With Series One now over, and official confirmation from the BBC of the second series fans have many questions. Rightly so too. Alex was unable to stop her parents dying, the true identity of "The Clown" was revealed and Gene (thankfully) averted losing his job from Lord Scarman. Speaking of Lord Scarman played by Geoffrey Palmer, fans of Doctor Who would have instantly recognised him as being Captain Hardaker from last years Christmas Special "Voyage Of The Damned". Life On Mars had connections to Doctor Who through its cast, now I guess its its Ashes turn.
The questions episode eight promted me to ask are:
1. Will we see The Clown in Series 2, now that his true identity has been revealed or will he be replaced with a new character? After all for a while there he was considered to be Ashes version of the channel girl from Life On Mars.
2. Will Alex and Gene, finally get together or will the tension just simply keep continuing to build between them?
3. Will we ever get to see the now ex-Mrs Hunt, or will she just be spoken about and not seen?
4. Have we seen the last of that Delorean and Danny Moore?
5. Will we ever see Sam Tyler again? His body was never found, this could be deliberate in the hope that John Simm will make a cameo at some stage.
6. Now that Layton is out of jail, thanks to Alex's Dad will he pursue Alex in Series 2?
I'm sure many of you out there have similar questions. Another one of mine is, when can we expect some more mechandise? We have the soundtrack already out, the Series 1 DVD Boxset coming soon and a tshirt from DJTees. Surely there is more to come? I'm hoping so, anyway. What are your thoughts, can you bear the wait until next year? Please feel free to comment.
'Til next time Martians / Burn Victims / Ash-heads, whatever you would like to call yourselves and be careful not to have any accidents. You never know where you may end up, 1973, 1981, 1995?
Cyberman
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
40 X 40 = Ashes To Ashes.tv
Greetings all, strange title for post but with good reason. This is the fortieth post on the site, and at the same time the site is approaching its 40,000th visitor. By the time you read this, it may very well have passed that. Well that's my trumpet blowing for the day, you want the the news though and here it is.
Over the past 7 weeks, we have all been treated to Ashes To Ashes series one. The show has unfortunately had its critics, some even piping up after or even before the first episode aired. Not really giving it chance, were they? The Deano agrees, and has written so over at his official site. Next to all the knockers (and I'm not talking about breasts here), the show has also had many positive reviews as well. A large amount of these coming from the famous Ian Wylie, over at the Manchester Evening News. Good on you Ian.
With that said this Thursday the 27th of March, Ashes sees the final episode of series one airing. What a ride its been and the show is finally starting to exhibit some increased tension, between our two main characters. I guess the writers probably did that deliberately, and at a guess will probably leave it to develop further in series two. While we are on the topic of series two, no official announcement has been made yet by the BBC in respect to a second series being picked up. Phil and Keeley have apparently confirmed a second series recently on the Jonathan Ross Show, but did not let on any more than that. I guess we will all find out soon enough though.
On the merchandise front, DJTees have released their second Gene Tshirt at the highly affordable price of £17.99. To sweeten the deal, they also offer free delivery worldwide. Will you be getting one? I know I will. In addition to this, I previously spoke about the fourth coming dvd set. The cover artwork has now been released for it, and in no real surprise at all mirrors the soundtrack artwork as expected. The artwork you can find below.
(Ashes To Ashes Series 1 DVD Artwork)
Well that is about it for this update, the episode breakdowns will return shortly. Sorry for the delay. 'Til next time Martians peace, and will Alex save her parents? I don't think so, changing the past effects the present and could very well hurt Alex in the process. Well just have to wait and see, not long now.....
Cyberman
Over the past 7 weeks, we have all been treated to Ashes To Ashes series one. The show has unfortunately had its critics, some even piping up after or even before the first episode aired. Not really giving it chance, were they? The Deano agrees, and has written so over at his official site. Next to all the knockers (and I'm not talking about breasts here), the show has also had many positive reviews as well. A large amount of these coming from the famous Ian Wylie, over at the Manchester Evening News. Good on you Ian.
With that said this Thursday the 27th of March, Ashes sees the final episode of series one airing. What a ride its been and the show is finally starting to exhibit some increased tension, between our two main characters. I guess the writers probably did that deliberately, and at a guess will probably leave it to develop further in series two. While we are on the topic of series two, no official announcement has been made yet by the BBC in respect to a second series being picked up. Phil and Keeley have apparently confirmed a second series recently on the Jonathan Ross Show, but did not let on any more than that. I guess we will all find out soon enough though.
On the merchandise front, DJTees have released their second Gene Tshirt at the highly affordable price of £17.99. To sweeten the deal, they also offer free delivery worldwide. Will you be getting one? I know I will. In addition to this, I previously spoke about the fourth coming dvd set. The cover artwork has now been released for it, and in no real surprise at all mirrors the soundtrack artwork as expected. The artwork you can find below.
Well that is about it for this update, the episode breakdowns will return shortly. Sorry for the delay. 'Til next time Martians peace, and will Alex save her parents? I don't think so, changing the past effects the present and could very well hurt Alex in the process. Well just have to wait and see, not long now.....
Cyberman
Friday, March 7, 2008
Take Away A2A . . . .
Greetings all. Just a quick update, before I continue with the episode breakdowns. As you all would be aware, the Series 1 boxset has already been given a release date of May 5th 2008. The set is currently available for pre-order at Amazon (UK), Sendit.com, BBCShop and several other outlets online. If you pre-order the set, all outlets are offering a substantial discount which varies from site to site. So anyone ordering now is et to save themselves, big bucks!!!
Well before the boxset hits our shelves, the official soundtrack cd is set to be released on the 17th of March. This can also be pre-ordered from Amazon. The disc has a RRP of £8.98, and offers free delivery in the UK for all orders over £15.00. So why not do your friends a favour and pre-order 2 copies, that way the delivery is free. The disc contains the following tracks . . .
1. Introduction - Dialogue: Alex Drake
2. David Bowie - Ashes To Ashes
3. Visage - Fade To Grey
4. The Human League- Love Action
5. Duran Duran - Girls On Film
6. Dexys Midnight Runners - Geno
7. OMD - Souvenir
8. The Stranglers - No More Heroes
9. The Clash - I Fought The Law
10. Heaven 17 - (We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thing
11. Interlude - Dialogue: You're Nicked
12. Edmund Butt - Gene Genie (Gene Hunt's theme from `Ashes To Ashes')
13. The Passions - In Love With A German Film Star
14. Altered Images - Happy Birthday
15. Joe Jackson - It's Different For Girls
16. Flying Lizards - Money
17. The Beat - Doors Of Your Heart
18. The Ruts - Staring At The Rude Boys
19. The Teardrop Explodes - Reward
20. Tenpole Tudor - Swords Of A Thousand Men
21. Bryan Ferry - Let's Stick Together
22. Ultravox - Vienna
23. Edmund Butt - Title Music from `Ashes To Ashes'
24. Epilogue: Dialogue: Fandabydozy
The disc cover is an adapted version of one of the BBC desktops, currently available from the official site. I imagine this will more than likely serve as a preview for the yet to be released DVD Boxset cover, you can find the cover artwork below.
(Ashes To Ashes - Original Soundtrack Cover Artwork)
Other than these 2 items, many less than official pieces of merchandise have started to appear on ebay.co.uk. These counterfeit or non-endorsed items can found here. The items include tshirts, mouse pads, mugs, key rings, coasters and more. 'Til next time Martians, peace and I hope you are all enjoying Ashes To Ashes. I certainly am . . .
Cyberman
PS: I have a correction to make, in the last post I stated that the A2A font was the same font as used in the movie "Close Encounters Of The Third Kind". This is simply not the case with the logo. Although the 2 fonts are similar and share the "Blinds Effect" throughout the lettering, they are actually different. I just wanted to clear that up.
Well before the boxset hits our shelves, the official soundtrack cd is set to be released on the 17th of March. This can also be pre-ordered from Amazon. The disc has a RRP of £8.98, and offers free delivery in the UK for all orders over £15.00. So why not do your friends a favour and pre-order 2 copies, that way the delivery is free. The disc contains the following tracks . . .
1. Introduction - Dialogue: Alex Drake
2. David Bowie - Ashes To Ashes
3. Visage - Fade To Grey
4. The Human League- Love Action
5. Duran Duran - Girls On Film
6. Dexys Midnight Runners - Geno
7. OMD - Souvenir
8. The Stranglers - No More Heroes
9. The Clash - I Fought The Law
10. Heaven 17 - (We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thing
11. Interlude - Dialogue: You're Nicked
12. Edmund Butt - Gene Genie (Gene Hunt's theme from `Ashes To Ashes')
13. The Passions - In Love With A German Film Star
14. Altered Images - Happy Birthday
15. Joe Jackson - It's Different For Girls
16. Flying Lizards - Money
17. The Beat - Doors Of Your Heart
18. The Ruts - Staring At The Rude Boys
19. The Teardrop Explodes - Reward
20. Tenpole Tudor - Swords Of A Thousand Men
21. Bryan Ferry - Let's Stick Together
22. Ultravox - Vienna
23. Edmund Butt - Title Music from `Ashes To Ashes'
24. Epilogue: Dialogue: Fandabydozy
The disc cover is an adapted version of one of the BBC desktops, currently available from the official site. I imagine this will more than likely serve as a preview for the yet to be released DVD Boxset cover, you can find the cover artwork below.
Other than these 2 items, many less than official pieces of merchandise have started to appear on ebay.co.uk. These counterfeit or non-endorsed items can found here. The items include tshirts, mouse pads, mugs, key rings, coasters and more. 'Til next time Martians, peace and I hope you are all enjoying Ashes To Ashes. I certainly am . . .
Cyberman
PS: I have a correction to make, in the last post I stated that the A2A font was the same font as used in the movie "Close Encounters Of The Third Kind". This is simply not the case with the logo. Although the 2 fonts are similar and share the "Blinds Effect" throughout the lettering, they are actually different. I just wanted to clear that up.
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Series One - Episode One (PART TWO)
Okay I teased you quite a bit there, you're all waiting for an episode synopsis and here it is. The episode begins with with the familiar Sam Tyler self questioning, with a difference this time. "Am I mad in a coma or back in time?", is not being said by Sam but Molly, Alex Drake's daughter. Molly is reading Sam's "Confidential" reports, much to Alex's displeasure. Molly asks Alex will she write about Sam in her memoirs, and is told that Sam is worthy of a book all to himself.
The banter between the 2 is interrupted by Alex's police radio, which informs them that there is a siege taking place down at the docks. Alex arrives on the scene and tells Molly to stay in the car, so she remains safe. When Alex speaks to the officers in attendance, she is told that the gunman has asked for her by name. This perplexes Alex, she immediately goes over to the gunman and enters hostage-negotiation mode. The gunman appears to know Alex, though she has no idea of who he is.
The gunman lets go of the hostage, which further complicates matters as Molly is now out of the car and running to her mother. The obvious outcome of this would be for the gunman to grab Molly, and he does a predictable scene up until this point. The gunman then makes threats to kill Molly if Alex follows them, we hear a gunshot and of course Alex expects the worst. Running down the steps of the Quay to the shore, Alex is stopped by Molly. She has a sense of relief, which is short lived. The gunman appears to have given them the slip, from the surrounding confusion resulting from the gunfire.
Alex thinks her troubles are over and drops Molly off with her step-father, she then heads back to the car to go to the station. As soon as Alex puts her keys in the ignition, she is distracted by the sound of a gun being loaded in the back seat. A voice is then heard directing Alex to drive (a quite predictable but necessary plot development). They get to their destination and Alex is shot by the gunman (Layton), only to wake up in the same place in 1981. Alex's adventure now begins.
The plot of this first episode, I found to be very reminiscent of Life On Mars's very first episode in several ways but I suppose it needed to be to introduce Alex. Firstly in present day in both episodes, a crime is being committed which is connected directly to a crime happening in the past LOM (2006/1973) and A2A (2008/1981). The central character in both suffer near death experiences, which triggers an apparent time shift backwards to an earlier period of their lives. They (Sam & Alex) both encounter Gene Hunt, Chris Skelton and Ray Carling. Perhaps these are more the series' formula, rather than the actual plot. Either way both episodes had very similar story lines.
The episode not only introduces Alex, but also a new character as well which we had seen in promo pictures the character of course being WPC Sharon Granger. Sharon Granger is I suppose A2A's equivalent character to Annie Cartwright from LOM, but with a difference. Unlike Annie Cartwright, Sharon "Shaz" Granger seems to be a stronger character. This is more than likely due to the fact that Shaz is living in a time, where women were starting to become more equal in the work place. Though Gene's and Ray's archaic attitude to women, still manage to crush her spirit. Shaz also has a much more outgoing personality, and seems to be modelled (in hair at least) on one of the Human League's back up singers. It will be interesting to see how her character evolves over the series. Oh I forgot to mention, Shaz is Chris "the Div"'s girlfriend too.
Any way thats about it for this post, I'm sorry this site has started to fall behind now that Ashes is actually being screened. Over the next week I intend to play catch up, so by the screening of epidode 5 we will actually have full breakdowns of each episode. 'Til next time Martians / Burn Victims, peace. Also if anyone is curious about what font the titles are done in, its actaully the same font that was used for "Close Encounters of The Third Kind".
Cyberman
The banter between the 2 is interrupted by Alex's police radio, which informs them that there is a siege taking place down at the docks. Alex arrives on the scene and tells Molly to stay in the car, so she remains safe. When Alex speaks to the officers in attendance, she is told that the gunman has asked for her by name. This perplexes Alex, she immediately goes over to the gunman and enters hostage-negotiation mode. The gunman appears to know Alex, though she has no idea of who he is.
The gunman lets go of the hostage, which further complicates matters as Molly is now out of the car and running to her mother. The obvious outcome of this would be for the gunman to grab Molly, and he does a predictable scene up until this point. The gunman then makes threats to kill Molly if Alex follows them, we hear a gunshot and of course Alex expects the worst. Running down the steps of the Quay to the shore, Alex is stopped by Molly. She has a sense of relief, which is short lived. The gunman appears to have given them the slip, from the surrounding confusion resulting from the gunfire.
Alex thinks her troubles are over and drops Molly off with her step-father, she then heads back to the car to go to the station. As soon as Alex puts her keys in the ignition, she is distracted by the sound of a gun being loaded in the back seat. A voice is then heard directing Alex to drive (a quite predictable but necessary plot development). They get to their destination and Alex is shot by the gunman (Layton), only to wake up in the same place in 1981. Alex's adventure now begins.
The plot of this first episode, I found to be very reminiscent of Life On Mars's very first episode in several ways but I suppose it needed to be to introduce Alex. Firstly in present day in both episodes, a crime is being committed which is connected directly to a crime happening in the past LOM (2006/1973) and A2A (2008/1981). The central character in both suffer near death experiences, which triggers an apparent time shift backwards to an earlier period of their lives. They (Sam & Alex) both encounter Gene Hunt, Chris Skelton and Ray Carling. Perhaps these are more the series' formula, rather than the actual plot. Either way both episodes had very similar story lines.
The episode not only introduces Alex, but also a new character as well which we had seen in promo pictures the character of course being WPC Sharon Granger. Sharon Granger is I suppose A2A's equivalent character to Annie Cartwright from LOM, but with a difference. Unlike Annie Cartwright, Sharon "Shaz" Granger seems to be a stronger character. This is more than likely due to the fact that Shaz is living in a time, where women were starting to become more equal in the work place. Though Gene's and Ray's archaic attitude to women, still manage to crush her spirit. Shaz also has a much more outgoing personality, and seems to be modelled (in hair at least) on one of the Human League's back up singers. It will be interesting to see how her character evolves over the series. Oh I forgot to mention, Shaz is Chris "the Div"'s girlfriend too.
Any way thats about it for this post, I'm sorry this site has started to fall behind now that Ashes is actually being screened. Over the next week I intend to play catch up, so by the screening of epidode 5 we will actually have full breakdowns of each episode. 'Til next time Martians / Burn Victims, peace. Also if anyone is curious about what font the titles are done in, its actaully the same font that was used for "Close Encounters of The Third Kind".
Cyberman
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