this because there will be a second series? Is this how the book ended? Frustration number four.

In spite of this, I enjoyed it overall but it missed a lot of potential and the series could have been longer.

Grange Hill: Episode #1.6 (1978) Season 1, Episode 6

What did they do wrong then?

[4/10 · 25 May 2022]

I'm baffled about just what the kids did wrong. They simply explored what they considered an abandoned building. Their mistake, builders had access to it, either for materials or to rebuild, this was unclear. Being startled and panicked ends in what coud be a fatal accident which is not their fault. Why the school was dealing with this is a mystery - it was out of school hours and therefore out of their jurisdiction, and, apart for tresspassing on private property, what did they need to be punished for again? Doing a bit of curious exploring? Punished for the accident? If it wasn't for the latter, this could have been a complete non-event. I like these old-fashioned shows but I only give this episode a 4 for its illogical outcome.

The Adventures of Black Beauty (1972–1974)

Happy childhood memories but...

[7/10 · 26 April 2022]

I use to watch this when I was young but never fully appreciated it as much as I do now after watching it again more recently. I thought the acting and scripts were great if a little unrealistic with their happy endings at times (case in point - a convict gives up his freedom to save a boy even though he shows no empathy until that moment), and of course Judi Bowker and Stacy Dorning were both knockouts.

I have a long memory though and there was always one main gripe I had with the show. I am a stickler for continuity and I always remember how they never explained what happened to Vicky after the first season. We saw the introduction of her sister Jenny but simply no mention whatsoever of where her predecessor went to, not a letter from her, nor even a whisper from her father. It was as if she never existed. How hard would have been for the scriptwriters to have fixed that one little oversight?

Upon re-watching, the disappearance of at least one of the children in nearly every episode became apparent. Jenny was missing from nearly one fifth of the episodes which is high for a main star (Vicky only missed one in her season). Ned, even though he was living in Doctor Gordon's house, would be nowhere to be seen for weeks. It could be to do with the availability of the actors of course but still, I found it annoying. When one was gone, the others never even talked about them.

Finally, I cannot give this show a 10, because nothing, no horse show ever will compare to my beloved Follyfoot, my favourite horse show of all time, but for what it is and the decade it came from (who does series like this today of simple adventure and relative innocence?) The Adventures of Black Beauty comes a reasonable second.

Australian Survivor (2002– )

Not as bad as many claimed. riveting the last few episodes

[8/10 · 6 September 2016]

I always fondly remember the first season of Australian Survivor as the most riveting I've ever seen in the final few episodes, surpassing the American version by a long shot.

Before the merge it was rather boring, I must admit, and I can understand why so many rubbished the show and didn't hold out till the end but...

...after the merge, the fun really began. All along the players had been officially saying that it was going to be different from the overseas version, no backstabbing, no secret alliances. While this was being said, one player had formed a secret alliance with 3 others, which included the eventual winner; none of the others had a clue. When once of them found out, he was made out to be a liar and was voted off accordingly. I found myself riveted with every scene like no other season as the truth inevitably emerged. Then the instigator of the secret alliance got back stabbed and locked out of the final two. This resulted in an emotional breakdown. The remaining players wanted to quit but were bound by contract.

The series is up on YouTube and it is worth watching after the merge; take my word for it - you won't regret it, It is not a waste of time.

As regards the recent reboot, it is much closer to the American version, which is not necessarily a bad thing. The biggest change is that it is 55 days with 24 players, rather than standard 39 and 16. The show is still in its early episodes as I write this so I have no further comment at this stage.