Sapphire & Steel (1979–1982)
10/10
NOT a Science Fiction series - a Fantasy series in a Science Fiction motif!
3 January 2015
And let me just say - bloody excellent! Joanna Lumley and David McCallum were perfect for the roles. I'm sure many of us have dreamed of a reboot...

Well, here's something you may not know. There is an Audio Book *continuation* - yes! set after the roadside café!! - done by The Big Finish, with David Warner and Susannah Harker! They are PERFECT! And even the change in their voices (and their aging) is taken into account! Mark Gatiss even turns up as Gold!

Ahem, frothing a little there.

But yes, I'm sorry this is NOT science fiction. What it is, is a Lovecraftian-type fantasy universe, done with superb low-budget BBC creepiness. In fact it's just BIZARRE. Which is what's so just soul-gorgingly great about it. Its *strangeness*.

And the fantasy story and background are unfolded - with blinding, unbelievably far-looking originality - in a Science Fiction manner. The two protagonists are 'Agents'. Their assistants are called 'Technicians', and 'Engineers'. They rabbit on about the strange properties of the universe they come from: and amazingly, the gibberish is actually rather self-consistent. It hangs together.

There are times you find yourself leaning forward on the couch, squinting, going "I... *almost*... get what they're on about... how's that again...". There are times that it manages to chill your blood - that creeping blackness... brrrr.

There are some moments of unintentional hilarity, yes, just due to the budget and time constraints (unexplained coughing fit...). Who cares.

This series pinned a high-water mark for BBC conceptual-fiction originality. I proudly display my DVD's on the shelf! Newcomers - you will need your brain ON, and not all of the stories 'shine' as much as others. But the ones that do you will not be able to forget, and I mean for all the right, delicious reasons.

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