"Life on Mars"

A discussion on Fark about "Dr. Who" coming to the US Sci-Fi network clued me in to a new BBC show out of the UK: "Life on Mars"... Named after the classic David Bowie track, it's a cop show about a modern-day detective who is sent back to 1973 after an accident.

It's a little goofy, and it's definitely an excuse for using a soundtrack based on that particular era, but the writing and the "hook" is pretty darned interesting. Smoke-filled offices, rampant sexism, awful taste in outerwear... it's all there in hilarious detail. Yet the contrast between "those days" and our modern expectations makes for an interesting twist, and the characters are pretty decently portrayed.

Of course, those of us not priveleged to receive the Beeb will have to resort to the "Global VCR" that is bittorrent to obtain this, but I think it's worth a diversion of bandwidth from the usual anime fansubs to try and keep up with it. At least for the time being.