User Reviews

Series two of 'Life on Mars' has really taken lots of fan theories about where the show was going and flipped them on their head. And while this makes the show more confusing, it also engages us more in Sam Tyler's plight.

This episode is all about mentors, and features a great final climax that teaches us more about the character of Gene Hunt, but also teases more about the relevance of Hyde.

I thought this was another fun episode of the show.

I've been revisiting the BBC's 'Life On Mars' series ( my first viewing since the original broadcast ) and enjoying it enormously. But this episode ( written by Chris Chibnall ) is, frankly, silly. Nothing wrong with Sam having a black man as mentor, but the scene where Sam apologises for Ray's racism and says that "Things will be a lot better in the future." made me laugh. Are they really, Sam? To be fair, Sam originates from 2006, years before the founding of the 'Black Lives Matter' movement. There would be no need for such a movement if everything was hunky-dory in the world right now. In fact, it seems to me to be a whole lot worse now than it was in DCI Gene Hunt's day. No social media then, for one thing. When England was knocked out of the World Cup a few years back, the outrage levelled at black players was shocking indeed. The death of that great actor Sidney Poitier last year also attracted a good deal of offensive comments on Facebook and Twitter.. Carling's objectionable views are still shared by people not unafraid to express them at every opportunity.

On a lighter note, the scene where Sam visits a news-stand had me cheering. Copies of 'Buster', 'The Hotspur', 'The Victor' and Marvel's 'Avengers' weekly are on display. All I read back in the day. At least someone did their homework properly.